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hereinafter , an embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings . [ 0045 ] fig1 schematically shows the configuration of an electronic endoscope system 1 according to an embodiment of the invention . the electronic endoscope system 1 includes an electronic endoscope 100 , and a processor 200 for processing signals from the electronic endoscope 100 . the electronic endoscope 100 includes an flexible inserting tube 110 to be inserted into a human body and an operation portion 120 connected to the proximal end of the inserting tube 110 . the electronic endoscope 100 further includes a connector 130 which is detachably connected to the processor 200 . a solid state imaging device such as a ccd 104 and an objective optical system 101 for forming an optical image on a light receiving surface of the ccd 104 are provided to the distal end portion of the inserting tube 110 . further , one or more operation buttons 107 are provided to the operation portion 120 for controlling the operation of the processor 200 . further , a memory such as an eeprom 102 is provided to the electronic endoscope 100 for storing data related to the endoscope 100 , in particular , data intrinsic to each endoscope . in the present embodiment , the eeprom 102 is located in the connector 130 . the processor 200 includes a cpu 201 which is connected to the operation buttons 107 and the eeprom 102 via an signal cable 108 of the endoscope 100 . the cpu 201 controls the operation of the processor 200 in accordance with the signals from the operation buttons 107 . the cpu 201 also accesses to the eeprom 102 to retrieve data stored therein . the cpu 201 is further connected to an input unit , such as a keyboard 400 , via an interface 212 , to control the operation of the processor 200 in accordance with the commands inputted through the keyboard 400 . an operation panel 207 is provided to the processor 200 . a plurality of operation buttons ( not shown ) are arranged on the operation panel 207 at the portion exposed to outside of the case of the processor 200 . such that an operator of the endoscope system 1 can press each button . each button outputs a signal to the cpu 201 , as being pressed , to control the operation of the processor 200 . the processor includes a light source 203 optically connected to the end of a light guide 103 that is arranged throughout the electronic endoscope 100 from the connector 130 to the tip end of the inserting tube 110 . the light emitted from the light source 203 is transmitted through the light guide 103 to illuminate the area in front of the tip end of the inserting tube 110 . an diaphragm 210 is provided on the light path of the light emitted from the light source 203 to restrict the amount of light introduced into the light guide 103 . an diaphragm controller 211 controls the opening size of the diaphragm 210 , or the amount of light introduced into the light guide 103 , in accordance with signals from the cpu 201 . the operator can freely control the opening size of the diaphragm 210 by operating the keyboard 400 or the operation panel 207 . first and second signal processors 204 and 205 are provided to the processor 200 to display images captured by the ccd 104 on a monitor 300 . the first signal processor 204 receives the signal from the ccd 104 via a ccd signal cable 109 and transforms it into rgb digital image data represented in 256 levels of gray scale . the first signal processor 204 outputs the digital image data to the second signal processor 205 which generates video signal , such as ntsc , from the digital image data . the second signal processor 205 also adjusts the white balance of the video signal based on calibration data wr ( r ) and wr ( b ) received from the cpu 201 as will be described later . the second signal processor 205 outputs the video signal to the monitor 300 so that the monitor 300 displays the image captured by the ccd 104 . note that the output device to which the second signal processor 205 may be connected is not limited to the monitor 300 , however , the second signal processor 205 may also be connected to other kinds of output devices such as video printer , for example . a crt controller 206 is provided to the processor to superimpose text information on the image displayed on the monitor 300 . the crt controller 206 generates video signals representing the text information , the patient information and so on , requested by the cpu 201 and output the video signals to the monitor 300 in synchronization with the video signal from the second signal processor 205 . in this way , the processor 200 superimposes arbitrary text information obtained from the cpu 201 on the image captured by the ccd 104 . the text information may include information obtained from the eeprom 102 . the processor 200 is also provided with a real time clock ( rtc ) 209 and a memory 208 . the rtc 209 provides information on current date & amp ; time to the cpu 201 . the memory 208 is adapted to include one or more databases of data related to endoscopes , as will be described later . [ 0060 ] fig2 shows an exemplary format of the data in the eeprom 102 , and fig3 shows an example of the content of the data stored in the eeprom 102 . in the present embodiment , the storage capacity of the eeprom 102 is 16 bytes . the following information are stored in the eeprom 102 in the following order . 1 ) “ serial no .” ( three bytes ): the serial number of the electronic endoscope 100 which is unique for each endoscope . the “ serial no .” may be set to one of values from 1 through 16777215 ( 0 × 1 through 0 × ffffff hexadecimal digit ). 2 ) “ scope name ” ( six bytes ): six alphanumeric characters representing the type of the electronic endoscope 100 . 3 ) “ wb ( r )” ( one byte ) a calibration value of the red color brightness for adjusting white balance of the image captured by the ccd 104 . 4 ) “ wb ( b )” ( one byte ): a calibration value of the blue color brightness for adjusting white balance of the image captured by the ccd 104 . both “ wb ( r )” and “ wb ( b )” can take a value between − 128 and 127 . as shown in fig3 “ wb ( r )” and “ wb ( b )” are respectively set to − 4 and 10 ( 0 × 7c and 0 × 8a in hexadecimal digit ) in the present embodiment . this indicates that the brightness of red color should be decreased by four levels in gray scale , while the brightness of blue should be increased by ten levels . 5 ) “ ownership ” ( one byte ): a variable representing whether the endoscope is purchased or leased . “ ownership ”= 0 , 1 and 2 ( 0 × 0 , 0 × 1 , and 0 × 2 in hexadecimal digit ) respectively represents the endoscope is purchased , leased for a long term ( a term not less than 30 days , for example ), and leased for a short term ( term less than 30 days , for example ). 6 ) “ spec ” ( one byte ): a variable representing the specification of the electronic endoscope 100 . if the electronic endoscope 100 is a standard type , then “ speck ” is set to 0 . if the electronic endoscope is a custom made endoscope , then “ spec ” is set to a value corresponding to the particular specification . in the present embodiment , “ spec ” is set to 1 which indicates the optical system 101 includes a lens applied with special coatings . 7 ) “ expiration ” ( three bytes ): the expiration date of the lease of the electronic endoscope 100 . the first one byte of “ expiration ” indicates the year , the next one the month , and the last one the day . in the example shown in fig3 value 040331 is assigned to “ expiration ” which indicates the expiration of the lease is mar . 31 , 2004 . if the electronic endoscope 100 is a purchased one , then 000000 is assigned to “ expiration ”. among the items recited above , the “ serial no .”, “ scope name ”, “ ownership ”, and “ expiration ” are examples of information for managing endoscopes , while “ wb ( r )”, “ wb ( b )”, and “ spec ” are examples of information representing the characteristics of endoscopes . the data of eeprom 102 are copied to the memory 208 of the processor 200 as the electronic endoscope 100 is connected to the processor 200 for the first time to register the endoscope to one of the database . [ 0071 ] fig4 shows an exemplary structure of the database established in the memory 208 of the processor 200 . the memory 208 - is operated by the cpu 201 such that it includes at least two data aggregates each of which being defined to correspond to a specific condition of the endoscopes . in the present embodiment , two data files of csv format , for example , are established in the memory 208 as two data aggregates . one of the data file , “ file - 0 ”, is defined to register data related to purchased endoscopes , or endoscopes of which “ ownership ” is set to 0 , while the other data file , “ file - 1 ”, is defined to register data related to leased endoscope , or endoscopes of which “ ownership ” is set to 1 or 2 . it should be noted , however , that the memory 208 may also include three data files , and utilize the first one for registering data related to purchased endoscopes , the second one for registering data related to endoscopes leased for long term (“ ownership ”= 1 ), and the third one for registering data related to endoscopes leased for short term (“ ownership ”= 2 ). each data file includes 39 records and each record is defined for storing data related to one specific endoscope . thus , data of 39 endoscopes can be stored in each of the data files . “ register no .” is utilized for identifying the record . in the present embodiment , a serial number from 1 to 39 is assigned to the records . “ scope name ”, “ serial no .”, “ wb ( r )” and “ wb ( b )”, “ ownership ”, “ spec ”, and “ expiration ”, are items same as that in the eeprom 102 . “ registered date & amp ; time ” is the date and time when the electronic endoscope 100 is connected to the processor 200 for the first time . “ registered date & amp ; time ” includes six figures date information and four figures time information . if “ registered date ” is set to “ 001015 . 1424 ”, for example , then it represents oct . 15 , 2000 , 2 : 24 p . m . “ used date & amp ; time ” is the date and time when the electronic endoscope 100 was connected to the processor 200 , or used , for the last time . the format of “ used date & amp ; time ” is same as that of “ registered date & amp ; time ” “ count ” is the number of times the electronic endoscope 100 is connected to the processor 200 , or used . this variable may be used as an indication of the frequency in use of the endoscope . [ 0091 ] fig5 is a flow chart showing the main routine related to the operation of the processor 200 according to first embodiment of the invention . at first , the cpu 201 of the processor 200 initializes a variable “ current_scope ” to 0 ( s 100 ). the variable “ current 13 scope ” is for storing the “ register no .” of the record in which the data of the endoscope currently connected to the processor 200 are stored . if 0 is assigned to “ current_scope ”, it represents that no endoscope is currently connected to the processor 200 . after the initialization of “ current_scope ”, the cpu 201 waits until the electronic endoscope 100 is connected to the processor 200 if there isn &# 39 ; t any ( s 102 ). if the electronic endoscope 100 is connected to the processor 200 ( s 102 : yes ), the cpu 201 accesses to the eeprom 102 of the electronic endoscope 100 and obtains the data stored therein ( s 104 ). next , the first and second signal processors transform the output signal from the ccd 104 into video signal to display the image captured by the ccd ( s 106 ). then , the cpu 201 displays the “ scope name ” of the currently connected electronic endoscope 100 on the monitor 300 ( s 108 ). further , the cpu 201 opens one of the data files in the memory 208 ( s 11 o ), and then stores the data obtained from the eeprom 102 therein ( s 112 ). next , the white balance of the image captured by the ccd 104 of the electronic endoscope 100 is adjusted using the calibration value (“ wb ( r )”, “ wb ( b )”) obtained form the eeprom 102 ( s 114 ). that is , the cpu 201 sends the calibration value of “ wb ( r )” and “ wb ( b )” to the second signal processor 205 so that the second signal processor 205 adjusts the color balance of the image signals generated there . after s 114 , the processor watches whether the endoscope 100 is still connected , and as long as the electronic endoscope 100 is still connected to the processor 200 ( s 116 : yes ), the processor 200 displays the current date and time on the monitor 300 ( s 118 ), and also performs various kinds of adjustments in accordance with manual operation by the operator ( s 120 ). if the electronic endoscope 100 is disconnected from the processor 200 , the cpu 201 closes the file opened in s 110 ( s 122 ). after s 122 , the operation of the processor 200 goes back to s 100 . [ 0099 ] fig6 is a flow chart showing a subroutine display scope name called in s 108 of the main routine shown in fig5 . in scope name displaying routine , the cpu 201 first decides whether the currently connected endoscope is a purchased one or a leased one . this is done by checking the value of “ ownership ” obtained from the eeprom 102 ( s 152 ). if “ ownership ” indicates the endoscope is purchased , i . e ., “ ownership ”= 0 , then cpu 201 sends the alphanumeric characters of the “ scope name ” obtained from the eeprom 102 to the crt controller 206 to superimpose the type of the electronic endoscope 100 on the image captured by the ccd 102 and displayed on the monitor 205 ( s 154 ). if “ ownership ” indicates the endoscope is leased , i . e ., “ ownership ”= 1 or 2 , then the cpu 201 sends the characters indicated by “ scope name ” together with characters “ leased ” to the crt controller to superimpose those characters on the image displayed on the monitor 300 ( s 156 ). after the execution of s 154 or s 156 , the operation of the processor 200 returns to the main flow shown in fig5 . [ 0103 ] fig7 is a flow chart showing a subroutine file open called in s 110 of the main routine shown in fig5 . in this routine , the cpu 201 selects the data file , or database , for storing the data of the electronic endoscope 100 in accordance with the ownership of the electronic endoscope 100 . that is , the cpu 201 checks the state of “ ownership ” obtained from the eeprom 102 ( s 172 ). if “ ownership ” is 0 , indicating the endoscope is purchased , then the cpu 201 select the data file “ file - 0 ” by substituting the file name into a character string “ file name ” ( s 174 ). if “ ownership ” is 1 or 2 , indicating the endoscope is leased , then the cpu 201 selects the data file “ file - 1 ” ( s 176 ). after the selection of the data file , the cpu 201 accesses the memory 208 and opens the data file specified by “ file name ”. it should be noted that the data file to be opened may also be determined based on information of “ scope name ”, “ spec ” and / or “ expirations ” of the endoscopes . further , the data file to be opened may be determined based on information manually inputted through input units such as the keyboard 400 , instead of the data obtained from the eeprom 102 . [ 0106 ] fig8 is a flow chart showing a subroutine endoscope registration called in s 112 of the main routine of fig5 . in this routine , the cpu 201 decides whether or not the data related to the currently connected endoscope is already registered with the memory 208 ( s 202 ). this is achieved by searching within the data file opened in s 110 for a record including data that matches the “ scope name ” and “ serial no .” obtained from the eeprom 102 . if there is a record including the above mentioned data ( s 202 : yes ), it means the data of the electronic endoscope 100 currently connected is already registered with the memory 208 . in this case , the “ register no .” of the record found is set to “ current_scope ” ( s 204 ) and the operation of the processor 200 proceeds to s 220 which will be described latter . if a record including the above mentioned data is not found , it means the electronic endoscope 100 is not yet registered ( s 202 : no ). in this case , the cpu 201 checks whether there is still any available memory space , or open records , in which the data except for the “ register no .” are empty , within the data file to register the data obtain from the eeprom 102 ( s 206 ). in the case where there is still an open record ( s 206 : yes ), the “ register no .” of the open record is set to “ current scope ” ( s 208 ). if there are more than one open records , the smallest “ register no .” is preferably selected and set to the “ current scope ”. after execution of s 208 , the operation of the processor 200 proceeds to s 216 which will be described later . in the case where no open record is found ( s 206 : no ), then the “ register no .” of the record including the oldest “ registered date & amp ; time ” is specified ( s 210 ), and the data of the record identified by the specified “ register no .” is deleted , except for the “ register no ”, to free up the record ( s 212 ). further , the specified “ register no .” is set to “ current_scope ” ( s 214 ). after the execution of s 208 or s 214 , the cpu 201 stores the data obtained from eeprom 102 , or the data of currently connected electronic endoscope 100 , into the record identified by the register number in “ current_scope ” ( s 216 ). specifically , the cpu 201 stores “ serial no .”, “ scope name ”, “ wb ( r )”, “ wb ( b )”, “ ownership ”, “ spec ”, and “ expiration ” obtained from the eeprom 102 into the record . in this manner , the data of the new endoscope is automatically registered with the database . next , the cpu 201 obtains the current date and time information from the rtc 209 and stores it in “ registered date & amp ; time ” of the record specified by “ register no .” ( s 218 ). this is to make a record of the date and time of registration of the new electronic endoscope 100 , after the execution of s 218 or s 204 , “ used date & amp ; time ” and “ count ” of the record specified by “ current scope ” are updated . that is , the current time information obtained from the rtc 209 is overwritten to “ used date & amp ; time ” ( s 220 ), and “ count ” is incremented by one ( s 222 ). after s 222 , the operation of the processor 200 returns to the main flow shown in fig5 . [ 0116 ] fig9 is a flow chart showing a subroutine display date & amp ; time in s 118 of the main routine shown in fig5 . in this routine , the cpu 201 checks whether or not the date and time information of a variable “ date & amp ; time ” indicates the exact time by comparing “ date & amp ; time ” with the date and time information from the rtc 209 ( s 242 ). if the difference between the two pieces of the date and time information is less than a second , then the cpu 201 decides the two pieces of the date and time information are same ( s 242 : yes ). in this case , the operation of the processor 200 immediately returns to the main flow of in fig5 without updating the “ date & amp ; time ”. if the difference between the two date and time information is not less that one second ( s 242 : no ), then the date and time information from the rtc 209 , or the current date and time , is set to “ date & amp ; time ” ( s 244 ). then , the cpu 201 generates text information indicating the date and time stored in “ date & amp ; time ” such as “ may 21 , 2002 , 15 : 20 : 31 ”, for example , and sends it to the crt controller 206 to superimpose the current date and time on the image displayed by the monitor 300 ( s 246 ). in this manner , time information displayed is updated every second . after the execution of s 246 , the operation of the processor 200 returns to the main flow shown in fig5 . [ 0121 ] fig1 is a flow chart showing a subroutine adjustment in s 120 of the main routine shown in fig5 . this routine is for allowing the operator to manually adjust the white balance of the image captured by the ccd 104 , and the opening size of the diaphragm 210 . in this routine , the cpu 201 decides whether or not the adjustment of white balance is requested by checking the signals from the keyboard 400 , the operation panel 207 , and the operation buttons 107 ( s 262 ). if there is a request ( s 262 : yes ), then the cpu 201 rewrites the value of the “ wb ( r )”, “ wb ( b )” in the record specified by “ current scope ” in accordance with the signal from the keyboard 400 , the operation panel 207 , or the operation buttons 107 ( s 264 ). further , the cpu 201 sends the value of latest “ wb ( r )” and “ wb ( b )” to the second signal processor 205 so that the second signal processor 205 re - adjusts the white balance of the image generated there ( s 266 ). after the execution of s 266 or in the case there isn &# 39 ; t any request for white balance adjustment ( s 262 : no ), the cpu 201 checks again the output signals from the keyboard 400 , the operation panel 207 , and the operation buttons 107 to decide whether or not the adjustment of diaphragm is requested ( s 268 ). if there is a request ( s 268 : yes ), then the cpu 201 opens / closes the diaphragm 210 , via the diaphragm controller 211 , in accordance with the request from the keyboard 400 , the operation panel 207 , or the operation buttons 107 to control the amount of light introduced into the light guide 103 ( s 270 ). if there isn &# 39 ; t any request ( s 268 : no ), the operation of the processor returns to the main flow of fig5 . it should be noted that the operation of processor 200 described in fig5 through fig1 may be modified in many ways within the scope of the invention . for example , s 210 in the subroutine endoscope registration shown in fig8 may be replaced with a step that specifies the “ register no .” of the record including the oldest “ used date & amp ; time ” as shown in fig1 ( see s 210 ). if s 210 is replaced with s 210 , the data related to the endoscope not used recently , and may have the lowest possibility to be used again in the future , is deleted to free up memory space for registering data of the new endoscope . further , s 212 in fig8 may also be canceled if data is overwritten in s 214 through s 216 . the manner of managing the data in the memory 208 may also be modified in many ways . for example , a plurality of areas may be defined within one data file of the memory 208 , and data of the electronic endoscope 100 may be registered in the area corresponding to the feature of the electronic endoscope 100 indicated by “ ownership ”, “ spec ”, and / or “ expiration ”, or any data inputted manually into the keyboard 400 . [ 0129 ] fig1 schematically shows an address map of the memory 208 in which two data areas are defined in one data file as second embodiment of the invention . as shown in fig1 , the memory 208 includes a data file 216 , and first and second data areas 220 a and 220 b are defined within the data file 216 . the first data area 220 a extends from address 0 to 1499 ( in decimal system ), and the second data area 220 b from address 1500 to 2999 ( in decimal system ). each of first and second data areas 220 a and 220 b includes 39 records having same format as that shown in fig4 . the first and second data areas 220 a and 220 b are for registering data related to purchased endoscopes and leased endoscopes , respectively . if the memory 208 is managed as shown in fig1 , s 110 and s 112 of fig5 should be modified as shown in fig1 and 14 . that is , in the subroutine file open ( s 110 ), the cpu 201 opens the data file 216 ( s 302 ). next , the cpu 201 checks the state of “ ownership ” obtained from eeprom 102 ( s 304 ). if “ ownership ” is 0 ( s 304 : yes ), indicating the endoscope is purchased , then the cpu 201 sets a variable “ offset ” to 0 ( s 306 ). “ offset ” is used later as an address start to reading the memory 208 . if “ ownership ” is 1 or 2 , indicating the endoscope is leased , then the cpu 201 sets “ offset ” to 1500 . after the execution of s 306 or s 308 , the operation of the processor 200 returns to the main flow shown in fig5 to execute the subroutine endoscope registration ( s 112 ). in the subroutine endoscope registration ( s 112 ) shown in fig1 , s 202 , s 206 , s 208 , and s 210 are replaced with s 202 , s 206 , s 208 , and s 210 , respectively . other steps are same as that in fig8 . the contents of s 202 , 206 , s 208 , and s 220 are same as that of the replaced steps except that the memory area that the cpu 201 can treat is limited to the address “ offset ” through “ offset ”+ 1499 . that is , if “ offset ” is set to 0 in the subroutine file open ( s 110 ), then the cpu 201 can read , write , and delete data only within the first data area 220 a of the memory 208 , and if “ offset ” is 1500 , then the cpu 201 can handle the data only in the second data area 220 b . accordingly , if a new leased endoscope , for example , is connected to the processor 200 , the cpu 201 never accesses to the first data area 220 a , and thus never deletes data of purchased endoscopes , which may be more important than data of leased endoscopes , in order to register leased endoscopes &# 39 ; data . the present disclosure relates to the subject matters contained in japanese patent application no . p2001 - 200209 , filed on jun . 29 , 2001 , and japanese patent application no . p2001 - 323463 , filed on oct . 22 , 2001 , which are expressly incorporated herein by reference in their entireties .	0
while this invention is capable of embodiment in many different forms , there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail , several specific embodiments with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the embodiments so illustrated . the basic features that are required to achieve a stable proton conducting membrane material are a proton conducting ceramic phase and a stabilizing ceramic phase . other ceramic phases may be added as required to improve protonic conductivity or chemical stability . the proton conducting ceramic phase could be a doped perovskite of the general composition al 1 − x − α p x b 1 − y q y o 3 − δ . a is a bivalent cation such as barium ( ba ), strontium ( sr ), calcium ( ca ) or magnesium ( mg ) and combinations thereof , p is an a - site dopant , which may be a cation such as pr , sm , er or other cations belonging to the lanthanide series . b is a tetravalent cation which may be either an element in group iv of the period table ( e . g . ti , zr ) or an element in the lanthanide series of the periodic table ( e . g . ce , la ). q is a b - site dopant which may be either an element in group iii of the period table ( e . g . sc , y ) or another element ( other than b ) in the lanthanide series of the periodic table ( e . g . eu , nd , gd , yb ). α represents the a - site non - stoichiometry ( deficiency ), and δ is an oxygen deficiency . in one embodiment , α ranges from about 0 to about 0 . 1 and δ ranges from about 0 to about 0 . 3 . some embodiments of the invention would include compounds with specific combination of elements on the a and b sites represented by the chemical formulas ba 1 − x − ε p x ce 1 − y q y o 3 − δ , sr 1 − x − ε p x ce 1 − y q y o 3 − δ , and ca 1 − x − ε p x ti 1 − y q y o 3 − δ . other embodiments would include an a - site deficiency ε , where 0 ≦ α ≦ 0 . 1 and where 0 ≦ ε ≦ 0 . 3 . it is to be specifically noted here that p and q may represent more than one element of the type specified above , and addition of more than one dopant at the a and b site fall within the scope of this invention . in another embodiment of the present invention , the proton conducting ceramic phase may be a complex perovskite . the complex perovskite could be of the types a 2 ( b ′ 1 + β b ″ 1 − β ) o 6 − λ or a 3 ( b ′ 1 + φ b ″ 2 − φ ) o 9 − λ , in which a ions are always bivalent ( e . g . ba , sr , ca , la ), b ′ ions are trivalent ( eg . y , ga , sc , in , yb , nd ) or tetravalent ( e . g . zr , ti , ce ), and b ″ ions are pentavalent ( e . g . bi , nb ). generally , 0 ≦ β ≦ 0 . 2 and 0 ≦ φ ≦ 0 . 2 . λ may range from about 0 to about 0 . 2 . in yet another embodiment of the present invention , the proton conducting ceramic phase could be a pyrochlore structure ( a ′ 2 − γ a ″ γ ) 2 ( b 2 − η r η ) o 7 − λ where a ′ is a bivalent cation ( e . g . la ), a ″ is another bivalent cation , b is a tetravalent cation ( e . g . zr , ce ) and r is a bivalent cation ( e . g . ca ). in one embodiment , a ″ and r would be the same cation . generally , 0 ≦ γ ≦ 0 . 3 and 0 ≦ η ≦ 0 . 3 . in one embodiment of the present invention , the stabilizing ceramic phase will also be a product of the reaction between a corrosive gas species and the protonically conducting phase . for example when co 2 or h 2 o react with ba or sr - containing perovskites , one of the byproducts is cerium oxide ( ceo 2 ). as disclosed in copending application ser . no . 10 / 708 , 475 , doped ceo 2 is a good electronic conductor under reducing environment . the incorporation of doped ceo 2 above the percolation limit results in sufficient electronic conductivity to make the material an excellent mixed conductor . however , because electronic conductivity is detrimental to fuel cell electrolyte function , the stabilizing phase , if electrically conductive , is present in an amount below the percolation limit . incorporation of ceria , doped or undoped , will improve the thermodynamic stability of the composite material in the presence of co 2 or h 2 o over perovskite materials where no ceo 2 is added . if the perovskite phase is doped , it may be beneficial to have the ceria be doped with same dopant used in the perovskite phase . the principles of the present invention are demonstrated by the following examples of fabricating the proton conducting ceramic composite material . these examples are given to illustrate various embodiments within the scope of the present invention . the examples are given by way of example only , and it is to be understood that the following examples are not comprehensive or exhaustive of the many embodiments within the scope of the present invention . a stoichiometric perovskite material was prepared by adding raw material oxide and carbonate powders ( baco 3 , ceo 2 , eu 2 o 3 ) in stoichiometric amounts to form the perovskite bace 0 . 8 eu 0 . 2 o 2 . 9 . the powders were mixed for 30 minutes on a paint shaker with zirconia milling media in a 1 liter nalgene bottle followed by ball milling for 24 hours . the well mixed powder was then calcined at 1400 ° c . to decompose the carbonate and react the powders together to form a single phase perovskite material . the calcined powder was then ball milled for 72 hrs in acetone resulting in a fine powder with a 1 - 2 micron particle size with a surface area from 1 . 5 - 3 m 2 / g . the powder was screened through an 80 mesh sieve and then mixed with europium doped ceria that was fabricated by a similar process as the bace 0 . 8 eu 0 . 2 o 2 . 9 to form a 50 / 50 volume % mixture . the two powders were placed in a nalgene container with milling media and acetone and then mixed vigorously on a paint shaker for 30 minutes . this mixture was then dried for 12 hours and then screened through an 80 mesh sieve to ensure that the individual powders were well mixed and that there were no large agglomerates from the milling and drying steps . the screened mixture of powders is then placed in a drying oven at 80 - 90 ° c . for 24 hours to ensure that the powder is dry . the dry powder was then ready for fabrication into a ceramic membrane using a variety of ceramic processing techniques such as tape casting , dry pressing or slip casting . in this example the powder was mixed with a 2 wt . % polyvinyl butyral ( pvb ) binder solution and acetone and mixed again with milling media on a paint shaker . after mixing the slurry was dried and the binder / powder was then used to fill a 1 inch pellet die followed by dry pressing at 10 , 000 psi and finally isostatically pressing the pellet at 25 , 000 psi . the pressed pellet was then sintered at 1550 ° c . for 2 hours . the sintered pellet was then analyzed by xrd to verify the formation of the two desired phases . it was found that the barium cerate and doped ceria were indeed the two phases present . finally , the sample was prepared for sem analysis . fig1 shows the microstructure of the sintered two - phase composite material . more specifically , fig1 is a backscattered sem micrograph of two - phase composite of a perovskite ( grey phase ) and doped ceria ( bright phase ). the pores in the structure , the very dark areas , are completely closed and do not allow gas flow across the membrane . two different compositions of the two - phase proton conducting ceramic material were fabricated as described in example 1 . the two compositions formulated were ( 1 ) 50 vol . % bace 0 . 7 eu 0 . 3 o 2 . 85 + 50 vol . % ce 0 . 8 y 0 . 2 o 2 . 9 and ( 2 ) 50 vol . % bace 0 . 8 eu 0 . 2 o 2 . 9 + 50 vol . % ce 0 . 8 y 0 . 2 o 2 . 9 . in order to demonstrate the stability of the two phase composite material , thermogravimetric analysis ( tga ) in reducing environments containing h 2 o and co 2 was performed to observe any weight changes as a function of time . there was no measurable weight change during the tga tests as shown in fig2 indicating that the material was stable at these temperature and gas composition environments . fig2 depicts thermogravimetric analysis data in syngas showing very good stability of perovskite / oxide composites in reducing environments containing co , co 2 and h 2 o . a non - stoichiometric perovskite material was prepared by adding raw material oxide and carbonate powders ( baco 3 , ceo 2 , eu 2 o 3 ) in non - stoichiometric amounts ( barium deficient ) to form the perovskite ba 0 . 92 ce 0 . 8 eu 0 . 2 o 2 . 82 . the powders were mixed for 30 minutes on a paint shaker with zirconia milling media in a 1 liter nalgene bottle followed by ball milling for 24 hours . the well mixed powder was then calcined at 1400 ° c . to decompose the carbonate and react the powders together to form a single phase perovskite material . the calcined powder was then ball milled for 72 hrs in acetone resulting in a fine powder with a 1 - 2 micron particle size with a surface area from 1 . 5 - 3 m 2 / g . it is well known that conventional doped barium cerate compositions are unstable in oxidizing conditions in the presence of co 2 and h 2 o due to hydroxide and carbonate formation respectively . an experiment was performed to demonstrate that the materials in the present invention are more stable than perovskite materials alone that are commonly used as proton conducting membranes . in this experiment x - ray diffraction studies were performed on powder exposed to simulated syngas at high - temperature . the high - temperature exposure tests in simulated syngas showed no noticeable carbonate formation occurring in non - stoichiometric composite samples while baseline perovskite samples that were also non - stoichiometric were completely reacted as shown in fig3 . fig3 depicts x - ray diffraction analysis data for powders exposed to syngas at 900 ° c . showing very little carbonate formation in the non - stoichiometric perovskite / oxide composite compared with the baseline non - stoichiometric perovskite exposed to identical conditions . the arrows in fig3 indicate locations of the primary barium carbonate peaks in the baseline perovskite . a stoichiometric perovskite / doped ceria composite was fabricated as described in example 1 and a non - stoichiometric perovskite / doped ceria composite material was prepared as described in example 3 . these two sample materials were used to compare the stability of the two materials in a syngas environment at 900 ° c . fig4 shows a comparison of x - ray diffraction pattern of composite powders with stoichiometric and non - stoichiometric perovskite phases . more specifically , fig4 shows x - ray diffraction analysis data for powders exposed to syngas at 900 ° c . showing very little carbonate formation in the non - stoichiometric perovskite / oxide composite powder compared with the stoichiometric perovskite / oxide composite powder exposed to identical conditions . the arrows in fig4 indicate locations of the primary barium carbonate peaks in the composite with stoichiometric perovskite . the composite with the non - stoichiometric a - site deficient perovskite had 50 % by volume of ba 0 . 92 ce 0 . 8 eu 0 . 2 o 2 . 82 and 50 % by volume of ce 0 . 8 eu 0 . 2 o 2 . 9 , and the composite with the stoichiometric perovskite composition had 50 % by volume of bace 0 . 8 eu 0 . 2 o 2 . 9 and 50 % by volume of ce 0 . 8 eu 0 . 2 o 2 . 9 . the composite with the barium deficient composition shows improved chemical stability in syngas due to significantly lower carbonate formation , due to the lower activity of the a - site cations ( i . e ., ba 2 + ions in the example given ) in the non - stoichiometric composition . two phase composite ceramic powders were prepared as described in example 1 . these powders were then used to prepare slips for tape casting in order to fabricate a thin membrane mixed conductor that is supported on a porous substrate . the slip for the dense component was cast into 2 thicknesses , 8 mil and 1 mil , while the porous slip is only cast at 8 mil . the tape casts are dried using standard ceramic processing procedures and shapes are punched out of the separate tapes to shapes and sizes that are predetermined to maximize the exposed surface area of the thin layer of the membrane in the membrane package . once the initial dimensions of the membrane were punched out the pieces were cut using a laser cutter to obtain the necessary features to maximize the surface area of the membrane and to also give the membrane support . once laser cutting was finished the pieces were then laminated together using standard ceramic processing procedures to form the membrane package with substrate and membrane support . after the membrane package was laminated it was fired to 1550 ° c . to burn out the pore former from the porous layer of the membrane package and to sinter the laminated layers into a continuous single structure that consisted of both the perovskite and the ceria doped with europium . the sintered membrane package was then sealed into a stainless steel cup with a glass or cement that has a similar coefficient of thermal expansion to that of the composite perovskite and stainless steel . the stainless steel cup was designed and machined to support the membrane package and allow for a sweep gas on the permeate side of the membrane . the testing apparatus was setup in a reforming catalyst reactor to accommodate various molar fractions in the syngas due to changing the volumetric feeds of hydrogen , methane , water , carbon dioxide , and carbon monoxide . the membrane that was sealed to the stainless steel cup was placed downstream of the catalyst in the reactor and heated to a temperature of 900 ° c . helium was used as a sweep gas on the permeate side of the membrane to carry away the hydrogen to a zirconia oxygen sensor to determine the amount of hydrogen flux obtained . the zirconia oxygen sensor was calibrated by varying the concentrations of hydrogen and helium and measuring the voltage across the cell due to the different concentrations of hydrogen in the stream . while the test was running with syngas the voltage of the zirconia oxygen sensor was recorded and then used to determine the concentration of hydrogen in the carrier gas . this information was then used to calculate the flux through the membrane . fig5 shows the open circuit voltage ( ocv ) across the composite membrane . more specifically , fig5 shows the lowering of open circuit voltage in a perovskite / doped - ceria composite showing mixed ionic - electronic conducting behavior . in order to demonstrate the feasibility of pressure - driven hydrogen separation from syngas using the new composite materials , partial pressure / concentration driven h 2 separation experiments were performed using hydrogen / nitrogen mixtures . the experiments were performed using thick membranes ( 500 μm thickness ). fig6 shows the hydrogen flux obtained through a 500 μm thick dense perovskite / oxide composite membrane tested at two feed gas flow - rates to demonstrate that there were no leaks in the system . while the flux obtained ( shown in fig6 ) is relatively low (& lt ; 1 . 4 cc / cm 2 / min ) due to the very thick ( 500 μm ) membranes used , the experiment demonstrated that concentration / pressure driven hydrogen separation is feasible through these dense perovskite / oxide composite membranes . stability of perovskite compositions in fuel conditions , in particular the reaction products co 2 and h 2 o of fuel cell operation , is a major hurdle in the proton - sofc development . from the foregoing examples , the addition of doped ceria significantly lowered the propensity of those reactions . the composites consisted of 50 vol . % ceria to provide an interpenetrating network of proton and electron ( ceria in reducing atmosphere ) conducting phases . the exposure test results are reproduced in fig7 . at the bottom of fig7 is the x - ray pattern for bace 0 . 7 eu 0 . 3 o 3 −∂ after exposure to syngas at 900 ° c . of the two composites , composite 1 is stoichiometric bace 0 . 7 eu 0 . 3 o 3 −∂ with 50 vol . % ceria and composite 2 is 4 %- ba - site deficient perovskite mixed with 50 vol . % ceria . it is clearly seen that a significant reduction in the amount of reaction product baceo 3 occurs with the composite . peaks corresponding to the reaction product nearly disappear when the ba - deficit version of the perovskite is used . as an electronic short will be detrimental to fuel cell electrolyte function , ceria was added in an amount below the percolation limit ( 10 vol . %) to a proton - conducting perovskite . at 10 vol . %, the ceria grains do not form a contiguous phase and hence the composite essentially functions as an ionic ( proton ) conducting electrolyte . fig8 shows the x - ray diffraction pattern of the composite prior to syngas exposure ( at the bottom ), and the 10 % ceria composite after exposure to syngas ( both co 2 and h 2 o present ). the 50 % composite with ba - deficit perovskite is also shown ( at the top ) for comparison . once again , compared to the baseline perovskite in fig7 , even 10 vol . % ceria addition gives a comparable stability as the 50 vol . % ceria addition . a combination of ba - deficit perovskite and ceria addition at 10 vol . %, or higher , but below the percolation limit , is expected to nearly eliminate the stability issue of perovskite electrolyte in syngas fuel . this will eliminate the biggest hurdle in the use of baceo 3 type electrolyte in a practical fuel cell application . one of the well recognized challenges in the fabrication of baceo 3 based compositions is to find suitable powder processing and sintering conditions to achieve adequate density . at a minimum , the sintered body should have closed porosity to avoid direct gas diffusion that will affect fuel efficiency . one known approach to improve density and closed porosity involves various powder milling techniques to achieve the particle size distribution and powder surface area necessary to achieve a density higher than 94 %. scanning electron micrographs are shown in fig9 a and 9b of baceo 3 sintered bars obtained using particle size distribution techniques . fig9 a shows the sintered single phase perovskite showing closed porosity at 200 ×. fig9 b shows the same sintered single phase perovskite at 1500 ×. while the porosity appeared to consist of closed porosity , such a pore distribution is likely to make the material weaker and will give lower conductance for proton and oxygen ions . the biggest risk , however , is that a small amount of electronic conduction remains in composition in the temperature range above 600 ° c . that may cause proton or oxygen ions to “ precipitate ” in the pores by reacting with electrons transported through the material . this will result in gas pressure build up in the pores resulting in electrolyte rupture . this has been well documented in oxygen separation membrane electrolytes that show a small electronic conductivity when a large amount of pores are present . in order to lower the porosity of the sintered material , a small amount ( 10 vol . % ceria ) was added to the powder . this significantly improved the sinterability of the material as seen in fig1 a and 10b . fig1 a and 10b are scanning electron micrographs of sintered perovskite composite material with 10 vol . % ceria at 200 × and 1000 ×, respectively . as the ceria addition also improves the stability of the electrolyte , this approach is a good option to improve density and stability . a more dense material permits the fabrication of thinner membranes and increased strength . a more stable material facilitates its practical use in syngas fuel applications , such as sofc applications . button cells were fabricated using two baseline compositions : 0 . 05 eu - 0 . 05 yb doped and 0 . 1 eu - 0 . 1 yb doped compositions . a total of 15 button cells were tested using both pressed discs ( 0 . 2 cm ; 2000 microns ) and tape cast discs ( 0 . 04 cm ; 400 microns ). most of the cells showed open cell voltage ( ocv ) values ranging from 0 . 85 to 1 . 03 v at 800 ° c . in some cases the cement seal used was inadequate . more than 10 cells showed ocv values of 0 . 95 or higher confirming that these compositions are predominantly ionic conductors ( proton and oxygen ). a tape case electrolyte ( 400 microns ) of baceo 3 with 0 . 05 eu and 0 . 05 yb doping was tested . this batch also had 10 vol . % ceria to improve sinterability and stability . fig1 illustrates a schematic representation of a proton conducting ceramic membrane for fuel cell application containing reference electrodes . the use of reference electrodes also provides additional insights in the dc tests , in particular when comparing proton and oxygen conducting electrolytes . one benefit of a proton conducting electrolyte comes from the fact that the product water formation is on the air side and thus the driving potential is much flatter as a function of fuel utilization . fig1 shows the current - voltage performance of the proton cell that had a measured area specific resistance ( asr ) of about 5 . 3 ohm - cm 2 as would be expected from the total ac low frequency intercept . the reference voltage measured during the sweep is also shown . a zirconia ( oxygen conducting electrolyte ) cell was also tested with identical electrode area , fuel composition ( h 2 - 3 % h 2 o ) and flow rate of 35 standard cubic centimeters per minute ( sccm ). the reference voltage from the oxygen cell is also shown for the same range of fuel utilization . from a comparison of the reference voltage traces , at open circuit the proton ocv is lower than that of oxygen ocv . this is a confirmation of pure ionic conduction of zirconia electrolyte providing near theoretical nernst potential . the lower ocv of the proton cell is an indication of the ionic transference t ion being less than one , in this case about 0 . 96 . because of t ion is less than 1 , the true benefit of the proton cell is not manifest until the cell reaches much higher utilization . the driving potential in this case will cross over at about 10 to 15 % fuel utilization . it is theoretically possible to achieve very high utilization at higher operating voltage with a proton cell . as a function of utilization however , the driving potential of the oxygen cell drops more steeply than the proton cell . this confirms that the proton cell maintains a higher driving force . that is , there is no water dilution of fuel in a pure proton conductor , but in this case some dilution is expected from the oxygen ion conduction . finally while high efficiency operation is clearly possible with the proton cell , the cell resistance is preferably lowered by a factor of 10 to fully realize the benefits of proton cell in terms of cost / kw as well as specific weight and volume . from the foregoing , doped baceo 3 is predominantly proton conducting , having a proton transference number of about 0 . 6 to 0 . 7 at 800 ° c ., which will increase at lower temperatures . the overall ion transference number of doped baceo 3 is about 0 . 95 . this indicates that the ocv is only slightly depressed and is still above 1 v with h 2 - 3 % h 2 o . the addition of ceria improves stability of baceo 3 in syngas . this demonstrates the material is feasible in practical applications . even 10 vol . % ceria addition significantly improves stability in powder exposure and shows no penalty in ocv . a small amount of ba - site deficiency further reduces the amount of reaction product and enhances stability in syngas . a small amount of ceria added to baceo 3 improves the sinterability of the ceramic by lowering the porosity and increasing the density . higher density allows fabrication of thinner electrolytes that are stronger and pore - free . cell tests of the proton conducting ceramic membrane comprising baceo 3 and ceria demonstrated good open circuit voltage (& gt ; 95 % theoretical ). they also maintained high driving potential at increasing utilization and will overtake the driving potential of the oxygen conducting zirconia electrolyte at & gt ; 20 % utilization . this leads to high efficiency operation of the cell . while specific embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described , numerous modifications come to mind without significantly departing from the spirit of the invention , and the scope of protection is only limited by the scope of the accompanying claims .	1
fig1 is a simplified diagram of a hysteresis circuit with a pull up portion and a pull down portion . circuit a performs the pull up , and circuit b performs the pull down . an example of circuit a is a current source that sources current from a high voltage reference , and an example of circuit b is a current source that sinks current to a low voltage reference fig2 is a time domain graph of the output voltage of a hysteresis circuit , showing that the present output is determined not just by the present input , but also by the past output . the transient is slow at the beginning , and then fast at the end . fig3 is a graph of input voltage versus output voltage of a hysteresis circuit , also showing that the present output is determined not just by the present input , but also by the past output . it appears to be the overlapped version of the rising and falling time domain curves , adjusted as functions of the input voltage . hysteresis is created by making the signal hard to transition or slower in one direction than the other direction . fig4 is a circuit diagram of an inverter circuit which is not a hysteresis circuit . fig5 is a graph of input voltage versus output voltage of the inverter circuit of fig4 , showing that the present output is determined by the present input without requiring the past output . the opposite transition from point e to point a is exactly the same as listed above , but in the opposite order . fig6 is a circuit diagram of a hysteresis circuit , which includes a cross - coupled inverter preceded by an inverter circuit . for simplicity , in some embodiments with a series of hysteresis circuits , the hysteresis circuit refers to the cross - coupled inverters , but without the preceding inverter circuit , there is no hysteresis . fig7 is a graph of input voltage versus output voltage of the hysteresis circuit of fig6 , showing that the present output is determined not just by the present input , but also by the past output . however , the opposite transition from point e to point a occurs as follows : because the transition between point a and point e depends on the direction , there is hysteresis . the hysteresis curve of fig7 is explained in the context of fig6 . p 1 stays “ on ”; the same as p 2 and p 3 . n 1 stays “ off ”; the same as n 2 and n 3 , as if nothing happened . vi = 0 . 1 , vx = 1 , vo = 0 p 1 , p 2 and p 3 are still “ on ”. n 1 is beginning to turn “ on ” meaning a tiny amount of current is possibly going through . to simplify , say the current is too small , such that nothing changed . vi = 0 . 3 , vx = 1 , vo = 0 p 1 is turning off , but not yet , such that current from the power supply through p 1 to vx is reduced . if only the single inverter p 1 and n 1 existed , then current ip 1 would be equal to current in 1 . but here p 2 is still “ on ”, n 2 is still “ off . therefore there are two currents ip 1 and ip 2 charging vx ; but only one current in 1 discharging vx . at this moment vi = 0 . 5 , vx = 0 . 9 , vo = 0 . something is happening on vi and vx , but nothing is affecting vo . nothing is affecting vo means vx = 0 . 9 , such that vo changes nothing . the voltage vi = 0 . 7 turns off p 1 . there will be one current ip 2 charging vx and one current in 1 discharging vx . ip 2 & gt ; in 1 due to vi = 0 . 7 . vo is around 0 . so vi = 0 . 7 , vx = 0 . 7 , vo = 0 approximately . n 1 is really “ on ” which makes vx lower . vx = 0 . 3 first . something is going on . vx = 0 . 3 makes p 3 turn “ on ” which charges up vo up to about 0 . 5 . vo = 0 . 5 makes ip 2 smaller , then vx will be lower than 0 . 3 . this feedback loop starts working . the feedback loop keeps increasing vo up to 1 , and decreasing vx lower to 0 . finally assume vi = 0 . 9 , vx = 0 , vo = 1 . fig8 - 10 show example graphs of input voltage versus output voltage of an inverter circuit , showing that the transfer characteristic is predictably varied with the ratio of the strength of the component pmos and nmos transistors . the transient point is controllable by adjusting the p and n wells . fig1 is a graph of input voltage versus output voltage of an inverter circuit , with an example point along the transition region . fig1 is a circuit diagram of an inverter circuit operating at the example point along the transition region as shown in fig1 . there are three currents i 3 = i 1 - i 2 . the three currents are predictable if they are practically simple to calculate . fig1 is a circuit diagram of an inverter circuit with added current sources that attempt to simplify the prediction of the charging current and discharging current of the output node . the added current sources attempt to control the rising and falling time of the inverter by setting the transient current to i 1 for charging current and i 2 for discharging current . fig1 is a time domain graph of the output voltage of an inverter circuit , with the added current sources as in fig1 , illustrating the difference between the expected fast transient discharge speed , and the actual slow transient discharge speed . unfortunately , the transient does not follow the dashed line , as would be the case if the added current sources dominated the transient current . instead , despite the added current sources , the actual transient follows the slower solid line . the transient is slower than expected . the reason is that although i 1 and i 2 determine the transient speed on the pmos and nmos during charging and discharging vo , the i 3 current through the capacitance is too small . for the purposes of predictability , although the equation is i 3 = i 1 − i 2 , the actual value of i 3 is complicated to calculate , because the current i 3 is related to size , vi , mobility , etc . accordingly , there are two problems : slow transient speed , and lack of predictability . various embodiments add current sources to address both problems . fig1 is a circuit diagram of an oscillator circuit with a series of hysteresis circuits including cross - coupled inverters . the circuit demonstrates current flow during the charging and discharging phases . assume v 1 = 1 , vo = 0 , v 2 = 1 ( v 2 = 1 will make v 1 go low like and inverter , and oscillation results .) when vo is at charging phase , ideally , ic is the charging current ic = ip 1 − in 0 . but this is not the case . when vo is at discharging phase , ideally , ic is the discharging current = in 1 − ip 0 . but this is not the case . fig1 is a circuit diagram of an oscillator circuit with a series of hysteresis circuits including cross - coupled inverters , and added current sources to simplify the prediction of the charging current and discharging current of the output node . the current sources simplify prediction of the charging current and discharging current according to fig1 and 18 . the technology adds high controllability to the frequency of a ring oscillator without phase detection . a typical application is medium - high frequency ( 100 mhz ˜ 1 ghz ) operation . i * t = c * v , where i is current , t is period , c is capacitance , and v is peak voltage . there are 4 variables . with a regulated v , c significantly larger than parasitic capacitance , then an accurate i determines 3 variables of the 4 variables , thereby making predictable the remaining 4th variable of t ( or frequency ). accordingly , this technology accurately controls the current . because c and v are also controlled , the current control also controls the frequency . the following is an example of determining the current to achieve a 250 mhz ( 4 ns ) oscillator signal . the goal is t = 2 ns , which represents a half cycle , corresponding to either the charging half cycle or the discharging half cycle . according to the equation , the controlled current should be i = 312 . 5 ua or about 300 ua . so peak current of ic should be 600 ua or higher , due to parasitic capacitance . this current comes from current reference system . in the following equations , i 1 is for short for ip 1 or in 1 ; i 0 is for short for ip 0 or in 0 . i 1 = 600 ua , i 0 = 0 ua , i 1 : i 0 = infinite ; means not physical . i 1 = 700 ua , i 0 = 100 ua , i 1 : i 0 = 7 : 1 ; too large a ratio is hard to current match , but saves some power i 1 = 1 . 2 ma , i 0 = 400 ua , i 1 : i 0 = 3 : 1 ; current consumption is getting larger and not so much gain from ratio . in the preceding example calculation , the ratio of the current sources corresponding to ip 1 and in 0 is 4 : 1 , and the ratio of the current sources corresponding to in 1 and ip 0 is 4 : 1 . similarly , the difference between the current sources corresponding to ip 1 and in 0 is 600 ua , and the difference between the current sources corresponding to in 1 and ip 0 is 600 ua . the values of ip 0 , ip 1 , in 0 and in 1 are controllable by a trimmed bias or a phase detector . the ideal load capacitance cl varies with whether a phase detector is used . with a phase detector , load capacitance cl could be zero for saving power , and increase the oscillator frequency into the ghz range . without a phase detector , load capacitance cl should be as large as possible , to avoid process variation , at the cost of more power consumption . fig1 is a circuit diagram of a portion of the oscillator circuit with a series of hysteresis circuits including cross - coupled inverters , and added current sources , as shown in fig1 , with a charging current path shown , including the two primary current sources that predict the charging current . during the charging phase , the average charging current ic = k ( ip 1 − in 0 ) fig1 is a circuit diagram of a portion of the oscillator circuit with a series of hysteresis circuits including cross - coupled inverters , and added current sources , as shown in fig1 , with a discharging current path shown , including the two primary current sources that predict the discharging current . during the discharge phase , the average discharging current ic = k ( in 1 − ip 0 ) at a lower frequency range , where the output waveform is triangular , ( x − y ) represents a relative magnitude of the current sources , such as ( 800 ua − 200 ua ). ( vd − vs ) represents a difference between the high voltage reference and the low voltage reference . the current sources source current from the high voltage reference vd and sink current to the low voltage reference vs . fig1 - 25 are time domain graphs of different nodes of the oscillator circuit with a series of hysteresis circuits including cross - coupled inverters , and added current sources , as shown in fig1 . fig1 - 25 divide a full clock period into 4 smaller time periods , labeled t 1 , t 2 , t 3 , and t 4 . in both t 1 and t 2 , the output node out has a discharging current of in 1 − ip 0 , and ip 1 and in 0 are almost off . because ip 1 and in 0 are almost off , their contribution can be practically ignored for predicting the oscillator frequency . in both t 3 and t 4 , the output node out has a charging current of ip 1 − in 0 , and ip 0 and in 1 are almost off . because ip 0 and in 1 are almost off , their contribution can be practically ignored for predicting the oscillator frequency . fig1 is in 1 , the current flowing through the nmos of an inverter . the nmos is connected to the output node , and the inverter belongs to a following cross - coupled inverter of neighboring cross - coupled inverters . fig2 is ip 0 , the current flowing through the pmos of an inverter . the pmos is connected to the output node , and the inverter belongs to a preceding cross - coupled inverter of neighboring cross - coupled inverters . fig2 is ip 1 , the current flowing through the pmos of an inverter . the pmos is connected to the output node , and the inverter belongs to a following cross - coupled inverter of neighboring cross - coupled inverters . fig2 is in 0 , the current flowing through the nmos of an inverter . the nmos is connected to the output node , and the inverter belongs to a preceding cross - coupled inverter of neighboring cross - coupled inverters . fig2 is ic , the current flowing through the capacitance of the output node . the magnitude of the ic current determines the speed of charging or discharging the output node . fig2 is out , the output voltage of the output node . accordingly , the rising part of the output voltage out corresponds to positive ic current , and the falling part of the output voltage out corresponds to negative ic current . fig2 is clk , the clock voltage following a buffer of the output node . the buffer helps the oscillator output look more digital . the number of buffers depends on the number of blocks to be driven . buffers make the transient faster to get a square - like waveform . an inverter not only separates signals , but also provides drivability . fig2 is a circuit diagram of a portion of the oscillator circuit with a series of hysteresis circuits including cross - coupled inverters , and added current sources , as shown in fig1 , acting as a key to indicate the graphed nodes of fig1 - 25 . fig2 is a circuit diagram of a voltage controlled oscillator , including the oscillator circuit with a series of hysteresis circuits . an improved voltage controllable oscillator includes the improved oscillator technology herein . the voltage controllable oscillator includes a phase detector and a charge pump circuit . the charge pump circuit includes 2 current sources ip , resistor r , and capacitor c . while the present invention is disclosed by reference to the preferred embodiments and examples detailed above , it is to be understood that these examples are intended in an illustrative rather than in a limiting sense . it is contemplated that modifications and combinations will readily occur to those skilled in the art , which modifications and combinations will be within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the following claims .	7
surprisingly , single eu 2 + - activated kmbp 2 o 8 ( m = ba , sr , ca ) phosphors show white light with high luminous efficiency under near uv excitation . the behavior is unexpected because all other borophosphate phosphors have never shown such a luminescence property and because there is only one crystallographic site available for the activator eu 2 + . in addition , they exhibit a high thermal stability , which is comparable to that of yag : ce 3 + phosphor . the luminescence properties ( e . g . peak center , color coordination and fwhm ) of eu 2 + - doped kmbp 2 o 8 phosphors can be adjusted by changing the eu 2 + concentration or the ratio between ba , sr and ca in kmbp 2 o 8 host lattice . the eu 2 + concentration can vary in a wide range . the emission band of eu 2 + - doped kbabp 2 o 8 phosphor can be shifted to the longer wavelength range by increasing the eu 2 + concentration . while the emission bands of eu 2 + - doped kbabp 2 o 8 phosphors can be shifted to the shorter wavelength range by the replacement of ba 2 + by sr 2 + . in addition , its luminous efficiency also can be improved dramatically by such a replacement . the same effect also can be reached by the replacement of ba 2 + by ca 2 + . in all the eu 2 + - doped phosphors , it would expect that eu 2 + will replace the crystallographic site of m 2 + with 8 - fold oxygen coordination . the present invention discloses new borophosphate phosphors that are activated by rare earth ions , preferably by eu 2 + ions . the inventive phosphor converts radiation . for this , it absorbs radiation in a first wavelength range of the electromagnetic spectrum and emits radiation in a second wavelength range of the electromagnetic spectrum . the first wavelength range of the electromagnetic spectrum differs from the second wavelength range of the electromagnetic spectrum . the inventive borophosphate phosphor is activated with divalent rare earth metal ions . it is represented by the following general formula : symbol a represents at least one univalent alkaline metal ion . symbol m stands for at least one divalent metal ion . symbol re is at least one divalent ion selected from the group comprising rare earth metals as well as pb , sn , cu , and mn . anyway , re contains at least one divalent rare earth metal ion that is acting as an activator . variable x is limited by 0 & lt ; x & lt ; 1 . preferably , re contains at least the divalent rare earth metal ion of eu , namely eu 2 + that is acting as activator . in a further preferred embodiment , re contains at least the divalent rare earth metal ion of sm or yb , namely sm 2 + or yb 2 + that is acting as activator . preferably , re further contains at least one divalent ion selected from the group comprising ce , yb , tb , gd , dy , and sm that is acting as a coactivator . alternatively or supplementary , re further contains at least one divalent ion selected from the group comprising pb , sn , cu , and mn that is acting as a coactivator . variable x is preferably less than or equal to 0 . 2 ; and more preferably less than or equal to 0 . 1 . in a preferred embodiment , symbol a represents at least one univalent alkaline metal ion selected from the group comprising li , k , na , rb , and cs ; or more preferably , selected from the group comprising li , k , and na . preferably , m stands for at least one divalent metal ion selected from the group comprising ca , sr , ba , be , mg , and zn ; or more preferably , selected from the group comprising ca , sr , and ba . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , the phosphor shows the following formula : wherein a = li , k , na , rb , and / or cs ; and wherein m = ca , sr , ba , be , mg , and / or zn . in a further preferred embodiment of the inventive phosphor , symbol a stand for potassium k . further , symbol m represents at least one divalent metal ion selected from the group comprising ca , sr , ba , and zn . re contains at least one divalent rare earth metal ion selected from the group comprising eu , sm , and yb that is acting as activator and at least one divalent ion selected from the group comprising pb , cu , and mn . in this embodiment , variable x is less than or equal to 0 . 1 . in a further preferred embodiment of the invention , m stands for calcium , barium , strontium , or combinations of these three elements resulting in one of the following formulae : aba ( 1 - x - y ) sr y eu x bp 2 o 8 ; and aba ( 1 - x - z ) ca z eu x bp 2 o 8 ; preferably , a is at least one univalent alkaline metal ion selected from the group comprising li , k , and na . further , m stands for ba . re represents eu . variable x is smaller or equal 0 . 1 . the resulting general formula is : in that embodiment , a is preferably k , resulting in the general formula : kba 1 - x eu x bp 2 o 8 , wherein variable x is more preferably less than or equal to 0 . 08 . in another preferred embodiment of the invention , symbol a stands for at least one univalent alkaline metal ion selected from the group comprising li , k , and na . further m consists of ba and sr . re represents eu . the resulting general formula is : wherein x ≦ 0 . 1 , 0 & lt ; y & lt ; 1 . 0 and ( x + y )& lt ; 1 . 0 . in this embodiment , a is preferably k , resulting in the general formula : kba ( 1 - x - y ) sr y eu x bp 2 o 8 , wherein variable x is more preferably less than or equal to 0 . 08 and y is more preferably less than or equal to 0 . 4 , wherein ( x + y )≦ 0 . 5 . in another preferred embodiment of the invention , symbol a stands for at least one univalent alkaline metal ion selected from the group comprising li , k , and na . further m consists of ba and ca . re represents eu . the resulting general formula is : aba ( 1 - x - z ) ca z eu x bp 2 o 8 , wherein x ≦ 0 . 1 and 0 & lt ; z ≦ 0 . 3 . in this embodiment , a is preferably k , resulting in the general formula kba ( 1 - x - z ) ca z eu x bp 2 o 8 , wherein variable x is more preferably less than or equal to 0 . 08 and wherein ( x + z )≦ 0 . 3 . the inventive phosphor shows a strong excitation band in the wavelength range of 250 nm to 420 nm . from there , the first wavelength range ranges preferably from 250 nm to 420 nm ; or more preferably from 300 nm to 370 nm . the second wavelength range is preferably the whole visual spectrum , especially in the range from 400 nm to 700 nm , or at least in the range from 420 nm to 600 nm . a peak center of the second wavelength is preferably between 450 nm and 480 nm . the inventive phosphor can be well excited under uv light irradiation and emits blue or white light . in addition , the phosphor shows high thermal stability , which is comparable to that of yag : ce 3 + phosphor . due to the described luminescence characteristics , the phosphor according to the present invention can be used as a radiation converter for the transformation of uv ( 250 nm to 420 nm ) into a longer - wave visible light that well be emitted by the phosphor preferably in blue to orange spectral region . the inventive phosphor can be used in light sources , e . g . in white light emitting light sources . alternatively , this phosphor can be used in photovoltaic cells , in greenhouse foils , or in greenhouse glasses . in these applications , the light of the sun forms the radiation in the first wavelength range of the electromagnetic spectrum . the radiation emitted by the phosphor will be directed to the photovoltaic cells and to the plants in the greenhouse , respectively . the inventive light source comprises an inventive phosphor and a radiation emitting element that emits radiation in the first wavelength range of the electromagnetic spectrum . the phosphor converts the emitted radiation of the first wavelength range into the radiation of the second wavelength range . the radiation emitting element acts as excitation source for the phosphor . the light source emits at least the radiation in the second wavelength range of the phosphor . in a special embodiment of the inventive light source , the light source comprises at least one further phosphor that emits red , yellow , green , and / or blue light in order to improve the performance of the light source . the inventive light source is preferably formed by a fluorescent lamp , by a colored light emitting led , by a white light emitting led or by an application based on uv laser or purple laser excitation . the radiation emitting element is preferably formed by high - pressure discharge plasma or by low - pressure discharge plasma , by a uv inorganic light emitting diode ( led ) or by a purple - blue inorganic light emitting diode ( led ), or by a laser or by a laser diode . the radiation emitting element can be formed by an led . this encloses different types of inorganic led like smd , top - led , and side - view led that are having a plastic or ceramic body and incorporating a light emitting element which emits radiation in the first wavelength range , especially ; in the uv - a and purple - blue . the luminescent borophosphate phosphor according to the invention can be prepared by means of a solid state reaction at a high temperature of a mixture of oxides of the component elements or compounds which are converted into the corresponding oxides on heating . in general , it is advantageous to heat the starting mixtures in two steps . the product obtained need to be pulverized after cooling after each heating operation . the last heating operation is usually performed in a reducing atmosphere ( i . e . 70 % n 2 - 30 % h 2 ) to obtain the europium in the desired bivalent state . in the following the synthesis conditions are still described in more detail on the basis of a few examples . the examples describe typical conditions and materials but do not act as limitation . persons who skilled in the art may find some different ways to get the phosphor , e . g . substitution of raw materials by other decomposable salts , for instance ; carbonates by oxalates , acetates , nitrates ; using other mixing methods like ball mill , vibration mill and others ; deviation in temperature , atmosphere and duration of the high temperature solid state reaction , application of sol - gel - processes or spray pyrolysis and others . a mixture is made of 1 . 380 g k 2 co 3 , 4 . 020 g baco 3 , 0 . 106 g eu 2 o 3 , 1 . 298 g h 3 bo 3 and 4 . 601 g nh 4 h 2 po 4 . the raw materials were weighted in an agate mortar and homogenously mixed . this mixture was placed in alumina crucibles . the crucibles covered with an alumina plate were heated in a furnace in air for 4 hours at a temperature of 400 ° c . after cooling and pulverizing , the product was subjected to a heat operation for 8 hour at 900 ° c . under a flowing 70 % n 2 - 30 % h 2 atmosphere in a covered alumina crucible . after cooling and pulverizing , a luminescent materials have a composition defined by the formula kba 0 . 97 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 was obtained . for x - ray diffraction photograph , it appeared that the crystalline powder had the crystal structure of the kbabp 2 o 8 phase . a mixture is made of 1 . 380 g k 2 co 3 , 2 . 644 g baco 3 , 0 . 886 g srco 3 , 0 . 106 g eu 2 o 3 , 1 . 298 g h 3 bo 3 , and 4 . 601 g nh 4 h 2 po 4 . this mixture was heated for 4 h in a furnace in air at a temperature of 400 ° c . after cooling and pulverizing , the product was subjected to a heat operation for 10 hour at 900 ° c . under a flowing 70 % n 2 - 30 % h 2 atmosphere in a covered alumina crucible . after cooling and pulverizing , a luminescent materials have a composition defined by the formula kba 0 . 67 sr 0 . 30 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 was obtained . for x - ray diffraction photograph , it appeared that the crystalline powder had the crystal structure of the kbabp 2 o 8 phase . the luminescence intensity of the sample is about 135 % relative to that of the sample in example 1 under excitation of 340 nm . a mixture is made of 1 . 380 g k 2 co 3 , 3 . 236 g baco 3 , 0 . 300 g caco 3 , 0 . 106 g eu 2 o 3 , 1 . 298 g h 3 bo 3 , and 4 . 601 g nh 4 h 2 po 4 . this mixture was heated for 6 h in a furnace in air at a temperature of 400 ° c . after cooling and pulverizing , the product was subjected to a heat operation for 12 hour at 900 ° c . under flowing 70 % n 2 - 30 % h 2 atmosphere in a covered alumina crucible . after cooling and pulverizing , a luminescent materials have a composition defined by the formula kba 0 . 82 ca 0 . 15 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 was obtained . for x - ray diffraction photograph , it appeared that the crystalline powder had the crystal structure of the kbabp 2 o 8 phase . the luminescence intensity of this sample is about 126 % relative to that of the sample in example 1 under excitation of 340 nm . a mixture is made of 1 . 106 g k 2 co 3 , 0 . 202 g na 2 co 3 , 3 . 828 g baco 3 , 0 . 106 g eu 2 o 3 , 1 . 298 g h 3 bo 3 , and 4 . 601 g nh 4 h 2 po 4 . this mixture was heated for 4 h in a furnace in air at a temperature of 400 ° c . after cooling and pulverizing , the product was subjected to a heat operation for 9 hour at 900 ° c . under a flowing 70 % n 2 - 30 % h 2 atmosphere in a covered alumina crucible . after cooling and pulverizing , a luminescent materials have a composition defined by the formula k 0 . 8 na 0 . 2 ba 0 . 97 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 was obtained . the luminescence intensity of the sample is about 120 % relative to that of the sample in example 1 under excitation of 340 nm . a mixture is made of 1 . 106 g k 2 co 3 , 0 . 148 g li 2 co 3 , 3 . 828 g baco 3 , 0 . 106 g eu 2 o 3 , 1 . 298 g h 3 bo 3 , and 4 . 601 g nh 4 h 2 po 4 . this mixture was heated for 4 h in a furnace in air at a temperature of 400 ° c . after cooling and pulverizing , the product was subjected to a heat operation for 9 hour at 900 ° c . under a flowing 70 % n 2 - 30 % h 2 atmosphere in a covered alumina crucible . after cooling and pulverizing , a luminescent materials have a composition defined by the formula k 0 . 8 li 0 . 2 ba 0 . 97 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 was obtained . the luminescence intensity of the sample is about 80 % relative to that of the sample in example 1 under excitation of 340 nm . a mixture is made of 1 . 382 g k 2 co 3 , 0 . 163 g zno , 3 . 434 g baco 3 , 0 . 106 g eu 2 o 3 , 1 . 298 g h 3 bo 3 , and 4 . 601 g nh 4 h 2 po 4 . this mixture was heated for 4 h in a furnace in air at a temperature of 400 ° c . after cooling and pulverizing , the product was subjected to a heat operation for 9 hour at 900 ° c . under a flowing 70 % n 2 - 30 % h 2 atmosphere in a covered alumina crucible . after cooling and pulverizing , a luminescent materials have a composition defined by the formula kba 0 . 87 zn 0 . 1 eu0 . 03bp 2 o 8 was obtained . the luminescence intensity of the sample is about 105 % relative to that of the sample in example 1 under excitation of 340 nm . a mixture is made of 1 . 382 g k 2 co 3 , 0 . 070 g sm 2 o 3 , 3 . 710 g baco 3 , 0 . 140 g eu 2 o 3 , 1 . 298 g h 3 bo 3 , and 4 . 601 g nh 4 h 2 po 4 . this mixture was heated for 4 h in a furnace in air at a temperature of 400 ° c . after cooling and pulverizing , the product was subjected to a heat operation for 9 hour at 900 ° c . under a flowing 70 % n 2 - 30 % h 2 atmosphere in a covered alumina crucible . after cooling and pulverizing , a luminescent materials have a composition defined by the formula k 0 . 8 li 0 . 2 ba 0 . 97 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 was obtained . the luminescence intensity of the sample is about 98 % relative to that of the sample in example 1 under excitation of 340 nm . a mixture is made of 1 . 382 g k 2 co 3 , 0 . 078 g yb 2 o 3 , 3 . 710 g baco 3 , 0 . 140 g eu 2 o 3 , 1 . 298 g h 3 bo 3 , and 4 . 601 g nh 4 h 2 po 4 . this mixture was heated for 4 h in a furnace in air at a temperature of 400 ° c . after cooling and pulverizing , the product was subjected to a heat operation for 9 hour at 900 ° c . under a flowing 70 % n 2 - 30 % h 2 atmosphere in a covered alumina crucible . after cooling and pulverizing , a luminescent materials have a composition defined by the formula kba 0 . 94 eu 0 . 04 yb 0 . 02 bp 2 o 8 was obtained . the luminescence intensity of the sample is about 85 % relative to that of the sample in example 1 under excitation of 340 nm . in the following table , luminescence properties of eu 2 + - doped kbabp 2 o 8 phosphors with different eu 2 + doping concentrations are listed : in the following table , luminescence properties of eu 2 + - doped kba 1 - y sr y bp 2 o 8 ( 0 ≦ y ≦ 1 . 0 ) phosphors with different sr contents are listed : in the following table , luminescence properties of eu 2 + - doped kba 1 - z ca z bp 2 o 8 ( 0 ≦ z ≦ 0 . 30 ) phosphors with different ca contents are listed : the foregoing and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more readily appreciated as the same become better understood by reference to the following accompanying drawings , wherein : fig1 shows typical powder xrd patterns of kba 1 - x eu x bp 2 o 8 ( x = 0 . 05 ), namely kba 0 . 95 eu 0 . 05 bp 2 o 8 in comparison to kbabp 2 o 8 . fig2 shows typical excitation and emission spectra of kba 1 - x eu x bp 2 o 8 ( x = 0 . 05 ), namely kba 0 . 95 eu 0 . 05 bp 2 o 8 . fig3 shows temperature dependence of the luminescence of eu 2 + - doped kbabp 2 o 8 phosphor under excitation of 405 nm in comparison to yag : ce 3 + . fig4 shows emission spectra of kba 1 - x eu x bp 2 o 8 phosphor with different eu 2 + doping concentrations ranging from x = 0 . 005 to x = 0 . 10 . fig5 shows typical xrd patterns of kba 0 . 67 ca 0 . 3 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 , kba 0 . 87 ca 0 . 1 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 , and kba 0 . 77 sr 0 . 2 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 in comparison to kbabp 2 o 8 and ksrbp 2 o 8 . fig6 shows excitation ( inset ) and emission spectra of kba 0 . 97 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 , kba 0 . 87 sr 0 . 1 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 , kba 0 . 77 sr 0 . 2 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 , kba 0 . 67 sr 0 . 3 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 , and ksr 0 . 97 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 . fig7 shows excitation ( inset ) and emission spectra of kba 0 . 97 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 , kba 0 . 92 ca 0 . 05 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 , kba 0 . 87 ca 0 . 1 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 , kba 0 . 82 ca 0 . 15 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 , and kba 0 . 67 ca 0 . 3 eu 0 . 03 bp 2 o 8 . fig8 shows emission spectra of eu 2 + - doped kbabp 2 o 8 and in the case when k is partly substituted by na . fig9 shows emission spectra of eu 2 + - doped kbabp 2 o 8 and in the case when k is partly substituted by li . fig1 shows emission spectra of eu 2 + - doped kbabp 2 o 8 and in the case when ba is partly substituted by zn .	2
fig1 shows a schematic that generally describes one embodiment of the invention , in which energy is transferred wirelessly between two resonant objects . referring to fig1 , energy is transferred , over a distance d , between a resonant source object having a characteristic size l 1 and a resonant device object of characteristic size l 2 . both objects are resonant objects . the source object is connected to a power supply ( not shown ), and the device object is connected to a power consuming device ( e . g . a load resistor , not shown ). energy is provided by the power supply to the source object , transferred wirelessly and non - radiatively from the source object to the device object , and consumed by the power consuming device . the wireless non - radiative energy transfer is performed using the field ( e . g . the electromagnetic field or acoustic field ) of the system of two resonant objects . for simplicity , in the following we will assume that field is the electromagnetic field . it is to be understood that while two resonant objects are shown in the embodiment of fig1 , and in many of the examples below , other embodiments may feature 3 or more resonant objects . for example , in some embodiments a single source object can transfer energy to multiple device objects . in some embodiments energy may be transferred from a first device to a second , and then from the second device to the third , and so forth . initially , we present a theoretical framework for understanding non - radiative wireless energy transfer . note however that it is to be understood that the scope of the invention is not bound by theory . an appropriate analytical framework for modeling the resonant energy - exchange between two resonant objects 1 and 2 is that of “ coupled - mode theory ” ( cmt ). the field of the system of two resonant objects 1 and 2 is approximated by f ( r , t )≈ a 1 ( t ) f 1 ( r )+ a 2 ( t ) f 2 ( r ), where f 1 , 2 ( r ) are the eigenmodes of 1 and 2 alone , normalized to unity energy , and the field amplitudes a 1 , 2 ( t ) are defined so that \| a 1 , 2 ( t )\| 2 is equal to the energy stored inside the objects 1 and 2 respectively . then , the field amplitudes can be shown to satisfy , to lowest order : where ω 1 , 2 are the individual angular eigenfrequencies of the eigenmodes , γ 1 , 2 are the resonance widths due to the objects &# 39 ; intrinsic ( absorption , radiation etc .) losses , and κ is the coupling coefficient . eqs . ( 1 ) show that at exact resonance ( ω 1 = ω 2 and γ 1 = γ 2 ), the eigenmodes of the combined system are split by 2κ ; the energy exchange between the two objects takes place in time ˜ π / 2κ and is nearly perfect , apart for losses , which are minimal when the coupling rate is much faster than all loss rates ( κ γ 1 , 2 ). the coupling to loss ratio κ /√{ square root over ( γ 1 γ 2 )} serves as a figure - of - merit in evaluating a system used for wireless energy - transfer , along with the distance over which this ratio can be achieved . the regime κ /√{ square root over ( γ 1 γ 2 )} 1 is called “ strong - coupling ” regime . in some embodiments , the energy - transfer application preferably uses resonant modes of high q = ω / 2γ , corresponding to low ( i . e . slow ) intrinsic - loss rates γ . this condition may be satisfied where the coupling is implemented using , not the lossy radiative far - field , but the evanescent ( non - lossy ) stationary near - field . to implement an energy - transfer scheme , usually finite objects , namely ones that are topologically surrounded everywhere by air , are more appropriate . unfortunately , objects of finite extent cannot support electromagnetic states that are exponentially decaying in all directions in air , since , from maxwell &# 39 ; s equations in free space : { right arrow over ( k )} 2 = ω 2 / c 2 where { right arrow over ( k )} is the wave vector , co the angular frequency , and c the speed of light . because of this , one can show that they cannot support states of infinite q . however , very long - lived ( so - called “ high - q ”) states can be found , whose tails display the needed exponential or exponential - like decay away from the resonant object over long enough distances before they turn oscillatory ( radiative ). the limiting surface , where this change in the field behavior happens , is called the “ radiation caustic ”, and , for the wireless energy - transfer scheme to be based on the near field rather than the far / radiation field , the distance between the coupled objects must be such that one lies within the radiation caustic of the other . furthermore , in some embodiments , small q κ = ω / 2κ corresponding to strong ( i . e . fast ) coupling rate κ is preferred over distances larger than the characteristic sizes of the objects . therefore , since the extent of the near - field into the area surrounding a finite - sized resonant object is set typically by the wavelength , in some embodiments , this mid - range non - radiative coupling can be achieved using resonant objects of subwavelength size , and thus significantly longer evanescent field - tails . as will be seen in examples later on , such subwavelength resonances can often be accompanied with a high q , so this will typically be the appropriate choice for the possibly - mobile resonant device - object . note , though , that in some embodiments , the resonant source - object will be immobile and thus less restricted in its allowed geometry and size , which can be therefore chosen large enough that the near - field extent is not limited by the wavelength . objects of nearly infinite extent , such as dielectric waveguides , can support guided modes whose evanescent tails are decaying exponentially in the direction away from the object , slowly if tuned close to cutoff , and can have nearly infinite q . in the following , we describe several examples of systems suitable for energy transfer of the type described above . we will demonstrate how to compute the cmt parameters ω 1 , 2 , q 1 , 2 and q κ described above and how to choose these parameters for particular embodiments in order to produce a desirable figure - of - merit κ /√{ square root over ( γ 1 γ 2 )}=√{ square root over ( q 1 q 2 )}/ q κ . in particular , this figure of merit is typically maximized when ω 1 , 2 are tuned to a particular angular frequency { tilde over ( ω )}, thus , if { tilde over ( γ )} is half the angular - frequency width for which √{ square root over ( q 1 q 2 )}/ q κ is above half its maximum value at { tilde over ( ω )}, the angular eigenfrequencies ω 1 , 2 should typically be tuned to be close to { tilde over ( ω )} to within the width { tilde over ( γ )}. in addition , as described below , q 1 , 2 can sometimes be limited not from intrinsic loss mechanisms but from external perturbations . in those cases , producing a desirable figure - of - merit translates to reducing q κ ( i . e . increasing the coupling ). accordingly we will demonstrate how , for particular embodiments , to reduce q κ . in some embodiments , one or more of the resonant objects are self - resonant conducting coils . referring to fig2 , a conducting wire of length l and cross - sectional radius a is wound into a helical coil of radius r and height h ( namely with n =√{ square root over ( l 2 = h 2 )}/ 2πr number of turns ), surrounded by air . as described below , the wire has distributed inductance and distributed capacitance , and therefore it supports a resonant mode of angular frequency ω . the nature of the resonance lies in the periodic exchange of energy from the electric field within the capacitance of the coil , due to the charge distribution ρ ( x ) across it , to the magnetic field in free space , due to the current distribution j ( x ) in the wire . in particular , the charge conservation equation ∇· j = iωρ implies that : ( i ) this periodic exchange is accompanied by a π / 2 phase - shift between the current and the charge density profiles , namely the energy u contained in the coil is at certain points in time completely due to the current and at other points in time completely due to the charge , and ( ii ) if ρ l ( x ) and i ( x ) are respectively the linear charge and current densities in the wire , where x runs along the wire , is the maximum amount of positive charge accumulated in one side of the coil ( where an equal amount of negative charge always also accumulates in the other side to make the system neutral ) and i o = max {\| i ( x )\|} is the maximum positive value of the linear current distribution , then i o = ωq o . then , one can define an effective total inductance l and an effective total capacitance c of the coil through the amount of energy u inside its resonant mode : where μ o and ε o are the magnetic permeability and electric permittivity of free space . with these definitions , the resonant angular frequency and the effective impedance are given by the common formulas ω = 1 /√{ square root over ( lc )} and z =√{ square root over ( l / c )} respectively . losses in this resonant system consist of ohmic ( material absorption ) loss inside the wire and radiative loss into free space . one can again define a total absorption resistance r abs from the amount of power absorbed inside the wire and a total radiation resistance r rad from the amount of power radiated due to electric - and magnetic - dipole radiation : where c = 1 /°{ square root over ( μ o ε o )} and ζ o =√{ square root over ( μ o / ε o )} are the light velocity and light impedance in free space , the impedance ζ c is ζ c = 1 / σδ =√{ square root over ( μ o ω / 2σ )} with σ the conductivity of the conductor and δ the skin depth at the frequency ω , is the magnetic - dipole moment of the coil . for the radiation resistance formula eq . ( 5 ), the assumption of operation in the quasi - static regime ( h , r λ = 2πc / ω )) has been used , which is the desired regime of a subwavelength resonance . with these definitions , the absorption and radiation quality factors of the resonance are given by q abs = z / r abs and q rad = z / r rad respectively . from eq . ( 2 )-( 5 ) it follows that to determine the resonance parameters one simply needs to know the current distribution j in the resonant coil . solving maxwell &# 39 ; s equations to rigorously find the current distribution of the resonant electromagnetic eigenmode of a conducting - wire coil is more involved than , for example , of a standard lc circuit , and we can find no exact solutions in the literature for coils of finite length , making an exact solution difficult . one could in principle write down an elaborate transmission - line - like model , and solve it by brute force . we instead present a model that is ( as described below ) in good agreement (˜ 5 %) with experiment . observing that the finite extent of the conductor forming each coil imposes the boundary condition that the current has to be zero at the ends of the coil , since no current can leave the wire , we assume that the resonant mode of each coil is well approximated by a sinusoidal current profile along the length of the conducting wire . we shall be interested in the lowest mode , so if we denote by x the coordinate along the conductor , such that it runs from − l / 2 to + l / 2 , then the current amplitude profile would have the form i ( x )= i o cos ( πx / l ), where we have assumed that the current does not vary significantly along the wire circumference for a particular x , a valid assumption provided a r . it immediately follows from the continuity equation for charge that the linear charge density profile should be of the form ρ l ( x )= ρ o sin ( πx / l ), and thus q o =∫ 0 1 / 2 dxρ o \| sin ( πx / l )\|= ρ o l / π . using these sinusoidal profiles we find the so - called “ self - inductance ” l s and “ self - capacitance ” c s of the coil by computing numerically the integrals eq . ( 2 ) and ( 3 ); the associated frequency and effective impedance are ω s and z s respectively . the “ self - resistances ” r s are given analytically by eq . ( 4 ) and and therefore the associated q s factors may be calculated . the results for two particular embodiments of resonant coils with subwavelength modes of π s / r ≧ 70 ( i . e . those highly suitable for near - field coupling and well within the quasi - static limit ) are presented in table 1 . numerical results are shown for the wavelength and absorption , radiation and total loss rates , for the two different cases of subwavelength - coil resonant modes . note that , for conducting material , copper ( σ = 5 . 998 · 10 ̂− 7 s / m ) was used . it can be seen that expected quality factors at microwave frequencies are q s abs ≧ 1000 and q s rad ≧ 5000 . referring to fig3 , in some embodiments , energy is transferred between two self - resonant conducting - wire coils . the electric and magnetic fields are used to couple the different resonant conducting - wire coils at a distance d between their centers . usually , the electric coupling highly dominates over the magnetic coupling in the system under consideration for coils with h 2r and , oppositely , the magnetic coupling highly dominates over the electric coupling for coils with h 2r . defining the charge and current distributions of two coils 1 , 2 respectively as ρ 1 , 2 ( x ) and j 1 , 2 ( x ), total charges and peak currents respectively as q 1 , 2 and i 1 , 2 , and capacitances and inductances respectively as c 1 , 2 and l 1 , 2 , which are the analogs of ρ ( x ), j ( x ), q o , i o , c and l for the single - coil case and are therefore well defined , we can define their mutual capacitance and inductance through the total energy : and the retardation factor of u = exp ( iω \| x − x ′\|/ c ) inside the integral can been ignored in the quasi - static regime d λ of interest , where each coil is within the near field of the other . with this definition , the coupling coefficient is given by is κ = ω √{ square root over ( c 1 c 2 )}/ 2m c + ωm l / 2 √{ square root over ( l 1 l 2 )} q κ − 1 =( m c /√{ square root over ( c 1 c 2 )}) − 1 +(√{ square root over ( l 1 l 2 )}/ m l ) − 1 , therefore , to calculate the coupling rate between two self - resonant coils , again the current profiles are needed and , by using again the assumed sinusoidal current profiles , we compute numerically from eq . ( 6 ) the mutual capacitance m c , s and inductance m l , s between two self - resonant coils at a distance d between their centers , and thus q κ , s is also determined . referring to table 2 , relevant parameters are shown for exemplary embodiments featuring pairs or identical self resonant coils . numerical results are presented for the average wavelength and loss rates of the two normal modes ( individual values not shown ), and also the coupling rate and figure - of - merit as a function of the coupling distance d , for the two cases of modes presented in table 1 . it can be seen that for medium distances d / r = 10 − 3 the expected coupling - to - loss ratios are in the range κ / γ ˜ 2 − 70 . in some embodiments , one or more of the resonant objects are capacitively - loaded conducting loops or coils . referring to fig4 a helical coil with n turns of conducting wire , as described above , is connected to a pair of conducting parallel plates of area a spaced by distance d via a dielectric material of relative permittivity ε , and everything is surrounded by air ( as shown , n = 1 and h = 0 ). the plates have a capacitance c p = ε o εa / d , which is added to the distributed capacitance of the coil and thus modifies its resonance . note however , that the presence of the loading capacitor modifies significantly the current distribution inside the wire and therefore the total effective inductance l and total effective capacitance c of the coil are different respectively from l s and c s , which are calculated for a self - resonant coil of the same geometry using a sinusoidal current profile . since some charge is accumulated at the plates of the external loading capacitor , the charge distribution p inside the wire is reduced , so c & lt ; c s , and thus , from the charge conservation equation , the current distribution j flattens out , so l & gt ; l s . the resonant frequency for this system is ω = 1 /√{ square root over ( l ( c + c p ))}& lt ; ω s = 1 /√{ square root over ( l s c s )}, and i ( x )→ i o cos ( π x / l ) c → c s ω → ω s , as c p → 0 . in general , the desired cmt parameters can be found for this system , but again a very complicated solution of maxwell &# 39 ; s equations is required . instead , we will analyze only a special case , where a reasonable guess for the current distribution can be made . when c p c s & gt ; c , then ω ≈ 1 /√{ square root over ( lc p )} ω s and z ≈√{ square root over ( l / c p )} z s , while all the charge is on the plates of the loading capacitor and thus the current distribution is constant along the wire . this allows us now to compute numerically l from eq . ( 2 ). in the case h = 0 and n integer , the integral in eq . ( 2 ) can actually be computed analytically , giving the formula l = μ o r [ ln ( 8r / a )− 2 ] n 2 . explicit analytical formulas are again available for r from eq . ( 4 ) and ( 5 ), since i rms = i o , \| p \|≈ 0 and \| m \|= i o nπr 2 ( namely only the magnetic - dipole term is contributing to radiation ), so we can determine also q abs = ωl / r abs and q rad = ωl / r rad . at the end of the calculations , the validity of the assumption of constant current profile is confirmed by checking that indeed the condition c p c s ω ω s is satisfied . to satisfy this condition , one could use a large external capacitance , however , this would usually shift the operational frequency lower than the optimal frequency , which we will determine shortly ; instead , in typical embodiments , one often prefers coils with very small self - capacitance c s to begin with , which usually holds , for the types of coils under consideration , when n = 1 , so that the self - capacitance comes from the charge distribution across the single turn , which is almost always very small , or when n & gt ; 1 and h 2na , so that the dominant self - capacitance comes from the charge distribution across adjacent turns , which is small if the separation between adjacent turns is large . the external loading capacitance c p provides the freedom to tune the resonant frequency ( for example by tuning a or d ). then , for the particular simple case h = 0 , for which we have analytical formulas , the total q = ωl /( r abs + r rad ) becomes highest at the optimal frequency at lower frequencies it is dominated by ohmic loss and at higher frequencies by radiation . note , however , that the formulas above are accurate as long as { tilde over ( ω )} ω s and , as explained above , this holds almost always when n = 1 , and is usually less accurate when n & gt ; 1 , since h = 0 usually implies a large self - capacitance . a coil with large h can be used , if the self - capacitance needs to be reduced compared to the external capacitance , but then the formulas for l and { tilde over ( ω )}, { tilde over ( q )} are again less accurate . similar qualitative behavior is expected , but a more complicated theoretical model is needed for making quantitative predictions in that case . the results of the above analysis for two embodiments of subwavelength modes of λ / r ≧ 70 ( namely highly suitable for near - field coupling and well within the quasi - static limit ) of coils with n = 1 and h = 0 at the optimal frequency eq . ( 7 ) are presented in table 3 . to confirm the validity of constant - current assumption and the resulting analytical formulas , mode - solving calculations were also performed using another completely independent method : computational 3d finite - element frequency - domain ( fefd ) simulations ( which solve maxwell &# 39 ; s equations in frequency domain exactly apart for spatial discretization ) were conducted , in which the boundaries of the conductor were modeled using a complex impedance ζ c =√{ square root over ( μ o ω / 2σ )} boundary condition , valid as long as ζ c / ζ o 1 (& lt ; 10 − 5 for copper in the microwave ). table 3 shows numerical fefd ( and in parentheses analytical ) results for the wavelength and absorption , radiation and total loss rates , for two different cases of subwavelength - loop resonant modes . note that for conducting material copper ( σ = 5 . 998 · 10 7 s / m ) was used . ( the specific parameters of the plot in fig4 are highlighted with bold in the table .) the two methods ( analytical and computational ) are in very good agreement and show that , in some embodiments , the optimal frequency is in the low - mhz microwave range and the expected quality factors are q abs ≧ 1000 and q rad ≧ 10000 . referring to fig5 , in some embodiments , energy is transferred between two capacitively - loaded coils . for the rate of energy transfer between two capacitively - loaded coils 1 and 2 at distance d between their centers , the mutual inductance m l can be evaluated numerically from eq . ( 6 ) by using constant current distributions in the case ω ω s . in the case h = 0 , the coupling is only magnetic and again we have an analytical formula , which , in the quasi - static limit r d λ and for the relative orientation shown in fig4 , is m l ≈ πμ o / 2 ·( r 1 r 2 ) 2 n 1 n 2 / d 3 , which means that q κ ∝( d /√{ square root over ( r 1 r 2 )}) 3 is independent of the frequency to and the number of turns n 1 , n 2 consequently , the resultant coupling figure - of - merit of interest is which again is more accurate for n 1 = n 2 = 1 . from eq . ( 9 ) it can be seen that the optimal frequency { tilde over ( ω )}, where the figure - of - merit is maximized to the value , is that where √{ square root over ( q 1 q 2 )} is maximized , since q κ does not depend on frequency ( at least for the distances d λ of interest for which the quasi - static approximation is still valid ). therefore , the optimal frequency is independent of the distance d between the two coils and lies between the two frequencies where the single - coil q 1 and q 2 peak . for same coils , it is given by eq . ( 7 ) and then the figure - of - merit eq . ( 9 ) becomes typically , one should tune the capacitively - loaded conducting loops or coils , so that their angular eigenfrequencies are close to { tilde over ( ω )} within { tilde over ( γ )}, which is half the angular frequency width for which √{ square root over ( q 1 q 2 )}/ q κ & gt ; / 2 . referring to table 4 , numerical fefd and , in parentheses , analytical results based on the above are shown for two systems each composed of a matched pair of the loaded coils described in table 3 . the average wavelength and loss rates are shown along with the coupling rate and coupling to loss ratio figure - of - merit κ / γ as a function of the coupling distance d , for the two cases . note that the average numerical γ rad shown are again slightly different from the single - loop value of fig3 , analytical results for γ rad are not shown but the single - loop value is used . ( the specific parameters corresponding to the plot in fig5 are highlighted with bold in the table .) again we chose n = 1 to make the constant - current assumption a good one and computed m l numerically from eq . ( 6 ). indeed the accuracy can be confirmed by their agreement with the computational fefd mode - solver simulations , which give κ through the frequency splitting (= 2κ ) of the two normal modes of the combined system . the results show that for medium distances d / r = 10 − 3 the expected coupling - to - loss ratios are in the range κ / γ ˜ 0 . 5 − 50 . in some embodiments , the results above can be used to increase or optimize the performance of a wireless energy transfer system which employs capacitively - loaded coils . for example , the scaling of eq . ( 10 ) with the different system parameters one sees that to maximize the system figure - of - merit κ / γ one can , for example : decrease the resistivity of the conducting material . this can be achieved , for example , by using good conductors ( such as copper or silver ) and / or lowering the temperature . at very low temperatures one could use also superconducting materials to achieve extremely good performance . increase the wire radius a . in typical embodiments , this action is limited by physical size considerations . the purpose of this action is mainly to reduce the resistive losses in the wire by increasing the cross - sectional area through which the electric current is flowing , so one could alternatively use also a litz wire or a ribbon instead of a circular wire . for fixed desired distance d of energy transfer , increase the radius of the loop r . in typical embodiments , this action is limited by physical size considerations . for fixed desired distance vs . loop - size ratio d / r , decrease the radius of the loop r . in typical embodiments , this action is limited by physical size considerations . increase the number of turns n . ( even though eq . ( 10 ) is expected to be less accurate for n & gt ; 1 , qualitatively it still provides a good indication that we expect an improvement in the coupling - to - loss ratio with increased n .) in typical embodiments , this action is limited by physical size and possible voltage considerations , as will be discussed in following sections . adjust the alignment and orientation between the two coils . the figure - of - merit is optimized when both cylindrical coils have exactly the same axis of cylindrical symmetry ( namely they are “ facing ” each other ). in some embodiments , particular mutual coil angles and orientations that lead to zero mutual inductance ( such as the orientation where the axes of the two coils are perpendicular ) should be avoided . finally , note that the height of the coil h is another available design parameter , which has an impact to the performance similar to that of its radius r , and thus the design rules are similar . 1001241 the above analysis technique can be used to design systems with desired parameters . for example , as listed below , the above described techniques can be used to determine the cross sectional radius a of the wire which one should use when designing as system two same single - turn loops with a given radius in order to achieve a specific performance in terms of κ / γ at a given d / r between them , when the material is copper ( σ = 5 . 998 · 10 7 s / m ): d / r = 5 , κ / γ ≧ 10 , r = 30 cm a ≧ 9 mm d / r = 5 , κ / γ ≧ 10 , r = 5 cm a ≧ 3 . 7 mm d / r = 5 , κ / γ ≧ 20 , r = 30 cm a ≧ 20 mm d / r = 5 , κ / γ ≧ 20 , r = 5 cm a ≧ 8 . 3 mm d / r = 10 , κ / γ ≧ 1 , r = 30 cm a ≧ 7 mm d / r = 10 , κ / γ ≧ 1 , r = 5 cm a ≧ 2 . 8 mm d / r = 10 , κ / γ ≧ 3 , r = 30 cm a ≧ 25 mm d / r = 10 , κ / γ ≧ 3 , r = 5 cm a ≧ 10 mm similar analysis can be done for the case of two dissimilar loops . for example , in some embodiments , the device under consideration is very specific ( e . g . a laptop or a cell phone ), so the dimensions of the device object ( r d , h d , a d , n d ) are very restricted . however , in some such embodiments , the restrictions on the source object ( r s , h s , a s , n s ) are much less , since the source can , for example , be placed under the floor or on the ceiling . in such cases , the desired distance is often well defined , based on the application ( e . g . d ˜ 1 m for charging a laptop on a table wirelessly from the floor ). listed below are examples ( simplified to the case n s = n d = 1 and h s = h d = 0 ) of how one can vary the dimensions of the source object to achieve the desired system performance in terms of κ /√{ square root over ( γ s γ d )}, when the material is again copper ( σ = 5 . 998 · 10 7 s / m ): d = 1 . 5 m , κ /√{ square root over ( γ s γ d )}≧ 15 , r d = 30 cm , a d = 6 mm r s = 1 . 158 m , a s ≧ 5 mm d = 1 . 5 m , κ /√{ square root over ( γ s γ d )}≧ 30 , r d = 30 cm , a d = 6 mm r s = 1 . 15 m , a s ≧ 33 mm d = 1 . 5 m , κ /√{ square root over ( γ s γ d )}≧ 1 , r d = 5 cm , a d = 4 mm r s = 1 . 119 m , a s ≧ 7 mm d = 1 . 5 m , κ /√{ square root over ( γ s γ d )}≧ 2 , r d = 5 cm , a d = 4 mm r s = 1 . 119 m , a s ≧ 52 mm d = 2 m , κ /√{ square root over ( γ s γ d )}≧ 10 , r d = 30 cm , a d = 6 mm r s = 1 . 518 m , a s ≧ 7 mm d = 2 m , κ /√{ square root over ( γ s γ d )}≧ 20 , r d = 30 cm , a d = 6 mm r s = 1 . 514 m , a s ≧ 50 mm d = 2 m , κ /√{ square root over ( γ s γ d )}≧ 0 . 5 , r d = 5 cm , a d = 4 mm r s = 1 . 491 m , a s ≧ 5 mm d = 2 m , κ /√{ square root over ( γ s γ d )}≧ 1 , r d = 5 cm , a d = 4 mm r s = 1 . 491 m , a s ≧ 36 mm as will be described below , in some embodiments the quality factor q of the resonant objects is limited from external perturbations and thus varying the coil parameters cannot lead to improvement in q . in such cases , one may opt to increase the coupling to loss ratio figure - of - merit by decreasing q κ ( i . e . increasing the coupling ). the coupling does not depend on the frequency and the number of turns . therefore , the remaining degrees of freedom are : increase the wire radii a 1 and a 2 . in typical embodiments , this action is limited by physical size considerations . for fixed desired distance d of energy transfer , increase the radii of the coils r 1 and r 2 . in typical embodiments , this action is limited by physical size considerations . for fixed desired distance vs . coil - sizes ratio d /√{ square root over ( r 1 r 2 )}, only the weak ( logarithmic ) dependence of the inductance remains , which suggests that one should decrease the radii of the coils r 1 and r 2 . in typical embodiments , this action is limited by physical size considerations . adjust the alignment and orientation between the two coils . in typical embodiments , the coupling is optimized when both cylindrical coils have exactly the same axis of cylindrical symmetry ( namely they are “ facing ” each other ). particular mutual coil angles and orientations that lead to zero mutual inductance ( such as the orientation where the axes of the two coils are perpendicular ) should obviously be avoided . finally , note that the heights of the coils h 1 and h 2 are other available design parameters , which have an impact to the coupling similar to that of their radii r 1 and r 2 , and thus the design rules are similar . further practical considerations apart from efficiency , e . g . physical size limitations , will be discussed in detail below . it is also important to appreciate the difference between the above described resonant - coupling inductive scheme and the well - known non - resonant inductive scheme for energy transfer . using cmt it is easy to show that , keeping the geometry and the energy stored at the source fixed , the resonant inductive mechanism allows for ˜ q 2 (˜ 10 6 ) times more power delivered for work at the device than the traditional non - resonant mechanism . this is why only close - range contact - less medium - power (˜ w ) transfer is possible with the latter , while with resonance either close - range but large - power (˜ kw ) transfer is allowed or , as currently proposed , if one also ensures operation in the strongly - coupled regime , medium - range and medium - power transfer is possible . capacitively - loaded conducting loops are currently used as resonant antennas ( for example in cell phones ), but those operate in the far - field regime with d / r l , r / λ ˜ l , and the radiation q &# 39 ; s are intentionally designed to be small to make the antenna efficient , so they are not appropriate for energy transfer . a straight conducting rod of length 2 h and cross - sectional radius a has distributed capacitance and distributed inductance , and therefore it supports a resonant mode of angular frequency ω . using the same procedure as in the case of self - resonant coils , one can define an effective total inductance l and an effective total capacitance c of the rod through formulas ( 2 ) and ( 3 ). with these definitions , the resonant angular frequency and the effective impedance are given again by the common formulas ω = 1 /√{ square root over ( lc )} and z =√{ square root over ( l / c )} respectively . to calculate the total inductance and capacitance , one can assume again a sinusoidal current profile along the length of the conducting wire . when interested in the lowest mode , if we denote by x the coordinate along the conductor , such that it runs from − h to + h , then the current amplitude profile would have the form i ( x )= i o cos ( πx / 2 h ), since it has to be zero at the open ends of the rod . this is the well - known half - wavelength electric dipole resonant mode . in some embodiments , one or more of the resonant objects are inductively - loaded conducting rods . a straight conducting rod of length 2 h and cross - sectional radius a , as in the previous paragraph , is cut into two equal pieces of length h , which are connected via a coil wrapped around a magnetic material of relative permeability μ , and everything is surrounded by air . the coil has an inductance l c , which is added to the distributed inductance of the rod and thus modifies its resonance . note however , that the presence of the center - loading inductor modifies significantly the current distribution inside the wire and therefore the total effective inductance l and total effective capacitance c of the rod are different respectively from l s and c s , which are calculated for a self - resonant rod of the same total length using a sinusoidal current profile , as in the previous paragraph . since some current is running inside the coil of the external loading inductor , the current distribution j inside the rod is reduced , so l & lt ; l s , and thus , from the charge conservation equation , the linear charge distribution ρ 1 flattens out towards the center ( being positive in one side of the rod and negative in the other side of the rod , changing abruptly through the inductor ), so c & gt ; c s . the resonant frequency for this system is ω = 1 /√{ square root over (( l + l c ) c )}& lt ; ω s = 1 /√{ square root over ( l s c s )}, and i ( x )→ i o cos ( π x / 2 h ) l → l s ω → ω s , as l c → 0 . in general , the desired cmt parameters can be found for this system , but again a very complicated solution of maxwell &# 39 ; s equations is required . instead , we will analyze only a special case , where a reasonable guess for the current distribution can be made . when l c l s & gt ; l , then ω ≈ 1 /√{ square root over ( l c c )} ω s and z ≈√{ square root over ( l c / c )} z s , while the current distribution is triangular along the rod ( with maximum at the center - loading inductor and zero at the ends ) and thus the charge distribution is positive constant on one half of the rod and equally negative constant on the other side of the rod . this allows us now to compute numerically c from eq . ( 3 ). in this case , the integral in eq . ( 3 ) can actually be computed analytically , giving the formula 1 / c = 1 /( πε o h )[ ln ( h / a )− 1 ]. explicit analytical formulas are again available for r from eq . ( 4 ) and ( 5 ), since i rms = i o , \| p \|= q o h and \| m \|= 0 ( namely only the electric - dipole term is contributing to radiation ), so we can determine also q abs = 1 / ωcr abs and q rad = 1 / ωcr rad . at the end of the calculations , the validity of the assumption of triangular current profile is confirmed by checking that indeed the condition l c l s ω ω s is satisfied . this condition is relatively easily satisfied , since typically a conducting rod has very small self - inductance l s to begin with . another important loss factor in this case is the resistive loss inside the coil of the external loading inductor l c and it depends on the particular design of the inductor . in some embodiments , the inductor is made of a brooks coil , which is the coil geometry which , for fixed wire length , demonstrates the highest inductance and thus quality factor . the brooks coil geometry has n bc turns of conducting wire of cross - sectional radius a bc wrapped around a cylindrically symmetric coil former , which forms a coil with a square cross - section of side r bc , where the inner side of the square is also at radius r bc ( and thus the outer side of the square is at radius 2 r bc ), therefore n bc ≈( r bc / 2a bc ) 2 . the inductance of the coil is then l c = 2 . 0285 μ o r bc n bc 2 ≈ 2 . 0285 μ o r bc 5 / 8a bc 4 and its resistance where the total wire length is l bc ≈ 2π ( 3 r bc / 2 ) n bc ≈ 3 πr bc 3 / 4 a bc 2 and we have used an approximate square - root law for the transition of the resistance from the dc to the ac limit as the skin depth varies with frequency . the external loading inductance l c provides the freedom to tune the resonant frequency . ( for example , for a brooks coil with a fixed size r bc , the resonant frequency can be reduced by increasing the number of turns n bc by decreasing the wire cross - sectional radius a bc . then the desired resonant angular frequency ω = 1 /√{ square root over ( l c c )} is achieved for a bc ≈( 2 . 0285 μ o r bc 5 ω 2 c ) 1 / 4 and the resulting coil quality factor is q c ≈ 0 . 169 μ o σr bc 2 ω /√{ square root over ( 1 + ω 2 μ o σ √{ square root over ( 2 . 0285 μ o ( r bc / 4 ) 5 )})}). then , for the particular simple case l c l s , for which we have analytical formulas , the total q = 1 / ωc ( r c r abs + r rad ) becomes highest at some optimal frequency { tilde over ( ω )}, reaching the value { tilde over ( q )}, both determined by the loading - inductor specific design . ( for example , for the brooks - coil procedure described above , at the optimal frequency { tilde over ( q )}≈ q c ≈ 0 . 8 ( μ o σ 2 r bc 3 / c ) 1 / 4 ) at lower frequencies it is dominated by ohmic loss inside the inductor coil and at higher frequencies by radiation . note , again , that the above formulas are accurate as long as { tilde over ( ω )} ω s and , as explained above , this is easy to design for by using a large inductance . the results of the above analysis for two embodiments , using brooks coils , of subwavelength modes of λ / h ≧ 200 ( namely highly suitable for near - field coupling and well within the quasi - static limit ) at the optimal frequency { tilde over ( ω )} are presented in table 5 . table 5 shows in parentheses ( for similarity to previous tables ) analytical results for the wavelength and absorption , radiation and total loss rates , for two different cases of subwavelength - loop resonant modes . note that for conducting material copper ( σ = 5 . 998 · 10 7 s / m ) was used . the results show that , in some embodiments , the optimal frequency is in the low - mhz microwave range and the expected quality factors are q abs ≧ 1000 and q rad ≧ 100000 . in some embodiments , energy is transferred between two inductively - loaded rods . for the rate of energy transfer between two inductively - loaded rods 1 and 2 at distance d between their centers , the mutual capacitance m c can be evaluated numerically from eq . ( 6 ) by using triangular current distributions in the case ω ω s . in this case , the coupling is only electric and again we have an analytical formula , which , in the quasi - static limit h d λ and for the relative orientation such that the two rods are aligned on the same axis , is 1 / m c ≈ 1 / 2 πε o ·( h 1 h 2 ) 2 / d 3 , which means that q κ ∝( d /√{ square root over ( h 1 h 2 )}) 3 is independent of the frequency ω . consequently , one can get the resultant coupling figure - of - merit of interest it can be seen that the optimal frequency { tilde over ( ω )}, where the figure - of - merit is maximized to the value , is that where √{ square root over ( q 1 q 2 )} is maximized , since q κ does not depend on frequency ( at least for the distances d λ of interest for which the quasi - static approximation is still valid ). therefore , the optimal frequency is independent of the distance d between the two rods and lies between the two frequencies where the single - rod q 1 and q 2 peak . typically , one should tune the inductively - loaded conducting rods , so that their angular eigenfrequencies are close to { tilde over ( ω )} within { tilde over ( γ )}, which is half the angular frequency width for which √{ square root over ( q 1 q 2 )}/ q κ & gt ; / 2 . referring to table 6 , in parentheses ( for similarity to previous tables ) analytical results based on the above are shown for two systems each composed of a matched pair of the loaded rods described in table 5 . the average wavelength and loss rates are shown along with the coupling rate and coupling to loss ratio figure - of - merit κ / γ as a function of the coupling distance d , for the two cases . note that for γ rad the single - rod value is used . again we chose l c l s to make the triangular - current assumption a good one and computed m c numerically from eq . ( 6 ). the results show that for medium distances d / h = 10 − 3 the expected coupling - to - loss ratios are in the range κ / γ ˜ 0 . 5 − 100 . in some embodiments , one or more of the resonant objects are dielectric objects , such as disks . consider a two dimensional dielectric disk object , as shown in fig6 , of radius r and relative permittivity ε surrounded by air that supports high - q “ whispering - gallery ” resonant modes . the loss mechanisms for the energy stored inside such a resonant system are radiation into free space and absorption inside the disk material . high - q rad and long - tailed subwavelength resonances can be achieved when the dielectric permittivity ε is large and the azimuthal field variations are slow ( namely of small principal number m ). material absorption is related to the material loss tangent : qabs ˜ re { ε }/ im { ε }. mode - solving calculations for this type of disk resonances were performed using two independent methods : numerically , 2d finite - difference frequency - domain ( fdfd ) simulations ( which solve maxwell &# 39 ; s equations in frequency domain exactly apart for spatial discretization ) were conducted with a resolution of 30 pts / r ; analytically , standard separation of variables ( sv ) in polar coordinates was used . the results for two te - polarized dielectric - disk subwavelength modes of λ / r ≧ 10 are presented in table 7 . table 7 shows numerical fdfd ( and in parentheses analytical sv ) results for the wavelength and absorption , radiation and total loss rates , for two different cases of subwavelength - disk resonant modes . note that disk - material loss - tangent im { ε }/ re { ε }= 10 − 4 was used . ( the specific parameters corresponding to the plot in fig6 . are highlighted with bold in the table .) the two methods have excellent agreement and imply that for a properly designed resonant low - loss - dielectric object values of q rad ≧ 2000 and qabs ˜ 10000 are achievable . note that for the 3d case the computational complexity would be immensely increased , while the physics would not be significantly different . for example , a spherical object of ε = 147 . 7 has a whispering gallery mode with m = 2 , qrad = 13962 , and λ / r = 17 . the required values of ε , shown in table 7 , might at first seem unrealistically large . however , not only are there in the microwave regime ( appropriate for approximately meter - range coupling applications ) many materials that have both reasonably high enough dielectric constants and low losses ( e . g . titania , barium tetratitanate , lithium tantalite etc . ), but also ε could signify instead the effective index of other known subwavelength surface - wave systems , such as surface modes on surfaces of metallic materials or plasmonic ( metal - like , negative - ε ) materials or metallo - dielectric photonic crystals or plasmono - dielectric photonic crystals . to calculate now the achievable rate of energy transfer between two disks 1 and 2 , as shown in fig7 we place them at distance d between their centers . numerically , the fdfd mode - solver simulations give κ through the frequency splitting (= 2κ ) of the normal modes of the combined system , which are even and odd superpositions of the initial single - disk modes ; analytically , using the expressions for the separation - of - variables eigenfields e 1 , 2 ( r ) cmt gives κ through κ = ω 1 / 2 ·∫ d 3 rε 2 ( r ) e * 2 ( r ) e 1 ( r )/∫ d 3 rε ( r )\| e 1 ( r )\| 2 where ε j ( r ) and ε ( r ) are the dielectric functions that describe only the disk j ( minus the constant ε o background ) and the whole space respectively . then , for medium distances d / r = 10 − 3 and for non - radiative coupling such that d & lt ; 2r c , where r c = mλ / 2π is the radius of the radiation caustic , the two methods agree very well , and we finally find , as shown in table 8 , coupling - to - loss ratios in the range κ / γ ˜ 1 = 50 . thus , for the analyzed embodiments , the achieved figure - of - merit values are large enough to be useful for typical applications , as discussed below . note that even though particular embodiments are presented and analyzed above as examples of systems that use resonant electromagnetic coupling for wireless energy transfer , those of self - resonant conducting coils , capacitively - loaded resonant conducting coils and resonant dielectric disks , any system that supports an electromagnetic mode with its electromagnetic energy extending much further than its size can be used for transferring energy . for example , there can be many abstract geometries with distributed capacitances and inductances that support the desired kind of resonances . in any one of these geometries , one can choose certain parameters to increase and / or optimize √{ square root over ( q 1 q 2 )}/ q κ or , if the q &# 39 ; s are limited by external factors , to increase and / or optimize for q κ . in general , the overall performance of particular embodiment of the resonance - based wireless energy - transfer scheme depends strongly on the robustness of the resonant objects &# 39 ; resonances . therefore , it is desirable to analyze the resonant objects &# 39 ; sensitivity to the near presence of random non - resonant extraneous objects . one appropriate analytical model is that of “ perturbation theory ” ( pt ), which suggests that in the presence of an extraneous object e the field amplitude a 1 ( t ) inside the resonant object 1 satisfies , to first order : where again ω 1 is the frequency and γ 1 the intrinsic ( absorption , radiation etc .) loss rate , while κ 11 - e is the frequency shift induced onto 1 due to the presence of e and γ 1 - e is the extrinsic due to e ( absorption inside e , scattering from e etc .) loss rate . the first - order pt model is valid only for small perturbations . nevertheless , the parameters κ 11 - e , γ 1 - e are well defined , even outside that regime , if a 1 is taken to be the amplitude of the exact perturbed mode . note also that interference effects between the radiation field of the initial resonant - object mode and the field scattered off the extraneous object can for strong scattering ( e . g . off metallic objects ) result in total radiation - γ 1 - e &# 39 ; s that are smaller than the initial radiation - γ 1 ( namely γ 1 - e is negative ). the frequency shift is a problem that can be “ fixed ” by applying to one or more resonant objects a feedback mechanism that corrects its frequency . for example , referring to fig8 a , in some embodiments each resonant object is provided with an oscillator at fixed frequency and a monitor which determines the frequency of the object . both the oscillator and the monitor are coupled to a frequency adjuster which can adjust the frequency of the resonant object by , for example , adjusting the geometric properties of the object ( e . g . the height of a self - resonant coil , the capacitor plate spacing of a capacitively - loaded loop or coil , the dimensions of the inductor of an inductively - loaded rod , the shape of a dielectric disc , etc .) or changing the position of a non - resonant object in the vicinity of the resonant object . the frequency adjuster determines the difference between the fixed frequency and the object frequency and acts to bring the object frequency into alignment with the fixed frequency . this technique assures that all resonant objects operate at the same fixed frequency , even in the presence of extraneous objects . as another example , referring to fig8 b , in some embodiments , during energy transfer from a source object to a device object , the device object provides energy to a load , and an efficiency monitor measures the efficiency of the transfer . a frequency adjuster coupled to the load and the efficiency monitor acts to adjust the frequency of the object to maximize the transfer efficiency . in various embodiments , other frequency adjusting schemes may be used which rely on information exchange between the resonant objects . for example , the frequency of a source object can be monitored and transmitted to a device object , which is in turn synched to this frequency using frequency adjusters as described above . in other embodiments the frequency of a single clock may be transmitted to multiple devices , and each device then synched to that frequency . unlike the frequency shift , the extrinsic loss can be detrimental to the functionality of the energy - transfer scheme , because it is difficult to remedy , so the total loss rate γ l [ e ] = γ 1 + γ 1 - e ( and the corresponding figure - of - merit κ [ e ] /√{ square root over ( γ 1 [ e ] γ 2 [ e ] )}, where κ [ e ] the perturbed coupling rate ) should be quantified . in embodiments using primarily magnetic resonances , the influence of extraneous objects on the resonances is nearly absent . the reason is that , in the quasi - static regime of operation ( r λ ) that we are considering , the near field in the air region surrounding the resonator is predominantly magnetic ( e . g . for coils with h 2 r most of the electric field is localized within the self - capacitance of the coil or the externally loading capacitor ), therefore extraneous non - conducting objects e that could interact with this field and act as a perturbation to the resonance are those having significant magnetic properties ( magnetic permeability re { μ }& gt ; 1 or magnetic loss im { μ }& gt ; 0 ). since almost all every - day non - conducting materials are non - magnetic but just dielectric , they respond to magnetic fields in the same way as free space , and thus will not disturb the resonance of the resonator . extraneous conducting materials can however lead to some extrinsic losses due to the eddy currents induced on their surface . as noted above , an extremely important implication of this fact relates to safety considerations for human beings . humans are also non - magnetic and can sustain strong magnetic fields without undergoing any risk . a typical example , where magnetic fields b ˜ 1t are safely used on humans , is the magnetic resonance imaging ( mri ) technique for medical testing . in contrast , the magnetic near - field required in typical embodiments in order to provide a few watts of power to devices is only b ˜ 10 − 4 t , which is actually comparable to the magnitude of the earth &# 39 ; s magnetic field . since , as explained above , a strong electric near - field is also not present and the radiation produced from this non - radiative scheme is minimal , it is reasonable to expect that our proposed energy - transfer method should be safe for living organisms . one can , for example , estimate the degree to which the resonant system of a capacitively - loaded conducting - wire coil has mostly magnetic energy stored in the space surrounding it . if one ignores the fringing electric field from the capacitor , the electric and magnetic energy densities in the space surrounding the coil come just from the electric and magnetic field produced by the current in the wire ; note that in the far field , these two energy densities must be equal , as is always the case for radiative fields . by using the results for the fields produced by a subwavelength ( r λ ) current loop ( magnetic dipole ) with h = 0 , we can calculate the ratio of electric to magnetic energy densities , as a function of distance d p from the center of the loop ( in the limit r d p ) and the angle θ with respect to the loop axis : where the second line is the ratio of averages over all angles by integrating the electric and magnetic energy densities over the surface of a sphere of radius d p . from eq . ( 12 ) it is obvious that indeed for all angles in the near field ( x 1 ) the magnetic energy density is dominant , while in the far field ( x 1 ) they are equal as they should be . also , the preferred positioning of the loop is such that objects which may interfere with its resonance lie close to its axis ( θ = 0 ), where there is no electric field . for example , using the systems described in table 4 , we can estimate from eq . ( 12 ) that for the loop of r = 30 cm at a distance d p = 10 r = 3 m the ratio of average electric to average magnetic energy density would be ˜ 12 % and at d p = 3 r = 90 cm it would be ˜ 1 %, and for the loop of r = 10 cm at a distance d p = 10 r = 1 m the ratio would be ˜ 33 % and at d p = 3 r = 30 cm it would be ˜ 2 . 5 %. at closer distances this ratio is even smaller and thus the energy is predominantly magnetic in the near field , while in the radiative far field , where they are necessarily of the same order ( ratio → 1 ), both are very small , because the fields have significantly decayed , as capacitively - loaded coil systems are designed to radiate very little . therefore , this is the criterion that qualifies this class of resonant system as a magnetic resonant system . to provide an estimate of the effect of extraneous objects on the resonance of a capacitively - loaded loop including the capacitor fringing electric field , we use the perturbation theory formula , stated earlier , γ 1 - c abs = ω 1 / 4 ·∫ d 3 rim { ε e ( r )}\| e 1 ( r )\| 2 / u with the computational fefd results for the field of an example like the one shown in the plot of fig5 and with a rectangular object of dimensions 30 cm × 30 cm × 1 . 5 m and permittivity ε = 49 + 16 i ( consistent with human muscles ) residing between the loops and almost standing on top of one capacitor (˜ 3 cm away from it ) and find q c - h abs ˜ 10 5 and for ˜ 10 cm away q c - h abs ˜ 5 · 10 5 . thus , for ordinary distances (˜ 1 m ) and placements ( not immediately on top of the capacitor ) or for most ordinary extraneous objects e of much smaller loss - tangent , we conclude that it is indeed fair to say that q c - e abs →∞. the only perturbation that is expected to affect these resonances is a close proximity of large metallic structures . self - resonant coils are more sensitive than capacitively - loaded coils , since for the former the electric field extends over a much larger region in space ( the entire coil ) rather than for the latter oust inside the capacitor ). on the other hand , self - resonant coils are simple to make and can withstand much larger voltages than most lumped capacitors . in general , different embodiments of resonant systems have different degree of sensitivity to external perturbations , and the resonant system of choice depends on the particular application at hand , and how important matters of sensitivity or safety are for that application . for example , for a medical implantable device ( such as a wirelessly powered artificial heart ) the electric field extent must be minimized to the highest degree possible to protect the tissue surrounding the device . in such cases where sensitivity to external objects or safety is important , one should design the resonant systems so that the ratio of electric to magnetic energy density u e / u m is reduced or minimized at most of the desired ( according to the application ) points in the surrounding space . in embodiments using resonances that are not primarily magnetic , the influence of extraneous objects may be of concern . for example , for dielectric disks , small , low - index , low - material - loss or far - away stray objects will induce small scattering and absorption . in such cases of small perturbations these extrinsic loss mechanisms can be quantified using respectively the analytical first - order perturbation theory formulas all perturbations γ 1 - e rad = ω 1 ∫ d 3 rre { ε e ( r )}\| e 1 ( r )\| 2 / u γ 1 - e abs = ω 1 / 4 ·∫ d 3 rim { ε e ( r )}\| e 1 ( r )\| 2 / u where u = 1 / 2 ∫ d 3 rε ( r )\| e 1 ( r )\| 2 is the total resonant electromagnetic energy of the unperturbed mode . as one can see , both of these losses depend on the square of the resonant electric field tails e 1 at the site of the extraneous object . in contrast , the coupling rate from object 1 to another resonant object 2 is , as stated earlier , κ = ω 1 / 2 ·∫ d 3 rε 2 ( r ) e * 2 ( r ) e 1 ( r )/∫ d 3 rε ( r )\| e 1 ( r )\| 2 and depends linearly on the field tails e 1 of 1 inside 2 . this difference in scaling gives us confidence that , for , for example , exponentially small field tails , coupling to other resonant objects should be much faster than all extrinsic loss rates ( κ γ 1 - e ), at least for small perturbations , and thus the energy - transfer scheme is expected to be sturdy for this class of resonant dielectric disks . however , we also want to examine certain possible situations where extraneous objects cause perturbations too strong to analyze using the above first - order perturbation theory approach . for example , we place a dielectric disk c close to another off - resonance object of large re { ε }, im { ε } and of same size but different shape ( such as a human being h ), as shown in fig9 a , and a roughened surface of large extent but of small re { ε }, im { ε } ( such as a wall w ), as shown in fig9 b . for distances dh / w / r = 10 − 3 between the disk - center and the “ human ”- center or “ wall ”, the numerical fdfd simulation results presented in fig9 a and 9 b suggest that , the disk resonance seems to be fairly robust , since it is not detrimentally disturbed by the presence of extraneous objects , with the exception of the very close proximity of high - loss objects . to examine the influence of large perturbations on an entire energy - transfer system we consider two resonant disks in the close presence of both a “ human ” and a “ wall ”. comparing fig7 to fig9 c , the numerical fdfd simulations show that the system performance deteriorates from κ / γ c ˜ 1 − 50 to κ [ hw ]/ γ c [ hw ] ˜ 0 . 5 − 10 i . e . only by acceptably small amounts . inductively - loaded conducting rods may also be more sensitive than capacitively - loaded coils , since they rely on the electric field to achieve the coupling . in general , another important factor for any energy transfer scheme is the transfer efficiency . consider again the combined system of a resonant source s and device d in the presence of a set of extraneous objects e . the efficiency of this resonance - based energy - transfer scheme may be determined , when energy is being drained from the device at rate γ work for use into operational work . the coupled - mode - theory equation for the device field - amplitude is where γ d [ e ] = γ d [ e ] rad + γ d [ e ] abs = γ d [ e ] rad +( γ d abs + γ d - e abs ) is the net perturbed - device loss rate , and similarly we define γ s [ c ] for the perturbed - source . different temporal schemes can be used to extract power from the device ( e . g . steady - state continuous - wave drainage , instantaneous drainage at periodic times and so on ) and their efficiencies exhibit different dependence on the combined system parameters . for simplicity , we assume steady state , such that the field amplitude inside the source is maintained constant , namely a s ( t )= a s e − iωt , so then the field amplitude inside the device is a d ( t )= a d e − iωt with a d / a s = iκ [ e ] /( γ d [ e ] + γ work ). the various time - averaged powers of interest are then : the useful extracted power is p work = 2γ work \| a d \| 2 , the radiated ( including scattered ) power is p rad = 2γ s [ e ] rad \| a s \| 2 + 2γ d [ e ] rad \| a d \| 2 , the power absorbed at the source / device is p s / d = 2γ s / d abs \| a s / d ] 2 , and at the extraneous objects p e = 2γ s - e abs \| a s \| 2 + 2γ d - e abs \| a 2 \| 2 . from energy conservation , the total time - averaged power entering the system is p total = p work + p rad + p s + p d + p c . note that the reactive powers , which are usually present in a system and circulate stored energy around it , cancel at resonance ( which can be proven for example in electromagnetism from poynting &# 39 ; s theorem ) and do not influence the power - balance calculations . the working efficiency is then : where from [ e ] = κ [ e ] /√{ square root over ( γ s [ c ] γ d [ e ] )} is the distance - dependent figure - of - merit of the perturbed resonant energy - exchange system . to derive eq . ( 14 ), we have assumed that the rate γ supply , at which the power supply is feeding energy to the resonant source , is γ supply = γ s [ e ] + κ 2 /( γ d [ e ] + γ work ), such that there are zero reflections of the fed power p total back into the power supply . referring to fig1 , to rederive and express this formula ( 14 ) in terms of the parameters which are more directly accessible from particular resonant objects , e . g . the capacitively - loaded conducting loops , one can consider the following circuit - model of the system , where the inductances l s , l d represent the source and device loops respectively , r s , r d their respective losses , and c s , c d are the required corresponding capacitances to achieve for both resonance at frequency ω . a voltage generator v g is considered to be connected to the source and a work ( load ) resistance r ω to the device . the mutual inductance is denoted by m . then from the source circuit at resonance ( ωl s = 1 / ωc s ): and from the device circuit at resonance ( ωl d = 1 / ωc d ): 0 = i d ( r d + r ω )− jωmi s jωmi s = i d ( r d + r ω ) now we take the real part ( time - averaged powers ) to find the efficiency : which with γ work = r ω / 2 l d , γ d = r d / 2 l d , γ s = r s / 2 l s , and κ = ωm / 2 √{ square root over ( l s l d )}, becomes the general eq . ( 14 ). [ end of example ] from eq . ( 14 ) one can find that the efficiency is optimized in terms of the chosen work - drainage rate , when this is chosen to be γ work / γ d [ e ] = γ s [ e ]=√ { square root over ( 1 + fom [ c 2 )}& gt ; 1 . then , η work is a function of the fom [ e ] parameter only as shown in fig1 with a solid black line . one can see that the efficiency of the system is η & gt ; 17 % for fom [ e ] & gt ; 1 , large enough for practical applications . thus , the efficiency can be further increased towards 100 % by optimizing fom [ e ] as described above . the ratio of conversion into radiation loss depends also on the other system parameters , and is plotted in fig5 for the conducting loops with values for their parameters within the ranges determined earlier . for example , consider the capacitively - loaded coil embodiments described in table 4 , with coupling distance d / r = 7 , a “ human ” extraneous object at distance d h from the source , and that p work = 10 w must be delivered to the load . then , we have ( based on fig1 ) q s [ h ] rad = q d [ h ] rad ˜ 10 4 , q s abs = q d abs ˜ 10 3 , q κ ˜ 500 , and q d - h abs →∞, q s abs ˜ 10 5 at d h ˜ 3 cm and q s - h abs ˜ 5 · 10 5 at d h ˜ 10 cm . therefore fom [ h ] ˜ 2 , so we find η ≈ 38 % , p rad ≈ 1 . 5 w , p s ≈ 11 w , p d ≈ 4 w , and most importantly η h ≈ 0 . 4 %, p h = 0 . 1 w at d h ˜ 3 cm and η h ≈ 0 . 1 %, p h = 0 . 02 w at d h ˜ 10 cm . in many cases , the dimensions of the resonant objects will be set by the particular application at hand . for example , when this application is powering a laptop or a cell - phone , the device resonant object cannot have dimensions larger that those of the laptop or cell - phone respectively . in particular , for a system of two loops of specified dimensions , in terms of loop radii r s , d and wire radii a s , d , the independent parameters left to adjust for the system optimization are : the number of turns n s , d , the frequency f , the work - extraction rate ( load resistance ) γ work and the power - supply feeding rate γ supply . in general , in various embodiments , the primary dependent variable that one wants to increase or optimize is the overall efficiency η . however , other important variables need to be taken into consideration upon system design . for example , in embodiments featuring capacitively - loaded coils , the design may be constrained by , for example , the currents flowing inside the wires i s , d and the voltages across the capacitors v s , d . these limitations can be important because for ˜ watt power applications the values for these parameters can be too large for the wires or the capacitors respectively to handle . furthermore , the total loaded q tot = ωl d /( r d + r w ) of the device is a quantity that should be preferably small , because to match the source and device resonant frequencies to within their q &# 39 ; s , when those are very large , can be challenging experimentally and more sensitive to slight variations . lastly , the radiated powers p rad , s , d should be minimized for safety concerns , even though , in general , for a magnetic , non - radiative scheme they are already typically small . in the following , we examine then the effects of each one of the independent variables on the dependent ones . we define a new variable wp to express the work - drainage rate for some particular value of fom [ e ] through γ work / γ d [ c ] =√{ square root over ( 1 + ωp · fom [ c ] 2 )}. then , in some embodiments , values which impact the choice of this rate are : γ work / γ d [ e ] = 1 ωp = 0 wp = 0 to minimize the required energy stored in the source ( and therefore i s and v s ), γ work / γ d [ e ] =√{ square root over ( 1 + fom [ c ] 2 )}& gt ; 1 ωp = 1 to increase the efficiency , as seen earlier , or γ work / γ d [ e ] 1 ωp 1 to decrease the required energy stored in the device ( and therefore i d and v d ) and to decrease or minimize q tot = ωl d /( r d + r w )= ω /[ 2 ( γ d + γ work )]. similar is the impact of the choice of the power supply feeding rate γ supply , with the roles of the source and the device reversed . increasing n s and n d increases κ /√{ square root over ( γ s γ d )} and thus efficiency significantly , as seen before , and also decreases the currents i s and i d , because the inductance of the loops increases , and thus the energy required for given output power p work can be achieved with smaller currents . however , increasing n d increases q tot , p rod , d and the voltage across the device capacitance v d , which unfortunately ends up being , in typical embodiments one of the greatest limiting factors of the system . to explain this , note that it is the electric field that really induces breakdown of the capacitor material ( e . g . 3 kv / mm for air ) and not the voltage , and that for the desired ( close to the optimal ) operational frequency , the increased inductance l d implies reduced required capacitance c d , which could be achieved in principle , for a capacitively - loaded device coil by increasing the spacing of the device capacitor plates d d and for a self - resonant coil by increasing through h d the spacing of adjacent turns , resulting in an electric field (≈ v d / d d for the former case ) that actually decreases with n d ; however , one cannot in reality increase d d or h d too much , because then the undesired capacitance fringing electric fields would become very large and / or the size of the coil might become too large ; and , in any case , for certain applications extremely high voltages are not desired . a similar increasing behavior is observed for the source p rad , s and v s upon increasing n s . as a conclusion , the number of turns n s and n d have to be chosen the largest possible ( for efficiency ) that allow for reasonable voltages , fringing electric fields and physical sizes . with respect to frequency , again , there is an optimal one for efficiency , and q tot is approximately maximum , close to that optimal frequency . for lower frequencies the currents get worse ( larger ) but the voltages and radiated powers get better ( smaller ). usually , one should pick either the optimal frequency or somewhat lower . one way to decide on an operating regime for the system is based on a graphical method . in fig1 , for two loops of r s = 25 cm , r d = 15 cm , h s = h d = 0 , a s = a d = 3 mm and distance d = 2 mm between them , we plot all the above dependent variables ( currents , voltages and radiated powers normalized to 1 watt of output power ) in terms of frequency and n d , given some choice for wp and n s . the figure depicts all of the dependencies explained above . we can also make a contour plot of the dependent variables as functions of both frequency and wp but for both n s and n d fixed . the results are shown in fig1 for the same loop dimensions and distance . for example , a reasonable choice of parameters for the system of two loops with the dimensions given above are : n s = 2 , n d = 6 , f = 10 mhz and wp = 10 , which gives the following performance characteristics : η work = 20 . 6 %, q tot = 1264 , i s = 7 . 2 a , i d = 1 . 4 a , v s = 2 . 55 kv , v d = 2 . 30 kv , p rad , s = 0 . 15 w , p rad , d = 0 . 006 w . note that the results in fig1 and 13 , and the just above calculated performance characteristics are made using the analytical formulas provided above , so they are expected to be less accurate for large values of n s , n d , still they give a good estimate of the scalings and the orders of magnitude . finally , one could additionally optimize for the source dimensions , since usually only the device dimensions are limited , as discussed earlier . namely , one can add r s and a s in the set of independent variables and optimize with respect to these too for all the dependent variables of the problem ( we saw how to do this only for efficiency earlier ). such an optimization would lead to improved results . an experimental realization of an embodiment of the above described scheme for wireless energy transfer consists of two self - resonant coils of the type described above , one of which ( the source coil ) is coupled inductively to an oscillating circuit , and the second ( the device coil ) is coupled inductively to a resistive load , as shown schematically in fig1 . referring to fig1 , a is a single copper loop of radius 25 cm that is part of the driving circuit , which outputs a sine wave with frequency 9 . 9 mhz . s and d are respectively the source and device coils referred to in the text . b is a loop of wire attached to the load (” light - bulb “). the various κ &# 39 ; s represent direct couplings between the objects . the angle between coil d and the loop a is adjusted so that their direct coupling is zero , while coils s and d are aligned coaxially . the direct coupling between b and a and between b and s is negligible . the parameters for the two identical helical coils built for the experimental validation of the power transfer scheme were h = 20 cm , a = 3 mm , r = 30 cm , n = 5 . 25 . both coils are made of copper . due to imperfections in the construction , the spacing between loops of the helix is not uniform , and we have encapsulated the uncertainty about their uniformity by attributing a 10 % ( 2 cm ) uncertainty to h . the expected resonant frequency given these dimensions is f o = 10 . 56 ± 0 . 3 mhz , which is about 5 % off from the measured resonance at around 9 . 90 mhz . the theoretical q for the loops is estimated to be ˜ 2500 ( assuming perfect copper of resistivity ρ = 1 / σ = 1 . 7 × 10 − 8 ωm ) but the measured value is 950 ± 50 . we believe the discrepancy is mostly due to the effect of the layer of poorly conducting copper oxide on the surface of the copper wire , to which the current is confined by the short skin depth (˜ 20 μm ) at this frequency . we have therefore used the experimentally observed q ( and γ 1 = γ 2 = γ = ω /( 2q ) derived from it ) in all subsequent computations . the coupling coefficient κ can be found experimentally by placing the two self - resonant coils ( fine - tuned , by slightly adjusting h , to the same resonant frequency when isolated ) a distance d apart and measuring the splitting in the frequencies of the two resonant modes in the transmission spectrum . according to coupled - mode theory , the splitting in the transmission spectrum should be δω = 2 √{ square root over ( κ 2 − γ 2 )}. the comparison between experimental and theoretical results as a function of distance when the two the coils are aligned coaxially is shown in fig1 . fig1 shows a comparison of experimental and theoretical values for the parameter κ / γ as a function of the separation between the two coils . the theory values are obtained by using the theoretically obtained κ and the experimentally measured γ . the shaded area represents the spread in the theoretical κ / γ due to the ˜ 5 % uncertainty in q . as noted above , the maximum theoretical efficiency depends only on the parameter κ /√{ square root over ( γ 1 γ 2 )}= κ / γ , plotted as a function of distance in fig1 . the coupling to loss ratio κ / γ is greater than 1 even for d = 2 . 4 m ( eight times the radius of the coils ), thus the system is in the strongly - coupled regime throughout the entire range of distances probed . the power supply circuit was a standard colpitts oscillator coupled inductively to the source coil by means of a single loop of copper wire 25 cm in radius ( see fig1 ). the load consisted of a previously calibrated light - bulb , and was attached to its own loop of insulated wire , which was in turn placed in proximity of the device coil and inductively coupled to it . thus , by varying the distance between the light - bulb and the device coil , the parameter γ work / γ was adjusted so that it matched its optimal value , given theoretically by √{ square root over ( 1 + κ 2 /( γ 1 γ 2 ))}. because of its inductive nature ; the loop connected to the light - bulb added a small reactive component to γ work which was compensated for by slightly returning the coil . the work extracted was determined by adjusting the power going into the colpitts oscillator until the light - bulb at the load was at its full nominal brightness . in order to isolate the efficiency of the transfer taking place specifically between the source coil and the load , we measured the current at the mid - point of each of the self - resonant coils with a current - probe ( which was not found to lower the q of the coils noticeably .) this gave a measurement of the current parameters i 1 and i 2 defined above . the power dissipated in each coil was then computed from p 1 , 2 = γl \| i 1 , 2 \| 2 , and the efficiency was directly obtained from η = p work /( p 1 + p 2 + p work ). to ensure that the experimental setup was well described by a two - object coupled - mode theory model , we positioned the device coil such that its direct coupling to the copper loop attached to the colpitts oscillator was zero . the experimental results are shown in fig1 , along with the theoretical prediction for maximum efficiency , given by eq . ( 14 ). this embodiment , we were able to transfer significant amounts of power using this setup , fully lighting up a 60 w light - bulb from distances more than 2 m away , for example . as an additional test , we also measured the total power going into the driving circuit . the efficiency of the wireless transfer itself was hard to estimate in this way , however , as the efficiency of the colpitts oscillator itself is not precisely known , although it is expected to be far from 100 %. nevertheless , this gave an overly conservative lower bound on the efficiency . when transferring 60 w to the load over a distance of 2 m , for example , the power flowing into the driving circuit was 400 w . this yields an overall wall - to - load efficiency of ˜ 15 %, which is reasonable given the expected ˜ 40 % efficiency for the wireless power transfer at that distance and the low efficiency of the driving circuit . from the theoretical treatment above , we see that in typical embodiments it is important that the coils be on resonance for the power transfer to be practical . we found experimentally that the power transmitted to the load dropped sharply as one of the coils was detuned from resonance . for a fractional detuning δf / f o of a few times the inverse loaded q , the induced current in the device coil was indistinguishable from noise . the power transfer was not found to be visibly affected as humans and various everyday objects , such as metallic and wooden furniture , as well as electronic devices large and small , were placed between the two coils , even when they drastically obstructed the line of sight between source and device . external objects were found to have an effect only when they were closer than 10 cm from either one of the coils . while some materials ( such as aluminum foil , styrofoam and humans ) mostly just shifted the resonant frequency , which could in principle be easily corrected with a feedback circuit of the type described earlier , others ( cardboard , wood , and pvc ) lowered q when placed closer than a few centimeters from the coil , thereby lowering the efficiency of the transfer . we believe that this method of power transfer should be safe for humans . when transferring 60 w ( more than enough to power a laptop computer ) across 2 m , we estimated that the magnitude of the magnetic field generated is much weaker than the earth &# 39 ; s magnetic field for all distances except for less than about 1 cm away from the wires in the coil , an indication of the safety of the scheme even after long - term use . the power radiated for these parameters was ˜ 5 w , which is roughly an order of magnitude higher than cell phones but could be drastically reduced , as discussed below . although the two coils are currently of identical dimensions , it is possible to make the device coil small enough to fit into portable devices without decreasing the efficiency . one could , for instance , maintain the product of the characteristic sizes of the source and device coils constant . these experiments demonstrated experimentally a system for power transfer over medium range distances , and found that the experimental results match theory well in multiple independent and mutually consistent tests . we believe that the efficiency of the scheme and the distances covered could be appreciably improved by silver - plating the coils , which should increase their q , or by working with more elaborate geometries for the resonant objects . nevertheless , the performance characteristics of the system presented here are already at levels where they could be useful in practical applications . in conclusion , we have described several embodiments of a resonance - based scheme for wireless non - radiative energy transfer . although our consideration has been for a static geometry ( namely κ and γ e were independent of time ), all the results can be applied directly for the dynamic geometries of mobile objects , since the energy - transfer time κ − 1 (˜ 1 μs − 1 ms for microwave applications ) is much shorter than any timescale associated with motions of macroscopic objects . analyses of very simple implementation geometries provide encouraging performance characteristics and further improvement is expected with serious design optimization . thus the proposed mechanism is promising for many modern applications . for example , in the macroscopic world , this scheme could potentially be used to deliver power to for example , robots and / or computers in a factory room , or electric buses on a highway . in some embodiments source - object could be an elongated “ pipe ” running above the highway , or along the ceiling . some embodiments of the wireless transfer scheme can provide energy to power or charge devices that are difficult or impossible to reach using wires or other techniques . for example some embodiments may provide power to implanted medical devices ( e . g . artificial hearts , pacemakers , medicine delivery pumps , etc .) or buried underground sensors . in the microscopic world , where much smaller wavelengths would be used and smaller powers are needed , one could use it to implement optical inter - connects for cmos electronics , or to transfer energy to autonomous nano - objects ( e . g . mems or nano - robots ) without worrying much about the relative alignment between the sources and the devices . furthermore , the range of applicability could be extended to acoustic systems , where the source and device are connected via a common condensed - matter object . in some embodiments , the techniques described above can provide non - radiative wireless transfer of information using the localized near fields of resonant object . such schemes provide increased security because no information is radiated into the far - field , and are well suited for mid - range communication of highly sensitive information . a number of embodiments of the invention have been described . nevertheless , it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .	7
the present methods are directed to treating or preventing age - related retinal dysfunction in a subject via long - term administration of a pharmaceutically effective amount of a synthetic retinal derivative . as used herein , the term “ age - related retinal dysfunction ” refers to age - related decreases in retinal photoreceptor function . the term is meant to include the age - related impairments related to electroretinogram deficits and photoreceptor cell death and structural abnormalities that have been observed in both animal and human studies of aging . in one aspect , the age - related retinal dysfunction comprises a slowing of rod - mediated dark adaptation after light exposure , a decrease in night vision , and / or a decrease in contrast sensitivity . in another aspect , the age - related retinal dysfunction comprises age - related macular degeneration ( amd ). the amd can be wet or dry forms . the terms “ treating ,” treatment ,” and the like are used herein to generally mean obtaining a desired pharmacological and physiological effect . more specifically , the synthetic retinal derivatives described herein which are used to treat a subject with age - related retinal dysfunction generally are provided in a therapeutically effective amount to achieve an improvement in age - related retinal dysfunction or an inhibited development of age - related retinal dysfunction in the visual system of an ageing subject , as compared with a comparable visual system not receiving the synthetic retinal derivative . an improvement in age - related retinal dysfunction includes long - term ( e . g ., as measured in weeks or months ) improvement or restoration of photoreceptor function in a visual system , as compared with a comparable visual system not receiving the synthetic retinal derivative . improvement also includes stabilization of , or minimization of additional degradation in , a vertebrate visual system , as compared with a comparable vertebrate visual system not receiving the synthetic retinal derivative . the terms “ preventing ,” “ prevention ,” and the like are used generally to mean preventing or inhibiting deterioration or further deterioration of the visual system of an aging subject , as compared with a comparable visual system not receiving the synthetic retinal derivative . the term “ pharmaceutically effective ” as used herein refers to the effectiveness of a particular treatment or prevention regime . pharmaceutical efficacy can be measured based on such characteristics as , for example , an increased or stabilized rate of dark - adaptation , a higher or stabilized rhodpsin / opsin ratio , a higher or stabilized rhodopsin regeneration rate , or other such improvements in electrotretinographic ( erg ) responses . in the present methods , a synthetic retinal derivative is administered to a subject . as used herein , the term “ subject ” or “ patient ” refers to a vertebrate , for example a mammal such as a human . in one embodiment , the subject is an aging subject , such as a human , suffering from age - related retinal dysfunction . as used herein , an aging human subject is typically at least 45 , or at least 50 , or at least 60 , or at least 65 years old . the subject has an aging eye , which is characterized as having age - related retinal dysfunction . age - related retinal dysfunction may be manifested by one or more of the following clinical conditions : an impairment in rod - mediated dark adaptation after light exposure , an impairment in night vision , an impairment in contrast sensitivity , and age - related macular degeneration ( amd ). the synthetic retinal derivative is administered using long - term ( chronic ) dosage regimens . in one embodiment , the synthetic retinal derivative is administered intermittently for three months or longer ; and , in another embodiment , for six months or longer . the synthetic retinal derivative can be administered , for example , for a period of about three , four , five , six , seven , eight , nine , ten , eleven , or twelve months , or longer . the synthetic retinal derivative can be intermittently administered to the subject about once a day to about once every two months . intermittent administration includes administration to the subject about once every other day ; about four times a week , three times a week , and two times a week ; about once every two , three , four , five , six , seven , eight , and nine weeks ; and about once a month . in one embodiment , the synthetic retinal derivative is administered about once every three to six weeks for a period of about three months or longer ; and in another embodiment , it is administered about once a month for about six to ten months . the amount of synthetic retinal derivative administered per dose can be increased as the time period between doses is increased . for example , if the synthetic retinal derivative is administered less than once a day , the dose per administration can be greater than the effective daily dose . as used herein , an “ effective daily dose ” refers to a daily dose effective for obtaining a desired pharmacological and physiological effect ( i . e . a daily dose effective for “ treating ” and / or “ preventing ” age related retinal dysfunction in a subject as described above ). in addition , the synthetic retinal derivative can be chronically released from a controlled drug delivery formulation and / or device for an extended period of time , e . g ., for a period of about three months or longer ; or for a period of about six months or longer . a wide variety of methods for controlled release have been developed and are known to those skilled in the art , including pumps , patches , tablets , implants , microchips , and polymeric systems . suitable doses of synthetic retinal derivatives will depend on the clinical status , condition and age of the patient , the active agent , the formulation and dosage form , the frequency of dosing , and the like . in many instances the selection of an appropriate dose will be within the skill of a suitable healthcare practitioner such as a physician or nurse . in the case of eye drops , a synthetic retinal derivative can be administered , for example , from about 0 . 01 mg , about 0 . 1 mg , or about 1 mg , to about 25 mg , to about 50 mg , or to about 90 mg per single dose . in the case of injection , suitable doses are about 0 . 0001 mg , about 0 . 001 mg , about 0 . 01 mg , or about 0 . 1 mg to about 10 mg , to about 25 mg , to about 50 mg , or to about 500 mg of the synthetic retinal derivative . suitable oral doses range from about 0 . 1 to about 1000 mg of the synthetic retinal derivative . in other embodiments , about 1 . 0 to about 300 mg of synthetic retinal derivative can be administered per dose . in certain embodiments , the dose is an oral dose of about 0 . 01 to about 10 mg / kg body weight ; about 0 . 05 to about 7 . 5 mg / kg body weight ; about 0 . 1 to about 5 mg / kg body weight ; or about 0 . 5 to about 2 . 5 mg / kg body weight . for example , the synthetic retinal derivative can be administered at an oral dosage of about 6 . 4 mg / kg body weight ( i . e . about 240 mg / m 2 body surface area ). in another embodiment , the dose is an oral daily dose of about 0 . 1 to about 1 mg / kg body weight , such as an oral daily dose of about 0 . 1 , 0 . 2 , 0 . 3 , 0 . 4 , 0 . 5 , 0 . 6 , 0 . 7 , 0 . 8 , 0 . 9 , or 1 mg / kg body weight . synthetic retinal derivatives suitable for the methods of the present invention have been described in international patent publication nos . wo 2004 / 082622 a2 and wo 2006 / 002097 a2 , and in u . s . patent publication no . 2004 / 0242704 a1 . a synthetic retinal derivative suitable for the methods of the present invention is a derivative of 9 - cis - retinal or 11 - cis - retinal in which the aldehydic group in the polyene chain is modified . the synthetic retinal derivative can be converted directly or indirectly into a retinal or a synthetic retinal analog . thus , in some aspects , the compounds according to the present invention can be described as pro - drugs , which upon metabolic transformation are converted into 9 - cis - retinal , 11 - cis - retinal or a synthetic retinal analog thereof . metabolic transformation can occur , for example , by acid hydrolysis , esterase activity , acetyltransferase activity , dehydrogenase activity , or the like . the synthetic retinal derivative can be a retinoid replacement , supplementing the levels of endogenous retinoid . in some embodiments , the synthetic retinal can bind to opsin , and function as an opsin agonist . as used herein , the term “ agonist ” refers to a synthetic retinal that binds to opsin and facilitates the ability of an opsin / synthetic retinal complex to respond to light . as an opsin agonist , a synthetic retinal can spare the requirement for endogenous retinoid ( e . g ., 11 - cis - retinal ). a synthetic retinal also can restore or improve function ( e . g ., photoreception ) to opsin by binding to opsin and forming a functional opsin / synthetic retinal complex , whereby the opsin / synthetic retinal complex can respond to photons when part of a rod or cone membrane . synthetic retinal derivatives can be administered to restore or stabilize photoreceptor function , and / or to ameliorate the effects of a deficiency in retinoid levels . photoreceptor function can be restored or stabilized , for example , by providing a synthetic retinal derivative as an 11 - cis - retinoid replacement and / or an opsin agonist . the synthetic retinal derivative also can ameliorate the effects of a retinoid deficiency on a vertebrate visual system . the synthetic retinal derivative can be administered prophylactically or therapeutically to a vertebrate . suitable vertebrates include , for example , human and non - human vertebrates . suitable non - human vertebrates include , for example , mammals , such as dogs ( canine ), cats ( feline ), horses ( equine ) and other domesticated animals . in one aspect of the invention , the synthetic retinal derivatives are derivatives of 9 - cis - retinal or 11 - cis - retinal in which the aldehydic group in the polyene chain is converted to an ester , ether , alcohol , hemi - acetal , acetal , or oxime , as further described herein . such synthetic retinal derivatives include 9 - cis - retinyl esters , 9 - cis - retinyl ethers , 9 - cis - retinol , 9 - cis - retinal oximes , 9 - cis - retinyl acetals , 9 - cis - retinyl hemiacetals , 11 - cis - retinyl esters , 11 - cis - retinyl ethers , 11 - cis - retinol , 11 - cis - retinyl oximes , 11 - cis - retinyl acetals and 11 - cis - retinyl hemiacetals , as further described herein . the synthetic retinal derivative can be metabolized to release a natural or synthetic retinal , such as for example , 9 - cis - retinal , 11 - cis - retinal or a synthetic retinal analog thereof , such as those described herein or in international patent publication nos . wo 2004 / 082622 a2 and wo 2006 / 002097 a2 . in one aspect , the synthetic retinal derivative is a retinyl ester . in some embodiments , the retinyl ester is a 9 - cis - retinyl ester or an 11 - cis - retinyl ester having a . the ester substituent can be , for example , a carboxylic acid , such as a mono - or polycarboxylic acid . as used herein , a “ polycarboxylic acid ” is a di -, tri - or higher order carboxylic acid . in some embodiments , the carboxylic acid is a c 1 - c 22 , c 2 - c 22 , c 3 - c 22 , c 1 - c 10 , c 2 - c 10 , c 3 - c 10 , c 4 - c 10 , c 4 - c 8 , c 4 - c 6 or c 4 monocarboxylic acid , or polycarboxylic acid . suitable carboxylic acid groups include , for example , acetic acid , propionic acid , butyric acid , valeric acid , caproic acid , caprylic acid , pelargonic acid , capric acid , lauric acid , oleic acid , stearic acid , palmitic acid , myristic acid or linoleic acid . the carboxylic acid also can be , for example , oxalic acid ( ethanedioic acid ), malonic acid ( propanedioic acid ), succinic acid ( butanedioic ), fumaric acid ( butenedioic acid ), malic acid ( 2 - hydroxybutenedioic acid ), glutaric acid ( pentanedioic acid ), adipic acid ( hexanedioic acid ), pimelic acid ( heptanedioic ), suberic acid ( octanedioic ), azelaic acid ( nonanedioic acid ), sebacic acid ( decanedioic acid ), citric acid , oxaloacetic acid , ketoglutaratic acid , or the like . in an exemplary embodiment , the retinyl ester is a 9 - cis - retinyl ester or an 11 - cis - retinyl ester including a c 3 - c 10 polycarboxylic acid substituent . ( in this context , the terms “ substituent ” or “ group ” refer to a radical covalently linked to the terminal oxygen in the polyene chain .) in another exemplary embodiment , the retinyl ester is a 9 - cis - retinyl ester or an 11 - cis - retinyl ester including a c 2 - c 22 or c 3 - c 22 polycarboxylic acid substituent . the polycarboxylic acid substituent can be , for example , succinate , citrate , ketoglutarate , fumarate , malate or oxaloacetate . in another exemplary embodiment , the retinyl ester is a 9 - cis - retinyl ester or an 11 - cis - retinyl ester including a c 3 - c 22 di - carboxylic acid ( di - acid ) substituent . in some embodiments , the polycarboxylic acid is not 9 - cis - retinyl tartarate or 11 - cis - retinyl tartarate . in some embodiments , the retinyl ester is not a naturally occurring retinyl ester normally found in the eye . in some embodiments , the retinyl ester is an isolated retinyl ester . as used herein , “ isolated ” refers to a molecule that exists apart from its native environment and is therefore not a product of nature . an isolated molecule may exist in a purified form or may exist in a non - native environment . in another aspect , the retinal derivative can be a 9 - cis - retinyl ester or ether of the following formula i : in some embodiments , a is ch 2 or , where r can be an aldehydic group , to form a retinyl ester . a suitable aldehydic group is a c 1 to c 24 straight chain or branched aldehydic group . the aldehydic group also can be a c 1 to c 14 straight chain or branched aldehydic group . the aldehydic group can be a c 1 to c 12 straight chain or branched aldehydic group , such as , for example , acetaldehyde , propionaldehyde , butyraldehyde , valeraldehyde , hexanal , heptanal , octanal , nonanal , decanal , undecanal , dodecanal . r can be a c 1 to c 10 straight chain or branched aldehydic group , a c 1 to c 8 straight chain or branched aldehydic group or a c 1 to c 6 straight chain or branched aldehydic group . r further can be a carboxylate group of a dicarboxylic acid or other carboxylic acid ( e . g ., a hydroxyl acid ) to form a retinyl ester ( some of which are also referred to as retinoyl esters ). the carboxylic acid can be , for example , oxalic acid ( ethanedioic acid ), malonic acid ( propanedioic acid ), succinic acid ( butanedioic ), fumaric acid ( butenedioic acid ), malic acid ( 2 - hydroxybutenedioic acid ), glutaric acid ( pentanedioic acid ), adipic acid ( hexanedioic acid ), pimelic acid ( heptanedioic ), suberic acid ( octanedioic ), azelaic acid ( nonanedioic acid ), sebacic acid ( decanedioic acid ), citric acid , oxaloacetic acid , ketoglutaratic acid , or the like . r can also be an alkane group , to form a retinyl alkane ether . suitable alkane groups include , for example , c 1 to c 24 straight chain or branched alkyls , such as , for example , methane , ethane , butane , isobutane , pentane , isopentane , hexane , heptane , octane or the like . for example , the alkane group can be a linear , iso -, sec -, tert - or other branched lower alkyl ranging from c 1 to c 6 . the alkane group also can be a linear , iso -, sec -, tert - or other branched medium chain length alkyl ranging from c 8 to c 14 . the alkane group also can be a linear , iso -, sec -, tert - or other branched long chain length alkyl ranging from c 16 to c 24 . r further can be an alcohol group , to form a retinyl alcohol ether . suitable alcohol groups can be linear , iso -, sec -, tert - or other branched lower alcohols ranging from c 1 to c 6 , linear , iso -, sec -, tert - or other branched medium chain length alcohols ranging from c 8 to c 14 , or linear , iso -, sec -, tert - or other branched long chain length alkyl ranging from c 16 to c 24 . the alcohol group can be , for example , methanol , ethanol , butanol , isobutanol , pentanol , hexanol , heptanol , octanol , or the like r also can be a carboxylic acid , to form a retinyl carboxylic acid ether . suitable alcohol groups can be linear , iso -, sec -, ted - or other branched lower carboxylic acids ranging from c 1 to c 6 , linear , iso -, sec -, ted - or other branched medium chain length carboxylic acids ranging from c 8 to c 14 , or linear , iso -, sec -, tert - or other branched long chain length carboxylic acids ranging from c 16 to c 24 . suitable carboxylic acid groups include , for example , acetic acid , propionic acid , butyric acid , valeric acid , caproic acid , caprylic acid , pelargonic acid , capric acid , lauric acid , oleic acid , stearic acid , palmitic acid , myristic acid , linoleic acid , succinic acid , fumaric acid or the like . the retinyl derivative can be a retinyl hemiacetal , where a is ch ( oh ) or . r can be any of the r groups set forth above in formula i . r is typically a lower alkane , such as a methyl or ethyl group , or a c 1 to c 7 saturated and unsaturated , cyclic or acyclic alkane , with or without hetero atoms , as described herein . the retinyl derivative can be a retinyl acetal , where a is ch ( or a ) or b . each of r a and r b can be independently selected from any of the r groups set forth above in formula i . r a and r b are typically a c 1 to c 7 saturated and unsaturated , cyclic or acyclic alkane , with or without hetero atoms , as described herein . the retinyl derivative also can be a retinyl oxime , where a is ch : noh or ch : nor . r can be any of the r groups set forth above in formula i . r is typically a hydrogen , or an alkane . examples of suitable synthetic retinal derivatives include , for example , 9 - cis - retinyl acetate , 9 - cis - retinyl formate , 9 - cis - retinyl succinate , 9 - cis - retinyl citrate , 9 - cis - retinyl ketoglutarate , 9 - cis - retinyl fumarate , 9 - cis - retinyl malate , 9 - cis - retinyl oxaloacetate , 9 - cis - retinal oxime , 9 - cis - retinal o - methyl oximes , 9 - cis - retinal o - ethyl oximes , and 9 - cis - retinal methyl acetals and hemi acetals , 9 - cis - retinyl methyl ether , 9 - cis - retinyl ethyl ether , and 9 - cis - retinyl phenyl ether . in a related aspect , the retinal derivative can be an 11 - cis - retinyl ester or ether of the following formula ii : a can be any of the groups set forth above in formula i . examples of suitable synthetic retinal derivatives include , for example , 11 - cis - retinyl acetate , 11 - cis - retinyl formate , 11 - cis - retinyl succinate , 11 - cis - retinyl citrate , 11 - cis - retinyl ketoglutarate , 11 - cis - retinyl fumarate , 11 - cis - retinyl malate , 11 - cis - retinal oxime , 11 - cis - retinal o - methyl oxime , 11 - cis - retinal o - ethyl oximes and 11 - cis - retinal methyl acetals and hemi acetals , 11 - cis - retinyl methyl ether , 11 - cis - retinyl ethyl ether . in additional aspects , the synthetic retinal derivatives can be , for example , a derivative of a 9 - cis - retinyl ester , a 9 - cis - retinyl ether , an 11 - cis - retinyl ester or an 11 - cis - retinyl ethers such as , for example , an acyclic retinyl ester or ethers , a retinyl ester or ether with a modified polyene chain length , such as a trienoic or tetraenoic retinyl ester or ether ; a retinyl ester or ether with a substituted polyene chain , such as alkyl , halogen or heteratom - substituted polyene chains ; a retinyl ester or ether with a modified polyene chain , such as a trans - or cis - locked polyene chain , or with , for example , allene or alkyne modifications ; and a retinyl ester or ether with a ring modification ( s ), such as heterocyclic , heteroaromatic or substituted cycloalkane or cycloalkene rings . the synthetic retinal derivative can be a retinyl ester or ether of the following formula iii : a can be any of the groups set forth above for formula ( i ). r 1 and r 2 can be independently selected from linear , iso -, sec -, tert - and other branched alkyl groups as well as substituted alkyl groups , substituted branched alkyl , hydroxyl , hydroalkyl , amine , amide , or the like . r 1 and r 2 can independently be lower alkyl , which means straight or branched alkyl with 1 - 6 carbon atom ( s ) such as methyl , ethyl , propyl , isopropyl , butyl , isobutyl , tert - butyl , pentyl , hexyl , or the like . suitable substituted alkyls and substituted branch alkyls include , for example , alkyls , branched alkyls and cyclo - alkyls substituted with oxygen , hydroxyl , nitrogen , amide , amine , halogen , heteroatom or other groups . suitable heteroatoms include , for example , sulfur , silicon , and fluoro - or bromo - substitutions . r 1 or r 2 also can be a cyclo - alkyl such as , for example , hexane , cyclohexene , benzene as well as a substituted cyclo - alkyl . suitable substituted cyclo - alkyls include , for example , cyclo - alkyls substituted with oxygen , hydroxyl , nitrogen , amide , amine , halogen , heteroatom and / or other groups . suitable heteroatoms include , for example , sulfur , silicon , and fluoro - or bromo - substitutions . the synthetic retinal derivative also can have a modified polyene chain length , such as the following formula iv : a can be any of the groups set forth above for formula ( i ). the polyene chain length can be extended by 1 , 2 , or 3 alkyl , alkene or alkylene groups . according to formula ( iv ), each n and n 1 can be independently selected from 1 , 2 , or 3 alkyl , alkene or alkylene groups , with the proviso that the sum of the n and n 1 is at least 1 . the synthetic retinal derivative also can have a substituted polyene chain of the following formula v : a can be any of the groups set forth above for formula ( i ). each of r 1 to r 8 can be independently selected from hydrogen , alkyl , branched alkyl , cyclo - alkyl , halogen , a heteratom , or the like . suitable alkyls include , for example , methyl , ethyl , propyl , substituted alkyl ( e . g ., alkyl with hydroxyl , hydroalkyl , amine , amide ) or the like . suitable branched alkyls can be , for example , isopropyl , isobutyl , substituted branched alkyl , or the like . suitable cyclo - alkyls can include , for example , cyclohexane , cycloheptane , and other cyclic alkanes as well as substituted cyclic alkanes such as substituted cyclohexane or substituted cycloheptane . suitable halogens include , for example , bromine , chlorine , fluorine , or the like . suitable heteroatoms include , for example , sulfur , silicon , and fluoro - or bromo - substitutions . suitable substituted alkyls , substituted branch alkyls and substituted cyclo - alkyls include , for example , alkyls , branched alkyls and cyclo - alkyls substituted with oxygen , hydroxyl , nitrogen , amide , amine , halogen , heteroatom or other groups . for example , the synthetic retinal derivative can be selected from the following : a 9 - ethyl - 11 - cis - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 7 - methyl - 11 - cis - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 13 - desmethyl - 11 - cis - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; an 11 - cis - 10 - f - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; an 11 - cis - 10 - cl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; an 11 - cis - 10 - methyl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; an 11 - cis - 10 - ethyl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 9 - cis - 10 - f - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 9 - cis - 10 - cl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 9 - cis - 10 - methyl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 9 - cis - 10 - ethyl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; an 11 - cis - 12 - f - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; an 11 - cis - 12 - cl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; an 11 - cis - 12 - methyl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; an 11 - cis - 10 - ethyl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 9 - cis - 12 - f - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 9 - cis - 12 - cl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 9 - cis - 12 - methyl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; an 11 - cis - 14 - f - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; an 11 - cis - 14 - methyl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; an 11 - cis - 14 - ethyl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 9 - cis - 14 - f - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 9 - cis - 14 - methyl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; a 9 - cis - 14 - ethyl - retinyl ester , ether , oxime , acetal or hemiacetal ; or the like . the synthetic retinal derivative further can have a modified ring structure . suitable examples include , for example , derivatives containing ring modifications , aromatic analogs and heteroaromatic analogs of the following formulae vi , vii and viii , respectively : a can be any of the groups set forth above for formula ( i ). each of r 1 to r 6 , as applicable , can be independently selected from hydrogen , alkyl , substituted alkyl , hydroxyl , hydroalkyl , amine , amide , halogen , a heteratom , or the like . suitable alkyls include , for example , methyl , ethyl , propyl , isopropyl , butyl , isobutyl or the like . suitable halogens include , for example , bromine , chlorine , fluorine , or the like . suitable heteroatoms include , for example , sulfur , silicon , or nitrogen . in formulae vii , x can be , for example , sulfur , silicon , nitrogen , fluoro - or bromo - substitutions . similarly , 9 - cis - synthetic retinal derivatives containing ring modifications , aromatic analogs and heteroaromatic analogs of those shown in formulae vi , vii and viii are contemplated . the synthetic retinal derivative also can have a modified polyene chain . suitable derivatives include , for example , those with a trans / cis locked configuration , 6s - locked analogs , as well as modified allene , alkene , alkyne or alkylene groups in the polyene chain . in one example , the derivative is an 11 - cis - locked analog of the following formula ix : a can be any of the groups set forth above for formula ( i ). r 3 can be , for example , hydrogen , methyl or other lower alkane or branch alkane . n can be 0 to 4 . m plus 1 equals 1 , 2 or 3 . in one embodiment , the synthetic retinal derivative can be an 11 - cis - locked analog of the following formula x : n can be 1 to 4 . a can be any of the groups set forth above for formula ( i ). the synthetic retinal derivative is a 9 , 11 , 13 - tri - cis - 7 - ring retinyl ester or ether , an 11 , 13 - di - cis - 7 - ring retinyl ester or ether , an 11 - cis - 7 - ring retinyl ester or ether or a 9 , 11 - di - cis - 7 - ring retinyl ester or ether . in another example , the synthetic retinal derivative is a 6s - locked analog of formula xi . a can be any of the groups set forth above for formula ( i ). r 1 and r 2 can be independently selected from hydrogen , methyl and other lower alkyl and substituted lower alkyl . r 3 can be independently selected from an alkene group at either of the indicated positions . the synthetic retinal derivative can be a 9 - cis - ring - fused derivative , such as , for example , those shown in formulae xii - xiv . a can be any of the groups set forth above for formula ( i ). the synthetic retinal derivative also can be of the following formula xv or xvi . a can be any of the groups set forth above for formula ( i ). each of r 2 to r 5 , r 7 to r 14 , r 16 and r 17 can be absent or independently selected from hydrogen , alkyl , branched alkyl , halogen , hydroxyl , hydroalkyl , amine , amide , a heteratom , or the like . suitable alkyls include , for example , methyl , ethyl , propyl , substituted alkyl ( e . g ., alkyl with hydroxyl , hydroalkyl , amine , amide ), or the like . suitable branched alkyl can be , for example , isopropyl , isobutyl , substituted branched alkyl , or the like . suitable halogens include , for example , bromine , chlorine , fluorine , or the like . suitable heteroatoms include , for example , sulfur , silicon , and fluoro - or bromo - substitutions . suitable substituted alkyls and substituted branch alkyls include , for example , alkyls and branched alkyls substituted with oxygen , hydroxyl , nitrogen , amide , amine , halogen , heteroatom or other groups . each of n and n 1 can be independently selected from 1 , 2 , or 3 alkyl , alkene or alkylene groups , with the proviso that the sum of the n and n 1 is at least 1 . in addition , r 3 - r 4 and / or r 2 - r 16 can comprise an alkene group in the cyclic carbon ring , in which case r 17 is absent . r 10 and r 13 together can form a cyclo - alkyl , such as a five , six , seven or eight member cyclo - alkyl or substituted cyclo - alkyl , such as , for example , those shown in formulae ix , x , xii , xiii and xiv . methods of making synthetic retinals and derivatives are disclosed in , for example , the following references : anal . biochem . 272 : 232 - 42 ( 1999 ); angew . chem . 36 : 2089 - 93 ( 1997 ); biochemistry 14 : 3933 - 41 ( 1975 ); biochemistry 21 : 384 - 93 ( 1982 ); biochemistry 28 : 2732 - 39 ( 1989 ); biochemistry 33 : 408 - 16 ( 1994 ); biochemistry 35 : 6257 - 62 ( 1996 ); bioorganic chemistry 27 : 372 - 82 ( 1999 ); biophys . chem . 56 : 31 - 39 ( 1995 ); biophys . j . 56 : 1259 - 65 ( 1989 ); biophys . j . 83 : 3460 - 69 ( 2002 ); chemistry 7 : 4198 - 204 ( 2001 ); chemistry ( europe ) 5 : 1172 - 75 ( 1999 ); febs 158 : 1 ( 1983 ); j . am . chem . soc . 104 : 3214 - 16 ( 1982 ); j . am . chem . soc . 108 : 6077 - 78 ( 1986 ); j . am . chem . soc . 109 : 6163 ( 1987 ); j . am . chem . soc . 112 : 7779 - 82 ( 1990 ); j . am . chem . soc . 119 : 5758 - 59 ( 1997 ); j . am . chem . soc . 121 : 5803 - 04 ( 1999 ); j . american chem . soc . 123 : 10024 - 29 ( 2001 ); j . american chem . soc . 124 : 7294 - 302 ( 2002 ); j . biol . chem . 276 : 26148 - 53 ( 2001 ); j . biol . chem . 277 : 42315 - 24 ( 2004 ); j . chem . soc . - perkin t . 1 : 1773 - 77 ( 1997 ); j . chem . soc - perkin t . 1 : 2430 - 39 ( 2001 ); j . org . chem . 49 : 649 - 52 ( 1984 ); j . org . chem . 58 : 3533 - 37 ( 1993 ); j . physical chemistry b 102 : 2787 - 806 ( 1998 ); lipids 8 : 558 - 65 ; photochem . photobiol . 13 : 259 - 83 ( 1986 ); photochem . photobiol . 44 : 803 - 07 ( 1986 ); photochem . photobiol . 54 : 969 - 76 ( 1991 ); photochem . photobiol . 60 : 64 - 68 ( 1994 ); photochem . photobiol . 65 : 1047 - 55 ( 1991 ); photochem . photobiol . 70 : 111 - 15 ( 2002 ); photochem . photobiol . 76 : 606 - 615 ( 2002 ); proc . natl acad . sci . usa 88 : 9412 - 16 ( 1991 ); proc . natl acad . sci . usa 90 : 4072 - 76 ( 1993 ); proc . natl acad . sci . usa 94 : 13442 - 47 ( 1997 ); and proc . r . soc . lond . series b , biol . sci . 233 ( 1270 ): 55 - 76 1988 ) ( the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein ). retinyl esters can be formed by methods known in the art such as , for example , by acid - catalyzed esterification of a retinol with a carboxylic acid , by reaction of an acyl halide with a retinol , by transesterification of a retinyl ester with a carboxylic acid , by reaction of a primary halide with a carboxylate salt of a retinoic acid , by acid - catalyzed reaction of an anhydride with a retinol , or the like . in an example , retinyl esters can be formed by acid - catalyzed esterification of a retinol with a carboxylic acid , such as , acetic acid , propionic acid , butyric acid , valeric acid , caproic acid , caprylic acid , pelargonic acid , capric acid , lauric acid , oleic acid , stearatic acid , palmitic acid , myristic acid , linoleic acid , succinic acid , fumaric acid or the like . in another example , retinyl esters can be formed by reaction of an acyl halide with a retinol ( see , e . g ., van hooser et al ., proc . natl . acad . sci ., usa , 97 : 8623 - 28 ( 2000 )). suitable acyl halides include , for example , acetyl chloride , palmitoyl chloride , or the like . retinyl ethers can be formed by methods known in the art , such as for example , reaction of a retinol with a primary alkyl halide . trans - retinoids can be isomerized to cis - retinoids by exposure to uv light . for example , all - trans - retinal , all - trans - retinol , all - trans - retinyl ester or all - trans - retinoic acid can be isomerized to 9 - cis - retinal , 9 - cis - retinol , 9 - cis - retinyl ester or 9 - cis - retinoic acid , respectively . trans - retinoids can be isomerized to 9 - cis - retinoids by , for example , exposure to a uv light having a wavelength of about 365 nm , and substantially free of shorter wavelengths that cause degradation of cis - retinoids , as further described herein . retinyl acetals and hemiacetals can be prepared , for example , by treatment of 9 - cis - and 11 - cis - retinals with alcohols in the presence of acid catalysts . water formed during reaction is removed , for example by al 2 o 3 of a molecular sieve . retinyl oximes can be prepared , for example , by reaction of a retinal with hydroxylamine , o - methyl - or o - ethylhydroxyl amine , or the like . the synthetic retinal derivative can be substantially pure , in that it contains less than about 5 % or less than about 1 %, or less than about 0 . 1 %, of other retinoids . a combination of synthetic retinal derivatives can be administered . synthetic retinal derivatives can be delivered to the eye by any suitable means , including , for example , oral , intravenous , intramuscular or local administration . modes of local administration can include , for example , eye drops , intraocular injection or periocular injection , or delivery via a controlled release drug delivery formulation and / or device . periocular injection typically involves injection of the synthetic retinal derivative into the conjunctiva or to the tennon ( the fibrous tissue overlying the eye ). intraocular injection typically involves injection of the synthetic retinal derivative into the vitreous . the administration can be non - invasive , such as by eye drops or oral dosage form . synthetic retinal derivatives can be formulated , for example , as pharmaceutical compositions for local administration to the eye and / or for intravenous , intramuscular or oral administration . synthetic retinal derivatives can be formulated for administration using pharmaceutically acceptable vehicles as well as techniques routinely used in the art . a vehicle can be selected according to the solubility of the synthetic retinal derivative . suitable pharmaceutical compositions include those that are administrable locally to the eye , such as by eye drops , injection or the like . in the case of eye drops , the formulation can also optionally include , for example , ophthalmologically compatible agents such as isotonizing agents such as sodium chloride , concentrated glycerin , and the like ; buffering agents such as sodium phosphate , sodium acetate , and the like ; surfactants such as polyoxyethylene sorbitan mono - oleate ( also referred to as polysorbate 80 ), polyoxyl stearate 40 , polyoxyethylene hydrogenated castor oil , and the like ; stabilization agents such as sodium citrate , sodium edentate , and the like ; preservatives such as benzalkonium chloride , parabens , and the like ; and other ingredients . preservatives can be employed , for example , at a level of from about 0 . 001 to about 1 . 0 % weight / volume . the ph of the formulation is usually within the range acceptable to ophthalmologic formulations , such as within the range of about ph 4 to 8 . suitable pharmaceutical compositions also include those formulated for injection . for example , the synthetic retinal derivative can be provided in an injection grade saline solution , in the form of an injectable liposome solution , or other carriers or vehicles . intraocular and periocular injections are known to those skilled in the art and are described in numerous publications including , for example , ophthalmic surgery : principles of practice , ed ., g . l . spaeth , w . b . sanders co ., philadelphia , pa ., u . s . a ., pages 85 - 87 ( 1990 ). a synthetic retinal derivative also can be administered in a time release formulation and / or device , for example in a composition which includes a slow release polymer . the synthetic retinal derivative can be prepared with a carrier ( s ) that will protect the compound against rapid release , such as a controlled release formulation , including implants and microencapsulated delivery systems . biodegradable , biocompatible polymers can be used , such as ethylene vinyl acetate , polyanhydrides , polyglycolic acid , collagen , polyorthoesters , polylactic acid and polylactic , polyglycolic copolymers ( plg ). many methods for the preparation of such formulations are known to those skilled in the art . suitable oral dosage forms include , for example , tablets , pills , sachets , or capsules of hard or soft gelatin , methylcellulose or of another suitable material easily dissolved in the digestive tract . suitable nontoxic solid carriers can be used which include , for example , pharmaceutical grades of mannitol , lactose , starch , magnesium stearate , sodium saccharin , talcum , cellulose , glucose , sucrose , magnesium carbonate , and the like . ( see , e . g ., remington “ pharmaceutical sciences ”, 17 ed ., gennaro ( ed . ), mack publishing co ., easton , pa . ( 1985 ).) the following examples are provided merely as illustrative of various aspects of the invention and should not be construed to limit the invention in any way . both single dose and long - term monthly dosage regimens with 9 - cis - r - ac were used to assess the effect of artificial chromophore augmentation on the visual function of mice . the chromophore used was 9 - cis - r - ac , a pro - drug which is metabolized and converted to 9 - cis - retinal to form isorhodopsin ( batten , m . l ., et al . plos medicine 2 , e333 ( 2005 )). twenty mice were employed for the single dose experiments ( fig1 a , table 1 ), whereas 210 were used for the long - term monthly treatments ( fig1 a , 1b , table 1 ). mice were also gavaged with all - trans - r - ac ( n = 10 ) and its long - term effects was evaluated by selected analyses . 9 - cis - r - ac , 9 - cis - retinyl acetate ; a2e , n - retinylidene - n - retinyl ethanolamine ; erg , electroretinogram ; lrat , lecithin : retinol acyltransferase ; ros , rod outer segments ; rpe , retinal pigment epithelium ; rpe65 , a rpe - specific 65 kda protein . forty eight hr dark - adapted , 10 - month - old mice were gavaged with a single dose (˜ 80 mg / kg body weight ) of 9 - cis - r - ac or control vehicle and exposed to strong illumination for 20 min ( 500 cd · m − 2 that bleached ˜ 90 % rhodopsin ). next , mice were dark - adapted for 16 hr after which various analyses were performed ( fig1 a ). single - flash erg conducted on treated and untreated mice showed that functional a - and b - wave amplitudes of treated mice were slightly increased as compared with the amplitudes in control mice ( a - waves , p & lt ; 0 . 01 ; data not shown ). to investigate whether 9 - cis - retinal was utilized to form isorhodopsin and to assess how much unliganded opsin was present in the mouse eyes , rhodopsin , isorhodopsin and opsin were purified by immunoaffinity chromatography from treated and control groups of mice . the regeneration ratio of rhodopsin was calculated by the ratio of rhodopsin and isorhodopsin ( absorbance at 498 nm ) to purified protein ( absorbance at 280 nm ) in each fraction , was significantly higher in eyes from treated than from control mice whereas the total amount of purified protein did not significantly differ ( fig2 ). when retinoids were extracted from purified proteins to identify bound chromophore , a significant amount of 9 - cis - retinal was detected in samples from treated mice , suggesting that 9 - cis - retinal was utilized to regenerate opsin to form isorhodopsin ( data not shown ). significant amounts of 9 - cis - retinal were detected in eyes of exposed to intense light and treated mice ( fig3 a and 3b ), whereas the amounts of 11 - cis - retinal and all - trans - retinyl esters were not significantly affected in all groups of mice ( fig3 b and 3c ). in these treated and exposed to intense light mice , the rpe also stored significant amount of 9 - cis - retinyl esters , a precursor of the retinal ( fig3 c ). only trace amounts of 9 - cis - retinal were detected in control mouse eyes and unbleached treated mouse eyes ( fig3 b and c ). these results clearly demonstrate that 9 - cis - r - ac is metabolized its esters to form functional 9 - cis - retinal and in wild - type c57bl / 6 female mice . after bleaching , 9 - cis - retinal is bound to opsin even in the presence of a functional retinoid cycle that produces 11 - cis - retinal to regenerate rhodopsin . eyes from non - bleached or bleached and dark - adapted untreated mice contained a small amount of free opsin . for the long - term studies ( fig1 b and 1c ), c57bl6 female mice were gavaged with 9 - cis - r - ac , all - trans - r - ac or control vehicle monthly for 6 or 10 months . to evaluate the effects of rod - and cone - mediated light responses after long - term 9 - cis - r - ac treatments , mice were examined by non - invasive erg methods . the first set of analyses was done at 4 and 10 months of age . under scotopic conditions , the amplitudes of a - waves decreased with age , especially at high flash intensities ( c 1 versus c 0 group , fig4 a , left top panel ), whereas the changes in b - waves were less evident ( fig4 a , right top panel ). under photopic conditions , no differences were observed for either a - or b - waves ( fig4 a , lower panels ). when treated and untreated groups were compared ( n 1 versus c 1 ) slight improvement was observed for the n 1 group with respect to a - or b - waves at high flash strengths ( p & lt ; 0 . 01 , one - way anova ) under both photopic and scotopic conditions with the exception of a - waves under photopic conditions ( fig4 a , left lower panels ). the second set of analyses was done at 14 months of age . no significant differences were found in a - and b - wave amplitudes between control ( c 2 ) and treated groups of mice ( n 2 and n 3 ) under either scotopic of photopic conditions ( fig4 b ). from a - wave maximal responses in dark - adapted mice , sensitivities and maximal a - wave amplitudes were estimated and these parameters were found not to be significantly different either ( data not shown ). recovery of the erg response ( dark adaptation ) following bleach was measured by monitoring the amplitude of a - waves after retinal exposure to intense constant illumination ( 500 cd · m − 2 , ˜ 90 % bleached rhodopsin ) for 3 min . recovery of the responses was significantly faster in the 9 - cis - r - ac treated groups compared with the control groups of mice at both 10 months ( n 1 vs . c 1 , fig5 a ) and 14 months of age ( n 2 and n 3 vs . c 2 , fig5 b )( p & lt ; 0 . 001 , one - way anova ). retinoid kinetics in the eyes of each group were quantitatively evaluated during 60 min of dark adaptation after 3 min of bleaching at four subsequent time points of dark adaptation ( 0 , 10 , 30 , and 60 min ). at 10 months of age , the regeneration level of 11 - cis - retinal in a treated group ( n 1 ) was significantly higher than in the control group ( c 1 ) ( p & lt ; 0 . 01 ) 60 min after the bleach . but there was no significant difference in kinetics of all - trans - retinal and all - trans - retinyl - esters between these groups and between treated and untreated mice at 14 months of age . neither 9 - cis - retinal nor 9 - cis - retinyl esters were found in eyes from untreated groups ( data not shown ). in additional control experiments , mice were gavaged with an inactive isomer , all - trans - r - ac ( n = 10 ) for 10 months and evaluated at 14 months age . erg examination showed no significant difference compared with control ( c 2 ) in single flash erg a - and b - wave analyses or in dark adaptation recovery ( n = 3 ). these results showed that erg effects are specific for 9 - cis isomer . analyses of rhodopsin , a2e and retinoid acids in control and 9 - cis - r - ac treated mice regeneration ratios ( rhodopsin / opsin ) and total amounts of purified rhodopsin showed no significant differences between control and treated groups of mice at both 10 and 14 months of age . the amounts of purified protein recovered from the treated groups at 14 months of age ( n 2 and n 3 ) were significantly lower than these from control mice ( c 2 ), whereas the amount was only slightly attenuated in at 10 - month - old treated mice ( n 1 versus c 1 ) ( data not shown ). to evaluate the safety of long - term administration of 9 - cis - r - ac , a2e accumulation was measured ( fig6 a ), because retinals spontaneously condense to this compound ( mata , n . l ., weng , j . & amp ; travis , g . h . proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america 97 , 7154 - 7159 ( 2000 ); parish , c . a ., hashimoto , m ., nakanishi , k ., dillon , j . & amp ; sparrow , j . proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america 95 , 14609 - 14613 ( 1998 )). a2e and iso - a2e were detected at similar levels in treated and control mice at both 10 - and 14 months of age ( fig6 b ). in pre - treatment controls ( c 0 , 4 months old ), a2e accumulation was below detectable levels ( fig6 b ). although long - term treatment with retinyl esters might produce elevated levels of mitogenic retinoic acid in the liver , hepatic retinoid - acid levels were below detectable levels in all groups ( data not shown ). animals were evaluated weekly for activity and changes in coat and skin appearance . no changes in these parameters were observed during the experimental period aside from these due to natural aging . body weights of mice evaluated at pre - treatment , 10 months and 14 months showed no significant differences between control ( c 1 - 2 ) and treated groups ( n 1 - 3 ) ( data not shown ). light microscopy revealed no major abnormalities in the retinas of vehicle , 9 - cis - r - ac or all - trans - r - ac ( n = 2 ) treated mice at 10 and 14 months of age and retinas from these two 9 - cis - r - ac treated groups were indistinguishable . lengths of rod outer segments ( ros ) were similar in control and treated groups at 10 - and 14 months of age but were significantly decreased as compared to ros lengths of 4 - month - old mice ( c 0 ) whose retinal histology is shown in fig7 . the thickness of each major layer in the retina was also similar between control and treated groups . em analysis of the outer retina and rpe layer revealed no gross differences between control and treated mice . higher resolution of the interface between the rpe and ros also showed no abnormalities ( data not shown ). dna microarray analyses were used to document possible changes in gene expression profiles after the long - term treatment with 9 - cis - r - ac . expression levels of mrna in the eye , liver and kidney were determined and compared between treated ( n 2 ) and control ( c 2 ) groups using a 37 , 364 gene array provided by nimblegen system inc . in the eye , 9 - cis - r - ac treatment elevated expression of 290 genes by a factor of 2 or more and attenuated expression of more than 1057 genes by a factor of 0 . 5 or less ( fig8 ; table s1 ). in the liver of treated mice , expression of only 7 genes was increased by a factor of 2 or more and expression of only 20 genes was suppressed by a factor of 0 . 5 or less ( fig8 ; table s2 ). in the kidney of treated mice , 90 genes increased their expression by a factor of 2 or more and 3 genes suppressed it by a factor of 0 . 5 or less ( fig8 ; table s2 ). the phototransduction - specific , retinoid processing and function - categorized genes whose expressions were affected in the eye are listed in tables s2 . protein levels of transducin ( gt ), rhodopsin kinase , guanylate cyclase - activating protein 1 and guanylate cyclase - activating protein 2 , guanylate cyclase 1 , retinol dehydrogenase 12 and lrat were not affected in all groups of mice as assessed by immunoblotting ( data not shown ). as shown in these studies , age - related deterioration of dark adaptation in mice is attenuated by artificial cis - retinoid treatment . this finding is analogous to age - related declines in human vision manifested by the dramatic slowing of rod - mediated dark adaptation directly attributed to delayed rhodopsin regeneration ( jackson , g . r ., owsley , c . & amp ; mcgwin , g ., jr . vision research 39 , 3975 - 3982 ( 1999 )). two different types of studies were done . single dose studies revealed that 9 - cis - retinoids could enter the eye , and a second set of experiments showed that long - term administration of 9 - cis - r - ac significantly improved the deterioration of retinal function in aging mice . these experiments were designed to test whether 9 - cis - retinoids enter the eyes of 10 - month - old mice and improve visual function . the erg response measurably declined with age and small but measurable amounts of free opsin was present in these old mice . 9 - cis - retinal entered the eye when these treated mice were exposed to intense light and tested 18 hr later . the precursors of 9 - cis - retinal , 9 - cis - retinyl esters , were easily detectable in the eyes of these mice and the rhodopsin / opsin ratio improved as well . erg responses to a single light flash were significantly improved in 10 - month - old mice that were treated for 6 months with 9 - cis - r - ac as compared with the oil - treated controls ( fig4 a ). this therapeutic effect largely disappeared in 14 - month - old mice treated for 10 months ( fig4 b ), possibly due to the masking effect of debilitation in the older mice . however , these older mice did display a significant effect involving dark adaptation ( fig5 b , n 2 and n 3 groups ). that long - term gavage of 14 - month - old mice with all - trans - r - ac had no effect on measured erg parameters is not surprising because only the cis - form of the chromophore can recombine with opsin ( reviewed in palczewski , k . annual review of biochemistry 75 , 743 - 767 ( 2006 ); filipek , s ., stenkamp , r . e ., teller , d . c . & amp ; palczewski , k . annu rev physiol 65 , 851 - 879 ( 2003 )). thus , all - trans - retinoid would only add substrate for the isomerization reaction but not supplement the active chromophore if isomerization was attenuated . importantly , mice in captivity are maintained on high vitamin a diet , thus observed effects of cis - retinoids is already on the top of all - trans - retinoid supplementation . long - term treatment ( 6 - 10 months ) was well tolerated by c57bl / 6 female mice . age - related detectable morphological changes in the retina were observed in both treated and control mice were not affected by treatment . potential toxic by - products of retinoid treatment , a2e and retinoic acid , did not accumulate in these mice . in this study , 9 - cis - r - ac was incorporated into free - opsin within the retina resulting in increased regeneration ratio of rod pigments . however , the amount of all - trans - retinal induced by physiological light conditions is constant regardless of the amounts of rod pigments and the regeneration ratio . therefore , it is not surprising that a2e levels were not affected by 9 - cis - r - ac administration . thus , the beneficial effect of cis - retinoid supplementation seems more advantageous from this perspective than from the anti - oxidant properties generally attributed to retinoids ( maxwell , s . & amp ; greig , l . expert opinion on pharmacotherapy 2 , 1737 - 1750 ( 2001 )). we did not detect any accumulation of retinoic acids . moreover , gene expression changes were minimal in the liver and kidney while several proteins were unregulated in the eye . our detailed analysis of these genes did not reveal any particular expression patterns . humans begin to lose their ability to dark adapt beginning in the 3 rd - 4 th decade ( jackson , g . r ., mcgwin , g ., jr ., phillips , j . m ., klein , r . & amp ; owsley , c . vision research 46 , 1422 - 1431 ( 2006 )). a decline in the visual function is functionally manifested by reduction in the ability to perform activities such as driving at night and reading in darkened environments ( schilling , o . k . & amp ; wahl , h . w . psychology and aging 21 , 703 - 714 ( 2006 )). such symptoms become more debilitating with age and can result in reduced independence and activity in the elderly . the problem becomes more acute as people live longer . results of our experiments demonstrate that oral 9 - cis - retinoid is useful as a long - term prophylactic agent and as a therapeutic compound . the beneficial effects and relative safety of 9 - cis - retinoids extends to age - related macular degeneration , the leading cause of legal blindness in the u . s . and europe ( zack , d . j ., et al ., mol vis 5 , 30 ( 1999 )). here , we have shown that there are biochemical changes in the visual cycle that occur with age , namely an increase in free opsin and the opsin / rhodopsin ratio . when such biochemical changes are excessive they can lead to retinal degenerations such as seen in lca ( fan , j ., woodruff , m . l ., cilluffo , m . c ., crouch , r . k . & amp ; fain , g . l . j physiol 568 , 83 - 95 ( 2005 )). in addition , free opsin results in spontaneous initiation of the visual cascade in rod photoreceptors ( lisman , j . & amp ; fain , g . nat med 1 , 1254 - 1255 ( 1995 ); fain , g . l ., matthews , h . r ., cornwall , m . c . & amp ; koutalos , y . physiol rev 81 , 117 - 151 ( 2001 ); surya , a ., foster , k . w . & amp ; knox , b . e . j biol chem 270 , 5024 - 5031 ( 1995 ); hofmann , k . p ., pulvermuller , a ., buczylko , j ., van hooser , p . & amp ; palczewski , k . j biol chem 267 , 15701 - 15706 ( 1992 ); palczewski , k ., et al . biochemistry 33 , 13741 - 13750 ( 1994 ); jager , s ., palczewski , k . & amp ; hofmann , k . p . biochemistry 35 , 2901 - 2908 ( 1996 )). this results in a decreased signal - to - noise ratio in the visual system , increased metabolic overload in the rpe , resulting in the formation of more waste products , free radicals and , eventually , drusen . decreasing free opsin with 9 - cis - retinoid therapy will therefore lead to a reduction in the precursors that are believed to initiate amd . pigmented age - matched c57bl / 6 female mice obtained from charles river laboratories were maintained on a normal diet in complete darkness or on a 12 - hr light / dark cycle . all animal experiments utilized procedures approved by the university of washington and case western reserve university animal care committees and conformed to recommendations of the american veterinary medical association panel on euthanasia and the association of research for vision and ophthalmology . 9 - cis - r - ac was prepared as previously described ( batten , m . l ., et al . plos medicine 2 , e333 ( 2005 ); batten , m . l ., et al . j biol chem 279 , 10422 - 10432 ( 2004 )). a dose of ˜ 80 mg / kg body weight of 9 - cis - r - ac in 150 μl vegetable oil was administered via gavage to each treated animal . prior to single dose experiments ( fig1 a , table 1 ), 10 - month - old mice were dark - adapted for more than 48 hr , gavaged with 9 - cis - r - ac or vehicle control solution 1 hr before bleaching , exposed to light for 20 min at 500 cd · m − 2 and dark - adapted for 16 hr before analysis . for the long - term study ( fig1 b and 1c , table 1 ), mice were obtained at 3 months of age and raised until 4 months of age before the experiments were initiated . mice then were gavaged with 9 - cis - r - ac or vehicle solution once a month for different durations . six groups of mice were studied ( fig1 b ). the first 3 groups ( c 0 c 1 and c 2 , total n = 35 for each group ) were treated as controls and tested at 4 , 10 and 14 months of age . the other 3 groups ( n 1 , n 2 and n 3 , n = 35 ) were gavaged with 9 - cis - r - ac . group n 1 was gavaged for 6 months and tested at 10 months of age . group n 2 was gavaged with 9 - cis - r - ac for 10 months and tested at 14 months of age . group n 3 , was gavaged with vehicle until 10 months of age and then received 9 - cis - r - ac monthly until testing at 14 months of age . in another control group not shown in fig1 b , 10 mice were gavaged with ˜ 80 mg / kg body weight of all - trans - r - ac ( sigma - aldrich , corp .) for 10 months and tested at 14 months of age . two weeks after the last gavage with either , 9 - cis - r - ac , all - trans - r - ac or vehicle , groups of 48 hr dark - adapted mice were analyzed for recovery of dark adaptation after light exposure , purified rhodopsin / opsin and retinoids in the eye and retinal morphology ( fig1 c ; methods ). mice were exposed to light of intensity 500 cd · m − 2 that bleached ˜ 90 % of rhodopsin , anesthetized and monitored by erg for one hr to evaluate recovery of dark adaptation . rhodopsin was purified and rhodopsin / opsin ratios was determined . retinoid analyses were performed on dissected eyes removed at 0 , 10 , 30 , and 60 min after exposure to the same amount of light . mice used to evaluate retinal morphology were not exposed to photobleaching prior to analysis . rhodopsin purification was done under dim red light as previously described ( zhu , l ., et al . j biot chem , 279 , 53828 - 53839 ( 2004 )). purified anti - rhodopsin c terminus antibody 1d4 ( mackenzie , d ., arendt , a ., hargrave , p ., mcdowell , j . h . & amp ; molday , r . s . biochemistry , 23 , 6544 - 6549 ( 1984 )) was immobilized on cnbr - activated sepharose 4b and a 4 . 6 × 12 - mm column was packed with 2 mg of 1 d4 antibody / ml of sepharose beads . mouse whole eyes were homogenized in 137 mm nacl , 5 . 4 mm na 2 hpo 4 , 2 . 7 mm kcl and 1 . 8 mm kh 2 po 4 ( ph 7 . 5 ) with a glass - to - glass homogenizer . soluble proteins in the supernatant were removed by centrifugation at 14 , 000 × g for 5 min and the pellet was solubilized in buffer containing 1 % dodecyl - β - maltoside in 10 mm bis - tris propane ( ph 7 . 5 ) containing 500 mm nacl . the supernatant was cleared by centrifugation at 125 , 000 × g for 20 min and loaded onto an antibody 1 d4 - packed immunoaffinity column which was then thoroughly washed at a flow rate of 0 . 5 ml / min with 10 mm bis - tris propane ( ph 7 . 5 ) containing 500 mm nacl and 0 . 1 % dodecyl - β - maltoside . purified mouse rhodopsin was eluted with 100 pm nonapeptide ( tetsqvapa ) in 10 mm bis - tris propane ( ph 7 . 5 ) containing 500 mm nacl and 0 . 1 % dodecyl - β - maltoside at room temperature . purified rhodopsin concentration was determined at 500 nm and total amount of opsin and rhodopsin at 280 nm with a hewlett - packard 8452a uv - visible spectrophotometer ( palczewski , k ., carruth , m . e ., adamus , g ., mcdowell , j . h . & amp ; hargrave , p . a . vision research , 30 , 1129 - 1137 ( 1990 )). all experimental procedures related to extraction , derivatization and separation of retinoids were carried out under dim red light provided by a kodak no . 1 safelight filter ( transmittance & gt ; 560 nm ) as described previously ( van hooser , j . p ., et al . proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america 97 , 8623 - 8628 ( 2000 ); van hooser , j . p ., et al . j biol chem , 277 , 19173 - 19182 ( 2002 ); maeda , a ., etal . j biol chem 280 , 18822 - 18832 ( 2005 ); van hooser , j . p ., garwin , g . g . & amp ; saari , j . c . methods enzymol 316 , 565 - 575 ( 2000 )). eluted fractions of purified rhodopsin from 6 mouse eyes were combined ( total 3 . 0 ml ) and mixed with an equal volume of 100 % methanol . the mixture was vortexed and incubated on ice for 15 min . retinoids were extracted twice with an equal volume of 100 % hexane ( 6 ml total ). the combined extracts were dried under argon and retinoids were separated by normal phase hplc ( beckman , ultrasphere - si , 5 μm , 4 . 6 × 250 mm ) with 10 % ethyl acetate and 90 % hexane at a flow rate of 1 . 4 ml / min and detected at 325 nm by an hpi 100 hplc with a diode array detector and hp chemstation a . 03 . 03 software . a2e was analyzed as previously described ( maeda , a ., et al . j biol chem , 280 , 18822 - 18832 ( 2005 )). analysis of retinoic acid in the liver was carried out as described before ( batten , m . l ., et al . plos medicine 2 , e333 ( 2005 )) by an agilent 1100 hplc with two tandem normal phase columns : a varian microsorb silica 3 μm , 4 . 6 × 100 mm ( varian , palo alto , calif .) and an ultrasphere - si , 5 μm , 4 . 6 × 250 mm column . an isocratic solvent system of 1000 : 4 . 3 : 0 . 675 hexane : 2 - propanol : glacial acetic acid ( v / v ) was used at a flow rate of 1 ml / min at 20 ° c . with detection at 355 nm . calibration was done with standards of all - trans - ra and 9 - cis - ra purchased from sigma - aldrich . immunoblotting was done according to standard protocols using immobilon - p to adsorb proteins ( polyvinylidene difluoride ; millipore corp .). monoclonal anti - rhodopsin antibody ( 1d4 ) was provided by dr . r . molday . the anti - lrat ( mab ) ( moise , a . r ., golczak , m ., imanishi , y . & amp ; palczewski , k ., j biol chem ( 2006 )), anti - transducin ( gt ) ( mab ) ( unpublished ), anti - guanylate cyclase 1 ( 1s4 , mab ); haire , s . e ., et al . investigative ophthalmology & amp ; visual science 47 , 3745 - 3753 ( 2006 )), anti - guanylate cyclase - activating protein 1 ( uw14 pab ) ( gorczyca , w . a ., et al . j biol chem , 270 , 22029 - 22036 ( 1995 )), anti - guanylate cyclase - activating protein 2 ( uw50 pab ) otto - bruc , a ., et al . proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america 94 , 4727 - 4732 ( 1997 )), anti - rhodopsin kinase ( zhao , x ., huang , j ., khani , s . c . & amp ; palczewski , k . j biol chem 273 , 5124 - 5131 ( 1998 )), and anti - retinol dehydrogenase 12 ( pab ) ( maeda , a ., et al . j biol chem 281 , 37697 - 37704 ( 2006 )) were generated in our laboratory . alkaline phosphatase - conjugated goat anti - mouse igg or goat anti - rabbit igg ( promega ) were used as secondary antibodies . protein bands were visualized with 5 - bromo - 4 - chloro - 3 - indolyl phosphate / nitro blue tetrazolium color development substrate ( promega ). proteins ( 30 μg per each well ) were separated by 12 . 5 % sds - page . for light microscopy , mouse eyecups were fixed with 2 . 5 % glutaraldehyde and 1 . 6 % paraformaldehyde in 0 . 08 m 1 , 4 - piperazinediethanesulfonate buffer ( pipes ) ( ph 7 . 4 ) containing 2 % sucrose for ˜ 1 hr at room temperature followed by 23 hr at 4 ° c . eyecups then were washed with 0 . 13 m sodium phosphate buffer ( ph 7 . 3 ) and dehydrated through a ch 3 oh series and embedded in jb4 glycol metacrylate . sections ( 6 μm ) were stained by immersion in 5 % richardson &# 39 ; s stain for 1 . 5 - 2 min at room temperature and destained in 0 . 13 m sodium phosphate ( ph 7 . 3 ) until the retinal layers were visible by light microscopy ( about 8 - 15 min ). for transmission electron microscopy , mouse eyecups were analyzed as described previously ( maeda , a ., et al . j blot chem 280 , 18822 - 18832 ( 2005 ); maeda , t ., lem , j ., palczewski , k . & amp ; haeseleer , f . investigative ophthalmology & amp ; visual science 46 , 4320 - 4327 ( 2005 )). rna was isolated from 10 eyes , 100 mg of liver or 100 mg of kidney from groups c 2 and n 2 mice ( fig1 b ) with a ribopure kit ( ambion , austin , tex .). quality of the preparation was verified by rna agarose gel electrophoresis and the agilent bioanalyzer . aliquots of total rna isolated from the different tissues and from mice undergoing various treatments were detection - labeled and hybridized on the mouse genomic microarray using a service provided by nimblegen system inc . ( madison , wis .). the microarray contained the 37 , 364 genes and covering the entire mouse transcriptome as represented by the university of california , santa cruz database ( build hg 17 ) with a minimum of 11 probes per gene . gene expression was normalized according to probe signal , and the average signal for each gene was normalized for each sample replicate . array data for samples across the whole study were normalized by nimblegen systems inc . ( madison , wis .) that employed the robust multichip analysis feature of the data analysis package contained in the bioconductor open source and open development software project for the analysis and comprehension of genomic data . project - wide spreadsheets of robust multichip analysis results were exported to microsoft ® exel ® and expression level ratios were calculated for all the possible pair - wise comparisons comprising one control and one treated sample . these pair - wise ratios were imported to microsoft access and mined for credible - fold changes in gene expression . changes greater than or equal to a 2 - fold increase or less than or equal to a 0 . 5 - fold decrease were considered significant . differentially expressed genes were then exported from access as excel files and were assigned functional annotations by lucidyx searcher ™ software by lucidyx llc . the previous examples were provided to illustrate but not to limit the scope of the claimed inventions . other variants of the inventions will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art and are encompassed by the appended claims . all publications , patents , patent applications and other references cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference .	0
it will be readily understood that the components of the present invention , as generally described and illustrated in the drawings herein , could be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations . thus , the following more detailed description of the embodiments of the system and method of the present invention , as represented in the drawings , is not intended to limit the scope of the invention , as claimed , but is merely representative of various embodiments of the invention . the illustrated embodiments of the invention will be best understood by reference to the drawings , wherein like parts are designated by like numerals throughout . referring to fig1 through 10 , while referring generally to fig1 through 16 , a wave attenuation system 10 or breakwater 10 may involve several individual units . an individual unit 10 is composed of two floats 12 or float tubes 12 that ride on the surface by the buoyant actions of the water lifting the tubes 12 to the surface thereof , as a result of the contained air therewithin . two “ units ” are typically connected end - to - end to make a “ unit assembly .” a unit assembly is typically anchored individually as part of an array of such assemblies protecting a length of shoreline , a harbor , a property , or the like . meanwhile , a ballast 14 or ballast tube 14 is fixed to the float tubes 12 to ride therebelow . the ballast tube 14 is provided with several large ( one eighth to one quarter diameter ) apertures 15 . typically , the apertures 15 may be about four inches in diameter in a two - foot diameter ballast tube 14 . the float tubes 12 and ballast tube 14 in one embodiment are typically formed of a nominal two - foot - diameter , high - density , polyethylene tubing . the apertures 15 may be spaced at a suitable distance along the length of each of the ballast tubes 14 . structurally they should not be less than three of their diameters apart . six is better . likewise , the apertures 15 may be distributed around the circumference of the ballast tubes 14 , typically being perforated along the bottom , and at 90 degrees thereto along the sides , and opposite thereto along the top center line along the ballast tube 14 . comparatively larger apertures reduce strength but can increase form drag . the tubes 12 , 14 are secured to one another by struts 16 or braces 16 . typically , the struts 16 are also long tubes 16 of the same material ( e . g ., high density polyethylene ) as the float tubes 12 and ballast tubes 14 . the struts 16 are typically welded by heat welding to fit with the principal tubes 12 , 14 . a diameter of a nominal 12 inches for the struts 16 has been found satisfactorily . certain of the struts 16 extend straight between adjacent tubes 12 , 14 . others of the struts 16 extend at an angle , typically at an angle corresponding to principal stresses ( about 45 degrees and 90 degrees ) with respect to a center line of an associated tube 12 , 14 supported thereby . in the illustrated embodiments , the struts 16 are provided with apertures 17 to permit entry of water 37 . the apertures 17 need not be particularly large , and have been found suitable at a dimension of from about one to about three inches . a diameter of from about one to about two inches has been found completely suitable . it has been found advisable to form larger apertures 15 in the ballast tube 14 in order to provide additional fluid drag in the process of operation of the breakwater 10 . the wave attenuator system 10 or breakwater 10 is secured by an anchor 18 of any suitable type and a tether 20 running between the anchor 18 and one or more of the tubes 12 , 14 . u . s . patent application ser . no . 14 / 267 , 612 , filed may 1 , 2014 for corrosion - and - chafing - resistant , mooring system and method is incorporated herein by reference and contains a detailed description of various suitable embodiments for an anchor 18 and tether 20 . the cavities 22 in the float tubes 12 operate as air chambers 22 to maintain the floats 12 riding high or at any suitable distance above the surface 36 of the water 37 . as a practical matter , the cavities 23 and the struts 16 are alternately filled and evacuated of water to some extent to increase buoyancy or mass , acting opposite each other . that is , due to the apertures 17 and the struts 16 , water may enter and leave the cavities 23 and the struts 16 . the wall 24 around each of the tubes 12 , 14 may be of any suitable size , but has been found to be adequate at the manufacturing nominal size manufactured in conventional nominal 24 inch high density polyethylene tubing . it has been found suitable to leave the walls 24 as manufactured . engineering calculations indicate suitable strength , durability , and longevity in service . one will note a guard 26 , typically formed of high density polyethylene tubing , such as about an eight inch nominal diameter tubing . the guard 26 is welded to each of the float tubes 12 in order to protect ports 28 a , 28 b . the ports 28 a are short , penetrating into the wall 24 of a float tube 12 in order to receive air or water therein . meanwhile , the ports 28 b are secured to include or communicate with a tube 29 extending down through each of the float tubes 12 toward the bottom surface thereof in order to purge water therefrom . by adding air through the port 28 a , the cavity 22 of each float tube 12 may be filled with air while the stand pipe 29 or tube 29 empties water from within the float tube 12 and passes it outside thereof through the port 28 b . the amount of air or water in each float tube 12 may be selected for best performance . each of the float tubes 12 and ballast tubes 14 is provided with a flange 30 at one end 32 a thereof . the opposite end 32 b is simply sealed with an end wall 32 b . as a practical matter , the end walls 32 a , 32 b provide stiffening of the cylindrical tubes 12 , 14 , thus adding structural integrity and stiffness . meanwhile , the end walls 32 a , 32 b on the float tubes 12 seal the tubes 12 in order to render them sealed and buoyant on the surface of the water . the tether 20 may be threaded through a sleeve 34 of polyethylene tubing 34 that wraps around one or more of the tubes 12 , 14 . the sleeve 34 provides chafing protection for the tether 20 . typically , the tether 20 may be a suitable marine rope of a synthetic polymer ( e . g ., nylon , polyester , and polypropylene ) that has long life when subject to the attack of marine organisms , chemicals , biological activity , and so forth . accordingly , the sleeve 34 provides a long term chafing protection against the abrasion of the tether 20 on the outer surface of any of the tubes 12 , 14 , to which the tether 20 may be secured . multiple segments 10 or unit systems 10 may be concatenated or connected . typically , the systems 10 may be made in units 10 or segments 10 of about 60 feet in length . two of these 10 may be secured together to make another single longer assembly 10 by securing fasteners 31 through flanges 30 on the ends 32 a of each of the tubes 12 , 14 . the effect then is to provide a longer assembly 10 or wave attenuator system 10 of about 120 feet in length , having three tubes 12 , 14 forming an isosceles triangle . the bottom tube 14 acts as the ballast tube 14 providing damping of motion of the system 10 in response to wave action . referring to fig1 through 16 , while continuing to refer generally to fig1 through 16 , the system 10 operates by floating on the surface 36 or at the surface level 36 of a body of water 37 defined as extending between the water level 36 on the top thereof and a floor 38 or bed level 38 therebelow . the bed level 38 represents an upper surface 38 of a sea bed 40 . the sea bed 40 or floor 40 may be a concrete bottom , natural rock , soil , or whatever else may underlie a body of water 37 . in the illustrated embodiment , an anchor 18 may be fixed near but well below the surface 38 of the bed 40 . here , the illustration shows an anchor 18 that has been embedded within the sea bed 40 below the floor 38 or bed level 38 . the tether 20 extends continuously from the anchor 18 up through the water 37 to engage one or more of the tubes 12 , 14 of the breakwater 10 . the tether 20 may secure by a bowline knot , a re - woven loop or the like as understood in the marine arts . referring to fig1 through 13 , various embodiments of the tether 20 may engage one or more of the tubes 12 , 14 . one advantage to the embodiment of fig1 and that of fig1 is that the float tubes 12 are both permitted free motion on the surface 36 of the water 37 except to the extent that the tether 20 may restrain them with respect to the anchor 18 . the embodiment of fig1 would cause more wear between the sheath 34 or sleeve 34 against the tubes 12 as a result of relative motion . typically , the tether 20 will extend at an angle 41 with respect to the floor 38 as a result of action of the waves tending to push the breakwater 10 toward shore . whether the angle 41 is measured with respect to a vertical direction rising from the floor 38 , or with respect to the floor , is a matter of arbitrary choice . however , the resulting angle 41 that the tether 20 deviates from vertical provides a vector of force on the float tubes 12 . for example , when the level 36 of the water 37 rises with a wave , the tether 20 of fig1 may draw the tubes 12 laterally 11 b to be more directly over the anchor 18 . the tension in the tether 20 acts as a vector drawing the breakwater 10 toward the anchor 18 . mathematically , that force vector does not change value substantially , but direction . it is resolved into a component parallel to the surface 36 of the water 37 , and an orthogonal component in a vertical direction 11 a . in fig1 , the force vectors do not change direction , due to permanent constraint . force values , however change substantially in operation . wave action causes pulling by buoyancy forces and lateral 11 b as well as vertical 11 a momentum . the directions 11 identify various directions 11 with respect to the system 10 . herein , a trailing letter is a specific instance of a reference number . the direction 11 a is nominally vertical , while the direction 11 b is laterally or horizontally orthogonal thereto . meanwhile , the direction 11 c is longitudinally orthogonal to both the directions 11 a and 11 b , and extending along the length or longitudinal axis of the tubes 12 , 14 . referring to fig1 through 16 , and fig1 through 16 , generally , the directions 11 may represent up or down , forward or backward directions , as needed . however , one may think of the direction 11 a as the vertical direction of rise and fall of the apparatus 10 in response to waves , with the lateral direction 11 b being the back and forth , shoreward and windward , direction with the wave and against the wave that the apparatus 10 may move . similarly , the system 10 may rotate or roll about any of the axes 11 a , 11 b , 11 c . thus , the breakwater 10 will tend to roll in the direction 11 e as a wave strikes the leading float tube 12 a and will then counterrotate in the direction 11 d as the wave passes the float tube 12 a and lifts the float tube 12 b . of course , one may speak of the leading float tube 12 a as that which strikes or receives the wave first , and the trailing float tube 12 b as that which receives the remainder of the wave thereafter . one may see that a float tube 12 a in rising with a wave 44 on the surface 36 of the water 37 will necessarily rotate the overall structure of tubes 12 , 14 . as the wave 44 passes the leading tube 12 a also identified by an l , juxtaposed to the trailing identified by the letter t , a rocking motion will persist forward 11 d and backward 11 e with respect to the breakwater 10 facing in its own “ forward ” direction 11 b toward the incoming wave 44 advancing “ forward ” 11 a in its motion ( see fig1 ). any time the system 10 tries to lift with a wave 44 , several forces act . those forces act to redirect energy , momentum , and material ( water 37 ) in various directions that randomize the influence of a wave 44 . the result is turning mechanical energy into thermal energy heating ( ever so slightly ) the water 37 by mixing vigorously . one may note that the connection scheme for the tether 20 about the float tubes 12 a , 12 b in fig1 will induce a somewhat different dynamic effect from that of the example of fig1 . for example , the comparatively lighter of overlying air 42 above the surface 36 of water 37 provides negligible resistance to waves 44 . waves 44 rise as the floor 38 rises , momentum shifts , and the water 37 finds it easier to move up into the air 42 rather than contend with the resistance of surrounding water 37 . in the embodiment of fig1 and fig1 , the tube 12 a will rise first , rotating with respect to the tube 12 b , since a tether 20 is secured about each of both the leading tube 12 a and trailing tube 12 b . the influence of the ballast tube 14 remains effectively the same . that is , it must move through the water 37 in order for either of the tubes 12 a , 12 b to move . to move within the vertical plane ( the page ) illustrated in fig1 , the tube 12 a must lift on the wave 44 . the trailing tube 12 b does not follow the same magnitude of motion as the wave 44 is redirected . referring to fig1 , securing a tether 20 about the ballast tube 14 permits rocking or rotating by the ballast 14 and float tubes 12 a , 12 b . however , if double tethers of fig1 are used on the ballast tube 14 , to keep it in place , the tether 20 resist the necessary rocking action and fails to operate well . thus , it has been found suitable to use a configuration of fig1 and 12 , although the configurations of fig1 and 13 may also be used . alternative configurations may also be used , including securing the tether 20 to the struts 16 , to an anchor point or points along the tubes 12 , 14 , or the like . however , it has been found effective to minimize tight ( comparatively small , on the order of a few radii diameters of the tether 20 ) radii in loops of the tether 20 , and to eliminate metal . in the illustrated embodiment , no metal is required within the system 10 . in certain embodiments , the fasteners 31 for securing the flanges 30 together may be formed of metal for expediency . metal provides substantial strength per unit of cross - sectional area , and may be fabricated from suitable materials , such as stainless steel , that resist corrosion . as the only metallic component , the fasteners 31 cannot set up di - metallic galvanic cell promoting corrosion . referring to fig1 , a wave 44 may encounter an array 46 of the systems 10 in accordance with the invention . in one manner of speaking , the tubes 12 , 14 are also configured in an array of three tubes . likewise , an array 46 may represent several breakwaters 10 , each anchored by suitable tethers 20 , and assembled in pairs secured by intermediate flanges 30 . as a wave 44 approaches , an extensive region of water 37 may be protected by the array 46 of attenuators 10 or breakwaters 10 . thus , one may speak of a breakwater 10 as the entire array 46 , or a single unit 10 , or some intermediate combination 10 thereof . referring to fig1 and 16 , while continuing to refer generally to fig1 through 16 , a system 10 in accordance with the invention maintains a very sophisticated and effective pattern of movement . materials floating on a surface 36 of a body of water 37 are common . buoys and vessels , from dinghies to ocean - going ships , float on the surface 36 of various bodies of water 37 . similarly , conventional breakwaters 10 may involve platforms of floating materials , such as logs , or fixed barriers , such as sea walls , rock embankments , and so forth . always the wave energy and momentum ( speaking of newtonian physics and the laws of motion as defined by newton as understood in the sciences of physics and engineering ) demonstrate the transfer of energy and momentum from waves 44 to fixed or moving masses along the surface 36 of water 37 . redirecting mechanical energy ( force times distance ) or power ( force times velocity ) requires redirecting momentum ( mast times velocity ), which necessarily requires redirection of forces and pressures ( force per unit area ). meanwhile , redirection requires structures capable of supporting the tremendous energies and forces of waves 44 . large forces , large momentum , and large size imply large costs , extensive time , and other artifacts of construction thereof . in an apparatus and method in accordance with the invention , a very sophisticated and complex motion occurs in the breakwater 10 based on an almost rudimentary triangular envelope . for example , in the illustrated embodiment , a leading tube 12 a is identified by the letter l while a trailing tube 12 b is identified by the letter t . a ballast tube 14 identified by a letter b completes the array 10 of tubes 12 , 14 . the struts 16 have been idealized schematically as straight lines . in the illustrated embodiment , various forces occur . upon the advance of a wave 44 toward the assembly 10 , the wave 44 effects motions in each of the tubes 12 , 14 . for example , motion 54 in the vertical direction 11 a results from the swell or the rise of a wave 44 as it advances . meanwhile , the wave 44 is traveling and therefore contains energy and momentum directed in the direction 11 b . the result is a buoyant force 50 b tending to lift the tube 12 a or the leading tube 12 a . likewise , the tethers 20 each exert a force 50 a tending to restrain the leading tube 12 a and trailing tube 12 b toward their anchors 18 . the forces 50 c , 50 d that may exist within the strut 16 between the leading tube 12 a and the ballast tube 14 also contribute forces restraining the leading tube 12 a because of fluid drag on the ballast 14 whenever it moves relative to the water 37 . by the same token , forces 50 e , 50 f within the struts 16 between the leading tube 12 a and the trailing tube 12 b also contribute to the force balance . the net effect is a resultant force 52 that acts to move the leading tube 12 a into a net effective direction 56 of the leading tube 12 a . any motion 56 or direction 56 of movement in response to the resultant force 52 on the leading tube 12 a results in a resistance force 50 c on the tube 12 a exerted by water 37 surrounding itself and by the ballast tube 14 and struts 16 being dragged through the water 37 . the leading tube 12 a cannot ever move without moving the interconnected trailing tube 12 b , ballast tube 14 , and intervening struts 16 . one can immediately see that the forces 50 d , 50 j on the ballast tube 14 , imposed by the struts 16 extending toward the leading tube 12 a and trailing tube 12 b , respectively , tend to move the ballast tube 14 against a resistance force 50 k . the resistance force 50 k is applied as a “ form - drag ” of the water 37 acting on the ballast tube 14 . form drag occurs in response to any motion in any direction . thus , any tendency of the ballast tube 14 to move in the direction 56 with the lead tube 12 a will be resisted by force 50 k in the direction illustrated . however , the force 50 k will be directed opposite any movement through the water 37 . thus , translation vertically in the direction 11 a , horizontally or laterally in the direction 11 b as well as in rotation 11 d , 11 e about any longitudinal axis of any of the tubes 12 , 14 , or any central axis of the assembly 10 will result in churning of the water 37 and resistance to any movement therethrough by the tubes 12 , 14 . referring to fig1 , the progression of motion of the assembly 10 is illustrated through various phases . progressing from left to right through this schematic illustration , one may envision a system 10 having a leading tube 12 a and trailing tube 12 b above a ballast tube 14 . upon arrival of a wave 44 , the level 36 of the water 37 rises below the leading tube 12 a . the result of the resultant force 52 imposed by a combination of the buoyance of the tube 12 on wave 44 , fluid drag , and the tether 20 is a rising and pulling back against the anchor 18 of the leading tube 12 a . meanwhile , the lifting of the leading tube 12 a results in rotating the assembly 10 . such motion results in necessarily displacing the trailing tube 12 b sitting at a lower level 36 of the water 37 , and correspondingly displacing the ballast tube 14 against the resistance of surrounding water 37 . thus one sees the net translation motion 54 a of the center of mass that may be a net result , and the rotation 54 b about some axis of rotation . as the wave 44 progresses to the right in the schematic illustration , the level 36 a of the water 37 under the leading tube 12 a drops as the swell of the wave 44 tends to lift the level 36 b of the water 37 under the trailing tube 12 b . this motion reverses the direction of a rotation 54 d , and also may result in a rise 54 c . as a practical matter , any lift 54 a , 54 c in any rotation 54 b , 54 d will necessarily be a result of the vector of all forces 50 operating on the system 10 . eventually , the weight of the system 10 and the receding of the level 36 of the water 37 to a flat and level surface 36 results in the leading tube 12 a and trailing tube 12 b once again dropping 54 e and rotating back 54 f to their original equilibrium position . at each point of motion , each of the tubes 12 a , 12 b , 14 thrashes through water 37 for every motion required therethrough . drag factors may be found in standard textbooks identifying the form drag or fluid drag of various fluids at various densities as they pass over inner or outer surfaces of solid structures . accordingly , the tubes 12 , 14 present form drag to the passing wave 44 , churning and thrashing the water 37 in response to their motions 54 resulting from the balance of resultant force 52 on the system 10 in each of its components 12 , 14 , 16 passing through the water 37 . in experiments , it has been found that an apparatus and method in accordance with the invention is very effective at reducing the momentum , energy , crest height , and deleterious effects of waves 44 progressing toward shore lines and shore - bound structures . referring to fig1 through 16 , several principles have been found significant in providing a suitable breakwater 10 . initially , the size and spacing of the tubes 12 , 14 appear to be significant . for example , it has been found that the diameter of the floating tubes 12 should be of about the same size or order of magnitude as the typical swells 44 or waves 44 . a wave 44 expected should typically be not more than about two or three tube diameters in height between crest and trough of a wave 44 . this assures that a significant amount of any cresting wave does not pass over the breakwater 10 upon breaking of the wave 44 . another feature is the spacing between the floating tubes 12 . the distance between tubes should also be about two diameters . a greater distance is satisfactory , but changes performance . a lesser distance tends to leave problems with residual water passing over the entire breakwater 10 , interferes with the rocking or rotational component of motion , and reduces the leverage that the ballast tube 14 can exert against the float tubes 12 . also , the fill amount in each of the float tubes 12 has been found to be a significant factor in engagement of the ballast tube 14 . the specific gravity ( an engineering and physics term , well understood in the art , and indicating the ratio between the density of a particular material compared to the density of water as the denominator ) of the high density polyethylene ( hdpe ) embodiment of the apparatus 10 is around 0 . 92 to about 0 . 95 . typically , it seems to be in the range of about 0 . 93 to 0 . 94 . this means that the hdpe will actually float in water , but barely . it is slightly less dense than water , but only by less than ten percent . the breakwater 10 can still function with the float tubes 12 containing a substantial amount of water . filling the float tubes 12 with a fraction of water ( any amount is feasible ) typically from about one third to about two thirds provides good flotation and increases the overall mass of the float tubes 12 . thus , the tube 12 on a swell 44 or wave 44 does not tend to have as much buoyancy . this results in less force to lift the float tubes 12 with the swell 44 , and to drag with them the ballast tube 14 through the water 37 . this means that the float tubes 12 , themselves , represent an obstruction that must be faced by an oncoming wave 44 . to the extent that the float tubes 12 have a greater fill or fraction of water inside them , they can no longer float as easily upon the top of the rising wave 44 . this results in the breakwater 10 operating more like a rigid emplacement , with less float tube 12 response . however , even with water inside the float tubes 12 , greater than one third of the volume thereof , the pushing by the wave 44 or swell 44 against the float tubes 12 still results in rotation or rocking of the assembly 10 . the corresponding churning of the water below the swell 44 arises from being thrashed by the ballast tube 14 . the ballast tube 14 operates according to the principles of form drag of a solid object in a fluid . drag force is proportional to half the density multiplied by the presented area and velocity squared . constants of proportionality depend on the shape of the body moving in a fluid . they are available as correlations to a value of reynolds number . to a certain extent , this may be modified by some passage of water through the apertures 15 in the ballast tube 14 . both can be modeled by principles of fluid mechanics to provide the net fluid form drag on the ballast tube 14 . drag resists it in response to its need to rock . rocking occurs in reaction to the driving of the float tubes 12 by oncoming wave 44 or swell 44 . as to the spacing between the float tubes 12 , vigorous wave 44 approaching the point of breaking , as that term is understood in the marine arts , a wave 44 will often be forced to break by the resistance to motion imposed by the leading float tube 12 a . again , the spacing between the float tubes 12 or top tubes 12 is effective to receive any wash or crest passing over the lead tube 12 a . the trailing tube 12 b then provides a similar resistance to passage by the water from the crest , thus encouraging it to flow down between the tubes 12 . tethering has been experimented with in several embodiments . in all the illustrated embodiments , a tether 20 is not rigid . that is , for example , the breakwater 10 is not fixed to a wall , rigidly fixed in space by any other superstructure , or the like . the breakwater 10 is always permitted to move in response to oncoming waves 44 . several embodiments have been experimented with , teaching much about the hydrodynamic response of the breakwater 10 in a body of water 37 . the float tubes 12 are urged by the rising water level 36 of an advancing wave 44 to float upward . moreover , the cyclic flow and ebb of the oncoming wave 44 also encourage a shoreward and windward motion 11 b or lateral 11 b motion in addition to the vertical 11 a rise and fall of the top tubes 12 in sequence . the leading tube 12 a first rises , followed by the trailing tube 12 b . meanwhile , the trailing tube 12 b will typically not respond as dramatically to flotation forces , nor the dynamic impact forces of an oncoming wave 44 . this occurs because the leading tube 3 12 a already meets the forces , and initially breaks up the direction of flow of the oncoming wave 44 , and redirects the water , forces , momentum , and energy thereof . the trailing tube 12 b and ballast tube 14 steady the leading tube 12 a at all times . tethering may be done in one of several ways . the currently contemplated embodiment of fig1 may involve tethers 20 angling down both shoreward and windward at a modest angle of from about 50 to about 20 degrees . typically , an angle from about 30 to about 45 degrees from horizontal has been found a reasonable compromise . for example , a certain downward resistance force is presented by the tethers 20 , as well as a lateral force . the force component in the vertical direction 11 a is significant in resisting ready flotation by the top tubes 12 . likewise , forces in the lateral direction 11 b also stabilize against the flow and ebb forces of a wave 44 . thus , if each is to be resisted equally , then a 45 degree angle is most appropriate . on the other hand , additional length of tethering 20 may result in reducing that angle . herein , that angle is defined with respect to the horizontal direction 11 b , such as a seabed level 38 . in most embodiments , the double tethering in both of the lateral directions 11 b ( e . g ., ebb and flow , windward and shoreward , or windward and leeward ) and the downward direction 11 a is important on each of the free ends 32 b . however , the typical length of one assembly of a breakwater 10 is about 60 feet . accordingly , when two are connected together by their flanges 30 , they represent a length of about 120 feet . to avoid bending , it has been found suitable to tether the top tube 12 a near the flanges 30 with at least one other tether 20 providing resistance or force applied to the top tube 12 a ( leading tube 12 a ) in the windward direction . it has been found that the use of a tether 20 made of a twisted or braided polymeric rope , such as nylon , polyester , or the like provides a certain useful amount of elasticity . other elastic members may be interposed along or as part of the tether 20 . the effect of the elasticity in the tether 20 , from either source ( rope , elastic member , mass of system 10 , air , etc .) is an additional resistance that the force and momentum of a wave 44 must work . thus , the resistance to rocking of the breakwater 10 occurs as a result of the mass of the top tubes 12 , including any enclosed water , the mass of the ballast tube 14 , form drag of fluid over and through the system 10 , and the forces exerted by the tethers 20 in the vertical direction 11 a as well as the lateral direction 11 b . referring to fig1 through 16 , while also focusing on the views of fig3 and 4 , one will notice that a void fraction exists as any wave 44 passes in a vertical direction 11 a through the maze of top tubes 12 , struts 16 , and the ballast tube 14 . similarly , referring to fig5 and 6 , a void fraction and an interference fraction ( occupied space ) are presented to an oncoming wave 44 approaching from a lateral direction 11 b or horizontal direction 11 b . the effects are different . the effect of encountering a wall around a circular cross - section or a tubular ( e . g ., right , circular cylinder ) shape is that no area is directly presented normal ( perpendicular ) to the tubes 12 , 14 and struts 16 . theoretically , only a line is normal to any direction of approach to the outer surface of a round tube . in every event , the waves 44 must strike obliquely the surface area of the outside surface of any of the tubes 12 , 14 and struts 16 . this deflects the water mass , momentum , and energy away from its original direction of travel . it immediately induces a new direction and path calculated to cause interference between the various redirected flows . as a result , momentum is taken out of the principal directions of the vertical direction 11 a of the rising swell 44 , and the horizontal direction 11 b or lateral direction 11 b of its progress toward the shore behind ( beyond ) the breakwater 10 . meanwhile , the net momentum is not completely reversed . in fact , it is hardly reversed at all except for splashing and collisions . if the wave 44 were to strike a solid wall , all momentum must be transferred into the wall , and a certain proportion of that momentum that was not dissipated would then be thrust out away from the wall . here , the momentum is directed obliquely away from the obstructing tubes 12 , 14 and struts 16 , toward the openings therebetween . the void fraction is the fraction of unobstructed area that can be seen passing through the maze of tubes 12 , 14 and struts 16 . however , considering only void fraction is informative , but not complete . the void fraction will allow the passage of a certain amount of the water 37 from a wave 44 . however , even that water 37 has been influenced , mixed , struck , and redirected by the water 37 flowing around each of the tubes 12 , 14 and struts 16 . the apertures 17 in the struts 16 are calculated to be comparatively small , and may actually be neglected in any hydrodynamic analysis . the apertures 15 in the ballast tube 14 are considerably larger , amounting to approximately one sixth the diameter of that ballast tube 14 . thus , they may be ignored in some analyses , but may also be accommodated by analyzing their tortuous flow path . however , the resistance to flow , unless apertures 15 are directly opposite one another to permit flow through the ballast tube 14 in a lateral direction 11 b or even a vertical direction 11 a , will be substantial , and may properly be ignored in a first order analysis of the fluid dynamic drag of the water 37 passing over or around any particular member 12 , 14 , 16 . the triangulation of the tubes 12 , 14 in the illustrated embodiment forms an isosceles triangle . it is not required to have an isosceles triangle . however , one must realize that anything other than an isosceles triangle changes the net leverage of any particular tube 12 , 14 with respect to any other tube 12 , 14 . for example , if the struts 16 between the top tubes 12 and the ballast tube 14 are longer than those between the float tubes 12 , than the ballast tube 14 has greater leverage in resisting the natural rocking . the rocking is important , and is substantial . even in small , modeled , laboratory experiments , an attempt to apply force to the ballast tube 14 in order to steady it against rocking was completely ineffective . the energy of the wave 44 is applied to every tube 12 , 14 the breakwater 10 , and the rocking and churning will not be denied . however , that rocking is resisted at all times by the form drag of the surrounding water 37 against all tubes 12 , 14 , 16 moving therein . the planes defined by the center lines of each set of struts 16 , passes through the center line of each pair of adjacent tubes 12 , 14 . one will see that even these planes are oblique to the oncoming wave 44 . in addition , only the front most contact line of any tubular member 12 , 14 , 16 could ever be normal to the direction of a wave 44 . thus circular tubes 12 , 14 , 16 divide and redirect the water , rather than stopping or reversing it . the void fractions or open spaces seen through the maze of members 12 , 14 , 16 are not required . however , a solid or uninterrupted surface would defeat several beneficial functions . tubes 12 , 14 , 16 provide redirection of water and form drag against such relative motion . thus , to balance forces to effective levels , redirected water needs a path that does not reverse . in order to obtain the proper operation , it has been found that a diameter of each of the tubes 12 , 14 should be related to the maximum expected wave height , crest to trough . a range of from about one wave height to about five works , and three wave heights has been found suitable , economical , and effective . meanwhile , a diameter of each of the struts 16 has been found to be best suited for both mechanical and hydrodynamic purposes at about one quarter to about three quarters of the diameter of the operational tubes 12 , 14 . a diameter of the struts 16 equal to about half the diameter of each of the tubes 12 , 14 has been found highly suitable , providing a void fraction that provides a workable and effective void fraction , adequate rocking , and excellent effectiveness at breaking waves , while providing structural integrity of the entire breakwater 10 , its structural connections , anchors 18 , and tethers 20 . decreasing the void fraction can be expected to cause more momentum transfer of “ redirection ” into the breakwater 10 . eventually this risks potential damage to tethers 20 , anchors 18 , and structures of the breakwater 10 . in the illustrated embodiments , it has been found advisable to provide a one - hundred - percent - coverage welding by thermal welding for all contacts between the tubes 12 , 14 and the interconnecting struts 16 . this has been cohesive welding based on a melted , thermoplastic polymer substantially identical to the base material of the other members 12 , 14 , 16 . as a practical matter , it has been found suitable to provide certain struts 16 that pass directly and orthogonally with respect to the longitudinal direction to each of the tubes 12 , 14 . initially , these provide inter - tube spacing initially in a straightforward manner , so that the diagonal struts 16 can then be installed . they also provide a certain amount of support by way of tensile and compressive force transfer directly between the tubes 12 , 14 . they do not provide as good longitudinal support as the diagonal struts 16 in operation . in the illustrated embodiment , the system 10 is virtually corrosion proof . no galvanic cells are set up . no differences in metallic constituents are present . it has been found that the flanges 30 are best secured together by fasteners 31 formed of nonreactive , non - corroding , stainless steel . all other connections and members , from the anchor 18 up through the tether 20 , and including all the other structural members 12 , 14 , 16 , are formed of polymers . the polymers ( such as hdpe ) are nonreactive with sea water or normal constituents of fresh water or salt water . in the illustrated embodiment , virtually no flow propagated by a wave 44 is allowed escape . the illustrated embodiment was installed in certain locations where the maximum expected wave height was about five feet . the two - foot diameter of the tubes 12 , 14 , coupled with the eight foot ( e . g ., greater than one wave height ) outer dimension across any base or side of the triangle formed by the tubes 12 , 14 . this relation assured that the effect of the wave 44 was intercepted directly by at least one of the members 12 , 14 , 16 . moreover , even any fraction of flow that may persist below the surface 36 of the water 37 deeper than the position of the ballast tube 14 , is nevertheless affected by the vortices and churning occasioned by movement of the ballast tube 14 . thus , there is substantially no “ free stream ” ( e . g ., unperturbed , distant ) flow at the wave velocity in either the vertical direction 11 a or the horizontal direction 11 b or lateral direction 11 b without a system width of ( across ) the breakwater 10 . instead , all the surrounding water 37 is subjected to impact , change of direction , mixing , and so forth occasioned by the rocking of the breakwater 10 in the waves 44 . as a practical matter , one will notice that forces applied to the breakwater 10 are triangulated by the tubes 12 , 14 and struts 16 . thus , the system 10 is very stable . forces are transferred in tension and compression directly . the wall thicknesses of the materials of the members 12 , 14 , 16 may be selected at nominal values for such structures and still provide adequate stiffness , strength , section modulus , and so forth as needed for the mechanical properties thereof . the maximum or minimum size at which a breakwater 10 may still successfully operate appears to be within an order of magnitude , and most likely within half an order of magnitude of the wave height . that is , diameters of the tubes 12 , 14 should typically be within one third to one half an order of magnitude of the maximum wave height from crest to trough . a void fraction in the projected area normal to a wave has been found to be adequate in the range of about twenty five percent to about sixty six percent . higher void fractions will simply reduce the effectiveness at redirecting all of the water from the wave 44 . one function is redirection without having to absorb the momentum and energy into the breakwater 10 . those properties need to be redirected as randomly as possible . the resulting mechanical energy is thus reduced to heat by “ mixing .” smaller void fractions will put greater stress on the anchors 18 and tethers 20 , and may result in more momentum and energy transferred to the breakwater 10 , rather than redirecting the energy and momentum of the waves 44 into a churning effect . the fundamental charter of a breakwater 10 is to reduce the momentum and energy striking the shoreline or shore structures . a wave attenuation system ( was ) 10 illustrated in the accompanying fig1 through 16 is designed to reduce the amplitude of wind - generated surface waves in marine , sea and fresh water , environments . wind - generated surface waves 44 have wave periods ( time of passage from crest to crest ) that range from less than 0 . 1 seconds to 30 seconds but may range up to 5 minutes . in the areas where wass 10 are being tested , typical wave amplitudes ( height from trough to crest ) of wind - generated surface waves 44 vary from mere inches ( ripples ) upward to amplitudes of 5 to 6 feet . wavelengths ( distance from crest to crest ) are from about 25 feet , for small waves on the order of 1 - foot high , to 100 feet for 5 - ft high waves . the typical installation for a was 10 is contemplated to be in the nearshore environment as a means of protecting marinas and boats , shoreline structures , and other human - made floating and shoreline features from wave damage . it functions as an alternative to other types of breakwater systems , such as floating logs and rock , earthen , and concrete berms , and various wood , rock , or concrete sea walls . the was 10 in experiments was constructed almost entirely of high - density polyethylene ( hdpe ) for its high strength - to - density ratio . its density , 0 . 93 to 0 . 97 grams per cubic centimeter , is slightly less than that of water (˜ 1 . 0 g / cm3 ). it has a sufficiently high tensile strength and tends to tear and draw ( strain ) when it fails or is damaged , rather than brittle fracturing , thus not producing sharp , jagged edges or pieces . it resists corrosion , leaching of chemical constituents and their derivatives into the surrounding waters , and degradation caused by solar radiation , particularly in the ultraviolet wavelengths . the structural components 10 , 12 , 14 , 16 , 30 , 32 composing the was were joined by thermal welding . the operation of the was is based on the premise that amplitudes of wind - generated waves can be reduced by disrupting , reflecting , and randomizing the trajectory of the wave energy away from its initial path toward shore . traditional floating breakwaters function in large part by simply presenting a considerable floating mass extending over a significant fraction of the length of a wave that depresses the crest of waves . the shape of each the three tubes 12 a , 12 b , 14 and the array of struts 16 as cross members , presents a curved ( e . g ., a right , circular cylinder ) face to approaching waves , virtually regardless of the direction of wave propagation . this causes the wave mass , momentum , and energy contacting the structure to be deflected and redirected away from the individual elements of the structure 10 . the redirected streams are churned or thrashed by each other and subsequent encounters with other elements 12 , 14 , 16 of the breakwater 10 and surrounding water 37 . the result is extensive dissipation of momentum and energy . specular reflection is virtually non existent . the top two , buoyant , surface tubes 12 function to maintain the orientation of the was in the water . together , they intercept and redirected surface waves or the water moved by them . water that does manage to pass over the windward tube 12 a then encounter , the shoreward tube . again , the mass is redirected to mix with and slow down with the bulk liquid water in the region . the perforated submerged ballast tube 14 weighs little , because of the nearly neutral density of hdpe in the water . it has almost no weight relative to the surrounding water . it has considerable mass and an area that creates substantial form drag resisting passage of water thereacross . this mass , and the resistance force of drag that the tube itself exerts in moving through the water , increase the effectiveness of the two buoyant surface tubes in redirecting water near the crests of passing surface waves . passing waves 44 cause the entire structure 10 to rock in a direction 11 e perpendicular to the direction 11 b of wave propagation . as the crest of a wave 44 passes the windward buoyant surface tube 12 a , it exerts an upward lift . this causes the top of the structure 10 to tilt toward the shore , causing the submerged , perforated ballast tube 14 to rock toward the windward direction , opposite to the shoreward direction of the way 44 e . as the remaining crest of the wave 44 encounters the shoreward buoyant tube 12 b , the submerged ballast tube 14 swings in pendulum - like fashion , churning through the water 37 toward the shore . as a result , the submerged ballast tube 14 causes the entire structure 10 to resist moving up and down due to form drag and contained mass . it resists rocking back and forth , yet does so , dissipating energy because of the mass , shape , and area of the tube 12 , 14 , 16 resistance to moving though the water . performance of the entire was 10 is excellent , dissipating wave energy and momentum by churning and mixing it in a multitude of trajectories around the tubes . two - foot high wave virtually completely dissipated . more vigorous waves self destruct under more vigorous rocking of the system 10 . the arrangement of struts 16 is structurally robust . arrangement along principal stress lines resists failure of the system 10 . the differences in orientation present a complex structural path to oncoming waves , regardless of the direction of propagation . thus they further redirect and dissipate wave energy and momentum by providing additional round faces to redirect and collide mass flows of wave energy in a complex array of directions within , through , and around the structure 10 . a wave attenuator 10 was constructed with a six foot surface width by eight foot depth . making the wave attenuator to have a six foot width did not allow for effective diagonal bracing . therefore , the surface braces were parallel to the wave coming in . the system worked very well . the ports 28 were added to add or remove ( as required ) water to the upper tubes 12 . in the summer water was added to lower the attenuator 10 and make it more massive ( added weight of water ) and less visible . in the winter water was pumped out , raising the attenuator 10 , making it more buoyant . two one a half inch diameter pipes were welded into the 24 inch tube 12 ( one pipe 29 was 23 inches , the other very short ). air blown into the short pipe ( at five psi or less ) forced water out through the long pipe 29 . flotation ( buoyancy ) can be infinitely adjusted . a wave attenuator 10 ( of 100 foot length ) had an eight foot width across adjacent main float tubes 12 with diagonal , cross - bracing struts 16 worked well , an improvement over the six foot width with struts 16 running straight between . combining the wave attenuator 10 with a dock float system , was tested at a wave testing facility with scaled prototypes for testing . when hooked to pilings or other docks to reduce rocking the wave attenuator system 10 did not function satisfactorily . the attenuator 10 needs to move in response the wave 44 . prototype wave attenuators 10 in accordance with the invention were constructed to include three 24 inch diameter high - density polyethylene ( hdpe ) pipes 12 , 14 . two of the three pipes , used as flotation tubes 12 with captive air , were on the surface 36 separated at an overall outside distance of eight feet ( the first one was six feet ). the ballast tube 14 was underwater and separated from the upper tubes 12 by the same distance , eight feet outside measure . these were held together with diagonal 12 - inch - diameter hdpe struts 16 . tubes 12 , 14 cut 60 feet in length are shippable by common carrier . a width of 8 feet or less is shippable without special highway permits . these flanges 30 connect the 60 foot sections of tubing together . flanges 30 bolted together on the ends of all three tubes 12 , 14 . the wave attenuators 10 were held in place by tying rope around the upper 24 - inch - diameter tubes 12 . this rope was threaded through sleeves 34 of small hdpe pipe ( which is flexible ) acting as chafe guard 34 . therefore , hdpe tubes 12 are rubbing on hdpe pipe and the rope is protected . this rope goes to the seabed 40 where it is attached to an anchor system 18 . the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its purposes , functions , structures , or operational characteristics . the described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative , and not restrictive . the scope of the invention is , therefore , indicated by the appended claims , rather than by the foregoing description . all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope .	8
fig1 generally depicts a spreadsheet 10 , a text document 110 , a metatag listing 210 , and a values listing 310 . spreadsheet 10 generally includes a plurality of columns 21 - 25 , and a plurality of rows 31 - 37 . cells occur at the intersection of the columns and rows , including cells 41 and 42 at the intersection of columns 21 and 22 with and row 31 , respectively , cells 43 - 44 at the intersections of columns 21 - 22 and row 32 , respectively , and cells 45 - 46 at the intersections of column 21 with rows 33 - 34 , respectively . notwithstanding the drawing , it should be appreciated that spreadsheet 10 is exemplary only , and all sizes and configurations of possible spreadsheets are contemplated . cells 41 , 42 contain metatag names . document 110 is preferably a microsoft ™ word ™ file , but may be wordperfect ™ or any other type of text document , or even a non - text document . especially contemplated are other types of documents including powerpoint ™ presentations , web pages , and so on . document 110 may therefore have any suitable content , including personal or business letters , advertisements , formal or informal notes , and images and other types of images . in the particular example of fig1 , item 121 is text or other material that is of no particular consequence to the discussion herein , and is therefore shown merely as squiggled lines . items 122 - 125 are data items that are stored in cells 43 - 46 , respectively . right clicking on data item 125 causes the software to produce a metatag listing 210 as depicted by arrow 150 . in this particular example , the listing would contain the metatag names 221 - 225 stored as data in the cells of row 31 . metatag listing 210 is preferably sorted alphabetically as shown , but may be sorted in any other suitable manner such as by recency of use or relative frequency or use , or may be entirely unsorted . drop down navigation button 261 advantageously accesses the various options . the display of metatag listing 210 also includes navigation button 262 that closes the display . vertical or horizontal sliders ( not shown ) may also be included . right clicking on any of the metatag names in metatag listing 210 produces an optional values listing as depicted by arrow 152 . in this instance , right clicking on metatag name 224 corresponds to the name stored in cell 41 ( due to the sorting ), and produce a values listing 310 comprising a list 320 of all the data items in the cells of column 21 , including data in cells 43 , 45 , and 46 . the display of values listing 310 also include navigation button 361 that access sort functions , and navigation button 361 that closes the display . vertical or horizontal sliders ( not shown ) may also be included . fig2 depicts steps 410 - 460 that are preferably embodied in software 400 . in practice , one would likely store software 400 in the internal memory ( not shown ) or the mass storage ( not shown ) of a computer system ( not shown ). alternatively , the software or portions of it could be accessed as needed from the internet or other network . in some or all of these steps the “ user ” is generally a human user . it is , however , also contemplated that the user can be an electronic entity , such as a computer program or virtual robot . step 410 involves identifying the item of data in a document . here the user identifies what data is to be metatagged . this is preferably accomplished by blocking , which in the microsoft ™ world can currently be accomplished by typing a special code ( currently f8 ), and using the arrow keys . another current method is to hold down the left mouse button while “ dragging ” the cursor across area to be blocked . still another method , which is often used in spreadsheets , is to double click on a cell of the spreadsheet . non - microsoft ™ systems may have other corresponding methods of accomplishing identification of data , and all such methods are contemplated . it is specifically contemplated that non - contiguous data can be blocked or otherwise identified , and brought together as a single set of data to be metatagged . step 420 involves activating an activation code . the software 400 would be likely activated by a hot key such as a right mouse click , although it should be appreciated that the term “ right clicking ” as used herein can be substituted by any number of other software accessing codes , including keystrokes and combinations of keystrokes . step 430 involves providing a listing of metatag choices . such a listing can be derived from any number of sources . in the example of fig1 , the various metatags are stored in the cells of the first row 31 of the first sheet of the spreadsheet 10 . in other embodiments the metatags may be stored on another sheet of the same spreadsheet 10 , or in an entirely different file such as a database file . there are numerous advantages to cross - utilizing metatags among many different users , and it is especially contemplated that collections of metatags can be made available across the internet or some other shared electronic resource . among other things it is contemplated that cross - utilization would encourage consistency among metatag databases , which ultimately can be extremely useful if any such databases need to be combined or accessed as a unit . in a favored embodiment , a web page or other executable public file could analyze text , keywords , or other data from the document being metatagged . the result of such analysis could then be used to select a subset of potentially useful metatags . for example , if a person is metatagging a web page that refers to automobiles , the system may select a subset of metatags having to do with automobiles , including for example make , model , year , color , condition , price . on the other hand if a person is metatagging a web page that refers to bananas , the system may select a subset of metatags having to do with fruit , including for example source country , producer , weight per box , price per box , ripeness , and so forth . it is also contemplated that subsets of metatags may be chosen based upon a group tag . in fig1 , for example , bracket pairs 126 a , 126 b are symbolic of group metatags used to designate that data items 122 and 123 are related to each other , and that data items 124 and 125 are related to each other . contemplated designations for group metatags include classifications such as automobiles , boats , real estate , foods , attorneys , and so forth . such designations may advantageously be stored in rows along with associated data . thus , the literal for the group designation of data items 122 and 123 is stored in the cell 48 , and the literal for the group designation of data items 122 and 123 is preferably stored in the cell 49 . cell 47 preferably includes a metatag literal such as “ group ”. it is still further contemplated that subsets of metatags may be chosen based upon those metatags that have already been utilized in the document . thus , in further metatagging of the document 10 of fig1 , a preferred method would be to recognize that group metatags literals are stored in cells 48 , 49 , and that individual metatag literals are stored in cells 41 , 42 . any or all of that information could be used to locate a subset of perhaps forty to fifty other metatag literals that are commonly used in conjunction with these metatag literals . search for such a subset can be performed using a local or networked database or other resource . the listing of metatag choices is preferably sorted alphabetically as discussed above with respect to list 210 , and is preferably provided to a user using a crt , laptop screen , or other visual type display . alternatively , however , the listing can be provided by any other suitable means , such as by performing an audible reading of the list , or printing a paper copy of the listing . step 440 involves selecting a metatag from the listing of metatag choices . in this instance a user examines the listing of possible metatag choices provided in step 430 , and selects an appropriate metatag for the data being tagged . selection can be accomplished by any suitable method , including clicking on a particular choice within a visual display , audibly stating the choice , and so forth . where there are no suitable choices , the system may allow the user to enter a new metatag , which can then be made available to others . step 450 involves identifying the selected metatag with a column in the spreadsheet . this step can be performed manually for very small spreadsheets , but should be performed automatically for any spreadsheet of substantial size . one method of accomplishing the identification is through a standard search command , preferably searching only those cells of the spreadsheet that are likely to contain a literal matching the selected metatag . thus , if the metatags are stored in cells of the first row of the spreadsheet , as in fig1 , it is desirable if the search is directed to the first row only . step 460 involves storing at least a portion of the item of data in a cell of the column . once the column containing the selected metatag is identified , that column is used to store the earlier identified item of data . if this is the first item of data for a group , or if there is no group , then the item of data can be stored in a blank row . if previously associated items of data have already been stored in the spreadsheet for a given group , then the new item of data should be stored in the same row as the previously stored data , but in the recently identified column . although it is likely that the entire item of data will be stored in the spreadsheet as just discussed , it is also possible that only a subset of the item of data will be stored . this may occur for several reasons , including oversize of the item . in such instances the data may be truncated , with or without providing a warning of the same to the user . another reason for storing less than the entire item of data include a desire to eliminate undesirable words or phrases from the database . thus , specific embodiments and applications of data storage using spreadsheets and metatags have been disclosed . it should be apparent , however , to those skilled in the art that many more modifications besides those already described are possible without departing from the inventive concepts herein . the inventive subject matter , therefore , is not to be restricted except in the spirit of the appended claims . moreover , in interpreting both the specification and the claims , all terms should be interpreted in the broadest possible manner consistent with the context . in particular , the terms “ comprises ” and “ comprising ” should be interpreted as referring to elements , components , or steps in a non - exclusive manner , indicating that the referenced elements , components , or steps may be present , or utilized , or combined with other elements , components , or steps that are not expressly referenced .	6
an improved cat litter is provided , according to the present invention , comprised of a composition which includes the following ingredients : polysaccharide ( modified corn starch ); zeolite ; yucca schidegira ; distillers dried grains ; salt compound ( sodium bicarbonate ); and anti - microbial agents . the distillers dried grains utilized in the improved cat litter is manufactured via a mash distillation process to be described in greater detail below . each of the aforementioned ingredients may have one or more sub - components . for example , the salt compound is preferably sodium bicarbonate , however , potassium carbonate and calcium carbonate are envisioned as being selected alone or in combination . yucca schidegira , as a natural saponin , is an emulsifying or foaming agent which functions to inhibit urease enzyme action and to prevent the formation of nh 3 ( ammonia ), thereby binding and neutralizing annoying and harmful odors associated therewith . yucca schidegira further serves to help neutralize feces odor . the anti - microbial agents , preferably including sodium propionate and calcium propionate , facilitate protection against the formation of microbes , bacteria , or molds . zeolite is a natural mineral consisting of silica and alumina . zeolite has a unique interconnecting lattice structure arranged to form a honeycomb framework of consistent diameter interconnecting channels and pores . negatively - charged alumina building blocks and neutrally - charged silica building blocks are stacked thereby producing an open , three dimensional honeycomb framework . odors and gases such as ammonia are attracted to and trapped within the zeolite crystalline structure . zeolite also adsorbs and desorbs water , thus eliminating and preventing mildew formation . modified corn starch is a polysaccharide which serves in the production of alcohol and provides cohesiveness , or clumping of litter . while other cereal grains such as wheat , barley , and rye may be selected , modified corn starch is preferred . in addition , other suitable agents facilitating occlusivity or clumping may include a mixture of detrins , maltodetrins , flours , and arabinoxylans . in practicing the present invention , the general method of manufacture is comprised of a mash distillation process which includes grinding corn into a coarse modified flour called meal . the meal is mixed with water and a malt enzyme , preferably alpha - amylase , and is passed through cookers where starch is liquefied . heat is applied to enable liquefaction using cookers with a high temperature stage and a lower temperature holding period , wherein a mash product is produced . the high temperature stage facilitates reduced bacteria levels in the mash product . the mash product is then cooled and an additional malt enzyme is added to convert liquefied starch to fermentable sugars . the additional malt enzyme selected includes gluc amylase and beta - amylase , however , gluc amylase is preferred . yeast , preferably saccharomyces cerevisiae , is then added in order to ferment the sugars to ethanol and carbon dioxide . saccharomyces cerevisiae is the preferred yeast species because it facilitates quick , efficient production of alcohol and possesses a high alcoholic concentration tolerance . fermented mash results and is sent to distillation , wherein ethanol is extracted , leaving spent mash . the spent mash is centrifuged , where liquid is separated therefrom . the liquid , or stillage , is reintroduced into the cooking system and sold as livestock feed , or is partially dehydrated into a syrup . the aforementioned mash distillation process is executed under controlled ph being adjusted and readjusted in a suitable manner as is commonly practiced in such industry . the mash distillation process creates two main co - products in the production of ethanol , namely carbon dioxide and distillers grains . the distillers grains are rich in protein , fat , minerals , vitamins , and amino acids , and thus serve as a highly valued livestock feed ingredient . next , centrifuged spent mash ( distillers dried grains ) is suitably dried into a powder to which the following ingredients are added to form a litter product : modified corn starch , zeolite , yucca schidegira , sodium bicarbonate , and anti - microbial agents . the litter product is suitably dried to a powder and is processed through a pelletizer via an extrusion technology process so as to form particles each having a size approximating the size of a grain of wheat . the particles are then bagged and sealed . the following example represents the general formulation for the improved cat litter of the present invention . ingredients composition by weight polysaccharide 19 . 5 - 21 %, preferably 20 . 00 % ( modified corn starch ) zeolite 4 . 5 - 5 . 5 %, preferably 5 . 00 % yucca schidegira 0 . 15 - 0 . 25 %, preferably 0 . 20 % distillers dried grains 71 . 50 - 71 . 75 %, preferably 71 . 70 % sodium bicarbonate 2 . 95 - 3 . 05 %, preferably 3 . 00 % anti - microbial agents 0 . 085 - 0 . 105 %, preferably 0 . 10 % to use the present invention , user simply opens the improved cat litter from its sealed packaging and pours a suitable volume thereof within a container fabricated of a material specifically adapted for use as an animal litter storage receptacle . therefore , the foregoing description is included to illustrate the operation of the preferred embodiment and is not meant to limit the scope of the invention . as one can envision , an individual skilled in the relevant art , in conjunction with the present teachings , would be capable of incorporating many minor modifications that are anticipated within this disclosure . the foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description . they are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed , and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching . the embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical application , to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated . it is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the claims appended hereto and their equivalents . therefore , the scope of the invention is to be broadly limited only by the following claims .	0
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 . [ 0023 ] fig1 shows a plasma etching system 100 for semiconductor wafers . the system includes an rf source 102 powering a plasma etching system 104 . an impedance matching network 106 , consisting of variable capacitors 108 , 110 and resistors 112 , 114 , 116 , connects the source 102 to the plasma system 104 . the plasma system 104 includes two electrodes 118 , 120 in a chamber . during fabrication , a wafer 122 is placed on electrode 120 . the wafer 122 has a resist mask of a pattern to be etched . the rf source 102 applies an alternating electric field to the gas in the chamber , varying the voltage of the plates 118 , 120 . this causes the gas to go plasma ( with the addition of a process gas ). the plasma etches the surface of the wafer 122 . in order to maintain maximum power output , the matching circuit 106 is used to match the impedances of the rf source 102 and the plasma system 104 . the circuit in fig1 shows how the vdc signal from the plasma system is measured . any shift in chamber condition , either electrical or chemical , will cause a resulting change in the matching network 106 . such changes will cause the matching circuit 106 to adjust its c1 and c2 settings to match the shift and minimize the reflected rf power . thus changes in plasma parameters are reflected in the impedance and phase of the rf system , including the matching network 106 . as etching proceeds , the dc voltage across the plasma system changes &# 39 ; 104 . this dc shift is caused by both a change in the sheath voltage and by change in the thickness of the oxide layer that is being etched . refer to fig2 . a mask 200 covers an oxide layer 202 to control etching of the oxide . beneath the oxide layer is a nitride layer 204 , followed by a substrate 206 . as the oxide layer 202 becomes thinner , the charge 208 deposited on the surface of the etched oxide 202 attracts charge 210 from the far side of the nitride 204 to form a capacitance . as the oxide layer 202 thins , this capacitance changes . the change in the system is reflected in the voltage across resistors within the matching circuit that are connected between the high node of the plasma chamber and ground . it is believed to be particularly advantageous to measure the dc voltage from a resistor rather than from a capacitor . discrete resistors normally include a substantial parasitic inductance . ( by contrast , in a discrete capacitor , any inductive reactive component due to the parasitic inductance of leads or wiring will be cancelled by the capacitive reactance .) in fig1 two resistors 114 , 116 are shown between node a and ground . since endpoint is signalled by a relative in change of vdc , a voltage drop across either or both resistors 114 , 116 will serve as an endpoint detection signal . a simple multimeter ( not shown ) can thus be used to detect endpoint without adding hardware or the need for a probe within the plasma system itself . this innovative method of endpoint detection shows significant change in the measured vdc parameter even with small percentage open areas . also , early endpoint detection is possible because the capacitance of the plasma model depends on the thickness of the oxide layer . since the endpoint signal relies on an indicator that shows change before the etched layer is completely gone , the endpoint detection can be signaled before etching is complete . experimental data were gathered using drm ( dual - plate rotating magnet ) chambers on tel unity ii frame . the chamber is equipped with sic focus ring , slit baffle , and lower pressure monitor . plasma parameters are measured by measurements circuits within the matchbox . in the preferred embodiment fluorine / carbon based chemistry , such as co / c 4 f 8 / ar or c 4 f 8 / chf 3 / o 2 / ar , is used because carbon and fluorine concentration can be tuned easily across a large range . the pilot wafers used in the experiment had a structure of psg / nitride stack with contact pattern and open area percentages of 10 %, 4 %, and 1 %. a 30 nm nitride stop layer is beneath 6 . 5k psg ( phosphorous - doped silicate glass ) film . high nitride selectivity ( oxide : nitride = 7 : 1 ) is used to prevent extensive etching of the nitride layer . fig3 - 5 show the signals for both optical emission spectrum and vdc endpoint detection . both curves are normalized , and smoothing techniques have been applied to the oes signal but not to the vdc signal . measuring the end point through monitoring vdc shows the same trends as appear in optical methods . in vdc monitoring , the endpoint step is triggered by a change in voltage drop across a resistor positioned to measure total dc voltage drop across the plasma system . since this change in the plasma system occurs before the change causing emission spectrum signal changes , the vdc signal provides endpoint detection before optical methods . the change in vdc output as measured from the matching circuit occurs before the optical emission change because different mechanisms in the plasma system cause the changes . for optical emission spectra to change , the actual material that is being etched changes because the oxide layer has been breached and the underlying nitride layer adds its material to the reacting gases in the plasma chamber . as can be seen from fig3 the emission spectrum for optical endpoint detection is a much smoother curve , and a sharp decrease is found at approximately 80 seconds . the vdc data produce a less smooth plot , but a clear drop is seen ahead of the optical endpoint indication , as early as 65 seconds . the oes endpoint detection is shown as intensity ratios of emission spectra from co and sif . when the etch front reaches the nitride layer , co increases and sif decreases , causing a change in the intensity ratio . this change is seen on the graph as a drop at about 80 seconds on fig3 . a 5 % step drop in the signal is seen on a 10 % open area sample . as open area decreases , the signal - to - noise ratio gets worse as seen in fig4 and 5 . fig4 used a sample with open area of 4 % and fig5 used an open area of 1 %. the signal indication is difficult to read at smaller open areas and oes is difficult to use as endpoint control for open areas of 1 %. smoothing techniques near their limits for oes signals . the signals for both oes and vdc endpoint detection decrease in step size with decrease in open area . with large open area ( greater than 10 %) the chemistry in the chamber changes significantly when the oxide layer is finally etched through and the nitride layer is exposed . the electrical properties of the plasma adjust to reflect this change , and the matching circuit therefore also shows significant change . with decreasing open area , the changes become smaller . the reason for this is because the plasma electrical properties are strongly a function of the reactive chemical species . with smaller open areas , the reactive species concentrations differ less when layers are fully etched . charging of the nitride layer as the oxide layer thins enhances the vdc signal , but not the optical signal . therefore measuring vdc will allow endpoints for smaller open areas to be detected . the plots also show that the change occurs prior to completion of oxide etching , allowing proactive endpoint triggering . the step in vdc ends before the beginning of the optical signal , showing that vdc signals before the etch reaches the nitride layer . vdc signal begins when there is about 50 - 80 nm oxide thickness remaining . note that the measurement of the dc voltage across the plasma system is not necessarily dependent on the impedance matching circuit . the resistor could be placed outside the matching box to directly measure the voltage drop from a node common to the top ( ungrounded ) plate of the plasma system to ground . also since only relative voltage drop need be determined , one of several such resistors in series from the top node of the chamber to ground could be measured to give the endpoint signal . following are short definitions of the usual meanings of some of the technical terms which are used in the present application . ( however , those of ordinary skill will recognize whether the context requires a different meaning .) additional definitions can be found in the standard technical dictionaries and journals . oes : optical emission spectrum . this is a method of endpoint detection based on measuring the emission spectra of etchants , etch products , or their fragments . optical instruments are set to detect a spectral line of interest and track its intensity during an etch cycle . endpoint is determined by a particular shift in intensity . matching circuit : a circuit that matches the source and load impedances to maintain optimum power output . 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 , but is only defined by the issued claims . the innovations of the present application may be implemented by measuring the relevant voltage of the plasma chamber in other ways . for instance , a resistor outside the matching network can also give the necessary voltage change and indicate endpoint for the etch . similarly , other embodiments of the present application &# 39 ; s teachings may include measuring voltage drop across other elements of the matching network , or across other elements that are in contact with the system , provided they give an indication of dc voltage changes within the plasma system . for instance , dc voltage drop may be measured from different nodes to ground , or across elements other than resistors . the present innovations may also be used to indicate a change in etch parameters , not just the proper time to stop the etch . where successive etches or stack etches are performed and require distinguishing between levels of material , the different phases of such etching may be determined by the innovative methods of the present application . other process parameters that must be detected and which are detectable in the presently disclosed innovative way are also within the contemplation of the present application . additional general background , which help to show the knowledge of those skilled in the art regarding variations and implementations of the disclosed inventions , may be found in the following documents , all of which are hereby incorporated by reference : coburn , plasma etching and reactive ion etching ( 1982 ); handbook of plasma processing technology ( ed . rossnagel ); plasma etching ( ed . manos and flamm 1989 ); plasma processing ( ed . dieleman et al . 1982 ); and the semiannual conference proceedings of the electrochemical society on plasma processing .	7
fig2 is a diagram showing a system for data reproducing from an optical storage device according to one embodiment of the invention . the cd drive 1 reads data from an optical disk 2 to a host 3 such as a computer , cpu or storage accessing device such as a sound card and hard disk drive . the cd drive 1 comprises a reading device 12 to read data from the optical disk 2 , a decoder 13 to decode the data that is read from the optical disk 2 , a buffer memory 11 to temporarily store the data that is read from the optical disk 2 , the data decoded by the decoder and the decoded data transferred to the host 3 , a transferring device 14 to transfer the decoded data to the host 3 , and a microprocessor 15 . as shown in fig3 , the buffer memory 11 has a maximum size of n ( e . g . megabyte ) and is divided into three areas 121 , 122 and 123 . the data read from the optical disk 2 is stored in an address r 111 , the decoded data is stored in an address d 112 and the transferred data is stored in an address t 113 . the boundary address of the buffer memory is b 114 . the area 121 comprises the addresses between r 111 and d 112 . the area 122 comprises the addresses between d 112 and t 113 . the area 123 comprises the addresses between t 113 and b 114 . the addresses in the area 122 and 123 are for cache hit and , addresses in the area 121 are for cache miss due to the data stored therein not being decoded . the addresses d 112 and t 113 are variable , and the address r 111 and the maximum size n of the buffer memory is fixed . therefore , the range of the addresses for cache hit is also variable . the addresses for cache hit are located between t + x2 + b − n and t + x1 , wherein x2 is a difference between addresses r 111 and t 113 respectively of the read data and the transferred data , and x1 is a difference between addresses d 112 and t 113 respectively of the decoded data and the transferred data . boundary b is used to prevent the buffer memory to be overwritten by the data from the disk . fig4 a and 4b are diagrams showing the method for data reproducing from an optical storage device according to one embodiment of the invention . the method will be explained in conjunction with fig4 a and 4b as well as fig2 . in step 100 , the host 3 requests the cd drive 1 to read data from the optical disk 2 . in step 101 , the cd drive 1 begins tracking and reads data from the optical disk 2 . processing proceeds to step 102 . in step 102 , the data is read from the optical disk 2 and stored in the area 121 of the buffer memory 11 . processing proceeds to step 103 . in step 103 , the data stored in the area 121 is decoded by the decoder 13 , and the decoded data is stored in the area 122 of the buffer memory 11 . processing proceeds to step 104 . in step 104 , the microprocessor 15 determines whether or not the buffer memory 11 is full . the data is continuously read from the optical disk 2 ( step 102 ) and decoded by the decoder 13 ( step 103 ) until the buffer memory 11 is full . if the buffer memory is full , processing proceeds to step 105 . otherwise , processing then returns to step 102 . in step 105 , when the buffer memory 11 is full , the cd drive 1 stops reading data from the optical disk 2 , and the decoded data stored in the area 122 is transferred to the host 3 by the transferring device 14 and stored in the area 123 until all the data stored in the area 122 is transferred . processing proceeds to step 106 . in step 106 , when the data reproducing is not finished , the reading device 12 again begins to read data from the optical disk 2 . that is , if no , processing returns to step 102 . if the data reading is finished , processing proceeds to step 107 . in step 107 , the host 3 again requests the cd drive 1 to read data from the optical disk 2 . processing proceeds to step 108 . in step 108 , the microprocessor 15 determines whether or not the data that is read already exists in the area 122 and 123 of the buffer memory 11 . if yes , the cd drive need not do tracking again and processing proceeds to step 109 . if no , the data is read from the optical disk 2 and stored in the area 121 of the buffer memory 11 when it is not in the area 122 and 123 . processing returns to step 101 . in step 109 , the cd drive 1 transfers the data that is read directly from the area 122 and 123 of the buffer memory 11 to the host 3 by the transferring device 14 when the data exists in the memory area 122 and 123 . the processing is completed in this step . in conclusion , the present invention provides a method for data reproducing from an optical storage device . by extending the range of memory addresses for cache hit to the transferring block of the buffer memory , the cache hit ratio is increased . this achieves high data reproducing efficiency for optical storage devices . 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 should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements .	6
in the following description , numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention . the present invention may be practiced without these specific details . the description and representation herein are the means used by those experienced or skilled in the art to effectively convey the substance of their work to others skilled in the art . in other instances , well - known methods , procedures , components , and circuitry have not been described in detail since they are already well understood and to avoid unnecessarily obscuring aspects of the present invention . reference herein to “ one embodiment ” or “ an embodiment ” means that a particular feature , structure , or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment can be included in at least one implementation of the invention . the appearances of the phrase “ in one embodiment ” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment , nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments . further , the order of blocks in process , flowcharts or functional diagrams representing one or more embodiments do not inherently indicate any particular order nor imply limitations in the invention . as used herein , the singular forms “ a ”, “ an ”, and “ the ” are intended to include the plural forms as well , unless the context indicates otherwise . it will be further understood that the terms “ comprises ” and / or “ comprising ” specify the presence of stated features , steps , operations , elements , and / or components , but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features , steps , operations , elements , components , and / or groups thereof . embodiments of the present invention are discussed herein with reference to fig1 - 5b . however , those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the detailed description given herein with respect to these figures is for explanatory purposes only as the invention extends beyond these limited embodiments . typically , broadcasting a live event involves these major parts , audio and / or video capture , signal acquisition , content encoding , and delivery or distribution . the first piece of any live event is audio and video content . some events consist of just an audio component , such as a quarterly corporate release call , while others consist of video as well as audio , such as oscar award evening . the first step in any live event is being able to record and film the content , otherwise known as “ audio and / or video capture ”. once the audio / video content is captured , a signal acquisition process is immediately followed . the signal is transmitted to a location where it can be encoded . this process is typically done a few different ways depending on the event . the signal can be sent to a satellite in the sky ( typically refereed to as “ uplinking ”) where it is then pulled down ( otherwise known as “ downlinking ”) at the service provider &# 39 ; s offices for encoding . another way to capture the signal can be via a phone bridge , say if the live event content consists of just a conference call . the signal can also be sent via connectivity at the event location if the content is being encoded on - site from the venue . after the signal has been acquired , it needs to be encoded for distribution over the internet . encoding the content includes taking the audio / video signal and transforming it into a streaming media file format ready for distribution on the internet . encoding is done by using an “ encoder ”, a hardware based device with capture cards and software that allows the signal to be digitized into one of file formats that can be placed back on a computer device . now that the content has been captured , acquired and encoded , it is ready for delivery , which also can be referred to as “ distribution ”. in the context of the present invention , broadcasting a live program includes broadcasting a live event , further it includes broadcasting data that is preferably viewed / listened / executed at the time the data is being released over the internet . accordingly , one aspect of the present invention pertains to distributing the encoded data ( that may also be compressed ) using distributed networks with a minimum delay in time . for convenience , it is assumed herein data ( e . g ., audio and / or video ) representing a live program is presented in a data stream ( or a streaming data file ) that comes in until the live program ends . when an order for a live program is placed , a corresponding stream ( namely , the beginning portion thereof ) must be available for playback . to take advantage of the available bandwidths on the side of the client machines ( e . g ., boxes ), and minimize the delay caused by the distribution of the data over the network , the data stream is preprocessed as shown in fig2 . as a live program is going on , a data stream 240 representing the live program is divided into a plurality of interleaved data substreams , for example , 50 - 100 substreams . to illustrate what an interleaved data substream is , fig2 shows that a data stream 240 is being preprocessed to form eight interleaved data substreams 247 - 254 . the data substreams 247 - 254 are produced or formed by respectively sampling the data stream 240 in a decimated manner . in operation , as the data stream 240 comes in ( until the live program ends ), a certain sized data block goes to ( or is sampled to ) each of the substreams 247 - 254 , in a sequential order repeatedly . for example , there are eight substreams , a 1st block goes to a first substream , a 2nd data block goes to a second substream , and a 8th data block goes to a eighth substream . as 9th , 10th , . . . 16th data block come , they go to the first , the second , . . . and the eighth substreams , respectively . in another perspective , an n - th data block in each of the substreams 247 - 254 is one of the eight successive data blocks in the data stream 240 . in one embodiment , a data block comprises a chunk of data , for example , 256 kbytes or 1 mbyte . as a result , each of the data substreams 247 - 254 includes a plurality of interleaved data blocks from the data stream 240 . as shown in fig2 , the data stream 240 is expressed in data blocks as follows : b 11 , b 21 , b 31 , b 41 , b 51 , b 61 , b 71 , b 81 , b 12 , b 22 , b 32 , b 42 , b 52 , b 62 , b 72 , b 82 , . . . b 1 n , b 2 n , b 3 n , b 4 n , b 5 n , b 6 n , b 7 n , b 8 n . with the decimated sampling , the eight substreams 247 - 254 obtained can be respectively expressed as follows : substreams 1 ={ b 11 , b 12 , b 13 , b 14 . . . }; substreams 2 ={ b 21 , b 22 , b 23 , b 24 . . . }; substreams 3 ={ b 31 , b 32 , b 33 , b 34 . . . }; substreams 4 ={ b 41 , b 42 , b 43 , b 44 . . . }; substreams 5 ={ b 51 , b 52 , b 53 , b 54 . . . }; substreams 6 ={ b 61 , b 62 , b 63 , b 64 . . . }; substreams 7 ={ b 71 , b 72 , b 73 , b 74 . . . }; and substreams 8 ={ b 81 , b 82 , b 83 , b 84 . . . }. where b stands for “ data block ”, numerals after “ b ” are mere reference numbers . as used above , the data blocks b 11 , b 21 , b 31 , b 41 , b 51 , b 61 , b 71 , b 81 , b 12 , b 22 , b 32 , b 42 , b 52 , b 62 , b 72 , b 82 , . . . b 1 n , b 2 n , b 3 n , b 4 n , b 5 n , b 6 n , b 7 n , b 8 n are sequential while , for example , data blocks b 11 , b 12 , b 13 , b 14 . . . b 1 n in substreams 1 are not sequential ( interleaved ). in other words , the data blocks in each of the substreams are non - sequential . data streams from all substreams must be multiplexed to reproduce useful ( sequential ) data for playback on an ordering box . instead of counting on limited computation power and bandwidth of a server , one of the features in the present invention is to utilize that of the boxes in service and distributed in the network . typically , there are tens and thousands of boxes in service by a service provider . at the time of broadcasting a live program , there can be a substantial number of boxes that are not used to fulfill an order ( e . g ., playing back a movie , or browsing the internet ) or boxes that are not fully occupied . these boxes , referred to herein as being idle at the time , may contribute substantially to the required computation power as well as the required bandwidth to deliver the live program to those boxes that have ordered the live program from the service provider . for example , for a typical residential environment , a downloading speed is about 1 . 3 mbps while an uploading speed is 330 kbps , and the data stream of a live program requires a transmission speed of 900 kbps . if the data stream is being preprocessed to form sixty substreams that are being distributed to sixty idle boxes , either from the server or from other idle boxes , these sixty idle boxes can be designated to provide the substreams to ordering boxes , each substream at an uploading speed of 15 kbps that can readily achieved in the residential environment . in one embodiment , there may be many idle boxes , but only those idle boxes that have a sufficient uploading bandwidth to serve multiple ordering boxes are designated by the server to be data suppliers of the live program , thus receiving the substreams from the servers . the minimum requirement of an idle box to be a supplier is that the uploading bandwidth thereof can support at least two substreams , namely , an idle box that is qualified to be a data supplier can serve at least two others ( e . g ., ordering boxes or other idle boxes ). fig3 a shows a configuration 300 of delivering a live program using some of the idle boxes in service to serve the ordering boxes . it is assumed that a server 302 , representing a single server or a cluster of servers , distributes substreams to identified idle boxes 304 . on behalf of the server 302 , the idle boxes 304 are caused to fulfill the orders of the live program from the ordering boxes by feeding the required substreams thereto , thus alleviating the computation and bandwidth pressures on the server 302 . fig3 b shows a flowchart or process 322 of serving a live program using a distributed network according to one embodiment of the present invention . the process 322 may be understood in conjunction with fig3 a , and implemented in software , hardware , or in a combination of both . at 322 , the process 322 determines a set of seeding boxes from the idle boxes . in one embodiment , a server has a status record of all boxes in service to show which ones are currently busy ( e . g ., playing back an ordered movie or uploading a data stream to another box ) and which ones are not busy or could contribute to the delivery of the live program , also referred to herein as eligible boxes . those being eligible are identified as the potential data suppliers of the substreams to others for the live program . in another embodiment , the server determines an uploading bandwidth a box has . a box will be identified as a potential supplier when the available uploading bandwidth thereof is sufficient to serve at least two other boxes in accordance with the required transmission rate ( e . g ., related to the encoding and decoding rates for successful playback ) and the number of substreams . for example , a data stream of a live program requiring a transmission rate of 900 kbps is partitioned into 60 substreams . accordingly , if a box has an at least 30 kbps uploading bandwidth , it will be considered as a potential supplier . in any case , among the potential suppliers , the server selects a set of seeding boxes to receive the substreams directly therefrom . although it is possible to designate more seeding boxes to directly receive the substreams from the server , the more seeding boxes there are , the more computation and bandwidth are required form the server . thus depending on the computation power and the bandwidth of the server , the set of the seeding boxes may be an exact number of the substreams , one to receive a substream , or more in which two or more to receive a substream . at 324 , the data stream representing the live program is preprocessed to generate the substreams . the number of the substreams is determined in accordance with a number of factors . for example , the factors include , but may not be limited to , a required transmission rate of a video over a network , a number of data suppliers required to supply the substreams to an ordering device , a number of eligible boxes or boxes that could potentially become the suppliers , and available uploading and downloading bandwidths of the boxes in service . given the selected set of potential suppliers from the idle boxes , at 326 , the server can be configured to start to stream the substreams , respectively , to the seeding boxes . for example , one of the seeding boxes is caused to receive one substream as the substream becomes available . it should be noted that the bandwidth pressure on the server is not increased although the server is configured to feed , for example , n substreams to n boxes , which is equivalent to feed a data stream of the live program to a single box . as the seeding boxes are receiving the substreams , they are configured to propagate the received data to other eligible boxes that can be the potential suppliers at 328 . one of the purposes is to colonize more eligible boxes to receive the substrates so that more ordering boxes may be served , and at the same time , there are still sufficient data suppliers should some of the eligible boxes become ordering boxes ( e . g ., some subscribers order the live program in the middle of the program ). although there are ways to propagate the received data to other eligible boxes , according to one embodiment , a scheme is adopted to propagate the substreams to other the eligible boxes with a minimum delay in time . the details of exemplary propagating the received data of a substream to other eligible boxes will be described below . at 330 , a set of data suppliers is identified to serve an ordering box . as the eligible boxes are receiving the substreams from the server or other eligible boxes , a set of the eligible boxes is designated by the server to serve the ordering box . as described above , each eligible data supplier is capable of servicing at least two ordering boxes , an eligible data supplier may be designed to provide a substream being received to two or more ordering boxes or a combination of ordering boxes and other eligible boxes . it should be noted , however , while an ordering box is receiving all the substreams from a set of suppliers , it may be designated as a supplier to supply one or more of the substreams being streamed to another ordering box . fig4 a shows an exemplary pipeline structure to propagate a substream being received to a number of boxes that are designed to receive such a substream . as the server releases a substream block by block to c 1 that pipelines it to c 2 and so on till to cn . the completion time for this structure will be k ( n − 1 ) ticks , assuming it takes k ticks ( a time unit ) to get one data block from one device to another . the completion time in the pipeline structure depends linearly on the number of boxes to be populated with one substream . fig4 b shows a multicast tree by arranging all eligible boxes in a d - ary ( d & gt ; 1 ) tree structure . if all the eligible boxes and the server are represented by n nodes . there will be at most log d n layers , resulting in a completion time being k × log d n ticks , again it is assumed that it takes k ticks ( a time unit ) to get one data block from one device to another . the completion time in the multicast tree depends logarithmically on the number of boxes to be populated with one type of the substreams . it could be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the tree structure may be optimized to minimize the delay in time in propagating the substreams to all eligible boxes or in colonizing the eligible boxes to receive the substreams . fig4 c shows a diagram 400 of distributing the substreams to eligible boxes using what is referred to as a gossip protocol . instead of predetermining which eligible boxes are supposed to receive the substreams from which boxes , the way of colonizing the eligible boxes to receive the substreams is somehow random . when a server starts to release the substreams , it is configured to prepare the substreams into a number of data chunks . a data chunk is an atomic unit of data transfer from the server to the boxes , or between two boxes . for example , each of the data chunks may be 1 mbyte in size and uniquely identified . depending on implementation , each data chunk may contain one or more data blocks from one substream . in one embodiment , the server prepares a sourcing instruction in metadata about the substreams . the instruction , for example , describes which box gets which one of the substreams . the instruction once received causes an eligible box to retain the data blocks pertaining to the substream that it is supposed to receive . the instruction , once prepared by the server , is propagated to all eligible boxes either via direct communication between the server and a box , or by box - to - box propagation of the instruction via a gossip protocol which is an application - layer multicast - like protocol . in general , each of the eligible boxes is configured to receive a specific subset of the data chunks that make up a substream assigned thereto . in addition , the sourcing instruction itself may be represented as one or more data chunks that are to be propagated to all boxes . in operation , the server 402 initiates respective communications with a set of eligible ( seeding ) boxes 404 - 1 , 404 - 2 , . . . 404 - n and provides each of them with the data chunks in a substream that box is supposed to receive . preferably , at least one of the seeding boxes receives data chunks of a corresponding substream from the server 402 . the exact number of the seeding boxes 404 - 1 , 404 - 2 , . . . 404 - n initially to receive the data chunks does not constrain the distribution of the substreams . in one embodiment , the designation of the boxes 404 - 1 , 404 - 2 , . . . 404 - n is also fairly random . in another embodiment , the designation of the boxes 404 - 1 , 404 - 2 , . . . 404 - n is based on corresponding internet service providers ( isp ) or geographic locations . each of the seeding boxes 404 - 1 , 404 - 2 , . . . 404 - n is configured to spread data chunks to other eligible boxes based on the gossip protocol . it should be noted that not all of the boxes 404 - 1 , 404 - 2 , . . . and 404 - n have received identical data chunks . any of the boxes 404 - 1 , 404 - 2 , . . . and 404 - n may start to spread a data chunk to other boxes as soon as it has received the data chunk in its entirety . in operation , the box 404 - 1 is assigned to propagate at least some of its received data chunks to boxes 406 - 1 , 406 - 2 and 406 - 3 , communicating with one or more of these boxes simultaneously . the box 404 - 2 is assigned to propagate at least some of its received data chunks to boxes 406 - 2 and 406 - 3 . the box 406 - 2 is configured per the instruction to know exactly what data chunks to get from the box 404 - 1 , the box 404 - 2 , and any other boxes configured to feed it chunks of data . further , the box 406 - 2 is assigned to propagate at least some of its received data chunks to boxes 408 - 1 , 408 - 2 and 408 - 3 . note that the propagation of data is not necessarily hierarchical . for example , box 408 - 1 might send data chunks “ backward ” to 406 - 1 , as seen in fig4 a . in one embodiment , the data chunks are propagated only to boxes that actually desire those particular chunks in order to avoid wasteful data transmission . moreover , wasteful data transmissions may be avoided by ensuring that a data chunk is propagated to a box only if it does not already possess that chunk and is not in the process of downloading that chunk from elsewhere . in one embodiment , if any one of the boxes , for whatever reason , fails to accept data chunks , the box could be dropped as a supplier or a substitute box could be configured to receive and spread the data chunk . by repeatedly and recursively propagating data chunks via boxes after boxes ( i . e ., by pulling or pushing ), eventually all eligible boxes will be colonized to receive the substreams as they are streamed in . regardless what scheme is used to colonize the eligible boxes to receive the substreams , a map 409 identifying which box is receiving substream is established and maintained in a server . by the map 409 , whenever an order is received from an ordering box , the server can designate appropriate supplying boxes to supply the ongoing substreams to the ordering box . alternatively , the map 409 enables an ordering box to obtain source information to fetch the substreams to fulfill an order . in a case in which one of the supplying boxes could no longer supply a substream at a required speed , a substitute supplying box may be immediately called upon to continue supplying the substream . for example , an eligible box has been designated to supply a substream to a box ( either an ordering box or another eligible idle box ). this eligible box somehow becomes fully used ( e . g ., engaged to play back a movie ), its bandwidths are no longer sufficient to support the deliver of the live program . one or more eligible boxes are determined to substitute this box to continue the original assigned substream . fig5 a shows that an ordering box is receiving n substreams from other peer boxes to fulfill an order of a live program . at the same time , the ordering box may become a data supplier to supply one or more substreams to another peer box , provided the uploading bandwidth thereof is sufficient . in general , the uploading bandwidth requirement for an ordering box to become a supplier is low , compared to an idle box . in one embodiment , as long as an ordering box can upload one substream to another peer box , the ordering box may be designated to become a candidate supplier . as described above , the data blocks in each of the substreams are not sequential and can not be played back without being blended with that of all the substreams . in one embodiment , all the substreams are streamed in nearly simultaneously so that data blocks in all the substreams can be multiplexed to recover the original data stream for playback . fig5 b shows a buffer 570 in a box to receive a live program . it is assumed that the live program is originally represented by a data stream 560 . after being preprocessed , the data stream 560 is being partitioned into four substreams that are being released into a distributed network . these four substreams 578 - 581 are now being streamed in from four peer boxes . as shown in fig5 b , as the substreams 578 - 581 are being received , they are multiplexed into the buffer 570 . more specifically , a block of data from the substream 578 , a block of data from the substream 579 , a block of data from the substream 580 and a block of data from the substream 582 are multiplexed and successively fed into the buffer 570 . as a result , the original order of the data blocks is restored . the live program can be played . one skilled in the art will recognize that elements of a system contemplated in the present invention may be implemented in software , but can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and software . the invention can also be embodied as computer - readable code on a computer - readable medium . the computer - readable medium can be any data - storage device that can store data which can be thereafter be read by a computer system . examples of the computer - readable medium may include , but not be limited to , read - only memory , random - access memory , cd - roms , dvds , magnetic tape , hard disks , or optical data - storage devices . the computer - readable media can also be distributed over network - coupled computer systems so that the computer - readable code is stored and executed in a distributed fashion . the foregoing description of embodiments is illustrative of various aspects / embodiments of the present invention . various modifications to the present invention can be made to the preferred embodiments by those skilled in the art without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims . accordingly , the scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description of embodiments .	7
today , federated networks exist between organizations and their business partners . for example , an organization may have one or more asserting parties for one or more resources provided by its business partners or by other domains in the organization itself . in the present state of technology , the model of trust relationships between organizations and business partners is point - to - point . in other words , every domain in an organization has a trust relationship with one or more domains in one or more business partners . the point - to - point model of trust relationships makes the management of trust relationships in federated networks very complex . as the internal federated networks of both the organization and its business partners grow more complex , the number of trust relationship to be maintained increases enormously . the following sections discuss three examples showing how the number of trust relationships grows dramatically under the conventional point - to - point model . fig2 a depicts a conventional model of trust relationships between an identity provider organization ( ipo ) with multiple domains and multiple service providers . in the illustrated example , an ipo network 201 includes multiple separate domains 202 . the domains 202 may correspond to divisions or other groupings in the organization . the specific example in fig2 a depicts an aerospace division domain 202 - a , a medical systems division domain 202 - b , and a financial services domain 202 - c . in fig2 a , three domains in the ipo are shown , but the number of domains in the organization may be more than or less than three . other organizations may have different domains . as another illustrative example , the domains may include a research group domain , a marketing group domain , a finance group domain , and an information technology domain . for such an ipo , each domain 202 may have a separate trust relationship with each of multiple service providers 203 . in fig2 a , three service providers ( 203 - a , 203 - b , and 203 - c ) are shown , but the number of service providers may be more than or less than three . if the number of domains within the ipo is defined as m , and the number of service providers is defined as n , then the number of separate trust relationships needed under this conventional model is m times n ( m × n ). as seen in the specific example of fig2 a , if m is three and n is three , then the number of separate trust relationships needed between the various domains is nine . fig2 b depicts a conventional model of trust relationships between multiple identity providers and a service provider organization ( spo ) with multiple domains . in the illustrated example , a spo network 203 includes multiple separate domains 204 . the domains 204 may correspond to segments or other groupings in the organization . the specific example in fig2 b depicts a benefits provider network with a health insurance domain 204 - a , and a dental insurance domain 204 - b . in fig2 b , two domains of the spo are shown , but the number of domains in the organization may be more than or less than two . other organizations may have different domains . for such a spo , each domain 204 may have a separate trust relationship with each of multiple identity providers 201 . in fig2 b , two identity providers ( 201 - a and 201 - b ) are shown , but the number of identity providers 201 may be more than or less than two . if the number of domains within the spo is defined as p , and the number of identity providers is defined as q , then the number of separate trust relationships needed under this conventional model is p times q ( p × q ). as seen in the specific example of fig2 b , if p is two and q is two , then the number of separate trust relationships needed between the various domains is four . fig2 c depicts a conventional model of trust relationships between an ipo with multiple domains and a spo with multiple domains . in the illustrated example , an ipo 201 includes multiple domains 202 and a spo 203 includes multiple domains 204 . the specific example in fig2 c depicts three domains of the ipo and two domains of the spo are shown , but the number of domains may vary . further , fig2 c only shows the trust relationships between a single ipo and a single spo . naturally , the ipo may have trust relationships with other service providers , and the spo may have trust relationships with other identity providers . if the number of domains within the ipo is defined as r , and the number of domains in the spo is defined as s , then the number of separate trust relationships needed under this conventional model is r times s ( r × s ). as seen in the specific example of fig2 c , if r is three and s is two , then the number of separate trust relationships needed between the various domains is six . the above - discussed examples illustrate how the number of trust relationships grows dramatically under the conventional point - to - point model . the following discusses how a federation router enables an improved model of trust relationships which can dramatically reduce the number of trust relationships needed between organizations . fig3 a depicts trust relationships when there is a federation router at an ipo with multiple domains in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . as shown in the figure , the ipo network 201 is now arranged so as to include multiple separate domains 202 and a federation router 302 . the federation router 302 may be configured as an intermediary between the domains 202 within the ipo network 201 and external service provider domains 203 . for example , as shown in fig3 a , the federation router 302 may be configured so that each of the multiple service providers 203 has a single trust relationship with the ipo network 201 . if the number of domains within the ipo is defined as m , and the number of service providers is defined as n , then the number of separate trust relationships needed using an ipo federation router is simply n . this is because there is a single trust relationship needed between the federation router 302 and each service provider 203 . in contrast , the conventional point - to - point model requires m × n trust relationships . thus , it is seen how a federation router at an ipo substantially reduces the number of required trust relationships with external service providers . fig3 b depicts trust relationships when there is a federation router at a spo with multiple domains in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . as shown in the figure , the spo network 203 is now arranged so as to include multiple separate domains 204 and a federation router 304 . the federation router 302 may be configured as an intermediary between the domains 202 within the ipo network 201 and external service provider domains 203 . similarly , the federation router 304 may be configured as an intermediary between the domains 204 within the spo network 203 and external identity provider domains 201 . for example , as shown in fig3 b , the federation router 304 may be configured so that each of the multiple identity providers 201 has a single trust relationship with the spo network 203 . if the number of domains within the spo is defined as p , and the number of identity providers is defined as q , then the number of separate trust relationships needed using a spo federation router is simply q . this is because there is a single trust relationship needed between the federation router 304 and each identity provider 201 . in contrast , the conventional point - to - point model requires p × q trust relationships . thus , it is seen how a federation router at a spo substantially reduces the number of required trust relationships with external identity providers . fig3 c depicts trust relationships when there is a federation router at a first ( identity provider ) organization with multiple domains and another federation router at a second ( service provider ) organization with multiple domains in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . here , the ipo network 201 includes multiple separate domains 202 , and the spo network 203 also includes multiple separate domains 204 . moreover , as shown in the figure , the ipo network 201 is now arranged so as to include a federation router 302 , and the spo network 203 is now arranged so as to include a federation router 304 . the ipo federation router 302 may be configured as an intermediary between the domains 202 within the ipo network 201 and external service provider domains 203 . similarly , the spo federation router 304 may be configured as an intermediary between the domains 204 within the spo network 203 and external identity provider domains 201 . in fig3 c , only one ipo network 201 and one spo network 203 are shown for purposes of ease of illustration and explanation . if the number of domains within the ipo is defined as r , and the number of domains in the spo is defined as s , then the number of separate trust relationships needed using both an ipo federation router and a spo federation router is only r + s . this is because there is a single trust relationship needed between the ipo federation router 302 and the spo federation router 304 . in contrast , the conventional point - to - point model requires r × s trust relationships . thus , it is seen how federation routers at both an ipo network and a spo network substantially reduces the number of required trust relationships between the two organizations . fig4 is a flow chart of a method 400 in which a federation router acts as a consolidated identity provider to external service providers in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . this method 400 may be performed using a federation router 302 at an identity provider organization 201 , for example , such as depicted in fig3 a and 3c . note that , while the federation router 302 in the following discussion is configured to act as a consolidated identity provider ( asserting party ), the same federation router 302 may also be configured to act as a consolidated service provider ( relying party ). in accordance with this method 400 , a user may open a web browser and navigate to a website of the identity provider . for example , the user may be an employee of the identity provider , and the identity provider may be a particular division ( for example , medical systems division 202 - b ) of a larger identity provider organization 201 ( for instance , a large industrial conglomerate ). the website of the identity provider may include a link to access a destination service provider 203 . the user may “ click ” on the link to the destination service provider 203 ( see step 402 ). the destination service provider 203 may be , for instance , a benefits provider . a computer ( server ) of the ipo authenticates the user ( see step 404 ). this may involve , for example , verifying that the username and password is correct for that user identity . the user is typically not allowed to proceed until and unless the authentication is successful . once the user is authenticated , the identity provider computer ( server ) may redirect the user to a federation router 302 of the identity provider organization 201 ( see step 406 ). a standard federation protocol may be used from the the ipo federation router 302 may then verify permission of the user to access the destination service provider 203 ( see step 408 ). in other words , the ipo federation router 302 verifies that the user is allowed to visit the destination service provider 203 according to policy rules and data . the user is typically not allowed to access the destination service provider 203 until and unless the permission verification is successful . once the permission is verified , the ipo federation router 302 may then construct a view of the user identity that is appropriate for presentation to the destination service provider 203 ( see step 410 ). the view of the user identity may select profile attributes , web - service related information , and other data which is appropriate for the particular destination service provider 203 . once the appropriate user view is generated , then the ipo federation router 302 may send the user to the destination service provider 203 ( see step 412 ). this may be done using a federation protocol appropriate to ( i . e . understood by ) the destination service provider 203 . the appropriate federation protocol is determined by the ipo federation router 302 . the federation protocol used by the ipo federation router 302 to communicate the user to the destination service provider 203 in step 412 may be different from the federation protocol used by the identity provider computer to communicate the user to the federation router 302 in step 406 . in some instances , these federation protocols ( used in steps 406 and 412 ) may be the same . fig5 is a flow chart of a method 500 in which a federation router acts as a consolidated service provider to external identity providers in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . this method 500 may be performed using a federation router 304 at a service provider organization ( spo ) 203 , for example , such as depicted in fig3 b and 3c . note that , while the federation router 304 in the following discussion is configured to act as a consolidated service provider ( relying party ), the same federation router 304 may also be configured to act as a consolidated identity provider ( asserting party ). in accordance with this method 500 , a federation router 304 at a service provider organization 203 may receive a user from an identity provider 201 ( see step 502 ). for example , the user may be an employee of the identity provider . the service provider organization 203 may be , for instance , a benefits provider with a health insurance segment 204 - a and a dental insurance segment 204 - b . the federation protocol used to receive the user may also indicate , for instance , that the user wishes to access private information at the dental insurance segment 204 - b . in this instance , the dental insurance segment 204 - b is the destination service provider 204 . the spo federation router 304 may then verify permission ( authorization ) of the user to access the destination service provider 204 ( see step 504 ). in other words , the spo federation router 304 verifies that the user is allowed to visit the destination service provider 204 according to policy rules and data . the user is typically not allowed to access the destination service provider 204 until and unless the permission verification is successful . once the permission is verified , the spo federation router 304 may then send the authorized user to the destination service provider 204 ( see step 506 ). this may be done using a federation protocol appropriate to ( i . e . understood by ) the destination service provider 204 . the appropriate federation protocol is determined by the spo federation router 304 . the federation protocol used by the federation router 304 to communicate the user to the destination service provider 204 in step 506 may be different from the federation protocol used by the spo federation router 304 to receive the user in step 502 . in some instances , these federation protocols ( used in steps 502 and 506 ) may be the same . fig6 is a schematic diagram depicting steps in a process when there is a federation router 302 at a first ( identity provider ) organization 201 with multiple domains and another federation router 304 at a second ( service provider ) organization 203 with multiple domains in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . this schematic diagram may pertain , for example , to the situation shown in fig3 c . in action a , the user “ clicks ” on the link from the identity provider 202 ( for example , a division of the ipo 201 ) to visit the destination service provider 204 ( for example , a segment of the spo 204 ). this action a corresponds to step 402 in fig4 . the identity provider 202 ( more specifically , a computer or server system at the identity provider 202 ) authenticates the user . if the user is authenticated , then , in action b , the identity provider 202 redirects the authenticated user to the ipo federation router 302 . this action b involves asserting the authenticated user identity . action b corresponds to step 406 in fig4 . the ipo federation router 302 verifies permission ( authorization ) of the user to access the destination service provider . if the user permission is verified , then , in action c , the ipo federation router 302 redirects an appropriate view of the authorized user towards the destination service provider 204 . this action c involves further asserting the authenticated user identity . action c corresponds to step 412 in fig4 . in this specific case , the spo federation router 304 acts as an intermediary for the destination service provider 204 . the spo federation router 304 verifies permission ( authorization ) of the user to access the destination service provider 204 . if the user permission is verified , then , in action d , the spo federation router 304 sends the user to the destination service provider 204 . this action d involves further asserting the authenticated user identity . action d corresponds to step 506 in fig5 . as mentioned above , the actions b , c , and d may use different federation protocols to communicate the user information . note that federation routers may be nested . in other words , a large organization may have multiple layers of federation routers to efficiently manage trust relationships . fig7 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of modules which may be adapted to implement an embodiment of the invention . the modules shown include a unified management core 702 , a user repository 704 , a privacy manager 706 , a federation repository 708 , protocol responders 710 - 1 , 710 - 2 , 710 - 3 , 710 - 4 , . . . , 710 - n , a key store 712 , and an administrative console 714 . these modules may be implemented , for example , using computer - readable code to be executed by one or more processors . the unified management core 702 may be configured to manage the user - federation - session information , federation mappings of user identities , circle - of - trust information regarding trusted partner sites , and audit events . the user management core 702 may be configured to store such federation - related information at the federation repository 708 . the federation repository 708 may be implemented , for example , as a relational database . the user repository 704 may be configured to store user authentication and user profile information . the user repository 704 may be referenced by the unified management core 702 for profile attributes of users and for verifying membership for privileged access to external applications . the privacy manager 706 may be configured to allow users to control the exchange of their personal attributes and to control their preferences about exchanging such information between trusted sites . the protocol responders 710 may be implemented , for example , as servlets configured to receive messages from either ( a ) a user - agent , such as a browser , on a “ front channel ”, or ( b ) a federation server on a “ back channel .” examples of “ front channel ” universal resource locators ( urls ) include the saml single sign - on service url and the liberty assertion consumer service url . examples of “ back - channel ” web - services include the saml attribute authority service and the liberty profile service . the key store 712 may be implemented , for example as a java cryptography architecture compliant key store . the key store 712 may be implemented in either computer - readable code ( software ), or in circuitry ( hardware ). the administrative console 714 may be implemented , for example , as a web - front - end interface . the administrative console 714 may be configured to connect to both the unified management core 702 and the user repository 704 . the administrative console 714 may be configured to allow a root administrator to monitor existing federations with trusted partners , including capabilities such as defining trusted sites , manually deleting user federations , and viewing an audit log . in the above description , numerous specific details are given to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the invention . however , the above description of illustrated embodiments of the invention is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed . one skilled in the relevant art will recognize that the invention can be practiced without one or more of the specific details , or with other methods , components , etc . in other instances , well - known structures or operations are not shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring aspects of the invention . while specific embodiments of , and examples for , the invention are described herein for illustrative purposes , various equivalent modifications are possible within the scope of the invention , as those skilled in the relevant art will recognize . these modifications can be made to the invention in light of the above detailed description . the terms used in the following claims should not be construed to limit the invention to the specific embodiments disclosed in the specification and the claims . rather , the scope of the invention is to be determined by the following claims , which are to be construed in accordance with established doctrines of claim interpretation .	6
as shown in fig1 , the threading device according to the present invention , which has been generally indicated by the reference number 1 , comprises a supporting assembly or body 2 , having a throughgoing opening 3 for supplying a refrigerating and lubricating fluid 4 . the supporting body or assembly 2 is mounted on a slide of a machine tool , not herein shown . the refrigerating and lubricating fluid passes through channels , not specifically shown , of the supporting assembly 2 , as it will be disclosed in a more detailed manner hereinafter , said fluid 4 exiting the supporting assembly 2 through an outlet channel 5 . before exiting said supporting assembly or body 2 , the refrigerating fluid 4 passes through a plurality of circumferential channels 6 of an annular body 7 encompassing the stator 8 operating in cooperation with a rotor 9 integral with a further body 10 which , at a region 11 thereof , supports a plurality of machining tools ( not shown in fig1 ) for machining a bar , schematically indicated by 12 . fig2 , is a cross - sectional view showing the body 10 of the device 1 , integral with said electric rotor 9 , which is rotatively driven through said electric stator 8 , said electric rotor 9 and stator 8 forming together an electric motor . to said electric stator 8 is operatively coupled said tubular sleeve body 7 , including said plurality of circumferential channels 6 , to which refrigerating fluid for removing the generated heat is supplied . fig2 shows moreover in a very clear manner the arrangement of the threading tools 11 for threading , as desired , the free end portion of the bar 12 . the refrigerating fluid 4 , exiting the opening or outlet 5 of the supporting assembly 2 , as is shown in fig1 , is not only used as a refrigerating fluid proper passing through the channels 6 of the annular body 7 ; in fact said refrigerating fluid 4 , upon exiting the supporting assembly 2 through the channel 5 , will moreover freely descend , to be also used as a refrigerating fluid for the machining tools 11 forming threads 13 on the free end portion of the bar 12 which threaded bar will be finally cut to any desired length . after the threading operation , the fluid 4 will be filtered and fed again to the cooling channels 6 . as is further shown in fig2 , the rotary body 10 is very accurately supported on said supporting assembly 2 by precision bearings 14 . thus , the provision of said precision bearings 14 as well as of the electric rotor 9 in a single body with the rotary body 10 and a toroidal stator 8 fixedly mounted within the supporting assembly 2 , and of the cooling channels 6 encompassing the stator 8 body , allows the machining tools 11 to be directly driven with a very high precision , without using , as in the prior art , a composite driving assembly including a series of gears , a trapezoidal drive belt or the like . moreover , the device 1 comprises an interface 20 to properly drive and control the motor 8 , 9 , which interface 20 is advantageously operatively coupled to a machine numeric control device ( not shown ). said interface , moreover , is so pressurized as to prevent machining chips from depositing in the apparatus and wearing rotary parts of the latter . thus , said single interface providing both a passage for the electric motor power supply cables and a pressurized operating environment , allows to make a compact and operatively flexible device , which can be easily and quickly supported by a slide of any desired single or multiple spindle machine tool without the need of modifying the latter . fig3 shows a schematic cross - sectional view of the portion 10 of the supporting assembly 2 , said portion 10 supporting not shown threading tools and comprising said electric rotor 9 forming , with said electric stator 8 , a synchronous brushless electric motor 8 , 9 ( for example of a type offered and produced by the company phase motion control of genoa ). fig3 also clearly shows the circumferential channels 6 formed in the sleeve 7 therethrough said refrigerating fluid 4 supplied , for example , through a channel 3 of a central unit ( not shown ) flows , said fluid 4 being so temperature controlled as to properly cool said stator 8 ; moreover said fluid upon exiting the device 1 through the channel 5 ( fig1 ) will be also conveyed to the machining tools 11 to also properly lubricate and cool the latter , and remove any machining chips from the resulting thread 13 at the free end portion of the bar 12 . in fig2 , the reference number 21 shows the fixed portion and the reference number 22 the rotary portion of a speed sensor for sensing the rotary speed of the body 10 . according to a modified embodiment of the invention , to further improve the compactness and operating flexibility of the apparatus , it would be also possible to omit the speed sensor , and detect said rotary speed by reading out the operating current of the motor thereby properly controlling said motor by a sensorless arrangement , as controlled by a mras or model reference adaptive system . thus a turbothreading device of very simple and compact construction will be obtained .	1
an electrolytic cell 1 is shown in fig1 and is adapted to produce sodium hypochlorite by the electrolysis of brine . the brine is typically of a concentration of 3 % salt . in one embodiment of the invention , the cell 1 operates in a “ batch ” mode of operation wherein it is filled with brine ( fresh electrolyte ), the electrolysis is begun and once a sufficient concentration of sodium hypochlorite has been generated , the cell is emptied of the products of the electrolysis ( product electrolyte ). the electrolytic cell 1 comprises an electrolysis vessel 2 having electrodes 3 disposed therein . the vessel 2 is adapted to receive an electrolyte 4 of brine that surrounds the electrodes 3 . the vessel 2 also includes a vent 5 and an air inlet means 6 . the air inlet means 6 is located adjacent to the surface level of the electrolyte 4 , which is represented by dashed line 7 . the vessel 2 comprises a tubular body 8 having a vent tube 10 that defines the vent at the uppermost point . a tapering conical part 11 separates the vent tube 10 from the tubular body 8 . in use , the vent tube 10 is connected to a waste gas system ( not shown ). the vessel 2 has a plurality of ports in the tubular body 2 . in one embodiment , the electrolyte inlet means 13 such as a fill port 13 , is connected to a means for filling the electrolytic vessel , piping for example , with fresh electrolyte 4 . a product outlet means 14 , a product port for example , is connected to a means for allowing the processed electrolyte to leave the vessel . an upper port 12 forms the air inlet means 6 ; the fill port 13 allows electrolyte 4 to be introduced into the vessel 2 ; and the product port 14 allows the product electrolyte to be extracted from the vessel 2 . the vessel 2 also includes a base plate 15 ( shown in fig2 and 3 ) that is secured to the tubular body part 8 by bolts 16 . the bolts 16 pass through the plate 15 and are secured to an outwardly turned flange 17 on the tubular body 2 . a sealing gasket 18 is located between the base plate 15 and the flange 17 . the base plate 15 has an aperture 20 therein that allow the passage of an electricity supply cable 21 . a gland ( not shown ) forms a seal between the cable 21 and the base plate 15 . the cable 15 is connected ( not shown ) appropriately to the electrodes 3 . the electrodes 3 comprise a tubular anode 22 and a tubular cathode 23 . the cathode 23 has a smaller diameter that the anode 22 and the cathode 23 is located concentrically within the anode 22 . the electrodes 3 are adapted to be completely submerged in the electrolyte 4 . a draught tube 24 comprising a tubular member is mounted within the vessel 2 and is affixed to the base plate 15 by a spacing member 25 . the spacing member 25 ( represented by dashed lines ) allows electrolyte 4 to flow from an area 27 outside of the draught tube 24 to an area 28 within the draught tube , as represented by arrow 26 . however , it will be appreciated that electrolyte 4 could flow in the other direction . the spacing member 25 comprises a cross - shaped member and the draught tube 24 is seated thereon such that its peripheral circular edge bridges the arms of the cross - shaped member and the gaps therebetween . thus , electrolyte can flow between areas 27 and 28 via the gaps between the arms of the spacing member 25 . it will be appreciated that other arrangements of draught tube 24 will allow the flow of electrolyte around the tube 24 . for example , the draught tube 24 may be affixed directly to the base plate 15 and have a plurality of apertures located circumferentially around it adjacent the base plate 15 . in this embodiment ( not shown ), the spacing member 25 is not required as electrolyte 4 can flow through the apertures in the draught tube 24 . the draught tube 24 is also adapted to be completely submerged in the electrolyte 4 . the upper port 12 and the product port 14 are connected to a product tank 30 by conduits 31 and 32 respectively . the product tank 30 is adapted to store the product electrolyte when it has been drained from the vessel 2 and prior to its use as a disinfectant or the like . the product tank also receives an air inlet conduit 33 , which guides air under pressure into tank 30 and through conduit 31 and into the vessel 2 via the air inlet means 6 . the incoming air is placed under pressure by a fan 34 . it will be appreciated that other air pressure sources could be used , such as a compressor or pre - pressurised gas from a cylinder , for example . the product tank 30 also includes a product delivery outlet 35 to remove product from the product tank 30 for use . the vessel 2 also includes an overflow means . in this embodiment the overflow means 36 comprises the upper port 12 and thus the overflow means 36 and air inlet means share the port 12 . when the vessel 2 is filled with electrolyte 4 it is filled to the predetermined level 7 and the overflow means 36 is located adjacent to , but above , this predetermined level 7 . this ensures both that any increases above the predetermined level results in the excess electrolyte being drained into the product tank 30 , and also that the incoming air is directed over the surface of the electrolyte 4 . thus , any hazardous gases liberated during electrolysis are diluted by the incoming air as soon as the gas leaves the electrolyte 4 . it will be appreciated that the air inlet means 6 and overflow means 36 may be coupled to the vessel at different ports . however , the present embodiment is advantageous as the flow of air through the product tank 30 and conduit 31 prevents the hazardous gas or gases entering the conduit 31 and product tank 30 . in use , a valve ( not shown ) is opened which allows electrolyte 14 to flow into the vessel 2 through port 13 . the vessel 2 is filled until it reaches the predetermined level 7 , where the electrodes 3 and the draught tube 24 are submerged and the upper port 12 is adjacent the surface of the electrolyte 14 . the fan 34 is switched on to deliver the flow of air across the electrolyte surface and electricity is applied to the electrodes 3 . the electrolysis of the brine causes the following reaction to occur ; hydrogen gas is the predominantly produced gas and will rise to the surface of the electrolyte from the electrodes 3 through area 28 within the draught tube 24 . the rising gas promotes circulation of the electrolyte 4 in the direction of arrows 37 and 26 . this is advantageous as it ensures any un - reacted electrolyte in area 27 , for example , is urged nearer to the electrodes 3 . the flow of air introduced by the air inlet means 6 dilutes the hydrogen gas as it leaves the surface of the electrolyte 4 . the flow rate of the inlet air is chosen to ensure any hazardous gases , such as hydrogen , are sufficiently diluted to substantially reduce their hazardous effect . the diluted hydrogen gas can then leave via vent 5 to a waste gas system ( not shown ). once the electrolysis of the electrolyte has yielded a sufficient concentration of sodium hypochlorite the electricity supply to the electrodes is turned off . the fan 33 may also be turned off provided that the concentration of hydrogen leaving the vent 5 is less than a predetermined level below the lower explosive limit . a valve in the product port ( not shown ) is then opened to allow the product electrolyte to leave the vessel 2 and enter the storage tank 30 . the sodium hypochlorite solution can then be extracted from the product tank 30 via outlet 35 when required . it will be appreciated that hazardous gases produced during electrolysis need not be diluted by air , and instead other gases such as nitrogen may be used . further , the gas acting as a diluting gas can be chosen in accordance with the particular hazardous gas produced by the given electrolytic reaction .	2
the here described steps do not form a complete flow of a method for realizing an electric connection in a semiconductor electronic device between a nanometric circuit architecture and standard electronic components and only those steps needed by an average technician of the field for the comprehension of the invention are hereafter described . it is important to note , moreover , that the figures represent schematic views of portions of an electronic circuit integrated in a semiconductor device during some steps of a method according to one embodiment of the invention , and they are not drawn to scale , but , on the contrary , realized in such a way as to stress the characteristics of one embodiment of the invention . the present invention can be implemented by using several techniques usually used in the manufacturing of semiconductor electronic devices , in particular all the lithographic methodologies ( optical lithography , uv , euv , electronic , ionic , imprint ) and the multi spacer patterning technology ( s n pt ). in particular , this latter technology is employed to realize nanowires of a nanometric circuit architecture , which is electrically connected to standard electronic components of a micro - area . although known , for a better comprehension of the invention , the peculiar aspects of the s n pt through which , advantageously , it is possible to realize the above nanometric circuit architectures with extreme precision and control are hereafter briefly summarized . more in particular it is possible to realize circuit architectures comprising arrays of high density nanowires in the semiconductor device . the s n pt ( reiteration of the space patterning technique spt ) is a technique which allows to transform the thickness of a thin layer of a predetermined material ( vertical dimension ), deposited on a substrate , into the width of a spacer or more generically of a nanowire , of the same material ( horizontal dimension ). such technique exploits the possibility of controlling , in a more precise way , the thickness of the deposited layer , as well as the capacity that a lot of materials have to adapt uniformly to the topography underlying them . the possibility of transforming a vertical dimension or extension into a horizontal one is allowed by the initial use of a seed ( sacrificial layer ), provided with at least a vertically extended wall , whereon the material is deposited . further to an anisotropic etching of the deposited layer the nanowire , adjacent to the above vertical wall , is obtained comprising in turn a vertically extended wall , wherefrom , by reiterating the process , further nanowires can be obtained . finally , the capacity of selectively removing different materials allows to obtain , subsequently to further controlled depositions and anisotropic etchings , variously complex structures . in practice , it is possible to realize a circuit architecture wherein only one dimension depends on the photolithography , whereas the remaining two dimensions ( width and height of the nanowire ) are obtained by controlling the thickness of the deposited layer , even within a few nanometers . deposited layer , as it is known herein , means a layer obtained both by means of a real controlled deposition of the material , for example with “ cvd oxide ” ( control vapor deposition ), and by means of the growth of the material from the underlying layer , for example by means of “ thermal oxidation ”. now , with reference to the above figures , a indicates a portion of a substrate of a semiconductor device whereon an integrated circuit is realized . in detail , on the substrate a there is a nanometric circuit structure 1 comprising n conductive nanowires 2 ( in the embodiment of the figures three conductive nanowires ), arranged according to an ordered configuration , alternated with insulating nanowires 3 ( fig1 ). it should be appreciated that fig1 is a plan and partially section view in that the substrate a is at a lower level than the nanowires 2 , 3 which are formed on covered portions of the substrate a . the above nanowires , and more generally the nanometric circuit architecture 1 , constitute , or in the semiconductor electronic device are part of , a so called nano - area , which is electrically connected , through conductive dies 4 , to standard electronic components , these latter being not shown in the figures . the dies 4 in turn constitute , or with the above standard electronic components are part of , a so called micro - area of the semiconductor electronic device . the electric connection between nano - area and micro - area is realized by a plurality of electric contact areas , or simply contacts 5 , between the nanowires 2 and the dies 4 . to obtain the contacts 5 , the present method first provides the realization of the above n conductive nanowires 2 alternated with the insulating nanowires 3 , which are obtained by means of the s n pt technique , starting from a seed layer 6 formed on the substrate a and having a vertical wall 7 extending upwardly from the substrate a , as shown in fig2 . the vertical wall 7 is crossed by n recesses 8 and is substantially perpendicular to the substrate a . the n recesses 8 can be formed in the seed layer 6 by any of the photolithographic techniques discussed above . in particular , the recesses 8 extend towards the inside of the seed layer 6 for the whole vertical extension of the seed layer itself which , moreover , in correspondence with such vertical wall 7 has a notched , or comb - like , profile . the recesses 8 , preferably parallel to each other , are placed at a constant distance b 0 from one another , whereas the depth and the width of each nth recess are correlated with the thickness t si of the conductive nanowires 2 and with the thickness ( t sp − t si ) of the insulating nanowires 3 and are given by the relations a n ≧( n − 1 ) t sp + a 0 and b n = 2t si + 2 ( n − 1 ) t sp respectively , where a 0 is a constant dependant on the technique employed in the realization of the seed layer 6 , as it will be more apparent hereafter in the description . a first one 2 ′ of the n conductive nanowires 2 is realized by first depositing a conductive layer , preferably polysilicon , on the substrate a and the seed layer 6 , thereby also at least partially filling the recesses . next , the conductive layer is anisotropically etched to remove the conductive layer from the horizontal surfaces of the seed layer 6 and substrate a , while leaving the first conductive nanowire 2 ′ on the vertical surface 7 of the seed layer 6 . after the anisotropic etching , the conductive layer also remains on the walls of the recesses 8 . a first one 8 a of the recesses 8 is made sufficiently narrow so that the anisotropic etching does not remove the conductive layer in the first recess 8 a , thereby forming an elbow - like portion 2 a in the first recess . the other recesses 8 are sufficiently wide such that notched profile portions 2 b of the nanowire 2 ′ remain in those recesses 8 . after the first conductive nanowire 2 ′ is formed , a first one 3 ′ of the n insulating nanowires 3 is formed in a similar manner as the first conductive nanowire 2 ′. a dielectric layer is first formed on the first conductive nanowire 2 ′, the seed layer 6 , and the substrate a and then anisotropically etched to leave the first insulating nanowire 3 ′ on the outside vertical wall of the first conductive nanowire 2 ′. the first insulating nanowire 3 ′ includes notched profile portions 3 b formed on the vertical sidewalls of the notch profile portions 2 b of the first conductive nanowire 2 ′. preferably , the dielectric layer is a thermal silicon oxide layer that is thermally grown on the underlying layers such that the first insulating nanowire 3 ′ is oxide . the s n pt technique repeats the above steps to form the remaining conductive nanowires 2 and insulating nanowires 3 , as shown in fig4 - 5 . the n conductive nanowires 2 are each thus realized with the thickness t si comprised between 5 nm and 60 nm preferably between 5 nm and 30 nm , by means of the controlled deposition , on the seed layer 6 and the substrate a , of a layer of conductive material having such thickness , preferably a polysilicon layer , followed by anisotropic etching of the deposited layer . the formation of the conductive nanowires 2 is alternated with the realization of the insulating nanowires 3 obtained according to s n pt mode by growth of a thermal oxide from the conductive material , followed in any case by anisotropic etching of the insulating material . each insulating nanowire 3 is realized with the thickness ( t sp − t si ) wherein t sp is the width , or thickness , of a pair of consecutive conductive 2 and insulating 3 nanowires and is lower than 90 nm , preferably comprised in the range 10 - 50 nm . in this way , i . e ., meeting the above relations , the realization of a conductive nanowire 2 of order n implies , as effect , the completion of the filling of the corresponding nth recess 8 of width b n . going on with the realization of the nanowires , as it can be seen in fig4 , it follows that for n = 2 the realization of the second conductive nanowire 2 ″ implies the completion of the filling of the recess 8 of second order by means of a respective elbow - like portion 2 a , and a further partial filling , by means of respective portions with notched profile 2 b , of the recesses 8 of greater order than the second . a second one 3 ″ of the insulating nanowires 3 is then formed as discussed above on the vertical walls of the second conductive nanowire 2 ″. more in general , this mechanism is repeated at each realization of a conductive nanowire of a given order , with the effect of determining the filling or the completion of the filling of a recess 8 of the same order by means of a respective elbow - like portion 2 a , and the partial filling together with the conductive 2 and insulating 3 nanowires of lower order , already realized , of the recesses 8 of greater order by means of respective notched profile portions 2 b , 3 b . the above nanometric circuit architecture 1 is thus obtained , and then an insulating layer 9 is realized on the nanometric circuit architecture 1 . such insulating layer 9 is preferably a silicon oxide layer whose thickness is comprised between 1 nm and 100 nm . however , for the realization of such layer also different materials can be employed such as , for example , silicon nitride and similar insulating materials . at this point , n windows 10 are opened on the insulating layer 9 , each window 10 being open essentially in correspondence with a respective one of the recesses 8 so as to expose part of the elbow - like portion 2 a of the conductive nanowire 2 present in the recess . in this way , each window 10 selectively exposes a conductive nanowire 2 in its elbow - like portion 2 a which advantageously has a length longer than t si , i . e ., accessible by means of electronic lithography or other lithographic techniques of new generation . the opening of the above windows 10 can be performed , for example , with electronic lithography in a conventional way , or by bombing the insulating layer 9 with an ionic beam according to the technology known as fib . in this respect , it is to be noted that for the selective opening of the windows 10 in correspondence with the respective elbow - like portions 2 a of the conductive nanowires 2 is sufficient to align a mask with the seed layer 6 whose position is identified , the mask having respective openings suitably placed in relation to the predetermined distance b 0 between the recesses 8 of the seed 6 , and suitably sized in relation to the width a 0 desired for the windows 10 . as previously remembered , a 0 is in turn linked to the technology used for realizing the seed layer 6 and preferably corresponds to the smallest size definable with the technology . in particular , according to the technology used , a 0 is comprised between 2 nm and 60 nm , preferably between 5 nm and 20 nm , whereas b 0 is typically lower than 60 nm , preferably comprised between 10 nm and 30 nm . at this point , on the insulating layer 9 in correspondence with the windows 10 , the above conductive dies 4 are realized . in detail , the dies 4 are realized in such a way as to overlap , in correspondence with the window 10 , onto a respective exposed part of the elbow - like portion 2 a of a conductive nanowire 2 , with obtainment of the above contacts 5 , and realization of the desired electric connection between nano - area and micro - area . moreover , it is to be the that the dies 4 are advantageously realized according to conventional methodologies by depositing , on the insulating layer 9 whereon the windows 10 have been opened , a layer of conductive material , this latter not shown in the figures , and by defining it by means of photolithography . the conductive material can be doped polysilicon deposited by means of cvd techniques or metal deposited by means of pvd . as regards the realization of the above seed layer 6 , it can be obtained in a conventional way with various technologies , in particular with s n pt technique or with lithographic methods such as extreme ultraviolet lithography euv , deep ultraviolet lithography duv , electronic e - beam lithography and the imprint lithography in all its possible versions ( soft lithography , nano - imprint lithography , step - and - flash imprint lithography , and superlattice nanowire pattern ). in synthesis , relatively to the cited lithographic techniques , on the above substrate a first a layer of sacrificial material is deposited ( for example a nitride , an oxide etc .) and then a resist layer is deposited on the layer of sacrificial material . at this point the resist layer is defined by means of a mask according to the desired profile for the seed layer 6 by using one of the above technologies . then , the sacrificial material exposed by the above definition is removed , i . e ., the portion is no longer masked by the resist , with obtainment of the seed layer 6 . with the present method , in practice , an electric connection is realized between the nano - area and the micro - area of the integrated electronic device by increasing the width or thickness of each nanowire in correspondence with respective elbow - like portions suitably spaced from one another and being selectively accessible . in particular , the above increase makes the nanowires 2 singularly and directly accessible for the electric connection to standard electronic components , for example micro - contacts , by means of the techniques currently used in the realization of semiconductor electronic devices , employed for realizing the conductive dies 4 . the main advantage of the method described above lies in the possibility of selectively contacting high density conductive nanowires of a nanometric circuit architecture , whose width and whose distance are below the lowest limit attainable by means of lithography . a further advantage lies in the simple realization of the method described above , which provides steps which can be easily integrated in the currently used manufacturing processes . moreover , the present method has revealed to be particularly profitable from the economic point of view . obviously , in order to meet contingent and specific requirements , a skilled in the art could bring several modifications to the above described invention , all however comprised within the scope of protection of the invention , as defined by the following claims . the various embodiments described above can be combined to provide further embodiments . all of the u . s . patents , u . s . patent application publications , u . s . patent application , foreign patents , foreign patent application and non - patent publications referred to in this specification and / or listed in the application data sheet are incorporated herein by reference , in their entirety . aspects of the embodiments can be modified , if necessary to employ concepts of the various patents , application and publications to provide yet further embodiments . these and other changes can be made to the embodiments in light of the above - detailed description . in general , in the following claims , the terms used should not be construed to limit the claims to the specific embodiments disclosed in the specification and the claims , but should be construed to include all possible embodiments along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled . accordingly , the claims are not limited by the disclosure .	1
with reference to these figures , in fig3 reference number 1 indicates generally a container for aromatic products , particularly coffee , of the flexible or semi - rigid type , for example of the type described in italian patent application mi - 91a001770 . in the example illustrated , at the top of the container there is a peelable diaphragm 2 that is removed on opening the container , which can then be closed again by means of a lid not shown in the figure . the peel - off diaphragm 2 has a hole 3 , beneath which is applied a degassing valve indicated as a whole by reference number 4 , this valve being heat - welded or glued to the sheet 2 . the degassing valve 4 , whose general structure can be considered as being substantially known , comprises a base plate 5 and a cap 6 seated in it . the cap 6 has an annular groove 7 near its lower edge that engages with a corresponding annular projection 8 provided on the bottom of the plate 5 . above the projection 8 a flat annular wall 9 is foreseen , which surrounds a central disk 10 provided with holes 11 . between the cap 6 and the plate 5 is interposed a rubber diaphragm 12 , acting as an actual valve , the peripheral part of which rests on said flat annular wall 9 of the plate , which is spread with a viscous or sticky layer 13 , in order to provide a better seal . the diaphragm 12 is pressed against the plate 5 by a contrasting projection 14 provided in the top wall of the cap 6 , in which an air - hole 15 is also provided . the bottom of the plate 5 is shaped so that underneath it , below the disk 10 , a housing 16 is provided for a filter 17 that will be described in greater detail below . the valve 4 is fixed to the sheet 2 by welding or gluing that follows an annular course 18 along the upper outside edge of the plate 5 . under normal conditions the robber diaphragm 12 is pressed against the flat wall 9 of the plate 5 and , also thanks to the presence of the sticky or tacky layer 13 , provides a seal both against the escape of the gases from inside the container 1 and against the entry of air from the outside . in the event of overpressure inside the container 1 , the diaphragm 12 lifts from the wall 9 , allowing the gases to escape , passing into the outside environment through the holes 11 , the space that is created between the diaphragm 12 and the wall 9 , the hole 15 in the cap 6 , and the hole 3 in the peel - off sheet 2 . when normal conditions are restored , the diaphragm 12 comes down again , preventing air from entering the container by the opposite route to that previously described . in order to prevent the coffee aromas from escaping too when gases are being discharged from the container , a selective type filter 17 is used . in the preferred embodiment , illustrated in fig1 and 2 , the filter 17 comprises two layers of porous paper 19 , 20 , between which is disposed an activated charcoal powder 21 . the two layers of paper 19 and 20 are glued together along their outer edge , and the whole filter 17 can then be glued or heat - welded , along its peripheral edge 22 , to the inside of the housing 16 of the plate 5 . if the housing 16 has a slightly sloping side wall 23 , so that its mouth is narrower , as shown in fig1 and 2 , the filter 17 is automatically retained inside the housing , without any need for further fixing means . with this filter structure , the gases given off by the coffee , before passing through the rubber diaphragm ( 12 ), are filtered through the activated charcoal 21 , which traps some of the gases , namely those with long molecular chains , thus absorbing and enriching itself with the aromas . once the coffee has stopped giving off gas , these aromas remain trapped at a high concentration in the activated charcoal . thus there is a very small volume ( essentially that of the filter 17 ) with a high concentration of aromas , separated from the outside environment and upon communication of the high concentration of aroma or the inside environment , i . e . the headspace 30 of the container 1 , the aromas are diluted so as to have a lower concentration of aromas than before . in other words , the gas concentration in the headspace 30 is lower than the gas concentration in the filter volume where the gases are trapped . there is inherently a pressure difference between the volume of the filter 17 and the headspace of the container due to the gas trapped with filter as described above and in order to restore the pressure balance , the gases trapped in the filter will subsequently flow back inside the container , enriching the gas with the aromas which can also penetrate the coffee alveoli , thus increasing the concentration of these gases in the coffee and providing clear advantages . the activated charcoals 21 in the filter 17 can be mixed with other substances , for example acid substances such as citric acid that neutralize basic gases , or basic substances such as sodium hydroxide , which neutralize acid gases . fig4 shows a different embodiment of the filter , indicated by 170 , according to which it comprises a single sheet of porous paper 171 , on which is spread at least one layer 172 of activated charcoal previously mixed with excipients such as water and sugar , for example . fig4 shows a plurality of layers 172 , each of which can perform specific functions , such as neutralizing basic or acid gases , for example . obviously the valve according to the invention can be applied to flexible , air - tight bags or containers of any type to contain all those products which give off odors that must not be allowed to contaminate the outside environment .	1
the formulations object of the present invention must overcame several targets simultaneously , in between other things , to obtain some formulations that comply with the high quality standards of the fao / who for plant protection products ( without prejudice that other formulations may not comply with all such requirements is needed for a particular purpose ). the problem is to find easily redispersible ods of neonicotinoids , wherein the active ingredient ( s ) are not degraded significantly , with decreased wet sieving residue ( below 1 %), and with excellent emulsification properties , while maintaining the biological activity . decrease the particle size to improve the emulsion properties to obtain highly homogeneous and stable solutions to spray decrease the particle size finding an appropriate surfactant system to improve the biological efficacy instead of the prior art way of increasing the content of penetrants ( focused only in fatty alcohol ethoxylates / propoxylates ). decrease the wet sieve residue ( indirectly reflecting redispersibility ) by means of using certain surfactant systems and even improved with the use of polyvalent cationic salts milled with the formulation contain at least a neonicotinoid compound at 0 . 5 - 40 wt .-% has a median particle size when measured in emulsion in water with a laser diffraction particle mastersizer of less than 2 μm and a percentile 90 of less than 5 μm do not present bleeding over 1 % in volume of the formulation when letting it rest at room temperature for 4 days do not present neither oil nor cream separation after 2 hours in the emulsification test ( 5 % of formulation in water , in measuring cylinder of 100 ml ). the solution to the problems addressed has being found to be oil suspensions or oil dispersions ( synonym ) formulations characterized in that they contain , with regard total weight of the oil dispersion formulation : a . at least a neonicotinoid , or mixtures thereof , at 0 . 5 - 40 wt .-% b . a mixture of nonionic polymeric oil dispersants made of polyethoxylated glycol ester of a ( poly ) hydroxylated fatty acid chain with 12 - 20 carbons at 0 . 5 - 8 wt .-% with a hlb of 4 - 6 and a copolymer of type a - b - a of fatty acid with a chain of 12 - 20 carbons at 0 . 5 - 5 wt .-% c . a mixture made of polyethoxylated fatty alcohol at 0 . 5 - 15 wt .-%, and / or polypropoxylated fatty alcohol at 1 - 25 wt .-%, with a hlb of 12 - 16 d . at least a polyethoxylated and / or polypropoxylated sorbitan derivative at 3 - 30 wt .-%, with a hlb of 12 - 16 e . an alkylbenzenesulfonate sodium or calcium salt , being the alkyl chain of 10 - 14 carbon atoms , at 3 - 19 wt .-% f . a di -, tri - or tetra - valent cationic salt at 0 . 001 to 3 wt .-% g . an oil phase selected from paraffinic , naphtha aromatic , vegetable , synthetically modified vegetable oils ; and mixtures thereof , at 30 - 70 wt .-%. h . optionally , non - ionic , anionic or cationic surface active ingredients not mentioned in claim 1 b , antioxidants , uv - and sun - light protectors , antimicrobial agents , ph regulators , viscosity modifiers selected from aluminium magnesium silicates , magnesium silicates , aluminosilicates , clays , modified clays , smectite , modified smectite , and present preferably at 0 . 1 - 5 wt .-%, antifoam , colouring agents , markers for traceability of the origin of the product , wherein the sum of all such compounds is not higher than 7 wt .-%, wherein the presence of other surface active ingredients than those of b ., c ., d . and e . is up to a maximum of 5 wt .-%, preferably . a preferred formulation contains ( always referred to total weight -% of the oil dispersion ): a . at least a neonicotinoid selected from imidacloprid , thiamethoxam , thiacloprid , nitenpyram , acetamiprid , clothianidin , dinetofuran at 5 - 35 wt .-% b . a mixture of nonionic polymeric oil dispersants made of polyethoxylated glycol ester of a ( poly ) hydroxylated fatty acid chain with 12 - 20 carbons at 0 . 5 - 8 wt .-% with a hlb of 4 - 6 and a copolymer of type a - b - a of fatty acid with a chain of 12 - 20 carbons at 0 . 5 - 3 wt .-% c . a mixture made of 15 - 25 mols polyethoxylated stearyl alcohol at 0 . 5 - 10 wt .-%, 15 - 25 mols polyethoxylated oleyl alcohol at 0 . 5 - 10 wt .-% and 10 - 20 mols polypropoxylated monostearyl ether at 1 - 15 wt .-%, with a hlb of 12 - 16 d . a mixture made of 15 - 25 mols polyethoxylated sorbitan trioleate or tristearate at 5 - 20 wt .-% and 20 - 50 mols polyethoxylated sorbitan hepta - 9 - octadecenoate at 2 - 20 wt .-%, with a hlb of 12 - 16 e . calcium or sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate at 3 - 19 wt .-% f . a paraffinic or vegetable oil at 30 - 70 wt .-% g . a modified smectite at 0 . 3 - 1 . 5 wt .-% h . aluminium sulphate in anhydrous , monohydrate or any hydrated state at 0 . 005 to 0 . 3 wt .-% i . an organomodified smectite at 0 . 3 - 3 wt .-%. the presence of the inorganic salt produces an pronounced effect , synergistic with the presence of compounds included in b . above ( see comparative examples 13 to 16 ), a sulphate or chloride , or phosphate of aluminium , magnesium , manganese , zinc , iron , copper , nickel , boron , gallium , indium , or mixtures thereof , in dehydrated or any hydration state . preferred salt is aluminium sulphate , an most preferably monohydrated . the compounds in which the formulations work especially well are the neonicotinoids with compounds ( i ) as stated above with formula a -( ch2 )— b preferred neonicotinoids are imidacloprid , thiamethoxam , thiacloprid , nitenpyram , acetamiprid , clothianidin , dinetofuran , in any of their isomeric or stereoisomeric forms when present and in any of their crystallization forms , salts thereof ; and any mixtures thereof . the formulation has been intensively tested for imidacloprid . however , other neonicotinoids behave as imidacloprid . the invention is also appropriate to combine other additional biologically active ingredients with at least one neonicotinoid , wherein such additional biologically active ingredient is selected from the group : insecticide , aracnicide , raticide , herbicide , fungicide , plant growth regulator , insect growth regulator , antibiotic , vitamin , oligoelement , fertilizer . preferred combinations with neonicotinoids are the compounds : 2 , 4 - d ; 2 , 4 - db ; alpha - cypermethrin ; amitrole ; benalaxyl ; bentazone ; beta - cyfluthrin ; bromoxynil ; carbendazim ; chlorothalonil ; chlorpropham ; chlorpyrifos ; chlorpyrifos - methyl ; chlorotoluron ; cyfluthrin ; cypermethrin ; daminozide ; deltamethrin ; desmedipham ; dinocap ; diquat ; esfenvalerate ; ethofumesate ; fluoroxypyr ; flusilazole ; glyphosate ; imazalil ; ioxynil ; iprodione ; isoproturon ; lambda - cyhalothrin ; linuron ; mancozeb ; maneb ; mcpa ; mcpb ; mecoprop - p ; metiram ; metsulfuron ; molinate ; pendimethalin ; phenmedipham ; propiconazole ; propineb ; propyzamide ; pyridate ; thiabendazole ; thifensulfuron ; thiophanate - methyl ; thiram ; triasulfuron ; warfarin ; ziram ; captan ; clodinafop ; clopyralid ; cyprodinil ; dichlorprop - p ; dimethoate ; dimethomorph ; diuron ; ethepon ; ethoprophos ; fenamiphos ; fipronil ; folpet ; formetanate ; fosetyl ; glufosinate ; metconazole ; methiocarb ; metribuzin ; oxamyl ; phosmet ; pirimicarb ; pirimiphos - methyl ; propamocarb ; pyrimethanil ; rimsulfuron ; tolclofos - methyl ; tolylfluanid ; tribenuron - methyl ; triclopyr ; trinexapac ; triticonazole ; abamectin ; avermectins ; aclonifen ; amidosulfuron ; benfluralin ; bensulfuron ; bifenox ; chloridazon ; clofentezine ; clomazone ; cymoxanil ; dicamba ; difenoconazole ; diflubenzuron ; diflufenican ; dodemorph ; epoxiconazole ; fenoxaprop - p ; fenpropidin ; fenpropimorph ; fonpyroximate ; fluazinam ; fludioxonil ; flutolanil ; fuberidazole ; imazaquin ; lenacil ; calcium phosphide ; magnesium phosphide ; mepiquat ; metamitron ; metazachlor ; nicosulfuron ; oxadiazon ; picloram ; prosulfocarb ; pyriproxyfen ; quinoclamine ; sodium 5 - nitroguaiacolate ; sodium o - nitrophenolate ; sodium p - nitrophenolate ; sulcotrione ; tobuconazole ; tebufenpyrad ; tralkoxydim ; triadimenol ; bacillus thuringiensis ; beauveria bassiana ; cydia pomonella granuiosis virus ; lecanicillimu muscarium ; metarhizium anisopliae ; phlebiopsis gigantean ; pythium oligandrum ; streptomyces k61 — streptomyces griseoviridis ; trichoderma atroviride ; trichoderma harzianum rifai ; trichoderma polysporum ; trichoderma aspellerum ; trichoderma gamsii ; verticillium albo - atrum ; ethylene ; gibberellic acid ; gibberellin ; pyrethrins ; acibenzolar - s - methyl - benzothiadiazole ; ampelomyces quisqualis ; azimsulfuran ; azoxystrobin ; bacillus subtilis ; beflubutamid ; benthiavalicarb ; benzoic acid ; bifenazate ; boscalid ; carfentrazone - ethyl ; clothianidin ; coniothyrium minitans ; cyazofamid ; cyclanilide ; cyhalofop - butyl ; haloxyfop ; dimethenamid ; dimoxystrobin ; etoxazole ; ethoxysulfuron ; famoxadone ; fenamidone ; fenhexamid ; flazasulfuron ; florasulam ; flufenacet ; flumioxazin ; fluoxastrobin ; flupyrsulfuron methyl ; flurtamone ; foramsulfuron ; forchlorfenuron ; fosthiazate ; gliocladium catenulatum ; imazamox ; imazosulfuron ; indoxacarb ; iodosulfuron - methyl - sodium ; iprovalicarb ; isoxaflutole ; kresoxim - methyl ; laminarin ; mepanipyrim ; mesosulfuron ; mesotrione ; metalaxyl - m ; methoxyfenozide ; metrafenone ; milbemectin ; oxadiargyl ; oxasulfuron ; paecilomyces fumosoroseus ; paecilomyces lilacinus ; pethoxamid ; picolinafen ; picoxystrobin ; prohexadione - calcium ; propoxycarbazone ; prosulfuron ; prothioconazole ; pseudomonas chlororaphis ; pymetrozine ; pyraclostrobin ; pyraflufen - ethyl ; quinoxyfen ; s - metolachlor ; silthiofam ; spinosad ; spiroxamine ; spodoptera exigua nuclear polyhedrosis virus ; sulfosulfuron ; tepraloxydim ; trifloxystrobin ; tritosulfuron ; zoxamide ; bifenthrin ; etofenprox ; propaquizafop ; teflubenzuron ; tetraconazole ; triflusulfuron ; zeta - cypermethrin ; chlormequat ; chlorsulfuron ; cyromazine ; dimethachlor ; diphenylamine ; lufenuron ; penconazole ; quizalofop - p ; triallate ; triazoxide acequinocyl ; adoxophyes orana ; aminopyralid ; amisulbrom ; aureobasidium pullulans ; benalaxyl - m ; bispyribac sodium ; candida oleophila ; chlorantraniliprole ; chromafenozide ; cyflufenamid ; disodium phosphonate ; emamectin benzoate ; fen 560 ; flonicamid ; flubendiamide ; fluopicolide ; gamma - cyhalothrin ; halosulfuron methyl ; helicoverpa armigera nucleopolyhedrovirus ; heptamaloxyglucan ; ipconazole ; mandipropamid ; metaflumizone ; meptyldinocap ; novaluron ; orthosulfamuron ; paecilomyces fumosoroseus ; penoxsuiam ; phosphane ; pinoxaden ; profoxydim ; proquinazid ; pseudomonas sp . starin ; pseudozyma flocculosa ; pyridalyl ; pyroxsulam ; silver thiosulphate ; spinetoram ; spirodiclofen ; spiromesifen ; spirotetramat ; spodoptera littorals nucleopolyhedrovirus ; tembotrione ; thiencarbazone ; topramezone ; trichoderma atroviride ; valiphenal ; zucchini yellow mosaic virus . preferred are the combinations of imidacloprid with those abovementioned pesticides , combinations of acetamiprid with those pesticides , combinations of thiacloprid with those pesticides or combinations of thiamethoxam with those pesticides . the oil dispersions according the present invention may contain additionally suspended microcapsules enclosing neonicotinoids and / or other pesticides than neonicotinoids , as those abovementioned . the formulations according this invention are very appropriate for its use as a method to kill insects in the fields or house and garden , as well as mites , fleas ( e . g ., in capilar lotion in pharmacy ), spiders and / or ticks ( application to animals ) in agricultural , veterinary or medicinal applications . regarding the compounds used in the examples , they are widely distributed by a multitude of distributors , including active ingredient have not been addressed in the source information . the white oil must be understood as any paraffinic oil , also known in commercial products by “ basisöl ”, isopar ®, marcol ®, puccini ® ( wherein the dmso extract content is below 3 %), and many other known commercial compounds used as well as basic paraffinic oils in cosmetic formulations , with the proviso that they are , of course , excluded from any known risks of carcinogenicity . the use of naphta solvents is possible but not recommended for toxicological profile reasons . in any case is recommended the use of naphthalene depleted fractions . we have found best results with paraffinic or vegetable or modified vegetable oils . the preferred modifications to vegetable oils are those that impart to them more stability or handling advantages ( as decreased viscosity ). alkylated oils , saponified oils , transisomerized oils , epoxidized oils are to be taken in consideration when performing this invention as possible oils . however , we prefer the use of highly saturated vegetable oils ( or derivatives thereof ) since they provide stability to the formulation . we have observed that some “ pure ” vegetable oils , with moderate content of unsaturations , and worst , highly unsaturated , even in the presence of bht , produce with time hydroperoxides and then free radicals that , in combination with uv - and / or sun - light lead to a faster degradation of the neonicotinoids . in general gums ( as rosin gum ) and the like shall be understood to fall into the concept vegetable oil . note as well that paraffins are also noted sometimes as waxes , denomination that shall not affect the extent of protection . the fact in that in the examples there are no mixtures of active ingredients is due to give a broad overview of the formulation , while maintaining a reasonable amount of data . the inventors have verified that the benefit of the claimed compositions are as well present for : mixtures of different oil types , specially mixtures of vegetable ( and derivatives thereof ) and paraffinic oils mixtures of active ingredients within the group of neonicotinoids and neonicotinoids and other pesticides , preferable not in the form of salts use of non preferred ( not claimed in specific necessary features ) surface active ingredients that amount not more than 5 wt .-% use of coformulants as needed for the formulation ( antifoams , antioxidants , uv and sun - light protectors , fluorescent or other type of markers to trace the origin of the ware in the market , antimicrobial agents , ph regulators , viscosity modifiers , antifoam , coloring agents , provided that the use of non preferred surface active ingredients and / or these compounds is not higher than 7 wt .-% the skilled in the art shall immediately notice when a non - preferred surfactant ( or a non - neonicotinoid pesticide ) is not compatible with the formulation according our invention by the presence within 24 hours of precipitates in the finished formulation ( that shall be according the invention an homogeneous fluid ) or rapid decomposition ( within 24 hours more than 2 % of decomposition ) of the active ingredient neonicotinoid . this is said without prejudice in that we have not found any compound that falls under this exception , and therefore the claim works in the whole claimed range , and of course with more security , at the view of the recommendation of the description . an important aspect of the present invention is the possibility to combine the claimed od with other suitable formulation types as emulsion concentrate , emulsion in water , suspoemulsion , suspension concentrate ( in water ), and particularly with capsule suspensions . the general method for these combination was firstly published by the same inventors in ep 1844653 - a1 . we refer specially for the combination of od of neonicotinoids with any other pesticides present in other formulation types ( or even as well in the form of od whether as disclosed herein or in a prior art type , having into account that then , the total stability will decrease ), but preferably , with those parasiticides ( e . g ., ectoparasites for animal and human health ) or insecticides / acaricides that may overcome problems of resistance to neonicotinoids , in the fields of agriculture , pharmacy or veterinary and fisheries . particularly interesting are the mixtures : imidacloprid + spinosad , imidacloprid + abamectin , imidacloprid + methoprene , imidacloprid buprofezin , imidacloprid + azadirachtin , imidacloprid + cyromazine , imidacloprid + fenoxycarb , imidacloprid + lambda - cyhalothrin , imidacloprid + gamma - cyhalothrin , imidacloprid + acrinathrin , imidacloprid + allethrin , imidacloprid + alpha - cypermethrin , imidacloprid + beta - cyfluthrin , imidacloprid + beta - cypermethrin , imidacloprid + bifenthrin , imidacloprid + bioallethrin , imidacloprid + bioresmethrin , imidacloprid + cycloprothrin , imidacloprid + cyfluthrin , imidacloprid + cyhalothrin , imidacloprid + cypermethrin , imidacloprid + cyphenothrin , imidacloprid + deltamethrin , imidacloprid + empenthrin , imidacloprid + esfenvalerate , imidacloprid + fenpropathrin , imidacloprid + fenvalerate , imidacloprid + flucythrinate , imidacloprid + flumethrin , imidacloprid + imidaclopridprothrin , imidacloprid + methothrin , imidacloprid + permethrin , imidacloprid + phenothrin ( 1 - r - trans ), imidacloprid + prallethrin , imidacloprid + resmethrin , imidacloprid + ru 15525 , imidacloprid + tau - fluvalinate , imidacloprid + tefluthrin , imidacloprid + tetramethrin ( 1 - r ), theta - cypermethrin , imidacloprid + tralomethrin , imidacloprid + transfluthrin , imidacloprid + zeta - cypermethrin , imidacloprid + zxi 8901 , imidacloprid + ethiprol , imidacloprid + fipronil , imidacloprid + bistrifluoron , imidacloprid + chlorfluaturon , imidacloprid + diflubenzuron , imidacloprid + flucycloxuron , imidacloprid + flufenoxuron , imidacloprid + hexaflumuron , imidacloprid + lufenuron , imidacloprid + novaluron , imidacloprid + noviflumuran , imidacloprid + teflubezuron , imidacloprid + triflumuron , imidacloprid + szi - 121 , imidaclorpid + at least one microbial pesticide . it is also disclosed herein explicitly all the mixtures abovementioned wherein imidacloprid is substituted by thiacloprid . this applies as well to thiamethoxam , which mixtures with the abovementioned pesticides are fully disclosed . in the same way , all the above mixtures are herein disclosed in full with dinetofuran instead imidacloprid . last , such full and explicit disclosure includes mixtures of acetamiprid with the pesticides disclosed above as well as with clotianidin . we avoid unnecessary repetition of the mixtures as disclosed and claimed . it is as well disclosed ternary or quaternary mixtures of at least one neonicotinoid and at least one of the cited compounds parasiticides . of the mixtures cited for parasiticides , the preferred embodiments are ods wherein the neonicotinoids ( at least one ) are suspended in the od and the other parasiticides are enclosed in microcapsules , most preferably , polyurea or polyurea - glycoluril microcapsules ( which can be obtained as best option according prior art ep 1840145 - a1 ( casaña - giner , v . ; gimeno m . and gimeno b .). the combination of ods with other suitable formulation types are disclosed in ep 1844653 - a1 ( casaña - giner , v . ; gimeno m . and gimeno b .) such microcapsules contain in the core preferably an oily phase ( normal phase microcapsules ) but they may contain as well a water phase with dispersed or dissolved parasiticides active ingredients ( reverse phase microcapsules ). in making such mixtures , care must be taken with the use of aluminium sulfate or other used multivalent cationic salt , since values over 0 . 3 wt .-% may provoke flocculation of the microcapsules . however , as shown in the example , the benefit of such use in the od is still beneficial and at the level of the example , is not prejudicial for the stability of the cx formulation ( od + cs ). for a better understanding of the examples , the following table is provided for allowing the skilled in the art to find the many commercial options that correspond to the selected components of the formulations , and to compare with the prior art . in no way , the following list is presented in a restrictive way , and any chemical class as claimed may be replaced by other commercial ( or non - commercially made ) compounds that belong to the same classes are clearly specified in the claims . table 2b content in wt .-% 10 ex . 10 ex . 11 ex . 12 ex . 13 ex . 14 ex . 15 ex . 16 ex . 17 ex . 18 imidacloprid 20 . 6 18 . 3 27 21 . 8 21 . 8 21 . 8 21 . 8 20 20 . 67 corn oil 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 sunflower oil 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 white oil 0 42 . 75 0 48 48 . 15 49 48 . 15 40 . 69 0 methylated coconut oil 43 0 43 0 0 0 0 0 46 . 68 atlox 4894 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 atlox 4838b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 atlox 4912 4 4 . 2 3 2 2 0 0 5 2 . 1 atlox 4913 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 atlox mba 13 / 20 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 atlox lp1 2 2 . 5 3 2 2 0 0 5 3 . 4 atlox ps2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 atlas g - 1281 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 arlamol e 1 3 4 3 3 3 3 0 2 arlatone t 1 3 0 2 2 2 2 9 2 genapol la 050 1 . 9 3 2 0 0 3 4 19 0 brij 98 1 1 0 0 . 4 0 . 4 0 . 4 0 . 4 0 1 brij 721 1 1 0 0 . 4 0 . 4 0 . 4 0 . 4 0 1 tween 80 10 4 7 . 4 8 8 8 8 0 0 tween 85 0 12 . 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 9 borresperse na 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 calsogen ar 100 nd 6 4 10 12 12 12 12 0 11 bentone sd1 1 0 . 2 0 0 . 2 0 . 2 0 . 2 0 . 2 0 1 aluminium sulfate 0 . 09 0 . 1 0 . 2 0 . 15 0 0 . 15 0 0 . 1 0 . 15 bht 0 . 1 0 0 . 35 0 0 0 0 0 . 2 0 escalol 509 0 . 09 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 germal ii 0 . 02 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 trisiloxane polyether 7 . 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 silicon 1132 0 0 . 05 0 . 05 0 . 05 0 . 05 0 . 05 0 . 05 0 . 01 0 1ex . 1 is ex . 1 of wo 07 / 028 , 517 , outside of scope of the present invention ; 2ex . 2 is ex . 2 of wo 07 / 028 , 517 , outside of scope of the present invention ; 3ex . 3 is ex . 3 of wo 07 / 028 , 517 , outside of scope of the present invention ; 4ex . 4 is ex . 4 of wo 07 / 028 , 517 , outside of scope of the present invention ; 5ex . 5 is ex . 5 of wo 07 / 028 , 517 , outside of scope of the present invention ; 6ex . 6 is ex . a of table 1 of wo 08 / 155 , 108 , outside of scope of the present invention ; 7ex . 7 is a commercial formulation of confidor od 200 g / l imidacloprid , outside of scope of the present invention , and present in the greek market in 2008 as recently produced product — while the components are known to us by analysis , they are not presented here , since for the purposes of the description only the lack of some of the components is relevant —; 8ex . 8 is falling on the scope of claims 1 , 2 and 3 of wo 07 / 028 , 517 ( namely , restricted and preferred ranges of that invention ), outside of scope of the present invention . ex . 1 , ex . 10 , ex . 13 , ex . 16 and ex . 18 were exposed to natural sunlight in opened to the air metallic infrared weight plates ( 0 . 7 cm high load ) during one week . after that period , ex . 10 showed the least decomposition of imidacloprid . ex . 1 showed 45 % more decomposition than ex . 10 . ex . 13 showed only 7 % more decomposition than ex . 10 , while ex . 16 showed increase of 23 % decomposition with regard ex . 10 . ex . 18 showed 14 % more decomposition than ex . 10 . results are expressed in relative percentages for easiness of reproduction of the assay . this shows that the formulation according the invention when containing a highly saturated vegetable oil ( methylated coconut oil ) with the uv - protector escalol ® 509 , shows the least photodegradation of imidacloprid . ex . 1 , being a vegetable oil present seems to be affected by light and oxygen , probably due to induced free radical oxidation of unsaturated fatty acids of the corn oil exposed to light ( and not protected enough with the use of bht ). it is not specially surprising that the use of escalol ® increases the stability of imidacloprid , but it is surprising at the view of prior art , since up to the date the inventors do not known any proposal to use uv - protectants for neonicotinoids in od formulations . namely , the prior art seems not to be aware of this problem . ex . 16 showed better behavior ( the tests were limited and did not allowed to extract absolute confidence intervals ) than prior art ex . 1 , being surprising that the only difference with ex . 13 ( that had only 7 % decomposition ) is the presence of the crystal film - forming selected polymers atlox ® 4912 and atlox ® lp1 . this may indicate ( as the very clear results regarding stability of the formulation and bleeding ) that indeed the neonicotinoids are effectively covered by such films even in the oily state . it is noteworthy that the oil in ex . 13 , 16 and 18 is a paraffinic oil , much less prone to photooxidation than the prior art vegetable oils . while the extent of the test is not enough detailed to discriminate in between the many factors that may have affected the results , we can only say that the rests of the components present in the invention may be as well the reason for such result , and as such we can only claim the formulation as a whole in order to be consistent with the results . it is unknown the real environment of the imidacloprid crystals in a formulation of 10 to 17 components . however , according to the invention , it is observed some effect on protection of imidacloprid when exposed to sunlight and air ( what happens after spraying the product in the field ). it is proposed that the stability of imidacloprid ( and supposedly all neonicotinoids ) follows the order in paraffinic oil & gt ; in vegetable oil . for equal coformulants , the presence of lipophilic non - ionic of the type claim 2 b could provide certain uv or visible light protection . thanks to the comparison of ex . 13 , 14 , 15 and 16 , it is clear that the use of the preferred non - ionic surfactants as claimed improve the stability of the formulation over prior art , and the use of polyvalent cationic salts are even more beneficial , showing a synergistic effect . the inventors , to the difference of the closest prior art , have taken the approach to reduce to the maximum the particle size , while having excellent physicochemical properties , of the od , in order to increase the biological activity . while the skilled in the art would surely try to look for penetrants for the cuticle , maximum after the clear teaching of previous bayer &# 39 ; s patents on neonicotinoids ods , we have taken a much more complicated approach . to reduce the particle size increases the risk in that the molecules of neonicotinoid present in the emulsion pass to the water phase and crystallize irreversible . further , the emulsification power may compromise the solubility of all the ingredients in order to achieve an homogeneous liquid in which all coformulants are dissolvent or properly dispersed in crystals . more surprisingly , the simplest way to reduce the particle size ( if there is no care on later problems on stability ) is to increase significantly the quantity of surfactants . further , for this purpose , the presence of surfactants of the type atlox 4912 would be avoided since this helps to form water in oil emulsions , introducing the risk of w / o / w double emulsions with corresponding higher particle size . it is therefore absolutely unexpected that the we got mean ( and median ) particle sizes even below 1 μm , and a percentile 90 of below 2 μm . surprisingly , the size of the crystals is not the reason of such low particle size ( obviously , the crystal size , influenced by the degree of milling , must be below of 2 - 4 μm , but prior art formulations with such crystal sizes show particle sizes rarely below a mean size of 15 μm , so the reason of our astonishing small particle size resides in the synergistic formulation ). care must be taken with this : here we refer to the value of the conventional laser diffraction particle sizers ( as mastersizer ®), where it considers both crystals over 4 μm as well , but the contribution to total size is reduced by the amount of much more particles with lower diameter . this unexpected effect is proven by : the use of atlox 4912 and atlox lp1 that would produce precisely the contrary , the non - increase of total quantity of surfactants over prior art neonicotinoids ods , the non - coalescence of very small particles and non - crystallization “ out - of - the - tiny - drop ” expected for such small particle size ( the triazole fungicides , in between many pesticides , present such “ going - out of the drop ” effect , when the oil drop is so small ). this combined with the fact that the biological effect is comparable ( or even superior ) to that achieved with the massive use of penetrating agents ( normally 30 % as shown in the examples of d1 ) as the prior art teaches , is without doubt unexpected . again , in a such complex formulations we cannot without an extensive and extreme hard testing , isolate the activity of each ingredient with full certainty of its contribution to the particle size . therefore we restrict the claimed formulations to those that share a complete surfactant system within reasonable limits . it is also proven by the inventors , whichever neonicotinoid is formulated , that the particle size won &# 39 ; t depend on the active ingredient , due to their chemical similarity . 1determined in mastersizer ™ laser diffraction equipment . note that the measurement considers both the bigger crystals of imidacloprid as well as the very small emulsified droplets . the shape of the peaks shows two maximums in all samples . data given by the equipment considers all measured values . it is astonishing the quite homogeneous and leptokurtic distribution of the formulations ex . 10 , 13 and 18 according to the present invention . the material is milled conventionally to have a final average crystal size of 75 % of the crystals below 2 μm . noteworthy , the crystals of ex . 1 were milled to the same level , and microscopic observation of ex . 7 ( confidor od ) shows a particle size below 2 - 5 μm as well ( namely , the particle size of the emulsion droplets is not — only — due to the size of the crystals ). the effects may be tested in canes 30 × 30 × 30 cm with reared approximately 500 ceratitis capitata ( wiedemann ) flies fed with protein yeast hydrolizate , males and females in ratio 1 : 1 , 20 days old and spraying a 0 . 01 % w / v emulsion of each example ( 10 ml ). after 2 hours letting all droplets to settle down and diminish aerial intoxication , 500 flies &# 39 ; lots must be transferred to the test cages . time to die all flies ( e . g ., 15 minutes ) is represented by table 4 : the time to penetrate the cuticle and kill the 500 flies of each cage is lower in ex . 13 and ex . 18 , being ex . 10 in an intermediate position in between ex . 1 and ex . 7 . on the other hand , visual inspection of spreading of imidacloprid formulations of the same examples an orange leaves showed that the examples according the invention ( 10 , 13 and 18 ) was more homogeneous and within a biggest area ( deposition with pasteur pipette 50 μl in spreaded leaves , visual inspection ). therefore , not only the penetration to insect cuticle is even improved over prior art , but also the absorption onto leaves ( at least for such insect and crop ) is enhanced according our invention . here is where the invention acquires it maximum and distinguishable features over the prior art . results on the same samples as above are ( all test according fao / who specifications for plant protection products and cipac methods ): the results show that regarding bleeding , the formulations according the present invention are superior to the state of the art formulations . further , the problem of sedimentation is solved according the present invention with approximately half of the energy with respect to comparative examples , that may suppose a crucial factor when the farmer tries to redisperse the sediment in the spray tank left filled or half - filled before continuing with the spray on the following day . while not all the results are shown here , it has been observed that formulations ex . 15 and ex . 16 present irreversible sedimentation already after two hours . moreover , consistently , redispersion was much improved when using aluminium sulfate in the formulation . the concomitant use of atlox 4912 and lp1 plus aluminium sulfate clearly have consistently shown a lower energy for redispersion . the wet sieve residue according the standardized test cipac mt 185 showed for all formulations according the invention a value below 0 . 1 %. a formulation of imidacloprid od according the invention was performed , and a capsule suspension ( cs ) formulation was performed as well , separately . emulsification of one formulation into the other was performed as final step obtaining a fully functional od - cs formulation ( that we designate as cx formulation , in the absence of still an international code for this innovative formulation type ). the procedure to create the cs formulation follow the teaching of the invention of the same authors and applicant ep 1840145 - a1 . the combination of cs formulations and od formulations follow the teaching of the invention of the same authors and applicant ep 1844553 - a1 . a suitable od + cs formulation , namely , a cx formulation is obtained with the following formula : this formula shows a good control of trips and whitefly in greenhouse . its functionality against many other pests is also ensured . example 19 was repeated but using deltamethrin instead of lambda - cyhalothrin . it shows a decrease of dermal toxicity of deltamethrin when applied for the control of fleas in cats and dogs . it is therefore expected that the control of fleas in humans is as well improved over the prior art with the use of such formulation , when diluted to the usual concentration and mixed with conventional cosmetic ingredients state of the art for hair prevention and treatment of flea infestations . replacing deltamethrin by benzoylureas ( as lufenuron , proven as effective ovicide in casaña - giner et al ., j . econ . entomol . ( 1999 ) vol . 92 ( 2 ), pp . 303 - 308 ), would increase notably the antiflea effect by virtue of long lasting biological effect added to the controlled release of microcapsules .	0
while the present invention may be embodied in many different forms , designs or configurations , for the purpose of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention , reference will be made to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings and specific language will be used to describe the same . it will nevertheless be understood that no limitation or restriction of the scope of the invention is thereby intended . any alterations and further implementations of the principles of the invention as described herein are contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates . fig1 a and fig1 b illustrate the first preferred embodiment of the current invention , where a specimen dispenser is integrated within an ultrasound skin treatment device . fig1 a shows the front view of the proposed device . fig1 b shows the cross - section view along the center line 101 of fig1 a . the first embodiment , which represents the best mode of this invention , contains the following aspects : ( 1 ) an enclosure body 11 which is made of metal , alloy or plastics ; ( 2 ) an ultrasound transmission plate 12 for contacting the skin with a smooth treatment surface 13 and transmitting ultrasonic vibration generated by an ultrasound generator 16 to the target skin area ; ( 3 ) a skin treatment specimen container and a dispenser , collectively referred to as dispenser 14 that contains skin treatment specimen 19 which can be , but not limited to , liquid , gel , cream , paste and powder ; ( 4 ) a specimen outlet 15 existing on the same continuous surface 13 of the ultrasound transmission plate 12 , through which skin treatment specimen 19 is dispensed close to or , preferably , directly on top of the surface 13 that is to be in contact with the skin during skin treatment ; ( 5 ) an electronic control unit 17 containing electrical circuits , electronic components and necessary embedded software exists within the enclosure body 11 ; and ( 6 ) an electrical interface 18 exists between the ultrasound generator 16 and the electronic control unit 17 so that the performance of the ultrasound generator 16 can be controlled by the electronic control unit 17 . the electronic control unit 17 controls ultrasonic generation from 16 , and may also provide user interface , power supply and charging functions . additionally , the electronic control unit 17 may send electrical signals to the specimen dispenser 14 or receives electrical signals from the specimen dispenser 14 to achieve required skin treatment procedure through another electrical interface 140 that connects to the electrical contacts 141 on dispenser 14 . in the most preferred mode , the enclosure body is in an easy - holding oval shape and includes two continuous pieces — front and back pieces — which are mechanically coupled together . the specimen outlet 15 is on the front piece immediately coupled to the ultrasonic transmission plate 12 . in use , the back piece is for palm - holding . the device includes a wireless charger and thus it can be charged wirelessly . so , except the specimen outlet 15 , the device does not have any other outlet or connectors . as an example , fig6 a - fig . 6 c illustrates a typical exterior shape of the device 60 according to the present invention , wherein it contains a skin treatment surface 62 as a front piece and a specimen outlet 65 on the treatment surface 62 . the device 60 can be wirelessly charged when it is placed in the recharger frame 61 as shown in fig6 b and fig6 b . the dispenser 14 may have any of the below features : ( 1 ) the dispenser 14 can be removable , in other words , it may be taken out and installed back into the enclosure body 11 by the user ; ( 2 ) the specimen 19 may be replenished within dispenser 14 by the user after depletion of the specimen during skin beatification process , i . e . dispenser 14 may be re - used ; ( 3 ) the dispenser 14 may be disposable and for one - time use only , where specimen 19 is pre - filled within the dispenser before usage ; ( 4 ) the dispenser 14 can be configured as multiple dispensers containing same or different specimens such that the dispensers can be individually selected to dispense contained specimen ; ( 5 ) the dispenser 14 can be configured as a single dispenser with multiple specimen compartments that may contain same or different specimens , such that each compartment within the dispenser can be individually selected and dispense specimen ; ( 6 ) the dispensing of the specimen 19 is fulfilled by a manually exerted force to the dispenser , upon which a pressure generation component that is part of the dispenser , for example a lead , a lever , a gauge , a cap , a piston , or a stretched porch , forces the specimen 19 to flow out of the dispenser through the outlet 15 ; ( 7 ) the dispensing of the specimen 19 is fulfilled by an electrically powered driving mechanism that is part of the dispenser and operated by the electrical interface 140 located within the enclosure 11 body ; ( 8 ) the dispensing of the specimen 19 is fulfilled by an electrically powered driving mechanism that is part of the device and electrically controlled by the control unit 17 . the driving mechanism forces the specimen 19 to flow out of the dispenser through the outlet 15 . in other words , the dispenser can be any of : a removable and replaceable dispenser ; a refillable dispenser ; a disposable and for one - time use only dispenser ; an integrated dispenser having multiple sub - dispensers containing same or different specimens , the sub - dispensers being individually selected to dispense specimen therein ; and an integrated dispenser with multiple specimen compartments containing same or different specimens , each of the compartments being individually selected to dispense specimen therein . the dispenser 14 may also have any of the following features with one or more electrical contacts 141 that exist within the dispenser 14 . the dispenser 14 may include an embedded specimen dispensing or releasing mechanism that is controlled by the electronic control unit 17 through the electrical interface 140 and the contacts 141 . the dispenser 14 may include an embedded memory or data storage device for storing information such as , but not limited to : ( 1 ) information of the specimen contained within the dispenser 14 , which can be , but not limited to , specimen brand , name , type , original , composition , production date and expiration date , specimen level within the dispenser and ordering information ; ( 2 ) information of optimal or pre - set operational mode of the ultrasonic generator 16 through the electronic control unit 17 when the specimen 19 contained in dispenser 14 is to be used , where the operational mode can be , but not limited to , timing , ultrasonic vibration strength and location of the operation to be generated on transmission plate 12 ; ( 3 ) information of optimal or pre - set operational mode of the different dispensers 14 or difference specimen compartments within a single dispenser , where the operational mode can be , but not limited to , timing of specimen application from each different dispenser or each different compartment , amount of specimen to be dispensed from each different dispenser or each different compartment ; ( 4 ) the information of historic usage data of the device , the dispenser and specimen ; and ( 5 ) information that is created or input by the user ; and ( 6 ) biographic information of the user . the electronic control unit 17 may receive data stored in the dispenser 14 to display information to the user through visual , skin contact or sound effects . alternatively , the electronic control unit 17 may receive data stored in the dispenser 14 to operate the ultrasonic generator 16 in a specific manner determined by the information stored in the said data . the control unit 17 may also comprise another embedded memory or data storage device for storing information such as , but not limited to , device operation data , user skin information data , user personal and biometrics information , dispenser identification data . such stored information may be updated as needed . control unit 17 may also contain embedded programs that utilize all the information stored in the control unit 17 and dispenser 14 to operate and control the serum dispensing from dispenser 14 , as well as the ultrasound generator 16 . such embedded programs may also be updated for better function . alternatively , the electronic control unit 17 may send data to be stored in the dispenser 14 . the dispenser 14 may be recovered by the manufacture and data stored within the dispenser 14 may be retrieved . although fig1 a and 1b show dispenser 14 residing within the enclosure body 11 , in practice the dispenser 14 may also be externally attached to the enclosure body 11 . however , when attached , the lotion 19 is still dispensed through a conduit that connects from the inside to the outside of the enclosure body 11 and finally through the outlet 15 . thus , the attached dispenser 14 still functions as an integral part of the device . fig2 a and fig2 b illustrate the second preferred embodiment of the present invention , where a specimen dispenser is integrated within an electrically powered brush device for skin treatment . fig2 a shows the front view of the device and fig2 b shows the cross - section view along the center line 101 of fig2 a . the device according to this embodiment includes the following components : ( 1 ) an enclosure body 21 made of metal , alloy or plastics ; ( 2 ) a brush head 22 , which can have any of rotational , tapping , pulsating and vibration movements during skin treatment that are powered and controlled by a brush head driver 26 ; ( 4 ) various brush fiber 23 for skin treatment being attached to the brush head ; ( 5 ) a skin treatment specimen container and dispenser 24 that contains a skin treatment specimen 29 , which can be , but not limited to , liquid , gel , cream , paste and powder ; ( 6 ) a specimen outlet 25 that is either in the form of a clearance into the brush head surface where brush fiber ( s ) 23 are disposed , or in the form of a tube extruding from the brush head surface to a height slightly shorter than the maximum length of the brush fibers , and through the specimen outlet 25 , the specimen 29 is dispensed to the surface of the brush head 22 and , preferably , to the brush fibers 23 that are to be in contact with the skin during skin treatment ; ( 7 ) an electronic control unit 27 containing electrical circuits , electronic components and necessary embedded software exists within the enclosure body 21 ; ( 8 ) an electrical interface 28 that exists between the brush head driver 26 and an electronic control unit 27 so that the performance of the brush head driver 26 can be controlled by the electronic control unit 27 , where the electronic control unit 27 controls the motion of the brush head 22 via the brush head driver 26 and may , optionally , also provide user interface , power supply and charging functions . additionally , the electronic control unit 27 may send electrical signals to the specimen dispenser 24 or receives electrical signals from the specimen dispenser 24 to achieve required skin treatment procedure through another electrical interface 240 that connects to the electrical contacts 241 on dispenser 24 . the dispenser 24 may have any of the below features : ( 1 ) the dispenser 24 is removable , i . e ., it may be taken out and installed back into the enclosure body 21 by the user ; ( 2 ) the specimen 29 may be replenished within dispenser 24 by the user after depletion of the specimen during skin beatification process , i . e . dispenser 24 may be re - used ; ( 3 ) the dispenser 24 may be disposable and for one - time use only , where specimen 29 is pre - filled within the dispenser before usage ; ( 4 ) the dispenser 24 can be configured as multiple dispensers containing same or different specimens may be installed in one enclosure body 21 , such that dispensers can be individually selected to dispense contained specimen ; ( 5 ) the dispenser 24 can be configured as a single dispenser with multiple specimen compartments that may contain same or different specimens , such that each compartment within the dispenser can be individually selected and dispense specimen ; ( 6 ) the dispensing of the specimen 29 is fulfilled by a manually exerted force to the dispenser , upon which a pressure generation component that is part of the dispenser , for example a lead , a lever , a gauge , a cap , a piston , or a stretched porch , forces the specimen 29 to flow out of the dispenser through the outlet 25 ; and ( 7 ) the dispensing of the specimen 29 is fulfilled by an electrically powered driving mechanism that is part of the dispenser and operated by the electrical interface 240 located within the enclosure 21 body ; ( 8 ) the dispensing of the specimen 29 is fulfilled by an electrically powered driving mechanism that is part of the device and electrically controlled by the control unit 27 . the driving mechanism forces the specimen 29 to flow out of the dispenser through the outlet 25 . the dispenser 24 may also include an embedded specimen dispensing or releasing mechanism within the dispenser 24 that is controllable by the electronic control unit 27 through the electrical interface 240 and one or more electrical contacts 241 embedded in the dispenser 24 . the dispenser 24 may also include an embedded memory or data storage device 242 within dispenser 24 for storing information such as , but not limited to : data stored in digital format by an embedded memory or data storage device within dispenser 24 that may contain any of the below information : ( 1 ) information of the specimen contained within the dispenser , such as but not limited to , specimen brand , name , type , original , composition , production date and expiration date , specimen level within the dispenser and ordering information ; ( 2 ) information of optimal or pre - set operational mode of the brush head 22 through the control electronics 27 when the specimen 29 contained in dispenser 24 is to be used , such as but not limited to , timing , motion type , motion strength and sequence of motions of the brush head 22 ; ( 3 ) information of optimal or preset operational mode of the different dispensers 24 or difference specimen compartments within a single dispenser , such as but not limited to , timing of specimen application from each different dispenser or each different compartment , amount of specimen to be dispensed from each different dispenser or each different compartment ; ( 4 ) information of historic usage data of the device , the dispenser and specimen ; ( 5 ) information that is created or input by the user ; and ( 6 ) biographic information of the user . the electronic control unit 27 may receive data stored in the dispenser 24 to display information to the user through visual , skin contact or sound effects . the electronic control unit 27 may receive data stored in the dispenser 24 to operate the brush head 22 in a specific manner determined by the information stored in the said data ; the control unit 27 may also comprise another embedded memory or data storage device for storing information such as , but not limited to , device operation data , user skin information data , user personal and biometrics information , dispenser identification data . such stored information may be updated as needed . control unit 27 may also contain embedded programs that utilize all the information stored in the control unit 27 and dispenser 24 to operate and control the serum dispensing from dispenser 24 , as well as the brush head driver 26 . such embedded programs may also be updated for better function . alternatively , the electronic control unit 27 may send data to be stored in the dispenser 24 . the dispenser 24 may be recovered by the manufacture and data stored within dispenser 24 may be retrieved . although fig2 a and 2b show dispenser 24 residing within the enclosure body 21 , in practice the dispenser 24 may also be externally attached to the enclosure body 21 . however , when attached , the lotion 29 is still dispensed through a conduit that connects from the inside to the outside of the enclosure body 21 and finally through the outlet 25 . thus , the attached dispenser 24 still functions as an integral part of the device . fig3 a and fig3 b illustrates the third preferred embodiment of the current invention , where a specimen dispenser is integrated within an electrically powered skin massaging device for skin treatment . fig3 a shows the front view of the proposed device . fig3 b shows the cross - section view along the center line 101 of fig3 a . the embodiment contains the following components : ( 1 ) an enclosure body 31 made of metal , alloy or plastics or a combination thereof ; ( 2 ) a skin massaging tip 32 for contacting the skin with a treatment surface 33 and transmitting the mechanical massaging motion to the target skin area , where the massaging motion of the massaging tip can be , but not limited to , vibration , pulsating , rotation , tapping , expansion and contraction ; ( 3 ) a motion generator 36 which generates the massaging motions ; ( 4 ) a skin treatment specimen container and dispenser , herein after collectively referred to as dispenser 34 , that contains specimen 39 which can be , but not limited to , liquid , gel , cream , paste and powder ; ( 5 ) an specimen outlet 35 existing on the same continuous surface 33 of the massaging tip 32 , through which skin treatment specimen 39 is dispensed close to or preferably , directly on top of the massaging tip 32 surface 33 that is to be in contact with the skin during skin treatment ; ( 6 ) an electronic control unit 37 containing electrical circuits , electronic components and necessary embedded software exists within the enclosure body 31 ; and ( 7 ) an electrical interface 38 located between the motion generator 36 and the electronic control unit 37 so that the performance of the massaging tip 32 can be controlled by the electronic control unit . the electronic control unit 37 controls the motions of the massaging tip 32 and it may , alternatively , also provide user interface , power supply and charging functions . additionally , the electronic control unit 37 may send electrical signals to the specimen dispenser 34 or receives electrical signals from the specimen dispenser 34 to achieve the required skin treatment procedure through another electrical interface 340 that connects to the electrical contacts 341 on dispenser 34 . the dispenser 34 may have any of the below features : ( 1 ) the dispenser 34 may be taken out and installed back into the enclosure body 31 by the user ; ( 2 ) the specimen 39 may be replenished within the dispenser 34 by the user after depletion of the specimen during skin beatification process , i . e . dispenser 34 may be re - used ; ( 3 ) the dispenser 34 may be disposable and for one - time use only , where the specimen 39 is pre - filled within the dispenser before usage ; ( 4 ) the dispenser 34 can be configured as multiple dispensers containing same or different specimens may be installed in a single enclosure body 31 , such that dispensers can be individually selected to dispense contained specimen ; ( 5 ) the dispenser 34 can be configured as a single dispenser with multiple specimen compartments that may contain same or different specimens , such that each compartment within the dispenser can be individually selected and dispense specimen ; ( 6 ) the dispensing of the specimen 39 is fulfilled by a manually exerted force to the dispenser , upon which a pressure generation component that is part of the dispenser , for example a lead , a lever , a gauge , a cap , a piston , or a stretched porch , forces the specimen 39 to flow out of the dispenser through the outlet 35 ; ( 7 ) the dispensing of the specimen 39 is fulfilled by an electrically powered driving mechanism that is part of the dispenser and operated by the electrical interface 340 located within the enclosure 31 body ; ( 8 ) the dispensing of the specimen 39 is fulfilled by an electrically powered driving mechanism that is part of the device and electrically controlled by the control unit 37 . the driving mechanism forces the specimen 39 to flow out of the dispenser through the outlet 35 . the dispenser 34 may also include a specimen dispensing or releasing mechanism embedded in the dispenser 34 . the embedded specimen dispensing or releasing mechanism is controlled by the electronic control unit 37 through the electrical interface 340 and various electrical contacts 341 embedded in the dispenser 34 . the dispenser 34 may also include an embedded memory or data storage device for storing information , such as but limited to : ( 1 ) the information of the specimen contained within the dispenser , such as but not limited to , specimen brand , name , type , original , composition , production date and expiration date , specimen level within the dispenser and ordering information ; ( 2 ) information of optimal or pre - set operational mode of the massaging tip 32 through the electronic control unit 37 when the specimen 39 contained in dispenser 34 is to be used , such as but not limited to , timing , motion type , motion strength and the sequence of motions of the massaging tip 32 ; ( 3 ) the information of optimal or pre - set operational mode of the different dispensers 34 or difference specimen compartments within a single dispenser , such as but not limited to , timing of specimen application from each different dispenser or each different compartment , amount of specimen to be dispensed from each different dispenser or each different compartment ; ( 4 ) the information of historic usage data of the device , the dispenser and specimen ; ( 5 ) the information that is created or input by the user ; and ( 6 ) the biographic information of the user . the electronic control unit 37 may receive data stored in the dispenser 34 to display information to the user through visual , skin contact or sound effects . the electronic control unit 37 may , alternatively , also receive data stored in the dispenser 34 to operate the massaging tip 32 in a specific manner determined by the information stored in the said data . the control unit 37 may also comprise another embedded memory or data storage device for storing information such as , but not limited to , device operation data , user skin information data , user personal and biometrics information , dispenser identification data . such stored information may be updated as needed . control unit 37 may also contain embedded programs that utilize all the information stored in the control unit 37 and dispenser 34 to operate and control the serum dispensing from dispenser 34 , as well as the motion generator 36 . such embedded programs may also be updated for better function . the electronic control unit 37 may send data to be stored in the dispenser 34 . the dispenser 34 may be recovered by the manufacture and data stored within the dispenser 34 may be retrieved . although fig3 a and 3b show dispenser 34 residing within the enclosure body 31 , in practice the dispenser 34 may also be externally attached to the enclosure body 31 . however , when attached , the lotion 39 is still dispensed through a conduit that connects from the inside to the outside of the enclosure body 31 and finally through the outlet 35 . thus , the attached dispenser 34 still functions as an integral part of the device . fig4 a and fig4 b illustrate the fourth preferred embodiment of the current invention , where a specimen dispenser is integrated within an electrically powered galvanic skin treatment device that produces electric current flowing along skin surface and / or through skin cells . fig4 a shows the front view of the proposed device . fig4 b shows the cross - section view along the center line 101 of fig4 a . the embodiment contains the following components : ( 1 ) an enclosure body 41 made of metal , alloy or plastics or a combination thereof ; ( 2 ) a galvanic skin treatment head 42 for contacting the skin with one or more electrodes 43 and producing electric voltage and current on the target skin area ; ( 3 ) a voltage or current driver 46 which generates the electric voltage or current ; ( 4 ) a skin treatment specimen container and dispenser , collectively referred to as dispenser 44 that contains specimen 49 that can be , but not limited to , liquid , gel , cream , paste and powder ; ( 5 ) a specimen outlet 45 existing on the surface of the treatment head 42 where the electrodes 43 reside , through the specimen outlet 45 , the skin treatment specimen 49 is dispensed close to or , preferably , directly on top of one or more of the electrodes 43 that are to be in contact with the skin during skin treatment ; ( 6 ) an electronic control unit 47 containing electrical circuits , electronic components and necessary embedded software exists within the enclosure body 41 ; and ( 7 ) an electrical interface 48 located between the voltage or current driver 46 and the electronic control unit 47 so that the voltage or current exerted by the electrodes 43 on the skin can be controlled by the electronic control unit . the electronic control unit 47 controls the electrode 43 by the voltage or current driver 46 , and may also provide user interface , power supply and charging functions . additionally , the electronic control unit 47 may send electrical signals to the specimen dispenser 44 or receives electrical signals from the specimen dispenser 44 to achieve required skin treatment procedure through another electrical interface 440 that connects to the electrical contacts 441 on dispenser 44 . the dispenser 44 may have any of the below features : ( 1 ) the dispenser 44 is removable , i . e ., may be taken out and installed back into the enclosure body 41 by the user ; ( 2 ) the specimen 49 may be replenished within dispenser 44 by the user after depletion of the specimen during skin beatification process , i . e . dispenser 44 may be re - used ; ( 3 ) the dispenser 44 may be disposable and for one - time use only , where the specimen 49 is pre - filled within the dispenser before usage ; ( 4 ) the dispenser 44 may be configured as multiple dispensers 44 containing same or different specimens , such that dispensers can be individually selected to dispense contained specimen ; ( 5 ) the dispenser 44 may be configured as a single dispenser with multiple specimen compartments that may contain same or different specimens , such that each compartment within the dispenser can be individually selected and dispense specimen ; ( 6 ) the dispensing of the specimen 49 is fulfilled by a manually exerted force to the dispenser , upon which a pressure generation component that is part of the dispenser , for example a lead , a lever , a gauge , a cap , a piston , or a stretched porch , forces the specimen 49 to flow out of the dispenser through the outlet 45 ; ( 7 ) the dispensing of the specimen 49 is fulfilled by an electrically powered driving mechanism that is part of the dispenser and operated by the electrical interface 440 located within the enclosure 41 body ; ( 8 ) the dispensing of the specimen 49 is fulfilled by an electrically powered driving mechanism that is part of the device and electrically controlled by the control unit 47 . the driving mechanism forces the specimen 49 to flow out of the dispenser through the outlet 45 . the dispenser 44 may also include an embedded specimen dispensing or releasing mechanism within the dispenser 44 . the embedded specimen dispensing or releasing mechanism is controlled by the electronic control unit 47 through the electrical interface 440 and various electrical contacts 441 embedded in the dispenser 44 . the dispenser 44 may also include an embedded memory or data storage device for storing information , such as but not limited to : ( 1 ) the information of the specimen contained within the dispenser , such as but not limited to specimen brand , name , type , original , composition , production date and expiration date , specimen level within the dispenser and ordering information ; ( 2 ) the information of optimal or pre - set operational mode of electrodes 43 through the control electronics 47 when the specimen 49 contained in dispenser 44 is to be used , such as but not limited to , timing , voltage or current type ( dc or ac ), voltage or current level , voltage or current temporal waveform , and frequency of the voltage or current applied by the electrodes 43 to the skin ; ( 3 ) the information of optimal or pre - set operational mode of the different dispensers 44 or difference specimen compartments within a single dispenser , such as but not limited to , timing of specimen application from each different dispenser or each different compartment , amount of specimen to be dispensed from each different dispenser or each different compartment ; ( 4 ) the information of historic usage data of the device , the dispenser and specimen ; ( 5 ) the information that is created or input by the user ; and ( 6 ) the biographic information of the user . the electronic control unit 47 may receive data stored in the dispenser 44 to display information to the user through visual , skin contact or sound effects . the electronic control unit 47 may receive data stored in the dispenser 44 to operate the electrodes 43 in a specific manner determined by the information stored in the said data . the control unit 47 may also comprise another embedded memory or data storage device for storing information such as , but not limited to , device operation data , user skin information data , user personal and biometrics information , dispenser identification data . such stored information may be updated as needed . control unit 47 may also contain embedded programs that utilize all the information stored in the control unit 47 and dispenser 44 to operate and control the serum dispensing from dispenser 44 , as well as the voltage or current driver 46 . such embedded programs may also be updated for better function . the electronic control unit 47 may send data to be stored in the dispenser 44 the dispenser 44 may be recovered by the manufacture and data stored within dispenser 44 may be retrieved . although fig4 a and 4b show dispenser 44 residing within the enclosure body 41 , in practice the dispenser 44 may also be externally attached to the enclosure body 41 . however , when attached , the lotion 49 is still dispensed through a conduit that connects from the inside to the outside of the enclosure body 41 and finally through the outlet 45 . thus , the attached dispenser 44 still functions as an integral part of the device . fig5 a and fig5 b illustrates the fifth preferred embodiment of the current invention , where a specimen dispenser is integrated within an electrically powered light illumination device for skin treatment . fig5 a shows the front view of the proposed device . fig5 b shows the cross - section view along the center line 101 of fig5 a . the embodiment contains the following components : ( 1 ) an enclosure body 51 made of metal , alloy or plastics or a combination thereof ; ( 2 ) a lightening housing 52 for treating skin with light illumination generated by one or more lightening units 53 which are powered by a light controller 56 ; ( 3 ) a skin treatment specimen container and dispenser , collectively referred to as dispenser 54 that contains specimen 59 which can be , but not limited to , liquid , gel , cream , paste and powder ; ( 4 ) a specimen outlet 55 existing on the surface of the lighting housing 52 where lightening units 53 reside , through the outlet 55 , the skin treatment specimen 59 is dispensed either on the surface of the housing unit , or directly onto the skin area to be treated ; ( 5 ) an electronic control unit 57 containing electrical circuits , electronic components and necessary embedded software exists within the enclosure body 51 ; and ( 6 ) an electrical interface 58 located between the light controller 56 and the electronic control unit 57 so that the light emission from the lightening unit 53 can be controlled by the electronic control unit 57 . the electronic control unit 57 controls the lightening unit 53 via the lightening controller 56 . it may also provide user interface , power supply and charging functions . additionally , the electronic control unit 57 may send electrical signals to the specimen dispenser 54 or receives electrical signals from the specimen dispenser 54 to achieve required skin treatment procedure through another electrical interface 540 that connects to the electrical contacts 541 on dispenser 54 . the dispenser 54 may have any of the below features : ( 1 ) the dispenser 54 is removable , i . e ., it may be taken out and installed back into the enclosure body 51 by the user ; ( 2 ) the specimen 59 may be replenished within dispenser 54 by the user after depletion of the specimen during skin beatification process , i . e . dispenser 54 may be re - used ; ( 3 ) the dispenser 54 may be disposable and for one - time use only , where specimen 59 is pre - filled within the dispenser before usage ; ( 4 ) the dispenser 54 may be configured as multiple dispensers containing same or different specimens , such that the dispensers can be individually selected to dispense contained specimen ; ( 5 ) the dispenser 54 may be configured as a single dispenser with multiple specimen compartments that may contain same or different specimens , such that each compartment within the dispenser can be individually selected and dispense specimen ; ( 6 ) the dispensing of the specimen 59 is fulfilled by a manually exerted force to the dispenser , upon which a pressure generation component that is part of the dispenser , for example a lead , a lever , a gauge , a cap , a piston , or a stretched porch , forces the specimen 59 to flow out of the dispenser through the outlet 55 ; ( 7 ) the dispensing of the specimen 59 is fulfilled by an electrically powered driving mechanism that is part of the dispenser and operated by the electrical interface 540 located within the enclosure 51 body ; ( 8 ) the dispensing of the specimen 59 is fulfilled by an electrically powered driving mechanism that is part of the device and electrically controlled by the control unit 57 , where the driving mechanism forces the specimen 59 to flow out of the dispenser through the outlet 55 . the dispenser 54 may also include a specimen dispensing or releasing mechanism which is controlled by the electronic control unit 57 through the electrical interface 540 and various electrical contacts 541 embedded in the dispenser 54 . the dispenser 54 may also include a memory or data storage device embedded in the dispenser 54 that may store information , such as but not limited to : ( 1 ) the information of the specimen contained within the dispenser such as but not limited to , specimen brand , name , type , original , composition , production date and expiration date , specimen level within the dispenser and ordering information ; ( 2 ) the information of optimal or pre - set operational mode of lightening unit 53 through the control electronics 57 when the specimen 59 contained in dispenser 54 is to be used , such as but not limited to , timing , light power , light duration , light wavelength and sequence of different lightening schemes that are emitted by the lightening unit 53 ; ( 3 ) the information of optimal or pre - set operational mode of the different dispensers 54 or difference specimen compartments within a single dispenser , such as but not limited to , timing of specimen application from each different dispenser or each different compartment , amount of specimen to be dispensed from each different dispenser or each different compartment ; ( 4 ) the information of historic usage data of the device , the dispenser and specimen ; ( 5 ) the information that is created or input by the user ; ( 6 ) the biographic information of the user . the electronic control 57 may receive data stored in the dispenser 54 to display information to the user through visual , skin contact or sound effects . the electronic control 57 may also receive data stored in the dispenser 54 to operate the lightening units 53 in a specific manner determined by the information stored in the said data . the electronic control 57 may also send data to be stored in the dispenser 54 . the control unit 57 may also comprise another embedded memory or data storage device for storing information such as , but not limited to , device operation data , user skin information data ; user personal and biometrics information , dispenser identification data . such , stored information may be updated as needed . control unit 57 may also contain embedded programs that utilize all the information stored in the control unit 57 and dispenser 54 to operate and control the serum dispensing from dispenser 54 , as well as the light controller 56 . such embedded programs may also be updated for better function . the electronic control unit 57 may send data to be stored in the dispenser 54 the dispenser 54 may be recovered by the manufacture and the data stored within dispenser 54 may be retrieved . although fig5 a and 5b show dispenser 54 residing within the enclosure body 51 , in practice the dispenser 54 may also be externally attached to the enclosure body 51 . however , when attached , the lotion 59 is still dispensed through a conduit that connects from the inside to the outside of the enclosure body 51 and finally through the outlet 55 . thus , the attached dispenser 54 still functions as an integral part of the device . the present invention has numerous advantages over the prior arts . for examples : ( 1 ) the integrated specimen dispenser with various electronic skin treatment devices enhances the portability and flexibility of the skin treatment process ; ( 2 ) the integrated specimen dispenser with electrical interface , together with the embedded memory within the dispenser or the control unit , enables customizability of the various electronic devices to provide treatment methods that are specific for each individual &# 39 ; s own skin care need , including personalized skin care product synthesized at the spot of treatment ; and ( 3 ) with the integrated dispenser containing product information , best mode of operation , pre - set beautification process and usage data , the device greatly increases the positive effect of the skin beautification process , reduces the complexity of the user &# 39 ; s operation and provides means of feedback from user to manufacture for further improvement on the skin care products . while one or more embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated above , the skilled artisan will appreciate that modifications and adoptions to those embodiments may be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention .	0
in relation to fig3 a and b have the root of the tree as their parent ; c1 - c3 have object a as their parent . objects a and b have attributes a1 - a3 and b1 - b3 respectively ; objects c1 c3 each have attributes a1 and c1 - c3 . for the purposes of this example it is also assumed that attributes a1 , b1 and c1 hold a unique identifier for their respective objects , i . e . a , b and c1 - c3 . thus the attribute a1 of c1 - c3 relates these objects to their parent a . one useful table mapping is suggested immediately by the table structure , i . e . three object tables as below : where ta , tb and tc hold the objects ( tuples ) at the nodes in the tree , i . e . ta and tb each hold just objects a and b in this case , and tc holds objects c1 - c3 . the column names ta1 , ta2 etc . hold the correspondingly named attributes a1 , a2 etc . these three base tables represent an efficient relational database representation of the directory contents . however although simple , they are unsuited for generalised query because they expose the directory structure , in the sense that the tree has become fragmented into three tables . the way that the tables combine to reconstruct the information content of the original is not obvious in the general case . even when it can be deduced , the reconstruction ( full or partial ) must be added to the query logic . a solution to the problem is to define the universal relation , which as explained earlier is essentially a single view of the directory , with a column for every attribute present in the directory and a row for each object ( in this simplification many aspects have been omitted for simplicity , e . g . naming clashes , multi - valued attributes , optional attributes , relationship to object classes and so on ). the construction of the universal relation can be most easily appreciated by considering it as a three - stage process : stage 1 : a new set of base tables is created such that all objects now also include the attributes and values of all their antecedents . in the example above , this only affects table tc which is extended to include columns a2 and a3 . in general the base object tables previously proposed are joined with their ancestors up the tree . this new set of base tables will be called extended base tables and in the example , will be denoted by tea , teb and tec . stage 2 : for each extended base table a complementary table is defined that contains all the attributes not present in the extended base table . each such complementary table contains a single entry with null values for each attribute . in the example , these complementary tables and their attributes are : stage 3 : to create the view , each extended base table is multiplied by its complementary table ; the universal relation is then the union of these results . in the example the universal relation has attributes a1 - a3 , b1 - b3 and c1 - c3 with five rows , one for each object . if substantiated , such a table , where columns in the table representing attributes not possessed by that object have a null value , would be suited to ad - hoc query because it alone represents the directory and has all the objects pre - associated with their ancestors up the tree . in the present invention , the universal relation is , however , only established as a view on the base relations , i . e . it will not exist as an explicit set of rows in the relational database ( since it is in general far too large to store in this way ). ad - hoc queries on the directory are formulated as relational expressions on the universal relation . it is important , however , to emphasise that in the evaluation of these expressions , the universal relation does not get substantiated . from a relational database viewpoint , the directory application is unusual in that the universal relation used in the query has the general structure of a union of many tables , each of which is multiplied with a complementary relation which has a single entry of all null values . although conventional relational databases include optimisers to improve query responsiveness , these optimisers have no special provision for this case . however , it is crucial to achieving acceptable query performance that the unusual properties of these complementary tables are taken into account . the data retrieval system of the present invention enables optimisation of relational expressions , by transforming a supplied expression into one which is faster ( less resource consuming , etc .) to evaluate . an important part of the optimisation is to eliminate unnecessary operations and possibly re - order others ; this results in the elimination of certain base relations from an expression , where possible . in order to explain the optimisation process , it is necessary to explain the syntax of a relational expression . for simplicity , the present description is expressed in the relational algebra employing a notation defined by c . j . date in “ an introduction to database systems ”. examples of operators in this notation are ( syntax is provided where this is not the same as the operator ): union : creates a relation consisting of all the objects appearing in either operand relation intersect : creates a relation consisting of all the objects appearing in both operand relations difference : creates a relation consisting of all the objects appearing in one operand relation but not in the other operand product : creates a relation consisting of all the possible combinations of objects taken from each operand relation , ( syntax : * or times ). project : restricts a relation to a specified list of attributes , ( syntax : [ ]). restrict : restricts a relation to those objects that satisfy given criteria , ( syntax : where ). join : is a synthetic operator representing a sequence of operations on operand relations . first common attributes are renamed in one relation , then a product of the relations is carried out , a restrict then eliminates objects from the resultant relation where initially common attributes differ , followed by a project to remove the renamed common attributes from the resultant relation . update : changes the contents of attribute ( s ) of any selected objects in a relation . using the example of fig3 a typical database query may be to retrieve the value of an attribute given a certain predicate . for example : list attribute c2 for the cases where c3 & gt ; 4 . using the above notation and assuming the universal relation is identified as v , a relational expression can be written as : this expression is passed to the relational database , and given that the universal relation is defined by : this expression can be executed , since it is now an expression involving just base tables . however , to do so without further transformation would involve the substantiation of the universal relation . an optimum form of the query for this example is : this is because the extended base tables tea and teb contribute nothing to the answer , nor do the complementary tables tca , tcb and tcc . 1 . tracks the origin of columns through the pseudo - evaluation of the expression , in particular being aware of which columns have arisen only from complementary tables ; and 2 . tracks the cardinality ( number of objects ) of the tables , again through the pseudo - evaluation of the expression . although these two techniques are described independently below , in practice they are simultaneously applied . conventionally , expressions are evaluated by parsing the complete expression to find where it can be split into an operator and two self - contained operands . the operator is then pushed onto a stack , whilst the two operands are recursively parsed in turn , repeating the process . when an operand is no longer an expression ( but a table ) then this too is pushed on to the stack . when parsing is complete , execution begins by popping the operands off the stack until an operator is found ; the popped operands are then the operands of that operator . the operator is evaluated and the result pushed back onto the stack . the process continues until the stack comprises a single value , which is the result of the original expression . in the case of optimisation , a pseudo - evaluation takes place . the operations are not actually evaluated to get the actual result ; instead the nature of the result is determined . this is sufficient to allow the pseudo - execution to continue . based on an understanding of these intermediates , many operations involving them can be eliminated . the origin of columns is tracked by the use of a parallel stack , synchronised with the main stack described above . the parallel stack , for each operand , maintains a list of those columns whose values are known to be entirely null ( or non - existent ). in the pseudo - evaluation , nulls are pushed on to this parallel stack , except when a table operand is a complementary table . in this case all the column names are pushed onto the stack instead . when operators are evaluated , only those columns of the result that are null have their names saved on the parallel stack . knowing the column origin allows assumptions to be made on the cardinality ( see below ) which can then be used to optimise the operations . in an analogous manner a second parallel stack is maintained to keep track of the cardinality of operands . this cardinality is not the true cardinality because the real operations are not being evaluated ; instead only the following situations are distinguished : cardinality null ( scn ): defined as the table having a single all null entry cardinality real ( rc ): the table has an indeterminate number of entries , about which nothing is known . initially , all non - complementary tables are assumed a real cardinality ; complementary tables are known to have a null cardinality . the rules to be used in the optimisation are as detailed below . application of the rules is an iterative process where each rule is considered in turn and applied if relevant ; after one rule has been applied , the full set of rules is then to be re - considered in sequence . optimisation is complete when no further rules are applicable . rule 1 . if one of the parameters of a product or join operation is a relation of zero degree ( a relation with no attributes ), or an expression that results in a relation of zero degree , then that relation ( or expression ) and the associated product or join operation is eliminated . for example , if b is a relation of zero degree , then : rule 2 . if one of the parameters of a selected operation is either ( a ) a relation with zero cardinality ( a zc relation )— or an expression that results in a relation with zero cardinality , or ( b ) a relation which is either a zc relation or has single cardinality with all of its values null ( an scn relation ), then specific optimisations are sometimes possible . the precise rules are : restriction on a zc with any filter or on an scn with a ‘ real ’ filter . if either operand is a zc operand ( replace with the other operand ); if one operand is an scn and the other is neither an scn nor a zc operand , then replace with that other operand . one operand is a scn ( replace with the scn ). difference : an operand with itself ( replace with a zc ); the first or second operand has zero cardinality ( replace with the first operand ). the first / last operand is a zc operand ( replace with a zc operand ); both operands are scn operands ( replace with an scn operand ). the operand is an scn and the filter selects ‘ real ’ entries ( replace with a zc ); the operand is an scn and the filter selects ‘ non - real ’, entries ( replace with an scn ). product : if either operand is a zc operand then the result is a null operand with the sum of the attributes of the constituent operands . if either operand is a zc operand then the result is a null operand with the sum of the unique attributes of the constituent operands . project : if the operand is a zc operand , the result is a null operand with the attributes of the project . for example , if b is a relation of zero cardinality , then : in all cases there is no distinction made between a relation or a relational expression ; this therefore requires that equivalent relational expressions can be identified even when they are differently specified . for example , trivially a union b is identical to b union a ; many more complex examples exist . the equivalence of sub - trees needs to established without execution of the expressions . the knowledge that certain attributes arising from zc or scn relations is also maintained by the optimiser through algebraic operations . this allows a subsequent projection operation specifying only such attributes to be identified as such a relation - this is important in not losing information through , for example , a join of an scn relation with a normal relation . rule 3 . restrictions are sub - divided where possible in order to minimise attribute coupling , e . g . rule 4 . projections , restrictions , renames , updates , extends , inserts and deletes , are moved forward unchanged through unions , intersections and differences , e . g . rule 5 . restrictions and renames immediately following a product or join between two relations are re - cast , where possible , as operations on the constituents of the product or join . the filter list or rename list is split according to the attributes present in the constituent relations , e . g . assume relations a ( a1 , a2 , a3 ) and b ( a1 , a2 , b1 , b2 ), then : in certain restrictions it may not be possible to split the filter list and , if so , the optimisation cannot be applied . rule 6 . projections on a relation that include new attribute ( s ) not present in that relation , are transformed to include prior relational product ( s ) with ‘ new attribute ’ relation ( s ) with the same name ( s ) as the new attribute ( s ), e . g . assume a relation a ( a1 , a2 , a3 ), then if a4 represents a new attribute : a [ a1 , a2 , a3 , a4 ] becomes ( a times a4 ) [ a1 , a2 , a3 , a4 ] rule 7 . the union of a sequence of update ( or rename , extend , insert or delete ) operations , is transformed into individual update ( or rename , extend , insert or delete ) operations , e . g . assume relations a ( a1 , a2 , a3 ) and b ( a1 , a2 , a3 ), then : rule 8 . expressions in update ( or rename , extend , insert or delete ) operations comprising products of a single base relation with one or more ‘ new attribute ’ relations , are transformed into a prior assignment statement to that base relation , e . g . assume a base relation a ( a1 , a2 , a3 ) and ‘ new attribute ’ relation b then : rule 9 . in all expressions the attributes that must be present for all intermediates to generate the final result are calculated . for : ( a ) a project operation the attributes specified are replaced by the minimum necessary set , and ( b ) immediately after each relation is inserted a project operation that retains only the minimum attributes . e . g . assuming a relation a ( a1 , a2 , a3 , a4 ): (( a [ a1 , a2 , a3 ]) where ( a1 = x and a2 = y )) [ a1 , a3 ] ( a rename a1 as b1 ) [ a2 , b1 , a3 ] becomes (( a [ a1 , a2 , a3 ]) rename a1 as b1 ) [ a2 , b1 , a3 ] rule 10 . consecutive projections on a relation are eliminated by removing all but the last projection , e . g . assume a relation a ( a1 , a2 , a3 ), then : ( a [ a1 , a2 , a3 ]) [ a2 , a3 ] becomes a [ a2 , a3 ] redundant projections are also removed , i . e . those that specify all the attributes of a relation or intermediate . rule 11 . occurrences of the view relation are substituted with the equivalent expressions involving the base relations . rule 12 . consecutive restrictions on a relation are combined , e . g . assume a relation a ( a1 , a2 , a3 ), then : none of the rules above will adversely affect any arbitrary relational query operation that does not involve directory data . rule 1 allows simplification of many expressions and is important because relations of zero degree often arise from the action of other rules on the expansion of the view relation . rule 2 likewise exploits the properties of the complementary directory relations and the effects of other rules and operations upon them . rule 3 is present to allow sub - division of restrictions such that maximum exploitation can be made of them in rule 5 . rule 4 is present to allow user specified operations to trickle down to the expansion of the view relation , as is rule 5 . rules 6 to 8 are peculiar to update processing and allow base directory relations to be updated through operations expressed on the view relation . rule 9 ensures that the minimum subset of the database is used where possible . rules 10 and 12 attempt to mitigate harmful effects of optimisation by eliminating operations introduced through the other rules . rule 11 is the important substitution of the view relation . application of the rules is an iterative process where each rule is considered in turn and applied if relevant ; in general , after one rule has been applied the full set of rules is then re - considered once more , in sequence from the start . elimination : removing expressions that do not contribute to the result ( rules : 1 , 2 , 10 ) fragmentation : breaking up an expression into more primitive sub components ( rule : 3 ) to a first approximation , the order of consideration of the rules matches this analysis ; substitution expands the query introducing new operations ; elimination is then performed to simply the resulting expression ; fragmentation prepares the result for the other rules ; sequencing applies the main elements of optimisation , pushing down sub - setting operations to the base relations . the combination rules are performed last , simplifying the query by the joining together of primitive operations . in practice , however , it has been found beneficial to defer substitution until after sequencing ; although the results are the same the algorithm operates more efficiently . the technique allows the base query ( as specified by the user ) to be simplified first , before a second such phase takes place on the expanded query . the rule order suggested previously is not critical to the algorithm and various other sequences also provide valuable optimisation . it is expensive to consider all the rules in sequence all of the time — many of the rules involve much processing . it will be seen that rule control can be introduced in which a history is maintained for each rule showing what else has been applied since that rule was itself last invoked . most of the rules above depend upon a subset of the other rules having been applied for them to have further effect on a subsequent pass ; other rules should ( in some cases must ) be applied only once ( e . g . rules 3 and 11 ). it will also be seen that other rules can be employed , for example , a join operation which is a synthetic operation made up of a number of simpler operations could advantageously be broken down into it sequence of simpler operations , thus allowing for possible optimisation of these simpler operations . thus , assuming relations : a ( a1 , a2 , a3 ) and b ( a1 , a2 , b1 , b2 ), then :	8
fig1 shows a configuration and a block diagram of a first embodiment of a camera in accordance with the present invention . a main mirror 2 and sub - mirror 3 are mounted in a camera body 1 . the main mirror 2 is a half - mirror , and a light beam from a lens barrel 6 is directed by the sub - mirror 3 to an image sensor 4 which detects shake . the image sensor 4 is positioned at a distance which is equal to a distance from the sub - mirror 3 to a film surface , and detects an object image . an output of the image sensor 4 is sent to a shake detector 5 which calculates a positional displacement ( shake x ) of the object image based on the output sent from the image sensor 4 and supplies the calculated shake to a shake control unit 9 arranged in a lens barrel 6 through a contact 10 . when the shake detector 5 receives a mirror drive - up signal from a release control circuit ( not shown ) or when an output level from the image sensor 4 is lower than a predetermined level , it sends a detection disable signal to the shake control unit 9 . one angular sensor 7 for detecting the shake is arranged in the lens barrel 6 along a vertical axis of the lens barrel 6 and another angular sensor 7 is arranged along a horizontal axis . outputs of the angular sensors 7 are sent to the shake control unit 9 . a pair of shake compensation drivers 8 are arranged along the vertical axis of the lens barrel 6 and another pair of shake compensation drivers 8 are arranged along the horizontal axis . the shake compensation drivers 8 drive shake compensation lenses 11 and 12 in accordance with the outputs from the shake control unit 9 . when the shake control unit 9 does not receive the detection disable signal from the shake detector 5 , it supplies drive signals to the shake compensation drivers 8 in accordance with the positional displacement ( shake amplitude x ) of the object image supplied from the shake detector 5 through the contact 10 , and when it receives the detection disable signal from the shake detector 5 , it calculates the shake x based on the output of the angular velocity sensor 7 by a formula ( 3 ) to be described later , and supplies the drive signals to the shake compensation drivers 8 in accordance with the calculated shake amplitude . fig2 shows waveforms of a motion of the object image as determined by a camera body and a motion of the camera body as determined by the angular sensor 7 . a waveform 1 shows an output waveform of the shake amplitude x from the shake detector 5 , and a waveform 2 shows an output waveform of the shake amplitude x calculated based on the output of the angular velocity sensor 7 . the shake amplitude x of the image on the film surface is generally given by : where θ is an angular change of the image to the optical axis due to the shake , and f is a focal length of the lens . accordingly , the angular velocity ω and the shake amplitude x have the following relation : when the output of the angular velocity sensor 7 includes an offset δ to be described later , the shake amplitude x is given by : if the shake velocity is zero , the detection by the angular velocity sensor 7 is to be zero , but a definite value other than zero may sometimes be detected . such a detection is called the offset of the angular velocity sensor 7 . when the angular velocity sensor 7 includes positive offset , the offset δ is integrated in the calculation of the shake amplitude x . as a result , an error ( f · δ · t ) which is proportional to the time is added to the shake amplitude x and the waveform 2 rises as it goes toward a right end . ( if the offset is negative , the error of the shake amplitude x is -( f · δ · t ) and the waveform 2 falls as it goes toward the right end . fig3 shows a flow chart of an operation of a cpu in the shake control unit 9 . in the present embodiment , when the detection of the shake by the optical shake detection device is not permitted during the photographing or when an environmental brightness is low , the output of the mechanical shake detection device which calculates the shake amplitude x by detecting the angular velocity is used . further , in the present embodiment , the angular velocity sensor of the mechanical shake detection device detects the angular velocity even when the shake is compensated by using the optical shake detection device . the flow chart of fig3 is explained below . when a power switch ( not shown ) is turned on , the flow is started . in a step 1 , whether the output level from the image sensor is lower than the predetermined level because of a low environmental brightness , the detection disable signal indicating the detection of the shake amplitude x is disabled is produced by the shake detector 5 and it is supplied to the shake control unit 9 or not is determined . if it has been supplied , the process proceeds to a step 7 , and if it has not been supplied , the process proceeds to a step 2 . the detection disable signal is produced not only when the environmental brightness is low but also when a release button ( not shown ) is fully depressed to turn on a release switch ( not shown ). in the step 2 , the shake amplitude signal x produced by the shake detector 5 is received through the contact 10 . in a step 3 , the shake amplitude x supplied in the step 2 is differentiated by time to calculate a shake velocity . in a step 4 , whether the shake velocity calculated in the step 3 is zero or not is determined . if the shake velocity when the shake amplitude is inputted is zero ( that is , the shake amplitude is zero ), the offset δ of the angular velocity sensor 7 is checked in a step 5 , and if the shake velocity is not zero , the process proceeds to a step 6 . in the step 5 , the output of the angular velocity sensor 7 is monitored and the output δ is stored . the stored value δ is used as the offset of the angular velocity sensor 7 . each time the zero speed is detected in the step 4 , the stored offset is updated . thus , the shake amplitude x can always be calculated by a formula ( 3 ) to be described later with the latest offset δ . in a step 7 , whether the offset δ has been calculated and stored in the step 5 or not is determined . if it has been stored , the process proceeds to a step 8 , and if it has not been stored , the process proceeds to a step 9 . in the step 8 , an angular velocity which is the output of the angular velocity sensor 7 less the offset δ stored in the step 5 is integrated by time t as shown by the formula ( 3 ) to calculate the shake amount x . then , the process proceeds to the step 6 . in the step 9 , the output ( angular velocity ) of the angular velocity sensor 7 is integrated by time t as shown in the formula ( 3 ) with δ = 0 to calculate the shake amplitude x . then , the process proceeds to the step 6 . where ω s is the angular velocity detected by the angular velocity sensor 7 . the angular velocity ω s detected by the angular velocity sensor 7 , the actual angular velocity ω and the offset δ have the following relationship : in the step 6 , if the detection disable signal has not been received in the step 1 , a drive signal is supplied to the shake compensation driver 8 in accordance with the shake amplitude x received in the step 2 , and the process returns to the step 1 . if the detection disable signal has been received in the step 1 , a drive signal is supplied to the shake compensation driver 8 in accordance with the shake amplitude x calculated in the step 8 or 9 , and the process returns to the step 1 . the process of receiving or calculating the shake amplitude x and supplying the drive signal to the shake compensation driver 8 in accordance with the shake amplitude x is repeated until the power switch ( not shown ) is turned off . fig4 shows a flow chart of an operation of a cpu in the shake compensation driver 8 . like the flow chart of the shake control unit 9 shown in fig3 the flow is started when the power switch ( not shown ) is turned on . in a step 10 , whether the drive signal from the shake control unit 9 has been received or not is determined . if it has been received , the process proceeds to a step 11 , and if it has not been received , the process waits for the input of the drive signal . in the step 11 , the shake compensation lenses 11 and 12 are driven in accordance with the input drive signal . in a step 12 , whether the input and the drive signal used to drive the shake compensation lenses 11 and 12 in the step 11 are equal or not is determined . if the input and the drive signal are equal and the shake compensation has been completed , the process returns to the step 10 . if the input and the drive signal are not equal and the shake compensation has not been completed , the process returns to the step 11 where the shake compensation lenses 11 and 12 are driven until the shake compensation is completed . a second embodiment of the present invention is now explained . a difference between the second embodiment and the first embodiment lies in the use of an angular acceleration sensor ( not shown ) in place of the angular velocity sensor . since the angular acceleration sensor is less expensive than the angular velocity sensor , it is easier to implement from a cost standpoint . the configuration and block diagram of the second embodiment are same as those of the first embodiment except that the angular velocity sensor 7 has been substituted by the angular acceleration sensor ( not shown ). fig5 shows a flow chart of an operation of a cpu in the shake control unit 9 . the flow chart of fig5 is explained below . the flow from the start to the step 22 is same as that from the start to the step 2 in fig3 and the explanation thereof is omitted . in a step 23 , the shake amplitude x inputted in the step 22 is differentiated by time t twice to calculate the shake angular acceleration . in a step 24 , whether the shake angular acceleration calculated in the step 23 is zero or not is determined . if the shake angular acceleration when the shake amplitude x was received is zero , the offset γ of the angular acceleration sensor is checked in the step 25 . if the shake angular acceleration is not zero , the process proceeds to a step 29 . in the step 25 , the output of the angular acceleration sensor is monitored and the output γ thereof is stored . the stored value γ is used as the offset of the angular acceleration sensor . in the step 25 , each time the offset γ is monitored , the offset is stored to update the stored offset . in this manner , the shake amplitude x can be calculated by a formula ( 5 ) to be described later with the offset γ which complies with a photographing condition for each photographing . in a step 26 , the shake amplitude x is received from the shake detector 5 , and the shake amplitude x is differentiated by time t to calculate a shake velocity v from the detection output of the shake detector 5 . in a step 27 , the shake angular acceleration is integrated by time t as shown by the formula ( 4 ) by using the output of the angular acceleration sensor ( not shown ) and the offset γ of the angular acceleration sensor stored in the step 25 to calculate the shake velocity v from the detection output of the angular acceleration sensor . where a s is the angular acceleration detected by the angular acceleration sensor . the detected angular acceleration a s , the actual angular acceleration a and the offset γ have the following relationship : in a step 28 , the integration constant c 1 of the formula ( 4 ) is calculated by setting v = v , where v is the velocity calculated in the step 26 , and v is velocity calculated in the step 27 . in a step 29 , a drive signal is supplied to the shake compensation driver 8 in accordance with the shake amplitude x inputted in the step 22 , and the process returns to the step 1 . in a step 30 , whether the offset γ has been stored in the step 25 or not is determined . if it has been stored , the process proceeds to a step 31 , and if it has not been stored , the process proceeds to a step 32 . in the step 31 , the shake velocity v is integrated by time t as shown by the formula ( 4 ) by using the output of the angular acceleration sensor ( not shown ), the offset γ of the angular acceleration sensor stored in the step 25 and the integration constant c 1 calculated in the step 28 to calculate the shake amplitude x from a formula ( 5 ). ## equ1 ## in the step 32 , the angular acceleration is integrated by time t to calculate the velocity , and an integration constant c 2 in the velocity formula is calculated in order to calculate the shake amplitude by integrating the velocity formula by time t . the calculation of the integration constant c 2 is explained below . the acceleration a is a function of the time t and is given by a s - γ = α ( t ). in order to calculate the velocity v , α ( t ) is integrated by time t : ## equ2 ## where a ( t ) is the integration of α ( t ) by time t . in order to calculate the velocity v from a time t 1 to a time t 2 , the acceleration a s is integrated from t 1 to t 2 : assuming that the acceleration α ( t 1 ) at the time t 1 is a boundary of switching from a positive acceleration to a negative acceleration , relationships among the shake position x , the velocity v and the acceleration a with the time t 1 being an origin point ( the time t 1 is 0 ) are shown in fig6 a - 6c . since the velocity v is zero as shown in fig6 b , thus , the integration constant c 2 in the formula ( 6 ) of v = a ( t ) can be calculated . after the calculation constant c 2 has been calculated , the velocity v after the time t = 0 can be calculated by putting a desired time t into the formula ( 6 ). in the step 33 , the velocity v is integrated by time t as shown by a formula ( 7 ) by using the output of the angular acceleration sensor ( not shown ), the integration constant c 2 calculated in the step 32 and γ = 0 to calculate the shake amplitude x . ## equ3 ## in a step 29 , a drive signal is supplied to the shake compensation driver 8 in accordance with the shake amplitude x calculated in the step 31 or 33 , and the process returns to the step 1 . the process of inputting or calculating the shake amount x and supplying the drive signal to the shake compensation driver 8 in accordance with the shake amplitude x is repeated by the cpu of the shake control unit 9 until the power switch ( not shown ) is turned off . the operation of the cpu in the shake compensation driver 8 of the second embodiment is identical to that of the cpu shown in fig4 in the first embodiment , and the explanation thereof is omitted . in the first and second embodiments , the detection disable signal is produced by the shake detector 5 not only when the environmental brightness is low but also when the release button ( not shown ) is fully depressed to turn on the release switch ( not shown ) so that the shake detector 5 receives the mirror drive - up signal from the release control circuit ( not shown ). in the first and second embodiments , when the shake control unit 9 receives the detection disable signal from the shake detector 5 , it switches the shake detection output from the detection output of the optical shake detection device to the detection output of the mechanical shake detection device . alternatively , the mirror drive - up signal produced by the release control circuit ( not shown ) which indicates the depression of the release button ( not shown ) may be supplied directly to the shake control unit 9 without routing the shake detector 5 so that the detection output is switched by the mirror drive - up signal . fig7 is a block diagram showing the third embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention for detecting an unintentional movement of hands . in this embodiment , a control circuit 105 including a computer further has a second a / d conversion input terminal 105c , to which the output s from an lpf 102 is applied . the rest of the constitution is the same as the above - mentioned constitution shown in fig1 . fig8 a to 8e are views showing waveforms obtained in respective units while the power source is turned on ( t = t0 ) and in case that the camera is shaken with the unintentional movement of hands . the waveforms shown in fig8 a to 8c are the same as the above - mentioned waveforms shown in fig1 a to 12c , respectively . that is , fig8 a shows the angular displacement ω caused by the movement of hands and detected by the angular sensor 101 , fig8 b shows the angular velocity v caused by the movement of hands , which is the output of the angular velocity sensor 101 , and fig8 c shows the output s of the lpf 102 . fig8 d shows the angular acceleration α obtained by differentiating the output s of the lpf 102 , and fig8 e shows the output out of an operational amplifier 104 . now , the operation of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flow chart shown in fig9 . first , when the power source is turned on at time t0 ( step # 101 ), whether the time t1 required for the angular velocity sensor 101 to obtain stationary state has elapsed or not is judged ( step # 102 ). if the time t1 has already elapsed , the control circuit 105 differentiates the output s of the lpf 102 applied to the input terminal 105c to obtain the angular acceleration α ( step # 103 ). next , the time when the amount of change of the angular acceleration α becomes equal to 0 , that is , the time when the value of the angular acceleration α reaches its peak is detected ( step # 104 ). and at that time the switch 106 is turned off ( step # 105 ). in this embodiment , the switch 106 is turned off at time t3 . as the angular velocity v is then equal to 0 , the output s of the lpf 102 and the angular velocity . increment . v are also equal to 0 . accordingly , the output out of the operational amplifier 104 gives exact angular velocity immediately after the switch 106 is turned off . and the control circuit 105 immediately starts detection of the angular velocity ( step # 106 ), integrates the result of the detection of the angular velocity and obtains the angle of the shake ( step # 107 ), and detects the angular velocity ( step # 108 ). the above calculation of the angle of the shake (# 107 ) and detection of the angular velocity ( step # 108 ) are repeated . now , the operation of another embodiment according to the present invention will be described with reference to the flow chart shown in fig1 . though , in the above - mentioned embodiment , the time to turn off the switch 106 when the angular acceleration α reaches its peak , that is , when the angular velocity becomes equal to 0 , is detected on the basis of the output s of the lpf 102 , said time when the angular velocity is equal to 0 can be detected more exactly on the basis of the output out of the operational amplifier 104 , for the signals are amplified . in this embodiment , in consideration of this , the time when the angular velocity v becomes equal to 0 is more exactly detected . incidentally , the processes from step # 111 to step # 116 are the same as those from step # 101 to step # 106 described before , and description thereof will be omitted . in step # 115 , if the time to turn off the switch 106 when the angular velocity v is equal to 0 is not exactly detected , the angular velocity . increment . v , that is , the error arises as in the prior art . accordingly , in order to detect said error , the output s of the operational amplifier 104 is differentiated to obtain angular acceleration β ( step # 117 ) and whether the angular acceleration β reaches its peak or not is judged ( step # 118 ). if the angular acceleration reaches its peak , the output s at that time of the operational amplifier 104 is stored and defined as . increment . v . after that , exact angular velocity can be obtained by subtracting thus defined . increment . v from the values of angular velocity obtained afterward ( step # 119 ). then , as in the above - mentioned embodiments , the corrected angular velocity is integrated to obtain the angle of the shake ( step # 120 ), and the angular velocity is detected from the output of the operational amplifier 104 ( step # 121 ). and then , the operation returns to step # 117 , thus the above processes are repeated . in accordance with the present invention , the mechanical shake detection device and the optical shake detection device having a better performance than the mechanical shake detection device are used , and the shake is compensated by using the detection output of the optical shake detection device when the optical shake detection device is able to detect the relative positional displacement of the object image , and using the calculated output of the mechanical shake detection device which calculates the shake amplitude while taking the error inherent to the mechanical sensor into consideration when the optical shake detection device is unable to detect the relative positional displacement of the object image . accordingly , the optimum shake compensation is always attained before and during the photographing . according to the present invention , the time when the angular velocity becomes equal to 0 is detected and the output of the angular velocity sensor starts to be taken in at that time . or , even if the output of the angular velocity is not taken in exactly at the time when the angular velocity is equal to 0 , the error caused by said time lag is corrected . therefore , exact angular velocity can be obtained immediately after the switch is turned off , which makes it possible to rapidly detect the shake of the camera caused by the unintentional movement of hands in taking a picture .	7
an example of a saturated polyester which can be used in the present invention is polyethylene terephthalate ( pet , melting point = 260 ° c .) obtained by polycondensation of terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol . in addition , polybutylene terephthalate ( pbt , melting point = 224 ° c . ), poly - 1 , 4 - cyclo - hexanedimethylene terephthalate ( pcht , melting point = 290 ° c .) can be used . usually , these phthalic acid type polyesters are insoluble in most solvents . however , solvent - soluble or water , dispersive granular products of these polyesters have recently been developed as saturated polyester type binders . in the present invention , a solution of such saturated polyester in solvent may be used , but use of a water dispersible saturated polyester is preferred because handling of the polyester is easier . polyvinyl pyrrolidone is a polymer having a very good water solubility and being capable of forming a transparent film , and it is known that polyvinyl pyrrolidone can be applied to manufacture medicines , cosmetics , adhesives and fiber finishing agents . the thermal dye - transfer type recording sheet of the present invention is prepared by coating on a support with a coating color containing an aqueous dispersion of said saturated polyester or a solution of said saturated polyester in solvent with an aqueous solution of polyvinyl pyrrolidone and if necessary with an ordinary pigment such as calcium carbonate , in a coating weight of 7 to 15 g / m . the thermal dye - transfer type recording sheet is obtained by coating of a mixture of the saturated polyester and polyvinyl pyrrolidone , and the resulting coated paper may be used under such recording conditions that the heating area is very small , as in the case of an electrocardiogram meter . however , when the heating area is large as in the case of a thermal plate , adhesion is caused between the recording sheet and a coloring material - coated substrate just after thermal recording and separation between the two becomes difficult . accordingly , in order to obtain a general - purpose recording sheet , it is preferred that pigments are added to the coating color composition for facilitating separation of the recording sheet from the substrate . as the pigment , there may appropriately be chosen and used ordinary pigments such as natural ground calcium carbonate , precipitated carbonate , talc , kaolin , natural or synthetic silicate , amorphous silica , aluminum hydroxide , zinc oxide and titanium dioxide . among these pigments , calcium carbonate is most preferred because it provides a good optical color density and a high separation effect . it is preferred that the pigment be added in an amount of 50 to 900 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of the mixture of the saturated polyester and polyvinyl pyrrolidone . in the present invention , in order to attain special purposes , the above - mentioned binder may be used in combination with other binders customarily used for processing of paper , such as modified starch , hydroxyethyl cellulose , methyl cellulose , a styrene - butadiene copolymer latex ( sbr latex ), an acrylic polymer latex , polyvinyl alcohol , a derivative thereof , protein , gelatin , casein , and guar gum . when the saturated polyester is used in combination with polyvinyl pyrrolidone , if the polyvinyl pyrrolidone is incorporated in an amount of 6 to 12 % by weight with 18 to 24 % by weight of the saturated polyester as described in the following example , there can be obtained a recording sheet which is most excellent in optical color density and color fastness . as the support of the thermal recordng sheet of the present invention , there can be used plain papers such as fine papers , namely papers made from a bleached chemical pulp , such as nbkp , nbsp , lbkp or lbsp , to which are added according to need a mechanical pulp such as gp or tmp , a semi - mechanical pulp such as cgp , a dry strength additive such as starch , polyacrylamide resin or its derivative , melamineformaldehyde resin or a urea - formaldehyde resin , a sizing agent such as rosin , a synthetic polymer or an alkylketene dimer , a precipitant such as aluminium sulfate , an inorganic filler such as talc , clay , natural ground calcium carbonate or precipitated calcium carbonate , aluminum hydroxide , a natural or synthetic silicate or titanium dioxide and an organic filler such as a powdery urea - formaldehye resin , and papers obtained by externally adding oxidized starch or other dry strength additives to the foregoing papers . however , it must be noted that the composition of the paper used as the support is not particularly critical . furthermore , in some application fields , a resin film can be used as the support of the recording sheet of the present invention . the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the following example that by no means limit the scope of the present invention . a 40 % aqueous dispersion of a saturated polyester (&# 34 ; vilonal md - 1200 &# 34 ; manufactured and supplied by toyobo co ., ltd .) was mixed with a 40 % aqueous solution of polyvinyl pyrrolidone at a mixing ratio shown in the table and a slurry of natural ground calcium carbonate (&# 34 ; super 1500 &# 34 ; manufactured and supplied by maruo calcium co ., ltd .) was added to the mixed binder to obtain coating colors . on the other hand , two coating colors were prepared by mixing 30 parts by weight ( as solids ) of a 40 % aqueous dispersion of a saturated polyester (&# 34 ; vilonal md - 1200 &# 34 ; manufactured and supplied by toyobo co ., ltd . ), a 40 % aqueous solution of polyvinyl pyrrolidone independently with 70 parts by weight ( as solids ) of a slurry of natural ground calcium carbonate (&# 34 ; super 1500 &# 34 ; manufactured and supplied by maruo calcium co ., ltd .). these coating colors were coated in a coating weight of 10 to 14 g / m 2 on a fine paper having stockigt sizing degree of 12 seconds , a basis weight of 66 g / m 2 and a thickness of 97 μm to obtain thermal recording sheets nos . 10 , 14 , 18 , 19 , 20 and 21 . separately , sublimable thermal transfer inks of blue , yellow and red were prepared by kneading 10 parts by weight of each of the following three sublimable disperse dyes ; namely disperse blue 24 ( marketed under the tradename &# 34 ; duranol blue 2g &# 34 ;), disperse yellow 42 ( marketed under the tradename of &# 34 ; resolin yellow grl &# 34 ;) and disperse rde 1 ( marketed under the tradename of &# 34 ; celliton scarlet b &# 34 ;), independently with 3 parts by weight of polyvinyl butyral and 45 parts by weight of isopropyl alcohol by means of a three - roll mixing ill . a fine paper having a basis weight of 30 g / m 2 was solidly gravure printed with these inks to obtain a transfer substrate . the printed surface of the transfer substrate was brought into contact with the coated surface of the above - mentioned thermal dye - transfer type recording sheet and the assembly was pressed for 5 seconds to a thermal plate of 3 cm × 3 cm maintained at 300 ° c . so that the back face of the transfer substrate was faced to the thermal plate , whereby thermal transfer to the thermal recording sheet was performed . the reflective optical densities the so - prepared transfer substrate . the reflective optical densities of the blue , yellow and red recorder surfaces of the thermal transfer sheets were measureed by a macbeth densitometer after 24 hours had passed from the time of thermal transfer . furthermore , in order to examine the change of the record with the lapse of time , the obtained record was exposed to carbon arc beams for 10 hours by using a fade meter and then the optical color densities of the exposed record where similarly measured . this exposure corresponds to about 20 days of outdoor exposure in and around tokyo . incidentally , the reflective optical densities were measured by using a visual filter ( wratten no . 106 ) for the blue color , a blue filter ( wratten no . 47 ) for the yellow color and a green filter ( wratten no . 58 ) for the red color . the obtained results are shown in the table . table__________________________________________________________________________results obtained in examplethermal dye - transfer reflective opticaltype recording paper densities binders pigment measuringno . (% by weight ) (% by weight ) time blue yellow red__________________________________________________________________________10 ** polyester ( 30 ) natural ground after 24 hrs . 1 . 19 0 . 70 1 . 18 calcium standing carbonate ( 70 ) after exposure 1 . 19 0 . 69 1 . 18 by fade meter18 * polyester ( 24 ) & amp ; natural ground after 24 hrs . 1 . 20 0 . 70 1 . 20 polyvinyl calcium standing pyrrolidone ( 6 ) carbonate ( 70 ) after exposure 1 . 20 0 . 69 1 . 20 by fade meter19 * polyester ( 18 ) & amp ; natural ground after 24 hrs . 1 . 21 0 . 69 1 . 20 polyvinyl calcium standing pyrrolidone ( 12 ) carbonate ( 70 ) after exposure 1 . 20 0 . 69 1 . 19 by fade meter20 polyester ( 12 ) & amp ; natural ground after 24 hrs . 1 . 20 0 . 70 1 . 19 polyvinyl calcium standing pyrrolidone ( 18 ) carbonate ( 70 ) after exposure 1 . 19 0 . 68 1 . 15 by fade meter21 polyester ( 6 ) & amp ; natural ground after 24 hrs . 1 . 21 0 . 70 1 . 20 polyvinyl calcium standing pyrrolidone ( 24 ) carbonate ( 70 ) after exposure 1 . 18 0 . 66 1 . 12 by fade meter14 ** polyvinyl natural ground after 24 hrs . 1 . 21 0 . 70 1 . 20 pyrrolidone ( 30 ) calcium standing carbonate ( 70 ) after exposure 1 . 17 0 . 64 1 . 07 by fade meter__________________________________________________________________________ note : * present invention ** reference example as is apparent from the table , in the case of the thermal dye transfer type recording sheets nos . 18 and 19 , the reflective optical densities after 24 hours of standing were especially high , and no substantial color fading was observed even after exposure by the fade meter . that is , with regard to reflective optical densities for blue color and the red color after 24 hours of standing , ( reflective densities ), sheets nos . 14 , 18 , 19 and 21 are superior to the sheet no . 10 . with regard to reflective optical densities for the blue color and the red color after exposure by the fade meter ( light fastness ), sheets nos . 18 and 19 ( of the present invention ) are superior to the sheet no . 10 , 14 , 20 and 21 ( of the reference examples ). consequently the sheet nos . 18 and 19 of the present invention ( wherein 18 to 24 % by weight of saturated polyester and 6 to 12 % by weight of polyvinyl pyrrolidone is utilized ) has superior reflective optical densities after 24 hours of standing ( reflective density ) and after exposure by the fade meter ( light fastness ) as compared with sheet nos . 10 , 14 , 20 and 21 of the reference examples . as is described above , when 18 to 24 % by weight of saturated polyester and 6 to 12 % by weight of polyvinyl pyrrolidone is utilized as in the present invention , there can be obtained a thermal recording sheet of high quality which is especially excellent in both the reflection density and the sunlight fastness of the record .	8
referring now to the drawing , an enclosure or canopy 10 embodying the principles of the present invention is generally illustrated in fig1 in an embodiment adapted for mounting to a floor or table ( not shown ) supported aquarium 12 . the canopy 10 includes a frame 14 having as seen in the attached drawings , two front frame members 16 are supported by the top front comers 44 of the aquarium 12 and extend vertically upward where they meet with a horizontal member 20 , forming a generally rectangular front frame . the bottoms of these frame members 16 are cut - out or otherwise are shaped to facilitate engagement with the aquarium 12 which includes a front wall , a rear wall , opposing side walls , a bottom wall , and an open top . a transparent door 22 of plexiglass or other suitable material is seen attached to the front frame . outside the rear wall of the aquarium 12 , two inner rear frame members 24 extend vertically upward and are located immediately adjacent to the rear side or wall of the aquarium 12 and the stand 26 of the aquarium 12 , as seen in fig2 . these inner rear frame members 24 extend up from the support on which the aquarium 12 or the stand 24 rests . at about the top of the aquarium 12 , or further there above if desired , the two inner rear frame members 24 are connected to two sloped frame members 28 that angularly extend upward and rearward relative to the top rear edge of the aquarium 12 . these sloped members 28 meet with two additional vertical frame members 30 that extend upwardly and generally parallel with the two front frame members 16 . the additional vertical frame members 30 are also connected to two rearwardly extending horizontal frame members 32 , across which a shelf 34 is supported . the shelf 34 defines a horizontal surface capable of supporting plants 36 and other vivarium contents , such as small stones , sticks , mosses , waterfalls , animals , and a variety of objects depending on the desires of the user . the shelf 34 is accordingly located both a distance above and a distance behind the opening at the top of the aquarium 12 . from beneath the rear edge of the shelf and connected to the two horizontal members 32 that support the shelf 34 , two outer rear frame members 38 extend vertically upward and downward . below the shelf 34 , the two outer rear frame members 38 contact the support surface of the aquarium 12 and above the shelf 34 they join with two top horizontal frame members 40 that extend horizontally forward to the front vertical frame members ( discussed above ) and help to define the four upper comers 42 and 42 &# 39 ; of the frame . the two upper front corners 42 of the frame 14 are thus located a distance above the two front corers 44 of the aquarium 12 and the two upper rear corners 42 &# 39 ; of the frame 14 are located a distance above and behind the two rear comers 44 &# 39 ; of the aquarium 12 . an enclosure screen 46 , made of aluminum , fiberglass , plastic or another material , is attached to the frame 14 so as to enclose the top , rear ( including shelf and sloped shelf ) and sides of the frame 14 above the aquarium 12 . in this manner , a screened in enclosure with a shelf 34 is formed coextensive with and above the aquarium 12 itself . the enclosure acts as an extension above and rearward of the aquarium . on top of the frame 14 , the present invention can be provided with a light fixture assembly 48 consisting of a variety of fluorescent lamps 50 . for example , the lamps 50 may include one or more of the following or other types of lamps : a fluorescent grow lamp , a uv light emitting fluorescent lamp , and a cool white fluorescent lamp . the assembly 48 also consists of reflective louvers ( not shown ) located just below the fluorescent fixtures . the louvers reflect light at a downward angle so as to channel light down onto the contents of the vivarium and not into the eyes of an observer looking into the vivarium . both the light fixtures and the louvers are capped by a decorative cover 52 . the cover 52 includes vents 54 along the top to allow heat to escape from the assembly . as seen in fig4 a canister type aquarium filter 52 is used to create a water fall 54 that cascades down from the shelf 34 and into the aquarium 12 . the intake 56 of the filter 52 is located below the water level inside of the aquarium 12 and water is drawn out of the aquarium 12 through a tube 58 that exits the vivarium enclosure 10 through an aperture 60 in the screen 46 and located above the rear rim of the aquarium 12 and below the sloped portion 28 and shelf 34 of the enclosure 10 . after the water reaches the canister filter 52 ( which can rest on the ground , support surface of the aquarium or a lower part of an aquarium stand 26 ), it is filtered and pumped out of the filter 52 through an exit tube 62 that enters the vivarium through an aperture 64 in the screen located above the shelf 34 . the water is channeled by appropriate means so that it flows off of the shelf 34 and onto a water impermeable material 66 attached to the screen 46 extending between the sloped frame members 28 and the vertical frame members 30 converting the sloped members 28 to the shelf 34 . the impermeable layer 66 may be of a rigid plastic or of a flexible material so long as it contains the flowing water of the waterfall 54 therein . the water impermeable material 66 extends down from the shelf 34 , over the sloped portion 28 and finally into the back of the aquarium 12 where it may be attached to the top of the aquarium 12 . this allows water to flow from the shelf 34 into the aquarium 12 without spilling through the screen 46 . another example of an impermeable layer 66 is herein referred to as a flood plain 98 . the flood plain 98 consists of a sheet 100 of water impermeable material . the sheet 100 is molded or otherwise formed to generally conform with the shape of the shelf 34 and the sloped portion 28 and is provided in a width corresponding to the width of the enclosure 10 . a peripheral flange 102 is also formed into the sheet 100 to prevent water from spilling off of the bank or sides of the flood plain 98 and out of the enclosure 10 . the lowermost end of the sheet 100 can be alternatively formed without any peripheral flange ( left side of fig5 ) so that the water will spill directly into the aquarium 12 , can be formed with an angled lip on the lowermost end 104 of the sheet 100 in order to enhance the appearance of the water as it falls off the flood plain 98 and into the aquarium 12 , or can be formed with / gutters 105 ( right side of fig5 ) to direct the water to the center of the sheet so as to prevent it from falling on any land masses located within the aquarium 12 . the flood plain 98 can be constructed from a single unitary sheet 100 of appropriate material , such as plexiglass ( see fig5 ). alternatively , ( see fig6 ) the flood plain 98 &# 39 ; is constructed from multiple rectangular , planar sheets 101 ( forming the flat surfaces of the flood plain 98 &# 39 ;) with smaller sheets of flexible plastic film 103 lapped or shingled over the planar sheets at the angular transitions from the shelf 34 to the sloped portion 28 ( and at any other appropriate angular transitions ) to permit water flow down the flood plain 98 &# 39 ; without leakage . peripheral flanges 102 would obviously be provided on this latter constructions and , if desired , a sheet 107 of impermeable plastic film could be incorporated beneath the entire length and width of the flood plain 98 &# 39 ;. plant pot 106 can be adhered to the flood plain 98 via suction cups 108 connected to the pots 106 by wire or plastic supports 109 or other suitable means at any desired location . by locating openings 110 in the pots 106 so that they are adjacent to the flood plain 98 , plants located in the pots 106 are self - watering as a result of the water flowing down the flood plain 98 . if desired , sides of the pots 106 can be formed on one side 111 at an angle specifically designed to hold the top of the pot 106 horizontally when mounted to the flood plain 98 at a specific location , such as on the sloped portion 28 . to provide additional plants ( such as moss , lichens , algae , fungi , and others ) in the flood plain 98 , a plant grow mat 112 can be located over the entire flood plain 98 , also allowing for the plants to be watered by the action of the water to be flowing down the flood plain 98 . generally , the grow mat 112 is comprised of three layers . the top layer 114 is of a moisture permeable material , such as cheesecloth . an intermediate layer 116 is of a known growing medium ( such as peat moss or an artificial growing medium ). the bottom layer 118 is of either a moisture permeable ( as mentioned above ) or impermeable ( plastic film ) material . located in either the top , intermediate or both layers 114 , 116 , are seed and spores ( generally designated at 119 ) which upon incorporation of the mat 112 into the enclosure 10 will germinate providing a lush carpet of living plants and other organisms . holes 120 can be cut into the mat 112 to allow for the mounting of pots 106 to the flood plain 98 . a variety of attachments can be secured to the impermeable material 66 altering the flow of water in an aesthetically pleasing way and concealing the impermeable layer material 66 from view . one attachment may consist of a container 68 that forms a small pool that is aerated with an air pump , hoses , and air stones ( not shown ) creating the effect of highly agitated water both in the pools and as water flows out of the pools continuing its path downward . this highly agitated effect mimics the appearance of white foam that occurs in natural waterfalls and considerably enhances the aesthetic as well as realistic appearance of the waterfall 54 . it also substantially increases humidity within the enclosure 10 and can be used as an additional environmental regulation tool . various small fixtures can be attached to the screen 46 . the fixtures may include containers capable of holding small plant pots covered with natural materials ( such as dried moss , bark , gavel , stones , sticks or other aesthetically appropriate materials ) that are glued or placed upon the fixture to form a natural looking setting for a pot holder or a feeder within the vivarium . one method of securing the fixtures in place include use of hook and loop fastening material for easy removal during cleaning or rearranging . dried mosses can be used as a general background filler and trim and double sided tape can be used to secure the dried moss . the inside of the aquarium 12 itself can be decorated as desired . for example , two plastic containers filled with potting soil can be placed in the rear corners of the aquarium and are adhered in place with silicone adhesive . the containers themselves can be covered with natural aquarium gravel ( glued into place with a non toxic non - water soluble adhesive ) and the aquarium 12 filled with water to a level just below the top of the plastic containers so that water does not overflow into the containers . the overall appearance is that of two land masses with an area of water between them and also an area of water in front of them between the front glass of the aquarium 12 and the land masses . gravel is also placed freely along the bottom of the aquarium surrounding the land masses . this is done not only for esthetic purposes , but also to create the natural biological medium of aquariums 12 in which bacteria can breakdown animal excrement and to facilitate incorporation of traditional three step mechanical and biological filtration systems . with the traditional filtration system and the grow mat 112 , the system is substantially self - cleaning , at least for small animals . for example , a spray bottle with water can be used to spray animal droppings thereby washing them into the grow mat 112 . because the design of the flood plain allows water to continuously filter through the mat 112 , plants in the mat 112 remove nutrients and naturally filter the water as it slowly trickles through the mat 112 . placed along the outer edges of the upper horizontal frame members 40 along both the rear and sides are roll down sheet members or roller shade 70 , similar to a window roller shade . these roller shade members 70 allow heat and humidity to be vented or be contained within the enclosure in varying degrees . by rolling down shades 70 completely , partially , or not at all , control over the relative heat and humidity of the enclosure with respect to the outer environment ( a person &# 39 ; s house or place of business ) is easily maintained as desired . the frame 14 and shelf 34 are used to support various materials ( including plants , animals , fungi , sea shells , rocks , gravel , sticks or wood in the form of logs , artificial plants and objects , containers with soil , sand or other substrates , containers with water , waterfalls , drip emitters , heat sources , light sources such as fluorescent lamps including grow lights and uv emitting florescents such as those commonly used for reptiles , fans , environmental control regulators such as rain simulators , light reflectors / louvers , thermometers , thermostats and humidistats , artificial or molded landscape decorations , and many other vivarium accessories available to the user ) used in creating a vivarium that is readily adaptable and flexible to the user &# 39 ; s needs . for example , a plant pot 72 can be sunk into an aperture 74 defined in the shelf 34 so that the upper rim of the pot is larger than the aperture and keeps the pot from falling through , yet the majority of the pot is sunk below the level of the shelf 34 creating the illusion that the plant 36 is growing out of the shelf 34 and not in a pot 72 at all . this illusion is further satisfied when the area beneath the plant 36 is covered with moss or another decorative substrate . these apertures 74 can also be filled with a container that holds bird seed at the bottom . this forces a bird to fly down into a pit to eat seed . since the bird eats in the pit , it does not spill bird seed all over the tank , all the seeds it spills stays inside the pit below the shelf . the pit can be removed for cleaning . these same apertures 74 may be used for a variety of attachments linking the inside of the vivarium with another enclosure allowing animals to travel between a plurality of animal enclosures . the needs of the life forms chosen by the user to be placed in the present invention 10 are partial determinants to how the user will organize the contents of the vivarium and attachments to the frame 14 . it is believed that most users will take advantage of this invention to create a multiple of different habitats within the vivarium . most small birds , reptiles amphibians , fish and plants will thrive in a general multi - environment setup allowing the user to keep a large variety of living things with very different habitat needs in a relatively small enclosure 10 . for example , worms burrowing in the soil of the potted plants in the vivarium increase aeration to the roots of plants allowing some plants to survive in areas that may be too moist otherwise ( because of root rot from lack of aeration which happens when the soil is too moist and compact relative to the plants needs ). the key element of the present design is that it gives the user unprecedented flexibility in combining different habitats in such a small enclosure 10 . importantly , a user that already possesses an aquarium 12 and related accessories can convert the aquarium 12 into a vivarium and use most of the standard aquarium accessories that the user already possesses . this flexibility is extremely valuable because each user has different preferences for plants and animals in a vivarium . if , for example , a user decided to keep turtles and a jackson &# 39 ; s chameleon together in a vivarium , there are a number of environmental combinations and materials that would be needed . some special needs and characteristics of these animals follow : jackson &# 39 ; s chameleons require good ventilation but their feet are damaged by normal screening material , so the user is recommended to select pvc coated chicken wire as an enclosure medium for the frame . since a jackson &# 39 ; s chameleon can not recognize standing water , a waterfall or drip emitter would also be recommended so the animal can drink . the chameleon also requires plants to crawl on for a stress reduced environment ( stress is the number one killer of exotic animals in captivity ). this is a problem because turtles will almost always destroy any plants in the vivarium . both turtles and the jackson &# 39 ; s chameleon require a basking light simulating the sun . in this case , the solution for the user would place a number of plants and climbing sticks on the shelf 34 for the chameleon . the shelf 34 is substantially above the lower portion of the vivarium that the turtles can not crawl up to destroy the plants ( however if the user had not chosen turtles , he / she could have readily created a walkway from the lower portion to the shelf in a variety of ways ). next , the user could place a light fixture ( not shown ) on the frame 14 , using a light having an integral clip ( a &# 34 ; clip light &# 34 ;), in a position that allows light and radiant heat to pass through the screen 46 and onto a stick or branch located on the shelf 34 . this would satisfy the chameleon &# 39 ; s basking needs . then the user would place another clip light on one of the inner rear frame members 16 and aim the light through the aquarium glass on a dry area above the water level . this would provide the turtles with a crawl out area for basking . a vertically placed stick in the lower aquarium 12 of the vivarium would link the aquarium 12 to the upper shelf 34 so the chameleons would not get trapped in the lower portion . the stick would not be a sufficient walkway for turtles . the above case illustrates the advantages and flexibility that are inherent in this invention 10 . it gives the user a general map to create multiple habitats , yet allows for flexibility to meet the needs of specific animals and combinations of specific animals . the user also has greater flexibility to create an aesthetically appealing landscape that functions for the life within . the present invention allows the &# 34 ; clip &# 34 ; lights mentioned above to be attached almost any where along the frame 14 of the enclosure 10 giving the user unprecedented flexibility in both the placement of heat sources and placement of supplemental lighting . since the screen or other enclosure materials 46 allow ventilation and are attached along the inside of the frame , the clip lights are capable of being adjustably attached directly to the exposed outer edge of the frame . in this manner , the user not only has tremendous flexibility in the placement of heat sources , he / she can also control the amount of heat radiated on any particular object of the vivarium &# 39 ; s interior . this is done by locating the light closer to or farther from the target area . a &# 34 ; goose necked &# 34 ; clip light is preferred for these reasons and one is seen in fig1 and designated at 76 . the heat and light penetrate through the screen 46 , allowing for ventilation , and through the glass of the aquarium 12 . the clip lights also influence the relative moisture content of the target area . by evaporating moisture from the target area , a variety of environmental results , depending on the target area &# 39 ; s proximity to moisture sources inside of the vivarium ( waterfalls , pools of water , chronically saturated soil , aquarium water level or any other source of moisture the user implements ) and the composition of objects in the target area , can be generated . in general , placing a clip light near a chronically moist area will increase humidity in a localized area creating a humidity gradient extending outward and upward from the target area . in general , targeting an area farther away from a chronically moist area will evaporate the moisture out of the target area creating a localized arid region and a similar arid gradient radiating outward and upward from the targeted area . the above are only generalizations because the composition of the targeted object or area affects the result ( in substantially predictable and beneficial ways ). for example , suppose the user wants to create a dry warm highly illuminated area close to the water level for the purpose of providing a basking site for turtles who in the wild crawl out and dry their shells in the &# 34 ; sun &# 34 ; only inches above water level , such as in a lake or pond . such an area is easily mimicked with the present invention 10 by placing a rock near a point where the water level meets the vivarium land mass and taking care to select a point not splashed directly by the waterfall . a clip light will heat the rock ( which absorbs and stores heat and contains virtually no moisture ) evaporating the water from the surface of the rock and lowering the relative humidity in a localized area above the rock creating the perfect basking sight for the turtle to keep its shell dry and healthy . even though the target area is close to water , the target area stays dry in this situation because of the natural physical properties of the rock , high heat retention and low moisture content . while this particular environment has been mimicked in standard aquariums 12 , without ventilated sides and the frame 14 for supporting the clip lights 76 , the vertical rise of the aquarium 12 above the water line is minimal and / or the heat light is located too far away from the rock to produce the effect . this is because standard aquariums 12 with their covers can only support heat lights from the top . it is not safe for the user , or the animals , to place an electric light inside the enclosure . not only does this pose an electrical hazard , but the temperature of the light and reflector would surely bum any animal that came in contact with it . this in turn would seriously limit the variety of animals that this setup could sustain . also , electric &# 34 ; hot rocks &# 34 ; can electrocute animals if placed in a moist environment . the present set up can not take advantage of all the benefits associated with the relevant invention . a general moisture gradient exists around the path of a waterfall 54 . another general moisture gradient starts at the water level inside of the aquarium 12 and decreases slightly as one progresses away from the water level . the greatest change in the general moisture gradients in the present invention occurs at the top of the aquarium 12 where it meets the frame 14 of the enclosure 10 . this is because the frame 14 supports materials that allow for ventilation and the aquarium 12 is composed of four moisture impermeable walls of glass . the combination of the frame 14 and the aquarium 12 allows for both moisture retention and moisture evaporation . the ventilation provided in this system also allows for heat to escape . thus , clip light 76 heat sources , as provided with the present invention , work on a localized level and do not significantly alter the temperature within the entire vivarium , only the targeted area is significantly heated . with the localized control of the present invention , many combinations of temperature , light , and moisture are possible so that the environmental needs of a wider variety of life forms can be successfully maintained together inside a single enclosure 10 . some of the environmental niches present in the preferred embodiment are : warm , moist and shady ; warm , moist with bright light ; cool , moist and shady ; cool , moist with bright light ; warm , dry and shady ; warm , dry with bright light ; cool , dry and shady ; cool , dry with bright light ; underwater and shady ; and underwater with bright light . also waterfall pools can be heated from below the shelf 34 , the sloped portion 28 , or behind the two areas on either side of the sloped portion 28 . if the pools are constructed of a plastic container with flat river type stones glued over the container ( a decorative touch that completely hides the container ), then the rocks retain heat and the pool water is warmed as it enters from the waterfall 54 above . as the water flows down over open areas and into other pools it is cooled and finally reaches the aquarium 12 where the temperature is considerably lower . accordingly , another series of environmental combinations is possible via underwater control , further increasing the diversity of species capable of being kept in the vivarium . a fan may be required for an animal or plant in the vivarium . some plants grow poorly without wind to flush new air into the micro environment made up of tiny hair like extremities that cover the leaf . also , some plants will not grow a strong stem if the plant is not blown by the wind periodically from side to side . many reptiles need a considerably lower temperature at night . for example , the fan can be aimed at the waterfall 54 and set on a timer to turn on at night . by aiming a fan , with an integral clip for attaching to the frame 14 , on various parts of the interior , temperature and humidity can further be regulated . this considerably lowers the temperature of the vivarium meeting the needs of these reptiles without having to adjust the temperature of the room in which the vivarium is located . a larger temperature change can occur if the user takes advantage of the roll down shades 70 during the day cycle ( when the heat lights are on ) and then rolls them completely up at night exposing the interior to greater ventilation thus removing heat that has built up throughout the day . it is the fluctuation itself , and not some predetermined low temperature that some reptiles need . if these reptiles do not receive a night time temperature drop on a regular basis they will not remain healthy and will likely die . an embodiment with multiple horizontal shelves 34 is also capable of successfully combining both fresh and salt water environments within the same vivarium . the salt water portion would be located in the aquarium 12 at the bottom and the fresh water portion would be comprised of a container that holds fresh water on a first shelf located above the salt water aquarium . a waterfall 54 would start on a second shelf , above the first shelf , and flow down to the container located on the first shelf . a further embodiment of the present invention , adapted for smaller aquariums 12 and is supported by locating rear frame members 24 of the frame 14 within the aquarium 12 seen in fig3 . in that many elements of this third embodiment are common to the previously discussed embodiments , like elements are being designated with like item numbers . while the above description constitutes the preferred embodiment of the present invention , it will be appreciated that the invention is susceptible to modification , variation and change without departing from the proper scope and fair meaning of the accompanying claims .	0
as shown in the drawings and particularly fig1 and 2 , the duplex connector 10 of the present invention comprises : a housing 12 having a generally oval or race track - shaped inbound end 14 and a cylindrical outbound end 16 ; an inbound end insert 18 ; spring steel cable retainers 20 and 22 that insert into inbound insert apertures 24 and 26 ; spring steel locking ring 28 about the outer diameter 17 cylindrical outbound end 16 and retained by flanges 19 and 21 ; and locking screw 30 . according to a preferred embodiment , of the present invention a bushing 32 is inserted into outbound end 16 . a further preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a pair of peepholes 34 that permit viewing of the interior of housing 12 to determine the presence and / or location of cable inserted into housing 12 through insert apertures 24 and 26 . housing 12 , in addition to previously described generally oval inbound end 14 , peepholes 34 , and cylindrical out bound end 16 incorporating outer diameter 17 and flanges 19 and 21 includes shoulder portions 36 whose interior surfaces 38 are smooth to guide cables inserted through inbound end 14 via insert apertures 24 and 26 toward and through internal volume 40 of cylindrical outbound end 16 . additionally , housing 12 includes , in at least one of its relatively flat top or bottom walls 42 and 44 , a threaded hole 46 for rotational engagement of screw 30 as described hereinafter . flange 19 has a slight inward incline to ease insertion of housing 12 into a junction box aperture and to ease the application of spring steel adapter over outer diameter 17 . flange 21 is of a greater diameter than flange 19 to prevent over insertion of spring steel adapter 28 . the various other shapes and features of housing 12 depicted in the drawings are largely matters of functional design , material minimization and manufacturability and do not materially affect the functionality of housing 12 . insert 18 comprises a binocular shape and has outer dimensions at insertion end 46 that are matched to the inner dimensions of generally oval inbound end 14 of housing 12 . end 48 of insert 18 includes a flange 50 about both insert apertures 24 and 26 that serves as a stop to limit insertion of insert 18 into inbound end 14 of housing 12 . spring steel cable retainers 22 and 24 are inserted into apertures 24 and 26 with tangs 52 a and 52 b engaging openings 54 a and 54 b in insert 18 . a complimentary set of tangs 56 a and 56 b engage matching openings opposite openings 54 a and 54 b in insert 18 ( not shown ). fig3 is a plan view of the die - cut blank 100 that is formed into spring steel cable retainers 20 and 22 . a plurality of lateral slots 102 is formed in pairs along blank 100 . adjacent pairs of lateral slots 102 are joined by cuts 103 extending between them . u - shaped cutouts 104 are also formed in blank 100 . blank 100 has a forward edge 124 which is positioned toward the inside of apertures 24 and 26 when installed in insert 18 and a trailing edge 126 that faces toward the outside of apertures 24 and 26 when installed in insert 18 . both the lateral slots 102 and u - shaped cutouts 104 are positioned at staggered distances from forward edge 124 . blank 100 also includes a triangular cut 106 positioned near trailing edge 126 and an aperture 108 that is used to hold blank 100 during the manufacturing process when blank 100 is formed into tubular spring steel retainers 24 and 26 . when blank 100 is formed into its tubular shape , tongue 114 partially enters groove 116 formed on the opposite end of blank 100 . lateral slots 102 and cuts 103 define staggered tangs 110 a , 110 b and 110 c that are positioned at varying precalculated distances from forward edge 124 . fig4 is an end view of spring steel retainers 20 or 22 from trailing edge 126 after blank 100 has been formed into its tubular shape . a gap 118 remains between the two ends of retainer 20 or 22 where tongue 114 approaches but does not contact groove 116 . the purpose of gap 118 is to impart a collapsible action to spring steel retainer 20 or 22 so that slight pressure on the outer periphery thereof will collapse it thereby allowing it to enter apertures 24 and 26 and interact with openings 54 a and 54 b in apertures 24 and 26 when inserted therein . fig4 depicts the orientation of staggered tangs 110 a , 110 b and 110 c outward projecting tangs 112 a and 112 b and triangle shaped gripper 122 on tubular shaped retainer 20 or 22 . outward projecting tangs 112 a and 112 b are defined by u - shaped cutouts 104 and are positioned essentially 180 ° apart on the outer periphery of spring steel retainer 20 or 22 to provide stability when inserted into insert 18 as shown in fig1 . it should be noted that tangs 112 a and 112 b have angled outward surfaces and relatively flat axial surfaces since the force that needs to be exerted on insert 18 is in direct line with the direction of insertion and removal . tangs 112 a and 112 b allow insertion of spring steel retainers 20 and 22 into apertures 24 and 26 while restricting withdrawal of spring steel retainer 20 or 22 from insert 18 . an alternative arrangement ( not shown ) could include three tangs spaced even about the periphery of spring steel retainer 20 or 22 or even four tangs similarly equally spaced , providing an adequate and equal number of apertures 54 were provided in insert 18 . fig5 is a top view of spring steel retainer 24 or 26 . the edge 111 of staggered tangs ( 110 c depicted ) that will serve to engage an inserted cable ( not shown ) are oriented toward forward edge 124 that is oriented as described above . by being oriented toward forward edge 124 , edges 111 of staggered cable tangs ( 110 c depicted ) are able to grip and hold an armored cable ( not shown ) that is subsequently inserted from the direction of trailing edge 126 . conversely , outward projecting tangs ( 112 b depicted ) will be oriented with edges 113 toward trailing edge 126 thereby resisting removal of spring steel retainer 20 or 22 from aperture 54 and consequently insert 18 . an alternative embodiment might include the use of only a pair of tangs , 110 a and 110 c oriented 180 ° one from another with the elimination entirely of tang 110 b . while not as desirable from several standpoints , namely less restraining force against removal of an inserted cable , and less directional force guiding an inserted cable toward the center of housing 12 as described below , such an arrangement would provide an adequate structure and is clearly contemplated as within the scope of the appended claims . the surfaces of tangs 110 a and 110 c have a relatively flat axial surface with tangs 110 a and 110 c angled inwardly toward the inner end of insert 18 . tangs 112 a and 112 b and 110 a , 110 b and 110 c are lanced from the cylindrical wall of spring steel retainer 20 or 22 . the inside ends ( 111 depicted in fig5 ) are bent in a radial direction and jagged with points since the force that needs to be exerted upon insertion of an armored cable is helical or twisting in nature and a flat surface would simply slide along the groove of such an armored cable thereby lessening the restraining force of tangs 110 a and 110 c . tang 110 b may be flat and not bent in , so long as tangs 110 a and 110 c serve to appropriately guide the armored cable over tang 110 b so that it may contribute to the required retraining force that pushes an inserted cable toward the “ untanged ” wall of spring steel retainer 20 or 22 thereby providing an area between tangs 110 a , 110 b and 110 c and the interior wall of spring steel retainer 20 or 22 that is less than the diameter of the inserted cable . fig6 is a side view of spring steel retainer 20 or 22 of fig4 . a shown in this figure , outward projecting tangs 112 a and 112 b are at staggered distances from trailing edge 126 . two staggered cable tangs 110 b and 110 c are depicted at staggered distances from forward edge 124 . fig7 is a cross - sectional view of spring steel retainer 20 or 22 taken along line 7 — 7 of fig4 . staggered cable tang 110 c is depicted extending inwardly into tubular shaped spring steel retainer 20 or 22 . an angled end 115 is shown near the end of staggered cable tang 110 c . fig8 is an end view of spring steel retainer 20 or 24 as viewed from forward edge 124 showing staggered cable tangs 110 a , 110 b and 110 c oriented toward forward edge 124 . it is important to the most successful practice of the present invention that spring steel retainers 20 and 24 be oriented within apertures 24 and 26 such that tangs 110 a , 110 b and 110 c are oriented and depicted in fig1 i . e . that their orientation is such as to server to guide cable inserted therein toward the center of housing 12 . such an orientation of spring steel cable retainers 20 and 22 simplifies the insertion of a pair of cables through hosing 12 by pre - positioning the cables toward the center of housing 12 as they are inserted thereby making the task of pushing them through cylindrical volume 40 much easier . spring steel adapter 28 includes a slot 29 to permit expansion prior to being fitted over diameter 17 , and includes a plurality of tangs 31 to prevent removal of adapter 14 from the aperture of a junction box ( not shown ) after installation into such an aperture . a more detailed description of adapter 14 and its operation can be found in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 373 , 106 entitled ’ “ quick connect fitting for electrical junction box ”, assigned to the same assignee as the present invention and incorporated herein by reference . peepholes 34 are provided in housing 12 to permit viewing of cable location within housing 12 during and subsequent to cable installation . according to a highly preferred embodiment of the present invention , a bushing 32 comprising a cylindrical body 58 having a flange 60 at its outbound end is inserted to prevent accidental damage to inserted cable . bushing 32 is designed to frictionally engage the interior of cylindrical outbound end 16 of housing 12 and is preferably made of a polymeric material that serves to cushion cable inserted into housing 12 and exiting therefrom through cylindrical outbound end 16 . assembly of duplex connector 10 is achieved by insertion of spring steel cable retainers 20 and 22 into apertures 24 and 26 of insert 18 such that tabs 52 a and 52 b engage openings 54 a and 54 b and their opposing counterparts ( not shown ) achieve similar engagement . insert 18 is then inserted into inbound end 14 of housing 12 until fully seated . screw 30 is then tightened into threaded hole 46 and engages surface 56 to retain insert 18 in housing 12 . spring steel adapter 28 is then applied over flange 19 and around outer diameter 17 . while duplex connector 10 can be fabricated from a variety of materials including metals and polymeric materials , it is preferred that it be fabricated as a die cast assembly with housing 12 and insert 18 both being die cast from a suitable metallic alloy . the other elements of duplex connector 10 will of course be fabricated from the materials indicated hereinabove . as the invention has been described , it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the same may be varied in many ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . any and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims .	7
referring now to fig1 there is illustrated a crawler - type vehicle 1 in accordance with the invention comprising a crawler 2 , sprockets 4 as well as idlers 5 . the crawler - type vehicle 1 is controlled by a driver seated in the cab 20 . one such crawler 2 comprises a plurality of studs 3 in accordance with the invention which in operation bite into the snow . referring now to fig2 there is illustrated an example embodiment of a crawler 2 in accordance with the invention featuring studs 3 differingly arranged and differing in length . in this case , the sprocket 4 does not mesh in the middle but possibly to the right and / or left thereof , for example . in the example embodiment it is favorable to provide the mesh particularly to the right of the middle . referring now to fig3 there is illustrated a bar 7 as a so - called toothed bar 7 comprising a jagged edge for improved traction of the vehicle in snow and ice . in this embodiment variant the bar 7 is inserted into the mounting portion 8 of the carrier 6 and is bonded in place at least partially . referring now to fig4 there is illustrated an example embodiment of a crawler 2 where the sprocket 4 meshes with the middle of the stud 3 , this also being the portion where the mechanical stress of the bar 7 is highest due to loading by the sprocket 4 . now , bonding and / or welding the bar 7 in accordance with the invention favorably prevents breakage of such a stud 3 unlike other studs where likewise mechanical fasteners 10 are applied . referring now to fig5 a - c there are illustrated three example embodiments for inserting the bar 7 in the mounting portion 8 of the carrier 6 . fig5 a shows a roughly u - shaped groove into which the bar 7 is inserted from above , the recess 11 providing room for applying an adhesive , for instance . it is to be noted , however , that such a portion 11 is not a mandatory requirement , because the adhesive needs to be applied merely as a thin film . fig5 b and 5 c show two example embodiments of the bar 7 inserted positively connected , in addition to which further toxing or clinching the bar 7 to the mounting portion 8 of the carrier 6 is provided for in accordance with the invention . it may also be favorable when the bar 7 is configured tapered upwards in the exposed portion to facilitate the bite of the bar 7 in ice and snow . it is generally provided for in the preferred example embodiments that the bar 7 , the same as shown in the other figs . protrudes from the carrier so that the bar 7 bites in the snow or ground in operation of the crawler - type vehicle 1 . as compared to the overall height of the bar 7 the portion 18 protruding from the carrier is preferably in the range 15 to 75 %, particularly preferred being 25 to 50 %. referring now to fig6 a there is illustrated a stud in accordance with the invention with a welded bar 7 . the bar 7 is located by two legs 51 , 51 ′ in the mounting portion 8 , it being fixedly connected by a friction welding to one leg 51 . referring now to fig6 b there is illustrated likewise an example embodiment of a stud 3 in which the bar 7 is located by two legs 51 , 51 ′ in the mounting portion 8 , except that in this case the bar 7 is fixedly connected by a cmt weld . the welds in both cases ( fig6 a and 6 b ) are indicated bold . it is , of course , just as possible in both variants that the bar 7 additionally comprises bonded connections . the angle a as shown in fig6 a is 90 ° whereas in fig6 b it exceeds 90 °, it being roughly 120 °. favorable the angle α is in the range of roughly 90 ° to 150 ° ( the angle α is represented by the broken lines ). fig6 c and 6 d each show two further example embodiments of studs 3 having a u - shaped groove as the mounting portion 8 inserted in the 7 . in fig6 c the connection between the carrier 6 and bar 7 is made by friction welding , whilst in fig6 d the connection is a cmt weld . to further enhance the rugged connection friction welding and cmt welds may also be combined . referring now to fig7 there is illustrated a bar in the form of a toothed bar 7 inserted in the carrier 6 before being friction welding . in this case it is necessary that the bar 7 is located in the carrier 6 not too loosely so that the flutter of the bar 7 in the carrier 6 , as indicated by the double arrow , results in the two components connecting at a certain frequency as evident from fig8 a , i . e . the flutter of the bar 7 in the carrier 6 must occur at a frequency to achieve a sufficiently high friction temperature at which bar 7 and carrier 6 become welded . in the preferred example embodiment the bar 7 is made of steel and the carrier 8 is made of aluminum . referring now to fig8 b there is illustrated a further embodiment of the friction welding in which a punch 55 applied from without is rotated at high speed ( at approx . 20 , 000 rpm depending on the variant involved ) and urged against the stud 7 with a defined force f . optionally the temperature of the bar and / or carrier can be dictated by a heater , resulting in the light alloy becoming “ doughy ” and welded to the steel . the punch 55 is advanced at a speed vf over the stud , preferably along the mounting portion 8 . the advantages resulting from application of cmt welding requiring a reduced heat input are e . g . less distortion and better welding accuracy . cmt welding differs from known methods of short arc welding on three decisive counts : wire movement is involved in process control , reduced heat input and splatterless material transition . whenever a short - circuit occurs the digital process controller interrupts the power input . this advance / retract motion occurs at a frequency of up to 70 hz , which also promotes drop release .	1
in fig1 there is indicated , generally at 10 , a network architecture comprising a massive multiplayer online game ( mmoc ) environment 12 running on the internet 14 , and a contact center environment 16 also connected to the internet . within the mmog environment 12 , individual players 18 connect via the internet to a game server 20 following an authentication process carried out by an associated login server 22 ( the functions of login server 22 may of course also be carried out by game server 20 ). the game server 20 , which is shown as a single server but will more often be implemented as a network of servers , executes a number of processes in order to host a game for the players 18 , such processes typically including a game engine 24 , a representation of the simulated world or game environment 26 , representations and data relating to player characters or avatars 28 ( which inhabit the world representation 26 and interact with it and with each other according to the rules of the game engine 24 and the actions of players ), and communication functions shown generically at 30 , such functions often including voice , video and instant messaging facilities whereby player characters may interact wit one another , or players themselves may interact with one another in “ out of game ” communication channels which do not involve their characters . the login server 22 is provided with player account information including the player &# 39 ; s subscription and real world contact and billing details . in addition , if the game in question has an economy , the player &# 39 ; s character ( s ) may also have separate accounts in the game currency , and in the illustrated embodiment , this character account information is stored with the character / avatar data 28 on game server 20 . it will be appreciated that the player &# 39 ; s account and the character &# 39 ; s account need not be separate from one another and a unified account could be employed . the contact center environment 16 is separate from the game and comprises a contact center server 32 which is connected to the internet and to which a plurality of trained human contact center agents 34 are connected . agents 34 may make and receive voice calls to external parties or customers . such calls may be carried over the public switched telephone network ( pstn ), not shown , or may be carried over the internet with which the contact center server connects via an internet telephony gateway 36 . the contact center may additionally be enabled with technology such as the session initiation protocol ( sip ), allowing communications to be made in a range of media types . in addition to voice calls , agents may communicate with customers using video , or using data media such as instant messaging or email . incoming communications ( known as contacts ) are managed by the contact center server 32 in order to route contacts to agents in the most efficient manner for the contact center &# 39 ; s purposes . the management of contacts is controlled by workflows 38 which determine the routing of contacts through automated treatments such as an interactive voice response ( ivr ) application 40 or a music - on - hold server 42 . the ivr application provides information useful for classifying a contact in order to best route it to an available and competent agent . other information gleaned from the source of the contact , the number called , etc . can also be used in this way . each contact can therefore be allocated to one or more skillsets which are serviced by the agents 34 according to skillset abilities noted for each agent in a set of agent resource records 44 . at busy times , the contacts are placed in queues according to skillset and the contact center server also therefore manages the set of queues 46 . in this way , all incoming calls are classified and directed to agents according to the treatment specified in the workflows . the system as described thus far is conventional and known in the art . referring additionally to fig2 , a flowchart is shown detailing a sequence of steps carried out by a player 18 ( left hand column of flowchart ), the game server and login server 20 , 22 ( center column of flowchart ), and the contact center 16 ( right hand side of flowchart ). the process begins when a player logs into the game , step 50 , and following a successful login on the login account server 22 , step 52 , the game engine 24 sends the player &# 39 ; s avatar data and the world simulation data for the avatar &# 39 ; s environment to a game client resident on the player &# 39 ; s machine , step 54 . the client program running on the player &# 39 ; s machine renders the game world and the avatar within the game world to the player , step 56 , and the player can control this avatar in order to play the game as normal . within the game world provided according to the present invention , a mechanism has been provided for access to the services of contact center 16 . there may be any number of reasons why a player might want to access services which might be provided by a contact center , and the mechanism used to access the contact center can be any mechanism which a player avatar could normally access within the game . thus it could be a doorway or an arch through which the avatar moves , or a lever or a button , or a textual , menu or clickable command available through the client program . the mechanism might be labelled with “ real world ” information relating to the contact center , or the mechanism can appear to be entirely within the terms of reference of the game world , i . e . without any real world references . assuming that there is a portal or doorway provided in this particular game , the player avatar accesses this portal to initiate communication with the contact center , step 58 . the game engine recognises this action as a command to send a contact request to a contact center associated with that portal mechanism , step 60 . a communications link is created or accessed over the internet between the game and the contact center , i . e . the game server is programmed to formulate requests to a network address associated with the contact center . the request will typically include an identifier of the player , but may include additional details of the request , such as details entered by the player when accessing the mechanism in step 58 . thus , a player might write a letter or note , or record a voice message when accessing the mechanism , and any such details would be passed along with the request to the contact center in step 60 . in step 62 , the contact center , upon receiving a request for contact initiation , may request additional information to assist in queuing and directing the contact . such additional information might already be available to the game server from , for example , the login / account server 22 . other sources of data can also be used , such as the player history ( how often the player has requested similar services , details of the player &# 39 ; s in - game bank balance , details of previous services purchased or requested by the player , etc . ), step 64 . when this information is returned to the contact center , a contact is placed in a queue , step 66 . the contact center then returns details of the successful queuing of the contact and returns on - hold content to the game , step 68 . this on - hold content can be interactive voice response treatments , music on hold , or automated game content such as an automated character who appears to the player and asks questions analogous to those which would typically have been provided in an interactive voice response environment in a telephone call . the automated game content is supplied by a module 48 within the contact center environment 16 . when these details are returned to the game in step 68 , the game engine optionally simulates a queue and passes on the on - hold content in step 70 . thus , using the example of a series of question which are to be asked by the contact center , the game engine may in fact generate an automated character which is made to speak those question to the player &# 39 ; s avatar . in step 72 the player receives any queue content or any on - hold content and optionally , an interactive session may follow in which the player &# 39 ; s interaction with this content is processed by the game and / or the contact center to improve the queuing details or to add to the player &# 39 ; s data stored by the game and / or the contact center . a representation of the queue might be generated for the player , so that the player sees a line of other characters ahead of his own character , which reduces as the player &# 39 ; s contact approaches the top of the queue maintained by the contact center . another example is a representation of a waiting room , as at a doctor &# 39 ; s office . this environment allows for non - sequential / out - of - sequence processing of contacts ( such as when a nurse calls out the name of the next patient to be seen , which is not always the person waiting the longest ). as with traditional contacts in contact centers , the contact sooner or later reaches the top of a queue for which an agent is available , step 74 . the agent workstation is provided with a client program which performs a game login and launches the game client , step 76 . if the agent deals exclusively with contacts from one particular game , then the agent can be logged in permanently . alternatively , the agent may be servicing contacts from other channels as well as from the game , in which case it is more likely that the agent &# 39 ; s game client will log in to the game only when responding to such contacts . in step 78 , the game engine , following the agent &# 39 ; s login , sends avatar and world data to the agent &# 39 ; s client program , step 78 . the agent avatar then enters the contact center portal where the player &# 39 ; s avatar is situated , step 80 . in steps 82 and 84 , the agent avatar communicates with the player avatar and vice versa . the player is thus provided , in game , with an experience of dealing with an agent which is to all intents and purposes part of the game and does not require him or her to “ break character ”. from the point of view of the contact center , skilled agents can provide an enhanced experience to their customers which is not provided when a player has to log out of the game or take his or her attention away from the game in order to dial a contact center number or access a website . fig3 illustrates a variation on this process , beginning at step 74 , when the contact reaches the top of the queue and an agent becomes available . whereas the process of fig2 was immersive for the agent as well as for the player , the process of fig3 is not immersive for the agent , i . e . the agent does not have a full game client on his or her workstation . in step 86 of fig3 , the agent workstation performs a game login without a game client being presented to the agent . the game engine acknowledges this login in step 88 , and then the game itself generates an automated avatar in step 90 which is associated with that agent login . in step 92 , the automated avatar generated by the game enters the contact center portal ( i . e . it appears there to the player ) and from this point on the player avatar can communicate with this automated avatar , i . e . the player will see and can speak to the automated avatar in the contact center portal . form the agent &# 39 ; s point of view , the agent communicates with the game engine , in step 94 , such that any communications from the agent or to the agent using the normal communications equipment employed by that agent , are channelled to the game engine . the game engine intercepts such communications and uses them , step 96 , to automate the avatar with the agent &# 39 ; s communication . such automation can be as simple or as sophisticated as the game engine permits . thus , the voice of the agent can be augmented by physical gestures , emotions , and so on . alternatively , a video image of the agent can be converted to or merged with the avatar &# 39 ; s appearance and actions . in step 98 , it can be seen that the player avatar communicates with the automated avatar , and thus communication proceeds between the player and the agent with the game engine acting as an intermediary controlling the agent &# 39 ; s avatar . fig4 shows an example of a transaction carried out once communications have been established according to fig3 . the same principles apply , however , to the process of fig2 . in steps 94 , 96 and 98 , the agent , game and player communicate with one another as described above . when it is agreed between the player and agent that the player will pay for a product or service , step 100 , the player provides credit card or other payment details and address details or other authentication details verbally or using secure instant messaging , step 102 . these details are communicated either through the game server or via a different communications channel set up specifically for the transaction , and the agent verifies the transaction details as an agent would in a communications session in a contact center which had been initiated using more conventional channels , step 104 . once the agent is satisfied as to the financial details of the transaction and as to any agreed delivery of products or services , the transaction is completed , step 106 . it will be appreciated that the process of fig4 is essentially a conventional transaction piggybacked onto a contact center session carried out through the medium of a game according to the invention . however , fig5 describes a further integration between the contact center and the game . in the process of fig5 , steps 94 , 96 , 98 and 100 are as described above , with the player agreeing to pay for a product or service . however , rather than employing real - world payment mechanisms , the player in this case uses an in - game payment mechanism to pay for a product or service ( which may be a real world product or service ) with game currency , step 108 . the game verifies that the player is in a position to make such a payment according to the game rules , and performs a financial transaction deducting the credit from the player &# 39 ; s account , optionally taking a commission from the transaction , and crediting a contact center account held on the game server or held in the real world . for games where there is an open exchange mechanism converting between in - game currency and real world currency ( such as for the mmog called “ second life ” where the in - game currency of “ linden dollars ” are freely exchangeable on various websites to u . s . dollars ), the contact center may choose to be paid in real world currency rather than in in - game currency . however , it may also suit the contact center to maintain an in - game account balance . once this transaction has been completed according to the game server &# 39 ; s records , the agent is notified by the payment authorisation , step 112 , and the transaction then completes with the agreement of both player and agent , step 114 . the invention is not limited to the embodiment ( s ) described herein but can be amended or modified without departing from the scope of the present invention .	0
the present invention provides a novel solution to the problems associated with constant monitoring of a fund . in one exemplary embodiment , the present invention is a proprietary computer - based system which allows clients to have their account balances automatically “ swept ” or otherwise transferred from their current mutual fund ( or position ) to a new mutual fund ( or position ) that fits the client &# 39 ; s predetermined criteria . “ computer ”, as used herein and throughout this disclosure , refers to any device capable of running a software program and connecting to a network . examples of computers include but are not limited to : desktop computers , laptop computers , personal digital assistants ( pda &# 39 ; s ), mobile telephones , etc . “ asset ”, as used herein and throughout this disclosure , refers to any economic value that is potentially or actually an investment . examples of an asset include but are not limited to : cash , stock shares , mutual fund shares , money market shares , bank accounts , etc . “ fund ”, as used herein and throughout this disclosure , refers to any collective investment . examples of a fund include but are not limited to : a mutual fund , a money market fund , a stock index , a hedge fund , etc . the data from mutual funds are fed into and aggregated into a proprietary application programming interface ( api ). the clients may then upload their own specific investment criteria parameters into this interface from whichever firm they do their online or institutional banking with . the invention allows for the automatic and seamless movement of client / institutional funds from one mutual fund to another based upon the user &# 39 ; s pre - selected set of parameter ( s ). fig1 shows an exemplary embodiment of a system for automatically allocating and rebalancing portfolios according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention . a selection screen 100 is an exemplary embodiment of a user interface where a user 101 sets parameter values and ranks the priority of the parameters . user 101 is connected through a network 114 , such as the internet , to a server 110 which is in connection with a mutual fund database 112 . server 110 hosts an api 116 that gives clients a set of commands to use when setting parameters . based on the set parameters , server 110 monitors the selected fund 120 of user 101 . in the event that fund 120 fails to meet the criteria selected by user 101 , server 110 automatically transfers the holdings from fund 120 to another fund 122 that matches the criteria entered by user 101 via server internet connection 110 without any user intervention . for example , in one exemplary embodiment of the invention , a client selects to automatically have its portfolio cash swept to the highest yielding mutual fund available on the platform . this selection could be based upon the previous business day &# 39 ; s closing net yield or any other pre - determined criteria . the transaction is accomplished seamlessly and automatically and without the need for a command , trade or even a keystroke on the part of the account holder . fig2 shows an exemplary embodiment of the user interface of the current invention . in this embodiment , a user 201 selects the investment parameters he desires on a personal computer by opening the selection screen 200 on his personal computer 202 . this selection screen 200 , which will be displayed on the screen 204 , allows the user 201 to select from or enter the desired investment parameters . these parameters are entered into the computer 202 using the mouse 208 , keyboard 206 , or other input device , such as a stylus ( not shown ) or touchscreen ( not shown ). the computer 202 then communicates with the modem 209 which in turn communicates with the internet 230 to send the user &# 39 ; s selected parameters to the server . fig3 shows an exemplary embodiment of the application programming interface 316 of the present invention . in this embodiment , a computer with the help of an application programming interface 316 gives clients a set of commands to use when setting investment parameters , such as reading individual fund data from the fund database 312 , and transferring assets from one fund 320 to another fund 322 . these commands are selected from the selection screen 300 . individual fund data can be current status or historical data including but not limited to : the asset size of the fund , the gross performance of the fund , the net fund performance , or other various rating criteria such as from s & amp ; p , moody &# 39 ; s or other nsro . with this set of commands , users can program their criteria and preferences . based on the selection criteria that the user programs and the data received from each of the funds , application programming interface 316 assigns server 310 to transfer funds to the appropriate mutual fund when necessary . a notification 318 may be sent to the fund manager as well as the user . this notification 318 could be in the form of an e - mail , text message , etc . fig4 shows an exemplary embodiment of a system for automatically allocating and rebalancing portfolios . in this embodiment , a selection screen 400 is utilized as a graphical user interface for a computer program . a user 401 sets “ if / then ” statements forming fund selection criteria . user 401 has access to a mutual fund database 412 through an api 416 . the api 416 gives clients a set of commands to use when setting parameters for their investments . in this embodiment , api 416 resides on user 401 &# 39 ; s personal computer . user 401 is connected through a network 414 , such as the internet . based on the set criteria , the selected fund 420 of user 401 is monitored over the network connection 414 . in the event that fund 420 fails to meet the criteria selected by user 401 , network connection 414 is used to automatically transfer the assets from fund 420 to another fund 422 that matches the criteria entered by user 401 . fig5 shows an exemplary embodiment of a method of allocating funds according to the present invention . in this embodiment , the invention determines an appropriate fund for investment based on predetermined criteria . the system first performs a routine check - up 530 . this allows the system to determine whether any of the assets fall outside the set criteria 532 . if the current assets are not within the set criteria , the system will determine whether or not there is another suitable fund that matches the criterion 534 . if there is no such suitable fund , the system will send a notice that there in no such suitable fund 536 and then end . if there is a suitable fund , the assets will be reinvested in a fund matching the set criteria 535 . with the funds reinvested , a confirmation will be sent 539 to the user , if the user has pre - selected this operation . if the user has not selected to receive a confirmation , nothing will be sent . in one exemplary embodiment of the present invention , the system allows for predetermined “ if / then ” criteria to determine which transactions will be made . these criteria can include , but are not limited to , the asset size of the fund , the gross performance of the fund , the net fund performance , or other various rating criteria , such as naic approval , nynex / comex , cme . the gross performance could be based on 1 day , 7 day , 30 day , 6 month , 12 month ( annual ), 3 year , 5 year , or 10 year averages . net fund performance could be based on 1 day , 7 day , 30 day , 6 month , 12 month ( annual ), 3 year , 5 year , or 10 year averages . the other rating criteria could include various ratings criteria from nsro &# 39 ; s ( nationally recognized ratings organizations such as standard and poors ). fig6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 d show exemplary embodiments of the interface for the criterion selection process . in each of these figures , an if / then selection process is utilized . in this embodiment , the user selects from certain criteria on the “ if ” 640 side of the selection screen 600 and decides whether or not he wants notification of an occurrence . the user also selects criteria from the “ then ” 642 side of the selection screen 600 and decides whether or not he wants a confirmation of any transactions . if the “ if ” 640 criteria are satisfied , the system will process the “ then ” 642 transaction that has been selected . users are encouraged to make as many if / then criterion selections as necessary for an asset . fig6 a shows an example of an exemplary embodiment of the selection screen . in this embodiment , the user has chosen that he wants his assets moved if the total asset size of a certain money market fund falls below $ 1 billion within the last day . the user has selected to receive notice if this event occurs . in the event of this occurrence , the user has selected to transfer the total fund to another fund that has had the highest net performance in the last 30 days . the user has also selected that this new fund must have an asset size of at least $ 1 billion and that the user wishes to be sent a confirmation of the transaction . fig6 b shows another example of an exemplary embodiment of the selection screen . in this embodiment , the user has chosen that he wants his assets moved if the gross fund performance of a certain mutual fund falls below 5 . 25 % within the last 30 days . the user has selected to receive notice if this event occurs . in the event of this occurrence , the user has selected to transfer the total fund to another fund that has had the highest gross performance in the last 30 days . the user has not selected any further parameters for this fund but the user wishes to be sent a confirmation of the transaction . fig6 c shows an example of an exemplary embodiment of the selection screen . in this embodiment , the user has chosen that he wants his assets moved if the s & amp ; p rating of a certain money market fund falls below “ aaa ” or “ aaa ” within the last day . the user has selected to receive notice if this event occurs . in the event of this occurrence , the user has selected to transfer the total fund to another fund that has had the highest s & amp ; p rating as of the last 20 days . the user has also selected that this new fund must have an asset size of at least $ 1 billion and that the user wishes to be sent a confirmation of the transaction . fig6 d shows a further example of an exemplary embodiment of the selection screen . in this embodiment , the user has chosen that he wants his assets moved if the net fund performance of a certain mutual fund falls below 5 % within the last 15 days . the user has selected to receive ( email ) notification if this event occurs . in the event of this occurrence , the user has selected to transfer the total fund to another fund that has had the highest net fund performance in the last 60 days . the user has also selected that this new fund must have an s & amp ; p rating of at least aaa and that the user wishes to be sent a confirmation of the transaction . users are also encouraged to make many criterion selections for multiple assets and funds . for example , a fund manager may wish to take a vacation or need to leave the office for an extended period of time . this invention would allow the fund manager to set his parameters and automatically manage his funds from any place outside the office . fig7 shows an exemplary embodiment of the process of the application interface . the user first selects 700 the parameters and parameter limits of the fund to be monitored . next , the user determines priority levels 702 of the parameters . this allows the user to determine the order in which the process will step through the parameters . if the highest level parameter is met , it may not be necessary for the process to go to the next parameter . however , if the highest level parameter is not met , the process may automatically start a transaction or it may look to the next parameter . with the priority levels 702 set , the application interface monitors 704 the fund parameters selected by the user . the process will then evaluate the parameter values 700 selected by the user . if a parameter falls below the limit of the user selected value , then the application interface selects 707 other funds where the selected parameter is greater than or equal to the selected value . the application interface matches selected funds 707 from the list of other funds that have the highest level of the next highest priority parameter 702 entered . with the funds matched , the application interface sends notification 708 to the user that a fund change is going to be made and allows the user to change parameter values and priority level . the system automatically transfers funds 709 from the original fund to the fund which matched the criteria . if no fund meets all the criteria , then the fund that meets the highest prioritized criteria possible is selected . the process then repeats , beginning with monitoring the new fund . this process can essentially act as an endless loop without need for further intervention by a user . in other words , the process serves to maximize its funds according to the pre - selected parameters set at 702 . at any time the user may change the parameters 700 and priority level 702 . as a non - limiting example , if a client was invested in a wachovia money market fund and had previously entered the criteria that any such fund he is invested in must have a portfolio size of at least $ 1 billion usd and the wachovia money market fund &# 39 ; s assets subsequently dropped below this predetermined $ 1 billion level , his assets would automatically be transferred to another fund on the platform that had at least $ 1 billion in assets . in another exemplary embodiment of the invention , more than one criterion may be entered in a particular sequence . the sets of criteria may be layered to establish the order in which the user prefers them to be carried out . for example , if the assets in the fund the user is currently investing in should drop below $ 1 billion the invention could automatically move the assets from the user &# 39 ; s account into the highest yielding fund which also has assets of at least $ 1 billion . this requires the determination of when the fund has dropped below the $ 1 billion threshold and well as determining the highest yielding fund that does meet the threshold requirement . the determination of the highest yielding fund could be based upon the previous days close or some other metric . in a further embodiment , once the criteria for selecting funds is established , it will remain uncharged until the account holder takes action to charge or remove their predetermined criteria . fig8 a shows an exemplary embodiment of a graphical user interface according to the present invention . in this embodiment , the user is given a parameter selection screen with which he inputs the parameters for his investment . the user chooses a parameter which he would like his investments based upon . he next can enter a value for this parameter . additionally , the user can enter the priority of this parameter . thus , if the user enters more than one parameter , he may dictate the order in which these parameters will be carried out . in the figure , the parameter the user has selected is fund assets . the user has entered a value of $ 1 billion for the fund assets . thus , the user has set the threshold level of $ 1 billion for the fund assets value . this means that the investments will automatically be made based on reaching or falling below this threshold . the user has selected this to be the highest priority . as the highest priority , the fund asset parameter will take precedent over other selected parameters . fig8 b shows an exemplary embodiment of an example of the graphical user interface . in this example , the graphical user interface is showing the current parameter settings that the user has set . this interface shows the parameter selected , the parameter value , and the parameter priority value . the user can change the parameter selected and the interface will show the parameter value the user has set as well as the priority of that parameter the user has set . the foregoing disclosure of the exemplary embodiments of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description . it is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed . many variations and modifications of the embodiments described herein will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art in light of the above disclosure . the scope of the invention is to be defined only by the claims appended hereto , and by their equivalents . further , in describing representative embodiments of the present invention , the specification may have presented the method and / or process of the present invention as a particular sequence of steps . however , to the extent that the method or process does not rely on the particular order of steps set forth herein , the method or process should not be limited to the particular sequence of steps described . as one of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate , other sequences of steps may be possible . therefore , the particular order of the steps set forth in the specification should not be construed as limitations on the claims . in addition , the claims directed to the method and / or process of the present invention should not be limited to the performance of their steps in the order written , and one skilled in the art can readily appreciate that the sequences may be varied and still remain within the spirit and scope of the present invention .	6
as used throughout the specification , including the claims , the term “ hands - free ” means control of a dispensing mechanism without the need for use of hands . in addition , as used throughout the specification , including the claims , the term “ towel ” refers generally to an absorbent paper or other suitable material used for wiping or drying . as shown in fig1 , in a preferred embodiment of the invention , a hands - free towel dispenser 10 comprises a cabinet 12 comprising a back wall 14 , two side walls 16 , 18 , a top wall 20 , a bottom or base wall 22 , and an openable and closable front cover 24 . the front cover 24 may be pivotally attached to the cabinet , for example , by hinge 26 , for easy opening and closing of the cover 24 when a supply of towels such as main roll 28 is placed in the cabinet 12 . the towel dispenser 10 may be mounted to a wall or other supporting member by any convenient means such as brackets , adhesives , nails , screws or anchors ( not shown ). as shown in more detail in fig2 and 4 , the hands - free dispenser 10 further comprises a dispensing mechanism for dispensing a length of towel to the outside of the dispenser 10 . such dispensing mechanism may comprise drive roller 32 , pinch roller 34 , transfer bar 36 and roll support cup 38 a and roll support arm 38 b . the dispensing mechanism enables dispensing of a predetermined length of towel to the outside of the towel dispenser 10 through slot 40 , where the towel can be grasped by the user and torn off along a serrated edge 43 of a blade 42 . the dispensing mechanism operates to dispense towels either from a main roll 28 or a stub roll 30 . the means for controlling dispensing of a paper from the main roll 28 once the stub roll 30 has been depleted comprises a transfer bar 36 , which is described in detail in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 165 , 138 , the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein . as shown in fig1 and 3 , main roll 28 is first loaded into the cabinet 12 onto roll support cup 38 a and roll support arm 38 b located opposite each other on side walls 16 , 18 , respectively , and forming main roll station 48 ( fig1 ). a length of towel from main roll 28 is then threaded behind transfer bar 36 including a fork 37 a and a cam 37 b , and over drive roller 32 so that towel sheeting 50 will be pulled between the drive roller 32 and the pinch roller 34 in a generally downward motion when the drive roller 32 is rotated by operation of a motor 88 shown in fig4 . as the towel sheeting 50 is pulled downwardly , it is guided along a wall 52 of the serrated blade 42 and out slot 40 . the length of towel sheeting 50 dispensed from towel dispenser 10 can be set to any desired length . preferably , the dispenser 10 releases about ten to twelve inches of towel sheeting 50 per dispensing cycle . the towel sheeting 50 is then removed by tearing the length of dispensed towel sheeting 50 at the serrated edge 43 of blade 42 . when the main roll 28 has been partially depleted , preferably to about a four - inch diameter as indicated by low paper indictor 56 , the dispenser cover 24 is opened by an attendant , and the main roll 28 is moved down to a stub roll station 54 . the main roll 28 then becomes stub roll 30 and enables a new main roll 28 to be loaded onto roll support cup 38 a and roll support arm 38 b in main roll station 48 . when stub roll 30 is completely depleted the new main roll 28 begins feeding paper 50 between the drive roller 32 and pinch roller 34 out of the dispenser 10 when the motor 88 is activated . when the low paper indicator 56 indicates that the new main roll 28 is low , the attendant opens cover 24 , an empty core ( not shown ) of stub roll 30 is removed from the stub roll station 54 and discarded , and new main roll 28 is dropped into position into the stub roll station 54 where it then becomes stub roll 30 and continues feeding . a main roll 28 is then positioned on the roll support cup 38 a and roll support arm 38 b . the basic transfer mechanism for continuously feeding towels from a stub roll until completely used and then automatic transfer to a main roll is described in detail in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 165 , 138 . hands - free operation of the dispenser 10 is effected when a person places an object such as their hands in front of a photo sensor 82 shown in fig4 . the photo sensor 82 activates the motor 88 to dispense a predetermined length of towel sheeting 50 . the dispenser 10 has electric circuitry which , as will be described below with reference to fig4 - 8 , ensures safe , efficient and reliable operation of the dispenser 10 . referring now to fig4 , a cutaway view of a portion of the dispenser 10 is shown . in fig4 , a circuit board 81 is mounted to a mechanical plate 80 of the dispenser 10 . note that the circuit board is mounted between the mechanical plate 80 and the wall 16 of the cabinet 12 . the photo sensor 82 is seated within a mounting tube 83 and is coupled to the circuit board 81 by leads or wires 84 , 85 . as will be described below with reference to fig5 , the photo sensor 82 reacts to changes in light intensity . light passes from a room , through an opening 86 in the movable front cover 24 of the dispenser 10 , to the photo sensor 82 . a clear plastic lens 87 is fitted into the opening 86 . the lens 87 prevents debris from clogging or blocking the opening 86 which might prevent light from reaching the sensor 82 . the lens 87 also prevents debris from falling into the dispenser 10 which might cause the dispenser 10 to malfunction . also shown in fig4 is the motor 88 which is attached to the drive roller 32 . the motor 88 , including a gearbox ( not shown ), are available from skil corporation in chicago , ill . the motor 88 is placed partially within the drive roller 32 and is powered by a rechargeable battery 90 , also available from skil corporation . the battery 90 is coupled to the motor 88 via the circuit board 81 by wires or leads 92 , 94 which are connected or soldered to the circuit board 81 . a solar panel 96 , is located on the top 20 of the dispenser 10 as shown in fig1 . the solar panel 96 shown , which comprises an array of one or more photovoltaic cells , is made by solarex corporation in frederick , md . the solar panel 96 is coupled to the battery 90 and control circuitry 98 via the circuit board 81 by wires or leads 100 , 102 which are connected or soldered to the circuit board 81 also . the solar panel 96 provides power to control circuitry 98 for controlling the dispensing mechanism of the dispenser 10 . in a preferred embodiment , the solar panel 96 provides power to control circuitry 98 ( fig5 ) which will manage motion sensing , rotation control , safety features , and recharging of the battery 90 . in a second embodiment , the solar panel 96 provides power to the control circuitry 98 which will manage motion sensing , rotation control and safety features , but the battery 90 will be replaced at desired intervals and will not be recharged by the control circuitry 98 . when the solar panel 96 is not exposed to light , the solar panel 96 does not supply power to the control circuitry 98 and the motor 88 cannot be turned on . the solar panel 96 functions as an on - off switch for the dispenser 10 and thereby prevents the battery 90 from becoming unnecessarily discharged when the lights are off . if the control circuitry 98 is not powered by the solar panel 96 , the motor 88 cannot be turned on . referring now to fig5 , a schematic diagram of the control circuitry 98 is shown . the control circuitry 98 controls the “ hands - free ” operation of the dispenser 10 . more specifically , the control circuitry 98 controls and / or performs the following functions : ( 1 ) sensing when an object such as a person &# 39 ; s hand is in front of the photo sensor 82 and turning the motor 88 on ; ( 2 ) sensing when the proper length of towel sheeting 50 has been dispensed and then turning the motor 88 off ; ( 3 ) sensing when towel sheeting 50 has jammed inside of the dispenser 10 and turning the motor 88 off ; ( 4 ) sensing when the front cover 24 of the dispenser 10 is open and preventing operation of the motor 88 ; ( 5 ) creating a short delay , preferably about two seconds , between dispensing cycles ; and ( 6 ) charging of the battery 90 by the array of one or more photovoltaic cells 96 . the values of the components shown in the schematic diagram of fig5 are as listed below : resistors r1 = 1 × 10 6 ohm r2 = 520 × 10 3 ohm r3 = 1 × 10 6 ohm r4 = 3 × 10 6 ohm r5 = 3 . 3 × 10 6 ohm r6 = 10 × 10 6 ohm r7 = 1 × 10 6 ohm r8 = 20 × 10 3 ohm r9 = 680 ohm r10 = 8 ohm r11 = 1 × 10 ohm r12 = 1 × 10 6 ohm capacitors c1 = 1 × 10 − 6 farad c2 = 1 × 10 − 6 farad c3 = 104 × 10 − 6 farad c4 = 104 × 10 − 6 farad c5 = 1 × 10 − 6 farad c6 = 1 × 10 − 6 farad all diodes are part nos . in4148 or in914 from diodes , inc . operational amplifiers ic 1 a and ic 1 b are on circuit board icl7621dcpa from maxim . transistors q 1 and q 2 are part no . 2n3904 from national . reed switches rd 1 and rd 2 are part no . mins1525 - 052500 from cp - claire . the photo sensor 82 shown is a cadmium sulfide (“ cds ”) motion detector manufactured by silonex corporation located in plattsburg , n . y . the photo sensor 82 is a variable resistance resistor . the resistance of the photo sensor 82 changes depending on the amount of light to which the photo sensor 82 is exposed . if the amount of light on the photo sensor 82 is high , the photo sensor &# 39 ; s resistance becomes relatively low . if the amount of light on the photo sensor 82 is low , the photo sensor &# 39 ; s resistance becomes relatively high . in ambient light , the photo sensor 82 has a certain resistance which causes voltage v a to be less than a reference voltage v b . voltage v a and reference voltage v b are the positive and negative inputs , respectively , of operational amplifier ic 1 a . when voltage v a is less than reference voltage v b , the operational amplifier ic 1 a output voltage v m1 , goes to negative , i . e ., v m1 is at zero voltage . when voltage v m1 is at zero voltage , the motor 88 will not operate . note that the reference voltage v b is determined by and adjusts according to the ambient light level in a room . therefore , the reference voltage v b is not preset to any particular light level . a reference voltage circuit 104 sets the reference voltage v b according to the ambient light level of a room . because the reference voltage circuit 104 sets the reference voltage v b according to the ambient light level in a room , no adjustments need to be made to the dispenser 10 based on how high or low the ambient light level is for a particular room . furthermore , the combination of the photo sensor 82 and the reference voltage circuitry 104 permit the photo sensor 82 to trigger the dispenser 10 when a person &# 39 ; s hand comes within approximately 10 - 12 inches from the sensor 82 . the reference voltage circuit 104 includes resistors r 2 and r 3 and capacitor c 1 . resistors r 2 and r 3 are connected to the positive terminal , solar panel +, of the solar panel 96 which provides a voltage b + when the solar panel 96 is exposed to light . in ambient light , voltage v a is approximately 0 . 5 ( b + ). when a person places an obtrusion such as their hand within a predetermined distance of the photo sensor 82 , preferably within 10 - 12 inches , the amount of light reaching the photo sensor 82 is decreased sufficiently to cause the photo sensor &# 39 ; s resistance to increase to a level where voltage v a becomes greater than voltage v b and thereby causes the output v m1 of operational amplifier ic 1 a to be a positive voltage . the operational amplifier ic 1 a output voltage v m1 is passed through diode d 1 and is coupled to the positive input of operational amplifier ic 1 b . reference voltage v c is provided between resistors r 5 and r 6 and is the negative input of operational amplifier ic 1 b . if voltage v m1 is greater than reference voltage v c , then the output of the operational amplifier ic 1 b , v m2 , is at a positive voltage . when the output voltage v m2 is at positive voltage , n - p - n transistor q 1 is closed , thereby causing a current to flow through coil cl 1 which in turn closes coil relay rly 1 . when rly 1 is closed , the motor 88 runs because the motor &# 39 ; s positive terminal , motor +, is connected to the battery &# 39 ; s positive terminal , battery +. in order to stop the motor 88 from turning after a predetermined amount of towel sheeting 50 has been dispensed , a roller sensing circuit 106 is provided . the roller sensing circuit 106 includes a magnet , 108 , an n - p - n transistor q 3 , a capacitor c 6 , resistors r 7 and r 8 and a reed switch rd 1 . the magnet 108 is mounted on drive roller 32 . the magnet 108 activates or closes the reed switch rd 1 when the magnet 108 is aligned with the reed switch rd 1 . when the reed switch rd 1 is closed , a one time voltage drop is made across capacitor c 6 . the voltage drop across capacitor c 6 turns on transistor q 3 which causes voltage v m1 to drop to less than reference voltage v c and therefore produces a negative output or zero voltage output v m1 from operational amplifier ic 1 b and stops the motor 88 from operating . by changing the radius of the drive roller 32 , the length of paper 50 that is dispensed can be varied . the time it takes for the motor 88 to turn the drive roller 32 one full turn , i . e ., the time it takes for the magnet 108 to become aligned with reed switch rd 1 , is approximately 0 . 47 seconds . when the drive roller 32 has made one full turn , the predetermined amount of towel sheeting 50 has been dispensed and the magnet 108 is aligned again with the reed sensor rd 1 to stop operation of the motor 88 , as described above . preferably , the motor 88 will power an approximately 3 - 4 inch diameter roller for one revolution , sufficient to dispense approximately 10 - 12 inches of paper towel 50 . if the reed sensor rd 1 is not activated within 1 . 0 second , e . g ., if a paperjam occurs , a safety time circuit 110 turns the motor 88 off . the safety timer circuit 110 includes capacitor c 2 and resistor r 4 . if the reed switch rd 1 does not sense the magnet 108 within 1 . 0 second , the safety time circuit 110 causes voltage v m1 to drop below reference voltage v c and thereby causes output voltage v m2 to be at zero volts and turns the motor 88 off . when the front cover 24 is open , e . g ., to add towel sheeting 50 in the dispenser 10 , the motor 88 is prevented from operating by a door safety circuit 120 . the door safety circuit 120 includes resistors r 5 and r 6 , a reed switch rd 2 and a magnet 121 . one lead 122 of the reed switch rd 2 is attached to resistor r 5 and the other lead 124 is attached to ground g 2 . reference voltage v c is created between resistors r 5 and r 6 . when the front cover 24 is open , the reed switch rd 2 is open and causes voltage v c to be higher than voltage v m1 and therefore causes the output voltage , v m2 , of operational amplifier ic 1 b to be at zero voltage . note that voltage v m2 is never higher than voltage b + . when the front cover 24 is closed , the magnet 121 causes the reed switch rd 2 to close and allows reference voltage v c to be less than voltage v m1 , which in turn causes the output voltage v m2 of operational amplifier ic 1 b to be at positive voltage and turns the motor 88 on . in ambient room light , the solar panel 96 generates enough current to power the control circuitry 98 . in the preferred embodiment ( shown in fig5 ), the solar panel 96 generates enough current to also charge the battery 90 . in this preferred embodiment , a positive lead , solar panel +, of the solar panel 96 , is connected to battery charging circuitry 126 . the battery charging circuitry 126 includes a diode d 5 , resistors r 11 and r 16 , a capacitor c 4 and a p - n - p transistor q 2 . the positive lead , solar panel +, of the solar panel 96 charges capacitor c 4 through resistor r 16 . when capacitor c 4 is charged to a certain voltage level , preferably approximately 1 . 2 volts higher than the battery voltage b + , resistor r 11 biases the capacitor c 4 to discharge through the p - n - p transistor q 2 and into the positive terminal , battery +, of the battery 90 . as long as light reaches the solar panel 96 , the battery charging process will be repeated and the solar panel 96 continually charges the capacitor c 4 and battery 90 . in the second embodiment ( not shown ), the solar panel 96 only provides power to the control circuitry 98 . disposable , d - cell batteries ( not shown ) or other disposable batteries can be used to power the motor 88 , instead of the rechargeable battery 90 . because the control circuitry 98 is powered by the solar panel 96 , the motor 88 will not operate unless there is light in the room , thus preventing the disposable batteries from becoming unnecessarily discharged . after the disposable battery has been fully discharged , the disposable battery can be replaced . the control circuitry 98 also includes delay circuitry 112 to prevent the dispenser 10 from starting a new cycle of dispensing towel sheeting 50 until a predetermined time after the motor 88 has turned off from a prior dispensing cycle . the predetermined time is preferably approximately 2 seconds . the delay circuitry 122 includes a diode d 2 , resistor r 3 , and capacitor c 1 . when voltage v m2 is high , the motor 88 is running and causing towel sheeting 50 to be dispensed from the dispenser 10 . when v m2 is high , capacitor c 1 is charge to a very high level , forcing reference voltage v b very high . it takes approximately 2 seconds for v b to return to its ambient light level setting . during that time , if a person places their hand in front of the photo sensor 82 , voltage v a will not be forced higher than v b . as a result , the motor 88 cannot be turned on again until approximately 2 seconds after it has been turned off . this prevents a continual discharge of towel sheeting 50 from the dispenser which could cause the battery 90 to discharge and the motor 88 to burn out . the manner in which the motor 88 is turned on is described in the flowchart of fig6 . the motor 88 cannot be turned on if there is not enough ambient light in the room to power the control circuitry 98 . the solar panel 96 acts as an “ on - off ” switch for the dispenser 10 and will not permit the dispenser 10 to dispense towel sheeting 50 unless there is sufficient light in the room . if there is sufficient light in the room to power the control circuitry 98 , the various checks , which have been described above with reference to the circuitry in fig5 , are shown in the flowchart of fig6 . these checks are performed before the motor 88 is turned on . the manner in which the motor 88 is turned off , which has been explained above with reference to fig5 , is described in the flowchart in fig8 . similarly , the charging of the battery 90 by the solar panel 96 , which has been explained above with reference to fig5 , is described in the flowchart of fig8 . the embodiments of the inventions disclosed herein have been discussed for the purpose of familiarizing the reader with novel aspects of the invention . although preferred embodiments have been shown and described , many changes , modifications , and substitutions may be made by one having skill in the art without necessarily departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .	0
a reciprocating positive displacement three - piston pump for use with the present invention is shown in fig1 as reference numeral 10 . the pump 10 includes a pump housing 11 and a crankshaft housing 12 encompassing a crankshaft 14 externally driven ( not shown ) connecting rod 16 . the crankshaft 14 is connected to a piston or plunger 18 in a manner well - known through rod 16 to produce reciprocating motion of the plunger or piston 18 as the crankshaft 14 rotates . the plunger 18 reciprocates within a pump chamber 20 and cooling and lubricating chamber 21 . the pump chamber 20 has a low - pressure seal 22 which seals the pump chamber 20 within the pump housing 11 . backup seal 23 protects the crankshaft housing 12 , crankshaft 14 , rod 16 and their typical petroleum lubricants . the pump chamber 20 has a high - pressure seal 24 which seals the compression chamber 26 from the cooling and lubricating chamber 21 and low - pressure seal 22 . the pump 10 has an inlet chamber 28 which receives de - ionized water a from a source ( not shown ). the inlet chamber is normally closed by an inlet valve 30 . the pump 10 has an outlet chamber 32 for pumping pressurized de - ionized water b to a destination ( not shown ). the outlet chamber 32 is normally closed by an outlet valve 34 . the plunger 18 is lubricated by tap water c flowing from a source ( not shown ) through an inlet 36 to contact the plunger 18 , the high - pressure seal 24 and the low - pressure seal 22 and , thus , lubricate and cool the plunger 18 and seals 22 and 24 . tap water d is then discharged through an outlet 38 . in the context of this application , “ tap water ” shall be defined as any non - de - ionized water such as city water . city water typically is 30 - 40 psi . in this application , the city water is suitably valved down to 2 - 3 psi . by this arrangement and method of cooling and lubricating , pump 10 and its constitutent parts have significantly greater longevity in between service and maintenance down times . this is because tap water c at 40 °- 50 ° has greater cooling capacity than de - ionized water a at 90 °- 100 ° f . also , tap water c is a better lubricant with its metal ions than abrasive de - ionized water a . unless otherwise defined , all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs . although methods and materials similar to or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of the present invention , suitable methods and materials are described below . all publications , patent applications , patents , and other references mentioned herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety to the extent allowed by applicable law and regulations . in case of conflict , the present specification , including definitions , will control . the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof , and it is therefore desired that the present embodiment be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive , reference being made to the appended claims rather than to the foregoing description to indicate the scope of the invention .	5
a circuit breaker 10 constructed in accordance with the first aspect of the invention is illustrated in fig1 . an additional description of the general features of a similar type circuit breaker can be found in the following patents , the specifications of which are incorporated herein by reference : ( b ) westermeyer , u . s . pat . no . 4 , 614 , 928 , entitled &# 34 ; automatic switch with an arc blast field &# 34 ;, ( c ) westermeyer , u . s . pat . no . 4 , 609 , 895 , entitled &# 34 ; automatic switch with integral contact indicator &# 34 ;, and ( d ) westermeyer , u . s . pat . no . 4 , 608 , 546 , entitled &# 34 ; automatic switch with impact - armature tripping device &# 34 ;. the circuit breaker 10 has a housing 11 and includes a resilient clamp type line terminal 12 for connection to a source of electricity ( not shown ) and a screw type load terminal 14 for connection to a load circuit ( not shown ). a current path is established between the line terminal 12 and the load terminal 14 which includes a line conductor 16 , a support 18 for a bimetal thermal element 20 , a braided pigtail 22 , and a blade 24 including a movable contact 26 . continuing from the movable contact 26 , the current path includes a stationary contact 28 , a trip coil 31 and a load conductor 32 . the blade 24 is shown in a closed position with the movable contact 26 engaging or mating with the stationary contact 28 . the blade 24 is pivotable between the closed position shown and an open position , wherein the movable contact 26 is separated from the stationary contact 28 to prevent current flow . the stationary contact 28 comprises a layer of copper 28a laminated to a layer of steel 28b with a silver / graphite composition contact 28c welded to the copper . the blade 24 is an element of a unitary breaker assembly , generally designated 40 , which controls the position of the blade 24 relative to the stationary contact 28 . the circuit breaker 10 also includes a line - side arc arresting plate 29a , a load - side arc arresting plate 29b and a stack of deionization plates , or arc stack , 30 , which cooperate to break the electrical arc formed when the circuit breaker 10 is opened while supplying current to a load . the specific operation of the arc arresting plates 29a , 29b and the arc stack 30 is disclosed in greater detail in the above incorporated patents . the elements 16 , 18 , 20 and 29a are joined together by welding at their various interfaces . in fig2 unitary breaker assembly 40 includes a first frame member or plate 42 having first , second and third upright members 43 , 44 , 45 , respectively . a pivot pin 48 extends upwardly through a hole in the first frame plate 42 . a trip lever 50 is pivotally supported on the pivot pin 48 . the trip lever 50 includes a solenoid actuator surface 52 and a bimetal actuator surface 54 . the blade 24 includes an elongated slot 24a for receiving the pivot pin 48 . the blade 24 further includes a notch 56 to which a first end of a toggle spring 58 is attached . a latch spring 60 is disposed about the pivot pin 48 between the trip lever 50 and the blade 24 . the latch spring 60 includes a first end 62 which engages the first upright member 43 and a second end 63 which engages the solenoid actuator surface 52 of the trip lever 50 . the latch spring 60 provides a counterclockwise bias to the trip lever 50 . a cam 64 , having an operating handle 65 attached thereto , includes a recessed portion 66 in which a cam spring 68 is placed . referring also to fig3 and 4 , a first cam spring end 69a extends from recessed portion 66 and engages the third upright member 45 . a second cam spring end 69b engages a wall of the recessed portion 66 . the cam spring 68 imparts a clockwise bias to the cam 64 as viewed in fig2 . a link 70 couples the cam 64 to a pawl 72 . the pawl 72 is pivotally connected to a flag end 74 of the blade 24 by a pin 76 . the f lag end is visible through a window 75 in the housing 11 ( fig1 ) and indicates the status of the circuit breaker contacts , i . e . whether they are opened or closed . the trip lever 50 further includes an engaging surface 78 which engages the pawl 72 . when in the closed position , the movable contact 26 is physically coupled to the stationary contact 28 . the pin 76 operates as a fulcrum on the blade 24 , causing the toggle spring 58 to keep the movable contact 26 and the stationary contact 28 closed . referring again to fig1 the blade 24 can be moved to the open position by operation of the bimetal thermal element 20 , by action of a spring loaded rod 80 disposed within the operating or trip coil 31 , or by manipulation of operating handle 65 . load current passing through the bimetal thermal element 20 heats the bimetal thermal element 20 which deflects downwardly in the direction of the arrow 82 . the amount of deflection depends upon the temperature reached by the bimetal thermal element 20 , which is a function of the magnitude and duration of the load current . when the bimetal thermal element 20 deflects sufficiently , a calibration screw 84 engages the bimetal actuator surface 54 of the trip lever 50 , causing the trip lever 50 to rotate clockwise about the pivot pin 48 and against the bias of the latch spring 60 ( fig3 ), tripping the circuit breaker 10 as discussed in greater detail below . the circuit breaker 10 can also be tripped by the trip coil 31 . the rod 80 is downwardly biased by a solenoid spring 86 . rod 80 may be coupled to , or a part of ( or simply in gravitational contact with ), a movable armature in coil 31 . load current passes through the coil 31 ( one end of which is welded to stationary contact 28 ), establishing an electromagnetic field that affects the coil armature ( and hence rod 80 ). when the electromagnetic force in coil 31 exceeds the biasing force of the solenoid spring 86 , the rod 80 is moved ( up ) to engage the solenoid actuator surface 52 , causing the trip lever 50 to rotate clockwise , tripping the circuit breaker 10 , as discussed below . referring to fig1 and 3 , when either the bimetal thermal element 20 or the rod 80 causes the trip lever 50 to rotate clockwise , the engaging surface 78 of trip lever 50 moves away from pawl 72 which permits cam spring 68 to rotate cam 64 in a clockwise direction . cam 64 pulls downwardly on the link 70 , causing counterclockwise rotation of pawl 72 about pin 76 . when pawl 72 is released from engagement with the engaging surface 78 , blade 24 moves downwardly at its right side due to the action of toggle spring 58 , initially causing the pivot pin 48 to engage the upper surface of the elongated hole 24a , which operates as a floating point . the pivot pin 48 then operates as a fulcrum about which blade 24 rotates , causing the toggle spring 58 to move movable contact 26 away from stationary contact 28 , thus opening the circuit . in the event that the operating handle 65 is locked in its upward , or on , position and either bimetal thermal element 20 or rod 80 causes the trip lever 50 to rotate clockwise , link 70 , which is under compression between cam 64 and pawl 72 , causes the pawl 72 to rotate clockwise about pin 76 , again releasing the engaging surface 78 from engagement with the pawl 72 . when the engaging surface 78 no longer engages the pawl 72 , the blade 24 lowers , causing the pivot pin 48 to operate as a fulcrum about which the blade 24 rotates , permitting the toggle spring 58 to move the movable contact 26 away from the stationary contact 28 . the cam 64 is shown from its reverse side in fig4 to better illustrate the recessed portion 66 and cam spring 68 . the cam spring 68 is centered on a cam pivot axis 88 . the second cam spring end 69b is biased against wall 66a of the recessed portion 66 . the first cam spring end 69a is biased by torsion loading against the third upright member 45 . the torsion loading of the cam spring 68 urges the cam 64 and attached operating handle 65 in the downward position . the circuit breaker 10 is illustrated in an exploded perspective view in fig5 . the first , second and third upright members 43 , 44 , 45 of the first frame plate 42 terminate in connecting tabs 43a , 44a , 45a , respectively . a second frame plate 89 includes corresponding tab receiving openings 43b , 44b , 45b which provide an interference fit with the respective connecting tabs 43a , 44a , 45a to secure the first frame plate 42 to the second frame plate 89 . in this embodiment of the invention , the first and second frame plates 42 , 89 , respectively , are separate pieces ; however it is to be understood that the frame plates could be formed from a single piece folded over to form the opposing frame surfaces . with the first frame plate 42 secured to the second frame plate 89 , it will be noted that all elements of the unitary breaker assembly 40 are secured together . as illustrated , the unitary breaker assembly and other individual components of the circuit breaker 10 are simply installed into the circuit breaker base 11a and require no attachments thereto . the housing 11 has a base 11a and a cover 11b . the base 11a defines x , y and z axis supporting elements and surfaces . these include internal and external walls and parts that are perpendicular to the base 11a , i . e . extend along the z - axis . the elements define an arc stack section 90 , a unitary breaker assembly section 92 and a coil section 94 as well as support slots such as 96a and 96b . end portions 18a and 18b of the bimetal support 18 are slid into and retained within respective support slots 96a and 96b . the line - side arc arresting plate 29a is slid into and retained within an arc runner slot 98 . the unitary breaker assembly 40 is then simply placed in the unitary breaker assembly section 92 , and requires no attachments to the housing 11 . suitably placed and configured additional indentations and protrusions ( not shown ) may be incorporated in base 11a and cover 11b for assuring adequate support for the various elements , if desired . the load terminal 14 is slid into and retained in a load terminal compartment 99 . suitable fasteners , not shown , are used to secure cover 11b in place on base 11a and thereby retain the elements of the circuit breaker in housing 11 . the blade 24 is a tapered plate on edge , operating structurally as a beam so as to prevent flexing . if additional current carrying capacity is required , the width of the blade 24 may simply be increased . the embodiment of the invention illustrated in fig6 and 7 provides a very attractive solution for a circuit breaker manufacturer who wishes to do final assembly of circuit breakers at different locations . the operative parts of the circuit breaker , including the unitary breaker assembly and the trip coil and stationary contact , are preassembled into a module that may be tested and calibrated before final installation in the breaker housing . therefore , the critical manufacturing steps may be carefully controlled where the modules are constructed . in fig6 circuit breaker 10 &# 39 ; has a base 111 that is modified to accept a module 100 without the need of fasteners . module 100 has a pair of supporting side plates or frame members ( only one of which -- 105 -- is visible ) that function to support the movable elements for operation as was accomplished by the frame members 42 and 89 above . that is , one of the side plates of module 100 has an internal configuration that cooperates with the other side plate to operatively support the working elements of the circuit breaker . as illustrated by the dotted line wall portions 103 and the fastener points 102 , the frame members are configured to provide suitable openings for parts of the circuit breaker that extend outside the module which includes the unitary breaker assembly and the trip coil assembly . these parts include the cam 64 , operating handle 65 , line terminal 12 , load terminal 14 , flag end 74 , calibration screw 84 and line and load side arc plates 29a and 29b . thus the essential mechanism of the breaker may be handled and tested as a separate module 100 . the frame members are preferably made of plastic with suitable interior coatings or barrier plates adjacent to the contact areas to withstand the effects of heating due to opening and closing of the contacts under load . the frame members also support the pivot pins 48 and define the pivot axis 88 . the differences between this embodiment and that described in fig1 - 5 are that the stationary contact and trip coil and the bimetal and calibration screw are also secured in their final positions by the module 100 , which permits full operation and adjustment of the breaker before installing it in housing 111 . all that needs to be added during final assembly is the arc chute 30 . securing the trip coil and stationary contact and the thermal element support 18 in module 100 renders the unitary breaker assembly capable of full operation apart from housing 111 and cover 112 and represents a preferred implementation of the invention . in fig7 the internal configuration of base 111 for supporting module 100 ( without fasteners ) is shown . it will be appreciated that suitable fasteners ( not shown ) are used to secure module 100 between base 111 and cover 112 via apertures 104 and 105 . it will also be noted that the particular configuration of the base , cover and module is dependent upon the specific breaker construction . thus it can be seen that a unitary breaker assembly has been provided which can be preassembled and which requires no attachments to secure it within a circuit breaker housing . in addition , assembly of the unitary breaker assembly can readily be automated , because the assembly steps are performed along a single axis . it will be understood that the invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or central characteristics thereof . the present examples and embodiments , therefore , are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive , and the invention is not to be limited to the details given herein .	7
referring to fig1 a cd package , generally designated 10 , is shown in its unassembled form . cd package 10 comprises three generally equal - sized rectangular sections 12 , 14 and 16 . section 14 has a first glue flap 18 on its edge 21 and a second glue flap 20 on its edge 23 . its remaining edges 25 and 27 are coupled to section 16 and section 12 respectively . edges 21 , 23 , 27 are defined by respective fold lines 22a and 22b ; 24a and 24b ; and 26a and 26b . edge 27 , which is between sections 12 and 14 , includes a slit 28 which does not extend completely to edge 25 , but instead has endpoints 28a and 28b inward from the corresponding edges of sections 12 and 14 . edge 25 , between sections 14 and 16 is a perforated or otherwise easily detachable edge as indicated in fig1 by hash marks 30 . section 16 further comprises a semi - circular cut - out region 32 on its edge 33 and a projecting tab 34 on its edge 35 . similarly , semi - circular shaped cut - outs 36 and 38 are formed near the middle of edges 37 and 25 respectively . to assemble cd package 10 , the first step is to fold section 16 along edge 25 so that section 16 overlies section 14 . next , flaps 18 and 20 are folded along edges 21 and 23 respectively to overlie a portion of section 16 . flaps 18 and 20 preferably are glue flaps wherein glue is applied to their underside . next , section 12 is folded along edge 27 and glued to flaps 18 and 20 by virtue of these flaps overlapping the corresponding adjacent edges of section 12 when it is brought into congruent contact with the &# 34 ; sandwich &# 34 ; of previously folded - over sections 14 and 16 . when this step is completed , projecting tab 34 will extend through slit 28 as can be seen in fig4 . finally , edge 25 is separated so that section 16 is slidable within the envelope formed by sections 12 and 14 and flaps 18 and 20 . section 16 is , however , slidable only along a distance defined by the length of slit 28 ( between terminal points 28a and 28b ) and is not removable from assembled package 10 . either before or after assembly of package 10 , a cd retaining element 40 is adhered to section 16 which will ultimately slide within the package . retaining element 40 can be comprised of injection molded pliable plastic tabs which are well known in the art and described in fig7 and 7a of the &# 39 ; 812 patent which is hereby incorporated by reference . in this case , it is preferable to attach retaining element 40 to the underside of section 16 so that when package 10 is completely assembled it allows a right - handed user to pull section 16 with the cd in an upward position . another technique of providing a cd retaining element is provided herein and described in fig9 and 10 . instead of gluing a cd retaining element to the flap as provided in the prior art , an appropriately sized ( typically approximately one - half inch in diameter ) die - cut hole 57 can be made in section 16 which is capable of receiving a disc retaining button 59 which includes a plurality of snaps 61 , a plurality of upstanding pliable tabs 63 , a circular region 64 , and base region 66 . in fig9 section 16 is comprised of 18 point card stock and snaps 61 are designed to be flexible so that they fold inwardly to fit beneath section 16 and then expand to hold base region 66 to section 16 . base region 66 also has cutouts 65 to enable easier user access to snaps 61 . in fig1 , a cross - sectional view is shown with molded button 59 placed on section 16 . one advantage of implementing button 59 is that the disc retaining element can be replaced when its pliable teeth 63 loose their desired rigidity . when the package is completely assembled ( see fig3 and 4 ), cut - outs 36 and 38 will form finger slots which will permit a user to more easily grasp section 16 to move it ( and a cd sliding with it ) in and partially out of the envelope formed from sections 12 and 14 and flaps 18 and 20 . the purpose of cut - out section 32 is to enable a user to grip or pinch the envelope along edge 21 while pulling carrier section 16 in and out of the envelope without restraining movement of section 16 . it should be noted by those skilled in the art that while the description herein describes the rectangular sections which comprise the novel cd package as being &# 34 ; substantially equal - sized &# 34 ; in actual practice , it may be preferable to manufacture edges 23 , 27 and 35 to be six inches long and edges 21 , 25 and 33 to be only , e . g ., five , and one - half inches long when housing today &# 39 ; s common cds -- this achieves the advantage of simplifying placement of the cds in their displays . of course , the actual dimensions utilized will depend on the designer &# 39 ; s choice and manufacturing requirements . referring now to fig2 a second embodiment of an unassembled cd package in &# 34 ; layout &# 34 ; form is illustrated . cd package 100 comprises a parallel series of sections 112 , 114 and 116 . section 114 comprises a first flap 120 along its edge 123 , a second flap 118 along its edge 127 forming a slit 128 therebetween which extends from endpoint 128a to endpoint 128b , a third edge 121 in common with section 112 and a fourth edge 125 in common with section 116 . sections 114 and 116 are easily detachable when separated along perforations 130 . to assemble cd package 100 , section 116 , which includes a projecting tab 134 on its edge 135 , is folded along edge 125 to overlie section 114 . flaps 118 and 120 are then folded along edges 127 and 123 respectively to overlie section 116 . next , section 112 is then folded along edge 121 and is adhered by gluing means to previously underlying surfaces of flaps 118 and 120 . finally , sections 114 and 116 are separated so that section 116 is slidable within an envelope formed from sections 112 and 114 , and flaps 118 and 120 , whereby the longitudinal movement of section 116 is limited to the length of slit 128 from endpoint 128a to endpoint 128b based on the protruding nature of tab 134 through slit 128 . thus when section 116 slides out of the envelope created by sections 112 and 114 and flaps 118 and 120 , it is prevented from completely falling from the retaining envelope based on protruding tab 134 hitting endpoint 128b . again , optional cut - outs 136 and 138 and cut - out section 132 are incorporated to enhance the functionality of cd package 100 . the retaining element 140 is illustrated on the center of the surface of section 116 . retaining element 140 can be affixed by conventional techniques or by the manner described in fig9 and 10 . it should be noted that cd retaining elements could be placed on opposite surfaces of section 116 to enable storage of two compact discs . in such instances , flaps 118 and 120 should have a thickness sufficient to produce a wide enough opening between sections 112 and 114 to house two compact discs . referring now to fig3 a , a cd package 200 is shown in a transparent form in order to illustrate the placement of cd 255 in package 200 . cd package 200 comprises an envelope 205 having an open edge 210 , an opposite closed edge 215 ( not fully visible in fig3 a ), a closed edge 220 ( also not completely visible in fig3 a ), and an edge 225 which includes a defined slit 230 which does not extend along the entire length between edges 210 and 215 but instead extends from endpoint 230a to endpoint 230b . a carrier sheet 245 is shaped to be slidable within the opening area of envelope 200 along the distance defined by the length of slit 230 . a projecting tab 250 is shown in fig3 a as being an integral part of carrier sheet 245 , and protrudes from slit 230 . in its completely encased position as shown in fig3 a , tab 250 protrudes from slit 230 on a side closest to edge 215 . preferably , the closed portion of edge 225 nearest edge 215 will extend so as to stop movement of carrier sheet 245 ( by interfering with protruding tab 250 ) before carrier sheet 245 exerts any pressure against edge 215 . this helps prevent the possibility of carrier sheet 245 weakening closed edge 215 . a cd 255 is shown in phantom within envelope 200 and attached to carrier sheet 245 by means of a retaining element 260 . in order to remove carrier sheet 245 ( and thus cd 255 ) from its protective envelope 205 , a right - handed user will typically pinch down on envelope 205 near the center of edge 215 as illustrated by oppositely directed arrows a -- a , and will pull carrier sheet 245 near edge 210 in direction b . a cut - out region 270 is formed on carrier sheet 245 so that when edge 215 is pinched it will not restrict movement of carrier element 245 . moreover , cut - out 275 is formed on envelope 205 on both its top and bottom surfaces to facilitate access to carrier sheet 245 to exert force b to remove the cd from envelope 205 . referring to fig3 b , a non - transparent view of package 200 is illustrated . it should be noted that various graphical information can be provided on the top surface of package 200 and also on closed edge 215 . the information provided along edge 215 is typically the catalog number , the album title , and the artist . this allows the user to store package 200 in standard cd carrying cases and still read the title information . turning now to fig4 which shows the cd in the &# 34 ; withdrawn &# 34 ; mode , package 200 is illustrated with carrier sheet 245 fully extended from envelope 205 for removing cd 255 ( endpoint 230b ). carrier sheet 245 remains partially within envelope 205 due to the restriction caused by projecting tab 250 coming in contact with a closed portion of edge 225 . this design greatly reduces the possibility of the cd 255 from falling from envelope 205 , particularly when cd 255 is not properly engaged on retaining element 260 . in its fully extendable position of fig4 cd record 255 can be lifted off retaining element 200 to be played by a user . this is done by gently disengaging the record from retaining element 260 . when its use is completed , the cd can easily be snapped back on retaining element 260 and pushed back into envelope 205 as shown in fig3 a . graphical information 231 is placed on envelope 205 and additional graphical information 233 can be placed on carrier sheet 245 . in fig4 the cd package 200 is easily utilized by a right - handed user by grasping carrier sheet 245 with the user &# 39 ; s right hand . however , unlike what is illustrated in fig4 it is often preferable to have tab 250 extend from the top of cd package 200 to allow placement on a shelf along the bottom edge 225 without risking damage to tab 245 . fig4 demonstrates the tab along bottom edge 225 instead of edge 220 in order to more clearly illustrate the novel tab and slit design . referring now to fig5 the cd package 200 shown in fig3 is shown in its ultimate commercial form , encased in a plastic protective layer 290 . layer 300 may be comprised of shrink - wrapped plastic and is provided to protect the packaging prior to sale , minimize the risk of theft of the cd from the packaging , and to place promotional labels or stickers ( such as those advertising price ) which can be removed when the cd is purchased and brought to the user &# 39 ; s home . a bar code or electronic device can be attached to layer 290 to prevent theft by setting off an alarm if the device is removed from a store . by attaching the bar code or electronic device to the protective layer 290 the printing on the package is protected . it should be apparent to one skilled in the art that while cd package 200 can be assembled by the methods described in fig1 and 2 , it is also possible to use a discrete envelope and carrier sheet wherein projecting tab 250 is simply attached to an edge of carrier sheet 245 after its insertion into envelope 205 . furthermore , for purposes of merchandising the cd , package 200 preferably will include a shrink - wrapped protective plastic layer to both further protect the cd and its package , and to prevent theft . an advantage of cd package 200 is that graphics can be pre - printed on both the outer envelope 205 and carrier sheet 245 . this enables a record manufacturer to include necessary information such as &# 34 ; liner &# 34 ; notes , photographs , copyright notices and decorative effects ( such as musical group of production company logos ) without the need for providing a separate insert . fig6 - 8 disclose a compact disc package 300 in unassembled ( fig6 ) and assembled ( fig7 - 8 ) forms . compact disc package 300 is comprised of six generally equal - sized rectangular sections 312 , 314 , 316 , 318 , 320 and 322 . section 314 has a glue flap 324 on its edge 325 and section 316 has a glue flap 326 on its edge 327 . edge 325 includes a slit 328 therebetween which extends from end point 328a to end point 328b . similarly , edge 327 includes a slit 330 therebetween which extends from end point 330a to end point 330b . sections 312 and 318 each include respective tabs 332 and 334 , cutouts 336 and 338 , and retaining elements 340 and 342 . section 316 shares edge 341 with section 318 and is easily detachable as indicated by hatched lines 346 . similarly , section 312 shares edge 343 with section 314 and is easily detachable as illustrated by hatched lines 344 . sections 314 and 322 share an edge 351 and have respective cutouts 350 and 352 . sections 316 and 320 share an edge 353 and have respective cutouts 354 and 356 . compact disc package 300 can also be viewed as two mirror - imaged sets of three substantially equal - sized rectangular sections when divided along a line extending from edge 329 . when viewed in this light , the steps taken on the &# 34 ; top &# 34 ; half of fig6 is corresponding performed to the &# 34 ; bottom &# 34 ; half of fig6 . to assemble cd package 300 , section 318 is folded along edge 351 to overlie section 316 and section 312 is folded along edge 343 to overlie section 314 . flap 324 is then folded along edge 325 to overlie section 312 while , correspondingly , flap 326 is folded along edge 327 to overlie section 318 . next , section 322 is folded along edge 351 and is adhered to flap 324 by gluing means . correspondingly , section 320 is folded along edge 353 to overlie flap 326 and is glued thereto . finally , edges 341 and 343 are separated so that sections 312 and 318 are slidable within a region defined by end points 328a to 328b and 330a and 330b respectively . as a result , cd package 300 can carry two cds , one on retaining element 340 and one on retaining element 342 and is foldable along an edge 329 . fig7 illustrates dual cd package 300 with edge 329 in its open position . fig8 illustrates dual cd package 300 with edge 329 in its closed position . it should be noted that in fig8 as seen in previous embodiments , graphical information may be presented on the outside of dual cd package 300 . from the foregoing description , it will be apparent that the present invention provides a cd package and assembly of the same which is inexpensive and greatly reduces both waste and space requirements . moreover , it will be further apparent that the invention provides a cd package and a method of manufacturing the same wherein there is sufficient space for required or desired pre - printed information . various modifications of the invention will occur to those skilled in the art . for example , finger slots may be cut out on the carrier sheet to permit easier access to the cd when removing the cd from its retaining element . while there have been shown and described what are presently considered to be the preferred embodiments of this invention , it would be obvious to those skilled in the art that various other changes and modifications may be made without departing from the broader aspects of this invention . it is , therefore , desired that the appended claims cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of this invention .	6
fig1 is a block diagram illustrating a system 100 by which a variety of data resources may be accessed for business analytic , report generation and other intelligence purposes according to an embodiment of the invention . according to a preferred embodiment , the system 100 may comprise an online analytical processing ( olap ) decision support system ( dss ). in particular , fig1 may comprise a portion of the microstrategy 7 or 7 . 1 platform which provides a preferred system in which the present invention may be implemented . in general , through using the system 100 of the invention , analysts , managers and other users may query or interrogate a plurality of databases or database arrays to extract demographic , sales , and / or financial data and information and other patterns from records stored in such databases or database arrays to identify strategic trends . those strategic trends may not be discernable without processing the queries and treating the results of the data extraction according to the techniques performed by the systems and methods of the invention . this is in part because the size and complexity of some data portfolios stored in such databases or database arrays may mask those trends . in addition , system 100 may enable the creation of reports or services that are processed according to a schedule . users may then subscribe to the service , provide personalization criteria and have the information automatically delivered to the user , as described in u . s . pat . no . 6 , 154 , 766 to yost et al ., which is commonly assigned and hereby incorporated by reference . as illustrated in fig1 a business , a government or another user may access the resources of the system 100 using a user engine 102 . the user engine 102 may include a query input module 116 to accept a plurality of searches , queries or other requests , via a query box on a graphical user interface ( gui ) or another similar interface . the user engine 102 may communicate with an analytical engine 104 . the analytical engine 104 may include a set of extensible modules to run a plurality of statistical analyses , to apply filtering criteria , to perform a neural net technique or another technique to condition and treat data extracted from data resources hosted in the system 100 , according to a query received from the user engine 102 . the analytical engine 104 may communicate with a query engine 106 , which in turn interfaces to one or more data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n ( where n is an arbitrary number ). the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n may include or interface to a relational database or another structured database stored on a hard disk , an optical disk , a solid state device or another similar storage media . when implemented as databases , the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n may include or interface to , for example , an oracle ™ relational database such as sold commercially by oracle corporation , an informix ™ database , a database 2 ( db2 ) database , a sybase ™ database , or another data storage device or query format , platform or resource such as an olap format , a standard query language ( sql ) format , a storage area network ( san ), or a microsoft access ™ database . it should be understood that while data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n are illustrated as a plurality of data storage devices , in some embodiments the data storage devices may be contained within a single database or another single resource . any of the user engine 102 , the analytical engine 104 and the query engine 106 or other resources of the system 100 may include or interface to or be supported by computing resources , such as one or more associated servers . when a server is employed for support , the server may include , for instance , a workstation running a microsoft windows ™ nt ™ operating system , a windows ™ 2000 operating system , a unix operating system , a linux operating system , a , xenix operating system , an ibm aix ™ operating system , a hewlett - packard ux ™ operating system , a novell netware ™ operating system , a sun microsystems solaris ™ operating system , an os / 2 ™ operating system , a beos ™ operating system , a macintosh operating system , an apache platform , an openstep ™ operating system , or another similar operating system or platform . according to one embodiment of the present invention , analytical engine 104 and query engine 106 may comprise elements of an intelligence server 103 . the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n may be supported by a server or another resource and may , in some embodiments , include redundancy , such as a redundant array of independent disks ( raid ), for data protection . the storage capacity of any one or more of the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n may be of various sizes , from relatively small data sets to very large database ( vldb )- scale data sets , such as warehouses holding terabytes of data or more . the fields and types of data stored within the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n may also be diverse , and may include , for instance , financial , personal , news , marketing , technical , addressing , governmental , military , medical or other categories of data or information . the query engine 106 may mediate one or more queries or information requests from those received from the user at the user engine 102 to parse , filter , format and otherwise process such queries to be submitted against the data contained in the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n . thus , a user at the user engine 102 may submit a query requesting information in sql format , or have the query translated to sql format . the submitted query is then transmitted via the analytical engine 104 to the query engine 106 . the query engine 106 may determine , for instance , whether the transmitted query may be processed by one or more resources of the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n in its original format . if so , the query engine 106 may directly transmit the query to one or more of the resources of the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n for processing . if the transmitted query cannot be processed in its original format , the query engine 106 may perform a translation of the query from an original syntax to a syntax compatible with one or more of the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n by invoking a syntax module 118 to conform the syntax of the query to standard sql , db2 , informix ™, sybase ™ formats or to other data structures , syntax or logic . the query engine 106 may likewise parse the transmitted query to determine whether it includes any invalid formatting or to trap other errors included in the transmitted query , such as a request for sales data for a future year or other similar types of errors . upon detecting an invalid or an unsupported query , the query engine 106 may pass an error message back to the user engine 102 to await further user input . when a valid query such as a search request is received and conformed to a proper format , the query engine 106 may pass the query to one or more of the data storage devices 108 a , 108 n . . . 108 n for processing . in some embodiments , the query may be processed for one or more hits against one or more databases in the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n . for example , a manager of a restaurant chain , a retail vendor or another similar user may submit a query to view gross sales made by the restaurant chain or retail vendor in the state of new york for the year 1999 . the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n may be searched for one or more fields corresponding to the query to generate a set of results 114 . although illustrated in connection with each data storage device 108 in fig1 the results 114 may be generated from querying any one or more of the databases of the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n , depending on which of the data resources produce hits from processing the search query . in some embodiments of the system 100 of the invention , the results 114 may be maintained on one or more of the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n to permit one or more refinements , iterated queries , joins or other operations to be performed on the data included in the results 114 before passing the information included in the results 114 back to the analytical engine 104 and other elements of the system 100 . when any such refinements or other operations are concluded , the results 114 may be transmitted to the analytical engine 104 via the query engine 106 . the analytical engine 104 may then perform statistical , logical or other operations on the results 114 for presentation to the user . for instance , the user may submit a query asking which of its retail stores in the state of new york reached $ 1m in sales at the earliest time in the year 1999 . or , the user may submit a query asking for an average , a mean and a standard deviation of an account balance on a portfolio of credit or other accounts . the analytical engine 104 may process such queries to generate a quantitative report 110 , which may include a table or other output indicating the results 114 extracted from the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n . the report 110 may be presented to the user via the user engine 102 , and , in some embodiments , may be temporarily or permanently stored on the user engine 102 , a client machine or elsewhere , or printed or otherwise output . in some embodiments of the system 100 of the invention , the report 110 or other output may be transmitted to a transmission facility 112 , for transmission to a set of personnel via an email , an instant message , a text - to - voice message , a video or via another channel or medium . the transmission facility 112 may include or interface to , for example , a personalized broadcast platform or service such as the narrowcaster ™ platform or telecaster ™ service sold by microstrategy incorporated or another similar communications channel or medium . similarly , in some embodiments of the invention , more than one user engine 102 or other client resource may permit multiple users to view the report 110 , such as , for instance , via a corporate intranet or over the internet using a web browser . various authorization and access protocols may be employed for security purposes to vary the access permitted users to such report 110 in such embodiments . additionally , as described in the &# 39 ; 766 patent , an administrative level user may create a report as part of a service . subscribers / users may then receive access to reports through various types of data delivery devices including telephones , pagers , pdas , wap protocol devices , email , facsimile , and many others . in addition , subscribers may specify trigger conditions so that the subscriber receives a report only when that condition has been satisfied , as described in detail in the &# 39 ; 766 patent . the platform of fig1 may have many other uses , as described in detail with respect to the microstrategy 7 and 7 . 1 platform , the details of which will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the reporting and decision support system art . the steps performed in a method 200 for processing data according to the invention are illustrated in the flowchart of fig2 . in step 202 , the method 200 begins . in step 204 , the user may supply input , such as a query or a request for information , via the user engine 102 . in step 206 , the user input query may be preliminarily processed , for instance , to determine whether it includes valid fields and for other formatting and error - flagging issues . in step 208 , any error conditions may be trapped and an error message presented to the user , for correction of the error conditions . in step 210 , if a query is in a valid format , the query may then be transmitted to the analytical engine 104 . in step 212 , the analytical engine 104 may further process the input query as appropriate to ensure the intended results 114 may be generated to apply the desired analytics . in step 214 , the query engine 106 may further filter , format and otherwise process the input query to ensure that the query is in a syntax compatible with the syntax of the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b 108 n . in step 216 , one or more appropriate databases or other resources within the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n may be identified to be accessed for the given query . in step 218 , the query may be transmitted to the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n and the query may be processed for hits or other results 114 against the content of the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n . in step 220 , the results 114 of the query may be refined , and intermediate or other corresponding results 114 may be stored in the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n . in step 222 , the final results 114 of the processing of the query against the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n may be transmitted to the analytical engine 104 via the query engine 106 . in step 224 , a plurality of analytical measures , filters , thresholds , statistical or other treatments may be run on the results 114 . in step 226 , a report 110 may be generated . the report 110 , or other output of the analytic or other processing steps , may be presented to the user via the user engine 102 . in step 228 , the method 200 ends . in an embodiment of the invention illustrated in fig3 the user may wish to generate a report 110 containing different types of metrics , illustrated as a first metric 120 and a second metric 122 . the first metric 120 might illustratively be , for instance , an average or mean of a data set , such as sales or other data . the second metric 122 might illustratively be , for instance , a standard deviation or an analytical treatment , such as a regression or other analysis . in this illustrative embodiment , the first metric 120 may be computable by the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n and their associated hardware or by the analytic engine 104 , whereas the second metric 122 may be computable by the analytic engine , only . in this embodiment , a management module 124 may be invoked to manage the distribution of the computation of the report 110 including first metric 120 and second metric 122 . for instance , the management module may maintain a table of computable functions , processes , routines and other executable treatments that the analytical engine 104 , data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n , query engine 106 and other resources in the network of the invention may perform . the management module 124 may then associate available resource with the necessary computations for the given report 110 , including in this instance the first metric 120 and the second metric 122 . the management module 124 may be configured to detect and place the computation of functions in the most efficient processing resource available at the time . for instance , the management module 124 may be configured to always or by default to compute functions that the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n are capable of computing within those devices . in this illustrative embodiment , the management module 124 may detect the first metric 120 as being computable within the data devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n and direct the computation of that metric , such as an average or mean , therein . the management module 124 may likewise detect the second metric 122 as being computable by the analytic engine 104 , and direct the computation of that metric , such as standard deviation or other metric , in that engine . the management module 124 may also detect dependencies in the computation of the first metric 120 , second metric 122 or other metrics necessary to the computation of the report 110 . for instance , it may be the case that the first metric 120 is a necessary input to the computation of the second metric 122 . in that instance , the management module 124 may defer the computation of the second metric 122 until the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n have completed the computation of the first metric 120 . the first metric 120 may then be transmitted as intermediate results to the analytic engine 104 , where that metric may be used to compute the second metric 122 . to achieve the greatest efficiencies of computation and communication , any intermediate results of any computation may be temporarily stored or cached on the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n or other resources so that further computations need not re - compute or retrieve those intermediate data unnecessarily . likewise , when computations may be most efficiently performed by the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n and inputs from the analytic engine 104 may be needed for those computations , the analytic engine 104 may transmit ( or “ push ”) results to the data storage , 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n for combination and computation therein . thus , according to the invention the analytic engine 104 , the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n and other engines or resources of the network may act in concert to distribute processing to the necessary or most optimal node of the network , in a collaborative or cooperative fashion , rather then according to a one - directional processing flow where computations and results are merely retrieved ( or “ pulled ”) from the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n for downstream processing elsewhere . iterative , stepwise or otherwise collaborative computations may thus be carried out , according to the invention . overall processing according to an embodiment of the invention for distributed function selection and processing is illustrated in fig4 . in step 402 , processing begins . in step 404 , a user query may be received to generate a desired report 110 . in step 406 , the management module 124 may be initiated or invoked . in step 408 , the management module 124 or other resources may parse the query for necessary computations or functions to deliver the report 110 . in step 410 , the management module 124 may determine which computations or functions may be computable in the data storage 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n or other resources . in step 412 , the management module may determine which computations or functions may be computable in the analytic engine 104 or other resources . in step 414 , the management module 124 may identify any dependencies in the order of computation needed to generate report 110 . in step 416 , the management module 124 may transmit instructions , such as sql or other commands , to the analytic engine 104 , the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n to execute functions , computations or other processing of data from the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n and intermediate results in those distributed resources . processing may be concurrent or sequential , as appropriate . in step 418 , any intermediate results may be iterated or stored locally or temporarily for more efficient retrieval , such as in storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n or elsewhere . in step 420 , the results of the computations from the various resources may be combined . in step 422 , a report 110 may be generated containing the desired types of metrics , such as first metric 120 and second metric 122 . in step 424 , processing ends . aspects of the iterated collaboration noted in step 418 of fig4 described above are illustrated in the flowchart of fig5 . as shown in that figure , in step 502 , instructions may be transmitted to the query engine 106 , for instance as part of the generation of a report 110 . in step 504 , the query engine 106 may execute one or more calculation on the data storage devices , 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n . in step 506 , the analytical engine 104 may extract the results of the one or more calculation from the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n and execute one or more calculations from its function set on those results , after which a bulk insert of the results from the analytical engine 104 into the data storage devices 108 a , 108 b . . . 108 n may be performed . in step 508 , a report 110 may be assembled or generated from the collaborative processing , and presented to the user or otherwise output . the foregoing description of the invention is illustrative , and variations in configuration and implementation will occur to persons skilled in the art . for instance , resources illustrated as singular may be distributed amongst multiple resources , whereas resources illustrated as distributed may be combined , in embodiments . the scope of the invention is accordingly to be limited only by the following claims .	8
a grinder of the kind to which the apparatus of the present invention is applicable is disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 989 , 376 , dated feb . 5 , 1991 , the present inventors armond and rodenas being co - inventors named in that patent . the main components of the grinder itself of that patent are shown herein , but certain simplifications are utilized in the present disclosure , for convenience . referring to the electrical and electronic circuit , reference numerals 1 - 33 are applied to electronic counter terminals . certain of these terminals and reference numerals occur at more than one location in the circuitry , but those of the same number are a single terminal in the physical construction , and appear at different locations in the circuit for convenience . other elements are identified with the numerals beginning with 35 . the circuit includes pushbuttons , or manual switches , identified by the letters a , b , c , and the contacts thereof by the numerals 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 . the grinder as a whole is indicated at 35 and includes a base or stand 36 , and a column 37 at the rear , adjacent the center thereof . the grinder includes a table 38 having a magnetic chuck 40 , the latter having an upper surface 41 . usually the chuck extends above the supporting surface of the table , and the workpiece is placed on the chuck . the chuck surface therefore will be utilized herein as a basic level in referring to positioning and dimensions . mounted in the column 37 is a grinding head 42 which includes a body 43 and a grinding wheel 44 , driven by a motor 45 , the wheel being rotatable on an axis 46 extending horizontally from front to rear . the grinding head is so mounted for vertical movement for feeding , or bringing the grinding wheel downwardly into engagement with the workpiece , and upwardly in a retracting direction , as will be referred to again . the table 38 is reciprocable left / right longitudinally of the table , as indicated by the double headed arrow 47 , and in / out , in a direction transverse to the length of the table , as indicated by the double headed arrow 48 . the rotation of the grinding wheel and the movements of the table 38 are effected by the components provided in the standard grinder , such as a hydraulic pump 49 ( fig1 ), and for example a hydraulic motor 50 ( fig4 ) directly driving the table in left / right directions , and an electric motor , represented by a rack and pinion 51 , directly driving it ( fig5 ) in in / out directions . the reversing movements of the table are accomplished by known means in the grinder , which includes switches 52 , 53 , in the case of left / right movements , and switches 54 , 55 , in the case of in / out movements . these switches are actuated by the table , and they are adjustable for predetermining the range of such movements . the apparatus of the invention is concerned with controlling the bodily movements of the grinding wheel , from one location to another , as distinguished from rotation thereof , and unless otherwise indicated , references to movement of the grinding wheel hereinbelow will be to such bodily movement , and specifically controlling movement of the grinding wheel into grinding engagement with the workpiece , and in other directions , and to other positions . although the grinder to which the apparatus is applied is a standard grinder , for convenience the essentials of that grinder are next referred to , which will be followed by a description of the mechanical and electrical aspects of the apparatus of the present invention . the grinding head 42 is mounted for movement by a vertical lead screw 56 ( fig2 ), the axis of which is shown at 57 , for vertical movement as indicated by the double - headed arrow 58 . mounted on the lead screw is a worm gear 59 driven by a worm 60 on the usual horizontal cross shaft 62 , the cross shaft leading to the exterior at the front ( fig1 ) where a hand wheel 64 is mounted thereon , the axis of the cross shaft being indicated at 63 . in initial steps in using the grinder , the operator manually positions the grinding head vertically by the hand wheel , in a known manner , it being pointed out that various control elements of the present control apparatus are directly related thereto , for producing the intended control movements . referring to the broad concept of the invention , the apparatus includes means for driving the lead screw , an electronic encoder driven by the lead screw , and a microcontroller and counter 279 coupled to manually manipulatable control elements . an electrical circuit and an electronic circuit are included , the electrical circuit as used herein including the electronic circuit . as the lead screw is rotated , and in response to control signals being entered in the electrical circuit , the microcontroller and counter 279 controls further rotation of the lead screw . the encoder is shown diagrammatically at 77 , and the microcontroller and counter 279 is shown at fig1 . as a statement of the general operation , the power for driving the encoder is derived from the pump unit 49 and is transmitted through transmission means 68 ( fig6 ) which includes a hydraulic motor 75 . the input to this hydraulic motor is through fluid lines 87 , 88 , and the output is through fluid liner 89 , 90 to a rotatable mechanical output element or hydraulic motor 75 . the output element 75 drives the transmission 70 ( fig6 ), and the latter has an output element 76 from which the drive is transmitted to the lead screw . the drive then continues from the lead screw to the encoder 77 through a belt 91 . the encoder 77 is known as an optical incremental shaft position encoder sold by fork standards , inc . the encoder is shown in diagrammatic form because it is believed not necessary to describe it in detail . briefly , this component contains certain electronics interacting elements having interconnection with the circuit of fig9 - 12 . the encoder has a rotary disc 77a ( fig6 a , 6b ) that is driven by the lead screw 56 in both directions , and it indicates the position of the lead screw which corresponds to the position of the grinding wheel . the character of the encoder is such that as its shaft and disc 77a is rotated by means of the lead screw , the encoder produces pulses which is fed into the microcontroller and counter 279 . the microcontroller and counter 279 counts these pulses and determines how much and what direction the encoder shaft has been rotated . therefore , the exact position of the grinding head is determined and also displayed in the monitor . the operator of the grinder manipulates certain control elements , this step being effective for programming dimensions or numbers into the microcontroller and counter 279 . when the position of the grinding head corresponds to a certain programmed dimension , a function is performed accordingly . referring again to fig6 an electrical motor 78 is connected with a suitable electrical source 72 , 73 . the motor drives a unidirectional hydraulic pump 80 which may be a gear pump , and a reservoir 81 is provided for the hydraulic fluid . the pump 80 , which may also be referred to as a pump unit , pumps the hydraulic fluid for driving the transmission 70 . the flow of the hydraulic fluid is controlled by a valve assembly 83 incorporating a set of hydraulic valves ( fig7 ). briefly , the hydraulic motor 75 and mechanical transmission 70 constitute motion transmitting means between the electric motor 78 and the lead screw . the valves of fig7 and the details thereof are disclosed in detail in the patent identified above . hydraulic lines 87 , 88 communicate with the pump 80 , valve assembly 83 , and reservoir 81 , forming a closed hydraulic circuit in those three components . in one mode , an idling mode , the fluid from the pump may be rerouted in the valve assembly and recirculated to the pump without producing any driving force . in other modes , or settings of the valves , the fluid is pumped through one of the additional lines 89 , 90 ( fig7 ) to the output element 75 , and from the latter it is returned through the other of the lines 89 , 90 to the valves , and then through the recirculation system in return to the reservoir 81 . the hydraulic pump 80 operates constantly , and the hydraulic valves of the valve assembly 83 controls transmission of fluid , according to whether the grinding wheel is to be moved . the fluid recirculated through the hydraulic lines 87 , 88 , is so recirculated at a constant rate . however , the fluid from the valve assembly 83 to the hydraulic motor 75 is selectively driven in reverse direction , and at fast , and slow rates . this fast / slow movement of the fluid determines the rate of vertical movements of the grinding head , as referred to again hereinbelow . however , it is pointed out here , that the grinding head is retracted , or lifted , always at a fast rate , but it is fed downwardly at selectively fast , medium and slow rates . it will be noted that in fig7 heavy and light arrow lines are used in one direction in the additional lines 89 , 90 to suggest that the rate may be varied , and whereas only a heavy arrow line is shown in the opposite direction to suggest only a fast rate . a comparison is made between the unit 83 and the unit 70 . the valves in the assembly 83 are arranged for selectively reversing the fluid flow , and thereby reversing the direction of drive , and also are arranged for providing fast flow and slow flow , selectively , of the fluid to provide respectively fast and slow drive . however , the mechanical unit 70 is capable of producing fast and slow transmission therethrough , independently of the valves , and as a result , variation in speeds is provided as between fast movement through the valves and through the mechanical unit , and slow movement through both of those units , selectively , as referred to again hereinbelow . the fast movement can be provided in each of opposite directions . in the hydraulic transmission unit 83 ( fig6 ) are two valve units 96 , 98 , each having two positions and each position individually represents a &# 34 ; valve .&# 34 ; each position is established by a solenoid , and the operable four solenoids are identified as 116 , 118 , 120 , 122 . these solenoids are indicated in fig7 and appear in the circuit at c - 1 , d - 1 , e - 1 , e - 1 the circuit conductors for the valves are indicated at 116a , 118a , 120a , 122a , these hydraulic valves being thus operated by the circuit of fig1 - 12 . referring to the specific operation of the hydraulic unit , when the solenoids 116 , 118 are both energized , the output element 75 is driven fast forward ; when only solenoid 118 is energized , it is driven slow forward ; when solenoids 120 , 122 are both energized , it is driven fast in reverse , and when no solenoid is energized , the fluid merely recirculates and the output element remains stationary . with reference to the mechanical unit 70 , ( fig8 ) this unit does not have any internal elements for controlling the direction of output , and is driven in each of opposite directions according to the direction of drive of the element 75 of the hydraulic unit . the mechanical unit has an input shaft 174 driven by the output element 75 . it has an idler shaft 176 , and an output shaft 76 identified above . it also includes electromagnetic clutches 180 , 182 for selectively driving the output shaft at different speeds , and a pulley system with step - up ratios for controlling the different output speeds . the electromagnets of the clutches include terminals 192 , 194 , 196 , and are found in the electrical circuit at ( h - 2 , i - 2 ); details of the unit may be found in the patent identified above . the reduction in speed through the mechanical transmission unit 70 is cumulative with that achieved through the hydraulic unit 68 ( fig1 ) and the two together provide an extremely great variation as between the output of the pump leading into the hydraulic unit and the output of the mechanical transmission unit . as a result , the increments of feeding the grinding wheel toward the workpiece are extremely small ; the various parts or elements in the present instance are preselected so as to provide increments as small as 0 . 000050 &# 34 ;. reference is next made to the circuitry of fig1 - 12 . the circuitry is divided into two main parts , namely a power circuit 240 of fig1 and a control circuit 242 of fig1 - 12 . in the identification of the transformer , this item is designated generally with reference numerals and the primary winding and secondaries 4 with the same reference numerals with the postscripts p and s respectively , and in the case of the latter , the postcripts include the numerals 1 , 2 , etc ., for multiple secondary windings . in a similar manner , relays are given reference numerals as a whole , the coils given the same reference numerals with the postscript a , and the contacts the same reference numerals with the postscripts b , c , etc . the scr &# 39 ; s transistors , rectifiers , triacs , diodes and gates , may be referred to generically as valves . the circuitry ( fig1 - 12 ) is provided with coordinates at the boundaries of the sheets to facilitate locating the elements referred to . the particular coordinates follow the reference numerals of the elements identified . the power circuit 240 includes a main ac source 244 of for example 120 vac leading to a sub circuit 245 which includes a monitor 246 referred to again hereinbelow ( fig1 , 14 ). the power circuit includes a main transformer 250 which includes a first secondary 250s1 , of 95 vac . leading from the secondary 250s1 is another sub circuit 251 which includes the solenoids 116 , 118 , 120 , 122 identified above . also incorporated in the power circuit ( fig1 ) are the clutches 180 , 182 , identified above , and rectifiers 252 , 253 providing dc of suitable voltage , for the clutches . the power circuit includes another secondary 250s2 ( a - 4 ) for providing suitable power , such as 15 vac , for a portion the control circuit ( fig1 - 12 ). the output of the secondary 250s2 leads to a rectifier 254 ( a - 4 ) which provides dc of 20v for another portion of the control circuit . the power circuit includes other control components and elements , as will be referred to hereinbelow in the description of the control operations . incorporated in fig1 , ( i - 12 ) is the microcontroller and counter 279 which constitutes the central control or &# 34 ; brain &# 34 ; of the circuitry . fig1 includes de monitor 246 ( see also fig1 ), and the encoder 77 which is coupled to the terminals d , e , b , a . fig1 ( j - 14 ). the microcontroller and counter 279 illustration in fig1 ( j - 12 14 ) also includes the electronic terminals 8 , 7 , 10 , 9 , 15 , 16 in controlling relation to various components in the part of the circuitry of fig1 . as referred to above , the encoder is driven by the power that drives the grinder itself , and is advanced and retracted with the grinding ( fig6 ) wheel . the microcontroller and counter 279 includes such built - in characteristics that in response to the encoder feeding and advancing , and retracting , movements , signals are stored therein according to movements of the parts of the grinder , and also according to manual control manipulations , and the microcontroller and counter 279 then later performs control functions on the grinder according to the signals so stored . fig1 is a face view of a panel that is mounted on the grinder for direct use by the operator . this panel includes the monitor 246 . additionally it includes a set of switches shown in a small panel 247 that includes the manual switches included in fig1 and described above . from a functional standpoint , the encoder is considered to be incorporated in the microcontroller and counter 279 ( j - 13 , fig1 ), but in the physical construction of the apparatus the parts are in two different units and may be mounted as desired . the component 255 is shown in fig1 with the monitor 246 . fig1 also includes the pushbuttons , also referred to as manual switches , at the right of fig1 , ( c - 13 to h - 13 ). in the following description of the circuitry , the visible potion of the circuitry and its operation are described as in association with the functioning of the emcrt according to the characteristic built - in functioning of the latter . the control circuitry ( fig1 ) includes manual switches labeled according to modes of operation of the grinder . these switches are shown duplicated and distributed in the circuitry according to the functions of their respective poles and contacts . fig1 shows these switches as pushbuttons in the structural display . the grinder , as controlled by the apparatus , assumes predetermined conditions , or attitudes , which are referred to herein as modes according to the functions to be performed . these modes include : as the first step in this mode , the up switch 260 is actuated ( d - 13 , e - 11 , f - 10 , j - 11 , h - 13 ). the negative side of the 12v power supply , rectifier 254 ( a - 4 ), is connected through conductor 256 , conductor 257 ( g - 9 ) to terminal 4 ( g - 10 ). the connection then passes through the contacts of normally closed pole a ( g - 10 ) of bypass push button 259 , and then through the open pole a ( f - 10 ) of the lip switch 260 , to terminal 23 , conductor 262 and through diodes 264 ( g - 6 ) and 265 ( h - 6 ). leading from the diode 264 is a conductor 267 to ssr 268 ( solid state relay ) ( f - 4 ), which is thereby triggered on , the 115 vac from the transformer 250 ( b - 1 ) energizing the valves 120 and 122 ( f - 1 ). the diode 265 ( h - 6 ) is in a conductor 270 , connected across the conductor 267 and another conductor 272 , the latter leading to an ssr 274 ( h - 4 ), and at the same time that the previous step took place , i . e . energizing the valves 120 , 122 . the ssr 274 is thus turned on , and acting through conductor 275 conducts 100 vac from the main transformer secondary 250s1 . this connection continues through the conductor 277 to the rectifier 252 ( h - 1 ) and the electromagnetic clutch 190 is energized and engaged . as a result , the grinding head moves upwardly . anytime the up switch 260 ( d - 13 ) is actuated , it energizes a relay 278 ( e - 14 ) which is latched closed by the contacts 278b ( e - 13 ). this relay is energized and latched in at other steps also , as indicated by the sub circuit 280 at the upper right hand side of fig1 and as will be referred to again hereinbelow . in this mode , two push buttons are utilized , namely , fast 282 ( f - 13 ) and bypass 259 ( g - 13 ), which are pushed in at the same time . in this mode , the negative from the rectifier 254 ( a - 4 ) continues through conductor 256 , to conductor 284 ( f - 9 ) through the nc contacts 286d ( f - 9 ) ( see 286 f - 9 ) to terminal 26 , then through the n / o contacts of pole a ( g - 11 ) of bypass pushbutton 259 . it then continues through conductor 287 to the n / c pole a ( d - 11 ) of the med ( medium ) pushbutton 289 , through the n / o pole ( d - 10 ) of the fast pushbutton 282 . it then proceeds to terminal 13 , and through conductor 290 to diode 292 ( e - 6 ). it also continues from conductor 290 to conductors 293 , 294 to diode 295 ( e - 6 ; the conductor 293 leads to another diode 296 ( h - 7 ). from the diode 292 , a conductor 298 leads to ssrs 300 , 301 ( d - 4 ) which are mined on , thus energizing the valve 116 . from the diode 295 ( e - 6 ) a conductor 303 leads to ssrs 304 , 306 which are switched on and which then energize the valve 118 ( e - 1 ). also , through the diode 296 ( h - 7 ) the ssr 274 ( h - 4 ) is turned on , which energizes the clutch 180 ( h - 2 ). this actuation of the clutches brings the grinding wheel down at a fast speed . in this mode the med pushbutton 289 ( f - 13 ) and the bypass pushbutton 259 ( g - 13 ) are pushed in at the same time . from the negative side of the 12v rectifier 254 ( a - 4 ) the circuit continues through conductor 256 , to conductor 284 ( f - 9 ) and n / c contacts 286b ( f - 9 ), ( see 286 , e - 9 ), then through terminal 26 , n / o pole a bypass pushbutton 259 , conductor 287 , of pushbutton 289 n / o pole a ( e - 11 ), then continuing through conductor 310 to terminal 16 ; it then proceeds through conductor 312 to diode 311 ( f - 6 ), which turns on ssr 304 and 306 ( e - 4 ). valve 118 ( e - 2 ) is energized . also through conductor 313 ( e - 7 ) to diode 314 ( h - 7 ), ssr 274 ( h - 4 ) is turned on , thereby energizing and engaging the clutch 190 ( g - 2 ). this results in the grinding wheel going down at a medium speed . the slow pushbutton 316 ( d - 13 ) is pushed in . from the negative side of the 12v rectifier 254 ( a - 4 ) the circuit continues through conductor 256 , to the conductor 257 ( g - 9 ) and terminal 4 , through the n / c pole a ( g - 10 ) bypass pushbutton 259 , conductors 318 , 319 , to n / c pole b ( j - 11 ) of up pushbutton 260 , through n / o pole a ( i - 10 ), slow pushbutton 316 ; it continues through conductors 321 , 323 to diode 324 ( h - 6 ); the conductor 321 continues to conductor 325 ( j - 6 ) and diode 326 . from the diode 324 , conductors 328 , 329 , 303 , the ssrs 304 , 306 ( e - 4 ) are switched on . this succession thereby energizes and engages valve 118 ( e - 2 ). from the diode 326 ( j - 6 ) a conductor 331 switches on ssr 332 ( j - 4 ) this ssr energizing the clutch 182 ( i - 2 ). thereby the grinding wheel goes down at a slow speed . to initiate this mode , the cycle start ( cs ) pushbutton switch 335 ( c - 13 ) is actuated ; this energizes the relay 278 ( e - 14 ) and closes the n / o contacts 278b ( e - 13 ). in this step the n / o contacts of pole a ( d - 10 ) of the c / s pushbutton 335 are closed , energizing the relay 286 ( e - 9 ). this relay is latched on by means of its n / o contacts . through the n / o contacts 286c ( k - 9 ), ( see relay 286 , f - 9 ), a pulse is transmitted to pin 1 of a gate 338 ( k - 6 ), being pulsed lo for about 1 / 2 second . thereupon through pin 4 of gate 339 ( k - 6 ) the lo signal passes through conductor 341 to cs terminal 3 ( k - 13 ) which is the input terminal to the microcontroller and counter 279 . the fast output of the microcontroller and counter 279 becomes active , and sends a lo signal to the terminal 7 ( h - 10 ). the outputs of gates 343 ( h - 9 ), 344 ( g - 9 ) become hi and the transistors 346 ( g - 8 ), 347 ( h - 8 ) and 349 ( h - 8 ) are turned on . by means of the transistor 346 , the ssrs 304 , 306 ( d - 4 ) are triggered on , energizing the valve 118 ( e - 2 ). acting through transistor 347 ( h - 8 ) the ssr 274 ( h - 4 ) is also triggered on , thereby energizing and engaging the clutch 180 . consequently the grinding wheel comes down at a medium speed . upon reaching a programmed distance between the wheel and top surface of the workpiece , the fast output of the microcontroller and counter 279 becomes inactive , and the transistors 346 ( g - 8 ), 347 ( h - 8 ) and 349 ( h - 8 ) are all turned off , and the wheel stops its downward approach . at this point the slow output of the microcontroller and counter 279 becomes active , thereby putting a lo signal to the terminal 14 ( c - 10 ). this lo signal goes through the diode 350 ( e - 6 ) and diode 352 ( j - 6 ) and triggers the ssrs 304 , 306 ( e - 4 ) and ssr 332 ( j - 4 ). as a consequence , the valve 118 ( e - 2 ) is actuated and the clutch 191 ( i - 2 ) is engaged . accordingly , the grinding wheel will continue its downward approach but at a much slower speed . upon the grinding wheel reaching a preprogrammed figure , the microcontroller and counter 279 will terminate the lo signal from its slow output ( j - 13 ) at terminal 7 . consequently the ssrs 304 , 306 ( e - 4 ) and 332 ( j - 4 ) will turn off . the wheel stops its downward approach directly at or on the top surface of the workpiece . depending on the grinding mode selected by the operator , i . e . whether surface or plunge grinding the relay 354 ( d - 2 ) or the relay 355 ( e - 2 ) will be energized , each time the table reverses its direction . through the n / o contacts 354b , 355b of these relays ( k - 10 )( k - 11 ) the output of either gate 357 , 358 ( j - 8 ) will become lo . this lo signal is sent to terminal 11 ( i - 10 ) and then to the go input of microcontroller and counter 279 ( j - 12 ). after receiving the go signal , the microcontroller and counter 279 slow output at terminal 7 ( j - 13 ) becomes active which rams on ssrs 304 and 306 ( e - 4 ), thus energizing valve 118 . at the same time , ssr 274 ( i - 4 ) will turn on which engages clutch 180 ( h - 2 ). as a result , the grinding wheel will downfeed until the programmed feed rate entered into the microcontroller and counter 279 is reached , whereupon the slow output at terminal 7 ( j - 13 ) becomes inactive . the above sequence is repeated again on the next table reversal . when the programmed total cut is obtained the &# 34 ; slow &# 34 ; output of the microcontroller and counter 279 is deactivated and there is no further downfeed of the grinding wheel . the grinding wheel will make several passes across the workpiece according to the program entered on the microcontroller and counter 279 for spark - out cycle . at the last table reversal , the &# 34 ; done &# 34 ; output at terminal 9 of the microcontroller and counter 279 ( j - 13 ) is activated which turns on ssr8 ( b - 14 ). relay cr7 ( a - 13 ) is energized , and its contacts are used to terminate machine function / s . this notifies operator that the grinding process is finished .	1
in the following description , various embodiments will be illustrated by way of example and not by way of limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings . references to various embodiments in this disclosure are not necessarily to the same embodiment , and such references mean at least one . while specific implementations and other details are discussed , it is to be understood that this is done for illustrative purposes only . a person skilled in the relevant art will recognize that other components and configurations may be used without departing from the scope and spirit of the claimed subject matter . referring now to fig3 , an embodiment 300 of the invention is shown from a conceptual level , and with connections and supporting components not shown ( although discussed below ). the embodiment of fig3 is discussed with respect to three video conferences vc1 , vc2 and vc3 at the same time , although it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to any specific number . each video conference will require its own dedicated computer 302 ; for the three video conferences vc1 - vc3 in fig3 , these are shown as computers 302 a ( vc1 ), 302 b ( vc2 ), and 302 c ( vc3 ). these video conferences will preferably be effectuated in the known manner . the embodiments of the invention do not alter the methodology in which the video conferences are effectuated , and the embodiments are not limited to any particular video conference application or methodology . embodiment 300 includes two monitors 304 and 306 to monitor the video conferences . first monitor 304 displays a mosaic of the video feeds of all available video conferences , in this case vc1 - vc3 . the mosaic allows the technician to monitor the video of all the conferences simultaneously by just focusing attention on first monitor 304 , without having to divide attention between different individual monitors for individual conferences . as discussed in more detail below , the technician can elect to interact with one of the video conferences . second monitor 306 displays the video feed of the particular video conference that the technician elects to interact with , shown as video conference vc 1 in fig3 . embodiment 300 includes a set of common computer control equipment 308 ( keyboard , mouse , track pad , etc . ), and preferably only a single set . as noted above , the technician can elect to interact with one of the video conferences . the common control equipment 308 will control the computer 302 that supports the particular video conference that the technician elects to interact with ; for election of video conference vc1 in fig1 , common control equipment would control computer 302 a , but not 302 b or c . embodiment 300 includes a common microphone and speaker , preferably in the form of an integrated headset 312 . headset 312 allows the technician to hear the audio feed from all of the video conferences , and to speak into all conferences , or to hear / speak with respect to an elected conference . in particular , a technician can hear all conferences and speak only to a selected one ; this allows a technician to address issues in a particular conference while still monitoring the audio feed for the other conferences . the technician can also control the audio from the conferences , such as changing the volume or muting certain conferences . although shown in fig3 as an integral component , separate speaker / headphones and microphones could be used . embodiment 300 also includes at least one camera 310 for the technician to participate in the video conference . a camera video feed is preferably provided to each of the computers 302 , such that one camera 312 with a splitter and / or multiple cameras 312 ( one for each computer 302 ) can be used . as can be seen in fig3 , the technician can monitor multiple conferences from a single physical workspace and a single set of control equipment . since the technician will not need to physically relocate from one workstation to the next as in fig1 and 2 , the technician will be able to monitor more than two simultaneous video conferences . as a practical matter , given the attention needed for any particular teleconference , applicants believe that a technician using the embodiment of fig3 will be able to monitor four video conferences , at least a two - fold improvement over the prior art . referring now to fig4 , embodiment 300 is shown with the supporting connections and components , in which like numerals represented like components . for ease of discussion , only two computers 302 a and 302 x are shown to support two video conferences vc1 and vcx , although it is to be understood from the ellipsis (“ . . . ”) that other computers 302 may be similarly present and connected for additional video conferences . a video output ( not separately numbered ) of each computer 302 connects to an input of multi - viewer device 402 ; an output of multi - viewer device 402 connects to video input of monitor 304 . the first video output may be in any format known for outputting video from computers , such as hdmi , usb , vga , etc . it may be desirable for intervening equipment to process the video outputs , such as converting the video signals from one format to another ( e . g ., hdmi to composite ). each computer 302 receives a camera signal at a video input from a camera 310 . fig4 shows one camera 310 per computer 302 , but as noted above this need not be the case . preferably camera ( s ) 310 will be positioned so as to all be facing the technician sitting at the workstation . an audio output ( not separately numbered ) of each computer 302 connects to an audio input of a mixing device 404 ; an output of mixing device 404 connects to the headphone portion of headset 312 . the audio output may be in any form known for outputting audio from computers . in a typical computer setup for a video conference , each computer would have its own monitor , microphone and control equipment . in fig4 , selectable switching device 406 provides each computer 302 with selected access to monitor 306 , control equipment 308 and the microphone of headset 312 . the computer 302 as selected by switching device 406 will thus have access to the monitor 306 , control equipment 308 and the microphone of headset 312 , while the other computers 302 that are not selected will not have such access . operation of the above design will now be discussed with reference to fig5 - 11 . initially , the technician would be assigned a particular number of video conferences to monitor . the technician would then join each of the conferences as participant in whatever manner as called for by the video conference provider . the technician would join each conference on a different one of computers 302 . the interface methodology for doing so is discussed in more detail below . a primary function of the technician is to observe all of the assigned conferences . such observation includes simultaneously monitoring the video feeds and the audio feeds of the assigned video conferences . with respect to monitoring the video , reference is made to fig5 and 6 . fig5 shows the architecture of fig4 , although certain pathways have been made thicker to highlight the components under discussion , and specifically the components for combining the video feeds . as noted above , a video output ( not separately numbered ) of each computer 302 connects to an input of multi - viewer device 402 ; an output of multi - viewer device 402 connects to a video input ( not separately numbered ) of monitor 304 . the relationship is shown in fig6 , which corresponds to fig5 with non - involved components removed . multi - viewer device 402 has the function of combining multiple video or computer sources onto a single display , typically by creating a new video feed that includes content from each of the individual received video feeds from computers 302 . fig4 shows a video feed of 4 quadrants on monitor 304 , where individual quadrants show the video feed of a particular computer 302 ( and thus the video of that conference ), but the invention is not limited to any particular number or layout . a non - limiting example of a multi - viewer device 402 is known in the video industry as a multiplexer , such as ltc 2382 / 90 by bosch or vm - q401a by cctv camera pros . the structure and operation of such a commercial device is known by those of skill in the art in the industry and is not further described herein . however , the invention is not so limited , and any device that performs the described functionality may be used . for example , a general purpose computer as programmed to combine the video could be used . the above methodology provides one visual area where all of the video feeds are available for simultaneous monitoring . there is no need for a technician to move their head back and forth to observe different monitors for different conferences . referring now to fig1 , as an alternative embodiment is shown in which the individual computers 302 provide their video feeds individually to multiple monitors 1304 without need of a multiviewer . the monitors 1304 collectively form a mosaic in the collective viewing area . as a further alternative , multiple screens may be used , with one or more supported by multi - viewer devices ; this may be of value if there is a minimum preferred video size and the number of monitored conferences would exceed the size of a single monitor . by way of non - limiting example , if the minimum size was four video conferences per screen and five conferences were being monitored then more than one monitor would be needed . preferably two monitors would be used , with both connecting to multi - viewer device ( s ). in the alternative , one monitor could hand one conference while the other handles four through a multi - viewer device . preferably the various monitors 304 / 1304 and 306 are sized and positioned so that the technician has a single common viewing field where the technician can simultaneously see all the video feeds without having to turn their head or move to different workstation positions . with respect to the monitoring the audio , reference is made to fig7 and 8 . fig7 shows the architecture of fig4 , although certain pathways have been made thicker to highlight the components under discussion , and specifically the components for combining audio feeds . each computer 302 has an audio output ( not separately labeled ) that connects to audio mixing device 404 . mixing device 404 thus receives audio signals for the remote participants in each of the video conferences vc1 - vcx . using known techniques , mixing device 404 combines the audio signals into one common signal that includes audio for remote participants of all video conferences ; the mixing device 404 may add them equally or unequally as desired for best balance of the audio ; the technician may also suppress various audio to isolate one or more . this common audio signal is output to the speaker within headset 312 . the mixing device 404 may optionally apply various processing to the signals , such as filtering , balancing , etc . the relationship is shown in fig8 , which corresponds to fig7 with non - involved components removed . a non - limiting example of a mixing device 404 is known in the audio industry as a mixer , such as xenyx 1202 by behringer . the structure and operation of such a commercial device are known by those of skill in the art in the industry , and is not further described herein . however , the invention is not so limited , and any device that performs that functionality may be used . for example , a general purpose computer as programmed to combine the audio could be used . the above methodology provides one speaker , preferably in headset 312 , where all of the audio feeds are available for simultaneous monitoring by the technician . referring now to fig1 , as an alternative embodiment is shown in which individual computers 302 provide their audio feeds individually to multiple speakers 1414 . the combined sound output of the speakers 1414 includes the audio of the remote participants to the various conferences . a microphone 316 is separately provided . the video and audio steps above allow a single technician , using a single workstation , to passively observe the audio and video of several different video conferences . another primary function of the technician is to actively participate in a particular video conference as needed . for example , the technician needs to join each conference , may participate in opening the conference and confirming all is set , and / or responding to a request made by a participant for technical assistance . a supporting component of active participation is switching device 406 . referring now to fig9 , the functionality of switching device 406 is shown . switching device 406 effectively acts as a single pole multi - throw switching element . the single pole connects to the pathways for monitor 306 , control equipment 308 and microphone of headset 312 . the various other ends selectively connect to the video out , control in , and sound in pathways of each computer 302 ; although these are shown as separate pathways , it is to be understood that the pathways may be common / shared and / or separate from each other , and that more or less pathways may be needed . the arrows of the pathways are exemplary only and not intended to limit the invention . a non - limiting example of a switching device 404 is known in the computer industry as a kvm switch , such as 4svpua20 - 001 by avocent . the structure and operation of such a commercial device is known by those of skill in the art in the industry , and is not further described herein . however , the invention is not so limited , and any device that performs that functionality may be used . for example , a general purpose computer as programmed to switch between the computers 302 could be used . the technician selects via the switching device 406 to connect the particular computer 302 that supports the video conference that the technician wants to actively participate in . for example , if the technician wants to participant in video conference vc1 , then he selects computer 302 a on switching device 406 . participation will then be with video conference vc1 because monitor 306 and the microphone of headset 312 will be connect to the supporting computer 302 a . by virtue of the connection to a particular computer , the other computers that are not selected are disconnected from monitor 306 , control equipment 308 and microphone of headset 312 . the technician therefore cannot participate in the other video conferences that those computers 302 support unless the technician makes a new selection . with respect to system activity post - selection , reference is made to fig1 and 11 . fig1 shows the architecture of fig4 , although certain pathways have been made thicker to highlight the components under discussion . in fig1 , the technician selects computer 302 a to participate in video conference vc1 . computer 302 a is connected to the noted components , and the other computers ( e . g ., 302 x ) are disconnected . the video feed of the selected video conference vc1 appears on the monitor 306 . audio from microphone of headset 312 is heard in video conference vc1 , but not in other video conferences ( e . g ., vcx ). if there is a technical matter that requires it support , the technician can interact with computer 302 a via the control equipment 308 without affecting the status of the other video conferences . the relationship is shown in fig1 , which corresponds to fig1 with non - involved components removed . the technician can change video conferences simply by changing the selection on switching device 406 . for example , if computer 302 x is selected , computer 302 x is controlled , received audio from the microphone , and displays video conference vcx on monitor 306 . in the embodiments above , while the audio input to computers 302 from the microphone of headset 312 is subject to the switching of switching device 406 , preferably the audio output of the computers 302 is not . the reason is to maintain the overall monitoring goal of various embodiments . if the audio out was subject to the switching , then the technician could not hear the activity in all of the conferences ; the audio out of the computers 302 thus bypasses switching device 406 . however , the invention is not so limited , and the audio out of computers 302 could be fed to the switching device ; in this case some other cue would be used by the participants to attract the technician &# 39 ; s attention . referring now to fig1 , another embodiment of the invention is shown . in this embodiment , multiple sets ( two are shown ) of switching devices 406 , monitors 306 , control equipment 308 and headsets 312 are provided . this would allow multiple technicians to monitor the multiple conferences . the underlying connections would mirror those shown in fig4 . the above embodiment provides a degree of redundancy . for example , suppose two technicians are each monitoring four different conferences ( eight in total between them ). one of the technicians is pulled into one of his monitored conferences , and then another under his watch needs assistance . the technician can ask the other technician to intervene in that second conference , even though it was not assigned to that second technician . a similar redundancy would have several technicians being monitored by a supervisor or backup technician . for example , the backup could be assigned to four technicians , and thus monitor sixteen different conferences . this higher number is possible because the backup is monitoring the technicians rather than the individual conferences . if a particular technician is called to participate in a video conference , the backup can monitor the remainder of the technician &# 39 ; s video conferences . the underlying setups would be the same as in fig4 , although additional switching may be needed to isolate the conferences for particular technicians . additional monitors may be needed ; for example , one monitor to show a mosaic of all conferences under backup , another for the selected technician &# 39 ; s video conferences , and another for a particular video conference . each individual computer 302 may have its own individual display and set of control equipment as a backup or to allow assistance from another technician if the main technician is occupied . the embodiment of fig4 has an additional advantage in that all of the components may be “ off the shelf ” components , including a multiplexer , mixer and kvm switch . no specialized computer skills or engineering skills are necessary to purchase and connect the components . no custom components are necessary . no software changes need to be made to the video conferencing software , nor does new software need to be designed . according to another embodiment of the invention , the various components and connections could be incorporated into one or more off the shelf or custom housings . by way of non - limiting example , a single component could include , or perform the functions of , multi - viewer device 402 , mixing device 404 and / or switching device 406 . there may be an analog hardware implementation consistent with the components as discussed herein , or a software / hardware combination . the various connections herein may be direct or indirect . by way of non - limiting example , computer 302 a may be connected directly to mixing device 250 directly as shown in fig4 . however such connection may be through an intermediate component . further , minor variations in the signals induced by any such indirect components ( e . g ., power levels , minor distortions , filtering ) that do not significantly affect the substantive content of the signals . by way of non - limiting example , computer 302 a can be considered to feed the audio signal mixer device 404 . however , placing a filter there between ( e . g ., to remove background static or sounds from frequencies outside of spoken language ) may slightly alter the audio signal such that the signal as fed from computer 302 a is not exactly the signal received at mixing device 404 . for purposes of the application , since the substantive content is not substantively affected , this is still considered to feed the signal from computer 302 to mixing device 404 , notwithstanding the intervening component and the minor change that the filter created . the specification and drawings are , accordingly , to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense . it will , however , be evident that various modifications and changes may be made thereunto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the claims .	7
the invention can be described in more detail with the help of the accompanying drawings wherein [ 0013 ] fig1 and 2 show block diagrams of a system using the technique of the invention ; [ 0014 ] fig3 shows a graph of optimized phase grating depths of three phase levels for a normalized pixel dimension for red , green and blue color channels ; [ 0015 ] fig4 shows the effective phase grating depths of three phase levels for a normalized pixel dimension for the wavelengths of the red , green and blue color components ; [ 0016 ] fig5 shows the percent efficiencies of the spectral content for the red , green and blue color components ; and [ 0017 ] fig6 shows the area of the chromaticity space covered when using a particular embodiment of the invention on a standard 1976 cie chromaticity graph space . in order to increase the light utilization of color displays , the novel technique of the invention can be considered , in a conceptual sense , as effectively concentrating all of the light of each color component in a spectrally broad received light on to appropriate sub - pixel regions at a color image plane , e . g ., all of the incident red light is concentrated in a manner such that it only illuminates the sub - pixel regions corresponding to the red component thereof , all of the incident green light is concentrated in a manner such that it only illuminates the sub - pixel regions corresponding to the green component thereof , and all of the incident blue light is concentrated in a manner such that it only illuminates the sub - pixel regions corresponding to the blue component thereof . by so doing , the use of micro - filters is not necessary , and the theoretical light utilization efficiency of such technique would approach 100 %. the proposed approach to achieving such concentrations is based on a concept referred to as aperture filling . aperture filling is described , for example , in the article , “ aperture filling of phase - locked laser arrays ” by g . j . swanson et al ., optics letters , vol . 12 , april 1987 . such article , for example , describes a method in another context for increasing the energy in the central lobe of a far - field pattern of a phased - locked laser array . in accordance with the invention , the underlying physics of such technique is modified and extended in a unique manner in order to solve the color display problem of maximizing the light utilization therein . the basic physics behind aperture filling can be stated as follows : a binary amplitude grating ( i . e ., one having a transmittance of 1 or 0 ) with a fill factor ( i . e ., the ratio of the transmitting area to the total area ) of greater than or equal to 0 . 25 , has , aside from a phase shift of the zero order , a fourier transform identical to that of a binary phase grating having the same fill - factor as the amplitude grating . such statement implies that by placing a zero - order phase shift element in the transform plane of an afocal imaging system , the light from an aperture with a fill - factor of & gt ; 0 . 25 , can be uniformly spread out to fill the entire aperture . further , by invoking reciprocity , light from a uniform aperture can be concentrated to produce an underfilled aperture with a fill - factor of & gt ; 0 . 25 . in making use of such concepts for improving the color projection display efficiency , the above phenomenon can be modified to substantially improve the light throughput thereof . a system embodying the technique in accordance with the invention is shown in fig1 and 2 , wherein a multi - level , e . g ., a three - level , phase grating is illuminated with a spectrally broad light from a source 10 , such as a tungsten halogen bulb or a xenon arc lamp . alternatively , the light source may comprise three separate color component sources . for example , three light emitting diodes ( leds ) or three laser sources , each emitting a separate color such as red , green , and blue color components . for the purposes of the particular description of a preferred embodiment of the invention , it is assumed that the illuminating source , whether a single broad spectrum source or separate color sources , primarily includes color components of the three wavelength regions , e . g ., red , green , and blue . the lateral dimension of each phase level is assumed to be equal to the lateral dimension of a sub - pixel region of the spatial light modulator . for illustrative purposes only , fig2 shows only two greatly magnified grating periods , each having corresponding three phase depth levels , occupying the entire aperture . it should be understood that a large plurality of grating periods , each corresponding to a pixel of the overall color image , would normally occupy an aperture . if it is assumed that a first phase depth level measured with respect to a second phase depth level at each grating period of the phase grating 11 is equal to an integral number of wavelengths of red light plus one - third of such wavelength , i . e ., ( m + 0 . 33 ) where m is an integer , and the third phase depth level , again measured with respect to the second phase depth level , is an integer multiple of the wavelength of red light , the red light that is illuminating a three - level phase grating will in effect encounter a binary phase grating with a fill - factor of 33 %, and a phase depth of 0 . 33 wavelengths . the red light will be dispersed from the phase grating 11 into a zero diffraction order and a plurality higher level positive and negative diffraction orders which are focussed on a zero - order phase shifter 13 via lens 12 . if the zero diffraction order ( undiffracted ) is then effective by shifted by about 0 . 33 wavelengths of red light by phase shifter 13 , the red light exiting the system will be concentrated via a lens 14 so as to fill only 33 % of the output imaging plane 15 ( fig2 ). the same methodology as applied above to the red light range can also be applied to the green and blue light ranges . the second phase depth level at each grating period equals zero wavelengths of green light by definition , and the first and third phase depth levels equal ( n — 0 . 33 ) and n ′— 0 . 33 ) wavelengths of green light , respectively , where n and n ′ are integers . the green light illuminating the phase grating 11 will also effectively encounter a binary phase grating with a fill - factor of 33 %, and a phase depth of 0 . 33 wavelengths . if the zero diffraction order is also effectively shifted by about 0 . 33 wavelengths , the green light exiting the system will be concentrated so as to fill the 33 % of the output imaging plane that is adjacent to the 33 % of the output plane occupied by the red light ( fig2 ). for the blue light , the third phase depth level of each grating period , again measured with respect to the second phase depth level , equals ( p ′+ 0 . 33 ) wavelengths of blue light ( where p ′ is an integer ), and the first phase depth level is an integer multiple of wavelengths of blue light . the blue light illuminating the grating will also in effect encounter a binary phase grating with a fill - factor of 33 %, and a phase depth of 0 . 33 wavelengths of blue light . if the zero diffraction order is also effectively shifted by about 0 . 33 wavelengths , the blue light exiting the system will be concentrated so as to fill the remaining 33 % of the imaging plane not occupied by the red light and the green light ( fig2 ). the above conditions for three discrete color wavelengths can in theory be met to any level of accuracy . however , in practice , the accuracy is limited by the physical depths of the grating levels that can be practically manufactured . furthermore , the system can be designed to operate over the entire visible spectrum , rather than at only three discrete wavelength regions . the area of chromaticity space spanned by a particular embodiment of the invention will depend on the relative depths of the three phase level regions of each grating period corresponding to each pixel , and the depth of the zero - order phase shifter . since the phase depths are relative , and measured with respect to the second phase depth level , the second phase depth level is zero by definition , this leaving three variables , the depths of phase levels 1 and 3 with respect to phase level 2 , and the depth of the zero order phase shifter . these three parameters in effect define the performance of the overall system , with the measure of performance being defined as the area of chromaticity space that is so covered . these three depth parameters are most easily optimized by performing a “ global search ” process that spans the range of practicable manufacturable depths . the goal thereof is to select relative depths which will maximize the area and the location of the spanned chromaticity space . an approach to such process is discussed below . in considering the first phase level of the grating period , the phase shifts ( in waves ) φ 1 r , φ 1 g , and φ 1 b of the red , green , and blue light can be expressed as : φ r 1 = d 1 λ r  ( η - 1 ) φ g 1 = d 1 λ g  ( η - 1 ) φ b 1 = d 1 λ b  ( η - 1 ) where η is the index of refraction of the phase grating , and d 1 , is the depth of the first phase level with respect to the second phase level . as mentioned above , it is desired that the phase shift φ 1 r = m + 0 . 33 , while the phase shift φ 1 g = n − 0 . 33 , and the phase shift φ 1 b = p , where m , n , and p are all integers . in a similar manner at the third phase level , having a depth of d 3 with respect to the second phase level , the phase shifts are : φ r 3 = d 3 λ r  ( η - 1 ) φ g 3 = d 3 λ g  ( η - 1 ) φ b 3 = d 3 λ b  ( η - 1 ) here , it is desired that the phase shift φ 3 r = m ′, the phase shift φ 3 g = n ′− 0 . 33 , and the phase shift φ 3 b = p ′+ 0 . 33 where m ′, n ′, and p ′ are all integers . since the first and third phase levels of the grating are referenced in depth to the second phase level of the grating , by definition , d 2 = 0 , and at the second phase level the phase shifts at all three wavelengths is zero : in addition , at the zero - order phase shifter having a depth of d 4 , a phase shift of about one - third wavelength of each color is required so that at the phase shifter : φ r 4 = d 4 λ r  ( η - 1 ) φ g 4 = d 4 λ g  ( η - 1 ) φ b 4 = d 4 λ b  ( η - 1 ) where φ 4 r = r + 0 . 33 , φ 4 g = s + 0 . 33 and φ 4 b t + 0 . 33 ( where r , s , and t are integers ). since the depths of d 1 , d 2 , d 3 , and d 4 must be within practical manufacturable limits , the following practical limitations can be imposed thereon : and the value of η can be assumed at a conventional value , for example , of 1 . 5 . using the above equations , those in the art can then utilize a well known global search algorithm technique , in which the values of the depths d 1 , d 3 , and d 4 are changed in steps , δd , of approximately 0 . 01 δm , and used to determine in each case the area of the chromaticity space that can be spanned for each set of parameters . the depths d 1 , d 3 , and d 4 for the solution providing a maximized area can then be used as the practical physical depths for the three phase level regions at each phase grating period and the practical physical depth of the zero - order phase shifter . in accordance with a specific embodiment of the invention , such a process was used to determine the three optimum depth parameters for a system operating with a uniform spectral source covering a 0 . 40 - 0 . 68 μm wavelength region , using both multi - level phase grating and zero - order phase shift substrates assumed to have an index of refraction of 1 . 5 . exemplary results for optimized sub - pixel phase grating depths of an exemplary pixel having a normalized pixel dimension are shown in fig3 with the red channel having a phase grating depth 16 of 1 . 84 μm relative to the green channel , and the blue channel having a phase grating depth 17 of 4 . 0 μm relative to the green channel . in order to illustrate how such an optimized phase grating design conforms to the theory described above , the following three discrete wavelengths can be considered : red = 0 . 66 μm , green = 0 . 54 μm , and blue = 0 . 46 μm . the effective phase grating depths ( modulo one - wave ) of the three sub - pixels at these three phase level regions are shown in fig4 where the solid line 18 represents red , the dashed line 19 represents green , and the dot - dash line 20 represents blue . it should be noted that in the first sub - pixel region , the phase grating depth for red approximates one - third wavelength of red light , and the phase grating depths for green and blue are essentially zero . similarly , in the second sub - pixel region , the effective phase grating depth for the green approximates one - third wavelength of green light , and the phase grating depths for red and blue are approximately zero . in the third sub - pixel region , the effective phase grating depth for blue approximates one - third wavelength of blue light , while the phase grating depths for red and green are approximately zero . the optimized depth for the zero - order phase shifter is 0 . 36 μm , which depth corresponds to 0 . 27 wavelengths of red , 0 . 33 wavelengths of green , and 0 . 39 wavelengths of blue . for this example , it is noted that the optimum phase depth is less than one wave for all three wavelengths . the system &# 39 ; s ability to concentrate the visible spectrum into three color channels is illustrated in fig5 for the above - mentioned 0 . 4 - 0 . 68 μm wavelength region . the solid curve 21 represents the % efficiency of the spectral content of the red channel , the dashed curve 22 represents the % efficiency of the spectral content of the green channel , and the dash - dot curve 23 represents the % efficiency of the spectral content of the blue channel . it should be noted that the red channel efficiency peaks at a wavelength of 0 . 66 μm , the green channel efficiency peaks at 0 . 54 μm , and the blue channel efficiency peaks at 0 . 46 μm . the red channel has a secondary peak in the far blue region of the spectrum . this blue light , in effect “ leaking ” into the red channel , tends to limit the area covered in chromaticity space . in some cases , it may be desired or required to remove this unwanted blue light from the red channel by conventionally filtering the red channel and such removal can be achieved with a blue - blocking micro - filter , albeit at the cost of losing a minimal amount of the blue light energy . as is well known to the art , the spectral content of these three color channels can then be used to determine the area of chromaticity space spanned by the system . fig6 shows a standard 1976 cie chromaticity space graph 25 which is well known to the art . the area of the chromaticity space spanned by the embodiment discussed above is depicted by three vertices of a triangle , defined by the plus signs , in the graph . this area will be covered using essentially 100 % of the received source illumination . while the above description discusses a preferred embodiment of the technique of the invention , modification thereto may occur to those in the art within the spirit and scope of the invention . hence , the invention is not to be construed as limited thereto , except as defined by the appended claims .	8
fig2 - 3 illustrate an improved acquisition signal error estimator according to an implementation of the present invention . the acquisition signal error estimator uses a plurality of received samples to estimate the signal error . turning now to the drawings and , with particular attention to fig2 a block diagram of a sampled amplitude read channel according to an embodiment of the invention is shown and identified by the reference numeral 200 . during a write operation , data are written onto the media . the data are encoded in an encoder 202 , such as an rll or other encoder . a precoder 204 precodes the sequence to compensate for the transfer function of the magnetic recording channel 208 and equalizing filters . the write circuitry 206 modulates the current in the recording head coil to record a binary sequence onto the medium . a reference frequency f ref provides a write clock to the write circuitry 206 . the bit sequence is then provided to a variable gain amplifier 210 to adjust the amplitude of the signal . dc offset control 212 and loop filter / gain error correction 214 according to the present invention may be provided to control the adjustment of the vga 210 . further , an asymmetry control unit 215 including an asymmetry adjustment unit 216 and asymmetry control 218 may be provided to compensate for magneto - resistive asymmetry effects . it is noted that , while described in the context of gain correction , the teachings of the present invention are equally applicable for use in the dc offset and asymmetry control loops . as will be described in greater detail below , the acquisition signal error estimator uses a plurality of received samples to estimate the signal error . turning back to fig2 the signal is then provided to a continuous time filter 220 , which may be a butterworth filter , for example , to attenuate high frequency noise and minimize aliasing into baseband after sampling . the signal is then provided to an analog - to - digital converter 222 to sample the output of the continuous time filter 220 . a finite impulse response filter 224 provides additional equalization of the signal to the desired response . the output of the fir 224 is provided to an interpolated timing recovery unit 228 , including an acquisition signal error estimator 229 according to the present invention , which is used to recover the discrete time sequence . the output of the interpolated timing recovery unit is used to provide a feedback control to the dc offset control 212 , the gain error 214 , the asymmetry control 218 and the fir 224 control 226 . the output of the interpolated timing recovery 228 is provided to a viterbi detector 232 to provide maximum likelihood detection . further , the itr output is provided to a sync detector 234 according to the present invention . the sync detector 234 detects the sync mark using phase information gleaned from having read the immediately preceding preamble . this information is then provided to the viterbi detector 232 for use in sequence detection . the viterbi detector output is then provided to the decoder 236 which decodes the encoding provided by the encoder 202 . after acquiring the preamble , the sync mark detector searches for the sync mark which demarcates the beginning of the data field . when the sync mark is detected , the sync mark detector enables the viterbi detector 232 and decoder 236 . the gain control signal provided by the loop filter / gain control unit 214 minimizes the error given by e i = gx i −{ overscore ( x )} i where g is the system gain . it can be shown that the system gain is updated according to g i + 1 = g i − be i x i = g i − bd i , where b is a constant . according to one embodiment of the invention , the gain error term d i is given by d i =( x i −{ overscore ( x )} i ) { overscore ( x )} i +( x i − 1 −{ overscore ( x )} i − 1 ) { overscore ( x )} i − 1 thus , the term gain d i is dependent on the signal error term . as discussed above , the signal error term depends of the selection of { overscore ( x )} i . according to the present invention , rather than employing a threshold detector , the selection of { overscore ( x )} i depends upon past values of x i . in particular , in the case where the preamble signal is ideally sampled at phases 0 , π / 2 , π , 3π / 2 and so on , ( i . e ., as for e 2n + 1 pr4 equalization ), the ideal sample sequence takes the form [ a , 0 , − a , 0 , a , 0 , − a . . . ], where a is the amplitude of the sinusoid . in this case , the error x i −{ overscore ( x )} i is estimated , where x i is the received sample value , and { overscore ( x )} i is computed as follows : x _ i = { a   if    x i - x i - 2  ≥  x i - 1 - x i - 3    and   x i - x i - 2 ≥ 0 - a   if    x i - x i - 2  ≥  x i - 1 - x i - 3    and   x i - x i - 2 & lt ; 0 0   if    x i - x i - 2  & lt ;  x i - 1 - x i - 3  one implementation of the error signal estimator 229 a described above is shown in fig3 a . as shown , an input signal x i is input along line 302 to a pair of delay operators 320 , 322 . the resulting output of the delay operators is provided to an arithmetic operator circuit 324 . the signal x i is also provided along line 323 to the arithmetic operator 324 . the arithmetic operator 324 performs the operation x i − x i − 2 . the output of the arithmetic operator 324 is provided to circuit 318 which determines the sign ( i . e ., whether the output is greater than or less than zero ). the output of the circuit 318 controls a multiplexer 314 , as will be explained in greater detail below . th output of the arithmetic operator 324 is also provided to circuit 326 which performs the absolute value operation . the resulting output is then provided to a delay operator 328 and also to an arithmetic operator 330 . the output of the delay operator 328 is also provided to the arithmetic operator 330 , which performs the operation \| x i − x i − 2 \|−\| x i − 1 − x i − 3 \|. finally , the output of the arithmetic operator 330 is compared with zero by circuit 332 and used to control the multiplexer 316 , as will be described in greater detail below . the input signal x i is input along line 304 to the multiplexer 316 and , along lines 306 and 310 to arithmetic operators 308 , 312 , respectively . the arithmetic operator 308 performs the operation x i − a , and the arithmetic operator 312 performs the operation x i + a . the outputs of the arithmetic operators 308 , 312 are provided as inputs to the multiplexer 314 . the multiplexer 314 outputs one or the other based on the sign of x i − x i − 2 provided by circuit 318 . the output of the multiplexer 314 is provided as the other input to the multiplexer 316 . finally , the output of the multiplexer 316 is then selected based on the sign of \| x i − x i − 2 \|−\| x i − 1 − x i − 3 \| provided by circuit 332 . in the case where the preamble signal is ideally sampled at the phases π / 4 , 3π / 4 , 5π / 4 , 7π / 4 and so on ( i . e ., as for e 2n pr4 equalization ), the ideal sample sequence takes the form [ b , b , − b , − b , b , b , − b , − b , . . . ] where { square root }{ square root over ( 2 )} b is the amplitude of the sinusoid . in this case , the error x i −{ overscore ( x )} i is estimated , where x i is the received sample value , and { overscore ( x )} i is computed as follows : x _ i = {  b   if   x i - x i - 2 ≥ 0 - b   if   x i - x i - 2 & lt ; 0 one implementation of the error signal estimator 229 b described above is shown in fig3 b . as shown , an input signal x i is input along line 350 to a pair of delay operators 358 , 360 . the resulting output of the delay operators is provided to an arithmetic operator circuit 362 . the signal x i is also provided along line 352 to the arithmetic operator 362 . the arithmetic operator 362 performs the operation x i − x i − 2 . the output of the arithmetic operator 362 is provided to circuit 364 which determines the sign ( i . e ., whether the output is greater than or less than zero ). the output of the circuit 364 controls a multiplexer 370 , as will be explained in greater detail below . the signal x i is input along lines 354 and 356 to arithmetic operators 366 , 368 , respectively . the arithmetic operator 368 performs the operation x i − b , and the arithmetic operator 366 performs the operation x i + b . the outputs of the arithmetic operators 366 , 368 are provided as inputs to the multiplexer 370 . the multiplexer 370 outputs one or the other based on the sign of x i − x i − 2 provided by circuit 364 . an alternate method for obtaining the gain error term d i is to avoid using the slicer estimate altogether . more particularly , one method of doing so is to use the error term an implementation of this method for estimating the gain error term is shown in fig3 c . as shown therein , sample x i is input along line 401 to a squaring operator 408 and along line 403 to a delay operator 402 . the output of the delay operator 403 , x i − 1 , is provided to a squaring operator 404 . the outputs of the squaring operators 404 , 408 are summed by adder 406 . finally , the output of the adder 406 is input to the adder 410 , which subtracts a constant ( e . g ., 4 ). the resulting output d i is used to calculate system gain g i , as described above . it is noted that , while described above as discrete components , the gain control systems may typically implemented as software or firmware . the invention described in the above detailed description is not intended to be limited to the specific form set forth herein , but is intended to cover such alternatives , modifications and equivalents as can reasonably be included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims .	6
fig1 shows a wire body generally designated 1 in an embolization device shown in the predetermined unloaded shape . the wire body has a distal or front end section 2 formed as a spiral with a decreasing helix diameter in the direction of the front end 3 , and a helix - free section 4 connecting the end section 2 with a proximal or back end section 5 , the center line of which turns through an angle of about 340 ° compared with the substantially rectilinear course of the center line in the section 4 . the back end of the wire body has a coupling means 6 which may , for example , be formed as explained in connection with fig1 . the dimensions of the wire body depend on the vessel geometry at the site to be occluded . the largest helix diameter dd in the end section 2 typically corresponds to the diameter of the vessel lumen and may , for example , be of the same size or slightly larger than this lumen . the smallest helix diameter can be half or slightly over half of the largest diameter . the diameter dp in the helical portion of the back end section 5 may be comparable with or smaller than the largest helical diameter in the front end section 2 . the helix - free section 4 has a length substantially larger than the diameter of the vessel lumen , for example at least six times the size , which may typically provide at least four wire portions crossing the vessel lumen . the front end section 2 may , for example , have a largest external diameter in the range from 2 to 13 mm . the helix - free section 4 may , for example , have a length in the range from 30 to 1000 mm , and suitably in the range from 30 to 300 mm , if no measures have been taken to reduce the friction between the wire body and the inner surface of the catheter . finally the back end section 5 may have a largest external diameter in the range from 2 to 13 mm , suitably from 4 to 8 mm . if the vessel has a lumen of 2 mm at the site of occlusion , the end sections 2 and 5 may be pre - shaped with an external diameter of about 2 mm , and the section 4 may have a length of at least 20 mm , which renders it possible to have more than 10 wire passages across the vessel lumen . if the vessel has a lumen of 6 mm , the end section 2 may have a largest external diameter of about 6 mm , the end section 5 a diameter of about 5 mm and the section 4 a length of at least 50 mm . if a more dense occlusion is desired , the section 4 may be given greater length . the wire body 1 may , for example , be manufactured by helical winding of a thread around a mandrel . the thread may , for example , be of platinum , palladium silver , gold , nitinol , stainless steel , alloys of these materials or of a springy plastic , such as modified butadiene . platinum is the preferred material owing to its great radiopacity . the thread diameter is adapted to the diameter of the wire body and the desired rigidity of the wire body and may , for example , in the range from 0 . 02 to 0 . 2 mm , preferably from 0 . 04 to 0 . 1 mm . at superselective applications , such as intracranial or renal occlusion , occlusion in the liver or in vessels at joints or bones , the thread may advantageously have a diameter in the range from 0 . 35 to 0 . 45 mm . along the main part of the length of the wire body the thread may be spun at a pitch corresponding to the thread thickness so that the windings touch each other . this increases the compressive strength of the wire body , which is a particular advantage if the wire body in its extended shape is very long so that noticeable friction has to be overcome at its advancement through the catheter . for the same thread thickness the rigidity of the wire body decreases with increasing diameters of the body . the wire body may typically have an external diameter in the range from 0 . 0254 mm ( 10 mils ) to 1 . 016 mm ( 40 mils ), preferably from 0 . 0254 mm to 0 . 457 mm ( 10 - 18 mils ). if the site of occlusion has a very small lumen , the diameter may be chosen to be smaller than 0 . 0254 mm . after spinning of a straight coil piece , a piece thereof is cut off in a length corresponding to the extended length of the wire body . then the end sections 2 , 5 can be deformed around a mandrel to the desired shape . finally , the wire body can be heat - treated in an oven in a well - known manner . if the section 4 is longer than the length of the oven chamber , it is necessary to wind the whole wire body 1 together into a coil size capable of being accommodated inside the oven . after the heat treatment of such a body , the section 4 may retain the wound shape in which the diameter of the windings is much larger than the diameter of the end sections 2 , 5 . when the section 4 in the present connection is characterized as being helix - free this means that the section has no helices of a diameter comparable with the vessel lumen at the site of placement . thus , for manufacturing reasons the helix - free section 4 may have been given a winding - forming curved shape , the winding diameter being at least 10 - 25 times larger than the vessel lumen at the site of placement . in the following description of other embodiments the same reference numerals will be used for components of the same sort as in the above embodiment for the sake of simplicity . the embodiment shown in fig2 also comprises a wire body 1 with a front end section 2 being spiral - shaped , and with a helix - free section 4 , but the end section 5 ′ is here formed as an approximately rectilinear extension of the section 4 . the embodiment is simpler to manufacture because the end section 5 ′ does not have to be pre - shaped in a curved shape . this is possible if the coupling means 6 is of a type that cannot damage the vessel wall by direct abutment with it , for example if the coupling means is spherical for engagement with a holder at the end of the guidewire , or if the back end of the wire body 1 is gripped by an inflatable member at the end of the guidewire . the embodiment shown in fig3 is particularly applicable for occlusion of aneurisms . the embolization device here comprises a wire body 1 with a helix - free middle section 4 , a front end section 2 ″ and a back end section 5 ″. the center axis of the front end section 2 ″ turns through an angle of about 130 °, which ensures that the front end of the wire body cannot meet the vessel wall directly when advanced into the aneurism . the center axis of the back end section 5 ″ turns through an angle of about 210 °, which ensures that the coupling means does not touch the vessel wall when the device is fully placed in the aneurism . fig1 shows an embodiment suitable for occlusion at two or more mutually separate sites in a vessel . the device comprises a wire body 1 having at least two helix - free sections 4 , a front end section 2 formed similarly to those in fig1 and 2 , and a back end section 5 ′ formed as in fig2 . the helix - free sections are mutually connected via intermediate sections 7 which in the predetermined shape have helical courses with an external diameter in the windings corresponding to the lumen of the vessel . to achieve a suitable occlusion at the site of placement , the helix - free section ( s ) 4 preferably has / have an aggregate length of at least 90 mm , suitably a length in the range from 100 to 700 mm . fig1 shows an example of a coupling means 6 intended for screwing into a thread 8 at the distal end of a guidewire 9 . the thread on the guidewire has been provided by fixing the windings 10 in a protective coil 11 at a pitch slightly larger than the diameter dt of the thread 12 of the wire body . the coupling means 6 has been provided by axially pulling out the windings 13 of the back end of the wire body until they display a pitch corresponding to the pitch in the thread on the guidewire . the other known types of coupling means are also applicable . if it is not necessary to be able to reposition the embolization device in the catheter , it can , instead of being mounted on a guidewire , be discharged from the catheter by means of a stylet - shaped pusher not connected with the wire body , but only pushing it forwards through the catheter . the different above curvatures in the front section of the wire body constitute a kind of guide means which is an integral part of the wire body and prevents the front end of the wire body from damaging the vessel wall when it is pushed out from the catheter . the front end section 2 ′″ may alternatively have a center axis being a rectilinear extension of the center axis of the section 4 , and in that case the front end of the wire body may be provided with a separate guide means 14 , which may , for example , have the design shown in fig1 . the guide means 14 is umbrella - like with a front dish - shaped screen 15 of a thin and springy material , such as nitinol , platinum or plastics . via several thin struts 16 the screen 15 is placed in engagement with the end section of the wire body so that the screen lies protectively in front of the end of the wire body . the screen has a relatively large radius of curvature , preferably of at least five times the external diameter of the wire body . this means that firstly the screen distributes the abutment pressure of the front end on the vessel wall over a suitably large areal , and secondly it makes the front end turn to the side at continued pushing out of the wire body from the catheter so that the front end section nestles along the vessel wall and is frictionally locked to it in the manner described above . as the struts 16 are thin and the screen is located in front of the end of the wire body the screen will lie folded together in front of the wire body when it is advanced through the catheter , which renders possible advancement through a catheter with the same internal lumen as the catheters used for the above embodiments . clearly , details of the above embodiments can be combined for the provision of new embodiments , and at least the front end section 2 can also have a helical shape with windings of a substantially constant external diameter . the intermediate section 7 shown in fig1 may alternatively have a spiral shape . now placement of the embolization device in an aneurism 17 will be described in detail with reference to fig4 - 7 . an introducer catheter 18 is advanced percutaneously and transluminally in a well - known manner along a suitable path until the distal opening 19 of the catheter is located in the neck of the aneurism as shown in fig4 . then a guidewire mounted with the embolization device is inserted into the catheter and pushed forwards until the front end section 2 ″ meets the vessel wall , whereupon the end section at continued pushing out is automatically guided by the curvature of the end section towards abutment with the vessel wall in a frictionally locking manner . fig5 shows the situation where the frictional locking has been established . at the continued pushing out , the helix - free section 4 in front of the catheter opening 19 curves into a direction towards the middle of the aneurism and further towards the opposite vessel wall where frictional locking also takes place as shown in fig6 . a portion 20 of the section 4 thus crosses the aneurism and at either end is locked to the vessel wall . at the continued pushing out this sequence repeats itself , the section 4 after each frictional locking to the vessel wall again seeking towards the middle of the aneurism and finding another abutment place on the opposite vessel wall . fig7 shows the situation immediately before the whole wire body has been placed , and it can be seen that the helix - free section has assumed a complexly curved shape in which the curvatures of the section vary continuously and without breakpoints that might cause a local overload of the vessel wall , and that the resulting course of the section 4 causes the aneurism to be crossed by many wire portions . fig8 - 10 illustrate the placement of an embolization device in a vessel 21 with a healthy vessel wall , but where it is desired to occlude the vessel itself . first the catheter 18 is introduced as mentioned above , and then the embolization device is advanced , and the front end section 2 is pushed out through the catheter opening 19 and assumes its predetermined shape , the end section lying frictionally locked to the vessel wall as shown in fig8 . then the catheter is retracted slightly to the position shown in fig9 , where the section 4 has a free length between the section 2 and the catheter opening so that the column loading in the wire body makes the released part of the section 4 curve to the side at the continued pushing out . the section 4 will then in a similar manner as that described above meet the vessel wall and be frictionally locked to it , whereupon it will seek towards the vessel center and onwards for frictional locking on an opposite area of the vessel wall , and so forth until the whole wire body has been placed . fig1 shows the partially occluded vessel before conclusion of the placement , and fig1 shows the vessel after concluded placement of an embolization device having a section 4 of large length . it is directly seen that the many vessel - crossing wire portions produce an extremely efficient occlusion of the vessel , particularly at its center , where prior - art embolization coils have not been able to produce a sufficiently efficient occlusion to be able to avoid recanalization with any suitable degree of certainty . because the section 4 places itself across the vessel to be occluded , the occlusion can be performed solely by means of the wire body . thus there is no need to use the formerly known occlusion hairs of silk or dacron to occlude the vessel center . this means that the embolization device according to the invention , when it is free of occlusion hairs , can be inserted through a catheter with advantageously smaller inner lumen than the known embolization coils with hairs because no space is required inside the catheter for the hairs . as these hairs also generate an unfortunate , high friction between the coil and the inner surface of the catheter , the device according to the invention is easier to advance through the catheter . this can be utilized to place wire members of a greater length and / or of lower rigidity . if a further advantageous reduction of the friction is desired , the inner surface of the catheter or possibly the wire body itself may be coated with a friction - reducing coating , such as a ptfe coating or a hydrophilic coating . naturally it is possible within the scope of the invention to provide the wire body with occlusion hairs , but it is not preferred for the above reasons . a number of experiments have been carried out to find suitable rigidities of section 4 of the wire body so that it obtains the desired vessel - wall seeking rigidity without becoming so stiff that the outward pressure on the vessel wall becomes too high . the experiments were carried out with helically wound platinum threads for different thread diameters d and for different external diameters d of the wire body , i . e ., external diameters of the helical windings . for each geometrical set five experiments were carried out in which a coil piece 50 mm long was clamped in holders in a stretching apparatus whereupon the holders were pulled apart to an extension e = 10 mm , and the tensile force p required for this was measured . on this basis the spring constant c = p / e was calculated . the result of this is reproduced in the below table 1 . the threads were subsequently pushed at right angles on to a plane surface to see whether the curving out took place in the desired manner . it turned out that the length of the free portion outside the catheter opening was important to the force exercisable on the plane surface . with a coil of d = 14 mils and a thread thickness of d = 0 . 075 mm and a projecting length of 5 mm a pressure of about 2 g could be measured , while with a projecting length of 20 mm no pressure could be recorded by the measuring apparatus used . when the spring constant is lower than 0 . 0008 n / mm , the coil no longer had a sufficient vessel wall seeking property . it has been mentioned that section 4 may be completely straight in the predetermined shape . as the wire body 1 may be of great length and of a small diameter , it may be difficult at placement of the wire member on a plane surface to achieve a straight shape because there will be a certain friction against the supporting surface . if , instead , the wire body is suspended at the transition between the helix - free section and one of the end sections , the predetermined shape will appear clearly , and section 4 will hang down vertically without any curvature .	0
referring to the drawings wherein reference numerals designate identical or corresponding parts throughout the several views , the artist &# 39 ; s brush washing apparatus of the present invention is illustrated generally at 10 in fig1 . specifically , the brush washing apparatus 10 includes a solvent holding pan 12 ( fig1 - 5 ), a top unit 14 , a solvent reservoir assembly 16 , and a solvent flushing unit 18 . the solvent holding pan 12 is of a conventional design with upright walls 20 and a solid bottom 22 which enables the pan 12 to hold a liquid substance . the upper portion of the wall 20 includes a ridge 24 . the top unit 14 includes an outer ring 26 which forms a lip and extends over the wall 20 of the pan 12 and contacts the ridge 24 thereby forming support for the top unit 14 . a washing basin 28 is formed inside of the ring 26 which is recessed inwardly forming an internal area which holds a washing solvent . an aperture forms a drain 30 to allow the flow of solvent from the washing basin 28 into the pan 12 . ribs 32 extend radically from the drain 30 on the bottom of the washing basin 28 . the ribs 32 assist in the removal of material from a brush during the washing of the brush . the solvent reservoir assembly 16 ( fig1 - 5 ) includes a mounting bracket 34 , solvent container lid 36 , and solvent container 38 . the mounting bracket 34 forms a base for securely holding the lid 36 removably in place on the washing apparatus 10 . the mounting bracket 34 includes a curved wall 40 which extends upward from the top unit 14 with a trough 42 extending through the wall 40 . a peg 44 forms support for the lid 36 and a similar peg ( not illustrated ) is opposite peg 44 on the mounting bracket 34 . further , additional support is provided by the ring 26 of the top unit 14 for the lid 36 . the lid 36 is conventionally circular in design with an on / off coupling threading 46 on the inside of the wall 48 . the bottom 50 of the lid 36 includes nozzle 52 for the solvent to pass through from the solvent container 38 with an equalization tube 54 extending there along and into the solvent container 38 to reduce the formation of a vacuum within the solvent container 38 as the solvent drains out of it . the solvent flushing unit 18 includes a plunger 56 which extends through the top unit 14 to contact one end of a flexible biassing element 58 . the opposing end of the biassing element 58 is rigidly attached to the under side of the washing basin 28 on a friction peg 60 and includes a sealing element 62 positioned midway through the length of the biassing element 58 and in alignment with the aperture forming the drain 30 . the biassing element 58 further contacts a rigid support shaft 64 with a screw 66 tightly holding the biassing element 58 in contact with the shaft 64 between the peg 60 and a sealing element 62 . the length of the shaft 64 is slightly less than the peg 60 to permit the biassing element 58 to exert upward pressure on the sealing element 62 to hold the sealing element 62 against the drain 30 . the sealing element 62 is formed from a resilient flexible material which conforms to the shape of the drain 30 and to seal the drain 30 . the downward movement of the plunger 56 moves the sealing element 58 downward from the drain 30 and permits the flow of contaminated solvent from the drain 30 . during the operation of the artist &# 39 ; s brush washer unit 10 , the particular type of solvent utilized will be dependent of the medium of the paint being used , i . e ., water color or acrylic -- water , and oil -- turpentine , or other appropriate solvents compatible with the medium . the container 38 is filled with fresh solvent and the lid 36 is firmly attached to it . the container 38 is inverted with the lid 36 resting on a mounting bracket 34 ( fig1 - 5 ). the solvent flows into the washing basin 28 through the nozzle 52 and fills the washing basin 28 to the level corresponding to the depth of the bottom of the nozzle 52 . the cleansing of the brush occurs in the washing basin 28 when the brush is immersed within the solvent and the bristles contact the ribs 32 to facilitate the cleaning of the brush . after the cleaning of the brush , the contaminated solvent is removed from the washing basin 28 when the plunger 56 is depressed downward which disengages the sealing element 62 from the drain 30 . the contaminated solvent flows into the pan 12 and fresh solvent flows into the washing basin 28 as the level of the contaminated solvent drops below the nozzle 52 . upon releasing the plunger 56 , the sealing element 62 is moved upward by the biassing element 58 which effectively seals the drain 30 . the fresh solvent continues to flow into the washing basin until it reaches a level approximately that of the bottom of the nozzle 52 . the volume of the solvent container 38 and the pan 12 permit many cycles of the washing process to occur with minimal interference of the painting process . the pan 12 is further adapted to hold the contaminated solvent until a proper disposal site is secured and removal of the solvent container 38 allows the unit 10 to become portable . obviously , many 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 pending claims , the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described . to the extent other embodiments are herein created , it is intended they fall within the scope of protection provided by the claims appended hereto .	0
referring to fig1 there is shown a novel hurricane clip 10 . clip 10 is preferably a two inch long section of an extruded rigid vinyl downwardly opening channel , including a back leg section 12 , a front leg section 14 and a top connecting section 16 , forming a groove 17 therewithin of about 1 / 8 inch width . at the center , lengthwise and vertically , of the back leg section 12 and the front leg section 14 is a lengthwise extending nail slot 18 which is about 1 / 2 inch long and 3 / 16 inch high . the front leg section 14 includes a small step 20 extending lengthwise , with the top narrow strip 22 projecting outwardly about 1 / 16 inch relative to the bottom wide face 24 of front leg section 14 . fig2 shows two hurricane clips 10 disposed over the top edge 28 of an elongate section of vinyl siding 30 , with nails 32 extending through the clips 10 , the siding 30 , the underlying sheathing 34 and into a pair of adjacent studs 36 . the nails 32 are originally , at time of application , inserted through the nail slot 18 in the clip front leg section 14 , through the approximate center of one of the plurality of nail slots 38 in the top edge of the vinyl siding 30 and then through the nail slot 18 in the clip back leg section , prior to being driven on through the sheathing 34 and into the studs 36 . clips 10 , being formed of rigid vinyl , have a top connecting section 16 which can be used by the applicator as a guide and reminder to not drive the nails in so tight that they restrict movement of the siding relative to the nails 32 . the siding 30 is preferably a post - formed elongate strip of vinyl siding . in post forming vinyl siding , a flat sheet of vinyl is extruded and , while still at a high enough temperature for reforming , then reformed , as shown in fig2 to include a narrow , flat top edge 28 , an outwardly bent hook section 40 immediately therebelow , a main face section 42 and , at the bottom , an inwardly bent interlocking hook section 44 , for engaging the outwardly bent hook portion 40 of a lower mounted , similar strip of siding 30 . the slots 38 in the narrow , flat top edge 28 are preferably about 1 / 8 inch by 11 / 4 inch , with 1 / 2 inch between adjacent slots . the hurricane clips 10 are preferably about two inches long , but could be any length from about 11 / 2 inch to 15 inches . the wall thickness of the clips 10 is about 0 . 05 inch , but could be from about 0 . 02 inch to 0 . 1 inch thick . the studs 36 are normally spaced about 16 inches , center to center . the flat top edge 28 is about 5 / 8 inch wide and accordingly the hurricane clips have a channel depth of about 5 / 8 inch so that the clips reinforce the entire width of the top edge 28 . small test sections of vinyl siding 30 nailed to studs both with hurricane clips as described hereabove , and with just nails , have been constructed and tested to determine the force necessary to push the siding away from the studs . the use of the above described hurricane clips 10 more than doubled the resistance of the structure to failure , and with longer hurricane clips , the force required for failure was almost triple that required with just nails . fig3 shows a modified form of hurricane clip 50 , wherein a short strip of sheet metal is formed into a j - cross section of about 2 inch length and 5 / 8 inch height . clip 50 has a relatively short back leg section 52 , a front leg section 54 and a top connecting section 56 . a nail slot 58 is formed in the middle of clip 50 . clip 50 is placed over the top edge of a strip of vinyl siding and nailed to studs with the siding under the clip 50 in a manner similar to the application with clip 10 . the clip 50 , with a front leg section 54 , which is not stepped in the manner of front leg section 14 of clip 10 , is also able to provide the function of a guide to which the nail head should be driven . the nail head can be driven until it contacts the front leg section 54 so long as the clip isn &# 39 ; t squeezed to prevent movement of the vinyl siding relative to the nail . the novel clips of the invention can also be used to reinforce the top edge of thin siding made from materials other than vinyl siding , such as aluminum siding . having completed a detailed description of the preferred embodiments of my invention so that those skilled in the art may practice the same , 1 contemplate that variations may be made without departing from the essence of the invention .	4
referring generally to the figures and specifically to fig1 - 4 , a seat belt system is configured to allow a seat belt latch plate 101 to be remotely released from a buckle assembly 110 through an electrical signal while maintaining full mechanical functionality for normal use or in the event of power failure . the seat belt system can be used in any vehicle 10 which may have vehicle occupant seats 20 configured to include seat belts . the seat belt system includes a seat belt webbing 90 connected to a latch plate 101 and a buckle assembly 110 for securing the latch plate 101 . the buckle assembly 110 utilizes a blocking mechanism to secure the latch plate 101 when it is inserted into the buckle assembly 110 . the blocking mechanism can be any combination of buckle assembly components which releasably secure the latch plate 101 in the buckle assembly 110 . a vehicle occupant may then release the latch plate 101 from the buckle assembly 110 by utilizing the mechanical release mechanism or the remote release mechanism . the mechanical release mechanism utilizes a release button 114 in the buckle assembly 110 . the release button 114 alters the blocking mechanism so that the latch plate 101 is released from the buckle assembly 110 . the remote release mechanism utilizes an actuator switch 50 which may send an electrical signal to a solenoid in the buckle assembly 110 . the solenoid does not directly act on an ejector spring in the buckle assembly , but rather on one of the components of the blocking mechanism . because the solenoid acts on the blocking mechanism , it is not directly in the load path for the forces placed on the seat belt during a crash . the seat belt loads never travel through the solenoid or other remote release mechanism components , which greatly improves the robustness of the seat belt assembly . the solenoid is configured to alter the blocking mechanism in a way so that the latch plate is released from the buckle assembly 110 . the solenoid is also configured so as not to interfere with the mechanical release mechanism . as shown in fig5 - 7 , the blocking mechanism comprises a lock bar 126 and a slider / latch bar 122 . the lock bar 126 may be located towards the top and the front of the buckle assembly 110 a , above where the latch plate 101 enters the buckle assembly 110 a . the lock bar 126 is preferably a metal cylindrically - shaped bar which connects opposing sides of two sides of a buckle frame 130 . the lock bar 126 in fig5 - 7 is configured to remain static during the entry and release ( mechanical or remote ) of the latch plate from the buckle assembly 110 a . the slider / latch bar 122 is located underneath the lock bar 126 and proximal to the release button protrusion 115 of the release button 114 . the slider / latch bar 122 has a slider portion 122 a and a latch bar portion 122 b . the slider portion 122 a is slidably attached to the top of the latch bar portion 122 b such that they form one blocking component . the slider portion 122 a is configured to slide across the top of the latch bar portion 122 b when the release button 114 acts on it . the slider portion 122 a is designed so that it may be wedged underneath the lock bar 126 . the slider portion 122 a has an upward extension 122 c at its rear . as shown in fig5 - 7 , the upward extension 122 c of the slider portion 122 a includes a slot for receiving a portion of the connecting member 124 . the latch bar portion 122 b has a downward extension 122 d at its front . as shown in fig6 - 7 , this downward extension 122 d of the latch bar portion 122 b is configured to mate with the latch plate 101 when the blocking mechanism 122 is pivoted downward by the insertion of the latch plate 101 . as shown in fig5 - 7 , the release button 114 may be located above where the latch plate 101 enters the buckle assembly 110 a . the release button 114 is roughly rectangular shaped and includes a release button protrusion 115 . the release button protrusion 115 is located at the rear of the release button 114 . when the release button 114 is depressed , the release button 114 slides along the buckle frame 130 and the release button protrusion 115 is configured to alter a blocking mechanism component . as shown in fig5 - 7 , the release button protrusion 115 is configured to contact and move the slider portion 122 a of the slider / latch bar 122 . the release button 114 is connected to a button spring and guide bar 120 which connects the release button 114 to a blocking mechanism component . as shown in fig5 - 7 , the button spring and guide bar 120 connect the release button 114 to the lock bar 126 . when the release button 114 is depressed , the button spring and guide bar 120 force the release button 114 back to its original position . the solenoid preferably comprises an iron core and a plunger proximally located to the core . the iron core is preferably encircled with a casing containing electrically - conductive wiring . the solenoid is configured to receive an electrical signal when the actuator switch 50 is actuated . the solenoid is preferably deenegerized until it receives the electrical signal in order to minimize heat generation . when the solenoid receives the electrical signal , electrical current runs through wiring of the solenoid , creating a magnetic field in the interior of the solenoid . the magnetic field then causes the solenoid plunger to be attracted to or repelled from the iron core , depending on the type of magnetic field created . alternative types of solenoids may be employed . for example , when the plunger is attracted towards the core , the solenoid is a pull - type solenoid . a pull - type solenoid 116 is shown in fig5 - 7 . when the plunger is repelled away from the core , the solenoid is a push - type solenoid . a push - type solenoid 216 is shown in fig8 - 10 . the solenoid is preferably located at the rear of the buckle assembly 110 . the plunger of the solenoid is coupled to a connecting member and acts on the connecting member when the solenoid is energized . an example of a connecting member 124 is shown in buckle assembly 110 a in fig5 - 7 . the connecting member 124 is a component which connects a solenoid 116 to a blocking mechanism component . the connecting member 124 can be made of any durable material , such as plastic or metal . as shown in fig5 - 7 , an extension portion on the rear of the connecting member 124 is coupled to the solenoid 116 . the remaining portion of the connecting member 124 is generally j - shaped or u - shaped , having a flat portion 124 a and a hook portion 124 b . the flat portion 124 a of the connecting member 124 is inserted into a slot in the upward extension 122 c of the slider portion 122 a . the hook portion 124 b of the connecting member 124 then wraps around the uppermost point of the extension 122 c of the slider portion 122 a , and continues back towards the solenoid 116 . the shape of the connecting member 124 and the coupling between the connecting member 124 and the slider portion 122 a is important to allowing the buckle assembly to have both mechanical and remote release mechanisms . the slider / latch bar 122 can shift and pivot freely as needed when the mechanical release mechanism is utilized , while allowing the connecting member 124 to pull on the slider / latch bar 122 when the remote release mechanism is utilized . another exemplary connecting member 224 is shown in fig8 - 10 . the rear of the connecting member 224 is coupled to a push - type solenoid 216 . the connecting member 224 as shown in fig8 is generally u - shaped , having two bracket portions which extend along the exterior of buckle frame 130 . the connecting member 224 could also be placed in the buckle assembly 110 b such that it is located above the other buckle assembly 110 b components . the two bracket portions of the connecting member 224 are connected to opposite sides of the lock bar 226 . any one of the many fastening mechanisms well known to those skilled in the art may be used to couple the connecting member 224 to the solenoid 216 or to couple the connecting member 224 to the lock bar 226 . the shape of the connecting member 224 and the coupling between the connecting member 224 and the lock bar 226 is important to allowing the buckle assembly to have both mechanical and remote release mechanisms . the connecting member 224 may push the lock bar 226 as needed when the solenoid 226 is energized during operation of the remote release mechanism , while allowing the lock bar 226 to remain static when the mechanical release mechanism is utilized . the connecting member in the buckle assemblies 110 allows the buckle assemblies 110 to maintain the ability to be used in a traditional manner , with a spring loaded release button , even though the buckle assemblies 110 include a solenoid , thereby unaffecting normal buckle function . the connection between the solenoid and a component of the blocking mechanism ensures that the structural load path within the buckle is unaffected by the presence of the solenoid . the manual release mechanism can be used at any time , even simultaneously with the remote release mechanism , without interference from the remote release mechanism . as shown in fig1 - 2 , a vehicle 10 may be equipped so that a passenger seat 20 is equipped with a seat belt system including buckle assemblies 110 . the driver seat and / or all of the passenger seats may be equipped with seat belt systems including buckle assemblies 110 . thus , in case of an emergency , the latch plates 101 may be released from the buckle assemblies 110 remotely by the vehicle driver , e . g ., to facilitate the quick exit of vehicle occupants . the remote release capability is especially useful for vehicle occupants who may otherwise need special assistance with unbuckling their seat belts . for example , it may be very difficult for a bus driver to both unbuckle all of the children in a school bus and help them exit safely in an emergency . other potential vehicle applications include automobiles and mass - transit vehicles , such as motor coaches , buses , trains , airplanes , etc . as shown in fig3 - 4 , the latch plate remote release mechanism may be controlled by an actuator switch 50 , which may be located near the vehicle &# 39 ; s driver &# 39 ; s seating position ( as shown in fig1 ). the actuator switch 50 may provide for directly energizing a solenoid in the buckle assembly 110 ( e . g ., via a simple circuit closure ), or provide an actuation signal to a electronic control unit 70 configured to receive an input from the actuator switch 50 . there may be an electronic control unit 70 for each seat ( in which case , the actuator switch 50 provides an actuation signal to each electronic control unit 70 ), or just one electronic control unit 70 for all seats . the electronic control unit 70 may contain a microprocessor 75 configured to send an appropriate signal to the solenoid 116 in the buckle assembly 110 , as shown in fig4 . the electronic control unit 70 may be located on the seat 20 ( as shown in fig3 ) or any other suitable place in the vehicle . the microprocessor 75 may send a signal to another microprocessor , which may be located on seat 20 or in the buckle assembly 110 . the signals transmitted in the system may be carried by any suitable method including , for example , through wires 80 ( as shown in fig3 - 4 ) or wirelessly ( e . g ., “ bluetooth ” communication ). wires 80 may utilize maybus communication , a simple current pulse , etc . referring to fig5 - 7 , a first embodiment 110 a of a buckle assembly is shown . when a latch plate 101 is inserted into the buckle assembly 110 a , a blocking mechanism secures the latch plate . in fig5 - 7 , a slider / latch bar 122 in conjunction with lock bar 126 performs this blocking mechanism function . when the latch plate 101 is inserted into the buckle assembly 110 a , the slider / latch bar 122 rotates downwards towards the bottom of the buckle frame 130 and simultaneously shifts towards the release button 114 . the downward extension 122 d of the latch bar portion 122 b is inserted into a slot of the latch plate 101 and contacts the bottom of the buckle frame 130 so as to secure the latch plate 101 in the buckle assembly 110 a . the latch bar portion 122 b is held in place because the slider portion 122 a of the slider / latch bar 122 is wedged underneath the lock bar 126 when the slider / latch bar 122 rotates downwards . buckle assembly 110 a includes a release button 114 that mechanically releases the latch plate from the buckle assembly 110 without use of or interference from the solenoid 116 . when the release button 114 is depressed , protrusion 115 of release button 114 contacts the slider portion 122 a and applies a force such that the slider portion 122 a slides along the latch bar portion 122 b in a direction away from the release button 114 . the shift in position must be sufficient to translate the slider portion 122 a past the edge of the lock bar 126 . once the slider portion 122 a is no longer wedged underneath the lock bar 126 , the slider / latch bar 122 rotates away from the bottom of the buckle frame 130 such that latch bar portion 122 b no longer secures the latch plate 101 in the buckle assembly 110 a . the movement and rotation of the slider / latch bar 122 causes an ejector spring 128 to eject the latch plate 101 out of the buckle assembly 110 a . additionally , electrical release of the latch plate 101 from the buckle assembly 110 a is possible using solenoid 116 . in fig5 - 7 , solenoid 116 is a pull - type solenoid . when the solenoid 116 is actuated , the plunger of solenoid 116 pulls on a connecting member 124 coupled to the solenoid 116 such that the connecting member 124 shifts away from the release button 114 . when the connecting member 124 is pulled by the solenoid 116 , the connecting member 124 pulls the slider portion 122 a of the slider / latch bar 122 , allowing the slider portion 122 a to become unwedged from the lock bar 126 . the slider / latch bar 122 then rotates upwards away from the bottom of the buckle frame 130 . this movement of the slider / latch bar 122 causes the downward protrusion 122 d of the latch bar portion 122 b to release the latch plate 101 such that the latch plate 101 may be ejected from the buckle assembly 110 a by ejector 128 . fig6 illustrates the first embodiment 1110 a of the buckle assembly when the solenoid 116 is de - energized ( not actuated ). the user may push the release button 114 such that the protrusion 115 contacts the slider portion 122 a . the slider portion 122 a then travels a short distance ( preferably approximately 5 mm ) and is released from below lock bar 126 . the shape of the connecting member 124 allows the slider portion 122 a to shift when it is contacted by the protrusion 115 of the release button 114 without interference from the connecting member 124 or the solenoid 116 . fig7 illustrates the first embodiment 110 a of the buckle assembly when the solenoid 116 is energized ( actuated ). when solenoid 116 is energized , the solenoid 116 pulls on the connecting member 124 . connecting member 124 is shaped so that the connecting member 124 pulls the slider portion 122 a when the solenoid 116 is actuated . the slider portion 122 a is pulled such that it is released from below lock bar 126 . the slider / latch bar 122 may then freely pivot to release the latch plate 101 from the buckle assembly 110 a . fig8 - 10 illustrate a second embodiment 110 b of a buckle assembly . the buckle assembly 110 b contains many of the same components as the buckle assembly 110 a , such as a release button 114 , ejector 128 , and buckle frame 130 . as in buckle assembly 110 a , buckle assembly 110 b allows a latch plate 101 to be remotely released while maintaining normal mechanical release functionality . in buckle assembly 110 b , a connecting member 224 is coupled to a solenoid 216 and a lock bar 226 , such that the solenoid 216 acts on the lock bar 226 through the connecting member 224 when the solenoid 216 is actuated . when a latch plate 101 is inserted into the buckle assembly 110 b , a blocking mechanism secures the latch plate . in fig8 - 10 , a slider / latch bar 222 in conjunction with lock bar 226 performs this blocking mechanism function . when the latch plate 101 is inserted into the buckle assembly 110 b , the slider / latch bar 222 rotates downwards towards the bottom of the buckle frame 130 and simultaneously shifts towards the release button 114 . the latch bar portion 222 b is inserted into a slot of the latch plate 101 and contacts the bottom of the buckle frame 130 so as to secure the latch plate 101 in the buckle assembly 110 b . the slider / latch bar 222 is held in place because the slider portion 222 a is wedged underneath the lock bar 226 when the latch plate 101 is inserted into the buckle assemble 110 b . fig9 illustrates the second embodiment 110 b of the buckle assembly when the solenoid 216 is de - energized ( not actuated ). the release button 114 may be used to mechanically release the latch plate 101 from the buckle assembly 210 without use of or interference from the solenoid 216 . when the release button 114 is depressed , protrusion 115 of release button 114 contacts the slider portion 222 a and applies a force such that the slider portion 222 a shifts in position away from the release button 114 . the shift in position must be sufficient to translate the slider portion 222 a past the edge of the lock bar 226 . once the slider portion 222 a is no longer wedged underneath the lock bar 226 , the slider / latch bar 222 rotates away from the bottom of the buckle frame 130 such that the downward extension 222 d of the latch bar portion 222 b no longer secures the latch plate 101 in the buckle assembly 110 b . the movement and rotation of the slider / latch bar 222 causes the ejector spring 128 to eject the latch plate 101 out of the buckle assembly 110 b . fig1 illustrates the second embodiment 110 b of the buckle assembly when the solenoid 216 is energized ( actuated ). when solenoid 216 is actuated , the solenoid 216 pushes the connecting member 224 . the connecting member 224 is shaped so that the connecting member 224 pushes the lock bar 226 along the lock bar slot 227 towards the release button 114 when the solenoid 216 is actuated . this movement of the lock bar 226 allows the slider portion 222 a to become unwedged from the lock bar 226 . the slider / latch bar 222 may then shift away from the release button 114 and pivot upwards away from the bottom of the buckle frame 130 . this pivoting is configured to thereby cause the ejector 128 to eject the latch plate 101 from the buckle assembly 110 b . in some seat belt and buckle assemblies , the remote release mechanism is incorporated into or onto a buckle mounting stalk or strap . the mass of the disengaging portion in these assemblies is large enough to possibly cause serious injury . in seat belt and buckle assemblies of the embodiments of the invention , the remote release mechanism is incorporated into the buckle assembly such that the mass of the disengaging portion is minimized . only the latch plate itself need be retracted by the seat belt retractor . the solenoid buckle concept solves problems related to electrical consumption and heat generation . because the solenoid is no longer in the mechanical load path , it does not need to be actuated to hold the latch plate in place during normal use , therefore , it requires zero current unless it is being actuated to release the latch plate , and as a result , it produces no heat unless it is being activated . another benefit of the solenoid buckle concept , is the amount of current required . by designing the solenoid actuation strategy such that only blocking mechanism component needs to be moved , the force requirement for the solenoid is minimized . this allows the size of the solenoid to be minimized . by minimizing the size of the solenoid , the increase in buckle size is also minimized . this allows the buckle to be packaged in nearly all environments that currently use standard buckles . by designing the remote release mechanism to be installed without re - tooling the buckle frame or internal buckle components ( except for modifying the lock bar or slider , which is formed by a very simple tool ), modularity and shared components for base and solenoid buckles is maximized . the buckle assemblies of the embodiments of the invention also include fewer components and have a lower cost of the core components then other seat belt and buckle assemblies incorporating a solenoid . it is important to note that the construction and arrangement of the seat belt system as shown in the various exemplary embodiments is illustrative only . although only a few embodiments have been described in detail in this disclosure , those skilled in the art who review this disclosure will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible ( e . g ., variations in sizes , dimensions , structures , shapes and proportions of the various elements , values of parameters , mounting arrangements , use of materials , colors , orientations , etc .) without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of the subject matter disclosure herein . for example , elements shown as integrally formed may be constructed of multiple parts or elements , the position of elements may be reversed or otherwise varied , and the nature or number of discrete elements or positions may be altered or varied . accordingly , all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present application . the order or sequence of any process or method steps may be varied or re - sequenced according to alternative embodiments . other substitutions , modifications , changes and omissions may be made in the design , operating conditions and arrangement of the exemplary embodiments .	1
referring now to fig1 a , a semiconductor structure 10 is shown having a silicon layer 14 , and a silicon dioxide layer 16 as shown . a 0 . 6 micron thick film , or layer 24 of a relatively high electrically conductive material , here an aluminum - copper ( al — cu ) alloy is evaporated over the surface . other material may be used for film 24 , such as al , cu , au , ag , or their alloys , i . e . the electrically conductive film 24 need not be immune to electromigration . the film 24 alternatively may be a multi - layer structure having one or more additional layers made of conductive materials , such as indicated above , and / or refractory metals or their compounds , such as ti , w , tin , tiw , mo , ta , or others , which are known to be immune to electromigration at typical operating conditions of silicon integrated circuits . it is noted that the upper surface of film 24 is a planar surface 21 . multiple equidistant rows of windows are formed so that they are aligned along the desired paths of conductors . minimum - width ( wp ) windows 25 ( i . e . windows 25 formed with the minimum width practical within the photolithography and etch processes available ) are opened in conductive film 24 by conventional photolithography and dry etching as shown in fig1 a ′. here , wp = 0 . 25 □ m . the depth , dp , of windows is at least as large as the electrical conductor thickness , dc , here dp = dc = 0 . 6 □ m . within each conductor path , the windows 25 are spaced at a distance less than , or equal to , a predetermined critical length , lc , as shown in fig1 a ′. the length lc is selected experimentally , as previously described , to prevent electromigration in the relatively high electrically conductive segments 34 to be patterned in conductive film 24 , as will be described in detail in connection with fig1 d . the electromigration is prevented by creating a backflow in the relatively high electrically conductive segments 34 which counter - balances electromigration flow . in integrated circuits with submicron feature size , lc & gt ;& gt ; wp . here , lc is 100 to 300 microns . the number of windows in each of the desired conductor paths is at least ( l / lc )− 1 , where l is a desired conductor length . the length , lp , ( fig1 a ′) of each one of the windows 25 is selected so as to be at least as large as the desired width , wc , ( fig1 d ′) of relatively high electrically conductive segments 34 to be patterned in conductive film 24 , as will be described in detail in connection with fig1 d . here , wc = 0 . 5 □ m . the space ws between windows belonging to neighboring conductors can be as small as allowed by photo - etch ( fig1 a ′). here , ws = 0 . 25 □ m . referring again to fig1 a and 1 a ′, after a layer of photoresist , not shown , deposited over the surface of the structure and used to form the windows 25 is stripped off , a refractory metal liner 28 ( fig1 b ) and a metal layer 30 are successively deposited over the structure , filling the windows 25 as shown in fig1 b and 1 b ′ to provide electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive plugs 31 . liner 28 is here sputter deposited or chemically vapor deposited , and metal layer 30 is here sputter deposited , chemically vapor deposited , electroplated or electroless plated . the specific resistivity , rhop , of conductive layer 30 should preferably be equal to or less than , four times the specific resistivity , rhoo , of relatively high electrically conductive layer 24 . while conductive layer 30 does not have to be immune to electromigration , liner 28 does have to be immune to ( i . e ., act as a barrier against ) electromigration , such as a refractory metal . in fact , conductive layer 30 need not be different from conductive layer 24 . here , the conductive layer 30 is a 0 . 4 micron thick layer of tungsten and the liner 28 is here a 0 . 25 micron thick layer of titanium and titanium nitride . here , the titanium is 0 . 01 microns thick and the titanium nitride is 0 . 15 microns . next , referring to fig1 c , the conductive layer 30 is etched back using plasma etching , to form a surface co - planar with the surface of liner 28 surrounding plug 31 ; i . e ., to form a planar surface over the plugs 31 . that is , portions of the electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive material filing the windows 25 , here an upper portion of the conductive layer 30 , is removed to form the plugs 31 with surfaces co - planar with each other and with the surface of the liner 28 surrounding the plugs 31 . portions of the liner 28 may or may not be removed as well . layer 30 and liner 28 may also be removed by chemical - mechanical polishing ( cmp ) techniques . electrical conductive segments 34 , are formed within the relatively high electrically conductive layer 24 and overlying refractory metal liner 28 , as shown in fig1 d using photolithography and plasma etching techniques . it is noted that the patterning is such that the patterned electrically conductive segments abut the corresponding plugs 31 , as shown in fig1 d . thus , the electrically conductive segments 34 are electrically interconnected through the plugs 31 . a top view of the structure is shown in fig1 d ′. it is noted that the length , l p , of plug 31 is equal to , or greater than , the width w c of the conductor segments 34 , as shown in fig1 d ′. here , l p = 0 . 5 μm . thus , in summary , a method is provided for forming electrical conductors 35 with electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive plugs 31 disposed between electrically conductive segments 34 , as shown in fig1 d and 1 d ′. the plugs 31 are formed by depositing the electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive material ( i . e ., liner 28 and conductor 30 ) into windows 25 and subsequently removing portions of the deposited material , here conductive material 30 , to form plugs 31 with surfaces co - planar with the surface of the liner 28 surrounding the plugs 31 . in accordance with such method , the windows 25 are formed within a planar surface 21 of film 24 . the electrically conductive segments 34 have surfaces co - planar with the plugs 31 , abut the plugs 31 , and are electrically interconnected through the plugs 31 . the plugs 31 are formed at a distance less than , or equal to , the predetermined critical length , l c , from each other . the length , l p of the plug 31 is not less than the desired width , w c , of the electrically conductive segments 34 . the conductors formed in such a way have improved electromigration resistance , because the length of relatively high electrically conductive segments is less than , or equal to , l c . the relative increase in conductor electrical resistance associated with the electromigration - inhibiting plugs is calculated as ( r − ro )/ ro = rhopwp / rhoolc , where r and ro are , respectively , the resistances of conductor 35 and a same - length conductor without the plugs , and rhop and rhoo are the specific resistivities of the electromigration - inhibiting conductive material 30 and the relatively high electrically conductive material 24 , respectively . here , rhop 8 × 10 − 6 ohm - cm , rhoo = 3 × 10 − 6 ohm - cm , wp = 0 . 25 □ m , and lc = 10 . 0 □ m . then , ( r − ro )/ ro = 7 × 10 − 3 = 0 . 7 %. so , the electrical conductors 35 formed by the described method have low electrical resistance , which does not exceed the resistance of solid relatively high electrically conductive conductors by more than 11 . with the described method , a planar surface is provided along the conductor film 24 for accurately photolithographically forming equidistant conductors 15 at a distance smaller than a micron . referring now to fig2 , the semiconductor structure 10 is shown having an electrical device , here a metal oxide silicon ( mos ) transistor , only the drain region 13 thereof being shown , formed in a silicon layer 14 , as shown . disposed over the silicon layer 14 is a dielectric layer 16 , here silicon dioxide . a contact opening , or recess 26 , is etched into a portion of the dielectric layer 16 to expose a contact region 18 of the drain 13 . a thin layer 22 of a refractory metal , here titanium ( ti ) and titanium nitride ( tin ) is sputtered over the surface and into the recess 26 to a total thickness here of 0 . 025 microns . a layer 23 of a second metal , here tungsten , is deposited over the surface to fill the recess 26 , as indicated ; excess tungsten being removed by etch - back or cmp . the ti / tin may or may not be removed as well . in this way , contacts to silicon , si , devices are formed . next , a 0 . 6 micron thick film , or layer 24 of a highly conductive material , here an aluminum - copper ( al — cu ) alloy is evaporated over the surface . other material may be used for film 24 , such as al , cu , au , ag , or their alloys . the film 24 may be a multi - layer structure having one or more additional layers made of refractory metals or their compounds , such as ti , w , tin , tiw , mo , ta , or others , which are known to be immune to electromigration at typical operating conditions of silicon integrated circuits . it is noted that the upper surface of film 24 is a planar surface 21 . the first metallization level comprised of conductors 35 and described above in connection with fig1 a through 1d , is formed . then , a second dielectric layer 50 , here silicon dioxide layer , is deposited over the surface of the structure , as shown . an opening 52 is formed therein to expose a portion of the electrically conductive segment 34 a of electrical conductor 35 . a layer 54 of titanium and tin followed by a layer 56 of tungsten are deposited in a manner similar to that described above in connection with layers 22 and 26 . the materials of layers 54 , 56 are removed to form planar surface , by plasma etch or chemical - mechanical polishing ( cmp ). next , a second relatively high electrically conductive film , or layer 60 is formed in the same manner as film , or layer 24 . it is noted that the bottom portion of conductive layer 60 is in electrical contact with the via 59 provided by titanium / tin layer 54 and tungsten layer 56 . here , the conductive layer 60 is electrically connected to conductive segment 34 a of conductor 35 . the process sequence shown in fig1 b , 1 b ′, 1 c , 1 d and 1 d ′ is then repeated . that is , film 60 has a planar upper surface 61 . windows 62 are formed in the planar surface 61 of conductive film 60 at the space , or distance , l c , along the desired conductor path . the conductor is routed in such a way that it overlaps the via 59 . an electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive material ( i . e ., liner 64 and conductive material 66 ) is deposited over the planar surface 61 and through the windows 62 to fill the windows 62 and thereby provide , in such windows 62 , plugs 63 of the electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive material . portions of the electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive material 66 are removed to form the plugs 63 with surfaces co - planar with the planar surface of the liner 64 . the film 60 and liner 64 are then patterned into electrical conductor segments 68 in the same manner film 24 was patterned into electrical conductor segments 34 . electrical conductive segments 68 , of conductor 69 are formed with surfaces co - planar with the plugs 63 , and segments 68 are electrically interconnected through the plugs 63 . the plugs 63 are formed with a space , or distance between adjacent plugs 63 less than , or equal to , the predetermined critical length , l c , from each other . the number of plugs in each of conductors 69 is at least ( l / l c )− 1 , where l is the length of conductor 69 . the length , l p , of the each plug 63 is not less than the desired width , w c , of the electrically conductive segments 68 . equidistant conductors can be formed at a distance w s smaller than 1 um . here , w s = 0 . 25 μm . the vias 26 , 59 are within l c distance from the nearest plug 31 in the first layer or plug 63 in second layer , respectively . the windows have minimum width , w p = 0 . 25 μm , and length l p no less than conductor width , w c = 0 . 5 μm . windows are as deep , d p , as desired electrical conductor thickness , d c . here , d p = d c = 0 . 6 μm . referring now to fig3 a through 3f , an alternative embodiment is shown . multiple equidistant rows of minimum - width recessed areas are formed , so that they are aligned along the desired paths of conductors . the number of recessed areas in each row is equal to or more than ( l / l c )− 1 where l is the desired length of each respective conductor . here , minimum - width recessed areas ( i . e . windows 80 ) are formed in a planar surface 79 of a film 82 , here a dielectric layer 82 , by photolithography and dry etching ; the dielectric layer 82 having been deposited over the semiconductor layer 14 , as shown . the windows 80 are spaced at the predetermined critical distance , l c , described above in connection with fig1 a , to inhibit , electromigration , as shown in fig3 a and 3 a ′. referring to fig3 b , a refractory metal , here titanium and tin liner 28 and conductive , here tungsten , layer 30 are deposited over the structure as described above in connection with fig1 b ; here , however the liner 28 and layer 28 , 30 are deposited over silicon dioxide layer 82 rather than the relatively high electrically conductive layer 24 as described in connection with fig1 b . more particularly , a refractory metal liner 28 ( fig3 b ) and a metal layer 30 are successively deposited over the structure , filling the windows 80 as shown in fig3 b to provide electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive plugs 31 . liner 28 is here sputter deposited or chemically vapor deposited , and metal layer 30 is here sputter deposited , chemically vapor deposited , electroplated or electroless plated . while , as discussed above , conductive layer 30 does not have to be immune to electromigration , liner 28 does have to be immune to ( i . e ., act as a barrier against ) electromigration , such as a refractory metal . in fact , conductive layer 30 may not be different from conductive layer 24 in fig1 a – 1d . here , the conductive layer 30 is a 0 . 4 micron thick layer of tungsten and the liner 28 is here a 0 . 025 micron thick layer of titanium and titanium nitride . here , the titanium is 0 . 01 microns thick and the titanium nitride is 0 . 015 microns . next , referring to fig3 c , the conductive layer 30 is etched back using plasma etching , or polished back to form a surface co - planar with the surface of dielectric layer 82 surrounding plugs 31 ; i . e ., a planar surface over the plugs 31 . that is , portions of the electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive material filing the windows 80 , here an upper portion of the conductive layer 30 and liner 28 are removed to form the plugs 31 with surfaces co - planar with each other and with the surface of the dielectric layer 82 surrounding the plugs 31 . the conductive layer 30 and the portions of liner 28 disposed on the planar surface 79 of dielectric layer 82 are removed using plasma etch - back or chemical - mechanical polishing ( cmp ) so the surface of plugs 31 is co - planar with the upper surface 79 of the dielectric layer 82 , as shown in fig3 c and 3 c ′. referring now to fig3 d , trenches 90 are formed in the dielectric layer 82 using photo - lithography and dry etching . the trenches 90 are formed in such a way that they are aligned with , and abutting , the plugs of each separate row of the plugs . it is noted that the end - walls 92 of the trenches 90 abut the liner 28 . trenches have width equal to desired conductor width , w c . here , w c = 0 . 5 μm . referring now to fig3 e , a refractory , electromigration - inhibiting liner 98 , here titanium and tin and a relatively high electrically conductive layer 100 , here al ( cu ), are deposited over the structure in a manner described above in connection with layers 28 , 30 ( fig1 b ) ( e . g ., here such deposition being chemical vapor deposition ( cvd ), electroplating , reflow - sputtering , or other deposition process ). subsequently , an upper portion of liner 98 and layer 100 are removed ( e . g ., etch - back , lift - off , cmp , or other ) to form a relatively high electrically conductive segments 102 , as shown in fig3 f . the segments 102 have a surface which is co - planar with the surface of plugs 31 . thus , a method is provided for forming electrical conductors 103 with electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive plugs 31 disposed between electrically conductive segments 102 . windows 80 are formed within a planar surface 79 of dielectric layer 82 . an electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive material ( i . e ., liner 28 and conductive material 30 ) is deposited over the planar surface 79 and through the windows 80 to fill the windows 80 and thereby provide , in such windows 80 , plugs 31 of electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive material . portions of the electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive material 28 , 30 are removed to form the plugs 31 with surfaces co - planar with the planar surface 79 . the electrical conductive segments 102 are formed with surfaces co - planar with the plugs 31 , and segments 102 are electrically interconnected through the plugs 31 . the plugs 31 are formed with a space , or distance between adjacent plugs 31 less than , or equal to , the predetermined critical length , l c . the length of the plug 31 l p is approximately equal to the desired width of the electrically conductive segments 102 , w c as shown in fig3 d ′. here , w c = 0 . 5 μm . it is noted that , here , l p is approximately equal to w c and d p is approximately equal to d c . referring now to fig4 a through 4e , another method is provided for forming conductors 111 ( fig4 e ) with electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive plugs 31 disposed between electrically conductive segments 110 . referring to fig4 a , conductor - length slots , or trenches , 120 are formed in the dielectric layer 112 by photolithography and dry etching . the slots 120 are filled with refractory metal liner 114 and relatively high electrically conductivity conductor 116 , as shown . the upper surfaces of the dielectric layer 112 , liner 114 and conductor 116 are formed to provide a planar surface 121 . here , the slot width ( i . e ., electrical conductor width ), w c , equals 0 . 5 μm . minimum - width windows 118 ( fig4 b ), ( w p = 0 . 25 μm ) are formed in the planar surface 121 ; more particularly in liner 114 and conductor 116 at the predetermined critical distance , l c , as shown in fig4 b . the windows 118 separate conductors 116 and liner 114 into segments 110 , as shown in fig4 e . the window length , l p , is equal to , or greater than , w c ; and the window depth d p is equal to , or greater than , d c , as shown in fig4 b . the windows 118 are filled with a electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive material ( fig4 c ), here liner 28 and a conductor 30 , as described above in connection with 1 b . thus , a refractory metal liner 28 and a metal layer 30 are successively deposited over the structure , filling the windows 118 as shown in fig1 b and 1 b ′ to provide electromigration - inhibiting / electrically conductive plugs 31 . liner 28 is here sputter deposited or chemically vapor deposited , and metal layer 30 is here sputter deposited , chemically vapor deposited , electroplated or electroless plated . while , as discussed above , conductive layer 30 does not have to be immune to electromigration , liner 28 does have to be immune to ( i . e ., act as a barrier against ) electromigration , such as a refractory metal . in fact , conductive layer 30 may not be different from conductive layer 116 . here , the conductive layer 30 is a 0 . 4 micron thick layer of tungsten and the liner 28 is here a 0 . 025 micron thick layer of titanium and titanium nitride . here , the titanium is 0 . 01 microns thick and the titanium nitride is 0 . 015 microns . subsequently , conductive material 30 and liner 28 are etched back or polished back as shown in fig4 d to form the plugs 31 with surfaces co - planar with the surrounding surface 121 , as shown in fig4 d . the plugs 31 provide electrical interconnection between abutting electrically conductive segments 110 forming electrical conductors 111 , as shown in fig4 e . alternatively , liner 28 is not removed . then , photomask , not shown , is used to remove liner 28 from the portions of the dielectric layer 112 surrounding the slots 120 to form electrically isolated parallel conductors 111 , as shown in fig4 e . other embodiments are within the spirit and scope of the appended claims . for example , considering the embodiment described above in connection with fig1 a through 1d , if a conductive underlayer , such as conductive underlayer 200 in fig5 , is used beneath the relatively high electrically conductive layer 24 , the window 25 need only be etched through the layer 24 to the underlayer 200 , as shown in fig5 .	7
reference will now be made in detail to the exemplary embodiments consistent with the present disclosure , examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings . whenever possible , the same reference numerals will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts . fig1 is a block diagram illustrating a solid state storage system 100 in accordance with one embodiment of the invention . the solid state storage system 100 may include a nand flash memory . furthermore , the solid state storage system 100 may include a host interface 110 , a buffer unit 120 , an mcu ( micro control unit ) 130 , a memory controller 140 , and a memory region 150 . the host interface 110 may be connected to the buffer unit 120 . the host interface 110 may be configured to transmit and receive control commands , address signals , and data signals between an external host ( not shown ) and the buffer unit 120 . the interface scheme between the host interface 110 and the external host may be any one of , but not limited to , a serial ata ( serial advanced technology attachment : sata ), a parallel ata ( parallel advanced technology attachment : pata ), scsi , express card , pci - express , etc . the buffer unit 120 may be configured to buffer output signals from the host interface 110 or temporarily store mapping information between logical addresses and physical addresses , block allocation information of the memory region 150 , and data received from outside the buffer unit 120 . the buffer unit 120 may be a buffer that uses an sram ( static random access memory ). the mcu 130 may be configured to transmit and receive the control commands , the address signals , and the data signals to and from the host interface 110 and control the memory controller 140 in response to such control commands , the address signals , and the data signals . the memory controller 140 may be configured to select a specific nand flash memory device among a plurality of nand flash memory devices in the memory region 150 and provide program , erase , and read commands . in particular , the memory controller 140 may flexibly control the reserved area upon occurrence of a failed block . a reserved area of a predetermined size is generally allocated in advance for respective blocks so as to cope with the occurrence of a failed block . thus , the failed block may be replaced with a block in the reserved area and marked accordingly so that the failed block is not referred to again . in the event that an error occurs during various operations on a data block ( not shown ), the memory controller 140 may perform a control operation so that not only a failed block but also a block having a high probability of failure may be replaced with a block in the reserved area . here , the memory controller 140 may include an ecc engine ( error check correction engine ) ( not shown ). when an error occurs in a block while reading and programming data , the memory controller 140 may cause the ecc engine to correct the error . at this time , there may be a case in which an error - occurred block may be corrected by the ecc engine and a case in which the error - occurred block may not be corrected by the ecc engine . in the embodiment of the present invention , even when correction has already been made for both of these cases , certain portions of the reserved area may be allocated to replace the block . typically , the corresponding block is regarded as a failed block and is replaced with a block of a reserved area only when it is impossible to correct an error - occurred block through the ecc engine . when an occurred error can be corrected by the ecc engine , replacement is performed using a free block in a data area . however , in the embodiment of the present invention , when errors occur during performance of read and program operations for data blocks , the memory controller 140 may perform the control operation such that all the error - occurred blocks are replaced with blocks in the reserved area . at this time , the memory controller 140 may allow the error - occurred blocks to be replaced with the blocks in the reserved area separately for both cases in which an error - occurred block may be corrected by the ecc and in which an error - occurred block may not be corrected by the ecc . in particular , the feasibility to reuse is considered for the blocks in the reserved area which have been replaced with corrections made , so that the resources of the reserved area may be fully utilized . this improves the utilization efficiency of the reserved area , as described in greater detail below . the memory region 150 may be configured to be controlled by the memory controller 140 and may perform operations for programming , erasing , and reading data . here , the memory region 150 may comprise a nand flash memory . a cell of the nand flash memory may be an slc ( single level cell ) or an mlc ( multi - level cell ). the memory region 150 may include a plurality of chips . each one of the plurality of chips may be composed of a plurality of blocks . each one of the plurality of blocks may include a plurality of pages . fig2 is a diagram illustrating a data area da and a reserved area ra in the solid state storage system shown in fig1 . in fig2 , the data area da may include a plurality of blocks with logical addresses . the reserved area ra may also include a plurality of blocks with logical addresses . the reserved area ra may use two identifiers ( e . g ., two pointers ) such that the positions of the blocks in the reserved area ra may be located or calculated . the data area da and the reserved area ra may have physical addresses that correspond to the logical addresses . nevertheless , only the data area da may become a subject of wear leveling , and the reserved area ra may not become a subject of wear leveling , even though the reserved area ra has the logical and physical addresses and serves as a subject of replacement since the addresses are used only for reference . a start pointer sp with an initialized value may be allocated to a block with a minimum value among the logical addresses of the blocks allocated in the reserved area ra . in this case , as a logical address increases , the corresponding value of the start pointer sp also increases . for example , when a minimum value of logical addresses is 100 , as a logical address increases to 101 , 102 and 103 , the start pointer sp is controlled to have a value that is increased to be greater than an initial value , for example , 0 . the increasing range of the start pointer sp may vary without restriction . in other words , the value of the start pointer sp may be increased until it corresponds to a block that has a maximum value of the logical addresses , and may be limited by an end pointer ep . the end pointer ep with an initialized value may be allocated to the block with the maximum value among the logical addresses of the logical blocks allocated in the reserved area ra . in contrast with the operation of the start pointer sp , the end pointer ep may be controlled such that , as the logical addresses of the blocks decrease , the corresponding values of the end pointer ep increase . for example , assuming that the maximum value of the logical addresses is 120 , as a logical address decreases to 119 , 118 and 117 , the end pointer ep is controlled to have a value that is increased to be greater than an initial value , for example , 20 . the increasing range of the end pointer ep may vary without restriction . in other words , the value of the end pointer ep may be increased until it corresponds to the block that has the minimum value of the logical addresses , and may be limited by the start pointer sp . of course , it may be preferred that the initial values of the start pointer sp and the end pointer ep are different from each other in order to avoid confusion . since the end pointer ep and the start pointer sp are set to identify the positional information of the corresponding logical blocks , the initial values of the pointers themselves are not important . as a consequence , without additional mapping information for the reserved area , the positional information of the logical blocks in the reserved area ra may be simply provided by using the start pointer sp and the end pointer ep . describing a read mode operation in detail with reference to fig2 , if an error occurs in the data area da ( see ( 1 )), correction may be attempted using the ecc . if the error - occurred block is corrected , the corresponding block may be regarded as a correctable block , and replacement may be performed by allocating a specified block in the reserved area ra . according to one embodiment , if the error - occurred block is a correctable block , the specified block in the reserved area ra may be allocated using the start pointer sp . when exemplifying the start pointer sp using the decimal system , the start pointer sp may be increased by 1 in decimal . for example , if the initial value of the start pointer sp is 0 , every time when a correctable block is replaced , the start pointer sp may have a gradually increased pointer value such as 1 , 2 , 3 , . . . . assuming that an error occurs in the data area da during a read mode ( see ( 2 )) and correction is attempted using the ecc , if it is impossible to correct a block since it exceeds a correctable bit number , the block may be determined as a failed block , and replacement may be made by allocating a specified block in the reserved area ra . if the error - occurred block is a block which cannot be corrected , the specified block in the reserved area ra may be allocated using the end pointer ep . thereafter , when exemplifying the end pointer ep using the decimal system , the end pointer ep may be increased by 1 in decimal . for example , when the initial value of the end pointer ep is 20 , the end pointer ep may have a gradually increased pointer value such as 21 , 22 , 23 , . . . . in the embodiment of the present invention , a correctable block may be called a warning block to signify a block that has a high probability of an error occurring . an uncorrectable block may be called a critical block to signify a block that cannot be recovered . in this way , the reserved area ra may be controlled by being divided into replacement blocks for correctable blocks and replacement blocks for uncorrectable blocks , using the start pointer sp and the end pointer ep . since these pointers may be variably updated based on error - occurred blocks , they may not be controlled as fixed blocks , whereby flexibility may be improved in terms of utilization efficiency of the reserved area ra . fig3 is a diagram for illustrating the case when the start pointer sp and the end pointer ep defining the warning block and the critical block in the reserved area ra are the same in the solid state to storage system shown in fig1 and 2 . referring to fig3 , it is exemplarily illustrated that since the data area da has a multitude of error - occurred blocks , not only the number of correctable blocks increases but also the number of uncorrectable blocks increases . fig3 illustrates when the logical block designated by the start pointer sp capable of defining the replacement areas of correctable blocks and the logical block designated by the end pointer ep capable of defining the replacement areas of the uncorrectable blocks may be substantially the same . in this regard , when the logical blocks designated by the start pointer sp and the end pointer ep are the same , the memory controller 140 ( see fig1 ) may initialize the start pointer sp and then perform a control operation so that the logical block in the reserved area ra , designated by the initialized start pointer sp , becomes a replacement block . namely , replacement may be performed by designating the block having the minimum value of the logical address that corresponds to the initialized start pointer sp , as the replacement block . in order to program data to a new block , an erasing operation should be conducted prior to a programming operation . therefore , after erasing the contents of the designated replacement block , the data of the error - occurred block may be written to the replacement block for which the erasing operation is performed and error checking may be performed . meanwhile , due to the characteristics of flash memory , if the reading operation is repeatedly performed , a voltage may temporarily rise over a specified voltage . therefore , an error may be caused not because of a defect of a flash memory cell but because of a read disturbance . accordingly , if the error is not caused by a defect of the cell but due to a read disturbance , when the erasing operation is performed for the corresponding memory cell , the voltage may be restored to a normal level so that the corresponding memory cell may operate like a normal cell . fig4 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the data area da and the reserved area ra in one embodiment of an address mapping table . if the logical address mapping table of an error - occurred block , a data area da , is ( 0 , 10 ) and a warning block determined to be correctable is replaced with a logical address mapping table ( 100 , 500 ) of a reserved area ra , the logical address mapping table of the corresponding error - occurred block may be replaced with ( 0 , 500 ) and the logical address mapping table of the reserved area ra may be replaced with ( 100 , 10 ). at this time , the actually replaced physical address 10 of the reserved area ra may store error - occurred data . then , the reserved area ra may be successively allocated by increasing the start pointer sp for correctable blocks . while it may be necessary to allocate a new block for a new error - occurred block ( 20 , 40 ) using the start pointer sp , if the logical blocks designated by the start pointer sp and the end pointer ep are the same , the start pointer sp may be initialized . this means that the start pointer sp may be returned to correspond to the block corresponding to the logical address having the minimum value . thus , the logical address mapping table ( 100 , 10 ) of the reserved area ra may be reallocated by the initialized start pointer sp . garbage data corresponding to the logical address mapping table ( 0 , 10 ) of the data area da may have already been stored in the mapping table ( 100 , 10 ) of the reserved area ra . at once , the new error - occurred block ( 20 , 40 ) may be copied to the logical address mapping table ( 100 , 10 ) of the reserved area ra , and error checking is performed . if an error does not occur , since the new error - occurred block ( 20 , 40 ) may be replaced with the logical address mapping table ( 100 , 10 ) of the reserved area ra , address substitution may be performed so that the address mapping table of the data area da becomes ( 20 , 10 ) and the address mapping table of the reserved area ra becomes ( 100 , 40 ). if an error occurs when the address mapping table ( 20 , 40 ) of the data area da is copied to the mapping table ( 100 , 10 ) of the reserved area ra and then error checking is performed , the mapping table ( 20 , 40 ) of the data area da may be processed as a critical failed block and may be allocated through increasing the current end pointer ep . in this way , even the block replaced in correspondence to the correctable block may be reused after being erased . however , in the case where there is no remaining block after blocks are allocated for correctable blocks , a replacement block for a correctable block may be allocated again starting from the block having the minimum value of the logical address among the blocks that are replaced in correspondence to the correctable blocks . in the course of erasing a reallocated block , if the voltages of the cells of the corresponding block are restored to normal levels , the corresponding block may be used as a replacement block for a new error - occurred block . however , if an error occurs when the corresponding block is used as the replacement block for the correctable block after erasing , the correctable block is skipped and is replaced with a block corresponding to the pointer value that is obtained by increasing the current end pointer ep by 1 , and is controlled as an uncorrectable block , that is , a critical block . fig5 is a flow chart illustrating a method for controlling the solid state storage system as shown in fig1 , in accordance with one embodiment of the invention . when an error occurs in the data area da , whether or not the error belongs to an error that exceeds bits capable of being corrected bits may be determined ( s 10 ). if the error belongs to the error that exceeds the correctable bits ( y ), a corresponding block may be regarded as a critical block and the reserved area ra is allocated using the end pointer ep of the reserved area ra ( s 20 ). after erasing the area allocated by the end pointer ep as the corresponding pointer ( s 30 ), the error - occurred block may be copied to the allocated area ( s 40 ). the address map of the error - occurred block may be updated ( s 50 ) by changing the physical address of the error - occurred block to the physical address of a specified block in the reserved area ra . thereafter , the end pointer ep may be increased ( s 60 ). if the error does not belong to an error that exceeds correctable bits ( n ) but belongs to an error that is within the correctable bits ( y ), the corresponding block may be regarded as the warning block ( s 70 ), and the reserved area ra may be allocated using the start pointer sp of the reserved area ra ( s 80 ). in succession , it may be determined whether or not the block , to which the reserved area ra is allocated using the start pointer sp of the reserved area ra , may be the block that corresponds to the end pointer ep ( s 90 ). if the block corresponding to the start pointer sp and the block corresponding to the end pointer ep are not the same , the area allocated by the start pointer sp as the corresponding pointer is erased ( s 30 ), and the error - occurred block is copied to the allocated area ( s 40 ). the address map of the error - occurred block may be updated ( s 50 ). thereafter , the start pointer sp may be increased ( s 60 ). if the error does not belong to an error that exceeds correctable bits ( n ) and does not belong to an error that is within the correctable bits ( n ), since no error - occurred block is associated , the method may end . it may be determined whether or not the block , to which the reserved area ra is allocated using the start pointer sp of the reserved area ra , is the block that corresponds to the end pointer ep ( s 90 ). if the block corresponding to the start pointer sp and the block corresponding to the end pointer ep are the same , the start pointer sp may be initialized ( s 100 ). thus , in the reserved area ra , the block having the logical address of the minimum value and corresponding to the initialized start pointer sp may be associated . next , the area allocated by the start pointer sp as the corresponding pointer may be erased ( s 110 ). thereafter , the error - occurred block may be copied to the allocated area ( s 120 ). at this time , since the block is reused , an error check may occur to determine whether an error occurs in the replaced block ( s 130 ). if an error does not occur , the address mapping table may be updated ( s 140 ) and the start pointer sp may be increased by 1 from the initialized value ( s 150 ). for the block to be reused , an error check may occur to determine whether an error occurs in the replaced block ( s 130 ). if an error occurs , the end pointer ep may be increased ( s 160 ). the area allocated by the end pointer ep as the corresponding pointer may be erased ( s 170 ). thereafter , the error - occurred block may be copied to the allocated area ( s 180 ). as is apparent from the above description , in the present invention , a reserved area may be controlled in a way so that it may be reused . the reserved area may be used not only for replacing a failed block but also for replacing a warning block having a high probability of a failure occurring . in other words , for a block that replaces the warning block , if cell voltages are restored to normal states through an erasing process , the block may be reused . since the blocks in the reserved area may be simply selected and used for replacement using a plurality of pointers , the control of a solid state storage system may be easily implemented . while certain embodiments have been described above with reference to illustrative examples for particular applications , it will be understood to those skilled in the art that the embodiments described are by way of example only . those skilled in the art with access to the teachings provided in this disclosure will recognize additional modifications , applications , and / or embodiments and additional fields in which the present disclosure would be of significant utility . accordingly , the solid state storage system and the controlling method thereof described herein should not be limited based on the described embodiments . rather , the solid state storage system and the controlling method thereof described herein should only be limited in light of the claims that follow when taken in conjunction with the above description and accompanying drawings .	6
the compounds of formula i , and salts thereof , can be complexed with a paramagnetic metal atom and used as relaxation enhancement agents for magnetic resonance imaging . these agents , when administered to a mammalian host ( e . g ., humans ) distribute in various concentrations to different tissues , and catalyze relaxation of protons ( in the tissues ) that have been excited by the absorption of radiofrequency energy from a magnetic resonance imager . this acceleration of the rate of relaxation of the excited protons provides for an image of different contrast when the host is scanned with a magnetic resonance imager . the magnetic resonance imager is used to record images at various times generally before and after administration of the agents , and the differences in the images created by the agents &# 39 ; presence in tissues are used in diagnosis . in proton magnetic resonance imaging , paramagnetic metal atoms such as gadolinium ( iii ), and octahedral manganese ( ii ), chromium ( iii ), and iron ( iii ) ( all are paramagnetic metal atoms with a symmetrical electronic configuration ) are preferred as metals complexed by the ligands of formula i ; gadolinium ( iii ) is most preferred due to the fact that it has the highest paramagnetism , low toxicity , and high lability of coordinated water . the metal - chelating ligands of formula i can be complexed with a lanthanide ( atomic number 58 to 71 ) and used as chemical shift agents in magnetic resonance imaging or in magnetic resonance in vivo spectroscopy . while the above - described uses for the metal - chelating ligands of formula i are preferred , those working in the diagnostic arts will appreciate that the ligands can also be complexed with the appropriate metals and used as contrast agents in x - ray imaging , radionuclide imaging and ultrasound imaging . to use the ligands of this invention for imaging , they must first be complexed with the appropriate metal . this can be accomplished by methodology known in the art . for example , the metal can be added to water in the form of an oxide or in the form of a halide and treated with an equimolar amount of a ligand of formula i . the ligand can be added as an aqueous solution or suspension . dilute acid or base can be added ( if needed ) to maintain a neutral ph . heating at temperatures as high as 100 ° c . for periods up to four hours is sometimes required , depending on the metal and the chelator , and their concentrations . pharmaceutically acceptable salts of the metal complexes of the ligands of this invention are also useful as imaging agents . they can be prepared by using a base ( e . g ., an alkali metal hydroxide reglumine or arginine ) to neutralize the above - prepared metal complexes while they are still in solution . some of the metal complexes are formally uncharged and do not need cations as counterions . such neutral complexes are preferred as intravenously administered x - ray and nmr imaging agents over charged complexes because they provide solutions of greater physiologic tolerance due to their lower osmolality . sterile aqueous solutions of the chelate - complexes can be administered to mammals ( e . g ., humans ) orally , intrathecally and especially intravenously in concentrations of 0 . 003 to 1 . 0 molar . for example , for the visualization of brain lesions in canines using magnetic resonance imaging , a gadolinium complex of a ligand of formula i can be administered intravenously at a dose of 0 . 05 to 0 . 5 millimoles of the complex per kilogram of animal body weight , preferably at a dose of 0 . 1 to 0 . 25 millimole / kilogram . for visualization of the kidneys , the dose is preferably 0 . 05 to 0 . 25 millimoles / kilogram . for visualization of the heart , the dose is preferably 0 . 25 to 1 . 0 millimoles / kilogram . the ph of the formulation will be between about 6 . 0 and 8 . 0 , preferably between about 6 . 5 and 7 . 5 . physiologically acceptable buffers ( e . g ., tris ( hydroxymethyl ) aminomethane ) and other physiologically acceptable additives ( e . g ., stabilizers such as parabens ) can be present . use in radiotherapy or imaging where the metal - chelate - complex is bound to a biomolecule the bifunctional metal - chelating ligands can bind to a monoclonal antibody or a fragment thereof for use in radiotherapy . monoclonal antibodies are useful in that they can be used to target radionuclides to cancer or tumor sites with great specificity . the compounds of this invention wherein r 1 is other than hydrogen are then linked to monoclonal antibodies or fragments thereof . the methods of linking the bifunctional chelate to the antibody or antibody fragment are known in the art ( brechbiel , same reference as referred to hereinabove ) and will depend primarily on the particular bifunctional chelate and secondarily on the antibody or fragment thereof . for example , when the formula i compound is ## str5 ## one reacts 10 μl of a 5 . 0 mm aqueous solution of the formula i chelator with 0 . 5 ml of a 5 . 0 mg / ml monoclonal antibody ( b72 . 3 purchaseable from damon biotech corporation ) in 50 mm hepes buffer at ph 8 . 5 . 16 μl of 1 . 5m aqueous triethylamine is added . after 2 hours reaction time , the monoclonal antibody is purified by dialysis . this procedure provides between 1 and 2 formula i chelator molecules bound to each monoclonal antibody . radioactive metal ion ( for example 90 y ) can then be added to the monoclonal antibody - bound chelator by methods known in the art . for example , 90 y as the 90 y ( iii )( acetate ) 3 ( h 2 o ) 4 ( approximate formula in aqueous solution ) can be reacted with the monoclonal antibody - bound chelate in solutions where the concentration of each is between 10 - 5 - 10 - 7 and the ph is 6 . dialysis against citrate is then used to purify the product . an alternative , and preferred method follows that described above , but substitutes the metal - chelate complex for the chelating ligand . to use this method the metal chelate complex is first made by reacting metal - oxide ,- halide , nitrate - acetate , or the like with formula i chelator . for the chelator described above the acetate of 90 y at & lt ; 10 - 6 m is reacted with the chelator at about 10 - 3 at ph 6 , the chelate complex is purified by ion exchange or reverse phase hplc chromatography , and then reacted with the monoclonal antibody described above for the chelator . the bifunctional , metal - containing , linked antibody is used in the following manner . a human or animal with a tumor to which the monoclonal antibody is specific is injected intravenously , subcutaneously , intraparetoneally or intralymphatically for example , with an aqueous solution of the 90y - formula i chelator - monoclonal antibody compound . this allows the radioactive metal ion to be directed to the tumor for which it is intended . the intravenous dosaged used is 0 . 1 to 0 . 4 millicurie per kilogram of body weight . the compounds of formula i can be prepared by the reaction of a compound having the formula ## str6 ## with a reactive acid derivative having the formula ## str7 ## wherein x is a readily displaceable group such as chlorine , bromine or iodine . wherein y is oxygen or ## str8 ## other than -- nh --, the above - described reaction of a compound of formula ii with a compound of formula iii is preferably carried out in water at a ph of about 9 to 10 ( most preferably about 9 . 5 ). the reaction proceeds most readily if it is warmed to about 50 °- 80 ° c . base , such as an alkali metal hydroxide or a tetraalkylammonium hydroxide , can be used to adjust and maintain the ph of the reaction . the reaction is completed in about 6 to 18 hours . in preparing those compounds of formula i wherein y is -- nh --, the above - described reaction of a compound of formula ii with a compound of formula iii is preferably carried out in water at a ph of about 8 . 5 to 9 and the temperature of the reaction is maintained at about 45 °- 55 ° c . preferably , only about two equivalents of a compound of formula iii are initially used in the reaction ; an additional equivalent of the compound of formula iii is added in portions starting about 2 to 3 hours after the reaction begins . total reaction time will preferably be about 8 to 24 hours . the desired tri - substituted product can be separated from the reaction mixture , which includes the mono -, di -, tri - and tetra - substituted derivatives , by art - recognized techniques including selective precipitation , chromatography and crystallization . a preferred preparation of the compounds of formula i wherein y is nh and r 2 is hydrogen is to react 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane , known in the art , with dimethylformamidedimethylacetal in the presence of benzene to yield 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazatricyclo 5 . 5 . 1 . 0 ! tridecane . this &# 34 ; tricyclic &# 34 ; compound is reacted with an ethanol / water mixture to yield 1 - formyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane . this formyl compound is then reacted with t - butyl bromoacetate to yield 1 - formyl , 4 , 7 , 10 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane , tris - t - butylester . finally , the ester groups are removed in the presence of strong acid , such as sulfuric acid , to yield a compound of formula i wherein y is nh and r 2 is hydrogen . additional synthetic approaches for preparing the compounds of this invention will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art . for example , those compounds of formula i wherein y is ## str9 ## and r 1 is alkyl arylalkyl , hydroxyakyl , aryl can be prepared by alkylation of the corresponding compound of formula i wherein y is -- nh --. those compounds of formula i wherein y is -- nh -- can be prepared by debenzylation of the corresponding compound of formula i wherein y is ## str10 ## and r 1 is benzyl . the debenzylation reaction can be accomplished using catalytic hydrogenolysis . those starting compounds of formula ii wherein y is oxygen or -- nh -- are known . the compounds of formula ii wherein y is ## str11 ## and r 1 is alkyl , arylalkyl , hydroxyalkyl or aryl ( this subgenus is referred to hereinafter as r &# 39 ; 1 ) are novel , and as such constitute an integral part of this invention . they can be prepared from the compound of formula ii wherein y is -- nh -- using conventional alkylation techniques . alternatively , the starting compounds of formula ii wherein y is ## str12 ## can be prepared by first reacting the 1 , 4 , 7 - tritosylate of diethanolamine with the 1 , 7 - ditosylate of a 4 - substituted 1 , 4 , 5 - triazaheptane to yield ## str13 ## wherein the symbol &# 34 ; ts &# 34 ; represents the tosyl ( p - toluenesulfonyl ) group . this general approach to polyazamacrocycles is described in org . synth ., 58 : 86 ( 1978 ). the 4 - substituted 1 , 4 , 7 - triazaheptanes can be prepared using the methodology described in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 201 , 472 . removal of the tosyl groups from a compound of formula iv yields the desired compounds of formula ii wherein y is ## str14 ## it can be accomplished by acid hydrolysis using , for example , concentrated sulfuric acid or hydrobromic acid with acetic acid and phenol or by reductive cleavage using , for example , lithium aluminum hydride or sodium in liquid ammonia . alternatively , the starting compounds of formula ii wherein y is ## str15 ## can be prepared by reducing the corresponding compound having the formula ## str16 ## using phosphorous oxychloride or phosphorous pentachloride and zinc or sodium borohydride , lithium aluminum hydride , or borane . compounds of formula v can be prepared by cyclocondensation of diethylenetriamine with diesters of substituted imino diacetic acids , i . e ., compounds of the formula ## str17 ## the compounds of formula i wherein y is ## str18 ## r 2 = hydrogen and r 1 is other than hydrogen are prepared from the compound of formula i wherein y is ## str19 ## and r 2 is hydrogen namely , 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane ( do3a ). these type of reactions are known in the art and are described below : for convenience &# 34 ; do3a &# 34 ; will be represented pictorially by ## str20 ## in order to illustrate the reactive secondary amine nitrogen . ## str21 ## and r &# 39 ; and r &# 34 ; can be the same or different and are alkyl . to a solution of 8 . 00 g ( 24 . 8 mmol ) of 1 - oxa - 4 , 7 , 10 - triazacyclododecane sulfuric acid salt in 20 ml of water was added 6m potassium hydroxide to give a ph of 9 . 1 . chloroacetic acid ( 11 . 66 g , 124 mmol ) was added , the ph adjusted to 9 . 5 , and the solution warmed to 45 ° c . the reaction was continued for 15 hours with base added as necessary to maintain the ph between 9 . 5 - 10 . the solution was cooled to 21 ° c ., the ph brought to 2 . 0 with concentrated hydrochloric acid , and the solution evaporated to dryness . the residue was extracted with 400 ml of ethanol , filtered , and the solvent evaporated . the solid was dissolved in water and passed onto a cation exchange column ( dowex 50x2 , hydrogen form ). the column was washed with water and the ligand eluted with 0 . 5m ammonium hydroxide . the solvent was evaporated , the solid redissolved in water and passed onto an anion exchange column ( ag1 - x8 , formate form ). the column was washed well with water , and the ligand eluted with 0 . 5m formic acid . the solvent was evaporated under reduced pressure , the solid redissolved in water and reevaporated . the crude solid was dissolved in methanol and slowly precipitated by the addition of acetone and cooling to about 5 ° c . the yield was 2 . 66 g of an extremely hygroscopic and deliquescent 13 c nmr ( d 2 o , ppm vs tms ): 175 . 4 , 170 . 7 , 65 . 3 , 58 . 4 , 56 . 0 , 54 . 0 , 53 . 7 , 49 . 9 . mass spectrum ( fab ): m / e 348 ( m + h ) and 346 ( m - h ). a solution of 36 . 8 g ( 0 . 100 mol ) 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane bissulfuric acid salt in 166 ml deionized water was brought to ph 8 . 5 using 6m potassium hydroxide . to this solution was added 18 . 9 g ( 0 . 200 mol ) of solid chloroacetic acid , and 10 the ph was readjusted to 8 . 5 . the temperature was increased to 50 ° c . and the ph maintained between 8 . 5 - 9 . 0 by the addition of 6m potassium hydroxide as necessary . after 3 hours , an additional 4 . 73 g ( 0 . 050 mol ) of chloroacetic acid was added , and the 15 ph readjusted . after 5 hours , an additional 3 . 78 g ( 0 . 040 mol ) of chloroacetic acid was added and the ph was readjusted . the reaction was continued at 50 ° c . and ph 8 . 5 - 9 . 0 for 16 hours after the second addition . the reaction mixture was cooled , the ph brought to 2 with concentrated hydrochloric acid , and the mixture diluted with methanol . the mixture was filtered and the filtrate evaporated . the solid was dissolved in water and passed onto a cation exchange column ( dowex 50x2 - 400 , hydrogen form ). the column was washed well with water then the ligand brought off by eluting with 0 . 5m ammonium hydroxide . evaporation gave the solid ammonium salt . this salt was dissolved in water and passed onto a column of anion exchange resin ( dowex ag1 - x8 ). the column was washed well with water and the ligand eluted with 0 . 5m aqueous formic acid . the solid obtained after evaporation of the solvent was crystallized from methanol to give 8 . 2 g of the ligand as a colorless solid . 13 c nmr ( d 2 o , ppm vs tms ): 176 . 9 , 171 . 0 , 57 . 0 , 55 . 7 , 52 . 7 , 50 . 3 , 49 . 3 , 43 . 6 . mass spectrum ( fab ): m / e 345 ( m - h ) and 347 ( m + h ). a mixture of 100 mg of 10 % palladium on charcoal and 250 mg of 1 - benzyl - 4 , 7 , 10 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane in 40 ml of 5 % acetic acid in water was shaken under 35 . 8 p . s . i . of hydrogen for 16 hours . filtration and evaporation gave the crude ligand which was crystallized from methanol / acetone yielding 130 mg of the desired product . to a solution of 250 mg ( 0 . 723 mmol ) of 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane in 2 . 9 ml of methanol was added 220 mg ( 1 . 59 mmol ) of potassium carbonate . to the resulting mixture was added 308 mg ( 2 . 17 mmol , 3 equiv ) of methyl iodide . within a short time , most of the solids dissolved . after 15 hours at 21 ° c ., a mass of crystals had separated . additional methanol was added ( 2 ml ) to dissolve the solid . after 23 hours , an additional 102 mg ( 0 . 72 mmol ) of methyl iodide was added . after an additional 16 hours , the solution was acidified with concentrated hydrochloric acid and the volatiles were removed on the rotary evaporator . the residue was extracted with methanol , filtered , and the methanol evaporated . the residue was crystallized twice from methanol / acetone yielding 56 mg ( 0 . 16 mmol ) of a colorless solid , melting point 215 °- 240 ° ( dec .). 13 c nmr ( d 2 o , ppm vs tms ): 177 . 2 , 171 . 1 , 57 . 2 , 56 . 5 , 54 . 1 , 52 . 6 , 50 . 1 , 49 . 9 , 43 . 7 . mass spectrum ( fab ): m / e 359 ( m - h ) and 361 ( m + h ). to a solution of 6 . 80 g ( 95 . 7 mmol ) acrylamide ( 95 . 7 mmol ) in 10 ml water at ca . 5 ° c . was added dropwise 4 . 4 ml ( 4 . 32 g , 40 . 3 mmol ) of benzyl amine . after the addition was complete , the temperature was raised to 87 ° c . for 6 hours . the water was evaporated to give a thick oil . the oil was dissolved in about 25 ml acetone and about 15 ml of ether was added to precipitate an oil . this mixture was allowed to stand for 16 hours , during which time the oil solidified . the solid was broken up and collected by filtration and dried under vacuum at 50 ° c . for 6 hours . the crude product weighed 9 . 75 g ( 39 . 1 mmol ), melted at 103 °- 106 ° c ., and was suitable for use in the next reaction without further purification . to a solution of 38 . 7 g ( 0 . 586 mol ) potassium hydroxide in 150 ml water at 5 ° c . was added 30 . 0 g ( 0 . 120 ml ) of 5 - benzyl - 2 , 8 - dioxo - 1 , 5 , 9 - triazanonane . to the resulting mixture was added dropwise 345 ml of 0 . 80m potassium hypochlorite over 0 . 5 hours . the solution was allowed to warm to 21 ° c . then heated to 85 ° c . for 4 hours . the solvent was then evaporated under reduced pressure and the residue was extracted with dichloromethane , filtered , dried with magnesium sulfate , filtered , and evaporated to give 14 . 7 g of the crude product . vacuum distillation gave 10 . 1 g of the desired triamine as a colorless liquid , boiling point 110 °- 115 ° c . at 0 . 35 mm . of hg . 13 c nmr ( cdcl 3 , ppm vs tms ): 139 . 1 , 128 . 7 , 128 . 1 , 126 . 9 , 59 . 0 , 56 . 3 , 39 . 3 . mass spectrum ( ci ): m / e 194 ( m + h ) and 192 ( m - h ). to a solution of 141 . 2 g ( 0 . 741 mol ) of p - toluenesulfonyl chloride in 250 ml of dichloromethane with 110 ml ( 0 . 8 mol ) of triethylamine was added dropwise 68 . 0 g ( 0 . 352 mol ) of 4 - benzyl - 1 , 4 , 7 - triazaheptane in 75 ml of dichloromethane . after 2 hours , the solution was washed three times with water at ph 9 , and the organic phase was dried with sodium sulfate and filtered . evaporation gave an oil which was dissolved in about 450 ml of ethyl acetate . the solution was diluted with 200 ml of ether and left to stand at room temperature for 24 hours . the mixture was further diluted with about 50 ml of ether and refrigerated for another day . the product crystallized in massive prisms which were collected by filtration and dried under vacuum at 40 ° c . for 6 hours , yielding in the first crop 140 g ( 0 . 279 mol ) of a colorless solid ; melting point 87 °- 91 ° c . mass spectrum ( ci ): m / e 502 ( m + h ) and 500 ( m - h ). into a dry flask under nitrogen was placed about 3 . 9 g of a 60 % sodium hydride dispersion . it was washed twice with hexanes then suspended in 200 ml of dry dimethylformamide . to the mixture was added 20 g ( 40 mmol ) of 4 - benzyl - 1 , 7 - bis -( p - toluenesulfonyl )- 1 , 4 , 7 - triazaheptane over 5 minutes . after the initial reaction had subsided , the mixture was heated to 110 ° c . for 1 hour . to the resulting hot solution was added dropwise 22 . 6 g ( 40 mmol ) of diethanolamine tritosylate in 100 ml of dry dimethylformamide over 3 . 5 hours . after an additional 0 . 5 hours , the solution was allowed to cool and 20 ml of methanol was added . the volatiles were then removed on the rotary evaporator . the residue was dissolved in a mixture of 400 ml of water and 200 ml of dichloromethane . the phases were separated and the aqueous phase washed twice more with dichloromethane . the combined organic fractions were dried ( magnesium sulfate ), filtered , and evaporated to give a yellow oil . crystallization was induced by the addition of about 100 ml of methanol . the mixture was kept at - 5 ° c . overnight and the product collected by filtration . after drying , 20 . 4 g of a colorless solid was obtained ; melting point 208 °- 210 ° c . to a slurry of 2 . 0 g ( 2 . 8 mmol ) 1 - benzyl - 4 , 7 , 10 - tris ( p - toluenesulfonyl )- 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane in about 25 ml of ammonia at - 77 ° c . under nitrogen was added 0 . 50 g ( 22 mmol , 8 equiv ) of sodium metal in portions over about 5 minutes . the blue mixture was stirred an additional 45 minutes and the reaction was quenched with 1 . 16 g ( 22 mmol ) of solid ammonium chloride . the ammonia was allowed to evaporate . water ( 50 ml ) was added to the residue and the ph adjusted to about 12 using 6m potassium hydroxide . the mixture was extracted three times with 30 ml portions of dichloromethane . the combined organic fractions were three extracted with three 30 ml portions of 2m hydrochloric acid . evaporation of the water under reduced pressure gave a solid residue . the residue was washed with methanol and dried under vacuum at 50 ° c . to give 600 mg ( 1 . 47 mmol ) of a colorless solid , which was used directly in the final step . to a solution of 31 . 2 g dimethyl - n - benzyliminodiacetate in 2 . 5 l of dry ethanol at reflux under nitrogen was added dropwise 12 . 8 g of di - ethylenetriamine in 160 ml of dry ethanol . reflux was carried out for a total of 137 hours . the solution was evaporated under reduced pressure leaving a yellow paste . trituration with acetone left 5 . 2 g of the desired product as a colorless solid . 13 c nmr ( methanol , ppm vs tms ): 173 . 6 , 139 . 0 , 130 . 5 , 129 . 6 , 128 . 8 , 64 . 0 , 46 . 3 , 38 . 7 . mass spectrum ( ci ): m / e 291 ( m + h ) and 289 ( m - h ). to a suspension of 890 mg ( 3 . 07 mmol ) of 1 - benzyl - 3 , 11 - dioxo - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane in tetrahydrofuran under nitrogen was added 2 . 64 ml of 8m borane - methyl sulfide complex ( 21 . 1 mol , 7 equivalents ). the mixture was heated to reflux allowing the methyl sulfide to distill out of the reaction flask . after 2 hours , the reaction was quenched by the addition of 12 ml 1 . 8m hydrochloric acid in methanol and refluxed for an additional 3 hours . volatiles were removed by evaporation , and the solid resuspended in methanol and reevaporated . the product was crystallized from methanol / ethyl acetate ; yield 455 mg , 37 %. mass spectrum ( ci ): m / e 263 ( m + h ). the ph of a solution of 3 . 5 g of 1 - benzyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane tetrahydrochloride in 17 ml of water was adjusted to 7 using 6 . 0m potassium hydroxide . to this solution was added 3 . 64 g of chloroacetic acid , and the ph was readjusted to 9 . 5 . the solution was warmed to 45 ° c . and the ph adjusted as necessary to maintain the ph at 9 . 5 - 10 . after 6 hours , the heat source was removed and the solution left to stand for 1 day . the solution was acidified to ph 3 with concentrated hydrochloric acid , diluted with 500 ml of water , and applied to a dowex 50x - 2 cation exchange resin ( h + form ). after washing with water , the ligand was eluted with 0 . 5m aqueous ammonia . after evaporation of the solvents , the crude ammonium salt was redissolved in water and applied to an anion exchange column . after washing with water , the ligand was eluted with 0 . 2m aqueous formic acid . after evaporation of the solvents , the crude product was crystallized from methanol / acetone to give 2 . 0 g of the ligand as a colorless solid . mass spectrum ( fab ): m / e 437 ( m + h ) and 435 ( m - h ). 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane ( see example 3 ) in 50 ml of water was added 4 . 74 g ( 13 . 1 mmol ) of solid gadolinium oxide . the mixture was heated to 90 ° c . for 4 hours , during which time most of the solid dissolved . the mixture was filtered and the filtrate evaporated to dryness under reduced pressure . the gummy residue was twice dissolved in ethanol and evaporated to dryness . the colorless solid residue was dissolved in nitromethane , filtered through a fine porosity sintered glass funnel , and the filtrate placed in a flask in a closed container also holding about 1 liter of water . diffusion of water into the organic solution over several days gave a colorless solid precipitate . the precipitate was collected by filtration , washed with nitromethane , resuspended in acetone and washed well with that solvent , then dried under vacuum at 60 ° c . for 2 days yielding 10 . 7 g of a colorless solid . anal . calcd . for 90 . 06 % ligand , 9 . 94 % water ; c , 30 . 25 ; h , 5 . 28 ; n , 10 . 08 . found : c , 30 . 25 ; h , 5 . 48 ; n , 9 . 97 ; c / n = 14 . 4 gadolinium acetate tetrahydrate ( 145 . 5 mg ) was dissolved in 3 ml of deionized water . aqueous 1m 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane was added to the gadolinium acetate solution , mixed and adjusted to ph 3 . the mixture was heated for 20 minutes at 88 ° c . and adjusted to ph 7 . 3 with 1n sodium hydroxide . the free gadolinium content was measured by paper thin layer chromatography . twice the quantity of 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane required to chelate any free gadolinium was added . the solution was adjusted to ph 3 , heated at 88 ° c . for 20 minutes and then adjusted to ph 7 . 3 . free gadolinium content was determined and 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane was added as required . the sample was adjusted to 7 ml with deionized water , passed through a 0 . 22μ filter ( millipore ) into a vial , stoppered and sealed . thirty mg of 4 , 7 , 10 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 - oxa - 4 , 7 , 10 - triazacyclododecane ( see example 1 ) was added to 0 . 7 ml of 100 mm gadolinium acetate . the solution was adjusted to ph 3 and heated at 88 ° c . for 20 minutes . a precipitate was visible when the solution was adjusted to ph 7 . 3 . 4 , 7 , 10 - tris - carboxymethyl - 1 - oxa - 4 , 7 , 10 - triazacyclododecane ( 16 mg ) was added , the solution adjusted to ph 3 and heated at 88 ° c . for 20 minutes . on adjustment to ph 7 . 3 , a slight precipitate was observed . twenty mg of 4 , 7 , 10 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 - oxa - 4 , 7 , 10 - triazacyclododecane was added and the solution was adjusted to ph 3 . 0 . reheating under the same conditions resulted in reducing the free gadolinium to 0 . 22 ± 0 . 18 % as measured by paper thin layer chromatography of a radiolabeled chelate solution . the final chelate solution was clear at ph 7 . 3 . it was passed through a 0 . 22μ filter ( millipore ) into a vial and sealed . 100 mm of calcium ( ii ) ( 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane ) was prepared by mixing equal volumes of 200 mm of calcium chloride and 200 mm of 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane . one and one - half ml of the solution was adjusted to ph 8 . 8 with dilute sodium hydroxide and 150 μl of 0 . 88 % stannous chloride was added and mixed . technetium - 99m was added to obtain a final concentration of 20 μci / ml and the solution was adjusted to ph 3 . the solution was heated at 88 ° c . for 20 minutes , cooled , and adjusted to ph 7 . after adjusting to a volumne of 3 ml , it was passed through a 0 . 22μ filter . ( 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane ( 69 . 3 mg ) and 58 . 8 mg of dihydrated calcium chloride were mixed in water to yield calcium ( ii ) ( 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane ). 90 μci of 67 - gallium was added . the solution was adjusted to ph 3 , heated at 88 ° c . for 20 minutes and adjusted to ph 7 . 3 . 50 mm bismuth ( iii ) ( 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane ) was prepared by combining 24 . 2 mg of bismuth nitrate with 100 μl of 1m 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane and 140 μl of acid . the solution was adjusted to ph 3 with dilute sodium hydroxide . the mixture was heated at 88 ° c . until the bismuth nitrate dissolved ( ca . 30 minutes ). the solution was adjusted to ph 7 . 3 with dilute sodium hydroxide and reheated briefly at 88 ° c . until a small quantity of precipitate was dissolved . on cooling , the solution remained clear . determination of free bismuth by precipitation and x - ray fluorescence spectroscopy showed that & gt ; 99 % of the bismuth had been chelated . four hundred fifty μl of 100 mm solutions of each of chromic chloride , ferric chloride , manganese chloride and dysprosium chloride were mixed with 50 μl of 1m 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane and adjusted to ph 4 . 5 . the solutions were heated at 88 ° c . for 20 minutes to enhance the rate of chelation , cooled and then adjusted to ph 7 . to determine if chelation had occurred , the solutions were diluted to a concentration of 1 mm metal chelate . an aliquot was tested by measuring its relaxivity and comparing it with the relaxivity of the metal ion alone . the data demonstrated clearly that the metal ions had been chelated . the relaxivity is proportional to the number of water molecules bound to the metal . the chelator displaces coordinated water molecules and thus lowers the relaxivity . relaxitives of metal chelates are shown in the following table . ______________________________________relaxivities of metal chelates at 20 mhz k . sub . 1chelate metal ( mole . sup .- 1 sec .. sup .- 1 ) ______________________________________dysprosium ( iii ) ( 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1771 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane ) dysprosium chloride 525iron ( iii )( 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 5301 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane ) ferric chloride 3374chromium ( iii )( 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 4221 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane ) chromic chloride 3270manganese ( iii )( 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 11511 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane )( sodium salt ) manganese chloride 6250______________________________________ gadolinium acetate tetrahydrate ( 102 mg ) was mixed with 133 mg of 4 , 7 , 10 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 - methyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane . to the mixture was added 250 μci of 153 gadolinium nitrate . the solution was adjusted to ph 3 with 1n hydrochloric acid and heated for 20 minutes at 88 ° c . the solution was adjusted to ph 7 . free gadolinium content was 5 . 07 %. additional ligand , 36 mg , was added , the solution was adjusted to ph 3 and heated as before . the solution was adjusted to ph 7 . 3 and tested by the thin layer chromatography procedure . free gadolinium content was 0 . 14 %. 145 . 4 mg of yttrium acetate tetrahydrate y ( oac ) 3 ( h 2 o ) 4 is dissolved in 3 ml of deionized water . 0 . 1 mci of a radioactive tracer , 90 y in hydrochloric acid , is added . 385 μl of aqueous 1m 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane is added to the yttrium acetate solution , mixed and adjusted to ph 3 to 4 with 1n hydrochloric acid or 1n sodium hydroxide . the mixture is heated for 20 minutes at 88 ° c . and adjusted to ph 7 . 3 with 1n sodium hydroxide . the unreacted yttrium is measured by paper thin - layer chromatography . the quantity of 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane required to react with any unreacted yttrium is added by weighing the proper amount of solid 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane or by adding an additional volume of the 1m 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane solution . the solution is adjusted to ph 3 to 4 , heated at 88 ° c . for 20 minutes and then adjusted to ph 7 . 3 . the process of detecting unreacted yttrium and adding further aliquots of 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane is repeated until the unreacted yttrium level is less than 0 . 05 mm as determined by the tlc method . the sample is adjusted to 7 ml with deionized water , passed through a 0 . 22μ filter ( millipore ) into a vial , stoppered and sealed . 10 mci of 90 y in a minimum volume of 0 . 1m ! hydrochloric acid is treated with sodium hydroxide using a micropipet until the ph is 3 to 4 . μl aliquots of 1m 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane at ph 3 . 5 are added to make the mixture 10 - 5 m in 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane and then the mixture is heated for 20 minutes at 88 ° c . and adjusted to ph 7 . 3 with concentrated sodium hydroxide . the percentage of 90 yttrium is determined by thin layer chromatography . if more than 0 . 1 % of the yttrium is unreacted , the ph is lowered to 3 to 4 and the mixture again heated at 88 ° c . for 20 minutes . this procedure is repeated until either the level of unreacted 90 y is less than 0 . 1 % of the total , or the level is the same after two consecutive heating cycles . if the level of unreacted 90 y is greater than 0 . 1 % and not decreasing after two heating cycles , and additional aliquot of 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane is added to make the concentration 2 × 10 - 5 m in 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane . the heating procedure is then repeated until the level of unreacted 90 y is less than 0 . 1 %. the sample is adjusted with deionized water to the desired activity level , and passed through a 0 . 22μ filter ( millipore ) into a vial and sealed . 9 grams ( 26 mmol ) of 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane in 50 ml of distilled water is treated with 2 . 95 grams of ( 13 mmol ) y 2 o 3 . the mixture is heated at 88 ° c . for 4 hours , while the solid dissolves . the solution is filtered to remove any undissolved solid and the solvent is removed by evaporation . vacuum drying is used to obtain a dry solid . alternatively , the filtered reaction solution may be spray dried . into a 50 ml round bottom flask was placed 5 . 22 g ( 0 . 0151 mol ) of 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane ( do3a ) and dissolved in 21 ml of water . the ph of the solution was raised to 8 . 28 with 6n naoh . then 1 . 35 ml ( 1 . 09 g , 0 . 0205 mol ) of acrylonitrile was added and the reaction allowed to stir overnight at room temperature . the reaction is then concentrate in vacuo , and then re - dissolved in methanol and concentrated in vacuo . the crude product of a 0 . 015 mol preparation of example 15 was added to 100 ml of 3n naoh ( large excess ) and heated to 85 ° c . and allowed to stir under nitrogen for five hours . the inorganic salts are then removed via cation / anion exchange chromatrography as described in example 2 , method i . 0 . 5 g of the crude reaction product of example 15 was dissolved in 25 ml of water and to this was added 1 ml of conc . hcl . this solution was then added to 0 . 25 g of 10 % pd / c and then hydrogenated at approximate 40 psi overnight . the cataylst was then filtered over a celite bed and the solution concentrate in vacuo . the above were combined and heated in an oil bath at 80 ° c . under nitrogen while the benzene - methanol azeotrope ( 64 ° c .) distilled off . after ninety minutes , the temperature of the distillate rose to 80 ° c . indicating complete reaction . distillation of benzene was continued for an additional thirty minutes to ensure complete reaction . the reaction mixture was concentrated in vacuo ( 50 ° c .) then the residue distilled ( bath temperature 160 ° c .) to yield 253 g ( 96 %) of desired product . b . p . 128 °- 130 ° c ./ 0 . 5 mm . ______________________________________reagents______________________________________a . 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazatricyclo 5 . 5 . 1 . 0 ! tridecane 246 gb . absolute ethanol 500 mlc . h . sub . 2 o 500 ml______________________________________ the product of a was chilled in an ice bath ( 4 ° c .) then treated with ethanol - water ( pre - mixed ) which had been chilled to - 20 ° c . the mixture was allowed to slowly warm to room temperature then stirred under nitrogen for twenty - four hours at ambient temperature . the reaction mixture was concentrated in vacuo . the residue was dissolved in acetonitrile ( 1 , 000 ml ) then concentrated in vacuo . this operation was repeated three times ( 3 × 1 , 000 ml ) to remove all traces of water . the residue was dried in vacuo at room temperature overnight . after four hours the material crystallized with significant heat of crystallization . yield 270 g ( 100 %). to the product of b , dissolved in dimethylformamide , was added 4 equivalents of t - butyl bromoacetate . an initial exotherm was controlled by ice bath cooling , and after 30 minutes a solution of sodium carbonate was added . after agitating this mixture briskly for an additional 30 minutes , toluene is added and the reaction is allowed to proceed at 30 ° c . until complete by tlc . after agitation is stopped , the layers are allowed to settle and the lower aqueous layer , containing mainly dmf and salts , is withdrawn . further extraction of the toluene layer with aqueous sodium carbonate effects removal of any remaining dmf . the toluene solution is treated with 1 equivalent of dilute hcl to extract the intermediate formyl triester into water , and to separate excess t - butyl bromoacetate , which remains in the toluene layer . methylene chloride is added to the acidic aqueous layer , and sodium carbonate is added slowly as the mixture is rapidly agitated . once a solution ph of 9 . 5 is reached , agitation is stopped and layers are allowed to form . the lower , rich methylene chloride solution is withdrawn . additional methylene chloride is added to extract the remaining aqueous layer , and the combined organic layers are then backwashed with fresh deionized water . the methylene chloride solution containing formyl triester is concentrated . the methylene chloride concentrate from above is added over 30 - 40 minutes to 2 equivalents of sulfuric acid in water , maintained at 55 °- 60 ° c . under a vigorous nitrogen sparge . once addition is completed , the temperature and sparge are continued , with occasional replacement of water lost to evaporation , until reaction is judged to be complete by hplc ( usually 4 to 5 hours ). to remove formic acid generated during deprotection , the reaction mixture is concentrated in vacuo at no more than 40 ° c ., until a thick viscous oil is formed . water is added and the solution is reconcentrated to residue ; this is repeated until little or no formyl proton resonance is evident by nmr ( usually after 3 - 4 reconcentrations ), and is typically accompanied by partial crystallization of do3a as a sulfate salt . after full dissolution in a minimum volume of water , the do3a sulfate salt is applied to a pretreated column of poly ( 4 - vinylpyridine ). the title compound , free of sulfate , is eluted from the column with deionized water . the aqueous solution is concentrated , and optionally lyophilized to provide the product as a hygroscopic solid . gd ( iii ) complexes of the chelating ligands of examples 15 , 16 and 17 were prepared as in example 5 . purification was by standard ion exchange chromatography . a solution of 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane 7 . 08 g ( about 19 mmol assuming 5 % water content ) in 68 ml h 2 o was adjusted to ph 8 using koh . to it was added 4 . 4 g ( 40 mmol ) clch 2 conhch 3 . the solution was warmed to 50 ° and the ph adjusted to 9 . 5 and the ph was maintained between 9 - 10 by the addition of koh as required . after 23 hours the solution was cooled to room temperature , acidified to ph 3 , then applied to a 500 ml bed volume of dowex 50 - x2 cation exchange resin ( h + form ). the column was washed with eight volumes of water then the product eluted with two volumes of 0 . 5m nh 3 . evaporation gave a yellow glassy solid . this solid was taken up in meoh and the product precipitated with acetone . obtained was 3 . 95 g of the title compound as a slightly yellow solid . the ph of a mixture of 3 . 47 g of the crude ammonium salt from example 20 ( 8 . 33 mmol assuming 100 % of the tris nh 3 salt ) and 1 . 58 g gd 2 o 3 ( 4 . 37 mmol ) in 33 ml water was adjusted to a ph of 4 using glacial acetic acid . the mixture was heated with stirring to 100 ° c . for 2 hours dissolving most of the solid . the mixture was cooled and the slight amount of remaining solid removed by filtration through a 0 . 2 micron filter . the filtrate was passed through a 500 ml bed of chelex 100 ( ammonium form ), then through a 500 ml bed column of ag1 - x8 anion exchange resin ( formate form ). the solution was concentrated and the product further purified by preparative hplc . evaporation gave 3 . 1 g of the title compound as a colorless solid ( 5 . 2 mmol , 63 % calculated for 3 . 5 % water ). the complex may be recrystallized from water . to a solution of 1 , 4 , 7 - triscarboxymethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane 5 . 19 g ( 14 . 3 mmol assuming 5 % water ) in 30 ml water was added 2 . 4 g ( 6 . 0 mmol ) naoh ; the ph of resulting solution was then 12 . 2 . the solution was cooled to room temperature then 1 . 3 g ( 2 . 3 mmol , 1 . 5 equiv .) of propylene oxide was added . the stoppered flask was left to stir at room temperature for 14 hours . hplc analysis at that point indicated a small amount of starting material so an additional 0 . 25 g ( 4 . 3 mmol , 0 . 28 equiv .) of propylene oxide was added . after 4 hours , the reaction solution was acidified to ph 2 . 9 with concentrated hcl , diluted to 0 . 5 liters with water , then applied to a 5 × 40 cm column of dowex 50x - 2 cation exchange resin ( h + form ). the column was washed with six liters of water then the product was eluted with 0 . 5m nh 3 . obtained after rotary evaporation was 5 . 9 g of the title product as the ammonium salt . to a solution of 5 . 6 g of the crude ammonium salt of example 22 in 30 ml water was added 6 . 70 g ( 16 . 5 mmol ) of gd ( oac ) 3 . 4h 2 o . after 14 hours , the ph of the solution was adjusted from 4 . 5 to 7 . 0 with dilute naoh . a solution of 1 . 5 g ( 4 . 0 mmol ) na 2 edta in 10 ml h 2 o ( ph adjusted to 7 . 5 with dilute naoh ) was added and the resulting solution allowed to stand for 6 hours . after dilution to 0 . 5 liters with water the solution was applied to a 5 × 40 cm column of biorad ag1 - x8 anion exchange resin ( formate form ). after loading , the column was eluted with 1 liter of water . the total volume of eluent was collected as one fraction . evaporation gave the title compound as a white solid . the complex was further purified by preparative hplc . obtained was 4 . 6 g of a colorless solid ( 12 . 3 % water , 7 . 2 mmol ). the complex was recrystallized from ch 3 cn . into a 100 ml round bottom flask containing 40 ml of h 2 o was placed 4 . 0 g ( 10 mmol ) of crude material from example 15 and 4 . 5 g ( 11 mmol , 1 . 1 eq .) of gd ( oac ) 3 . 4h 2 o . the ph of the solution was 4 . 85 . the mixture was allowed to stir at room temperature for 14 hours . the reaction solution was then analyzed via hplc for both free ligand and for free gadolinium . the sample was found to contain a large excess (& gt ; 20 %) of free metal and no detectable amount of free ligand . the ph of the solution was increased to 6 . 95 with dilute naoh resulting in a white suspension . the suspension was filtered through a 0 . 22 micron filter and the solution purified via preparative hplc . the major peak from each injection was collected and the solution concentrated on a rotary evaporator to yield 4 . 2 g of the gadolinium complex as a white solid . analysis of this material indicated that an unacceptable amount ( 5 %) of free gadolinium was still present . the sample was dissolved in 420 ml of h 2 o and the ph of the solution adjusted to 7 . 5 with dilute naoh . the solution was applied to a 75 ml ( 2 . 5 cm × 13 cm ) column bed of chelex - 100 ( nh 4 + form ) at a flow rate of 20 ml / min . the column was rinsed with 1 l of h 2 o and the effluent collected and concentrated on a rotary evaporator to yield a white solid . the solid was found to contain less than 0 . 1 % free gadolinium . however , there was a small impurity of an unidentified gadolinium complex . the material was subsequently repurified via preparative hplc . the desired peak was collected and concentrated on a rotary evaporator , dissolved in anhydrous methanol and then taken to dryness on a rotary evaporator and put under high vacuum for 14 hours at room temperature to yield 3 . 0 g ( 54 %) of 1 , 4 , 7 - tris ( carboxymethyl )- 10 -( 2 &# 39 ;- cyanoethyl )- 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecanatogadolinium , as a hygroscopic white solid . the ph of a solution of 1 . 40 g of 1 , 4 , 7 - tris ( carboxymethyl )- 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane in about 4 ml water was adjusted to 9 . 5 using 40 % aqueous benzyltrimethylammonium hydroxide . to the resulting solution was added 412 mg α - chloroacetamide . the temperature was increased to 80 ° c . and base was added as necessary to maintain the ph at 9 . 5 - 10 . after 3 hours the solution was cooled to room temperature and acidified to ph 3 with concentrated hcl . the resulting solution was evaporated under reduced pressure to a colorless sludge . the mixture was taken up in about 25 ml meoh and re - evaporated . the thick residue was triturated with a 1 : 1 mixture of acetone and ethanol to provide a granular solid and colorless solution . the solid was collected by filtration , washed with acetone / ethanol followed by acetone and finally ether , then dried in a vacuum oven at 50 ° for 2 hours . obtained was 1 . 54 g of the title compound as a colorless powder . the product was twice crystallized from ethanol / water . anal calcd for c 16 h 31 n 5 o 7 cl 2 + 1 % h 2 o : c , 39 . 94 ; h , 6 . 61 ; n , 14 . 55 found : c , 39 . 96 ; h , 6 . 74 ; n , 14 . 33 a mixture of 87 mg of 1 , 4 , 7 - tris ( carboxymethyl )- 10 - carbamoylmethyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane and 40 mg of gd 2 o 3 in 0 . 8 ml water was heated to 80 ° c . for 3 hours . after cooling to room temperature , the slightly cloudy solution was clarified by filtration through a 0 . 22 micron filter . the water was removed under reduced pressure . the residue containing the title compound was crystallized from a mixture of h 2 o / etoh / ch 3 cn ( 1 : 2 : 4 ). anal calcd for c 16 h 26 n 5 o 7 gd + 6 . 18 % h 2 o : c , 32 . 33 ; h , 5 . 10 ; n , 11 . 78 found : c , 32 . 59 ; h , 5 . 10 ; n , 11 . 62 ; h 2 o 6 . 18 to a suspension of do3a ( 1 . 02 g , 2 . 93 mmol ) and k 2 co 3 ( 1 . 22 g , 8 . 81 mmol ) in 10 ml dmf / h 2 o ( 5 : 3 ) was added a solution of 4 - nitrobenzylbromide ( 866 mg , 4 . 01 mmol ) in 3 ml of dmf . the suspension was stirred at 60 ° c . for 24 hours which yielded a solution containing a small amount of insoluble material . the solution was evaporated under vacuum and resuspended in 20 ml h 2 o . the suspension was acidified to ph 3 with 2m hcl and extracted with 2 × 10 ml ethyl acetate . the aqueous layer was evaporated under vacuum to a solid and redissolved in 50 ml h 2 o . this solution was loaded onto a column ( 2 . 5 × 13 cm ) of dowex 50wx8 cation exchange resin prepared in the acidic form . after washing the column with h 2 o ( ca . 500 ml ), the column was eluted with 0 . 5m nh 4 oh ( ca . 500 ml ). the effluent was collected in one fraction and evaporated under vacuum to afford 1 . 35 g of crude product as the ammonium salt . the ammonium salt ( 508 mg , 1 . 02 mmol ) was dissolved in 5 ml h 2 o and adjusted to ph 8 . 4 with dilute nh 4 oh . this was placed on a column ( 1 . 5 × 25 cm ) of ag - 1x8 anion exchange resin prepared in the formate form . the column was washed with h 2 o , then the ligand was eluted with 250 ml of 0 . 5 m hco 2 h . the effluent was collected as one fraction and evaporated under vacuum to afford a glassy solid . this solid was redissolved in 100 ml of h 2 o , evaporated to dryness , then crystallized from 5 ml h 2 o to yield 214 mg ( 40 . 4 % based on do3a of the title compound as a colorless solid . the compound was pure by 1 h and 13 c nmr . hplc analysis showed trace impurities (& lt ; 5 %). anal calcd for c 21 h 31 n 5 o 8 . 12 . 59 % h 2 o : c , 45 . 71 ; h , 6 . 22 ; n , 12 . 63 . found : c , 45 . 78 , h , 7 . 08 ; n , 12 . 72 to a solution of 1 , 4 , 7 - tris ( carboxymethyl )- 10 -( 4 - nitro ) benzyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecanane , ( 193 mg , 0 . 40 mmol ) in 5 ml h 2 o was added solid gd ( oac ) 3 . 4h 2 o ( 219 mg , 0 . 54 mmol ). the resulting solution was stirred at 60 ° c . for 2 hours , then adjusted to ph 7 . 0 with 1 . 0m tris base and stirred for an additional 1 hour . the reaction solution was diluted to 10 ml with h 2 o and placed in a parr bottle containing 200 mg of raney nickel , washed to neutral ph with h 2 o suspended in 3 ml h 2 o . the complex was hydrogenated under 20 p . s . i . g . h 2 for 3 hours . the catalyst was removed by centrifugation and the supernatant ( ph 6 . 7 ) was filtered through a 0 . 2 micron filter . this solution was evaporated under vacuum to afford 564 mg of a solid . the solid was dissolved in 2 ml of h 2 o and placed on a column ( 1 . 0 × 20 cm ) of diaion hp2op reversed phase resin packed in h 2 o . after eluting the column with h 2 o ( 100 ml ), the solvent was changed to 50 % meoh by use of a linear gradient ( 100 ml ). elution of the complex was detected by uv ( 280 nm ) and collected in one fraction . this was evaporated under vacuum to yield 176 mg ( 72 % based on starting ligand ) of the title compound . anal calcd for c 21 h 30 n 5 o 6 gd . 13 . 84 % h 2 o : c , 35 . 87 ; h , 5 . 80 ; n , 9 . 96 found : c , 35 . 56 ; h , 5 . 51 ; n , 10 . 05 to a solution of 1 , 4 , 7 - tris ( carboxymethyl )- 10 -( 4 - amino ) benzyl - 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecanatogadolinium ( 37 . 8 mg , 0 . 06 mmol ) in 2 ml h 2 o was added 1 . 0 ml of a 104 mm ( 0 . 15 mmol ) solution of thiophosgene in chcl 3 . the biphasic mixture was stirred at 40 ° c . for 5 minutes then at room temperature for 1 hour . the aqueous layer was removed and evaporated under vacuum to afford 39 . 1 mg ( 96 . 5 %) of the title compound . this compound may be exchange labelled with 90 y and used directly to react with antibodies or other proteins which contain free lysine groups . into a 50 ml round bottom flask containing 10 ml of h 2 o was dissolved 1 . 93 g ( 5 . 58 mmol ) of do3a . the ph of the solution was adjusted to 8 . 3 with dilute naoh . then 0 . 47 g ( 9 . 0 mmol , 1 . 6 eq .) of acrylonitrile was added and the solution allowed to stir overnight at room temperature for 16 hours . the solution was then taken to dryness on a rotary evaporator and the white solid dissolved in 20 ml of 3n naoh . the solution was allowed to stir at 85 ° c . for 6 hours under nitrogen . the solution was adjusted to ph 4 . 5 with 2m hcl , then applied to a 2 . 5 × 20 cm column of dowex 50x - 2 ( h + form ). the column was eluted with 0 . 5 l of h 2 o and the compound eluted off the column with 0 . 5 l of 0 . 5m nh 4 oh . the eluate was collected as one fraction and evaporated under vacuum to a solid . the solid was evaporated ( 2 ×) from 25 ml of h 2 o to yield 2 . 52 g of the ammonium salt of the title compound . into a 50 ml round bottom flask containing 1 . 96 g of the ammonium salt described above ( 4 . 3 mmol based on a diammonium salt ) was added 10 ml of h 2 o and 0 . 94 g of gd 2 o 3 ( 2 . 6 mmol ). the resulting suspension was stirred at 100 ° c . for 6 hours . the insoluble gd 2 o 3 was removed by centrifugation and the solution was adjusted to ph 7 with 1m acetic acid . this solution was combined with another solution of the title compound prepared similarly and passed through a 1 . 0 × 30 cm column of chelex - 100 ( nh 4 + form ). the effluent was collected as one fraction and the solution was concentrated to 20 ml on a rotary evaporator . the solution was then purified via preparative hplc , the major peak collected and concentrated to dryness on a rotary evaporator to yield 1 . 99 g of 1 , 4 , 7 - tris ( carboxymethyl )- 10 -( 2 &# 39 ;- carboxymethyl )- 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecanato - gadolinium ( 68 % based on ligand ). into a 100 ml round bottom flask containing 5 . 2 g of do3a dissolved in 22 ml of h 2 o ( ph adjusted to 8 . 25 with dilute naoh ) was added 1 . 35 ml of acrylonitrile . the reaction was allowed to stir at room temperature for 14 hours . after 14 hours , hplc analysis indicated complete conversion to 1 , 4 , 7 - tris ( carboxymethyl )- 10 -( 2 &# 39 ;- cyanoethyl )- 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane . the reaction mixture was taken to dryness on a rotary evaporator to yield a glassy solid . the solid was dissolved in methanol and then taken to dryness on a rotary evaporator to yield 5 . 9 g of crude 1 , 4 , 7 - tricarboxymethyl )- 10 -( 2 &# 39 ; cyanoethyl )- 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane as a white solid . 3 . 0 g of the crude 1 , 4 , 7 - tris ( carboxymethyl )- 10 -( 2 &# 39 ;- cyanoethyl )- 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane was dissolved in 150 ml of h 2 o , and the solution acidified with 6 ml of concentrated hcl . the solution was then added to a 500 ml hydrogenation vessel containing 1 . 5 g of 10 % pd / c and the reaction mixture hydrogenated at 50 psi h 2 at room temperature for 14 hours . after 14 hours the catalyst removed over a celite bed and the filtrate taken to dryness on a rotary evaporator . the sample was dissolved in 200 ml of h 2 o and applied to a 2 . 5 × 20 cm column of dowex 50x - 2 ( h + form ). the column was eluted with 4 l of 0 . 5 h 2 o and the material eluted off the column with 1 . 0 l of 0 . 5m nh 4 oh . the eluant was concentrated to dryness on a rotary evaporator , the residue dissolved in methanol and taken to dryness on a rotary evaporator to yield 3 . 8 g of the ammonium salt of 1 , 4 , 7 - tris ( carboxymethyl )- 10 -( 3 &# 39 ;- aminopropyl )- 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane . into a round bottom flask containing 1 . 0 g of the ammonium salt of 1 , 4 , 7 - tris ( carboxymethyl )- 10 -( 3 &# 39 ;- aminopropyl )- 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecane in 5 ml of h 2 o was added 1 . 1 g ( 0 . 0027 mmol ) of gd ( oac ) 3 . 4h 2 o and the reaction was allowed to stir at room temperature for 14 hours . after 14 hours the ph of the solution was adjusted to 7 . 0 with dilute naoh and filtered through a 0 . 22 micron filter . the filtrate was then purified on a c - 18 reverse - phase preparative hplc using a 98 % h 2 o and 2 % ch 3 cn eluent . the major peak collected and concentrated to dryness on a rotary evaporator to yield 1 , 4 , 7 - tris ( carboxymethyl )- 10 -( 3 &# 39 ;- aminopropyl )- 1 , 4 , 7 , 10 - tetraazacyclododecanatogadolinium . a solution of 5 . 0 g ( 13 . 3 mmol adjusted for 8 . 1 % h 2 o ) of do3a in 50 ml of h 2 o was adjusted to ph 8 . 5 using 5m koh . to this was added a solution of 3 . 98 g ( 28 . 9 mmol ) of n -( 2 - hydroxyethyl )- chloroacetamide in 10 ml of h 2 o . the resulting solution was adjusted to ph 9 . 5 and stirred at 80 ° c . for 24 hours . the ph was maintained at 9 . 5 - 9 . 7 by occasional addition of 5m koh . the solution was then cooled to room temperature and adjusted to ph 3 . 5 using concentrated hcl . the acidic solution was diluted to 200 ml with h 2 o and applied to a 4 . 5 × 20 cm column of dowex 50x - 2 strong cation exchange resin , h + form . the column was washed with 2 l of h 2 o and the material eluted off the column with 800 ml of 0 . 5m n 4 oh . rotary evaporation of the nh 4 oh fraction gave 6 . 5 g of the crude ammonium salt of the title compound . to a solution of 5 . 0 g of the crude ammonium salt of example 33 in 60 ml of h 2 o was added 2 . 04 g of gd 2 o 3 . the mixture was adjusted to ph 4 using glacial acetic acid and stirred at 100 ° c . for 5 hours . the resulting cloudy solution was cooled to room temperature and filtered through a 0 . 2 micron filter . the filtrate was adjusted to ph 9 with concentrated nh 4 oh and applied to a 2 . 5 × 25 cm column of zhelex - 100 , ammonium form . the column was eluted with 600 ml of h 2 o . the eluant was collected and further diluted with an additional 200 ml of h 2 o , adjusted to ph 9 using concentrated nh 4 oh , and applied to a 2 . 5 × 30 cm column of ag1 - x8 ( strong anion exchange resin , formate form ). the column was eluted with 700 ml of h 2 o , and the eluate was concentrated to dryness on a rotary evaporator . the product was then purified via preparative hplc . the major fraction collected and evaporated to dryness on a rotary evaporator . the residue was then dissolved in 25 ml of etoh and treated with 0 . 5 g of activated carbon . the moisture filtered and concentrated to dryness on a rotary evaporator to yield 3 . 5 g of the title complex as an off - white glassy solid .	8
fig3 shows the first embodiment of the present invention . a power supply control circuit 30 according to the present invention comprises a power switch 31 , a switch control circuit 35 , and a sensing circuit 32 . the sensing circuit 32 obtains a signal from the primary side of a transformer and generates an output signal which is supplied to the switch control circuit 35 for controlling the power switch 31 . more specifically , a signal obtained from an input voltage vin is processed by a first signal conversion circuit 36 , and thereafter input to an input terminal of a comparator 33 . another signal obtained from the other side of the transformer primary winding is processed by a second signal conversion circuit 37 and thereafter input to the other input terminal of the comparator 33 . the comparator 33 compares the two signals , and the comparison result is transmitted to the switch control circuit 35 so that it can determine whether to enable the power switch 31 accordingly . note that it is not necessary for the two signal conversion circuits 36 and 37 to provide sophisticated signal processing functions . it suffices to make the input voltage signal vin and the signal obtained from the other side of the transformer primary winding matching to each other for the comparison purpose . in one embodiment , the two signal conversion circuits 36 and 37 are voltage to current conversion circuits ( gm ) with appropriate conversion ratios , respectively . more details will be depicted later with reference to fig5 . one feature of the present invention is that the sensing circuit 32 includes a setting circuit 361 . the setting circuit 361 can decide the output voltage sensing result in the control circuit 30 according to a reference signal . by adjusting the reference signal , the detection and setting with respect to the output voltage can be adjusted flexibly in correspondence to the turn ratio of the transformer . fig4 shows another embodiment of the present invention . in this embodiment , a signal obtained from the input voltage vin and a signal obtained from the other side of the transformer primary winding are converted by one single conversion circuit 38 . the conversion performed by this circuit includes , for example , converting both signals to current signals with an appropriate ratio and then obtaining a difference between them by subtracting one from the other . the converted signal is input to one input terminal of the comparator 33 . a setting signal generated by the setting circuit 361 is input to another input terminal of the comparator 33 . similarly , after the comparator 33 compares the two input signals , the result is output to the switch control circuit 35 . the switch control circuit 35 determines whether to enable the power switch 31 according to the result . fig5 shows a more specific embodiment of the circuit in fig3 . referring to fig5 , we will explain how a setting signal generated by the setting circuit 361 sets an output voltage . in this embodiment , the comparator 33 is a current comparator , and the first and second signal conversion circuits 36 and 37 respectively include a first and a second voltage to current conversion circuits ( gm 1 362 and gm 2 37 ), each with an appropriate conversion ratio . the first voltage to current conversion circuit 362 converts the input voltage vin to the current ia , and the second voltage to current conversion circuit 37 converts the voltage vsw at the other side of the primary winding to the current ib . the setting signal generated by the setting circuit 361 is the current signal iset , which for example is determined by a resistor rset . suppose the ratios by which the first and second conversion circuits 362 and 37 convert the voltage signals to the current signals are both gm : and , let the turn ratio of the transformer secondary winding to the primary winding be n , then that is , regardless what the turn ratio n is , the setting signal iset can be determined according to any given n and the desired output voltage vout . in other words , the output voltage vout can be flexibly adjusted according to the setting signal iset in the present invention . those skilled in this art can readily understand that the concept of fig5 can be applied to the embodiment of fig4 . the only difference is that , in fig4 , the difference between ia and ib is input to one input terminal of the comparator 33 , and the signal iset is input to the other input terminal of the comparator 33 ; when the circuit reaches a stable and balanced state , the same relationship ib = ia + iset is reached , which leads to the same equation vout =( 1 / gm )* n * iset . the setting circuit 361 may be embodied in many ways . fig6 shows one example . an operational amplifier 363 and a transistor 364 constitute a circuit follower 365 which generates a current iset . the current iset is equal to vset / rset . when vset is fixed , iset can be determined by adjusting rset . a current mirror 366 duplicates iset to output a setting signal . referring to fig1 , when the power switch 31 is switching , a switching ringing occurs in the voltage vsw , which should preferably be masked or filtered . to this end , according to the present invention , a noise masking circuit 39 is provided . the noise masking circuit 39 can be arranged in various ways as shown in fig7 - 10 : to filter the noise in the voltage vsw and then convert the filtered signal ( as the embodiments shown in fig7 and fig9 ), or to convert the voltage vsw and then filter the noise in the converted signal ( as the embodiments shown in fig8 and fig1 ). the noise masking circuit 39 , for example , can be embodied by a low - pass filter as shown in fig1 , or by masking a short beginning period of the voltage signal vsw in each time the power switch 31 switches . referring to fig1 for the latter case , taking the arrangement shown in fig7 and fig9 as an example , the noise masking circuit 39 generates a masking signal each time when the power switch 31 switches high . masked by the masking signal , the voltage signal vsw becomes the third waveform as shown in fig1 , which is output as the output signal of the noise masking circuit 39 . thus , the comparator 33 will not misjudge and generate an incorrect output because of the switching ringing . a similar arrangement can be applied to the noise masking circuits 39 shown in fig8 and fig1 such that the noise does not affect the circuit operation . from the above description of the embodiments , one can readily recognize the advantages of this invention over prior art . first , the output voltage can be set flexibly in correspondence to the transformer winding ratio . second , the setting can be easily achieved by one resistor rset . the present invention has been described in considerable detail with reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof . it should be understood that the description is for illustrative purpose , not for limiting the scope of the present invention . those skilled in this art can readily conceive variations and modifications within the spirit of the present invention . for example , the application of the invention is not limited to photoflash chargers , but can be applied to any power supply which converts a voltage by a transformer . and , a circuit or device represented by a single block in the figures can be integrated with another circuit , or dismantled to separate circuits ( for example , the switch control circuit 35 and the comparator 33 can be integrated into one single circuit ; the setting circuit 361 can be moved out from the sensing circuit 32 , etc .). in view of the foregoing , the spirit of the present invention should cover all such and other modifications and variations , which should be interpreted to fall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents .	7
the preferred embodiment of this invention illustrated in fig1 comprises a radar system 1 for transmitting a speed signal vr and a distance signal r respectively corresponding to the relative speed between an obstacle and a vehicle and the distance therebetween . these signals are applied to a brake signal generating logical circuit 2 , and where either one of these signals exceeds a permissible value predetermined by the running condition of the vehicle , the brake signal generating logical circuit 2 produces a brake signal a commanding the braking of the vehicle . the brake signal a is applied to one input of an or gate 11 for producing a composite brake signal l which is applied to a drive circuit 3 of a brake actuator 4 of the vehicle thus positively and safely stopping the same . above description can be applied to a case wherein the braking operation is performed when the obstacle is located remote from the blind zone . at this time , since brake is applied at a point remote from the blind zone a relative distance comparator 5 , which is designed to operate when the obstacle approaches the blind zone , will not operate so that an and gate 9 will not be energized . when the vehicle speed relative to the obstacle exceeds a permissible value vo , the relative speed comparator 6 is adapted to apply a logic &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; signal to and gate circuit 8 . in this instance , an or gate 10 is not energized . accordingly , flip - flop circuit 12 does not operate and or gate circuit 11 correctly supplies a composite signal l to the drive circuit 3 . however , as above described , when the obstacle enters into the blind zone which is inherent to a radar system , the radar does not operate and both speed signal vr and distance signal r are not produced , as shown in fig2 a . consequently the braking signal a disappears at a time t2 when the obstacle enters into the blind zone . accordingly , with the first system described above a dangerous condition may occur because the braking signal disappears thus making it impossible to safely stop the vehicle . moreover , as the vehicle speed relative to the obstacle is low there is a danger that the vehicle continues to run and collides against the obstacle because the first system fails to produce the braking signal . according to this invention , for the purpose of preventing this defect , an improved collision preventing device , is provided . when the relative speed to the obstacle is less than a reference value so that no braking signal a is generated the comparator 5 of the relative distance shown in fig1 supervises the distance between the obstacle and the vehicle , and when the distance becomes a value ro which is about 1 meter larger than the blind zone r b , at time t1 the comparator 5 produces a signal b . this signal b is differentiated by a differentiating circuit 7 to produce a differentiated pulse blind zone signal c which is applied to the other input of the and gate 9 which produces an output second holding signal d . at this time , the relative speed comparator 6 does not produce output higher speed signal e so that the and gate 8 is not enabled and does not produce a first holding signal f whereas or gate 10 is enabled to produce an output signal g which is applied to the flip - flop circuit 12 for applying a brake holding signal h from the output terminal q to the or gate 11 . since the braking signal a disappears at time t2 when the obstacle enters into the blind zone , the or gate 11 is enabled at this time for applying a composite braking signal l to the drive circuit 3 to operate the brake actuator 4 . in this manner , the brake signal generating logical circuit 2 , comparators 5 and 6 , and differentiating circuit 7 , and gates 8 and 9 , or gates 10 and 11 and flip - flop circuit 12 which intercouples circuits 2 , 5 and 6 constitute an information processing circuit for positively applying braking drive signal to the brake actuator 4 in various dangerous conditions . for the purpose of releasing the brake , three is provided a brake release circuit comprising a vehicle speed detector 13 , a monostable multivibrator 14 and an inverter 15 . a vehicle speed pulse signal j from the vehicle speed detector 13 is applied to the monostable multivibrator 14 which can be triggered again . the quasi stable state persisting time of the monostable multivibrator 14 is about 10 seconds and the period of the vehicle speed pulse signal is made to be shorter than this time . as a consequence , the vehicle speed pulse signal j continues to maintain the monostable multivibrator 14 at the quasi stable state whereby its output k maintains a logical value &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; until the vehicle stops completely . when the vehicle stops and about 10 seconds later , which is equal to the monostable state persisting time of the monostable multivibrator 14 , the output k changes to logical value &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;. the output k from the monostable multivibrator 14 is inverted by the inverter 15 and a brake releasing signal i is then applied to the reset terminal of the flip - flop circuit 12 . accordingly , when the output k from the monostable multivibrator 14 changes to logical value &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, the flip - flop circuit 12 is reset to extinguish the brake holding signal to deenergize the brake actuator 4 thereby releasing the brake of the vehicle . further , there is provided a manual brake switching circuit comprising a comparator 19 , a switch 17 , a relay 18 and its relay switch 16 for the purpose of utilizing the collision preventing system when the speed of the vehicle relative to the obstacle is lower than a value at which the vehicle can be stopped by the braking operation caused by the manual operation by the driver . when the switch 17 is held closed by the driver , and as the vehicle speed decreases to a value at which the vehicle can be manually stopped by the driver , the comparator 19 which compares the vehicle speed with a reference speed v ro energizes relay 18 to open its relay switch 16 . then , the circuit through relay switch 16 is interrupted so that the driver can apply brake as he desires . the relay switch 16 may be inserted in other circuits of the information processing circuit . as above described , with the system for preventing collision of a vehicles according to this invention where the relative speed between a vehicle and an obstacle is high , a composite signal l is produced when the obstacle approaches a point located more remote from the blind zone of a radar system , whereas when the relative speed between the vehicle and the obstacle is low the composite braking signal is generated immediately prior to the entering of the obstacle into the blind zone . accordingly , in each case , as soon as the obstacle enters into the blind zone the composite braking signal is produced to stop the vehicle , thus positively preventing collision . in this manner , according to the system of this invention , even when a radar system having a blind zone such as a pulse radar system using a single system is used for preventing collision of a vehicle it is possible to eliminate the defect in the ability of the radar system for detecting an obstacle in the blind zone with the result that even when the obstacle enters into the blind zone . the braking of the vehicle can be performed positively until the vehicle stops completely . thus the reliability and utility of the collision preventing system are improved greatly .	6
the castor oil is used together with the hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer ( hereinafter referring to as hydrogenated polymer ) as the major component or it is also used in a form of an isocyanate prepolymer obtained by reacting the castor oil with an isocyanate as a curing agent . when the castor oil is used as a part of the major component , it is preferable to incorporate 10 to 150 wt . parts of castor oil ; 60 to 180 wt . parts of alumina hydrate , 5 to 60 wt . parts of magnesium hydroxide and said isocyanate as a curing agent to 100 wt . parts of the hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer . the isocyanate as the curing agent is preferably incorporated at ratio of 0 . 8 to 1 . 5 equivalent of isocyanate group of the isocyanate to 1 equivalent of hydroxyl group of the hydrogenated polymer and the castor oil . when the castor oil is used in a form of an isocyanate prepolymer obtained by reacting the castor oil with the isocyanate as a curing agent , it is preferable to incorporate 60 to 150 wt . parts of alumina hydrate and 5 to 30 wt . parts of magnesium hydroxide to 100 wt . parts of the hydrogenated polymer and the isocyanate prepolymer as the curing agent . the flame retardant liquid rubber composition of the present invention is preferably used for insulation of electric instruments and imparts excellent processability for easy casting , impregnation and coating to provide a cured elastic product having excellent electric insulating property , high arc resistance , high tracking resistance , high water resistance , high heat resistance and flame retardancy . in accordance with the present invention , it provides a flame retardant liquid rubber composition which can be used for preparing various electric instruments by a vacuum casting or an impregnation process which do not require to perform at high temperature under high pressure to provide a cured product having excellent elasticity and excellent flame retardancy , high arc resistance and high tracking resistance . the liquid rubber of the present invention is formed by reacting the hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer and the castor oil with the isocyanate to have crosslinkages of urethane bonds ## str3 ## and an olefin structure having methylene bonds as a skeleton of a main chain . the isocyanate prepolymer obtained by reacting the isocyanate with the castor oil can be used to react with the hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer to form the urethane bonds . the hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymers can be obtained by a hydrogenation of a polyhydroxybutadiene polymer which is obtained by a radical polymerization or a living polymerization of butadiene to form terminal hydroxyl groups as pendant groups . the hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymers can be also obtained by a hydrogenation of a homopolymer of 1 , 3 - butadiene or a copolymer of butadiene and less than 50 wt .% of a vinyl monomer such as styrene , acrylonitrile , methacrylic acid , vinyl toluene and vinyl acetate . by the hydrogenation , the unsaturated bonds derived from butadiene are saturated . the hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer has hydroxyl groups at an average ratio of more than 1 . 5 preferably 1 . 5 to 5 per one molecule . the castor oil used together with the hydrogenated polymer can be commercially available castor oils . any modified castor oil can be used if the modified castor oil is compatible to the hydrogenated polymer and is not one which forms volatile matters such as carbon dioxide gas etc . in the reaction with the isocyanate . the purified castor oil or hydrogenated castor oil can be preferably used as the castor oil . when the castor oil is used together with the hydrogenated polymer as the major component , when the amount of the castor oil is less than 10 wt . parts , a pot - life of the mixture with the curing agent is too short so as to decrease the processability and a permanent elongation of a cured product is too large . when the amount of the castor oil is more than 150 wt . parts , the mechanical property of the cured product is disadvantageously inferior . when the castor oil is used in a form of the isocyanate prepolymer , the isocyanate prepolymer as the curing agent can be obtained by the conventional urethane reaction of the castor oil and the isocyanate . when the isocyanate prepolymer is used as the curing agent , the castor oil can be also used as a part of the major component together with the hydrogenated polymer . the typical isocyanate having said formula which is commercially available is 3 - isocyanatomethyl - 3 , 5 , 5 - trimethylcyclohexyl isocyanate which has the formula wherein r 1 , r 2 and r 3 are methyl groups . the isocyanate to be used in the present invention is not limited to said isocyanate . alumina hydrate can be an inorganic compound having the formula al 2 o 3 . 3h 2 o and can be commercially available ones . the alumina hydrate gradually decomposed ( from about 200 ° c .) to discharge crystal water at the initial thermal decomposition temperature of the liquid rubber ( the decomposition initiates at about 250 ° c . and become severe at 400 ° c . ), and accordingly , the alumina hydrate is preferably used as a flame retarder for the liquid rubber . magnesium hydroxide can be a compound having the formula mg ( oh ) 2 and can be commercially available ones . the magnesium hydroxide gradually decomposed to initiate the discharge of water at about 300 ° c . to finish the discharge of water at about 350 ° c . and accordingly , it imparts excellent flame retardant effect as a flame retarder for the liquid rubber . the flame retarders used in the present invention have not any toxicity and are economical and optimum as the flame retarders for the liquid rubber . both of the flame retarders should be used . when only alumina hydrate is incorporated to impart sufficient flame retardancy , to the liquid rubber , the elasticity of the cured product is remarkably low to give only smaller elongation . when only magnesium hydroxide is incorporated , the viscosity of the liquid rubber is remarkably high to obtain a composition which has inferior processability for the casting or the impregnation and to cause inferior mechanical strength of the cured product . the objects of the present invention have been attained by incorporating alumina hydrate and magnesium hydroxide as the flame retarders for the liquid rubber at a specific ratio in view of the thermal decomposition characteristics of the liquid rubber and the thermal decomposition characteristics of the flame retarders and the reinforcing properties of the decomposed flame retarders . when the ratio of alumina hydrate to magnesium hydroxide is out of the above - mentioned range , the flame retardancy of the cured product is not sufficient or the processability for the casting or the impregnation are inferior or the physical property of the cured product is inferior , to be disadvantageous . the composition of the present invention can be used by itself and also can be used after incorporating one or more other additives such as a coloring agent , a fungicide , an antioxidant and an ultraviolet absorber . the present invention will be further illustrated by certain examples and references which are provided for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to be limiting the present invention . in a 1 liter autoclave , 120 g . of polyhydroxybutadiene polymer ( 60 mol % of 1 , 4 - trans ; 20 mol % of 1 , 4 - cis ; 20 mol % of 1 , 2 - vinyl ; 44 of hydroxyl value ) ( poly bd r - 45m manufactured by arco co . ), 10 g . of raney nickel catalyst and 100 g . of dioxane were charged and hydrogen was fed at 80 ° c . under hydrogen pressure of 10 kg ./ cm 2 to obtain a hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer ( 95 % of hydrogenation percent ). in accordance with the process of reference 1 , 100 g . of a polyhydroxybutadiene - styrene copolymer { butadiene homopolymer ( 60 ml % of 1 , 4 - trans ; 20 mol % of 1 , 4 - cis and 20 mol % of 1 , 2 - vinyl ); styrene of 75 : 25 by weight and 42 of hydroxyl value } ( poly bd cs - 15 manufactured by arco co .) was hydrogenated to obtain a hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer ( 98 % of hydrogenation percent ). in accordance with the process of reference 1 , 100 g . of a polyhydroxybutadiene polymer ( 90 mol % of 1 , 2 - vinyl ; 10 mol % of 1 , 4 - bond ; 58 of hydroxyl value )( nisso pbg - 2000 manufactured by nippon soda k . k .) was hydrogenated to obtain a hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer ( 98 % of hydrogenation percent ). [ a ] examples using castor oil as a part of the major component in a vessel , 100 g . of the hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer obtained in reference 1 , 50 g . of purified castor oil , 125 g . of alumina hydrate 25 g . of magnesium hydroxide and 3 g . of carbon black were charged and heated at 80 ° c . with stirring and the mixture was kneaded in a sheet form by a three roll mill so as to uniformly disperse the filler and carbon black . a half of the mixture was charged in a 200 cc . tall beaker and heated in an oil bath at 85 ° c . and then , 7 . 6 g . of 3 - isocyanatomethyl - 3 , 5 , 5 - trimethylcyclohexyl isocyanate was admixed . a time from the initial viscosity of 71 poises ( reaching to 85 ° c .) to the viscosity of 1 , 000 poises was measured to give 52 minutes . the remainder of the mixture was admixed with 7 . 6 g . of the same isocyanate and the mixture was deaerated at 80 ° c . and poured into a mold made of polypropylene . after pouring , the mold was heated at 150 ° c . for 1 hour to obtain a cured sheet having a size of 40 cm × 40 cm × 0 . 2 cm . mechanical characteristics ( tensile strength , elongation ) electric characteristics ( volumetric inherent resistance ; arc resistance ; tracking resistance ); flammability , water - proof property and heat resistance of the cured sheet were measured . the results of the measurements are shown in table 1 . the flame retardant liquid rubber composition of the present invention had a long pot life to have excellent casting processability . the cured products had excellent characteristics as shown in table 1 . table 1______________________________________ after after dipping in heating water measure - normal at 130 ° c . at 80 ° c . test ment condition for 500 hr . for 7 day______________________________________tensilestrength ( kg ./ cm . sup . 2 ) jis k 6301 63 68 61elongation (%) &# 34 ; 290 250 270vol . inherentresistance ( ω . cm ) jis k 6911 7 . 5 × 10 . sup . 15 6 . 0 × 10 . sup . 15 5 . 4 × 10 . sup . 14arc resis - tance ( sec .) &# 34 ; 130 126 125trackingresistance ( kv ) dip method & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3flammability ( o . i .) jis k 7201 25 . 4 25 . 4 25 . 4______________________________________ in accordance with the process of example 1 , each hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer obtained in reference 1 , 2 or 3 , the purified castor oil , alumina hydroxide , magnesium hydroxide and carbon black at ratios shown in table 2 were kneaded to obtain mixtures in a sheet form . each of the mixtures was admixed with 3 - isocyanatomethyl - 3 , 5 , 5 - trimethylcyclohexyl isocyanate at ratios shown in table 2 and each time for viscosity change was measured in accordance with the process of example 1 . each of the mixtures was also admixed with the same isocyanate and cured and the characteristics of the cured product were also measured in accordance with the process of example 1 . the results are shown in table 2 . table 2__________________________________________________________________________ examplecomposition ( wt . part ) 2 3 4 5 6 7__________________________________________________________________________hydrogenated polymerreference 1 100 100 -- -- -- -- reference 2 -- -- 100 100 100 100reference 3 -- -- -- -- -- 100castor oil 50 100 20 60 120 403 - isocyanatomethyl - 3 , 5 , 5 - trimethyl - cyclohexyl isocyanate 22 . 3 45 . 8 14 . 7 27 . 6 51 . 6 31 . 6alumina hydrate 140 160 60 120 150 100magnesium hydroxide 10 40 60 40 50 30carbon black ( thermal black ) 3 3 3 3 3 3initial viscosity ( poise ) 75 45 110 58 21 62time reaching to1 , 000 poise ( at 100 ° c . )( min .) 53 69 37 61 74 58tensile strength ( kg ./ cm . sup . 2 ) 105 125 87 110 134 93elongation (%) 270 230 290 260 210 340vol . inherent resis - tance ( ω . cm ) 3 . 4 × 10 . sup . 15 6 . 5 × 10 . sup . 14 2 . 5 × 10 . sup . 15 1 . 0 × 10 . sup . 15 7 . 5 × 10 . sup . 14 2 . 5 × 10 . sup . 15arc resistance ( sec .) 118 105 136 110 95 125tracking resistance ( kv ) & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3flammability ( o . i .) 24 . 6 23 . 2 25 . 4 24 . 6 23 . 2 23 . 2__________________________________________________________________________ in a 1 liter four necked flask equipped with a nitrogen gas inlet , a dropping funnel , a stirrer and a thermometer , 333 . 6 g . of 3 - isocyanatomethyl - 3 , 5 , 5 - trimethylcyclohexyl isocyanate was charged and nitrogen gas was fed and the mixture was heated to 80 ° c . with stirring and 517 . 5 g . of castor oil was gradually added dropwise at the same temperature through the dropping funnel , during 1 hour and the mixture was further stirred at 80 ° c . for 1 hour to obtain an isocyanate prepolymer having 530 of isocyanate equivalent . in the reactor of reference 4 , 333 . 6 g . of 3 - isocyanatomethyl - 3 , 5 , 5 - trimethylcyclohexyl isocyanate was charged and heated to 80 ° c . and 310 . 5 g . of castor oil was added dropwise through a dropping funnel under controlling the reaction temperature to lower than 120 ° c . after the addition , the mixture was stirred at 110 ° c . for 1 hour to obtain an isocyanate prepolymer having 145 of isocyanate equivalent . in a vessel , 100 g . of the hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer , 125 g . of alumina hydrate , 25 g . of magnesium hydroxide , and 3 g . of carbon black were charged and heated at 80 ° c . with stirring and the mixture was kneaded in a sheet form by a three roll mill to uniformly disperse the filler and carbon black . in a 200 cc tall beaker , 100 g . of the mixture was charged and heat - melted in an oil bath at 85 ° c . and then 18 . 1 g . of the isocyanate prepolymer obtained in reference 4 was admixed . a time from the initial viscosity of 150 poise ( reaching to 85 ° c .) to the viscosity of 1 , 000 poises was measured to give 31 minutes . the same mixture was admixed with the same isocyanate prepolymer and the mixture was deaerated at 80 ° c . and poured into a mold made of polypropylene . after pouring , the mold was heated at 150 ° c . for 1 hour to obtain a cured sheet having a size of 40 cm × 40 cm × 0 . 2 cm . mechanical characteristics ( tensile strength , elongation ) electric characteristics ( volumetric inherent resistance ; arc resistance ; tracking resistance ); flammability , water - proof property and heat resistance of the cured sheet were measured . the results of the measurements are shown in table 3 . the flame retardant liquid rubber composition of the present invention had a long pot life to have excellent casting processability . the cured products had excellent characteristics as shown in table 3 . table 3______________________________________ after after dipping in heating water measure - normal at 130 ° c . at 80 ° c . test ment condition for 500 hr . for 7 days______________________________________tensilestrength ( kg ./ cm . sup . 2 ) jis k 6301 56elongation (%) &# 34 ; 280vol . inherentresistance ( ω . cm ) jis k 6911 6 . 8 × 10 . sup . 15arc resis - tance ( sec .) &# 34 ; 128 128 131trackingresistance ( kv ) dip method & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3flammability ( o . i .) jis k 7201 27 . 2 27 . 2 27 . 2______________________________________ in accordance with the process of example 8 , each hydrogenated polyhydroxybutadiene polymer obtained in reference 1 , 2 or 3 , alumina hydrate , magnesium hydroxide and carbon black at ratios shown in table 4 were kneaded to obtain mixtures in a sheet form . each of the mixtures was admixed with the isocyanate prepolymer obtained in reference 4 or 5 at ratios shown in table 4 and each time for viscosity change was measured in accordance with the process of example 8 . each of the mixtures was also admixed with the isocyanate prepolymer and cured and the characteristics of the cured product were also measured in accordance with the process of example 8 . the results are shown in table 4 . table 4__________________________________________________________________________composition example ( wt . part ) 9 10 11 12 13 14 15__________________________________________________________________________hydrogenatedpolymerreference 1 91 . 7 -- -- -- 68 . 6 68 . 6 68 . 6reference 2 -- 71 . 6 69 . 6 -- -- -- -- reference 3 -- -- -- 60 . 3 -- -- -- isocyanate pre - polymerreference 4 -- 28 . 4 30 . 4 39 . 7 31 . 4 31 . 4 31 . 4reference 5 8 . 3 -- -- -- -- -- -- alumina hydrate 145 140 120 60 60 150 150magnesiumhydroxide 5 10 30 5 30 5 30carbon black ( thermal black ) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3initial viscosity ( poise ) 83 110 180 38 50 95 290time reachingto 1 , 000 poisesat 85 ° c . ( min ) 34 33 30 37 36 32 23tensile strength ( kg ./ cm . sup . 2 ) 61 59 50 90 93 65 43elongation (%) 220 240 300 380 340 200 145vol . inherentresistance ( ω . cm ) 6 . 5 × 10 . sup . 15 4 . 0 × 10 . sup . 15 1 . 5 × 10 . sup . 15 8 . 6 × 10 . sup . 15 4 . 6 × 10 . sup . 15 3 . 5 × 10 . sup . 15 6 . 3 × 10 . sup . 14arc resistance ( sec .) 118 124 132 94 105 135 153tracking resist - ance ( kv ) & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3 & gt ; 3flammability ( o . i .) 26 . 3 26 . 8 27 . 6 23 . 7 24 . 6 27 . 6 31__________________________________________________________________________ as shown in table 4 , the elongation and the flame retardancy of the cured products obtained from the flame retardant liquid rubber compositions of the present invention are improved but the melt viscosity of the composition is increased depending upon the increase of the amount of magnesium hydroxide in the alumina hydrate and magnesium hydroxide . therefore , magnesium hydroxide is not preferably incorporated in the amount of more than 30 wt . parts . when the amount of magnesium hydroxide is less than 5 wt . parts , the flame retardancy is disadvantageously too low . in order to impart sufficient flame retardancy to the cured product in the case of less than 5 wt . parts of magnesium hydroxide , the amount of alumina hydrate should be increased . if a large amount of alumina hydrate is incorporated in the composition , the elongation of the cured product is lowering to be inferior elasticity . the amount of alumina hydrate is preferably in a range of 60 to 150 wt . parts . as it is shown in the examples in the cases [ a ] and [ b ], the flame retardant liquid rubber compositions of the present invention have suitable viscosity for the casting and the impregnation and have suitable pot - life . the cured products are elastic products having excellent electric insulating property , high arc resistance , high tracking resistance , high water - proof property , high heat resistance and excellent flame retardancy . the industrial value of the present invention is remarkable .	2
as shown in fig1 , the block diagram of a vam power device includes , 100 active power factor corrector , apfc , 200 , high frequency power source circuit , 300 , high frequency transformer , 400 , ccfl or eefl lamps group , 500 , protector . circuit , 600 , impulse width control , 700 , dc power source , 800 , output / input interface equipment . as shown in fig2 , an embodiment of apfc circuit , 100 , of this invention . an electro - magnetic interference filter , emif , is connected to ac source , the ic 1 is an apfc ic , and pin 1 , p , is a voltage feedback . the rating of the feedback voltage is different by different ic . for example , the feedback voltage of tda4862 is 2 . 5v . when the output voltage , dc v , is fixed , the rating of ra is decreased , the voltage of p is increased , and thus the dc v is decreased . to approach the purpose , a rb and a photo coupler ph 1 is applied in this embodiment . rb and output part of ph 1 is connected in serial and paralleled to ra . when switch s 1 is switched to 1 , the led part of ph 1 is most lit when the vin is a high voltage , therefore ; the equipotent resistance of ra and rb is lowest , and the voltage of dc v is lowest . conversely when the vin is a low voltage , the voltage of vin is highest . the vin and dc v is an inverse ratio . when s 1 is switched to 2 , the led part of ph 2 is most lit when the vin is a high voltage , therefore ; the equipotent resistance of rc and rd is lowest , and the voltage of dc v is highest . conversely when the vin is a low voltage , the voltage of vin is lowest . the vin and dc v is a direct proportion . thus , the input characteristic of ph 1 and ph 2 is an important coefficient of the range of vin . the range of vin can be wide and digital controllable with combination of r 1 and r 2 . the output part of ph 1 and ph 2 can be photosensitive or other function type and not limited . as shown in fig3 , is the other embodiment of apfc circuit , 100 , of this invention . instead of ph 1 and ph 2 , the ra and rc can be replaced by variable resistor , vr 1 and vr 2 . the dc v can be adjusted manually . as shown in fig4 , is an embodiment of high frequency power source circuit , 200 . ic 2 is a self oscillating half bridge driver such as ir2153 , ir2155 , mc34066 , uc1864 , and etc . the oscillating frequency is depended on the resistor rf ; capacitor cf . a photo coupler ph 3 , an ignition circuit , gives ccfl , and eefl lamps group enough ignition energy . a photo coupler ph 4 , a protector circuit , works when open - circuited , over current , and over voltage occurs on ccfl , and eefl lamps group 400 or dc power source 700 . the led part of ph 4 is lit , the ic 2 stop working . the pin 5 and 7 of ic 2 sends pulses to drive power mosfet , m 1 and m 2 . one set of power mosfet , m 1 and m 2 connected to the primary , connection 1 and 2 , of high frequency transformer , 300 , in half - bridge wiring . the harmonic frequency is depended on capacitor c and inductor l . the frequency of ic 2 is fixed , and not variable with load . as shown in fig5 , an embodiment of 400 , ccfl or eefl lamps group , 500 , protector circuit , 700 , dc power source . the connection 3 and 4 , one of the secondary of high frequency transformer 300 , is a high frequency power source of ccfl or eefl lamps group . each ccfl or eefl connects to high frequency capacitor c 1 , c 2 , and a protecting detection circuit . when one or more than one ccfl or eefl act open circuited , the signal sent to protector circuit is a zero voltage ; thus the protector circuit 500 works . ph 5 is an ac input response photo coupler . a rk is connected to input part of ph 5 in parallel to prevent over current occurred on input part of ac input response photo coupler . the second secondary of high frequency transformer 300 , connection 5 , 6 , and 7 ; the third secondary of high frequency transformer 300 , connection 8 , 9 , and 10 ; the fourth secondary of high frequency transformer 300 , connection 11 , and 12 are supplementary power sources . a full - wave rectifier , a it type filter , and a programmable precision references ic , ic 3 , are connected to the second secondary of the high frequency transformer 300 . a photo coupler ph 6 is set for isolation from fourth secondary to achieve purpose of regulation . re and r 1 are for the reference voltage adjusting for ic 3 . rg and rh are for divided voltage from supplementary power source . a full - wave rectifier , a π type filter , a three terminal voltage regulator , ic 4 , are connected to the third secondary of high frequency transformer 300 . a half wave rectifier is connected to the fourth secondary of the high frequency transformer 300 . the dc voltage v 1 and v 2 are the output voltage of the second and the third secondary of high frequency transformer 300 . the forth secondary is independent power source ; the function is to execute the regulation of v 1 . the rectifier , filter , and regulator circuit can be varied and depended on application . protector circuit , 500 , is composed by op amp ic , ics and ic 6 . ics detects ccfl or eefl lamps group 400 . a delay circuit is composed by zd 1 . the delay circuit makes sure the protector signal is taken from stable ccfl or eefl lamps . ic 6 detects over current and over voltage of v 1 and v 2 . the over voltage detection device of v 1 is zener diode dz 2 , the over current detection device is resistor r 3 . the over voltage detection device of v 2 is zener diode dz 3 , the over current detection device is resistor r 4 . the output of ics and ic 6 connect to connection j , also connected to j connection of high frequency power source circuit 200 . ics and ic 6 can be two different parts in one ic . as shown in fig6 , is an embodiment example of vam power system . physically it is the same structure as fig2 , fig4 , and fig5 except symbols . the only difference is the fourth secondary , connection 11 and 12 , of high frequency transformer 300 , an independent power source . the purpose of the circuit is to give a stable voltage output to dc output of the second secondary of high frequency transformer 300 . when the v 1 is low , the led part of ic 6 is not lit , the mosfet m 3 is on , and a setting voltage can be measured at v 1 . if the v 1 is greater than setting , the m 3 is off , and the v 1 is lower , therefore ; v 1 is a very stable voltage output . ic 3 is a programmable precision references ic . r 5 is an over current detection resistor . the i / o interface 800 includes 5v dc output , connection 1 , 2 , and 3 ; 12vdc output connection 9 ; ground connection 4 , 5 , 6 , and 10 ; the input connection , connection 7 is a lamination dimming control signal input , usually from 0 to 4 . 5 vdc or 0 to 5 vdc depended on system . as shown in fig7 , is an embodiment example of vam power system . the dc output of apfc 100 is controlled by programmable precision references ic , ic 3 , of the second secondary , connection 5 , 6 , and 7 , of high frequency transformer 300 . by adjusting the dc output of apfc to control the luminance of ccfl or eefl lamps group . the first secondary , connection 3 , 4 , and the second secondary connection 5 , 6 , and 7 , belong to a same high frequency transformer 300 , therefore ; the second secondary reacts the rms voltage of the first secondary . the other function is as same as pervious embodiment examples . the control logic can be negative or positive logic control depended on the requirement and the characteristics of the ccfl or eefl lamps group and not limited . as shown in fig8 , is an embodiment example of vam power system . the dc output of the second secondary of high frequency transformer 300 , connection 5 , 6 , and 7 , is controlled by a reference voltage control variable resistor , vr 3 , of programmable precision references ic , ic 3 . when the v 1 is smaller than setting voltage , ph 1 gets a positive voltage , therefore ; the dc output of the apfc 100 gains , v 1 gains to setting voltage as well . the third secondary of high frequency transformer 300 , connection 8 , 9 , and 10 , supplies v 2 to load as well . the other function is as same as pervious embodiment examples . as shown in fig9 , is an embodiment example of vam power system . fig9 ( a ) shows fig6 , fig7 , and fig8 applies two sets of mosfet in parallel to gain the output of high frequency power source circuit 200 . the purpose is to diffuse the heat dissipation and cut the thickness within same output . there is only one driver ic , ic 2 , applied in circuit to synchronize the two sets of mosfet . fig9 ( b ) replaces the two high frequency transformer 300 with one high frequency transformer 300 to cut the cost . the sets of the mosfet can be multiple and not limited . fig9 ( c ) shows the two primary shown in fig9 ( a ) reeled in one high frequency transformer 300 to reduce the heat dissipation . that is , the high frequency power source circuit can be s self oscillating full bridge driver and not limited . the mosfet can be replaced with igbt or other power transistor device and not limited . as shown in fig1 , is an embodiment of impulse width control circuit . the output of the photo couplers ph 7 and ph 8 are connected to the gate terminals of m 1 and m 2 shown in fig4 . a timer ic , ic 7 , such as 555 , transistor t 3 composes a sawtooth generator . the sawtooth wave is sent from k to the positive input of the opamp ic 9 . the frequency of the sawtooth wave is f = 1 / ck [ 0 . 75 ( r 6 + r 7 )+ 0 . 693 * vr 4 ]; the value of r 6 * cm has to greater than 10 * r 7 * ck . the sawtooth generator can be other sawtooth generator ic different from the above embodiment and not limited . the output of dc summing amplifier ic , ic 8 , and dc voltage is connected to the negative input of the ic 9 . the voltages of positive input of ic 8 come from dc voltage and external control voltage , ev . the negative input of the ic 9 is a dc voltage ; the positive input of ic 9 is sawtooth wave ; therefore , a pulse is generated at the output of ic 9 , q , and the frequency of it is controlled by vr 4 . the output of the ic 9 , q , is connected to input part of ph 7 and ph 8 ; the output part of ph 7 and ph 8 is connected to gates of m 1 and m 2 . when the negative input of the ic 9 is large , the pulse width is narrow ; therefore , the output of the high frequency transformer 300 is enlarged . contrariwise , the output of the high frequency transformer 300 is lessened . to approach the luminance brightness control or ccfl or eefl lamps group , the same function ic can be applied to replace this circuit and not limited . the impulse width control circuit can be applied on the luminance brightness control of other discharge lamps , such as high pressure sodium lamp , hid lamp , and etc . lamps . as shown in fig1 , a real measurement wave - form from ph 8 in fig1 , the measurement takes from only one photo coupler , ph 8 . the photo coupler ph 7 and ph 8 can be applied only one or both of them , depended on application . the vin , the output , and the wave - form of the lamp is for reference and proving of this embodiment . as shown in fig1 , is an embodiment of impulse width control circuit . the output of ph 8 is moved to the oscillation relation capacitor cf in parallel . the input stays the same connection . the output frequency of ic 9 equals to the shutdown time of the ic 2 to reach a purpose of luminance brightness control of ccfl or eefl lamps group . the width and frequency of output pulse of ic 9 is variable and depended on application . as shown in fig1 , is a measurement wave - form of 4 ccfl lamps applied on fig1 . there is only one photo coupler ph 8 is applied . vin is voltage of ev in fig1 ; the range is from 0 to 15v . the wave - form of voltage of control output , ch 1 , lamp current , ch 2 , vin , and the output are for reference and proving of this embodiment . as shown in fig1 , is an embodiment of dc power source circuit . the programmable precision references ic is replaced by ic 10 , op amp , in fig5 of dc power source 700 . when the positive input voltage is greater than negative input voltage , a positive is sent to the led part of the photo coupler ph 6 , the mosfet m 3 is off . v 1 is low down to setting voltage . when the positive input voltage is smaller than negative input voltage , the led part of the photo coupler ph 6 is off , the mosfet m 3 is on . v 1 gains to setting voltage . the on / off cycles keep the v 1 in stable setting output . a negative logic can be applied on this embodiment and not limited . as shown in fig1 ( a ), is an embodiment of dc power source circuit . the photo coupler ph 6 is replaced by a pnp transistor t 2 in fig5 of dc power source 700 . when the source voltage of the mosfet m 3 is higher than the setting voltage , v 1 , the ic 3 is on , t 2 is on , the gate voltage of m 3 is low , m 3 is off ; the source voltage of the m 3 is low to v 1 . when the source voltage of m 3 is lower than v 1 , t 2 is off , m 3 is on ; the source voltage of m 3 is high to v 1 . due to the above movement , the v 1 is a stable output . as shown in fig1 ( b ), is an embodiment of dc power source circuit . the photo coupler ph 6 is replaced by a npn transistor t 3 in fig1 of dc power source 700 . the coupling way is a direct coupling which is different from photo coupling of fig1 . as shown in fig5 ( c ), is an embodiment of dc power source circuit . when the source voltage of m 3 is higher than setting voltage v 1 , the voltage between re and r 1 is higher than zener voltage of zd 5 and the base - emitter voltage of t 4 , the t 4 is on , m 3 is off . when the source voltage of m 3 is lower than setting voltage v 1 , the m 3 is on . due to the above movement , the v 1 is a stable output . as shown in fig1 ( a ), is an embodiment of dc power source circuit . when the secondary of high frequency transformer 300 , connection 8 , in positive half wave , the led part of ph 9 is on ; the rh is connected to the positive and the negative of the secondary , connection 11 and 12 , of the high frequency transformer 300 ; the mosfet m 5 is off ; the mosfet m 4 is on . m 4 and m 5 have the characteristic of unidirectional ; therefore , the circuit has rectifier function . when the junction b gets a rectified voltage , the v 2 gets a dc voltage after flows through a π filter circuit composed by c 3 , l 1 , and c 4 . the center junction of re and r 1 is connected to reference of the programmable precision references ic , ic 3 , the other two junctions are connected to v 2 . when the v 2 is greater than setting voltage , the ic 3 is on , both m 4 and m 5 is off , the rectifying stops , the v 2 is lower . when v 2 goes low enough to turn the ic 3 off , the m 4 and m 5 execute the rectifying function again , the v 2 voltage is greater than it was . the m 4 and m 5 have the function of rectifying and regulation . the voltage of b junction could be higher than 8 and 10 connection of high frequency transformer 300 any time , to avoid this ; a protect opposite current detection circuit is applied in this invention . when the positive input of ic 11 is greater than the negative one , the led part of ph 12 is lit , the output of ph 12 is on , the power source is cut off , the emitter of the t 4 is a zero voltage output , m 4 and m 5 cut off ; therefore , no reversing voltage occurs on high frequency transformer 300 . the d 3 and d 4 are diodes ; they are set to give the instant voltage comes from connection 8 and 10 to the negative input of ic 11 . rl and rm are for setting voltage of positive input of ic 11 . the rn and rp are for setting voltage of negative input of ic 11 . as shown in fig1 ( b ), is an embodiment of dc power source circuit with self starting function . when the positive half wave occurs on connection 8 of high frequency transformer 300 , the sum of zener voltage of dz 7 , the forward bias voltage of d 1 , and the forward bias voltage of led part of ph 9 has to be greater than voltage of junction b ; then the circuit has the function of protect opposite current . if the voltage is greater than voltage of junction b , the led part of ph 9 is lit , the output of the ph 9 is on , the positive voltage comes from connection 11 and 12 is on rh , m 4 is on , the positive half wave voltage goes through m 4 to the π filter composed by c 3 , l 1 , and c 4 ; then it becomes to output voltage v 2 . when the positive half wave occurs on connection 10 of high frequency transformer 300 , the execution is the same as the above . both positive half wave of 8 and 10 are connected to junction b , thus is a full - wave rectifier . ic 3 , programmable precision references ic , is on , the output of the ph 6 is on , the gates of m 4 and m 5 is shorten , the v 2 is lower than it was ; when v 2 drops until the ic 3 is off , the m 4 and m 5 executes rectifying , the v 2 is higher than it was . instead of the protect opposite current detection circuit , dz 7 and dz 8 can be removed out of the circuit . the m 4 and m 5 has characteristic of bidirectional ; therefore , the drain and source can be switch from each other and not limited , the gate circuit stays the same . as shown in fig1 ( c ), is an embodiment of dc power source circuit with self starting function . when the positive half wave occurs on connection 8 of high frequency transformer 300 , the sum of zener voltage of dz 7 , the forward bias voltage of d 1 , and the base voltage of t 5 has to be greater than voltage of junction b ; then the circuit has the function of protect opposite current . if the voltage is greater than voltage of junction b , t 5 is on , the positive voltage comes from connection 11 and 12 is on rh , m 4 is on , the positive half wave voltage goes through m 4 to the π filter composed by c 3 , l 1 , and c 4 ; then it becomes to output voltage v 2 . when the positive half wave occurs on connection 10 of high frequency transformer 300 , the execution is the same as the above . both positive half wave of 8 and 10 are connected to junction b , thus is a full - wave rectifier . ic 3 , programmable precision references ic , is on , the output of the ph 6 is on , the gates of m 4 and m 5 is shorten , the v 2 is lower than it was ; when v 2 drops until the ic 3 is off , the m 4 and m 5 executes rectifying , the v 2 is higher than it was . the power mosfets m 4 and m 5 have the function of rectifying and regulation . the sources of the mosfets are connected to the ac terminal in this circuit . as shown in fig1 ( d ), is an embodiment of dc power source circuit with self starting function . the ph 6 in fig1 ( c ) is replaced with zener diode zd 5 and the pnp transistor t 4 . when the v 2 is greater than the setting voltage , the ic 3 , programmable precision references ic works , the base of t 4 is low voltage , the t 4 is off , the gates of m 4 and m 5 are grounded ; m 4 and m 5 stop rectifying , the v 2 is dropped . when v 2 is dropped to turn the ic 3 off , the m 4 and m 5 start rectifying ; v 2 rises . the power mosfets m 4 and m 5 have the function of rectifying and regulation . the m 4 and m 5 has characteristic of bidirectional . the sources of the mosfets are connected to the ac terminal in this circuit . the protect opposite current circuit is composed by diodes d 1 and d 2 , zener diodes dz 7 and dz 8 , current limit resistors r 8 and r 9 , base resistor r 10 and r 11 , and pnp transistors t 5 and t 6 or same function mosfets . the zener voltage of zd 7 and zd 8 have to be equal or greater than dc output to prevent the opposite current and energy wasting . the protect opposite current circuit of fig1 ( c ) is same function as above . the m 4 and m 5 in fig1 ( a ), ( b ), ( c ), and ( d ) can be a rectifier and has the characteristic of low losses and substitutes rectifier diodes . ensemble with fig5 and the dc power source 700 in fig . ( 14 ) is a very practical application for industry . as shown in fig1 , is an embodiment of dc power source circuit . this circuit is composed by fig4 , fig8 , and fig1 . the frequency of ic 2 is related to rf and cf . when self oscillating half bridge driver ic 2 working , the connection 5 , 6 , and 7 generates a high frequency voltage , after full wave rectifying and filtering , a setting voltage is got from the center junction of re and ri . when the setting voltage is greater than 2 . 5v , programmable precision references ic 3 is on , led part of ph 6 is lit , the sum of rj and rk is drop , the oscillating frequency is higher , the output voltage of secondary of high frequency transformer 300 is lower , the dc output voltage is lower . when the dc output is lower than setting voltage , the oscillating frequency of the ic 3 is lower , the dc output is greater ; therefore , the dc output becomes stable . the secondary connection 8 , 9 , and 10 ; secondary connection 5 , 6 , and 7 belong to same high frequency transformer 300 ; therefore , the dc output of connection 8 , 9 , and 10 is affected by dc output of connection 5 , 6 , and 7 ; this circuit gets stable dc output and against the affection of impulse width control circuit 600 . the control logic of this circuit can be positive and negative logic depended on application and l c harmonic curve and not limited . this invention is a power source device with vam control method ; an apfc circuit which the dc output is controlled by positive and negative logic control , by controlling the amplitude of the high frequency power source to achieve the luminance brightness control of ccfl or eefl lamps group ; a impulse width control to achieve luminance brightness control of ccfl or eefl lamps group ; simultaneously get a high frequency output , multiple sets of stable dc output from secondary ; function of protect circuit includes open - circuited of discharge lamp , over current , over voltage . fig1 , the block diagram of a vam power device fig4 , an embodiment of high frequency power source circuit fig5 , an embodiment of ccfl or eefl lamps group , dc power source , and protector circuit fig1 , a measurement wave - form of 4 ccfl lamps applied on fig1 fig1 , a measurement wave - form of 4 ccfl lamps applied on fig1	8
turn now to the drawings and initially to fig1 which diagrammatically illustrates a manufacturing system 30 embodying the invention . a conveyor 32 driven by a suitable prime mover 33 operates continuously at a constant rate of speed in a clockwise direction as indicated by arrows 34 . in addition to several automatic operations which are performed at discrete operating positions or stations along the length of the conveyor , there are also certain manual or semi - automatic operations which interrelate with the automatic operations of the system . the operation of the system 30 is controlled from a control console 36 . all manual and semi - automatic operations are performed at the left end of the system 30 as illustrated in fig1 and , specifically , at an assembly bench area 38 . the system 30 serves to join together an assembly 39 ( see fig2 ) comprised of a core member 40 and a housing member 42 , then to bond them securely together into an integral unit . a continuing series of operations are performed by the system in a step - by - step sequence . at the outset of the operation of the system 30 , the core member 40 and the housing member 42 are separated . as operation of the system 30 proceeds , the members 40 and 42 are joined together to form the assembly 39 after which a series of operations are performed on the assembly to result in a finished product . in order for all operations to be completed , an individual assembly and its component members must make two complete passes through the system 30 . as an aid to the reader , a broad , general description of the system 30 will be described initially followed by a detailed description or explanation of each of the operations and components of the system . referring to fig1 operations are seen to commence at a primer station 44 at which a core member 40 and housing member 42 are manually placed for an initial coating operation . when the members are properly placed in position , the coating operation proceeds automatically . following activities at the primer station , the members 40 and 42 are manually forwarded to a press station 46 at which they are integrated into the assembly 39 on a fixture 64 . thereafter , members 40 and 42 are never again separated but remain joined together as an assembly . with reference to fig3 and 3a , it is noteworthy that the housing member 42 is formed with a hole 48 extending thereto from a surface 50 to a surface 51 . furthermore , a plurality of ribs 52 integral with the housing member 42 extend into the hole 48 and serve to separate an outer peripheral surface 54 of the core member 40 from an inner peripheral surface 56 of the housing member 42 . a plurality of cavities 58 are thereby formed , each cavity defined by the surfaces 54 and 56 and adjacent pairs of ribs 52 . after the assembly 39 is removed from the press station 46 , it is manually delivered to a first bead station 60 at which a first bead 62 of viscous sealant is applied at one end of the assembly 39 overlying each cavity 58 . thereafter , the assembly 39 , which is mounted on fixture 64 , is removed from the first bead station 60 . in turn , the fixture 64 is mounted on a pallet 66 which is positioned on the convey or 32 for movement therealong . the assemblage of devices illustrated in fig2 is completed when a dome member 68 is mounted on the fixture 64 so as to envelope the assembly 39 . from this point forward until the end of the sequence of operations performed by the system 30 , the assembly generally remains with its associated pallet 66 and fixture 64 , proceeding with the conveyor 32 . the assembly 39 is next delivered to a nitrogen injection station at which nitrogen or other inert gas or mixture of gases or of gaseous compounds form an atmosphere surrounding the assembly within the dome member 68 . the process continues as the assembly 39 passes through an ultraviolet radiation zone 72 which serves to cure the bead of sealant 62 which had previously been applied to the assembly . after leaving the radiation zone 72 , the assembly 39 advances to a dome member removal station 74 at which the dome member 68 is removed from the fixture 64 , placed onto a return conveyor 76 by means of which the dome member 68 is returned to the assembly bench area 38 . next in the sequence of events , the assembly 39 is inverted so that the side of the assembly on which the first bead of sealant 62 has been applied is placed on the bottom and the other side of the assembly is raised . this takes place at an assembly inversion station 78 after completion of which the assembly 39 is advanced to an anaerobic material dispensing station 80 . at the station 80 , anaerobic bonding material 82 is injected into the cavities 58 . after completion of operations at the station 80 , all meaningful operations for the first pass through the system 30 by the assembly 39 has been completed . after leaving the dispensing station 80 , the assembly proceeds until it is removed briefly by an operator for manual insertion into a mechanism at a second bead station 84 . at this station , once the assembly has been manually pl aced in position , a second bead 86 of sealant is automatically applied so as to overlie the cavities 58 adjacent the surface 51 of the housing member 42 . this serves to isolate the anaerobic bonding material 80 which was previously injected into each of the cavities 58 . after completion of this operation , the assembly 39 together with its fixture 64 is again returned to its associated pallet 66 . again , a dome member 68 is placed on the fixture over the assembly . the pallet and its cargo are then again delivered to the station 70 and the assembly again subjected to an atmosphere of suitable inert gas or gases . following the operation at station 70 , the assembly is again subjected to ultraviolet radiation in the zone 72 , then proceeds to station 74 for removal of the dome member 68 . on its second pass through the system 30 , the assembly 39 is not operated on at the inversion station 78 nor at the dispensing station 80 and after passing through these stations is removed from the system as a completed assembly . a more detailed description of the system 30 and its operation will now be described . as illustrated in fig1 as well as in fig4 a - 4e , the system 30 utilizes a wheeled cart 88 which is preferably positioned in the vicinity of the assembly bench area 38 . this is the general area where the operator or operators for the system are generally positioned . the cart 88 is illustrated in fig4 a as storing large numbers of core members 40 and housing members 42 , both of which are awaiting operations to be performed by the system 30 , and completed assemblies 39 . as a first operation to be performed by the system 30 , an operator removes a virgin core member 40 and a virgin housing member 42 from the cart 88 and delivers them to the primer station 44 . the primer station is diagrammatically illustrated in fig5 as comprising an enclosure 90 with a suitable handle operated door 92 allowing insertion of the members 40 and 42 into the enclosure and removal of the members after an operation has been performed . within the enclosure 90 , there is a stationary support member 94 on which the housing member 42 is placed . beside the support member 94 is a rotatable support member 96 on which the core member 40 is positioned . the primer station 44 serves to apply a priming composition to the outer surface 54 of the core member 40 and to the inner surface 56 of the housing member 42 . the priming composition serves to activate the cure of the anaerobic bonding material 82 which will be subsequently applied to the assembly at the dispensing station 80 . the priming composition preferably dries rapidly . one example of such a composition which has a freon base is loctite part no . 18028 , manufactured by loctite corporation of newington , conn . loctite part no . 18028 is a proprietary , non - flammable , low viscosity primer for activating metal and plastic surfaces and causing the bonding material 82 to cure through large gaps . with the core and housing members 40 and 42 , respectively , in position on their support members , the door 92 is closed , upon which event operations are automatically initiated . specifically , a nozzle 98 is suitably rotated by any suitable means such as by an air motor 100 to discharge the priming composition introduced via a conduit 102 form a reservoir 104 ( fig1 ). the nozzle 98 extends upwardly into the hole 48 and , as it rotates , discharges priming composition onto the peripheral surface 56 . simultaneously , the support member 96 is rotated and a fixed nozzle 106 discharges the chemical composition received via a conduit 108 from the reservoir 104 onto the outer peripheral surface 54 of the core member 40 . operations at the primer station 44 continue for a predetermined period of time which is a function of the flow rate of the priming composition , the rotational speed of the support member 96 and of the nozzle 98 , and the desired thickness of the priming composition on the receiving surfaces . after the predetermined period of time has passed and the operation is completed , the operator opens the door 92 , removes the core member 40 and housing member 42 and places them temporarily on a storage shelf 110 in readiness for delivery to the press station 46 . although it may be desirable to advance the core member 40 and the housing member 42 from the primer station 44 to the temporary storage shelf 110 , an operator can also deliver those items directly to the press station 46 ( see fig4 b ) together with a fixture 64 taken from the pallet 66 supported on the conveyor 32 beside the assembly bench area 38 . the press station 46 comprises a hand movable press whose construction is not important for purposes of the present invention . at the press station , the operator places an empty fixture on the assembly press and then places core member 40 on core platform 119 of fixture 64 in the appropriate position . the operator then places the housing member 42 with its hole 48 in registration with the core member 40 and gently urges it into position so that ribs 52 on its inner peripheral surface 56 are lightly engageable with the outer peripheral surface 54 of core member 40 . generally , once these two parts are positioned on top of one another , they will not be seated completely . however , with movement of a lever ( not shown ), the hand movable press imparts a vertical motion on a suitable mechanism which compresses the two members together until they assume the registration generally illustrated in fig3 and 3a . in some instances , the registration of the members 40 and 42 may be by press fit and in other instances they may be relatively loose . the press station 46 is actually only necessary in those instances in which there is interference between the ribs 52 and the outer surface 54 of the core member 40 . as mentioned above , the joining of the core member and of the housing member to form the assembly takes place with the fixture 64 in position ( see fig2 ). thus , in the event of a loose fit , the housing member 42 descends relative to the core member 40 only until it reaches generally flat upper surfaces 114 and 120 of the fixture . the surface 112 is provided with a pair of spaced apart pads 114 and 120 which receive the lower surface 51 ( fig3 a ) of the housing member 42 thereon . upstanding registration elements 116 and 118 are also fixed on the flat surface 112 and serve to properly position the housing 42 on the fixture within specified limits . the taller elements 116 engage a side of the housing 42 and have notched out supporting surfaces 120 which also receive the lower surface 51 of the housing member . the registration elements 118 are generally opposite the elements 116 and engage , respectively , with spaced apart notched out regions 122 and 124 . in this manner , the housing member 42 is supported on the fixture 64 in a manner so as to be generally immovable in horizontal directions and downwardly and the core member 40 is also held positioned within the hole 48 in the housing member . from this point forward in the course of the operation of the system 30 , the assembly 39 comprised of the core member 40 and housing member 42 is accompanied by and generally supported on the fixture 64 . preferably , of circular shape , the fixture is provided with a pair of diametrically opposed handles 126 which enable an operator to lift the fixture and any members supported thereon as a unit without touching the members themselves . it may be desirable to place a sensor ( not shown ) at the assembly press station 46 to inform the operator as to whether or not the core member 40 is properly oriented within the housing member 42 . if such orientation is not proper , a suitable signal , such as a red light on the control console 36 could be used to alert the operator to that fact . the operator would then take the necessary manual steps to achieve proper orientation . with success , a green light or other suitable signal on the console 36 is illuminated informing the operator that the core and housing members are now properly oriented and prepared for subsequent operations . turn now to fig4 c which illustrates the fixture 64 , now carrying the assembly 39 , being transferred to the next station , namely , the first bead station 60 . from the standpoint of the operator , the operation of the first bead station 60 may be similar to that for the primer station 44 . that is , the apparatus for performing the operation may be located within an enclosure ( not shown ) and initiated when a door to that enclosure is moved by the operator from an open to a closed position . the specific operation performed and mechanism employed at the first bead station 60 may be substantially as disclosed in commonly assigned u . s . application of w . gelinas and r . mcdermott , ser . no . 745 , 655 , filed june 17 , 1985 , now u . s . pat . no . 4 , 678 , 100 entitled &# 34 ; variable flow rate dispensing valve assembly &# 34 ;, which is incorporated by reference herein . as disclosed therein and with reference herein , briefly to fig7 the assembly 39 is suitably positioned in an enclosure ( not shown ) such that a dispensing head 128 and its associated nozzle 130 overlie the cavities 58 between the core member 40 and the housing member 42 . for purposes of explanation , the dispensing head 128 is illustrated as being rotatable about a vertical axis . however , it is also within the scope of the invention for the head 128 to be held stationary while the fixture 64 and assembly 39 thereon are rotated relative to the nozzle 130 . in either event , a first continuous bead 62 of suitable viscous sealant material supplied by the nozzle 130 is drawn from a reservoir 132 ( fig1 ) via a flexible conduit 134 . one example of a suitable sealant is that manufactured and marketed by loctite corporation of newington , conn . under the part number 190034 . part no . 190034 is a proprietary high viscosity , thixotropic explosive compatable compound that cures with ultraviolet light to form a flexible seal for large gap areas . the bead 62 is applied to the peripheral surfaces 54 and 56 ( fig3 and 3a ) at a terminal region of the cavities 58 , that is , at the region at which the cavities 58 cease to exist . as illustrated in fig7 the shapes of the core 40 and of the housing member 42 appear to be regular . also , the spacing between them appears constant and their upper surfaces appear to lie in a common horizontal plane . however , such regularity need not be the case . for example , as illustrated in fig7 a , the nozzle 130 may be required to reciprocate in the directions of a double arrowhead 136 in order to accommodate a sloping upper surface 50 of a housing member 42a . similarly , as illustrated in fig7 b , there may be irregular spacing between the core member 40 and a housing member 42b . this would require that varying amounts of sealant be injected by the nozzle 130 depending upon the azimuthal position of the core and housing member as rotation occurs in the direction of arrowheads 138 . in a typical example , the spacing between the core member 40 and the housing member 42b can vary from between 0 . 040 inches to approximately 0 . 100 inches . it will also be appreciated that there may be instances in which the core member 40 and its associated housing member 42 are not coterminous . hence , the bead 62 must be applied where either one of the members terminates or where they both terminate together . further , it may be that the nozzle 130 must follow a contour in which the top surface may be flat for a stretch , then inclined , as illustrated in fig7 a , all the while that the spacing between the core member and its associated housing member is varied as illustrated in fig7 b . thus , not only need the nozzle 130 follow the appropriate contour , but it must also vary the volume of the sealant material to be dispensed . sealant material used for the bead 62 is sufficiently viscous that it remains in place at the terminal region of the cavities 58 and does not flow downwardly into their inner regions . however , the bead remains in a semisolid state until it is later subjected to ultraviolet radiation at the zone 72 . the composition of the sealant is such that it is cured by being exposed to ultraviolet radiation . after operations at the first bead station 60 are completed , the operator places the fixture 64 and its associated assembly 39 onto a pallet 66 ( see fig4 e ) already in position on the conveyor 32 . the pallet 66 has a pair of circular depressions 140 formed therein in tandem relationship and adapted to freely , but matingly receive a cylindrical projecting undersurface 142 of the fixture 64 . turn now to fig8 and 9 for a brief description of the conveyor 32 . the conveyor 32 is provided with a frame supporting structure 144 on which a movable element 146 is continuously advanced so as to move the pallet 66 and the assembly 39 thereon to the plurality of stations constituting the system 30 . specifically , the movable element may of any suitable design , one example being a rexnord series 1873 side flexing chain 148 ( fig9 ) which mounts at spaced locations therealong a continuing series of lf acetal top plates 150 . the chain 148 operates continuously by means of the prime mover 33 and is guided along the conveyor 32 by means of a track 152 suitably mounted on the frame structure 144 . as the pallet 66 advances along the conveyor resting on the upper surface of the top plates 150 and in frictional engagement thereon , the pallet is laterally guided by opposed smooth surfaced guide members 154 whose spacing is only slightly greater than the width of the pallet . when an operation is to be performed on the assembly 39 at a particular station , a suitably positioned stop gate 156 is operated to stop the pallet . the stop gate 156 includes a projection pin 157 which is laterally disposed beyond the path of the top plates 150 yet in line with the path of the pallet 66 . the stop gate 156 extends through an opening 158 in the frame 144 and , by means of compressed air or by a solenoid or by any other suitable mechanism , is movable between inactive and active positions . the inactive position is illustrated by solid lines in fig9 and permits the pallet 56 to proceed on the movable element 146 . the active position is illustrated by dotted lines and , in that position , is engageable with the front side of the pallet thereby holding the pallet motionless and enabling an appropriate operation to be performed on the assembly . the coefficient of friction between the top plates 150 and the pallet 66 is of a carefully chosen value . that is , it must be sufficiently large to assure that the pallet 66 and its cargo will normally move in unitary fashion with the top plates 150 . however , it must be sufficiently small so that there is minimal wear on the plates and on the pallet when a stop gate 156 is moved to the active position such that the pallet is left &# 34 ; idling &# 34 ; on the movable element . as illustrated in fig4 e , the fixture 64 and its associated assembly 39 are placed onto the pallet 66 from the first bead station 60 . this occurs when the pallet 66 is left idling on the conveyor 32 by reason of operation of the stop gate 156c . immediately following placement of the fixture on the pallet , a dome member 68 is removed from the assembly bench area 38 and placed on the fixture 64 so as to envelop the assembly 39 . this arrangement is particularly well seen in fig1 which illustrates the dome member 68 as having a generally cylindrical body section 160 fabricated from aluminum or other suitable material and having a window 162 comprising its upper surface . the window is preferably composed of glass of the type manufactured and sold by corning glass works under the trademark &# 34 ; pyrex &# 34 ;, or other suitable material . the glass material which has been employed may have a thickness of about one - quarter inch and transmits approximately 90 % of available light energy above the approximately 360 nanometer frequency range . as previously explained , the assembly 39 is to be subjected to ultraviolet radiation at the zone 72 which is located downstream from the location at which the dome member 68 is mounted on the fixture 64 . in order to effectively isolate the interior of the dome 68 from the surrounding atmosphere , the window 162 is mounted to the body section 160 by means of a pair of annular rings 164 which hold appropriate seals 166 in position at the interface between the window and the body section . additionally , the lower rim of the body section 160 is chamfered as at 168 so as to sealingly engage an o - ring seal 170 which is mounted on an annular ring 172 of the fixture 64 . the weight of the dome member 68 on the seal 170 is sufficient to provide an airtight closure on the fixture 64 . at the same time , the arrangement serves as a check valve operable to allow escape of gases should the pressure within the dome member reach excessive levels . thereupon , the stop gate 156c is withdrawn to an inactive position in order to permit the pallet and its cargo to move to the next appropriate station of the system 30 . the next succeeding stop gate , indicated by reference numeral 156d , is also moved to an inactive position to allow entry of the pallet 66 into the nitrogen injection station 70 . however , stop gate 156e is held in the active position to engage the pallet and hold it in an idling condition at the station 70 . thereupon , the stop gate 156d is moved to the active position to prevent any subsequent pallet from entering the nitrogen injection station 70 while a pallet is already positioned therein . it will be appreciated that it is customary , although not required , for each of the tandem depressions 140 to supportingly receive a fixture 64 and its associated assembly 39 and dome member 68 . accordingly , the nitrogen injection station 70 is equipped with a pair of bullet nosed needle injectors 174 ( fig1 and 12 ), each attached via a conduit 176 ( fig1 ) to tanks 178 ( fig1 ) of compressed nitrogen gas positioned approximate to the nitrogen injection station . suitable apertures 180 are provided in the frame structure 144 of the conveyor to freely receive therethrough the needle injectors 174 and enable their movement between a retracted position as illustrated by solid lines in fig1 to an advanced position as illustrated by dotted lines . the pallet 66 also has a pair of associated apertures 181 which similarly accommodate movement therethrough of the injectors 174 . the apertures 181 are aligned with the apertures 180 when the pallet is properly positioned within station 70 . a screw jack 182 mounted on the frame support structure 144 in a suitable fashion is driven upwardly and downwardly by a source of power such as an air motor 184 . the screw jack 182 serves to raise and lower a support plate 186 on which the injectors 174 are suitably mounted . a brake 187 serves to hold the screw jack 182 and its associated needle injectors 174 in its advanced position for a predetermined length of time until it is desired to return the needle injectors to the retracted position . the control console 36 for the system 30 is informed that the needle injectors 174 have reached their advanced positions when actuator arm 188 integral with the support plate 186 engages a limit switch 189 . this in turn , deactivates the motor 184 . similarly , when the actuator arm 188 engages a limit switch 190 , as movement proceeds downwardly , the control console is informed that the needle injector 174 has moved to a fully retracted position and , again , the motor 184 is deactivated . with reference now especially to fig1 , it is seen that as the needle injector 174 is elevated towards its . advanced position , its bullet nose first engages , then pushes aside , a resilient diaphragm 190 . the diaphragm normally covers an orifice 191 which extends from a bottom surface of the fixture 64 to the top surface 112 thereof . it is held in place by a suitable ring 191a and is preferably composed of a closed cell sponge rubber material . the diaphragm has a cruciform shaped slitted opening 192 formed therein ( see especially fig6 ), by reason of which the material of the diaphragm 190 is pushed aside by the needle injector , yet adheres closely to the needle injector when the needle injector is fully advanced , a quantity of nitrogen gas is injected into the inner region mutually isolated by the dome member 68 and the fixture 64 . the quantity of the gas injected preferably has twice the volume of the inner region so isolated . this causes the original , or ambient , atmosphere of air within the dome member to be exhausted through the diaphragm 190 . after a predetermined period of time , which is dependent upon the volume within the dome member 64 and the rate of flow of nitrogen gas through the needle injector 174 , the resulting atmosphere within the dome member , isolated from the surrounding atmosphere , will be substantially 100 % nitrogen gas . when the injector 174 is subsequently withdrawn to the retracted position , the diaphragm 190 also returns to its original sealing condition , effective to retain the new inert atmosphere within the dome member 68 . it is noteworthy that excessive pressures , should they occur , will be automatically exhausted through the o - ring seal 170 which serves as a safety valve . an inert atmosphere can thus be provided for the assembly 39 in an economical manner and requiring a relatively small volume of inert gas . the purpose for the nitrogen injection station 70 is to provide an inert atmosphere for each assembly 39 . such an atmosphere substantially enhances the effectiveness of the ultraviolet radiation to be provided at zone 72 for curing the bead of sealant which was applied to the assembly at the station 60 . the nitrogen injection thereby enables a shortened curing time which , in turn , leads to more efficient and economical operation performed by the overall system 30 . while nitrogen is a preferred gas to employ for purposes of the invention , numerous other inert gases , or mixtures of gases , or gaseous compounds can be utilized for the same purpose . after the predetermined time lapse for performing the operation at the nitrogen injection station 70 , a subsequent stop gate 156e is moved to the withdrawn position as are successive stop gates 156f , 156g , 156h , and 156i , all of which are associated with the ultraviolet radiation zone 72 . throughout operation of the system 30 , appropriate sensing mechanisms ( not shown ) are operated to assure that only one pallet 66 is positioned between successive stop gates 156 . hence , stop gate 156d is not moved to the inactive position until after the pallet presently in the nitrogen injection station 70 moves beyond the stop gate 156e . thereupon , at substantially the same time , stop gate 156f is moved from an inactive position to the active position to engage the front side of the advancing pallet and the stop gate behind that pallet , namely , stop gate 156e is likewise moved to the active position so as to engage the front side of the next pallet in succession . furthermore , when that pallet engages the stop gate 156e , the stop gate 156d is moved to the active position to engage the front side of the pallet now positioned at the nitrogen injection station 70 . thus , all of the stop gates 156 of the system 30 are moved relative to one another by an appropriate control system which assures economy of operation while simultaneously guards against collisions between pallets and against situations where two pallets attempt to occupy the same station between successive stop gates and thereby cause a traffic jam . according to the arrangement illustrated in fig1 then , it will be evident that as many as three pallets 66 may be properly positioned simultaneously in the ultraviolet radiation zone 72 . this is in addition to possible positioning of two additional pallets immediately adjacent the radiation zone 72 , namely , one pallet about to enter the radiation zone and another pallet having just left the radiation zone . this arrangement results partially from the fact that the time necessary to cure a bead of sealant such as the bead 62 , may be , for example , 45 seconds which is approximately three times the time lapse generally necessary for performing operations at other stations of the system 30 . as a result , it has been determined as desirable , in order to assure the continuity of the system , to arrange three stop gates 156 within the zone 70 , with a pallet remaining at each station within the zone for an increment of time equal to one third of the total time necessary to achieve a cure , or approximately 15 seconds per station . additionally , while ultraviolet radiation as provided in the zone 72 is highly desirable for effecting a cure of the bead of sealant , it can have deleterious effects on the surrounding environment , as is well known . hence , it is necessary to contain the radiation within the zone 72 and not allow its escape . for this reason , as each pallet 66 approaches the radiation zone 72 , it must pass through two sets of doors , 194 and 196 , respectively , which are positioned at opposite ends of a short tunnel 198 immediately proceeding entry into the ultraviolet radiation zone 72 . furthermore , when the set of doors 194 is open , the set of doors 196 must be closed , and vice versa . in this manner , escape of ultraviolet radiation from the zone 72 is prevented at its upstream end . in a similar fashion , similar sets of doors 200 and 202 , respectively , are found at opposite ends of a short tunnel 204 ( fig1 ) and operate in the same relative manner as the sets of doors 194 , 196 to assure that there is no escape of ultraviolet radiation from the downstream end of the radiation zone 72 . referring to fig1 and 15 , the radiation zone 72 comprises three successive pairs , in tandem , of ultraviolet lamps 206 . these lamps 206 , may be , for example , ozone free , long wave , ultraviolet sources such as uvaloc 400 lamps currently available from loctite deutschland , munich , west germany . the lamps are positioned to project their radiation downwardly into a radiation tunnel 208 through which the pallets 66 and their associated cargo advance on the movable element 146 . two lamps 206 are positioned at each station , that is , between successive stop members 156 . to guard against potential undesirable interaction between the ultraviolet radiation produced by the lamps 206 and various gaseous compounds and impurities which may be present in the surrounding atmosphere passing through the tunnel 208 , a suitable window arrangement 210 with appropriate seals ( not specifically shown ) is provided for each pair of lamps 206 . in addition , a large capacity blower 212 suitably driven by a motor 214 directs cooling air drawn in from a remote location , under positive pressure , down and around each of the lamps 206 . this cooling air eventually exhausts through an outlet 215 which is controlled by a suitably operated damper 216 . the damper 216 mainly enables temperature control but also aids in the control of the pressure surrounding the lamps 206 . the positive pressure thereby produced by the blower 212 adds further assurance that there will be no impurities in the region of the lamps 206 . because any leakage would be outwardly directed , no ambient dust or vapor is undesirably drawn into the region of the lamps . suitably operated valves 218 and 220 are employed to regulate and generally balance the air flow at the juncture between a manifold 222 and ducts 224 , 226 , and 228 to each respective pair of lamps 206 . of course , it will be appreciated that other methods of cooling including those utilizing liquids could be satisfactorily employed . a number of significant benefits are derived from use of the radiation zone 72 as described . for example , dry to touch surface cures of the bead of sealant are produced in a fraction of the time normally required when curing without an inert atmosphere . of course , as previously mentioned , nearly perfect atmospheres can be economically created within the small volume of the confinement chamber as defined by the dome member 68 . furthermore , the hazard of suffocation to personnel which was previously present when creating less confined inert atmospheres , has been eliminated . also , the high cost of maintaining inert atmospheres is significantly reduced by reason of the present invention . additionally , by reason of the present design , personnel are not subjected to eye and skin hazards previously associated with use of ultraviolet radiation . then , too , lower ultraviolet energy requirements and shorter exposure times possible by reason of the inert atmosphere system and result in lower surface temperatures being generated on the parts being cured . as a typical comparison of energy requirements , it is note worthy that dry to touch surface cures can be produced by the present invention with less than half the ultraviolet energy , or approximately 50 , 000 mw / cm 2 while prior art processes not utilizing an inert atmosphere required double that energy for the same length of time . after a pallet 66 and its associated cargo pass , sequentually , beyond each of the successive stop gates 156f , 156g , 156h , and 156i , it is advanced by the movable element 146 until it reaches and is stopped by a stop gate 156j . at this point , if there is no pallet in the next succeeding station , the gate 156j is moved to the inactive position allowing the pallet to advance once again until it is then stopped by a gate 156k which is in the active position . as previously , when the front side of the pallet engages the stop gate 156k , the gate to its rear , namely 156j , is returned to the active position to assure that no subsequent pallet moves into the station 74 while the present pallet is so positioned . in order to perform the operation at the dome member removal station 74 , it is necessary to raise the pallet 66 and its cargo to an elevation substantially above the conveyor 32 . to accomplish this , a lifting mechanism 229 is utilized , as generally illustrated in fig1 . the lifting mechanism 229 includes a platform 230 positioned beneath the movable element 146 of the conveyor and lies in a plane generally parallel to the movable element . however , the platform 230 has at least four upstanding support members 232 adjacent its outermost edges . as seen in fig1 , these upstanding support members are mounted on the platform 220 at spaced locations in the direction of movement of the movable element 146 and lie in spaced apart planes on opposite sides of the conveyor and spaced outwardly of the movable element 146 . screw member 234 is operable to move the platform 230 between a raised position as indicated in solid lines in fig1 and a lowered position . a suitable drive mechanism , such as an air motor 236 serves to operate the screw member 234 . as illustrated in fig9 the support members 232 extend through openings 238 in the frame 144 of the conveyor 32 as they move to engage pallet 66 . as illustrated in fig1 , as the platform 230 is raised , the upper ends of the support members 232 engage and locate the pallet 66 and cause it to be raised above and out of engagement the movable element 146 . with the pallet so raised at station 74 , the dome members 68 are moved into engagement with a suction head 240 which has a pair of suitable suction elements 242 , each engageable with an associated dome member 68 . suction is then applied to the elements 242 causing them to firmly engage the dome members 68 . thereupon , the pallet 66 is lowered to its idling position by the lifting mechanism 229 . firmly engaging and supporting the dome members 68 , the suction head is then swung about a pivot 244 from the solid line position to the dotted line position thereby causing the dome members 68 to overlie the dome member return conveyor 76 . the conveyor 76 is a continually operating component of the system 30 and serves to return dome members 68 to the assembly bench area 38 for future placement on a fixture 64 . with the dome members positioned as illustrated in fig1 by dotted lines , suction to the elements 242 is terminated and the dome members drop a short distance to the surface of the conveyor 76 . the suction head 240 is then swung back to its solid line position overlying the conveyor 32 to await delivery of the next pallet 66 into the station 74 . at the same time , the dome members 68 proceed on the conveyor 76 to the assembly bench area 38 . when the dome member removal operation is completed , the stop gate 156k is withdrawn to its inactive position enabling the pallet 56 to proceed to the assembly inversion station 78 where it is engaged by a stop gate 156l ( see fig1 ). thereupon , the stop gate 156k is again raised to its active position to prevent a following pallet from entering the station . with the pallet 66 so engaging the stop gate 156l , operation of an inversion mechanism 246 is initiated . as seen in fig1 , the inversion mechanism 246 includes a pair of elongated arms 248 which extend transverse of the pallet and overlie it . another lifting mechanism 229 , similar in all respects to the lifting mechanism just described for use at the station 74 , is likewise effective to raise the pallet 66 at the station 78 . this raising of the pallet serves to move the first or forward assembly 39 thereon into the plane of the arms 248 . it will be understood that no operations are performed at the station 78 on the second or rear assembly 39 . this is for the reason that all operations on the second or rear assembly have been completed by the time station 78 is reached and that said assembly is merely awaiting removal from the system . the arms 248 are constructed to swing about a pivot 250 between an open position as indicated by dotted lines and a closed position engageable with the assembly 39 as indicated by solid lines . the extremities of the arms 248 may be provided with frictional pads 252 to aid in engaging and holding the assembly 39 . a suitable operating mechanism such as a solenoid 254 may be used to open and close the arms 248 about the pivot 250 and a tension spring 256 extending between the arms 248 serves to bias the arms toward the solid line , or closed , position . when the arms 248 solidly grip the assembly 39 , the lifting mechanism 229 operates to return the pallet 66 to its idling position on the conveyor 32 . then , as illustrated in fig1 and 19 , the arms 248 are rotated on a suitable shaft 258 in the direction of an arrow 260 . the shaft 258 rotates through an arc of 180 ° so as to reverse the position of assembly 39 on the fixture 64 and on the pallet 66 . thus , with reference momentarily to fig2 whereas previously the notched out regions 122 and 124 had engaged the registration elements 118 on the fixture 64 , after rotation , oppositely facing notched out regions 262 and 264 will engage the registration elements 118 . a purpose of this inversion step is to place the first bead of sealant 52 on the bottom of the assembly 39 as it continues through the system 30 and thereby expose the cavity 58 for filling at the next station 80 with the anaerobic bonding material 82 . when the assembly 39 has been fully inverted , the lifting mechanism 229 again raises so that the assembly can be received once again on the fixture 64 . again , the solenoid 254 is operated to withdraw the arms 248 from engagement with the assembly whereupon the lifting mechanism again retracts and returns the pallet 66 and its cargo to the conveyor 32 . before the pallet 66 again proceeds to the next station a suitable sensing mechanism 266 which is generally directed at the cavity 58 is operable to determine whether or not a bead of sealant 62 is present . if a bead of sealant is present , that indicates that the inversion operation has not been successful and an appropriate signal is transmitted to the control console 36 and the system 30 is temporarily shut down until an operator can correct the problem . if the sensing mechanism 266 fails to sense a bead of sealant then that failure indicates the inversion operation was a successful one . in this event , operation of the system 30 continues in an uninterrupted fashion . thereupon , the stop gate 156l is moved to its inactive position allowing the pallet 66 to once again proceed on the movable element 146 until the leading edge of the pallet 66 engages a stop gate 156m . the stop gate 156l then returns to its active position to prevent another pallet from simultaneously entering the same station . when the station 80 becomes clear of a pallet the stop gate 156m is then moved to its inactive position allowing the pallet to enter the dispensing station 80 . the pallet then engages a stop gate 156n and the stop gate 156m is returned to its active position to prevent any further entry into the station 80 of a following pallet . turn now to fig2 - 23 which illustrate a dispensing apparatus 268 employed at the station 80 . specifically , the apparatus 268 operates to dispense into the cavity 58 the anaerobic bonding material 82 , one example of which is manufactured and sold by loctite corporation under loctite part no . 190035 . loctite part no . 190036 is a proprietary anaerobic adhesive which cures rapidly through large gaps using a primer and also cures in ultraviolet light to produce dry fillets . as previously explained , the composition applied to the core member and to the housing member at the primer station 44 serves to activate the cure of the bonding material 82 . furthermore , it is necessary to explain , for a more complete understanding of the invention , that cure of the bonding material only takes place in the absence of air . as seen particularly well in fig2 , the dispensing apparatus 268 includes a stationary mounting structure 270 on which is slidably received a plunger 272 to the lower end of which is fixed a nozzle guide plate 273 . circumferentially mounted on the structure 270 are a plurality of fluid couplings 274 which , through conduits 276 , are connected to the reservoir 278 ( fig1 ) of the anaerobic bonding material . to the opposite end of each fluid coupling 274 is attached a duck bill dispensing nozzle 280 which is of a suitable pliable plastic material such as a high density polyethylene material . one example of a suitable material is known as &# 34 ; chemplex &# 34 ;, part no . 5003 , supplied by northern petrochemical company , rolling meadows , ill . the dispensing nozzles extend downwardly through appropriate apertures in the mounting structure 270 , then through circumferentially located openings 282 in the nozzle guide plate 273 . while the openings 282 loosely receive the nozzles 280 , they serve as guides for the nozzles in the manner to be described below and further prevent any substantial movement of the ends of the nozzles in a lateral direction . a compression spring 284 is positioned between the mounting structure 270 and the plunger 272 and urges the plunger in a downward direction . a stop screw 286 is threadedly engaged with the mounting structure 270 and extends into a longitudinally extending slot 288 in the plunger 272 . the ends of the slot 288 are engageable by the screw 286 to define the limits of movement of the plunger 272 . the elevated position of the plunger 272 is illustrated by solid lines in fig2 and its depressed position , under bias of the spring 284 , is indicated by the position of the nozzle guide plate 273 as shown by dotted lines . it is noteworthy that when the nozzle guide plate 273 is in its fully depressed position , it continues to engage the lower extremeties of the nozzles 280 . flow of fluid through the nozzles 280 is controlled by means of an air operated actuator 290 or other suitable mechanism which in its normally deenergized state moves a dowel element 292 into engagement with the nozzle and against an anvil 294 integral with the mounting structure 270 . thus , when the actuator 290 is deenergized , the dowel 292 is effective to shut off flow through the nozzles 280 . it is only when the actuators 290 are energized that fluid is permitted to flow through the nozzles . another embodiment of the dispensing apparatus 268 is possible . for instance , the duck bill dispensing nozzle 280 can be made in the same or similar configuration of stainless steel or other similar material . in this embodiment , a suitable dispensing valve such as loctite part no . 95427944 , provided by loctite corporation , newington , conn . can be placed between reservoir 278 and conduit 276 to control the supply of bonding material 82 to the nozzle 280 . in accordance with this variation , the dispensing valve is operated pneumatically and air - operated actuator 290 should be disabled or removed since it is not needed in this dispensing embodiment . another lifting mechanism 229 having the construction of those used at stations 74 and 78 is also utilized at the instant station 80 . as the pallet 66 is raised , the uppermost surface 51 of the core member 40 engages the lowermost surface of the nozzle guide plate 273 as the latter assumes the dotted line position seen fig2 . as the lifting mechanism continues to rise , the core 40 continues to bear against the nozzle guide plate 273 and eventually moves it to its solid line or elevated position ( fig2 ). with such upward movement of the assembly 39 relative to the mounting structure 270 , the lowermost ends of the nozzles 280 are radially disposed so as to enter the cavities 58 and continue to slide into the cavities until they descend to approximately one half the depth thereof . at this point , the assembly 39 will have been raised to its upper most position . as seen in fig2 , there are a total of ten dispensing nozzles 280 and , by reason of the ribs 52 , there are actually six cavities 58 , each receiving one nozzle . however , there are two additional cavities 58a which receive two nozzles each . this arrangement reflects a situation in which the cavities are of a complex shape and require additional nozzles in order to assure the proper amount and placement of the bonding material therein . when the assembly 39 has achieved the elevated position , a programmed control system is operated according to which the actuators 290 are operated to allow the anaerobic bonding material to commence flow through the nozzles and into the cavity 58 . the lifting mechanism 229 begins to descend at a proper rate consistent with the flow rate of the nozzles 280 and the magnitude of the cavities 58 and 58a . as the assembly 39 descends , the nozzle guide plate 273 continues in engagement therewith under the bias of the spring 284 . this serves to stabilize the assembly on the pallet 66 during the dispensing operation . after a predetermined time period , when the lower extremeties of the nozzles 280 are near a terminal region of the collective cavities , the actuators 290 are deenergized and flow of the bonding material through the nozzles 280 is terminated . at that time point , the lifting mechanism 229 returns the pallet 66 to the the conveyor . the stop gate 156n is then drawn downwardly to the inactive position to enable the pallet and its cargo to proceed on the conveyor 32 . after the pallet leaves the station 80 , the stop gate 156n returns to its active position and the pallet 66 proceeds to a stop gate 156a which , in its active position , prevents further movement of the pallet 66 until an appropriate future time . it is noteworthy that the nozzles 280 , as illustrated in fig2 have their long cross sectional dimensions lying generally in a circumferential plane . in certain applications , however , it may be desirable to increase the density of the nozzles 280 by placing them in radial planes as illustrated in fig2 . in either event , the dispensing apparatus 268 provides the ability to dispense large volumes of a fluid or semifluid material into thin deep cavities and to control the flow of the material at each nozzle . by reason of the invention , a large volume of material can be dispensed in a short interval of time and at lower pressures within confined areas . up to the present time , discussion has centered on the assembly 39 which is placed in the first or forward position on the pallet 66 . as previously explained , the operator transfers a virgin core member 40 and a virgin housing member 42 into the priming station 44 for the operation which has previously been described . as seen in fig4 b , the pallet 66 then proceeds until it engages the stop gate 156b . while here , as illustrated in fig4 b , a completed assembly 39 is removed from the fixture 38 and placed onto the cart 88 . at this position , the fixture 64 remaining in the rear or second position on the pallet 66 after the completed assembly 39 is placed onto cart 88 is removed from the pallet and placed in the press station 46 for mating with the core member 40 and housing member 42 which has just previously completed the priming operation . after operations are performed which are depicted in fig4 c as previously explained , and after the stop gate 156b has moved to an inactive position , the pallet 66 proceeds to , and is engaged by , a stop gate 156c . while at this location , the assembly 39 and its associated fixture 64 are moved to a second bead station 84 which is identical in all respects with the first bead station 60 . in this operation , a second bead of sealant 86 is applied at a terminal region of the cavity 58 thereby totally isolating the anaerobic bonding material 82 which had previously been dispensed into the cavity at the station 80 . at this point , the bonding material 82 is able to proceed with the curing process . as indicated fig4 e , the assembly 39 to which the second bead of sealant 86 has just been applied at the second bead station 84 is then removed together with its fixture 64 and placed in the pallet at the second or rear location . the first or forward position of the pallet 66 is now occupied by the new assembly . the pallet now proceeds through the nitrogen injection station 70 and the ultraviolet radiation zone 72 for curing the second bead of sealant 86 . thereafter , the pallet proceeds to the dome member removal station 74 , then to the assembly inversion station 78 at which the second position assembly 39 is merely a spectator . similarly , the second position assembly is merely a spectator at the dispensing station 80 . finally , when the pallet proceeds to the stop gate 156b , the completed assembly is removed and placed on the cart 88 . while the preferred embodiments of the invention have been disclosed in detail , it should be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made to the illustrated embodiments without departing form the spirit and the scope thereof as described in the specification and defined in the appended claims .	8
a test cell or test tank is indicated generally at 10 and may have a tapered or wedge - shaped construction and volume graduations 12 along one side thereof . the shape of the tank is particularly desirable for the insertion of printed circuit boards or other electronic assemblies which are to be treated in the manner described . tank 10 is connected to a solution reservoir 14 through a drain line 16 and a purge line 18 . a pump 20 is connected between solution reservoir 14 and the parallel combination of four ion removal columns 22 which may be of the type manufactured by the barnstead division of sybron corp ., boston , mass . such ion removal columns are known as a &# 34 ; mixed bed &# 34 ; type in that the particles within the column will remove both positive and negative ions from the solution passing therethrough . the upper ends of columns 22 are connected through a line 24 to the bottom of tank 10 to complete the fluid circuit . a motor 26 is positioned directly beneath the bottom of tank 10 and in direct alignment with an agitator 28 which may be in the form of a magnet positioned in the bottom of the tank . as the motor rotates the magnet will similarly rotate , thus providing an agitation for solution within test cell or tank 10 . an electronic sensor is indicated diagrammatically at 30 and may be of the type having a pair of spaced plates or probes 31 which are maintained a predetermined distance apart and which may have a voltage impressed across them . such sensors are manufactured by balsbaugh laboratories , hingham , mass . a resistivity monitor circuit is indicated diagrammatically at 32 and is connected by a line 34 to sensor 30 . thus , the resistivity monitor will provide a direct indication , in ohms , of the ionic content of the solution within tank 10 . the resistivity monitor will measure the resistance between spaced elements 31 in sensor 30 , with this resistance being directly determined by the ionic content of the solution within the tank . clean cycle control circuit 36 is connected by a line 38 to motor 26 and by a line 40 to pump 20 . a test cycle control circuit 42 is connected by line 44 to clean cycle control 36 . a test cycle record circuit 48 and a timer 50 are each connected to the resistivity monitor 32 and the test cycle control 42 . in like manner , the resistivity monitor 32 is connected to clean cycle control 36 . the method and system described herein is useful in determining the ionic contamination of electronic assemblies , for example printed circuit boards . such boards are customarily cleaned after soldering operations , which cleaning operation is to remove as much as possible of the various contaminants which are caused by the soldering process . such ionic contamination , both positive and negative ions , can cause subsequent corrosion if not removed from the printed circuit board . the processes used by the manufacturers of printed circuit boards normally will provide substantially clean boards . the present invention is directed to a means for testing the reliability of such cleaning processes . basically the invention contemplates two distinct operating steps . in the first step the test solution is brought to a predetermined purity level . in the second step a predetermined static volume of the purified solution receives a printed circuit board of known exposed cross sectional area and the change in ion content of the solution is recorded giving a direct indication of the ionic contamination remaining on the printed circuit board after the normal cleaning process . looking particularly at the first step in the described method , solution from reservoir 14 will flow through ion removal columns 22 and through line 24 to the bottom of tank 10 . the solution within the tank will gradually rise until it has reached the same level as the top of purge line 18 . at this point the suction through the purge line will cause the tank to be emptied into solution reservoir 14 . during the period that there is solution within tank 10 , the resistivity of the solution will be measured by sensor 30 and resistivity monitor 32 . clean cycle control 36 will continue to cause pump 20 and agitation motor 26 to operate until the solution purity , as measured by the resistivity monitor , reaches a predetermined level . this level may be set in a conventional manner by switch controls on clean cycle control 36 . once the desired purity level is reached , the pump will stop and the solution will no longer be circulated in the manner described . test cycle control 42 is now activated which , through clean cycle control 36 , will cause pump 20 to place a predetermined volume of test solution within tank 10 . the volume placed within tank 10 is determined by the exposed cross sectional area of the printed circuit board or boards which are to be tested . graduations 12 can be scaled to read directly in board area or they may be scaled in volume . in any event , pump 20 will place a predetermined volume of fluid within tank 10 as the pump is controlled by test cycle control 42 and clean cycle control 36 . once the desired volume of fluid has been placed within the tank , the pump is stopped . the printed circuit boards or other electronic assemblies are immersed in the tank and resistivity monitor 32 through sensor 30 will give a direct indication of the change in resistivity of the fluid which is directly caused by the ionic contamination of the immersed boards . timer 50 and test cycle record 48 may be utilized to record the change in resistivity and to control the time in which the change in resistivity is measured . after the predetermined test interval and the recording of the change in resistivity of the solution within tank 10 , the printed circuit boards may be removed . the change in solution purity is a direct indication of the ionic contamination of the board after it has passed through the conventional cleaning process and thus provides a direct indication of the reliability and efficiency of such cleaning processes . tank 10 may now be drained through drain line 16 directing the solution back to reservoir 14 . the test solution may vary widely . a basic solution of a 50 -- 50 mixture of reagent grade isopropyl alcohol and de - ionized water has been found to be satisfactory . ion removal columns 22 may all be connected in parallel as shown or there may be suitable valve means for directing solution through one pair of columns or through the other , thus providing for easy replacement of a column once it is spent . whereas the preferred form of the invention has been shown and described herein , it should be realized that there may be many modifications , substitutions and alterations thereto .	6
referring now to the drawings in detail , the razor head 1 of the pivot head razor , which is not shown in its entirety , is provided with an outer body 2 having at the front a window 3 in which can be inserted the parts belonging to the actual holder of the non - illustrated razor blade unit . the outer body 2 is provided with a razor handle , which is not illustrated but can be integral with the body 2 or can be connectable thereto . a lower base plate 4 of essentially triangular shape , and an upper cover plate 5 , form , together with transverse and possibly side connectors 6 , a housing . the upper cover plate 5 is provided with a wide recess 7 for receiving and guiding a slide 8 that can be pushed forward and allows the user to bring the receiving prongs 9 of a prong holder 10 into an open position for receiving the razor blade unit . the slide 8 , which can be moved forward and back , is combined with a rotary knob 11 which makes it possible for the user , by turning the knob to lock in a fixed position a razor blade unit that has been received and held by the prong holder 10 . for this purpose , the rotary knob 11 , via a locking device 12 that is disposed below the upper cover plate 5 , acts upon a spring cam 13 that is disposed between the receiving prongs 9 of the prong holder 10 and can be pressed in by a central rib of the razor blade unit that is to be inserted . the spring cam 13 , in the pivot position , is spring - loaded and can be pressed in , and in the locking position , to obtain a fixed razor system , can be blocked by the locking mechanism in an abutting position against the razor blade unit after the rotary knob 11 has been appropriately turned . the inner construction of the prefabricated razor blade holding mechanism , which is to be inserted into the outer body 2 and is to interlock therewith ( for example via the latching projection 27 , see fig5 a and 5b ), can be best seen from the cross - sectional views of fig6 to 9 . as can be seen , the lower base plate 4 has an l - shaped cross - sectional configuration and forms with the upper cover plate 5 a housing for holding the rotary knob 11 , which is disposed on the upper side and is combined with the slide 8 . in its interior , the housing contains a holder for the receiving prongs 9 , the spring cam 13 , and various control parts that enable the axial displacement of the slide 8 as well as rotation of the rotary knob 11 in a direction for receiving , holding , and releasing a pivot head razor blade unit , and that also enable the razor blade unit to be locked via the locking device . disposed on both sides of the center of the lower base plate 4 , parallel to one another , are longitudinal guides 14 ( fig7 ) for the spring cam 13 , the inner side of which ends in a pin 15 that is one abutment for a compression spring 16 , the other abutment 17 of which is also , via the slide 8 , axially movably disposed in the guides 14 at the rear end . the spring cam 13 is confined by the prong holder 10 , the receiving prongs 9 of which , as can be seen from fig9 are swivel - mounted on swivel support pins 18 of the lower base plate 4 in opposite directions to the side , with the inner side of each prong arm being embodied as a widening and stepped curve or cam 19 , as can best be seen from the dashed - line representation in fig3 . via the cam 19 , the displacement movement of the slide 8 toward the front is converted into a swiveling movement of the receiving prongs 9 toward the outside into their open position . the rear ends of the receiving prongs 9 interlock with a recess 20 of the abutment 17 , so that with the axial shifting of the slide 8 to the front , and the thereby induced swiveling movement of the receiving prongs 9 to the outside , the abutment 17 is pressed forward in the longitudinal guides 14 , thereby tensioning the spring 16 . to achieve swiveling of the receiving prongs 9 into their open position by shifting the slide 8 to the front , the slide 8 is axially movably held in the recess 7 of the upper cover plate 5 via a tongue and groove engagement . in this connection , the inner portion of the slide 8 confines the spring cam 13 and forms therefor a guide that enables axial movement of the spring cam to the rear counter to the effect of the compression spring 16 . provided on a central shaft 21 of the slide 8 , which shaft at the same time forms the axis of rotation for the rotary knob 11 , is , on the inside , a cam plate 22 that cooperates with the cam 19 of the prong holder 10 in such a way that when the slide 8 shifts axially , the prong holder 10 is opened and is held in this open position in a form - locking manner . when pressure is exerted upon the spring cam 13 , which occurs automatically via the central rib of a razor blade unit that is received , the spring cam is pressed inwardly , the force is transmitted via the compression spring 16 to the rear abutment 17 , and as a result of the action of this rear abutment upon the rear prong ends that are engaged in the recess 20 , a closing of the prong holder 10 is effected . in so doing , the slide 8 is also moved back into its starting position . the looking device 12 comprises the rotary knob 11 , which is rotatable in the slide 8 into a locking position ; disposed on the shaft 21 of the rotary knob 11 is a looking means 23 . on the front side , in its fixing position illustrated in fig8 the locking means 23 blocks the spring cam 13 via an inclined contact surface 24 , and with its rear end presses the abutment 17 against its rear stop in the l - shaped angled - off portion of the base plate 4 . this locking position is possible by turning the rotary knob 11 out of its normal position into the position illustrated in fig8 where the prong holder is in its closed position , i . e . when being used holds a razor blade unit between its receiving prongs 9 . in order to ensure the locking of the razor blade unit , and to make any swivel movement impossible , the front end 25 , in a direction toward the base plate 4 , is provided with an extension 26 that enables a positive engagement against the correspondingly flat central rib ( not illustrated ) of the razor blade unit , hence preventing via a positive engagement any movement of the blade unit . in contrast to fig8 and 9 , fig6 and 7 show the locking device in its inoperative position with the rotary knob 11 turned by 90 ° , so that the customary swivel movement of the razor blade unit in the pivot head razor is possible . due to its ability to freely move back , the spring cam 13 can move against the effect of the compression spring and does not prevent pivoting of the razor blade unit . the alternative embodiment of the razor head 1 illustrated in fig1 differs from the previously described embodiment in that instead of a rotary knob 11 that is integrated in the slide 8 , a lever 28 is provided . the lever 28 is guided out of the interior of the razor head 1 to the back side thereof through a slot 29 . this embodiment , using a lever 28 to lock the spring cam 13 , also provides a locking means 23 ( not visible ) that is disposed on the shaft 21 of the lever 28 and , during a pivoting movement , has its contact surfaces 24 engage the spring cam 13 . if the lever 28 is pivoted back , the spring cam 13 is again released , so that the swivel head razor blade can again swivel in the prong holder . the present invention is , of course , in no way restricted to the specific disclosure of the specification and drawings , but also encompasses any modifications within the scope of the appended claims .	1
in the following the invention is described with reference to a code reader . however , as mentioned in the beginning , it can be equally incorporated in other optoelectronic sensors . referring to fig1 the illustrated optoelectronic sensor , a code reader 10 , has a light emitter 12 with a light source 14 that emits a light beam 16 . light beam 16 illuminates an object 18 that carries a code 20 or 22 . the code can be a one - dimensional bar code schematically illustrated at 20 or a two - dimensional code 22 . other codes , such as color codes , for example , can also be employed . to completely cover code 20 or 22 with light beam 16 , the code reader 10 has a light deflecting device ( not separately shown ) which scans the light beam over codes 20 or 22 . light beam 16 can be linearly focused on object 18 so that , for one - dimensional codes 20 , it illuminates the entire length of the code or , for two - dimensional code 22 , so that the code is completely scanned by line - shaped light beam 16 . code reader 10 further has a light receptor 24 which receives light 26 reflected by and / or returned from object 18 . light receptor 24 typically has its own optics . light receptor 24 converts the received light into an electrical signal which is available at output 28 for further processing . light receptor 24 preferably also has a one - dimensional , that is , a one - line , receiving array ( not further shown ) so that the illuminated area of the object can be completely reproduced by the receptor . the receiving array can be a line sensor or a two - dimensional matrix sensor of the ccd or cmos type . when matrix sensors are used , several lines are simultaneously received . code reader 10 can also be a camera . in such a case , the code reader only has a light emitter 12 and a light receptor 24 and no light emitter 12 . the code can be illuminated with external lighting . electrical signals which correspond to the received light are fed to a processing unit 30 , where code 20 or 22 is read and decoded . information contained in the code 20 or 22 is transmitted via an appropriate interface 32 or it can be used in any other desired manner . in accordance with the invention , the received lines are transmitted to a picture compression unit 34 where the lines are compressed with a compression algorithm . compression takes place either after each line or , preferably , following the receipt of a predetermined number of lines which are then compressed in one step . the known jpeg algorithms have been particularly useful and advantageous for this purpose . it is further preferred to simultaneously compress eight lines . the compressed picture , that is , the sum of all lines of a picture , can be read out , for example via an interface 32 , or it can be stored in a memory 38 and can be read out via interface 32 at a later point in time . memory 38 can be incorporated in the sensor and stores the data either temporarily in a ram or permanently in a flash - prom . alternatively , the memory can be separate from the sensor and can , for example , be a diskette . in one preferred embodiment of the invention , memory 38 is of the “ first - in , first - out ” ( fifo ) type , which always stores the most recent compressed pictures while the oldest stored pictures are deleted or written over when memory space has run out . in this manner , the most recently obtained pictures are always stored . the interface can be bandwidth limited , and any desired interface such as serial , parallel , asynchronous , etc . can be used . further , a variety of protocols such as ethernet , tcp / ip or the like can be used . compressed pictures which are to be further evaluated or otherwise used can be transmitted via interface 32 to an exploitation unit 40 , for example an error detecting unit . the exploitation unit can form part of or be separate of the sensor . the present invention is particularly useful for long - distance error analyses , for example via wide area networks such as the internet . referring to fig2 and 3 , the method of the present invention proceeds as follows : following the line - by - line receipt of the light , the first received lines are read out to the exploitation unit and , if the picture is to be compressed , forwarded to the picture compression unit 34 . picture compression unit 34 compresses either each individual line or a group of lines . the compressed lines can either be read out or stored for further processing . simultaneously with the compression of the lines , either individually or in groups , the light receptor receives additional lines of the picture and forwards them to the exploitation unit . in this manner , a picture is substantially simultaneously received and compressed , as is illustrated in fig3 . at time t 1 , the line - by - line picture reception begins . following the receipt and transmission of a predetermined number of lines to the picture compression unit , compression of the first lines starts at time t 2 . the receipt of the last line of the picture is completed at time t 3 , and the last line is compressed at time t 4 . as is shown in fig3 the time difference t 2 − t 1 must be about the same as the difference t 4 − t 3 . [ 0039 ] fig3 demonstrates a significant advantage of the present invention , namely that the temporal overlap of the picture reception and compression leads to a significant time saving , which , depending on the size of the picture and the overlap , can amount to as much as a factor of about 2 .	6
the invention may best be understood by reference to the representative embodiment shown in the drawing figures wherein an offshore production platform p is in fluid communication with submersible mooring buoy 10 . buoy 10 , in its normal operating condition , floats on water surface w . as shown in fig1 and 2 , the present invention comprises a tanker mooring system which has certain features that are similar to conventional catenary anchor leg mooring ( calm ) systems used for loading and unloading moored tanker vessels . a tanker or other vessel such as a floating production , storage and offloading vessel ( fpso ) may be moored to the calm buoy 10 by a hawser 14 . calm buoy 10 may comprise turntable 12 which is adapted to rotate relative to the hull of buoy 10 . hawser 14 may be attached to turntable 12 on buoy 10 so as to permit a vessel moored to buoy 10 to weathervane freely around calm buoy 10 . the product may be transferred between the tanker and the calm buoy 10 by a floating hose 16 connected to turntable 12 on buoy 10 via a swivel fitting , as is conventional in the art . the calm buoy 10 may be connected to the source of the product or to the storage facility by a submerged pipeline consisting at least partially of a flexible underwater hose 18 or a riser system . fig2 depicts a typical operating configuration in which hydrocarbon product flows from production platform p to buoy 10 via submarine hose 18 . the product then flows via floating hose 16 to fpso vessel f which is moored to buoy 10 by hawser 14 . product may be transferred from fpso vessel f to tanker t moored by line 15 via floating hose 17 . the present invention allows a calm buoy to be submerged before the onset of extreme environmental events such as hurricanes or ice conditions . the submerged condition during severe storms protects the buoy from wave loading and reduces the motions of the buoy . the reduced motions result in reduced loads and motions on the connected submarine hose or riser system . this invention allows the calm buoy 10 to be submerged to a desired depth by flooding selected compartments of the buoy . compartments in the lower part of buoy 10 may be flooded such that the center of buoyancy of buoy 10 remains above its center of gravity so as to provide stability of the buoy 10 in its submerged configuration . the buoy 10 is stable at the desired depth due to the transfer of the weight of the upper mooring legs 28 to the submerged “ spring ” buoys 20 that are part of the mooring legs . as buoy 10 descends , a greater portion of the weight of upper mooring legs 28 is borne by spring buoys 20 and buoy 10 will therefore descend to and maintain an equilibrium depth . in one particular preferred embodiment , upper anchor lines 28 comprise chain . the chain is sized to provide not only sufficient holding strength , but also sufficient weight to stabilize buoy 10 at the desired depth when submerged . as shown in fig3 and 4 , the anchor system comprised of spring buoy 20 , lower leg 22 and upper leg 28 may assume an inverted or double catenary configuration when buoy 10 is submerged . it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that other materials having a density greater than sea water may be used in this application . following submersion , mooring buoy 10 may be re - floated by de - ballasting the flooded compartments of buoy 10 by means of an air hose ( or other conduit ) from a workboat or other vessel , by self - contained compressed gas , by on - board gas generation means or by a hose from the platform p . after refloating the buoy , the hawser 14 and floating hose 16 ( if removed prior to submerging ) can be reconnected at the surface using workboats or other means conventional in the art . the system may have three or more mooring legs . in one particular preferred embodiment , the mooring legs are made up of : an anchor 26 , a bottom chain length 24 ( with a portion on seafloor s ), a polyester section 22 ( for deep water ) and a spring buoy 20 . the upper mooring leg 28 from the calm buoy 10 to the spring buoy 20 may comprise chain to provide stabilizing weight when buoy 10 is submerged . in an alternative embodiment , spring buoys 20 may be moored to anchors 26 in a taut configuration — i . e ., anchor lines 22 are substantially straight and do not assume a catenary configuration . in such embodiments , portion 24 of the anchor line is eliminated and no portion of the anchor line lies on the seafloor when calm buoy 10 is either floating on the surface or submerged . the spring buoys 20 and the upper mooring legs 28 may be eliminated and the mooring legs connected directly to buoy 10 if mooring legs 22 have the proper weight to result in the desired submerged buoy depth when the buoy is flooded ( but still positively buoyant ). as buoy 10 descends , the portion 24 of anchor leg 22 resting on seafloor s becomes a greater percentage of the total anchor length and the effective weight of the anchor leg supported by buoy 10 decreases . hence , buoy 10 will reach an equilibrium depth where its ( reduced ) buoyancy equals the total combined effective weight of anchor legs 22 and submarine hose 18 and where it will remain until such time as it is deballasted . the anchors 26 and mooring legs 22 can be preinstalled . one particular preferred installation method is illustrated in fig5 and 6 . the mooring leg 22 may be supported by a spring buoy 20 floating on the water surface w , or below the surface . the connection of the calm buoy 10 to the mooring system and subsequent connection of the submerged hose 18 , floating hose 16 and hawser 14 can be accomplished on the surface in the same manner as done for conventional calm systems . as shown in fig5 , buoy 10 may be initially connected to a first anchored spring buoy 20 and subsequently to a second anchored spring buoy 20 ′. additional spring buoys may be connected in similar fashion . mooring and cargo transfer operations using the system may be accomplished by conventional procedures used at terminals . although the invention has been described in detail with reference to certain preferred embodiments , variations and modifications exist within the scope and spirit of the invention as described and defined in the following claims .	1
the computerized systems and methods , consistent with embodiments of the present invention described herein , enable mobile crime and alert reporting . mobile crime and alert reporting may be enabled by allowing multiple users to report incidents and crimes and to send streaming video , video clips , pictures , and audio clips to authorities and other users . users may be enabled to monitor existing reports and also contribute to the report with additional information or streaming video , video clips , pictures , and audio clips . if an alert is considered to be an emergency , mobile crime and alert reporting may be enabled by sending the alert to the nearest authorities based on the location of the user mobile computer system . although a crime and alert reporting system and method is described herein , the systems and methods described herein are not limited to reporting crimes and may be used to report other incidents or events , which may or may not be crimes . as used herein , an “ alert report ” refers to a report of a crime , incident , or hazard and includes the information of the reporter , information of the crime , incident , or hazard , and alert data pertaining to the crime , incident , or hazard . “ alert reporter information ” refers to the user &# 39 ; s personal and / or identifying information such as , for example , name , e - mail address , telephone number , address , emergency contact information , medical contact information , and geographic location . “ alert information ” refers to any information describing the crime , incident , or hazard such as , for example , geographic location , text descriptions , and whether or not the alert is an emergency . an “ alert data ” refers to any data files or clips associated with the crime , incident , or hazard that is uploaded such as , for example , streaming video , video clips , pictures , and audio clips . referring to fig1 , a mobile alert reporting and monitoring system 100 may be used to establish a network of users who access the system 100 over a network 102 such as the internet or any cellular network by way of cellular technology such as gsm ( global system for mobile communications ), cdma ( code division multiple access ), and amps ( advanced mobile phone system ). examples of these cellular networks include mobile communications standards such as 3g ( e . g ., umts , cdma2000 ) and 4g ( e . g ., mobile wimax , lte ). the system 100 allows the users to create new alert reports and also contribute to existing alert reports over the network 102 to alert each other and the closest authorities to potential dangers and other incidents . the mobile alert reporting and monitoring system 100 may be implemented using a combination of hardware and software . the hardware may generally include a host computer system 110 , mobile computer systems 130 , 150 , 170 , and computer systems 114 , 190 . the host computer system 110 is a server that is used to store alert reports in the form of a database as well as a map . this host computer system 110 provides database and map access to computer systems 114 , 130 , 150 , 170 , and 190 . computer systems 130 , 150 , 170 are able to access the database and map on the host computer system by executing a mobile application or program 140 , 160 , 180 or a specialized interface that is installed on the computer systems 130 , 150 , 170 . computer system 190 is a computer system used by the authorities ( e . g ., police , campus safety ) and is able to access the database and map on the host computer system by executing a program 191 that is purchased and installed on the computer system 190 or a web - based interface . examples of mobile computer system 130 include the iphone ® smartphone and any smartphone device running mobile operating systems such as android ®, ios ®, or windows ®. examples of mobile computer system 150 include the ipad ® tablet computer and any tablet computer device running mobile operating systems such as android ®, ios ®, or windows ®. examples of mobile computer system 170 include a laptop pc or mac ® computer . examples of mobile computer system 130 use cell towers used for the cellular network and wi - fi internet network locations to determine gps ( global positioning system ) location of the device . other examples of the geographic location system in mobile computer system 130 included a - gps ( assisted ups ) and glonass global positioning system . examples of mobile computer system 150 use cell towers used for the cellular network and wi - fi internet network locations to determine gps ( global positioning system ) location of the device as well . other examples of the geographic location system in mobile computer system 150 included a - ups ( assisted gps ) and glonass global positioning system . computer systems 114 , 170 , 190 may not have a geographic location system and therefore would require the user to input a specific geographic location ( e . g ., latitude and longitude , street address ). examples of mobile computer systems 130 , 140 , 170 may use the microphone installed on the device to capture audio and create a file of the recording . examples of mobile computer systems 130 , 140 , 170 may use the camera installed on the device to capture photographs . in some mobile operating systems such ios ®, the devices has the capability to embed location data in the pictures , producing geocoded photographs . in addition to the audio recording capability and picture capture capability , examples of mobile computer systems 130 , 140 , 170 may use the microphone and camera installed on the device to record video . computer systems 114 , 190 may also use microphones or cameras installed on the device to capture audio , picture , and video . the software may include code 120 for providing the functionality of the system and may include data generated and accessed by the system , such as alert reporter information 122 , alert information 124 , and alert data 126 . users may access the database and map that contain the alert report 122 , 124 , and 126 over the network 102 . the application or program 128 , 140 , 160 , 180 , 191 executing on the computer systems or devices 114 , 130 , 150 , 170 , 190 can be used to enter alert reports to host computer system 110 and access the database and map . the software code 120 on the host computer system 110 may be executed to organize the new alert reports and to perform the processes , procedures or functions that enable mobile alert reporting and monitoring as described in greater detail below . as used herein , the terms process , procedure , and function are generally used interchangeably to refer to one or more actions performed by software being executed by a computer system to achieve a result . in particular , the application or program 128 , 140 , 160 , 170 , 191 may be executed to access or generate alert information 124 and to contribute to an alert report by uploading evidence stored as alert data 126 . all or a portion of the applications or programs executed on the user computer systems or devices and the code on the host computer system may be written in any suitable programming language , for example in a procedural programming language ( e . g ., “ c ”) or an object - oriented programming language ( e . g ., “ c ++” or java ). the host computer system 110 may be coupled to the network 102 and accessed by various user mobile computer systems 130 , 150 , and 170 coupled to the network 102 , for example , by using the mobile application or computer program . the host computer system 110 may include one or more server computers such as a server running a network operating system and may include one or more databases such as database software running on the server computer ( s ) or separate database computer ( s ). although the host computer system 110 is shown as a single server unit , the host computer system 110 may include a combination of computers or computing components . the users may access the mobile alert reporting system 100 using the computer systems 130 , 150 , 170 , and 190 that are connected to the network 102 and executing a mobile application or program 140 , 160 , 180 or a specialized interface . the user computer systems may be the user &# 39 ; s laptop pc or mac ® computer 170 or may be a mobile computing device 130 or tablet computing device 150 . one example of the mobile computer device 130 is an iphone ® smartphone with a mobile alert reporting “ app .” when the mobile application or program 140 , 160 , 180 is executed , the user may be presented with sections that allow the user to enter information , enter a new alert report , and monitor or update an existing alert report , as described in greater detail below , an administrator computer system 114 may be coupled to the network 102 and used by an administrator to access and administer the mobile alert reporting and monitoring system 100 through an administrator program 128 or web based interface . the administrator computer system 114 may be located at the same location as the host computer system 110 or located remotely . referring to fig2 , an embodiment of a mobile alert reporting and monitoring system 200 is described in greater detail . the mobile alert reporting and monitoring system 200 may include a host computer system 210 providing server code 220 , mobile alert reporting code 222 , mobile alert monitoring code 224 , or any combination thereof . the server code 220 may be executed on the host computer system 210 to allow user computer system 202 access to the alert report database 230 and alert report map 240 . the mobile alert reporting code 222 and mobile alert monitoring code 224 may include code executed on the host computer system 210 to perform at least some of the processes , procedures and / or functions associated with mobile alert reporting and monitoring . server code 220 may include instructions executed by the host computer system 210 to provide the user computer system 202 access to the alert report database 230 and alert report map 240 . the alert report database 230 may be created using any suitable database software or techniques known to those skilled in the art , and the alert report map 240 may be created using any suitable mapping software or techniques known to those skilled in the art . access provided to the user computer system 202 by the server code 220 allows the user computer system 202 to enter new alert reports by executing mobile alert reporting code 222 or update existing alert reports by executing mobile alert monitoring code 224 . both mobile alert monitoring code 222 and mobile alert monitoring code 224 interact with the alert report database 230 and alert report map 240 . when the user computer 202 uses program 203 to interact with the host computer system 210 , the server code 220 decides whether to provide access to the alert report database and alert report map to the user computer 202 , execute mobile alert reporting code 222 , or mobile alert monitoring code 224 . the server code 220 may decide to execute mobile alert reporting code 222 . mobile alert reporting code 222 may include instructions executed by the host computer system 210 to perform processes , procedures and / or functions involved with entering new alert reports to the alert report database and alert report map . the mobile application or program 203 may prompt the user to enter alert reporter information ( e . g ., name , e - mail address , telephone number , address , emergency contact information , medical contact information , and geographic location ), alert information , and alert data . the mobile application or program 203 may then communicate with the host computer system 210 . when the server code 220 determines that the alert report is new , server code 220 then executes mobile alert reporting code 222 . mobile alert reporting code 222 enters the alert report 232 , 234 , 236 into the alert report database 230 and the alert report map 240 . the server code 220 may decide to execute mobile alert monitoring code 224 . mobile alert reporting code 224 may include instructions executed by the host computer system 210 to perform processes , procedures and / or functions involved with updating existing alert reports , the alert report database and the alert report map . the mobile application or program 203 may prompt the user to enter alert reporter information ( e . g ., name , e - mail address , telephone number , address , emergency contact information , medical contact information , and geographic location ), alert information , and alert data . the mobile application or program 203 may then communicate with the host computer system 210 . when the server code 220 determines that the alert report is an update of an existing alert report , server code 220 then executes mobile alert monitoring code 224 . mobile alert reporting code updates the alert report 232 , 234 , 236 in the alert report database 230 and the alert report map 240 . the host computer system 210 may also store an alert report database 230 where the database includes alert reporting information 232 , alert information 234 , and alert data 236 of the alert reports created . the host computer system 210 may also store an alert report map 240 where the alert report database 230 is used to plot alert reports on a map based on the geographic information provided in the alert report . although the illustrated embodiment of the mobile alert reporting and monitoring system 200 includes the code 222 and 224 for performing all of the functions or processes , other embodiments of the system 200 may include code for performing only one or more of these functions in combination with the server 220 . although the code 222 and 224 is illustrated as discrete elements , these elements may not necessarily be executed as separate , discrete processes , procedures , or functions within the mobile alert reporting and monitoring system 200 . the mobile alert reporting and monitoring system 200 may include other code and other types of data to facilitate other processes , procedures , functions and features described herein . the mobile alert reporting and monitoring system 200 may include , for example , code that allows integration or linking with other online digital media ( e . g ., embedding youtube ® videos ) and / or with online social networking websites ( e . g ., facebook ®) to share alert reports with other users . referring to fig3 , one system and method for mobile alert reporting and monitoring involves creation of an alert report 330 . a user application or program 320 installed on the user computer 302 executes a create alert report process 324 that prompts the user via the user interface to provide alert reporter information 332 and alert information 334 and an capture alert data process 325 that prompts the user via the user interface to capture alert data 336 . the create alert report process 324 prompts a screen on the user computer 302 that allows the user to enter the alert reporter information 332 and alert information 334 . then the user application or program 320 executes the capture alert data process 325 that prompts a screen on the user computer 302 that allows the user to capture alert data 336 associated with the alert report 330 . the user application or program 320 then sends the alert report 330 with the associated alert reporter information 332 , alert information 334 , and alert data 336 to the host computer system 110 , 210 . the alert report 330 can be accessed on the host computer system 110 , 210 by any user with access via a user application or program 320 . referring to fig4 , another system and method for mobile alert reporting and monitoring involves enabling other users to monitor and contribute to an alert report 430 . a user application or program 420 installed on the user computer 402 executes a select existing alert report process 421 that prompts the alert report map 240 created in the host computer system 110 , 210 to be accessed by the user computer via user application or program . the select existing alert report process 421 prompts a screen that shows the alert report map 240 on the user computer 402 . the alert report map 240 shows existing alert reports plotted according to geographic location information and the user can select an alert report 430 on the alert report map 240 . selecting an alert report on the alert report map 240 allows the user to access the alert report database and prompts a screen with the existing alert reporter information 432 , alert information 434 , and alert data 436 . selecting an alert report on the alert report map 240 executes an update alert report process 441 that prompts the user via the user interface to provide alert reporter information 452 and alert information 454 and a capture new alert data process 442 that prompts the user via the user interface to capture alert data 456 . the update alert report process 441 prompts a screen on the user computer 402 that allows the user to enter the alert reporter information 452 and alert information 454 . the user application or program 420 executes the capture alert data process 442 that prompts a screen on the user computer 402 that allows the user to capture alert data 456 associated with the alert report 430 . the user application or program 420 then sends the updated alert report 450 with the updated alert reporter information 452 , updated alert information 454 , and updated alert data 456 to the host computer system 110 , 21 q . the alert report 450 can be accessed on the host computer system 110 , 210 by any user with access via a user application or program 420 , fig5 a - 5c show screen shots of one example of home screens of user application or programs generated by software code and displayed on a user computer system . the user application home screen shown in fig5 a allows a user to report an incident with alert reporter information . when the user selects the report incident icon on the home screen , a create alert screen is displayed as shown in fig5 b . the create alert screen allows a user to choose between different crimes and incidents that may be occurring , for example , by selecting an incident icon . when the incident is selected , the type of incident is automatically included in the alert information and a new alert report may be automatically generated and sent . the new alert report contains alert reporter information ( e . g ., pre - entered into the user application ) and the alert information ( e . g ., the type of incident associated with the selected incident icon ). after the user selects the type of incident , the capture alert data screen is displayed as shown in fig5 c . the capture alert screen allows a user to enter in descriptive alert information and begin to capture and / or upload alert data associated with the alert report . the user may activate the buttons on the screen to upload different types of alert data to the alert report database to be associated with the alert report . fig6 a shows a screen shot of one example of an alert report creation page . the alert report creation page may provide different incidents and allows the user to choose between different incidents and crimes . after selecting an incident , the next screen is shown in fig6 b . fig6 b shows a screen that allows a user to enter in descriptive alert information and begin to capture alert data associated with the alert report . fig7 a shows a screen shot of one example of an alert report map screen for identifying current alert reports in the nearby geographic location . the current alert reports allow access to alert reporter information , alert information , and access to alert data so the user can view the data on their computer system . fig7 b shows a screen that allows a user to update descriptive alert information and begin to capture new alert data associated with the monitored alert report . accordingly , the mobile reporting systems and methods described herein may be used to allow users to create alerts and to update those alerts . the mobile reporting systems and methods advantageously allow users at remote geographic locations to identify other alerts and to monitor and / or update those alerts despite the geographic separation . embodiments of the methods described above may be implemented as software or a computer program product for use with a processing system or computer . such implementation may include , without limitation , a series of computer instructions that embody all or part of the functionality described herein . the series of computer instructions may be stored in any tangible machine - readable medium , such as semiconductor , magnetic , optical or other memory devices , and may be transmitted using any communications technology , such as optical , infrared , microwave , or other transmission technologies , such a computer program product may be distributed as a removable machine - readable medium ( e . g ., a diskette , cd - rom ), preloaded with a computer system e . g ., on system rom or fixed disk ), or distributed from a server or electronic bulletin board over the network ( e . g ., the internet or world wide web ). alternative embodiments of the invention may be implemented as pre - programmed hardware elements or as a combination of hardware , software and / or firmware . those skilled in the art will recognize that this is one possible implementation of the functionality described herein . a mobile reporting system may also include other processes , procedures or functions in addition to or in place of the processes , procedures or functions described herein . these or process , procedures or functions may be executed by a processor on one computer or may be executed by processors on separate computers . the data may include other types of data in addition to or in place of the data described herein . while the principles of the invention have been described herein , it is to be understood by those skilled in the art that this description is made only by way of example and not as a limitation as to the scope of the invention . other embodiments are contemplated within the scope of the present invention in addition to the exemplary embodiments show and described herein . modifications and substitutions by one of ordinary skill in the art are considered to be within the scope of the present invention , which is not to be limited except by the following claims .	7
the present invention can best be understood with the aid of fig2 showing a block diagram of part of a telecommunications access system , in which a telco modem 21 exchanges downstream and upstream data with a customer premises modem 22 across a copper twisted pair 23 . the telco modem 21 may be located within a line card at an optical network unit , which may exchange data with a host digital terminal ( not shown ). the generic structure illustrated in fig2 is used both in the prior art and in the present invention . at the telco modem 21 , a downstream digital data stream 24 destined for the customer is modulated in accordance with a modulation format ( e . g ., 16 - qam ) by a transmitter 25 , producing a transmitted modulated downstream signal 26 that is subsequently output onto the twisted pair 23 by a hybrid 27 . the hybrid 27 also serves to separate a received modulated upstream signal 28 arriving on the twisted pair 23 , outputting it to a receiver 29 which demodulates the received modulated upstream signal 28 and decodes an upstream digital data stream 30 embedded therein . similarly , the customer premises modem 22 also comprises a hybrid 31 , used for extracting a received modulated downstream signal 32 arriving on the twisted pair 23 and equally for sending a transmitted modulated upstream signal 33 towards the telco modem 21 . the received modulated downstream signal 32 travels to a receiver 34 , where it is demodulated and from which an embedded downstream digital data stream 35 is recovered . the transmitted modulated upstream signal 33 is produced by a transmitter 36 which modulates a customer - generated upstream digital data stream 37 according to a suitable modulation format , such as 16 - qam . although the preferred modulation format is indeed qam having 16 constellation points , it is equally suitable to utilize other modulation schemes , such as carrierless amplitude and phase ( cap ) modulation and binary ( bpsk ) and quadrature phase - shift keying ( qpsk ). furthermore , the use of different orders of modulation is equally suitable , simply resulting in a different ratio of the number of bits carried per symbol . as already discussed , depending on the data rate requirements in either direction of traffic flow , the transmitted modulated downstream signal 26 and the transmitted modulated upstream signal 33 may each straddle one or more amateur radio bands . for example , if the required downstream data rate is approximately 20 mbps , and if the transmitter 25 employs 16 - qam , then the resulting downstream spectrum will have a 3 db width of 5 mhz . this spectral width necessarily straddles 2 ham bands , which leads to the aforementioned tradeoff between interference reduction and modem complexity . however , if the carrier frequency and data rate of the transmitted modulated downstream signal 26 are chosen in accordance with the present invention , performance can be improved while minimizing modem complexity . specifically , fig3 shows a spectral allocation scheme in accordance with the present invention , in which the spectrum of the transmitted downstream modulated signal 26 ( the “ downstream spectrum ”, 41 ) is placed such that the carrier frequency f c falls substantially midway between ham bands 13 and 14 , more precisely at 8 . 6375 mhz . this contrasts with the spectral allocation scheme of fig1 in which the downstream spectrum 11 was not strategically placed with respect to the ham bands . another difference is that the downstream spectrum 41 has a spectral width f s substantially equal to twice the difference between the center frequencies of the interfering ham bands , i . e ., 5 . 95 mhz . more generally , the present invention requires that the carrier frequency f c and symbol rate f s obey the following mathematical relationship : where f h1 and f h2 are the center frequencies of any two adjacent narrow interference bands , in this case ham bands . from the above , it follows that f h1 = f c − f s / 4 and f h2 = f c -- f s / 4 . for advantageous operation of the present invention , it is not required that the equalities be exact ; rather a 10 % error margin in the above equations still provides sufficiently acceptable operation of the invention . it is emphasized that there is a strong correspondence between the symbol rate f s and center frequencies f h1 , f h2 of the interfering ham bands . in fact , for each pair of ham bands , there is a preferred symbol rate f s as calculated above , which may or may not be equal to a standardized downstream or upstream bandwidth . in the example considered in fig3 a signal having the characteristics of the downstream spectrum 41 will deliver a bit rate of 4 * 5 . 95 = 23 . 8 mbps if each symbol contains 4 bits of information ( as is the case in 16 - qam ). this shows that the present invention is capable of delivering a high data rate using a single qam carrier , i . e ., with a simple modem . [ 0039 ] fig3 also shows placement of the spectrum of the transmitted modulated upstream signal 33 (“ the upstream spectrum ”, 44 ) in such a way that it is nestled between the 80 - meter and 160 - meter ham bands 15 , 16 . assuming that the upstream spectrum 44 carries data that is modulated using 16 - qam , and allowing for an excess bandwidth of 20 % for practical nyquist filters and an additional 25 % guard band for frequency division duplexing ( fdd ) filters , the maximum delivered data rate for this particular positioning of the upstream spectrum will be on the order of 4 ( 3 . 5 − 2 )÷( 1 . 2 × 1 . 5 )= 4 . 0 mbps , which is usually sufficient for upstream applications . it is to be understood that any higher upstream bandwidth demands can be met by placing the upstream spectrum 44 so that it straddles two ham bands in the manner of downstream spectrum 41 . moreover , the present invention does not exclude the possibility of transporting downstream or upstream traffic using multiple carriers in either or each direction . added carriers may indeed be used to increase the capacity of a system already having downstream and / or upstream spectra whose respective carrier frequencies and symbol rates are subject to the above mathematical relationships . inventive placement of the downstream and / or upstream spectra allows drastic simplifications in the corresponding transmitter and receiver , which are now structurally and functionally described . without loss of generality , it is assumed that the transmitter 25 in the telco modem 21 of fig2 sends a transmitted modulated downstream signal 26 having a carrier frequency f c and a symbol rate f s obeying f c =( f h1 + f h2 )/ 2 and f s = 2 \| f h2 − f h1 \| for a pair of adjacent narrowband interferers having respective center frequencies f h1 and f h2 . with reference to fig4 there is shown a transmitter 25 in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention , comprising a qam encoder 251 for accepting and encoding the downstream digital data stream 24 . the qam encoder 251 produces a pair of digital signals 258 a , b which lead to a respective pair of substantially identical digital notch ( or “ band elimination ”) filters 252 a , b . the filters 252 a , b accept the digital signals 258 a , b and produce respective filtered signals 259 a , b that are fed to respective nyquist filters 253 a , b prior to entering a quadrature modulator 254 . the quadrature modulator 254 then modulates the signals 257 a , b onto a carrier , producing the transmitted downstream modulated signal 26 , which is fed to the hybrid 27 and relayed in differential mode across the twisted pair of wires 23 a , b . in operation , the downstream digital data stream 24 enters the qam encoder 251 at the rate of 4 * f s ( for a 16 - qam system ). the transmitter 25 is designed to have the appropriate carrier frequency f c for the qam encoder 251 according to the above - stated mathematical relationship . the qam encoder 251 then produces , at the symbol rate f s , the two digital signals 258 a , b which are known in the modulation art as the baseband “ in - phase ” and “ in - quadrature ” signals . the digital notch filters 252 a , b operate at baseband and therefore have coefficients that are complex numbers in general . the reason for this is that the conventional role of the notch filters is to provide notching around the two ham frequencies which are , in the general case , asymmetrically placed about the carrier f c at passband , or about dc at baseband . however , in the present invention , the desired notches are located symmetrically about the carrier frequency at passband , or on either side of zero frequency at baseband , i . e ., which makes it feasible to use real numbers for the taps of the filters 252 a , b . furthermore , since digital filters have a natural tendency to notch ( or “ dip ”) at fractional multiples of the sampling ( or symbol ) rate f s , the desired placement of a notch at f s / 4 advantageously leads to simpler , i . e ., shorter , notch filters 253 a , b . one side - effect of producing a symmetrically placed notch ( using real - valued coefficients for the notch filters 252 a , b ) is that the width of the notch on either side of zero frequency cannot be independently controlled . since the notch at the “ positive ” frequency covers the ham band centered about f h2 and the notch at the “ negative ” frequency depletes the signal in the ham band surrounding f h1 , the required notch width will be different for each notch . in order to achieve satisfactory performance , therefore , it is preferable to design the filters 252 a , b so that they apply a baseband notch which is at least as wide as the wider interfering ham band . the path through the inventive transmitter 25 is completed by the quadrature modulator 254 , which accepts the in - phase and in - quadrature outputs 257 a , b of the nyquist filters 253 a , b and creates the transmitted downstream modulated signal 26 therefrom . the quadrature modulator 254 must have the appropriate carrier frequency f c which , as stated , preferably lies mid - way between the center frequencies of the two interfering ham bands , i . e ., f c = ½ ( f h1 + f h2 ) the transmitted downstream modulated signal 26 then leaves the transmitter 25 , passes through the hybrid 27 and begins its journey along the twisted pair 23 a , b as a differential signal . if f h1 = 7 . 15 mhz and f h2 = 10 . 125 mhz , then the downstream spectrum of the transmitted downstream signal 26 will be positioned as the downstream spectrum 41 in fig3 although there will very little signal content at ( and around ) the centers of ham bands 13 and 14 . the above discussion of the inventive transmitter 25 has emphasized the removal of signal content around two interfering ham bands . however , amateur radio transmissions occurring in these same bands are capable of seriously corrupting the signal travelling along the twisted pair , and the received modulated downstream signal 32 may end up having a downstream spectrum characterized by intermittent periods of strong frequency content centered about ( or located around ) f h1 and f h2 . this demands notch filtering at the receiver 34 in the customer premises modem 22 which , as previously discussed , generally results in increased modem complexity . however , the present invention proposes a simplified receiver for use in a system in which the transmitted ( and received ) signal straddles two ham bands in the above manner having reference to fig3 . according to the present invention , therefore , fig5 a shows a receiver 34 for accepting the received modulated downstream signal in the form of a twisted - pair signal 32 a , b and a differential signal 32 c extracted therefrom by the hybrid 31 . the differential signal 32 c is fed to a summer 341 , where two interference - cancellation signals 358 a , b are added to the differential signal 32 c to produce an interference - reduced signal 351 . the interference - cancellation signals 358 a , b originate from an adaptive interference control mechanism , preferably comprising a common mode detector 347 , a pair of band - pass filters 366 a , b , a pair of vector modulators 343 a , b and an aic control block 360 . it is to be understood that the present invention may employ other suitable interference cancellation techniques . in the preferred aic mechanism , the common mode detector 347 extracts a common mode signal 359 from the twisted pair signal 32 a , b . ( although the twisted pair signal will preferably be transmitted in differential mode , interference may manifest itself as a common mode signal affecting both wires of the twisted pair .) the common mode signal 359 is fed to two band - pass filters 366 a , b , each of which has a pass band centered about a different frequency . the band - pass filters 366 a , b then feed respective signals 369 a , b to respective vector modulators 343 a , b , which then apply amplitude and phase changes to the signals 369 a , b , thereby producing the interference cancellation signals 358 a , b . the required amplitude and phase changes are fed by the aic control block 360 via control signals 365 a , b . the aic control block derives signals 365 a , b from interference estimates 357 a , b provided by a single sideband ( ssb ) down converter 349 . each interference estimate 357 a , b provides a measure of the interference remaining in one of the two interfering ham bands . continuing along the main signal path in the receiver 34 , the interference - reduced signal 351 enters a variable gain amplifier ( vga , 342 ), which is controlled by a control signal 352 to produce a level - controlled signal 356 leading to a quadrature demodulator 344 . the quadrature demodulator 344 produces two demodulated signals , namely , an in - phase signal 353 a and an in - quadrature signal 353 b , which are fed to respective identical nyquist filters 345 a , b . the quadrature demodulator 344 contains an automatic gain control ( agc ) function which controls the vga 342 via control signal 352 that is a function of the difference between an estimate of the combined power of the demodulated signals 353 a , b and a desired value . the nyquist filters 345 a , b select the desired signal contained in the demodulated signals 353 a , b , rejecting out - of - band signals and producing respective baseband demodulated signals 354 a , b that enter respective identical notch filters 346 a , b . the notch filters 346 a , b then attempt to remove any remaining radio - frequency interference in the baseband demodulated signals 354 a , b , providing respective filtered demodulated signals 355 a , b to a decision - feedback equalizer ( dfe , 348 ). the dfe 348 is a known component , essentially comprising a linear transversal equalizer section followed by a non - linear feedback section . these sections may be implemented as respective digital filters whose parameters , usually in the form of multiplicative coefficients , are adjusted by an adaptive algorithm internal to the dfe 348 . the dfe strives to eliminate any residual inter - symbol interference still present in the filtered demodulated signals 355 a , b and produces both an internal control signal for adapting its taps as well as the digital data stream 35 ideally containing the exact digital data transmitted by the hdt . it is to be noted that the baseband demodulated signals 354 a , b also establish a feedback control path by virtue of being connected to the ssb down converter 349 . as was introduced earlier , the ssb , down converter 349 respectively provides the interference estimates 357 a , b to the aic control block 360 based on the power contained in respective ham bands f h1 , f h2 . fig5 b shows a suitable embodiment of the ssb down converter 349 , which accepts the baseband demodulated signals 354 a , b and passes each signal 354 a , b through a respective sine multiplier 3491 a , b and cosine multiplier 3492 a , b . the sine multipliers 3491 a , b are fed by a sine wave at frequency f s / 4 and the cosine multipliers 3492 a , b are fed by a cosine wave at frequency f s / 4 . the output of sine multiplier 3491 a is added to the output of cosine multiplier 3492 b at a summer 3493 a , whose output is subsequently fed to a low - pass filter 3494 a . similarly , the output of sine multiplier 3491 a is subtracted from the output of cosine multiplier 3492 b at a summer 3493 b feeding a low - pass filter 3494 b . the outputs of sine multiplier 3491 b and cosine multiplier 3492 a are similarly arranged at summers 3493 c , d , which feed respective low - pass filters 3494 c , d . the low - pass filters 3494 a , b , c , d then remove any energy from their input signals and supply residual interference signals to respective rectifiers 3495 a , b , c , d . the output of rectifier 3495 a is combined with the output of rectifier 3495 d at a summer 3596 a to produce an estimate of the power of the interference surrounding f h1 , which is fed to the aic control block 360 as the interference estimate 357 a . an estimate of the power of the interference surrounding f h2 is similarly obtained by adding together the outputs of rectifiers 3585 b and 3595 c , forming the interference estimate 357 b that is fed to the aic control block 360 . referring back to fig5 a , it is to be understood that analog - to - digital ( a / d ) conversion is to be performed at some point in the receiver 34 . preferably , such conversion will be performed by an a / d converter placed at the output of the vga 342 , although it is equally suitable to to provide a pair of converters accepting the demodulated signals 353 a , b at the output of the quadrature demodulator 344 or at any other point . it is also to be considered that while preferred placement of the notch filters 346 a , b is in the baseband domain , it is also suitable to perform these operations at passband . however , the savings in terms of reduced computational complexity with respect to the prior art are not as significant as when filtering is performed at baseband , as in the preferred embodiment of fig5 a . in receiver operation , the band - pass filters 366 a , b filter the common mode signal 359 into separate non - overlapping signals 369 a , b representing interference in the two ham bands . each vector modulator 343 a , b independently vector modulates the corresponding signal according to a respective amplitude and phase adjustment fed via the corresponding control signal 365 a , b from the aic control block 360 , thereby producing the interference - cancellation signals 358 a , b which are added to the differential - signal 32 c by the summer 341 . the aic control block 360 executes an algorithm to determine the required amplitude and phase parameters based on the interference estimates 357 a , b obtained from the ssb down converter 349 . it has been observed that with the aid of an aic mechanism as described herein , narrowband radio - frequency interference can be reduced by up to 30 db in each band . naturally , other aic techniques may also be used , which may or may not yield superior performance than the embodiment in fig5 a . continuing along the path through the receiver 34 , the gain of the level - controlled signal 356 output by the vga 342 is adjusted according to the power ( or energy or magnitude ) level of the demodulated signals 353 a , b as demodulated by the quadrature demodulator 344 . this ensures that a relatively constant signal gain is maintained . the quadrature demodulator is 344 a component known and used in the art for producing the in - phase and in - quadrature demodulated signals 353 a , b from the ( quadrature modulated ) level - controlled signal 356 . the nyquist filters 345 a , b provide the first step in filtering the demodulated signals 353 a , b , by eliminating any spectral content outside the range of interest , which is located in the baseband domain from dc to half the symbol rate . at this point , it is useful to remind the reader that in accordance with the present invention , any ham radio interference will appear in the baseband demodulated signals 354 a , b at dc plus - or - minus f s / 4 . the notch filters 346 a , b then apply a notch symmetrically disposed about dc in order to eliminate the remaining interference . this symmetry allows implementation of the notch filters 346 a , b with real - valued coefficients , as was the case in the transmitter of fig4 . again , the width of the notch cannot be independently controlled and therefore it is preferable for the symmetric baseband notch applied by the notch filters 346 a , b to be at least as wide as the wider of the two ham bands centered about f h1 and f h2 . another feature that the notch filters 346 a , b share with the notch filters 252 a , b in the transmitter 25 of fig4 is that the placement of a notch at f s / 4 is easy to achieve with a small number of taps , due to the natural tendency of the frequency response of a digital filter to exhibit notches at fractional intervals of the sampling frequency . the dfe 348 is the final forward link in the receiver chain and makes decisions about the transmitted symbols based on the received symbols as output by notch filters 346 a , b . it is important to note that while the dfe 348 is capable of eliminating much of the inter - symbol interference in a signal corrupted by a number of stable , narrow interference bands , its coefficients must reconverge when the interference changes bands dynamically . this is often the case with intermittent ham radio transmissions , which would lead to frequent readaptation , and possibly divergence of the dfe coefficients causing signal outages . for this reason , the presence of the notch filters 346 a , b is preferred , in order to eliminate frequency content in the interference bands regardless of whether or not ham transmissions are currently taking place in those bands . the baseband demodulated signals 354 a , b also form a feedback path leading to the ssb down converter 349 , which attempts to estimate the amount of interference remaining in the in - phase baseband demodulated signal 354 a and in the in - quadrature baseband demodulated signal 354 b . the in - phase component of the interference at a frequency f i can be represented as : 354 a = a x ( t ) cos ( 2π ( f i − f c ) t ), 354 b = a y ( t ) sin ( 2π ( f i − f c ) t ), where a x and a y are the respective amplitudes of the in - phase and in - quadrature baseband demodulated signals 354 a , b and t is a measure of time . the sine and cosine multipliers 3491 a , b and 3492 a , b will further demodulate these signals , bringing the interference to dc when they operate at f s / 4 . this convenient sampling rate requires the calculation of only three ( real ) values for the sine and cosine multiplicands , i . e ., 0 , 1 or − 1 , which has the implication that the signals 354 a , b passing through the sine and cosine multipliers 3491 a , b and 3492 a , b are simply dropped , passed through or inverted . the outputs of the sine and cosine multipliers have their phases adjusted by the summers 3593 a , b , c , d , which , after low - pass filtering , provide the following signals at points 3597 a , b , c , d : 3497   a =  1 - sgn  ( f i - f h1 ) 2  a a   ( t )  sin  ( 2  π  ( f h1 - f i )  t ) 3497   b =  1 + sgn  ( f i - f h2 ) 2  a b   ( t )  cos  ( 2  π  ( f i - f h2 )  t ) 3497   c =  1 + sgn  ( f i - f h2 ) 2  a c   ( t )  sin  ( 2  π  ( f i - f h2 )  t ) 3497   d =  1 - sgn  ( f i - f h1 ) 2  a d  ( t )  cos  ( 2  π  ( f i - f h1 )  t ) where sgn ( x ) is the signum function of x and a a through a d are respective interference amplitudes . it is clear from the above that the interference level at points 3497 a and 3497 d will be very close to zero when fi is very close to f h1 . therefore , measuring the power of signals 3497 a and 3497 d , and summing these measurements as is done by summer 3496 a , provides an estimate of the residual interference surrounding f h1 ( namely , interference estimate 357 a ). similarly , the interference level at points 3497 b and 3497 c will be very close to zero when fi is very close to f h2 . these two signals are rectified and combined by summer 3496 b , thereby providing an estimate of the residual power surrounding f h2 , namely interference estimate 357 b . from the above , it can be concluded that by carefully selecting f c and f s , a high - data - rate signal whose spectrum straddles two ham bands is made not to cause interference to ham radio operators and at the same time is made immune to their transmissions . furthermore , the implementational benefits include a simplified transmitter and receiver having short baseband filters with real - valued coefficients . in some applications , the bandwidth of the signal intended to be transmitted may be on the order of 5 mhz or less , in which case it is possible to align the signal spectrum so that only one amateur band is straddled , leading to even more radical simplifications in the transmitter and receiver . an inventive frequency allocation scheme in accordance with such an alternate embodiment of the present invention is shown in fig6 . in the example of fig6 the downstream spectrum 42 now has a carrier frequency f c equal to ( or within about 10 % of ) the center frequency of ham band 14 , in this case 7 . 15 mhz , and occupies a spectral region between 4 mhz and 10 mhz supporting a symbol rate f s of 6 ÷ 1 . 5 = 4 . 0 mhz ( after accounting for guard bands ). it is noted that f s is not constrained to a single value , but rather can take on any value less than the above calculated value in the case of ham band 14 . in a 16 - qam system , a 6 mhz downstream bandwidth enables the delivery of 4 *( 6 ÷ 1 . 5 )= 16 mbps , which is adequate in many instances , illustrating that the alternate embodiment of the present invention is just as useful than the preferred embodiment , if not more so . it is to be understood , of course , that this alternate spectral positioning technique may also be applied to the upstream spectrum 44 , although in this example , it continues to lie between ham bands 15 and 16 . [ 0077 ] fig7 shows the corresponding simplifications to the transmitter 25 , which now comprises two real - coefficient baseband high - pass filters 255 a , b ( instead of the two real - coefficient baseband notch filters of fig4 ). the high - pass filters 255 a , b simply attenuate frequencies around dc ( at baseband ), which translates into removing frequency content around the carrier frequency once the signals 259 a , b are nyquist filtered by respective nyquist filters 253 a , b and quadrature modulated by the quadrature modulator 254 . trading a band - pass filter for a high - pass filter usually results in halving the computational complexity , as only half the coefficients are generally required to achieve the same spectral sharpness . aside from straightforward filtering , another way to produce a notch around the carrier frequency is for the qam encoder 251 to provide digital signals 258 a , b that have been encoded using a partial response filter with a null at dc , for instance , a class 4 partial response filter . subsequent to modulation by the quadrature modulator 254 , the transmitted downstream modulated signal 26 will contain a “ natural ” notch at the carrier frequency . the simplifications to the receiver are most evident when described with reference to fig8 in which is shown a receiver 34 for use with a system having a downstream spectrum centered about a ham band . the receiver 34 now comprises only one vector modulator 343 which deals with only one interferer , and therefore is capable of accepting the ( unfiltered ) common mode signal 359 from the common mode detector 347 . the aic control block 360 now provides only one control signal 365 , which is calculated by an algorithm that relies on a single interference estimate 357 from a simple power estimator 350 . the vga 342 , quadrature demodulator 344 and nyquist filters 345 a , b remain identical to the components in fig5 a . however , the band - pass filters 346 a , b of fig5 a have been replaced by optional high - pass filters 340 a , b , owing to the fact that the baseband demodulated signals 354 a , b will require a notch at dc to eliminate the interference due to a single ham band . the high - pass filters 340 a , b are symmetrical , have real coefficients , and are also optional , since the dfe 348 is capable of compensating for the filtered demodulated signals 355 a , b having been corrupted by a single source of narrowband interference , as previously discussed . moreover , the ssb down converter of fig5 a and 5b has been replaced in the receiver 34 of fig8 by a very simple power estimator 350 for removing any data present in the baseband demodulated signals 354 a , b by first passing them through respective low - pass filters 3501 a , b . ( since the residual interference occurs from a single source at dc in the baseband domain , a second demodulation phase is not required , and no separation of the interferers is required .) the power of the in - phase interference is measured by a rectifier 3502 a connected to the output of low - pass filter 3501 a . similarly , the in - quadrature interference power is measured by a rectifier 3502 b - connected to the output of the low - pass filter 3501 b . the output of each rectifier 3502 a , b is then supplied to a summer 3503 , which forms the interference estimate 357 fed to the aic control block 360 . upon closer inspection of the receiver in fig8 it is noted that the aic control block 360 requires only one interference estimate 357 ( as opposed to the aic block of fig5 a , which needed two such estimates ). since only a single power ( or energy or magnitude ) estimate is required , it may in fact be taken from any component which already generates a similar error signal . such a signal is generated by the quadrature demodulator 344 , for example , which provides the vga 342 with a control signal 352 that will be larger when there is more interference and smaller when there is less interference . also , the dfe 348 internally generates a suitable control signal that may be tapped and brought to the aic control block . these two control signals may both be used as an error signal by the aic control block , as is illustrated in fig9 . in this alternate embodiment of the present invention , it is proposed to supply the agc control signal 352 from the quadrature demodulator 344 and a dfe control signal 362 from the dfe 348 to the aic control block 360 . the aic control block 360 is assumed capable of switching between relying on the control signal 352 or on the control signal 362 . it is also assumed that the control signal 362 enables the aic control block 362 to control adaptation of the dfe coefficients . in operation , there are two scenarios to consider , namely , either the interfering ham band is in use or it is not . when indeed hit by interference , the aic control block 360 begins by freezing the dfe taps ( via control signal 362 ), and calculates the appropriate magnitude and phase shift to be applied by the vector modulator 343 , based on the control signal 352 from the quadrature modulator 344 . meanwhile , the dfe 4348 attempts to eliminate inter - symbol interference and will be unstable until the aic mechanism has somewhat reduced the interference in the differential signal 32 c . after a stable operating point has been reached , that is to say , after acquisition of the dfe 348 , the aic control block 360 switches to the dfe control signal 362 as a more sensitive estimate of the remaining interference , which allows the aic mechanism to refine its suppression of ham radio interference . the aic control block 360 will then converge sufficiently to reduce the strength of the interference to less than the strength of the signal by a certain amount of decibels . the aic mechanism can provide up to 30 db of interference suppression over an interference band of up to approximately 10 % of the carrier frequency . the control algorithm 360 will subsequently un - freeze the dfe coefficients via control signal 362 , permitting them to adaptively adjust in the normal way , using , e . g ., a least - mean - square algorithm . the dfe 348 will then create a notch with its forward taps and strive to eliminate inter - symbol interference with its feedback taps . when there are 16 forward taps and 16 feedback taps , it has been simulated and confirmed through experiment that additional interference suppression of 30 db can be achieved by the dfe , for a total of 60 db when combined with the effect of the aic block 343 . if , on the other hand , the ham band is not in use , interference suppression by the aic block 343 is neither desired nor achieved . in this case , the aic control block 360 will detect an extremely low level of interference . the control algorithm 360 will simply instruct the dfe 348 via control signal 362 to un - freeze the dfe coefficients , allowing them to adapt in the usual way . in this scenario , it might also be desirable to cease adaptation of the aic block altogether . it is to be noted that when the high - pass filters 340 a , b are omitted from the receiver 34 in fig9 the only filtering stage in the receiver is formed by the adaptable dfe coefficients . in cases where ham interference is intermittent , it is expected that frequent readaptation of these coefficients will be required each time there is a change in the amateur radio transmission characteristics . interestingly , however , it has been observed that there is a tendency for the dfe taps to remain constant , even after ham band interference has disappeared . that is to say , adaptation for the ham interference appears to reach a stable local optimum . nevertheless , since long term stability of the real part of the dfe taps is not fully known , it is considered preferable to freeze the real part of the dfe coefficients once a satisfactory operating condition is reached so as to avert excessive readaptation periods with a higher degree of certainty , while allowing the imaginary part of the coefficients to adapt to changes in cable characteristics , such as temperature . while the preferred embodiment and several alternate embodiments of the present invention have been described and illustrated , it is to be understood that variations in the design may be made . for example , the modulation format used in the inventive transmitter and receiver may be a different from the 16 - qam modulation scheme described herein . other suitable modulation types include different levels of qam or different modulation formats altogether , such as cap , bpsk or differential schemes based on any of these formats . moreover , as a general comment having regard to the inventive spectral allocation schemes depicted in fig3 and 6 , it should be appreciated that the invention applies to the transmission and reception of signals in both directions of traffic flow , i . e ., upstream and downstream . furthermore , use of the methods disclosed herein does not preclude the parallel use of other transmission techniques to enhance bandwidth capacity . for example , it is feasible to transmit a first portion of a downstream spectrum straddling two ham bands in accordance with the preferred embodiment of fig3 and to transmit a second portion of the downstream spectrum located between two other ham bands . at the same time , the upstream spectrum may also be divided into two portions , one of which may rest between two ham bands and the other of which may straddle one ham band in accordance with the alternate embodiment of fig6 . in view of the above description and illustrations , therefore , the scope of the invention is only to be limited by the claims appended hereto .	7
referring now to the drawings , wherein like numeral refer to like parts throughout , there is seen in fig1 a plasma etch system 10 comprising a chamber 12 , a wafer chuck 14 , solenoid coils 16 , a transmissive window 20 position in the top of chamber 12 , and ir sources 22 . a wafer 24 is positioned on top of wafer chuck 14 . chamber 12 is fitted with an inlet 26 for receiving a reactant gas supply and an exhaust port 28 for expelling reactant gas . a radio frequency ( rf ) power supply 30 is coupled to solenoid coils 16 and to ground in order to strike and maintain a free radical plasma 32 and an rf bias power supply 34 is coupled to wafer chuck 14 and to ground in order to control forward bias ( etch ) power . ir sources 22 generate infrared radiation 36 , which pass through window 20 to strike the surface of wafer 24 . as seen in fig2 , etching occurs when wafer 24 , comprising a substrate 38 and an insulator 40 that has been coated with an etchable conductor layer 42 and a masking layer 44 , is exposed to free radical plasma 32 . free radical plasma 32 chemically interacts with the surface of wafer 24 to form a secondary compound 46 that , in the presence of heat , will evaporate . as exposure to free radical plasma 32 and evaporation of secondary compound 46 continues , a trench 48 will form in etchable conductor layer 42 . due to the partial pressure of secondary compound 46 , evaporation may not occur at a temperature that is low enough to prevent damage to other components of wafer 24 . as further seen in fig2 , selected wavelengths of infrared radiation 36 are applied to wafer 34 in combination with plasma 32 to lower the temperature at which etching will occur . referring to fig1 , the wavelength of infrared radiation 36 is controlled by the use of a wavelength filter 52 that filters out undesirable wavelengths while allowing select wavelengths to pass through to window 20 . the particular wavelength of infrared radiation 36 is selected so that it will couple with and excite the vibrational state of the secondary compound formed by the interaction of the surface of wafer 24 and the free radical plasma 32 used in the etching process , thereby selectively heating only those areas of wafer 24 to be etched . for example , plasma etching of a copper - coated wafer 24 in the presence of chlorine gas results in the formation of a layer of copper chloride ( cucl 2 ) in the non - masked areas of wafer 24 . due to the partial pressure of cucl 2 , the surface of wafer 24 will be passivated at temperatures below 600 degrees f . and no etching will occur . radiating with infrared radiation 36 at a resonance wavelength will effectively lower the temperature at which the layer of cucl 2 formed on the area of wafer 24 will evaporate to form the etching . by contrast , the surrounding areas of wafer 36 that are masked to prevent the formation of cucl 2 will be heated to a lesser degree as selected wavelength infrared radiation 30 will not induce resonance in those regions . referring to fig3 , a wafer 60 processed by prior art , non - resonant infrared radiation 62 forms non - discrete heating zones 64 . referring to fig4 , a wafer 70 processed with resonant infrared radiation 72 will , however , form heating zones 74 having a finer resolution . by creating zones 74 having finer resolution , resonant radiation 72 allow for more exact etching and an increased density of circuits in wafer 70 , thereby improving both the quality and overall performance of the etching process . referring to fig1 , plasma etch system 10 further includes a filter or mask 50 which spatially attenuates the strength of infrared radiation 30 to compensate for spatial etch distortions , i . e ., non - uniformities in the amount of etching that occurs in various regions of a wafer 24 , thereby allowing for improved wafer processing . filter 50 for spatially attenuating infrared radiation 30 may be separate from wavelength filter 52 , or the functions of both filters 50 and 52 may be combined into a single filter that selects for the resonant frequency and spatially attenuates to remove non - uniformities . referring to fig5 , unfiltered etching of wafer 24 may result in edge fast etching 76 due to macro - loading . referring to fig6 and 7 , filter 50 having spatial variations in transmission which mirror or are complementary to the non - uniformities will attenuate the infrared intensity at the edge of wafer 24 to compensate for macro - loading and allow for uniform etching . to prevent edge fast etching , filter 50 has a central region 80 having high transmittance and a peripheral region 82 having low transmittance to slow the etching of the edge of wafer 24 . referring to fig8 , asymmetric pumping of plasma 32 in chamber 12 results in the formation of non - uniformities in wafer 24 . when port 28 is positioned on one side of chamber 12 , the non - uniform flow 84 of reactant gas will lead to areas of non - uniform etching . with reference to fig9 , a non - uniform etch profile 86 is formed on wafer 24 when subjected to asymmetric pumping . referring to fig1 , filter 50 may be designed with a series of eccentric regions 88 having gradually decreased transmittance to compensate for etch profile 86 and spatially attenuate the etching of wafer 24 to smooth the non - uniformities . referring to fig1 , magnetic field cusping of chamber 12 may also cause non - uniformities in the plasma etching of wafer 24 . during etching , magnetic lines of force from electromagnets 90 positioned around chamber 12 cause “ cusp ” regions that affect etch uniformity . referring to fig1 , non - uniformities 92 are formed in wafer 24 when subjected to magnetic field cusping . referring to fig1 , filter 50 may be designed to include complementary regions of variable transmission 94 that mirror non - uniformities 92 and improve uniformity in the etching of wafer 24 . filter 50 may comprise standard linear variable metallic neutral density filters that are modified to have transmission patterns according to the present invention . the appropriate regions of variable transmission may be created in filter 50 by attenuating the intensity of the incident ( ir ) beam with metallic coatings . for example , an optical quality glass filter having aluminum coating that is protected by an overcoat may used to attenuate infrared intensity , although other coating materials could also be used . the spatial variations in the attenuating power of filter 50 can be achieved by varying the thickness of the film coating in the appropriate regions of filter 50 to mirror and attenuate the undesirable regions of non - uniformity .	7
fig3 shows a gamma voltage generator 100 according to the present invention , which comprises several independent voltage sources 102 to 112 to provide a variable common voltage v com and several variable voltages v 1 to v 5 to buffer operational amplifiers 114 to 124 , to further generate a common gamma voltage v gcom and several gamma voltages v g1 to v g5 , and a mirror mapping circuit 136 to generate several mapped voltages v 6 to v 10 by mapping the gamma voltages v g1 to v g5 with the common gamma voltage v gcom as a reference to buffer operational amplifiers 126 to 134 to further generate gamma voltages v g6 to v g10 . in the voltage sources 102 to 112 , several variable resistors r com and r 1 to r 5 each is supplied with a gamma current i s that has a same magnitude for each of the voltage sources 102 to 112 to generate the voltages v com and v 1 to v 5 . if any one of the gamma voltages v gcom and v g1 to v g5 is desired to be tuned individually , only the corresponding resistor among r com and r 1 to r 5 has to be changed . furthermore , since the gamma voltages v g6 to v g10 are generated by mapping the gamma voltages v g5 to v g1 , respectively , with the common gamma voltage v gcom as the mapping reference , tuning the gamma voltages v com and v 1 to v 5 will automatically tuning the gamma voltages v g6 to v g10 in the same time . a current mirror 30 , as shown in fig4 , provides the gamma currents i s for the resistors r com and r 1 to r 5 , and the current mirror 30 comprises a reference branch 32 connected with a reference current i ref provided by a current source 46 , and several mirror branches 34 , 36 , 38 , 40 , 42 and 44 to mirror the reference current i ref , respectively , to generate the respective gamma currents i s for the resistors r com and r 1 to r 5 of the voltage sources 102 to 112 . the current source 46 comprises a reference resistor r s connected between ground gnd and a transistor 462 that is further connected to the reference branch 32 , and an operational amplifier 464 with a non - inverted input connected to a reference voltage v ref , an inverted input connected to the resistor rs and the transistor 462 , and an output connected to the gate of transistor 462 . for adjustment of either the reference resistor r s or the reference voltage v ref will change the magnitude of the gamma current i s . referring to fig3 for the gamma voltage generator 100 , the first group of the gamma voltages v g1 to v g5 and the other group of the gamma voltages v g6 to v g10 generated by mapping the first group of the gamma voltages v g1 to v g5 are symmetric to each other with respect to the common gamma voltage v gcom as the symmetric center , corresponding to a gamma curve 138 as shown in fig5 . in more detail , using the symmetric property of the gamma curve , the common gamma voltage v gcom and the first gamma voltages v g1 to v g5 are generated first , and then the common gamma voltage v gcom is used as the center axis to map the first gamma voltages v g1 to v g5 to generate the second gamma voltages v g6 to v g10 . in other words , the first gamma voltages v g1 to v g5 and the second gamma voltages v g6 to v g10 are symmetric to each other with the common gamma voltage v gcom as their center . since the second gamma voltages v g6 to v g10 are directly generated from the common gamma voltage v gcom and the first gamma voltages v g1 to v g5 , no pins are required for them for the chip and thus the number of the pins are reduced by a half . fig6 shows an embodiment for the mirror mapping circuit 136 shown in fig3 . to generate the gamma voltage v g6 , for example , an operational amplifier 140 has a non - inverted input connected with the common gamma voltage v gcom , an inverted input connected with the gamma voltage v g5 through a resistor 142 , and another resistor 144 connected between the inverted input and the output of the operational amplifier 140 . for ( v g6 − v gcom )/ r 144 =( v gcom − v g5 )/ r 142 , [ eq - 2 ] where r 144 and r 142 are the resistances of the resistors 144 and 142 , respectively , and when r 144 = r 142 , it is obtained and obviously , the gamma voltages v g5 and v g6 are symmetric to each other with respect to v gcom as the center axis . fig7 shows another embodiment for the mirror mapping circuit 136 shown in fig3 . again , to generate the gamma voltage v g6 , three current mirrors 146 , 148 and 150 , and three resistors 152 , 154 and 156 of a same resistance are used . the current mirror 146 has its reference branch 1462 connected to a current source 164 , and its mirror branch 1464 connected to the resistor 154 and the mirror branch 1504 of the current mirror 150 . the current source 164 provides a current i 1 for the reference branch 1462 according to the gamma voltage v gcom , and it comprises a resistor 152 connected between ground gnd and a transistor 159 that is further connected to the reference branch 1462 of the current mirror 146 , and an operational amplifier 158 with its non - inverted input connected to the gamma voltage v gcom , inverted input connected to the resistor 152 , and output connected to the gate of the transistor 159 . the current mirror 148 has a reference branch 1482 connected to a current source 166 , and a mirror branch 1484 connected to the reference branch 1502 of the current mirror 150 . the current source 166 provides a current i 3 for the reference branch 1482 according to the gamma voltage v g5 , and it comprises a resistor 156 connected between ground gnd and a transistor 161 that is further connected to the reference branch 1482 of the current mirror 148 , and an operational amplifier 160 with its non - inverted input connected to the gamma voltage v g5 , an inverted input connected to the resistor 156 , and output connected to the gate of the transistor 161 . m , n and p denoted in the three current mirrors 146 , 148 and 150 represent the channel widths of the transistors besides thereto . due to the gamma voltage v gcom connected to non - inverted input of the operational amplifier 158 , a voltage v gcom ′ is present on the inverted input of the operational amplifier 158 and applied to the resistor 152 , and thus a current i 1 is induced on the reference branch 1462 of the current mirror 146 . for the ratio of the channel widths of the transistors in the current mirror 146 is m : 2m , the output of the mirror branch 1464 is double , i . e ., i 2 = 2 × i 1 . on the other hand , due to the gamma voltage v g5 connected to the non - inverted input of the operational amplifier 160 , a voltage v g5 ′ is present on the inverted input of the operational amplifier 160 and applied to the resistor 156 , and thus a current i 3 is generated on the reference branch 1482 of the current mirror 148 . for the ratio of the channel widths of the transistors in the current mirror 148 is n : n , the output of the mirror branch 1484 is the same , i . e ., i 4 = i 3 . the reference branch 1502 of the current mirror 150 receives the mirrored current i 4 , and the ratio of the channel widths of the transistors in the current mirror 150 is p : p , it is thus obtained that the mirrored current i 5 = i 4 , and further i 5 = i 3 , since i 4 = i 3 . the gamma voltage output from the node 162 is v g6 =( i 2 − i 5 )× r 154 = i 2 × r 154 − i 5 × r 154 , [ eq - 4 ] where r 154 is the resistance of the resistor 154 . since the resistors 152 , 154 and 156 have the same resistance , and i 2 = 2 × i 1 , i 5 = i 3 , the gamma voltage v g6 = ( 2 × i 1 ) × r 152 - ( i 3 ) × r 156 ⁢ ⁢ = 2 ⁢ ( i 1 × r 152 ) - ( i 3 × r 156 ) ⁢ ⁢ = 2 ⁢ v gcom ′ - v g5 ′ [ eq ⁢ - ⁢ 5 ] based on the principle of the virtual short between the non - inverted and inverted inputs of an operational amplifier , the non - inverted and inverted inputs of the operational amplifiers 158 and 160 are the same voltages , that is v g6 = 2 v gcom ′− v g5 ′= 2 v gcom − v g5 , v g6 − v gcom = v gcom − v g5 , as for the situation of equation eq - 3 , the gamma voltages v g5 and v g6 are symmetric to each other with respect to v gcom as the center axis . while the present invention has been described in conjunction with preferred embodiments thereof , it is evident that many alternatives , modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art . accordingly , it is intended to embrace all such alternatives , modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and scope thereof as set forth in the appended claims .	6
in the example depicted in the drawings , a direct current drive motor 6 , whose rotational direction can be reversed , serves to operate a sliding / lifting roof having a cover 10 which closes , or , alternatively , at least partially exposes a roof aperture 11 disposed in a fixed roof 12 of a vehicle ( only roof 12 being shown in fig3 - 5 ). drive motor 6 displaces , in a conventional manner ( british pat . no . 1 , 261 , 846 , and as shown manually driven in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 572 , 822 ), a transport bridge 8 which is slidable in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle , via a cable which is rigid in compression . at both ends of transport bridge 8 , there is a lifting lever 9 . in response to the displacement of transport bridge 8 , levers 9 are induced into pivoting movements in a manner not depicted in detail here . the configuration is such that cover 10 , starting from the depicted fig4 closed position , can selectively be lowered and moved rearwardly ( fig3 ) or , alternatively , can be extended into a venting position ( fig5 ) with its rear edge above the surface of the fixed roof 12 . the drive motor 6 has a motor circuit polarity reversing actuation switch s1 with two changeover contacts s11 and s12 , that are mechanically coupled to each other . by manual actuation of switch s1 , in the embodiments of fig1 and 6 , leads 13 or 14 connected with these contacts , can selectively be connected with the positive and negative sides , or with the negative and positive sides of a direct current source 15 , in the form of a motor vehicle battery , for example . by means of a spring mechanism , not depicted , changeover contacts s11 and s12 are automatically reset into the o - position indicated in fig1 and 2 when switch s1 is released . drive motor 6 is disposed between leads 13 , 14 in series with a contact rs of a relay rs . relay contact rs opens the motor circuit , as depicted , with relay rs releasing and closing an inductive braking current extending via lead 16 . relay rs is a conventional direct current relay , which , upon application of a voltage sufficient for its actuation , closes switch contact rs of the motor circuit and brings contact rs into a position ( fig1 ) which causes interruption of the motor circuit when the voltage applied at relay rs drops to a value below the critical value of the relay . when switch contact rs is in its operating position , which closes the motor circuit , the actuation of switch s1 causes voltage with one or the other polarity to be applied to drive motor 6 , and in accordance therewith , actuation of the motor is initiated in one or the other rotational direction . a relay actuating stage , having transistors t1 , t2 , and t3 , together with the control circuit ( lead 17 ) of relay rs , is connected to the changeover contacts s11 , s12 of the polarity reversing actuation switch s1 via a full wave bridge rectifier consisting of diodes d1 , d2 , d3 and d4 , connected in parallel with the motor circuit . a lead 19 is connected with the positive outlet 18 of a full wave bridge rectifier , while a lead 21 is connected to the negative outlet 20 of the bridge . the base of transistor t1 communicates with a lead 19 via a series connection having condenser c1 and resistor r1 , and communicates with a lead 21 via a condenser c2 . the collector of transistor t1 is connected to lead 19 via a resistor r2 , and the emitter of transistor t1 is connected with lead 21 via a resistor r3 . if desired , the emitter of transistor t1 can be directly connected to lead 21 , i . e ., resistor r3 can be dispensed with . the base of transistor t2 is connected with the collector of transistor t1 via a resistor r7 . the collector of transistor t2 is connected to the junction 22 between condenser c1 and resistor r1 via resistor r4 , and is connected to lead 19 via resistor r5 . the emitter of transistor t2 is directly connected with lead 21 . the base of transistor t3 is connected to the collector of transistor t2 via a resistor r6 . the emitter of transistor t3 is connected with lead 21 via a diode d5 , which has homopolar polarization relative to the emitter of transistor t3 . the collector of transistor t3 is connected with the base of transistor t1 via a diode d6 and is also connected to a junction 23 between the winding of relay rs and a position responsive switch s2 . one side of the relay winding is directly connected with lead 19 via lead 17 , while the other side of the relay winding can be connected to lead 21 via switch s2 . depending upon the cover 10 position , the position responsive switch is actuated such that it opens at a predetermined reference position of cover 10 , and closes in all other cover positions . in the case of the sliding / lifting roof , illustrated as an example , the reference position is the closed cover position depicted in fig4 . a diode d7 is disposed parallel to the relay winding . for the purpose of illustrating the functioning of the actuation device of fig1 it is to be assumed that cover 10 , initially , is in the closed , fig4 position , and actuating switch s1 assumes the depicted o - position wherein : switch s2 is open , relay rs has released , and the motor circuit is interrupted . manual actuation of polarity reversing switch s1 , in one or the other direction , causes a short - term positive impulse , acting as a setting signal , which is given to transistor base t1 via full wave bridge rectifier d1 to d4 , by way of the series connection acting as a dynamic inlet for the relay actuation stage having condenser c1 and resistor r1 . the above sequence causes a low at the output ( collector ) of transistor t1 which is coupled to the input ( base ) of transistor t2 . transistor t2 , on its part , produces a high at its ouput ( collector ) which is coupled to transistor base t3 via resistor r6 . transistor t3 fully energizes and causes relay rs to pull - in . simultaneously , the collector of transistor t2 returns the high to transistor base t1 via the series connection of resistors r4 and r1 , whereby resistors r4 and r1 form a locking loop which , subsequent to the relay being set , holds the relay actuation stage in its set mode until there is a resetting , further described below . the motor circuit is closed via the switch contact rs of the relay . the motor is started in the rotational direction predetermined by the actuating device of switch s1 and displaces cover 10 via drive cable 7 . upon completion of the start - up procedure , position responsive switch s2 is closed as a consequence of the cover movement , whereby relay rs is held in the set mode . at the same time , a resetting signal ( low ) which originates at junction 23 , is coupled back to transistor base t1 via diode d6 and a lead 24 . lead 24 further forms a static input of relay actuation stage t1 , t2 , t3 . to ensure a reliable functioning of the actuating device , it is essential to ensure that , with the position responsive switch s2 in the open position , diode d6 remains blocked , even when there are large fluctuations in temperature , as occur in motor vehicles . this problem is addressed by diode d5 . the effect of the voltage drop across diode d5 in a forward direction , with the position responsive switch s2 in the open position , causes the potential at junction 23 , and inherently at the cathode of diode d6 , to be elevated to a value which reliably blocks diode d6 . a temperature drift occurs equidirectionally in diodes d5 and d6 , whereby a potential difference , independent of temperature fluctuations , is obtained at diode d5 , reliably blocking diode d6 , with switch s2 in the open position . if desired , diode d5 may be part of the collector circuit of transistor t3 . resistors r4 and r1 serving to feed back the setting function , preferably , should be dimensioned at a ratio of approximately 1 : 2 to 1 : 3 . in order to effectively decouple the relay driver stage formed by transistor t3 relative to the flip - flop - like pre - stage t1 , t2 , the resistor r6 should have a relatively high value , which facilitates that the current flowing over transistor t2 is substantially greater than the current flow to the transistor base t3 . preferably , these currents are at a ratio on the order of 10 : 1 . condenser c2 serves to control chatter at the position responsive switch s2 , while diode d7 serves as a resetting diode for relay rs . subsequent to cover 10 leaving the reference position , and after position responsive switch s2 has closed , relay actuation stage t1 , t2 , t3 is reset . motor 6 , in any desired rotational direction , is still only controlled by polarity reversing actuation switch s1 . upon cover 10 moving into the reference position , position responsive switch s2 opens , relay rs is released , contact rs interrupts the motor circuit , and the motor winding is short - circuited via lead 16 for the purpose of inductive braking . in the embodiment according to fig2 the relay actuating stage has two circuit units which are in mirror image relationship with respect to each other , and each of which is similar to the relay actuation stage according to fig1 . corresponding circuit components of the two circuit units have been given identical reference numerals as in fig1 supplemented by the letters &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; b &# 34 ;, respectively . leads 19 , 21 are directly connected to changeover contacts s11 or s12 of polarity reversing actuating switch s1 . the full wave bridge rectifier d1 , d2 , d3 , d4 is eliminated . the position responsive switch s2 has a changeover contact switching element 26 which , in the reference position of cover 10 ( i . e ., the closed position of fig4 in the example according to fig3 - 5 ), engages a contact 27 connected with lead 21 , and which , upon leaving the reference position , is switched to a contact 28 connected with lead 19 . changeover contact 26 is connected to lead 29 which , by way of condenser c3a , c3b is connected , respectively , with the dynamic input of the two switching units t1a , t2a , t3a and t1b , t2b , t3b . diodes d5 , d6 , and d7 of the fig1 arrangement are eliminated . one side of the winding of relay rs is connected with lead 21 by way of the collector - emitter path of transistor t3a , while the other side of the relay winding is connected to lead 19 via the collector - emitter path of transistor t3b . parallel to the collector - emitter paths of transistors t3a and t3b there are , respectively , diodes d8b or d8a . parallel to the winding of relay rs there are two oppositely polarized z - diodes d9 and d10 , which are connected in series . the collector of transistor t1a is connected with the transistor base t2a via a resistor r7a . analogous thereto , a resistor r7b is connected between the collector of transistor t1b and transistor base t2b . for illustrating the method of operation , it is assumed that the drive motor displaces transport bridge 8 rearwardly , when changeover contact s11 is connected with the positive terminal of current supply 15 , and changeover contact s12 is connected with the negative terminal of current supply 15 ; while transport bridge 8 is displaced to the front when changeover contact s11 is brought into contact with the positive side of current supply 15 . it is further assumed that cover 10 , initially , is in the reference position ( fig4 closed position ), and starting therefrom it can be rearwardly displaced in accordance with fig3 or upwardly tilted as in fig5 . in the closed position of cover 10 , the changeover contact 26 of position responsive switch s2 is applied at contact 27 . if , at this starting point , actuating switch s1 in fig2 is displaced upwardly , i . e ., changeover contact s11 is connected to the positive side , and changeover contact s12 is connected to the negative side of power source 15 , a short - term positive impulse is given to transistor base t1a via lead 19 and the dynamic input leading thereto via condenser c1a of the circuit unit of the relay actuation stage , indicated to the right in fig2 . the base of this transistor is energized to a high on a short - term basis . the low caused thereby at the collector of the transistor t1a is coupled to the base of transistor t2a via resistor r7a . the collector of transistor t2a goes to a high . this signal is applied at the transistor base t3a which consequently is fully energized . simultaneously , the high of the collector of transistor t2a is coupled back to the transistor base t1a via the locking loop with resistors r4a and r1a , causing the set mode triggered by the positive impulse at transistor base t1a to be retained . starting at the positive side of direct current source 15 , current flows to lead 21 via changeover contact s11 , diode d8a , the winding of relay rs and the collector emitter path of transistor t3a , and from there to the negative side of direct current source 15 via changeover contact s12 . relay rs pulls - in and is retained in the set state . the relay switch contact rs closes the motor circuit of drive motor 6 . the current flows via motor 6 in the direction indicated by arrow 30 . the motor 6 starts up ; transport bridge 8 is displaced rearwardly via drive cable 7 ; cover 10 is lowered and is displaced rearwardly in accordance with fig3 . during the sequence discussed above , the circuit unit with transistors t1b , t2b , and t3b , depicted to the left in fig2 has been deactivated . as a consequence of the high potential on lead 19 , and the low potential on lead 21 , transistors t1b , t2b , and t3b are blocked . once cover 10 has left the closed position , position responsive switch s2 reverses , the changeover contact 26 is transferred to contact 28 from contact 27 . cover 10 may be stopped in any desired intermediate position by bringing actuating switch s1 into the o - position depicted in fig2 and thereby deenergizing drive motor 6 . for the purpose of further displacing cover 10 rearwardly from such an intermediate position , e . g ., between the closed , fig4 position and the fully retracted , fig3 position , actuating switch s1 is repositioned so that lead 19 is connected with the positive side of current source 15 via changeover contact s11 , and lead 21 is connected with the negative side of current source 15 via changeover contact s12 . via changeover contact 26 of position responsive switch s2 , now connected with contact 28 , transistor base t1a is positively pulsed by way of the dynamic input formed by condenser c3a , so that relay rs , in the manner discussed above , is caused to be pulled - in and is retained in the pulled - in state . if cover 10 is to be brought back into the closed position from the fully retracted position , or into an intermediate position between the positions in accordance with fig3 and 4 , the polarity reversing switch s1 in fig2 is shifted downwardly , lead 19 is connected to the negative side of direct current source 15 via changeover contact s11 , while lead 21 is connected to the positive side of current source 15 via changeover contact s12 . a low impulse is given to the transistor base t2b by way of the dynamic input with transistor c3b via changeover contact s11 and changeover contact 26 , applied at contact 28 of the position responsive switch s2 . the low at the transistor base t2b leads to a high at the collector of this transistor which is transferred to transistor base t3b via resistor r6b . transistor t3b is fully energized . current flows from the positive side of the direct current source 15 via changeover contacts s12 , lead 21 , diode d8b , the winding of relay rs , fully energized transistor t3b , lead 19 , and the changeover contact s11 to the negative side of direct current source 15 . relay rs pulls in . relay contact rs closes the motor circuit . current flows through the motor in the direction of arrow 31 . cover 10 is displaced in the direction toward the closed position . if actuating switch s1 is retained in the position last described , cover 10 will continue its movement until it reaches the closed position of fig4 thereby transferring changeover contact 26 of the position responsive switch s2 from contact 28 to contact 27 . starting from the positive side of current source 15 , a reset signal in the form of a positive impulse is given to transistor base t2b via changeover contact s12 , position responsive switch s2 and lead 29 , by way of the condenser c3b equipped dynamic input of the switch unit , depicted to the left in fig2 . the resulting low at the collector of transistor t2b is coupled to the transistor base t3b via resistor r6b . transistor t3b is blocked . due to transistor t3b being blocked , relay rs is released . the changeover contact rs opens the motor circuit and activates the inductive brake via lead 16 . cover 10 is instantaneously stopped . the low signal originating from the outlet of transistor t2b is coupled back to the transistor base t1b , via resistors r4b and r1b , which causes the left circuit unit of the relay actuating stage with transistors t1b , t2b and t3b to be held in the reset state . when actuation switch s1 is released and thus caused to return to its o - position , transistor t2b is also deenergized . in order to execute an extension of cover 10 into the fig5 position , starting from the closed , fig4 position , actuation switch s1 in fig2 is reset downwardly . a setting signal in the form of a short - term positive impulse goes from the positive side of direct current source 15 to the dynamic inlet via condenser c1 by way of changeover contact r12 , causing transistor t1b to be fully energized . the low at the collector of transistor t1b causes a high at the collector of transistor t2b . this signal is coupled back to the base of transistor t1b via resistor r4b and r1b , further fully energizing transistor t3b . current flows from lead 21 to lead 19 via diode d8b , the winding of relay rs , and the fully energized transistor t3b . the motor circuit is closed by relay contact rs . motor 6 is provided with current in the direction of arrow 31 . transport bridge 8 is pulled further forward by drive cable 7 , and cover 10 is tilted or extended . after start - up , changeover contact 26 of position responsive switch s2 is transferred from contact 27 to contact 28 . if lead 19 is connected with the positive side of current source 15 , and lead 21 is connected with the negative side thereof via polarity reversing actuation switch s1 , transport bridge 8 , starting from the fig5 position , or from an intermediate position in between the fully extended position and the closed position , is moved back in the direction of the closed position . if the closed position is reached by this activity , the position responsive switch s2 moves from contact 28 to contact 27 . a short - term negative impulse , acting as a resetting signal , is given to transistor base t1a via changeover contact s12 , position responsive switch s2 , lead 29 , and condenser c3a . transistor t1a is blocked . the high at the collector of transistor t1a energizes transistor t2a . the low signal at the collector of transistor t2a blocks transistor t3a via resistor r6a . relay rs is released . the motor circuit is interrupted via relay rs . cover 10 is stopped in the closed position . in the switch arrangement in accordance with fig2 diodes d8a and d8b bridge the respectively blocked , parallely connected transistors t3a or t3b . diode d8a is polarized in the same direction as the emitter diode of transistor t3a , which applies correspondingly to the diode d8b and transistor t3b . z - diodes d9 and d10 serve to effect bipolar spark quenching of the induced voltage when relay rs releases . fig6 shows another preferred embodiment of the invention . this embodiment corresponds directly with that of fig1 except that , whereas in the embodiment of fig1 the collector - emitter path of transistor t3 , which defines the output circuit of the relay actuating stage , is connected in parallel to the position responsive switch s2 , fig6 illustrates a circuit embodiment in which the collector - emitter path of transistor t3 and the position responsive switch s2 are connected in series . in this embodiment switch s2 has a changeover contact 26 which , as long as cover 10 is in the reference position ( closed position ), engages a contact 27 and thereby connects the collector - emitter path of transistor t3 in series with the winding of relay rs . the changeover contact 26 changes to a contact 28 , connected to line 21 , after cover 3 has left the reference position . when cover 10 is in a position other than the reference position and when , therefore , the changeover contact 26 engages contact 28 , a reset signal is transmitted to transistor t1 through diode d6 and conduit 24 . transistor t3 is made non - conductive through t1 and t2 . when actuation switch s1 is now actuated in one or the other direction , the transistor logic stage formed by transistors t1 and t2 is set so that transistor t3 becomes conductive . therefore , current flows through the series connection consisting of the winding of relay rs , position responsive switch s2 and the collector - emitter path of transistor t3 . relay rs is energized ; the motor 6 is switched on through relay contact rs . motor 6 runs until either the actuation switch s1 is returned into its zero position or until the cover reaches the closed position and the position responsive switch s2 is changed over . in the latter case , again , a reset signal is applied to the base of transistor d1 through diode d6 . in this embodiment also , diode d5 and resistor r3 may be omitted . in all of the embodiments described , npn transistors are provided . it is to be understood , however , that the circuitry , in an analogous manner , can also be designed with pnp transistors . the examples according to fig1 and 6 use discrete switch components . basically , standardized integrated circuits can also be used instead ; however , a circuit design using discrete switch components has the advantage that higher temperatures and higher voltages or voltage peaks can be tolerated . discrete circuit components can also process higher currents , whereby disturbances which may occur in motor vehicles are rendered harmless . the disclosed circuit concept also permits a miniaturization by the use of smd ( i . e ., surface mounted devices ) components . at rest , i . e ., with the actuating switch s1 in its o - position , the entire circuitry is without current in all design versions , so that no disturbances can be picked up by being coupled - in . the version according to fig1 and 6 , moreover , have the advantage that the electronic relay stage is activated for the start - up movement out of the reference position only . consequently , cover 10 , having been brought out of its closed fig4 position ( retracted or extended ), can always be closed by manual actuation of switch s1 . it is to be understood that the actuating device described is not limited to a specific kind of drive ( transport bridge 8 , lever 9 ), but can be used in connection with any other type of drive . additionally , the actuating device can be used for various roof configurations , e . g ., simple sliding roofs , simple lifting roofs , or so - called spoiler roofs , in which the roof is tilted from its closed position and subsequently is displaced rearwardly above the fixed roof surface . in the latter case , the reference position , used appropriately , is the fully extended cover position with the cover in its forward end position . while i have shown and described various embodiments in accordance with the present invention , it is understood that the same is not limited thereto , but is susceptible of numerous changes and modifications as known to those skilled in the art , and i , therefore , do not wish to be limited to the details shown and described herein , but intend to cover all such changes and modifications as are encompassed by the scope of the appended claims .	4
an exploded view of a pair of corresponding male and female connector assemblies according to the present invention is shown in fig1 . the female terminal connector assembly 10 houses a plurality of female terminals 12 and is insertable within a male terminal connector assembly 14 as shown in fig2 . the male terminal connector assembly 14 houses a like number of male terminals 16 , only one of which is illustrated for clarity . female terminal connector assembly 10 is comprised of a hollow body 18 having two aligned straight rows of eight open ended terminal cavities 20 back to back which extend through the hollow body 18 . the hollow body 18 has a pair of generally flat , parallel side walls 22 , a plurality of transverse walls 24 between the side walls 22 , and central wall 26 parallel to and centered between the side walls 22 joining the transverse walls 24 forming the aligned rows of open ended cavities 20 . as shown in fig2 and 5 , central wall 26 has a common base 28 which splits into two generally , parallel spaced wall portions 30 forming a u - shaped channel 32 between them . thus each cavity 20 has four cavity walls formed by at least part of one of the sidewalls 22 , two of the transverse walls 24 , and central wall 26 comprising part of common base 28 and one of the two wall portions 30 . the central wall portions 30 forming one wall of each cavity 20 each have a pair of slits 34 through the wall portion 30 forming a cantilevered deflectable finger 36 between each pair of slits . each deflectable finger 36 is resiliently biased in parallel position to adjacent central wall portions 30 . an inwardly directed shoulder 38 projects into the cavity from the mid portion of each deflectable finger 36 . this shoulder 38 on deflectable finger 36 engages a corresponding recess 37 in female terminal 12 when female terminal 12 is inserted into the terminal cavity 20 and butted against fixed inwardly directed shoulders 40 formed at the end of each cavity 20 in walls 22 , 24 , and 30 . the inwardly directed shoulder 38 on the deflectable finger 36 engages the recess 37 in the female terminal 12 when the female terminal 12 is fully inserted within the cavity 20 . this shoulder 38 on the deflectable finger 36 prevents withdrawal of the female terminal 12 from the cavity 20 unless the deflectable finger 36 is deflected out of engagement with the recess 37 in the female terminal 12 . a fully inserted terminal 12 is thus retained in correct position by fixed shoulders 40 and shoulder 38 on deflectable finger 36 . hollow body 18 has a plurality of aligned apertures 42 through transverse walls 24 which form a passage 44 through each row of cavities 20 . a terminal retainer and guide insert 46 is inserted into the two passages 44 after all of the female terminals 12 have been inserted and fully seated inside the cavities 20 . this terminal retainer and guide insert 46 has a spaced pair of elongated retainer legs 48 which fit into the passages 44 . legs 48 engage the rear of each female terminal 12 inserted in a cavity 20 to secondarily retain each terminal 12 in place . the retainer legs 48 engage a flange 50 formed in the rear of each terminal 12 thus locking the terminal 12 in the fully inserted position if the terminal 12 is not fully inserted , part of the terminal 12 will block part of passage 44 preventing the full insertion of the legs 48 of the terminal retainer and guide insert 46 . therefore insert 46 acts as an indicator of whether or not all terminals are fully inserted during connector assembly . another leg 52 of the retainer and guide insert 46 is positioned in the u - shaped channel 32 formed between back to back wall portions 30 . this leg 52 has a narrow t - shaped cross section forming a guide portion 54 and a wedge portion 56 . the wedge portion 56 rides in the channel 32 between back to back wall portions 30 and prevents outward deflection of the deflectable fingers 36 . this prevents disengagement of the shoulders 38 from the recesses 37 in each of the terminals 12 , thus firmly wedging shoulders 38 into engagement with the terminals 12 . the flat guide portion 54 of insert 46 rides over and covers the ends of the deflectable fingers 36 and prevents access to the deflectable fingers 36 when the retainer and guide insert 46 is fully inserted and the connector assemblies are unmated . the flat guide portion 54 also guides insertion of male terminals 16 . the guide portion 54 has slanted outer edges 58 which helps to guide the insertion of the male terminals when the female connector assembly 10 is mated with male terminal connector assembly 14 . edges 58 slant toward the entrance to the cavities 20 . corresponding slanting inner edges 60 on the ends of walls 22 and 24 cooperate to guide or funnel the male terminals 16 into the corresponding cavities 20 . the wedge portion 56 of leg 52 has a notch 62 and an adjacent downwardly projecting lip 64 on the wedge portion 56 spaced about midway from one end of insert 46 . the notch 62 and lip 64 are designed to engage wall 66 which is one of the transverse walls 24 extending between the side walls 22 separating the pairs of cavities 20 . wall 66 extends further than the other walls 24 as shown in fig1 . when insert 46 is fully inserted in hollow body 18 , notch 62 and lip 64 snap over and coact with wall 66 to retain insert 46 in position . as shown in fig2 insert 46 is wedged in place when the connector assemblies 10 and 14 are mated . thus insert 46 cannot be removed while the assemblies are mated . therefore insert 46 is locked in place . retainer legs 48 and 52 are elongated members which are joined at one end by base portion 68 . legs 48 are cantilever supported by base portion 68 and resiliently canted toward leg 54 . thus as insert 46 is installed in the body 18 , the legs 48 and 52 become separated , biasing them toward one another . the lip 64 on wedge portion 56 pushes wedge portion 56 outward during insertion of insert 46 , further biasing leg 52 outward until lip 64 snaps over wall 66 engaging notch 62 with wall 66 when insert 46 is fully seated in the body 18 . the pullout force necessary to forcibly withdrawal the terminal 12 from the hollow body 18 shearing the shoulder 38 from the deflectable finger 36 is on the order of ten to twenty foot pounds if shoulder 38 is the only element holding terminal 12 in place within the cavity 20 . however , the addition of the retaining leg 48 abutting the flange 50 of the terminal 12 to secondarily lock it in place increases the pullout force required to approximately six times this value . thus the terminal retainer and guide insert 46 substantially improves the terminal retention capability of the connector assembly . the male terminal connector 14 is comprised of a hollow body 70 , similar to hollow body 18 in the female terminal connector assembly 10 , having two aligned straight rows of eight terminal cavities 72 which are back to back and which extend through hollow body 70 . the hollow body 70 has generally flat parallel exterior side walls 74 , a plurality of transverse walls 76 between the side walls 74 , and a central wall 78 parallel to and centered between the side walls 74 and joining the transvere walls 76 forming the aligned rows of pairs of cavities 72 . the central wall 78 has a common base portion 80 which splits into two generally parallel , spaced wall portions 82 forming a channel 84 between them . thus each cavity 72 has four cavity walls formed by at least a part of one of the side walls 74 , two of the transverse walls 76 , and central wall 78 comprising part of the common base portion 80 and one of the two wall portions 82 . the u - shaped channel 84 cuts transversely across connector 14 and separates the two rows of terminal cavities 72 produced by the alignment of pairs of terminal cavities 72 forming hollow body 70 . the central wall portion 82 forming one wall of each cavity 72 each has a pair of slits 86 through the wall portion 82 forming a cantilever supported deflectable finger 88 between each pair of slits 86 . each deflectable finger 88 is resiliently biased in a parallel position to adjacent central wall portion 82 . an inwardly directed shoulder 90 projects into the cavity from the midportion of each deflectable finger 88 . this shoulder 90 on deflectable finger 88 engages a corresponding recess 92 in male terminal 16 when male terminal 16 is inserted into the terminal cavity 72 . the inwardly directed shoulder 90 on the deflectable finger 88 engages the recess 92 in the male terminal 16 to prevent withdrawal of the terminal from the cavity 72 unless the deflectable finger 88 is deflected out of engagement with the recess 92 in the male terminal 16 . male terminal 16 also can be butted against inwardly directed fixed shoulders 94 formed at the end of each cavity 72 in walls 74 , 76 , and 78 to limit the insertion of the male terminal a fully inserted terminal 16 is thus held in correct position by fixed shoulders 94 and shoulders 90 on deflectable finger 88 in a similar fashion as female terminal 12 is held within terminal cavity 20 in female connector 10 . similar to the construction of the female connector body 18 , a plurality of aligned apertures 96 through transverse walls 76 form a passage 98 through each row of cavities 72 in hollow body 70 . a terminal retainer 100 , shown in fig1 and 4 , is similar in construction to the terminal retainer and guide insert 46 but without the guide portion 54 . this terminal retainer 100 has a spaced pair of retaining legs 102 and a wedge shaped leg 104 , legs 102 fit into the passages 98 engaging a flange 106 at the rear of each male terminal 16 inserted in the cavity 72 to secondarily retain each terminal 16 in place . similar to the operation of the female connector assembly 10 described above , if one of the terminals 16 is not fully inserted within its terminal cavity 72 , part of the terminal 16 blocks part of passage 98 preventing the full insertion of the terminal retainer 100 . therefore terminal retainer 100 indicates whether or not all male terminals are fully inserted during connector assembly . the wedge shaped leg 104 of the terminal retainer 100 is positioned in the u - shaped channel 84 formed between back to back wall portions 82 . this wedged leg 104 prevents outward deflection of the deflectable fingers 88 to prevent the disengagement of the shoulders 90 from the recesses 92 in each of the terminals 16 , thus firmly wedging shoulders 90 into engagement with the terminals 16 . the wedge leg 104 includes a notch 108 adjacent downwardly projecting lip 110 spaced about midway from one end of the terminal retainer 100 . the notch 108 and the lip 110 are designed to engage a transverse wall 112 which is one of the transverse walls 76 extending between the side walls 74 separating the pairs of terminal cavities 72 . transverse wall 112 extends outward further than the other walls 76 as shown in fig1 . when terminal retainer 100 is fully inserted in hollow body 70 , notch 108 and lip 110 snap over wall 112 to retain terminal retainer 100 in position . as shown in fig2 terminal retainer 100 is wedged in place when the connector assemblies 10 and 14 are mated . thus terminal retainer 100 cannot be removed while the assemblies are mated together . retaining legs 102 and wedge leg 104 are elongated members which are joined at one end to a flat base portion 114 . retaining legs 102 are cantilever supported from base portion 114 and resiliently inclined toward wedge leg 104 . thus as terminal retainer 100 is installed in the body 70 , legs 102 and 104 become separated , biasing toward one another . the lip 110 on wedge leg 104 pushes the wedge leg 104 outward as terminal retainer 100 is inserted further insertion of terminal retainer 100 causes further deflection of wedge leg 104 outward until lip 110 snaps over wall 112 engaging notch 108 when terminal retainer 100 is fully seated in the hollow body 70 . when terminal retainer 100 is fully seated , this indicates that all male terminals 16 are also fully inserted . hollow body 70 also includes a shroud portion 116 extending outward from and generally parallel to side walls 74 . shroud portion 116 protects the protruding blades 118 of male terminals 16 when they are inserted within the terminal cavity 72 . in addition , shroud portion 116 guides and aligns the insertion of the female terminal connector assembly 10 into proper alignment between female terminals 12 and male terminals 16 as the connectors 10 and 14 are joined . in addition , a latch 120 on shroud portion 116 coacts with an outwardly projecting shoulder 122 projecting outward from one of the exterior side walls 22 of female terminal connector assembly 10 when the assemblies are fully mated . the latch 120 retains the mated male and female terminal connector assemblies 14 and 10 respectively together as illustrated in fig2 . the connector assemblies according to the present invention have teen described in an illustrative manner and it is to be understood that the terminology which has been used is intended to be in the nature of words of description rather than of limitation . obviously many 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 .	7
it is assumed that the pipeline of the present embodiment comprises a prediction unit , and it takes n cycles to predict the branch target address . in addition , it is assumed that the pipeline stores the address of the current instruction and the addresses of all n previously executed instructions , that is , the current address contents of the program counter and all n previous address contents . in the present embodiment , pc [ 0 ] represents the address of the current instruction , pc [− 1 ] represents the address of the previous instruction , and pc [− 2 ] represents the address of the 2 nd previous instruction , . . . , and pc [− n ] represents the address of the nth previous instruction . fig5 schematically shows a prediction unit used in the present embodiment , and the prediction unit is mainly composed of a table . even though only 4 rows are shown in fig5 , in fact , there can be any number of rows in the table . the contents in each row corresponds to a related information of the branch instruction , and each row is referred to as a record of data . there are four fields in the table : a first field 501 , which stores a valid flag for indicating whether the contents stored in this row is valid or not ; a second field 502 , which stores the address of the nth previous instruction before the corresponding unconditional fixed - target branch instruction or the address of the n − 1 th previous instruction before any other branch ; a third field 503 , which stores the prediction target address ; and a fourth field 504 , which stores the prediction information . the prediction unit receives an index address 505 , searches for the corresponding record in the table , and provides a predicted target address 506 and a predicted direction 507 . 506 connects to 105 and 507 connects to 106 . the usage of the table mentioned above is described in detail later . note that there are many ways to record prediction information and use it to do prediction . all can be used here to predict the branch direction as taken or not taken . the structure of the prediction unit used in the present embodiment is not complicated , and related information it stores is quite simple . as a matter of fact , the prediction unit is capable of storing more prediction information and providing more accurate prediction results . generally , the more complicated the algorithm of the branch direction prediction , the more related information it requires . a method for branch instruction prediction provided by the present invention is described in detail with reference to steps and flows shown in fig6 hereinafter . at first , step 602 fetches the current instruction whose program counter is pc [ x ]. next , at step 604 , it is determined whether or not pc [ x ] hits the branch prediction unit ( fig5 ). if it is , the process proceeds to step 606 , which outputs the corresponding predicted branch target address 506 , and the predicted branch direction 507 , otherwise , the process proceeds to step 608 , which sets predicted branch direction 507 to be not taken . after steps 606 and 608 , at step 610 , the multiplexer 107 selects the predicted program counter . due to the branch prediction latency , it is used for the n - th instruction after pc [ x ], i . e . pc [ x + n ]. next , at step 612 , when the instruction pc [ x + n − 1 ] is executed down the pipeline , the real address of its next instruction is known . if the instruction pc [ x + n − 1 ] is a branch instruction , its execution determines if it is taken or not and thus determines its next instruction pc . if the instruction pc [ x + n − 1 ] is not a branch instruction , its next instruction &# 39 ; s pc is equal to pc [ x + n − 1 ]+ 4 . next , at step 614 , if the real address of the next instruction of pc [ x + n − 1 ] is not equal to the previously predicted pc [ x + n ], a branch misprediction is signaled and all instructions in the pipeline fetched after pc [ x + n − 1 ] must be killed . the pipeline resumes by fetching a new instruction from the real address of the next instruction after pc [ x + n − 1 ]. this step is called branch prediction verification . finally , at step 616 , independently of the above , when a branch instruction is executed , its target address pc [ y ] is written to the branch prediction unit , and other information such as branch direction can be used to update the prediction information 504 in the same entry . the index of the branch prediction unit entry to be written is determined by a function of the pc of its ( n − 1 )- th previous instruction ( i . e ., pc [ y − n + 1 ]). an example of the index function is taking the lower m bits of an instruction word address . the effects of this prediction method are described here . referring to fig7 , it is assumed that the prediction unit of an embodiment requires two cycles to predict the branch target address , and there are 7 stages from f 1 to w 7 in the pipeline of this embodiment . as shown in the diagram , the precedent instruction of the branch instruction bc 4 is i 3 . at the 3 rd cycle , the pipeline starts to fetch i 3 and predict the target address of bc 4 . at the 4 th cycle , the pipeline completes fetching of bc 4 , the predicted target address t 9 of bc 4 is also available . then , at the 5 th cycle , the pipeline can fetch t 9 directly . accordingly , under the premise of faultless prediction , the method for branch instruction prediction provided by the present invention effectively reduces idle stages in the pipeline and provides a maximum efficiency for the pipeline . a method of skipping branch instruction is derived from the method for branch instruction prediction provided by the present invention . the skipping method is used to skip some specific branch instructions and further to save cycles of the pipeline . the method of skipping branch instruction is described in detail with reference to steps and flows shown in fig8 . the method of skipping branch instruction is similar to the method for branch instruction prediction mentioned above . steps 802 to 816 are the same as steps 602 to 616 . and finally , at step 818 , independently of the above , when an unconditional branch is executed and its previous executed instruction is not a branch , its target address pc [ y ] is written to the branch instruction prediction unit , and prediction information 504 is updated so that it is always predicted taken . the index of the branch instruction prediction unit entry to be written is determined by a function of the pc of its n - th previous instruction ( i . e ., pc [ y − n ]). the index function is the same as the one used in step 816 . therefore , when the pipeline completes fetching a previous instruction before the branch instructions , the prediction of the target address of the branch instruction is also completed . accordingly , the pipeline can directly fetch the instruction on the target address at next cycle . since the branch instructions are skipped and not executed , compared to other branch instructions , one more cycle is saved accordingly . fig9 is a schematic diagram illustrating the effects of the method of skipping branch instruction . it is assumed that the prediction unit of an embodiment requires two cycles to predict the branch target address , and there are 7 stages from f 1 to w 7 in the pipeline of this embodiment . as shown in the diagram , the precedent instruction of the branch instruction b 4 is i 2 . at the 2 nd cycle , the pipeline starts to fetch i 2 and predict the target address of b 4 . then , after the 3 rd cycle is completed , while the pipeline completes fetching of i 3 , the target address t 9 of b 4 is also predicted . then , the pipeline directly fetches t 9 by skipping b 4 . the line indicated by underline mark in fig9 does not happen physically , and b 4 does not enter into the pipeline and does not consume any cycles , thus the cycles it saves can be used for executing other instructions . in order to avoid the fault skipping of the unconditional fixed - target branch instructions due to the self - modified code , the branch instruction record included in the branch prediction unit must be consistent to the branch instruction stored in the memory . if the contents of the memory is changed and one or more unconditional branch instructions are removed as a result , the related record corresponding to the branch instructions must be removed from the prediction unit . the later - rebuilt record is guaranteed to be consistent with the newest branch instructions residing in the memory . in summary , the major characteristic and advantage of the present invention is : by using the address of the previously executed precedent instruction as index for prediction , the prediction can be started earlier . accordingly , the predicted target address of the branch instruction is obtained earlier , and the idle stages in pipeline can be removed . although the invention has been described with reference to a particular embodiment thereof , it will be apparent to one of the ordinary skill in the art that modifications to the described embodiment may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention . accordingly , the scope of the invention will be defined by the attached claims not by the above detailed description .	6
referring to fig1 - 6 , in a first preferred embodiment a medical headlamp assembly 10 includes a headband 12 , supporting a mounting column 14 . a low intensity headlamp assembly 16 includes a low intensity headlamp 18 , a linkage 20 , a slider 22 . also included is an electrical conductor 26 terminating in a four pole audio plug 28 , which plugs into a four pole audio jack 30 . as shown in fig2 , when a user decides that he would like to remove assembly 16 from mounting column 14 , he pulls assembly 16 upwardly to disengage slider 22 from column 14 and unplugs plug 28 from jack 30 . he may do this simply to replace a worn out assembly 16 , or ( referring to fig3 ) to install an assembly having different characteristics , such as medium intensity assembly 16 ′, having medium intensity light 18 ′ and plug 28 ′ which is plugged into jack 30 . referring to fig5 and 6 , in like manner assembly 16 ′ can be switched out and assembly 16 ″ having high intensity light 18 ″ and plug 28 ″, can be installed onto with slider 22 on column 14 , and with plug 28 ″ plugged into jack 30 . referring to fig7 , although plugs 28 , 28 ′ and 28 ″ appear identical , each one has a different active pin ( longitudinally arranged electrical contact ) that is electrically connected to the light emitting diode ( not shown ) of lamp 18 , 18 ′ or 18 ″, respectively , and serving as the return , with the current being delivered into lamp 18 , 18 ′ and 18 ″ in all cases through the ground . pin 1 of plug 28 serves as the led return for lamp 18 , pin 2 serves as the led return for lamp 18 ′ and pin 3 serves as the led return for lamp 18 ″. pin 1 , pin 2 and pin 3 of plug 28 connects to pin 2 , pin 3 and pin 4 of jack 30 , respectively . pin 1 of jack 30 connects to the ground of plug 28 . referring to fig8 , a dc - to - dc converter 50 acts as a power supply to whichever one of lamps 18 , 18 ′ or 18 ″ is connected to jack 30 . a feedback loop is formed by the output of converter 50 powering the led line , all of the current in which flows to the led return line , and at least a portion of which pass through a current sense resister r 1 , which in turn drives the feedback pin fb of converter 50 . ( the modification of the voltage at feedback pin fb through a voltage increase circuit 54 is described below .) the output of converter 50 increases if the voltage of feedback pin fb is below 0 . 5 volts and decreases if the voltage of feedback pin fb is above 0 . 5 volts , thereby setting that voltage at pin fb at 0 . 5 volts . accordingly , when the voltage increase circuit 54 is not active , the voltage across resister r 1 is set at 0 . 5 volts , and accordingly , i r1 = r1 / 0 . 5 vdc . for the 800 mamp lamp , for which the return current exits at pin 2 of the jack 30 , a few equations apply : for the 1 . 1 amp lamp ( from jack 30 pin 3 ) these equations become : for the 1 . 4 amp lamp ( from jack 30 pin 4 ) these equations become : in addition , for no lamp 18 , 18 ′ or 18 ″ may the voltage drop through the lamp and the resistive network composed of r 1 , r 2 , r 3 and r 4 must not exceed a maximum , that in one embodiment is about 3 . 4 volts . in addition , the power consumption of this resistive network must be minimized for all the lamps , leading to low values for all of the resistors , on the order of a little more than an ohm . the voltage output of the brightness adjust rheostat 40 is fed into a pin of a microprocessor 56 , resulting in a periodic waveform having a duty factor that is related to the rheostat output voltage , appearing on an output pin of the microprocessor 56 . when the rheostat 40 is moved to a “ dim ” setting , this causes microprocessor 56 to produce a waveform that causes voltage increase circuitry 54 to amplify the voltage at its input , thereby reducing the current ( and voltage ) out of the dc - to - dc converter 50 , and reducing the current through resister r 5 . in an alternative preferred embodiment voltage increase circuitry is set to always amplify its input signal , thereby permitting a lower value for the voltage drop across r 1 , when the lamp 18 , 18 ′ or 18 ″ is not being dimmed . this permits a lower value of resistance for r 1 , and lower power loss through r 1 and through the entire resistance network r 1 , r 2 , r 3 and r 4 . for dimming positions of rheostat 40 , this amplification is increased . when the brightness adjust knob 40 is set at its maximum , causing a voltage increase circuit 54 ( described below ) to pass the voltage from a current sense resister r 1 , unchanged , then the voltage through the current sense resister r 1 is forced to 0 . 5 volts by the feedback loop implemented by the converter 50 feedback pin fb ( driven directly or indirectly by the current sense resister r 1 , and the converter 50 output powering the lamp 18 , 18 ′ or 18 ″, with the led return line powering resister r 1 . the while a number of exemplary aspects and embodiments have been discussed above , those possessed of skill in the art will recognize certain modifications , permutations , additions and sub - combinations thereof . it is therefore intended that the following appended claims and claims hereafter introduced are interpreted to include all such modifications , permutations , additions and sub - combinations as are within their true spirit and scope .	0
referring firstly to fig1 to 3 of the accompanying drawings , an open - ended trap , indicated generally at 1 in fig1 , for monitoring flying insect pests , is of generally triangular cross - section and comprises a base plate , indicated generally at 2 , which has been placed inside the casing 3 of the open - ended trap 1 , to replace the conventional sticky surface which is commonly used in such traps . while a triangular - shaped vertical cross - section is shown for the trap 1 , it should be understood that a variety of cross - sectional shapes could be used . the base plate 2 , as shown in fig2 and 3 , defines an upper surface 4 thereof and has a central cavity 5 containing an odor attractant ( not shown ) of suitable formulation , for example , a semiochemical , such as a pheromone or a parapheromone , for attracting flying insect pests into the trap where they can land on and take - off from the upper surface 4 of the plate 2 . the surface 4 of the base plate 2 is shown as provided with a regular array of circularly cross - sectioned , downwardly - tapering recesses 6 in which is accommodated a particulate material in the form of a fine powder , as shown at 7 in fig3 , which incorporates a pest - killing or behavior - modifying agent and which is sufficiently fine for it to be capable of being rendered airborne by the movement of the pests , for example , the wing beats thereof , on , above , or in the region of the powder - bearing surface 4 . in this manner , the powder 7 is capable of forming a fine cloud thereof above the surface 4 , thereby contaminating the insect pests flying above it and any others flying through the trap 1 . preferably , the maximum diameter of the recesses 6 , namely , that at the open tops thereof , is less than , say , the body lengths of the pests . the recesses 6 are shown as having an approximately v - shaped vertical section , which maximizes the surface area of the powder 7 presented at the surface 4 of the base plate 2 while also minimizing compaction of the powder 7 at the bottom of the recesses 6 . the powder 7 may be retained in a plurality of individual recesses 6 as shown , or in grooves in the surface 4 of the plate 2 , again preferably approximately v - shaped in cross - section . a preferred total volume of the recesses 6 is determined by the amount of powder 7 with which it is desired to charge the trap 1 , and by the surface area of the base plate 2 . in practice , the amount of powder 7 utilized is typically about one to about ten grams for a surface area of about 70 to about 400 square centimeters for the plate 2 . as discussed above , the trap 1 , or at least its base plate 2 and associated components , may be made of an electrically insulating material , for example , a suitable plastic material . furthermore , the powder 7 is capable of being electrostatically charged , preferably by friction , as it is rendered airborne by the wing beats or other movements of the flying insect pests in the vicinity thereof . in this way , the electrostatically - charged powder particles adhere to the insect pests , thereby contaminating them and , possibly , allowing them to contaminate other insect pests of the opposite sex during mating attempts . the smallest preferred particle size is about five micrometers average diameter because particles below this size are readily inhaled and may affect the respiratory system of users . the maximum preferred diameter is about 100 micrometers average diameter . particles above this size have a low surface area to volume ratio and , as result , are believed to fall off an insect too easily because the particle may not carry a sufficient charge on its surface for its weight . particles within this range are believed to be sufficiently fine to become airborne by the wing beats of flying insect pests approximately the size of a housefly . preferred materials for the powder 7 include highly electrically - resistive materials such as waxes , especially carnauba wax , but also paraffin waxes , candelilla wax , soy wax , other plant waxes , and beeswax , as well as non - wax materials including plastic polymers , ceramic materials , natural polymers , and cellulosic materials . the benefit of placing the electrostatically - chargeable powder 7 in the recesses 6 is to reduce the shearing force acting on them from air currents moving across ( i . e ., substantially parallel to ) the surface 4 of the plate 2 , and therefore to minimize the possibility of the powder particles being displaced from the recesses 6 by air currents that enter the trap 1 from the environment surrounding the trap . however , it is to be understood that the recesses 6 do not prevent displacement of the powder 7 by air currents with a velocity component normal to the surface 4 , as is the case of a flying insect taking - off or hovering above the surface 4 , in which case the wing - beats of the flying insect displace air downwardly ( toward the surface 4 ) at sufficiently high velocities ( e . g ., about 0 . 5 to about 1 ms − 1 ) to render the particles airborne . when the recesses 6 are first filled with the powder 7 , the electrostatically - chargeable particles of the powder 7 accumulate a surface charge because inherent frictional charging occurs when the particles are deposited in the recesses 6 , such as when the particles come into contact with the walls of the device ( s ) used to deposit the powder 7 in the recesses 6 . in consequence , the particles of the powder 7 become electrostatically adhered or bonded to the surfaces of the recesses 6 . it is well known that an electrostatic charge is quickly lost from the surface of an electrostatically - charged particle placed on a conducting surface . by forming the base plate 2 of an electrically insulating material , electrostatic discharging of the powder 7 within the recesses 6 is very slow , with the result that the particles of the powder 7 remain electrostatically held within the recesses 6 . it is further believed that the powder 7 forms a fine coating having a thickness ( depth ) of greater than one particle - diameter ( i . e ., more than a monolayer ) on the surfaces of the recesses 6 . over time , the electrostatic charge will tend to distribute itself equally among all the particles that are in contact with each other , with the result that the powder particles are believed to share a substantially uniform charge of the same polarity . consequently , the particles do not tend to adhere to each other but instead tend to repel each other , and therefore can easily be displaced from each other , particularly those particles that are stacked on top of another particle within a recess 6 and therefore are not electrostatically bonded directly to the surface of the recess 6 . it is also well known that an electrostatic charge can be conducted away ( discharged ) by water molecules , as is the case of air containing moisture . therefore , it is believed that after particles of the powder 7 have been deposited in the recesses 6 of the trap 1 in a manner that they have an electrostatic charge , the particles will slowly lose from their surfaces much ( though unlikely all ) of the charge they had accumulated . the rate at which the particles lose their charge is uncertain , as it will depend at least in part on the moisture content of the air . notably , the action of wind on the powder 7 increases the electrostatic charge of the powder particles through the friction engendered by the moving air and by the powder particles moving against each other and against the sides of the recesses 6 . if this occurs , the powder particles repel each other more strongly and can therefore be more readily caused to move relative to each other . the trap 1 shown in fig1 is configured to limit the passage of wind therethrough , largely to crosswinds parallel to the surface 4 in which the recesses 6 are formed , and the recesses 6 place the powder 7 beneath the surface 4 and therefore away from such crosswinds , thereby reducing the likelihood of additional charging of the powder particles within the recesses 6 from air movement that originates from outside the trap 1 . nonetheless , all of the powder particles within the recesses 6 ( and likely carrying some electrostatic charge ), and particularly those particles that do not directly contact the surfaces of the recesses 6 , are still capable of being displaced and electrostatically charged ( recharged or more likely additionally charged ) by the vertical components of air movement generated by the wing - beats of insects that have entered the trap 1 and are hovering over , taking off from , or landing on the surface 4 . the result is the generation of a cloud of like - charged powder particles that repel each other and are attracted to the nearest solid object , such as the insect that caused the air disturbance . various modifications can be incorporated into the pest monitoring trap 1 , for example , to reduce loss of the powder 7 by wind action or other air currents blowing through it . such modifications may include raised edges 9 at the periphery of the plate 2 , which edges may be rounded to reduce turbulence being generated over the plate 2 . additionally or alternatively , the recesses 6 may be provided with raised edges 10 around their upper peripheries which may also be used for the same purpose . the plate 2 may be preformed and arrange to stand alone , for example , by means of the feet 8 , as shown in fig2 and 3 , or designed to fit into conventional insect traps of various shapes and sizes . alternatively , the recesses 6 may be formed during the manufacture of the trap 1 in , for example , the base wall of the casing 2 . in the embodiment of pest monitoring trap 1 discussed above with reference to fig1 to 3 , the base plate 2 , and hence the powder - bearing surface 4 , lies in a generally horizontal plane during use . however , the orientation of the plane of the base plate 2 , and hence that of the powder - bearing surface 4 , may be vertical or at any suitable angle thereto . such a vertical orientation of the plate and associated powder - bearing surface is shown in a second embodiment of a flying insect pest monitoring trap 21 in fig4 and 5 . this vertical orientation of powder - bearing surfaces 24 of a base plate 22 is , in certain circumstances , desirable because some species of flying insect pest , for example , the olive fruit fly , land preferentially on vertical surfaces . in the second embodiment of the flying insect pest monitoring trap 21 shown in fig4 and 5 , the opposed vertical surfaces 24 of the plate 22 are again provided with recesses , this time in the form of troughs 26 , in which is accommodated , once again , a pest - killing or behavior - modifying powder 27 which , as described in reference to the first embodiment , is capable of being rendered airborne and electrostatically charged as a result of the wing beats or other movements of flying insect pests in the region thereof . the trap 21 is provided with a roof 23 for preventing rainwater from accumulating in the troughs 26 , while a source 25 of odor attractant , such as that discussed above in relation to the first embodiment of fig1 to 3 , is provided at the upper region of the plate 22 . thus , flying insect pests are attracted to the trap 21 by a combination of visual features , including color , and the odor attractant 25 , again as in the case of the first embodiment . the troughs 26 in which the powder 27 is accommodated , may be placed at an angle to their respective surfaces 24 , or , as shown in fig4 and 5 , may be in the form of cup or trough - shaped projections , namely , the troughs 26 . the shape of the powder - accommodating recesses 6 of the first embodiment of the trap 1 and the corresponding troughs 26 of the second embodiment of the trap 21 may also be such that any turbulence of air flowing into them is reduced , which might otherwise lead to vortex formation . for example , they may be v - shaped in vertical section , such as the recesses 6 shown in the first embodiment of the trap 1 of fig1 to 3 . alternatively , the recesses may also consist of channels in the base plate 2 which can be rectilinear , curved , concentric or spiral . the recesses may be discrete , such as those shown at 6 in the first embodiment of the trap the 1 or may be substantially continuous , for example , the effectively powder - bearing surface 4 of the plate 2 of the trap 1 may be corrugated . by suitable modification , the respective recesses 6 and troughs 26 of the first and second embodiments of the traps 1 and 21 may be rendered suitable for crawling insect pests and , indeed , other walking pests , whereby the pests disturb the particulate material , for example , the powder 7 of the first embodiment , by their movement , such as running , across the surface 4 . the efficiency of the inventive trap and its powder - bearing surface 4 of the plate 2 was demonstrated in the following experiments . two plates 2 , each 120 × 180 mm and made of a synthetic plastic polymer ( high impact polystyrene , or “ hips ”), were placed in a horizontal plane inside respective , separate cages , each 900 × 550 × 600 mm , in the laboratory , each cage containing 50 houseflies ( musca domestica l ). each plate 2 had a chemical lure ( protein +( z )- 9 - tricosene ) at its center , for example , in a central cavity 5 . one plate 2 , in accordance with the invention , had ninety - six recesses 6 , each 6 mm in diameter and 8 mm deep , with generally v - shaped vertical sections , in the surface 4 of the plate 2 . the second plate was of conventional , prior art design , having a smooth surface with no recesses therein . the second plate was covered with a thin layer of carnauba wax powder weighing 0 . 32 grams . 0 . 16 grams of the same material was placed in the recesses 6 of inventive plate 2 . the particles of both carnauba wax powders were about 5 to about 20 micrometers in diameter , and electrostatically adhered to their respective plates . after twenty four hours , 52 % of the flies in the cage containing the first plate 2 of this invention were contaminated with more than fifty particles of the powder per fly , against only 16 % of the flies exposed to the powder - bearing surface of the second plate of the prior art . by weighing , it was found that the first plate had lost only 37 . 5 % of its powder , while the second plate had lost 68 . 5 % of its powder . in a second experiment , the first plate 2 described above was charged with 0 . 09 grams of carnauba wax powder ( again , a particle size of about 5 to about 20 micrometers in diameter ) accommodated in and electrostatically bonded to the recesses 6 . it was then placed in a horizontal position in the center of a standard fly testing room , 28 m 2 in area with plain white walls , floor , and ceiling with a hundred houseflies and left for five days . at the end of that period , all the flies were coated with powder to the extent of at least 500 powder particles per fly , the amount of powder removed from the plate 2 being approximately 0 . 01 grams , namely , approximately only 10 % of the original amount . in a third experiment , a concentrated jet of carbon dioxide gas from a pressurized cylinder was directed across the surface of each of the first and second plates for five seconds at a velocity of approximately one meter per second . only 18 % of the powder was removed from the recesses 6 of the first plate 2 of this invention , while 63 % of the powder was removed from the smooth second plate of the prior art . in a fourth experiment , the first plate 2 described above was charged with 1 . 0 grams of carnauba wax powder ( particle size of about 5 to about 20 micrometers in diameter ) accommodated in and electrostatically bonded to the recesses 6 , and then placed horizontally in the bottom of a triangular monitoring trap in place of the normal sticky card . three traps prepared in this way were then left suspended from trees outdoors in a garden at southampton , england , for one week , during which time they were exposed to average early summer climatic conditions . three traps were similarly prepared but with the powder on a flat acetate sheet , to which the powder was initially adhered by electrostatic forces . at the end of one week , an average of less than 1 % by weight of the powder had been lost from the traps with the plate 2 of this invention , while an average of approximately 50 % had been lost from the traps with the acetate sheet . thus , it will be appreciated that the invention enables the coating of pests , such as flying or crawling insect pests , with a pest - killing or behavior - modifying agent using a vector particulate material capable of being rendered airborne by the pests &# 39 ; own wing beats or other movements . also , the loss of the particulate material , such as the powders 7 and 27 discussed above , from the inventive pest control trap , by wind or other air currents , is reduced , in some instances , considerably . further , the loss of particulate material can be controlled by accommodating it in recesses associated with a surface of the inventive pest control trap . moreover , flying insect pests in particular can be controlled by coating them with powder of other fine particulate material which can be electrostatically charged , for example by friction , as it is rendered airborne by the pests &# 39 ; movements . such particulate material can incorporate biological , synthetic and / or natural pesticides and may also be rendered airborne by the pests traversing , by walking or running , the surface bearing that material , as described above in connection with the preferred embodiments .	0
referring now to the drawings , there is shown a structure 10 in the form of a suspended ceiling comprising a plurality of elongated channels 11 supported on carrier or stringer members 12 spaced along the length of the channels and arranged crosswise thereto . the carriers 12 , in turn , are suspended by wires or other conventional means from an overhead structure such as the main frame of a building . the channels 11 are joined to the carriers 12 by snapping the channels onto depending tabs 13 formed on the underside of the carriers in a generally conventional manner . channels 11 are arranged side by side , usually with a constant spacing , to make up one dimension of a ceiling area and are arranged end to end to make up channel runs corresponding to the other dimensions of the area . each channel 11 is preferably substantially identical to the others , except of course , those which are modified at the site of installation to fit within the particular confines determined for the ceiling 10 . as is apparent from the figures , each channel 11 is an elongated , longitudinally straight member having a generally u - shaped cross section . the channels 11 are ideally fabricated from sheet materials , such as aluminum or steel sheet stock of any common architectural finish , and are preferably rolled into their final cross sectional configuration from strips of such sheet stock . the material selected for their manufacture should have sufficient resilience to allow a channel 11 to be snapped onto the carrier tabs 13 with enough springback of the material to prevent unwanted loosenness or separation between the channels and carrier tabs . the geometry of the illustrated channels is not critical and various changes in the depth , width or length of the channels , for instance , may be routinely made as desired . a major portion of the length of the channel 11 has a constant cross section . in the illustrated case , the channel or pan 11 comprises a web 16 and a pair of flanges 17 . a surface 18 of the web 16 is considered to be the front face of the channel 11 and is that surface which would be most visible to an observer within a room associated with the ceiling 10 . the flanges 17 are integral with the longitudinal edges of the web 16 and extend rearwardly at right angles to the web , which in the illustrated example , but not necessarily , is planar . the flanges 17 cooperate with the web 16 to form a channel cavity 19 into which the depending carrier tabs 13 extend . the flanges 17 are re - entrant or inturned so that they mutually define between opposite points 21 an imaginary plane parallel to the web 16 . at these points 21 spacing between the flanges 17 is less than that between other areas of the flanges between such imaginary plane and the web 16 . the re - entrant or inturned geometry conforms to the geometry of the depending carrier tabs 13 so that once such tabs snap into the zone between the imaginary plane and the web 16 , the channel is adequately retained on the carrier tabs . the disclosed channel 11 is characterized by the flanges 17 having their principal portions generally planar and at right angles to the web 16 . the free longitudinal edges of the flanges 17 are rolled or inturned to form longitudinal hollow lips 22 of triangular cross section , which serve to stiffen their respective flanges . inward corners of the triangular lips 22 form the aformentioned re - entrant points 21 . skewed , somewhat rearwardly facing surfaces 23 of the lips 22 are in planes forming acute angles with their respective main flange bodies and are adapted to cam their respective flanges 17 laterally outwardly when cooperating with the carrier tabs 13 to facilitate installation thereon . inturned surfaces 24 of the lips 22 are in planes generally at right angles with respect to the flanges 17 so that when they are snapped onto the carrier tabs 13 , forces tending to spread the flanges are generally not developed by these surfaces and the panels are not readily dislodged from the carrier tabs by accidental blows or other extraneous forces . at a tail end of the channel 11 there is formed a tongue 26 for end splicing , and thereby aligning , the channel 11 to the head end of another channel . the tongue 26 is integerally formed on the channel 11 by swaging or a like process wherein material of the channel is displaced to reduce the effective width and depth of the channel stock . the tongue 26 , accordingly , is provided with a web 27 having a width dimensioned to provide a slip fit with a nominal inside dimension between the main flanges 17 of a mating channel as measured at the point where the main flanges join the main web 16 of such mating channel . flanges 28 of the tongue 26 , it will be understood , are similarly spaced and configured to fit within the main flanges 17 of the mating channel . the longitudinal free ends of the tongue flanges 28 are severely distorted from their original configuration . this distortion includes collapsing of the hollow lip area , formation of an inturned step 31 generally parallel to the tongue web 27 and an offset flange portion 32 generally parallel to the associated tongue flange portion 28 . as shown in fig7 the depth of the tongue flanges 28 ( i . e . the dimension which these flanges extend away from the tongue web 27 ) is limited to less than the spacing between the flange lip surface 24 and the main web 16 so that no major interference exists between these areas when the tongue is disposed within the head end of a mating channel . similarly , the tongue flange offsets 32 are spaced inwardly a sufficient distance from the planes of the tongue flanges 28 to avoid interference with the extreme re - entrant points 21 of the flange lip 22 . intermediate the integral tongue or splice 26 there is formed a cross sectional transition zone 36 . the transition area or zone 36 is generally aligned with an imaginary plane transverse to the longitudinal axis of the channel 11 . as indicated in fig3 and 4 , external surface areas 37 and 38 forming the transitions associated with the flanges 17 , 37 and web 16 , 38 , respectively , are substantially completely oblique to an imaginary plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the channel . inspection of the figs . reveals that the main flanges 17 are distorted axially inwardly of the transition zone 36 to provide a corresponding axially inward extension of the inturned step 31 and offset flange portion 32 to a point generally designated 39 . this distortion forms a relief area for possible reception of areas of the lips 22 of the mating channel head end , as discussed below . as may be comprehended from the previous discussion , to develop an end splice between channels 11 , the tongue 26 at the tail end of one channel is inserted into the head end of an adjacent channel . this is accomplished by either relative axial motion between the main channels or by spreading and snapping the main flanges 17 at the head end of a channel over the tongue of the other channel in a manner similar to snapping such flanges over the carrier tabs 13 . this installation splice is completed when a moderate axial compressive force is applied between the channels and the edge , designated 41 ( fig5 ), of the channel head end engages portions of the cross sectional transition zone surfaces 37 , 38 . the result is that from a normal viewing position , an observer will perceive what looks likes a simple butt joint between the edge 41 of one channel and the cross sectional transition zone surfaces 37 , 38 of the other channel . any separation of this edge 41 from the transition area surfaces 37 , 38 will be practically unnoticeable , since the tongue 26 is ordinarily finished with the same color and texture as that applied to the main portions of the channel 11 and to discriminate between the tongue and front face 18 of the web 16 takes relatively close inspection . when an unusually high axial compressive force exists between spliced channels , such as that which might be produced upon thermal expansion induced by a fire , the edge 41 is cammed laterally outwardly both across the web 16 and flanges 17 by the cross section transition zone surfaces 37 , 38 respectively . the head end of one channel thereby telescopes over the tail end of the mated channel . it will be seen from inspection of fig6 and 8 that the relief area formed above the inturned step surface 31 axially inwardly of the cross sectional transition zone 36 receives the hollow flange lips 22 of the head end of the mating channel . stated in other words , the inturned lip surfaces 24 of the head end of the channel extend over the inturned step surfaces 31 of the tail end of the other channel in the abnormal telescoped position illustrated in fig6 and 8 to thereby assure that even in this abnormal condition , a positive degree of control is maintained between these channel ends . relative lateral movement , i . e ., movement in any direction in a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axes of the channels at their mated ends , or any relative angular movement between the channels about their longitudinal axes , is prohibited by the maintained telescoping relationship of the various elements of the channels . although the preferred embodiment of this invention has been shown and described , it should be understood that various modifications and rearrangements of parts may be resorted to without departing from the scope of the invention as disclosed and claimed herein .	4
the entire disclosure of u . s . patent application ser . no . 60 / 234 , 830 , filed sep . 22 , 2000 , entitled wide serial data pattern matching and synchronization is hereby incorporated by reference as if being set forth in its entirety herein . according to an aspect of the present invention , a count of the bit matches is determined using bit - by - bit comparison . this is useful for identifying a first bit of frame - aligned data to be received , for example . if the determined number of matching bits exceeds a given threshold , such as when the number of matching bits is equal to the number of total bits in the sync field or word for example , then a bit - for - bit correspondence between the sync word and the incoming serial data field is identified . thus , a receiver can be synchronized with the incoming data stream . further , according to an aspect of the invention , a tolerance on the detection can be used such that the system can maintain or establish word or frame lock and tolerate errors . that is , if the total number of bits in a match is off by one or just a few bits , or if detected errors are below a certain threshold , the presence of a sync word can still be established . this allows the system to stay in lock despite the presence of a few sync bit errors , for example . the present invention generally provides a method and device for counting the total number of matches by comparing a given pattern and a sampled incoming serial data field of at least equal length to determine to what extent an incoming data stream matches the given pattern . the comparison of the incoming serial data and the given pattern may be accomplished by determining a total number of bit matches in two fields . this may be accomplished by determining the total number of bit matches (“ m ”) of a frame window as compared to the given pattern , or sync pattern , where and , o match is the total number of one matches and z match is the total number of zero matches . hence , the total number of matches between a sync word and an incoming serial bit field is equal to the total of the number of matches of ones and zeros between the two fields . further , where o win is the total number of ones in the frame window ( incoming data ), and o zpat is the total number of ones at zero pattern locations in the frame window . further , where z pat is the total number of zeros in the sync pattern . thus , m =( o win − o zpat )+( z pat − o zpat ) equation ( 2 ) according to an aspect of the present invention , and as will be discussed , an approach which leverages the relationship expressed in equation ( 3 ) is particularly well suited for operation where the total number of ones in the given pattern , or sync word , is equal to or exceeds the total number of zeros in the given pattern , or sync word . a similar but slightly modified approach has also been determined to be desirable where the total number of zeros in the given pattern , or sync word , is greater than the total number of ones in the given pattern , or sync word . again , the count of the number of total bit matches can be expressed as : where m , z match , and o match are defined as hereinabove . thus , following a similar analysis : m =( z win − z opat )+( o pat − z opat ), equation ( 5 ) where z win is the total number of zeros in the entire data frame window , z opat is the total number of zeros in the data frame window that correspond to bit locations at which there are ones in the sync pattern , and o pat is the total number of ones in the sync pattern . thus , analogously to equation 3 above : hence , m may be expressed as a count of the total number of matching logical one and matching logical zero bits that are located in corresponding bit locations as between a sync pattern and at least one sampled data frame window . in other words , m is a count of the number of bit matches , or the total number of logical zeros in the frame window added to the total number of logical ones in the sync pattern , minus twice the number of logical zeros in the data frame window that correspond to logic one bit locations in the data frame window . according to an aspect of the present invention , and as will be discussed , an approach which leverages the relationship expressed in equation ( 6 ) is particularly well suited for operation where the total number of zeros in the given pattern , or sync pattern , exceeds the total number of ones in the given pattern or sync word . referring now to the figures , like references there - throughout designate like elements of the invention . referring more particularly now to fig1 there is shown a functional block diagram representation of a pattern match bit counter device 10 that generates a count of the total number of bit matches between a given pattern and an input data frame window . the pattern match bit counter device 10 of fig1 is particularly well suited for the condition where the total number of logical ones ( ones ) in a given pattern 102 is greater than or equal to the total number of logical zeros ( zeros ) in the same pattern 102 . it should be understood that the statistics of the given pattern ( i . e . number of ones or zeros in the sync pattern ) is typically known or can be readily determined . the knowledge of these statistics can be obtained if the given pattern is in either a “ hard ” form , or a “ soft ” form . examples of a hard form include a fixed , hardwired given pattern built into the system which does not readily change as the system operates , such as by hardwiring or by using connector - strapping sync word bit definitions , for example . examples of a soft form include external reception or internal generation of a given pattern such as an on - the - fly sync pattern change received by a system or by an internal generation of a new given pattern via an internal controller . still referring to fig1 an input data frame window 100 receives incoming data bits , which are to be compared with the sync pattern 102 . according to an embodiment , the incoming bit data is received serially via an incoming serial digital data stream signal 101 . the data frame window 100 is preferably at least the same number of bits wide as the given pattern or sync bit word 102 , such that a bit - by - bit comparison can be made to determine when the given pattern 102 is present in the input data frame window 100 . the input data frame window 100 may be implemented as a series of concatenated flip flops forming a digital register at least “ n ” bits in length to correspond to the length “ m ” of the sync pattern 102 ( where n ≧ m ). in an embodiment , the incoming serial data stream 101 is loaded from left to right , bit by bit , such that a first incoming bit a is loaded first . the input data frame window 100 has an outgoing data bit b , that exits the input data frame window 100 whenever an incoming bit a is loaded into the data frame window . the input data frame window may take the form of any suitable register or set of flip - flops as is commonly known in the art . in that instance , as will be evident to one possessing an ordinary skill in the pertinent art , the bits a and b are merely the first and last bits present in the data frame window 100 at some instant . select bit position connections 103 are used to connect the input data frame window 100 with a bit adder 104 . the selected bit connections 103 are selected based on the bit positions of zeros in the sync pattern 102 . for example , if the pattern 102 has zeros in bit positions b 1 , b 3 , and b 5 , then the corresponding bit locations ( b 1 , b 3 , and b 5 ) in the input data frame window 100 are connected via communication path 103 from the input data frame window 100 to the bit adder 104 . the bit adder 104 can take the form of a digital adder , as is known in the art , which is used to count the total number of ones in the data frame window that correspond to zero bit locations in the pattern 102 . as will also be understood by those possessing an ordinary skill in the pertinent art , adder 104 thus produces the value of o zpat . the result of the digital addition of the ones at zero pattern locations is doubled by a digital ( x 2 ) multiplier 106 . thus multiplication can be performed on the digital contents of adder 104 by shifting the contents to the left one bit and appending a zero onto the rightmost bit location . this technique is well understood in the pertinent art . this left shift may be accomplished by a connection 107 between the most significant bit of the digital word output of the bit adder 104 to the next higher bit position on the digital input of a subtractor 108 subtrahend input , along with a corresponding one bit offset connection of all other bits in the word connection 107 , along with the assertion of a zero in the least significant bit position . the multiplier can also be implemented by a digital register comprising flip - flops that performs a shift left of the input data or in any other conventional manner . in either case , the value of the output bits of the bit adder 104 is doubled and provided on the subtrahend input of the digital subtractor 108 . still referring to fig1 the bits of the input data frame window 100 at locations a and b are connected via interconnection 109 to an up / down control 112 . the up / down control 112 operates to increment or decrement an adder / subtractor 110 according to the state table of table 1 . if an incoming bit ( a ) is a one and an exiting bit ( b ) is a zero , the count in the adder subtractor 110 is incremented by one count . if the incoming bit ( a ) is a zero and the exiting bit ( b ) is a one , the count in the adder / subtractor 110 is decremented by one count . if the total number of ones or zeros in the input data frame window remains the same ( that is , bit a matches bit b ), the adder / subtractor 110 count remains . the up / down control 112 may be implemented as a combinatorial decoder of the state table given herein or in any other conventional manner . the adder / subtractor 110 may be implemented as a standard adder / subtractor as is known in the art , or as a pre - settable up / down counter for example . the combination of up / down control 112 and adder / subtractor 110 may be implemented together as a single presetable up / down counter with appropriate up / down ( increment / decrement ) control inputs . the adder / subtractor 110 is preset to the value of zpat via initial load 110 a . the output of the adder / subtractor 110 is connected via connection links 111 to the minuend input of the subtractor 108 . the result of the subtractor 108 is the difference between the minuend (+) and subtrahend (−) inputs and is indicative of the value of m , which is the count of the total number of bit matches in the comparison between the given or sync pattern 102 and the data frame window 100 . the subtractor 108 can take the form of a digital subtractor as is well known in the pertinent art . the overall functionality of the blocks of fig1 can be implemented in many ways as is understood by practitioners in the pertinent arts . the functionality of fig1 can be achieved using any family of discrete logic , medium scale integration ( msi ), large scale integration ( lsi ) logic , macros utilized in field programmable gate arrays ( fpgas ), application specific integrated circuits ( asics ), or other types of firmware , for example . further , implementation of the fig1 functionality may be achieved with the use of synchronous logic design techniques such that functional blocks of fig1 that require a clock are actuated by clock edges that are derived from a common or synchronous timing source , that is in a pipeline fashion . implementation of the functionality of fig1 can also be achieved via software ( e . g ., by using a plurality of instructions or code ), or any suitable combination of hardware , firmware and / or software . according to an embodiment of the present invention , the total functionality of fig1 can be implemented in a hardware configuration using a 7 - bit adder / subtractor , a 7 bit subtractor , and one 31 one - bit adders for a case where the sync pattern is 64 bits long , for example . the general operation of the pattern match bit counter device 10 described in fig1 includes first re - setting the input data frame window to an all - zeros condition , responsively to reset signal 100 a for example . the adder / subtractor 110 can be initially loaded , via connection 110 a , with the value of z pat prior to providing the values of a and b thereto . the pattern match bit count device may then accept data into the data frame window until stopped or reset externally . the count of the number of bit matches ( m ) between the sync pattern 102 and the data frame window 100 is the value of the output of the subtractor 108 . this value m may be checked after the data frame window bit content is changed or updated , as for example after each shift of a new bit into the input data frame window , so that the total number of bit matches between the pattern 102 and the data frame window 100 may be known . [ 0037 ] fig2 shows a block diagram of an embodiment of a pattern match bit count device 20 that is particularly useful when the number of zeros in the pattern 200 is greater than the number of ones in the pattern 200 . a difference between the devices 10 , 20 includes the connections 103 between bit adder 104 and frame window 100 . in fig2 the connections 103 facilitate the adding of the zeros in the window 100 corresponding to bit pattern locations which contain ones in the sync pattern 102 . this represents the value z opat . an additional difference is that the input data frame window 100 can be reset with an all - ones condition responsively to the signal 100 a , for example , while the value of o pat 110 b is initially loaded into the adder / subtractor 110 , and finally , the up / down control 112 is used to count the number of zeros instead of the number of ones , so the state table shown herein in table 1 is inverted with respect to the states of increment and decrement ( i . e ., the increments become decrements and the decrements become increments ). [ 0038 ] fig3 illustrates a method of generating a count of the number of matches between a given pattern and the contents of an input data frame window according to an embodiment of the present invention . the embodiment of fig3 is particularly useful where the number of ones in the given pattern is equal to or less than the number of zeros in the given pattern . upon start 300 , the input data frame window is cleared 302 . an adder / subtractor is initialized with a value of z pat 304 . next , the data input frame window is loaded 306 with the data to be compared ( e . g . first data bit is shifted into the data frame window ). the next step 308 is to add the ones in the data frame window that correspond to the specific bit locations where there are zeros in the pattern . the sum of step 308 is then multiplied by 2 at step 310 to generate 2 * o zpat . the first ( a ) and last ( b ) bits of the input data frame window are checked for a 10 or a 01 pattern at steps 312 and 316 , respectively , and the addition / subtraction count is incremented or decremented at steps 314 and 318 , respectively . the value of the addition / subtraction count is o win + z pat . if neither pattern exists , no change in the addition / subtraction count takes place . next , step 320 is executed . step 320 subtracts the quantity 2 × o zpat from o win + z pat . that result in step 320 is m , the number of bit matches between the given pattern and the input data frame window . this completes the task of generating the match count m . if the device is to be used in a system , an optional step is to have an external system read the value of m at step 322 and take some action based on the value of m . that action could be a decision as in step 324 to continue looking for a pattern match in the data frame window or to restart the search for a pattern . if a pattern search is to continue , a return to point 305 can be performed . if a restart is desired 326 , then a return to start 300 may be effected . otherwise the system may halt at step 328 . [ 0041 ] fig4 illustrates a method of generating a count of the number of matches between a given pattern and the contents of an input data frame window according to an embodiment of the present invention . the embodiment of fig4 is particularly useful where the number of zeros in the given pattern is equal to or less than the number of ones in the given pattern . upon start 400 of the process , the input data frame window is cleared 402 . an adder / subtractor is initialized with the value of o zpat 404 . next , the data input frame window is loaded 406 with the data to be compared ( i . e . first data bit is shifted into the data frame window ). the next step 408 is to add the zeros in the data frame window that correspond to the specific bit locations where there are ones in the given pattern . the sum of step 408 is then multiplied by 2 at step 410 to generate 2 × z opat . the first ( a ) and last ( b ) bits of the input data frame window are checked for a 10 or a 01 pattern at steps 412 and 416 , respectively and the addition / subtraction count is decremented or incremented at steps 414 and 418 , respectively . the value of the addition / subtraction count is z win + o pat . if neither pattern exists , no change in the addition / subtraction count takes place . next , step 320 is executed . step 320 subtracts the quantity 2 × z opat from z win + o pat . that result in step 420 is m , the number of bit matches between the given pattern and the input data frame window . this completes the task of generating the match count m . if the device is to be used in a system , an optional step is to have an external system read the value of m at step 422 and take some action based on the value of m . that action can be a decision as in step 424 to continue looking for a pattern match in the data frame window or to restart the search for the given sync pattern . if a pattern search is to continue , a return to point 405 can be effectuated . if a restart is expected 426 , then a return to step 400 can be made . otherwise the system can halt at step 428 . although the invention has been described and pictured in a preferred form with a certain degree of particularity , it is understood that the present disclosure of the preferred form has been made by way of example , and that numerous changes in the details of construction and combination and arrangement of parts and steps may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .	6
referring now to the drawings wherein like reference characters designate like or corresponding parts throughout the views there is shown in fig1 an improved rotor blade of the present invention which , for purposes of description , is designated by reference numeral 10 . blade 10 has a nose spar 12 , and upper and lower after body skin sections 14 and 16 . skin sections 14 and 16 are attached together by a trailing edge spar 18 . an outboard end tip cap 20 is secured to nose spar 12 , skin sections 14 and 16 , and trailing edge spar 18 . a blade attachment area 30 is provided on the inboard end of blade 10 for attachment to a hub grip of a rotating mast in accordance with conventional helicopter design . blade attachment area 30 includes upper and lower grip plates 32 on the leading edge and upper and lower grip plates 34 on the trailing edge . extending through grip plates 32 and 34 are bushings 36 for receiving fasteners to attach the blade to a hub grip attached to the helicopter rotor mast . compression rigidity is imported to the attachment area by means of a strap spool 40 and chopped fiber compression block material 42 . extending along the longitudinal axis of blade 10 from grip plates 32 and 34 are doublers 44 through 47 . each doubler is basically a v - shaped member extending the width of the structural portion of the blade . doublers 44 through 47 are secured to the inboard ends of skins 14 and 16 in a laminated fashion . as illustrated particularly in fig2 - 6 , nose spar 12 is provided with a closure channel 60 extending the length of nose spar 12 . in the preferred embodiment , closure channel 60 is constructed from fiberglass material with a 45 ° × 45 ° glass fiber orientation along its length . channel 60 is attached to the interior of the upper and lower trailing flanges , 62 and 64 , respectively , of nose spar 12 . closure 60 has upper and lower flanges 66 and 68 , respectively , and varies in cross - sectional configuration along its length . upper flange 66 is attached to the inside surface of the upper flange 62 of spar 12 and lower flange 68 is attached to the inside surface of the lower flange 64 of spar 12 . channel 60 is positioned so that its flanges 66 and 68 overlap the edges of flanges 62 and 64 to provide a surface for attaching skins 14 and 16 to spar 12 . according to a particular feature of the present invention , a quality of unidirectional fiberglass material is attached to the interior surfaces of flanges 66 and 68 . the glass fibers are aligned to extend along the length of channel 60 and are bonded to the interior surfaces of flanges 66 and 68 . the material is shaped into two bands , 72 and 74 , which extend , respectively , along upper and lower flanges 66 and 68 . the inboard ends of bands 72 and 74 are wrapped around strap spool 40 . the particular structure of the attachment is illustrated in fig7 . closure channel 60 is shown terminating at a point outboard of bushing 36 . upper band 72 separates into fiber groups 76 and 78 whereas lower band 74 separates into fiber groups 80 and 82 . the fiber in groups 76 and 82 are connected to the fiber in groups 78 and 80 to form loop 84 . spool 40 has upper and lower flanges 88 and 90 , respectively , bordering a cylindrical contact surface 92 . loop 84 is positioned around surface 92 . an axial bore 94 extends through spool 40 for attaching spool 40 to the inboard end of blade 10 by inserting bushing 36 through bores 94 and 96 . a filler block 100 can be positioned within the space 101 formed in loop 84 to add rigidity to the structure . a transition channel 110 is placed over the exterior of the assembly with the outboard end of channel 110 overlapping the inboard end of channel 60 and the inboard end of the flanges of channel 110 abutting flanges 88 and 90 of spool 40 . an alternate configuration is shown in fig8 . bands 72 and 74 are parted to wrap vertically around the improved surface a compression block 42a . compression block 42a includes structure to receive bushing 36 . upper band 72 separates into fiber groups 76 and 78 whereas lower band 74 separates into fiber groups 80 and 82 . in contrast to the embodiment of fig7 however , the fibers in group 76 are integral with or are connected to the fibers in group 82 to form loop 84a . fibers in group 78 are integral with or are connected to the fiber in group 80 to form loop 84b . according to another specific feature of the present invention , fiberglass material is selected to have a modulus of elasticity substantially smaller than that of nose spar 12 . this substantial difference in modulus of elasticity causes nose spar 12 to operate at a substantially higher stress than the fiberglass material , thus ensuring that the fiberglass material will have a longer life and will fail after spar 12 . in the preferred embodiment , the nose spar is formed of steel material with a modulus of elasticity of 26 × 10 6 , a fatigue strength of 2 × 10 4 psi and an ultimate strength of 15 × 10 4 psi , whereas the fiberglass band material has a modulus of elasticity of 6 × 10 6 , a fatigue strength of 2 × 10 4 psi , and an ultimate strength of 18 × 10 4 psi . due to the relatively low modulus of elasticity of the fiberglass material , spar 12 will operate at a higher stress during flight of the helicopter . the cyclic loading of the blade during flight can , in some cases , eventually cause spar 12 to fail because of fatigue . once spar 12 fails , the fiberglass material of bands 72 and 74 will assume the full load , preventing blade 10 from completely severing . the life of bands 72 and 74 will allow the helicopter to continue operating for a short time to allow safe landing of the helicopter . it is to be understood , of course , that other materials could be used in the formation of a blade which permitted the redundancy against fatigue failure of the blade . therefore , many modifications can be made in the materials and configuration of the various components without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims .	1
with reference to the enclosed figures , it is seen that the levers radiate from and rotate around a common axis , namely , the axis of the axle , and each lever can rotate over a limited range independently of the other levers . each lever typically has two clutches — one for torque input ( drive ring engagement ) and the other for torque output ( driven ring engagement ). if used , for example , in the rear hub of a bicycle , this device could be located between the rear cog ( or cogset ) and the hub body ( or other internal gearing within the hub ). in such an application , the directional torque - in clutches would be driven by the drive ring attached to the cog or cogset . these clutches would ensure that no lever can rotate slower than the cog or cogset , though any lever may rotate faster . thus , where the levers have varying rotational speeds , the driving force will be imparted to the slowest lever . the directional torque - out clutches ensure that the driven ring will rotate no slower than any lever , though it may rotate faster , thus where the levers have varying rotational speeds , the drive force will be imparted by the fastest lever . in the body of each lever is a radial slot and operating in each slot is a drive stud of the abaxial ring . force can be exerted between the lever and stud at any point along the slot . the drive studs are mounted to and spaced evenly around the abaxial ring . the abaxial ring is mounted on a bearing which can be displaced away from the common axis of the levers , the drive ring , and the driven ring . when the abaxial ring has the same axis as the levers , the levers will be evenly spaced and they will all have the same rate of rotation , so the load will pass directly from the torque - in clutches to the torque - out clutches and the load will bypass this device . as the abaxial ring is displaced away from the common axis , the levers will acquire varying rotation rates ( in effect , oscillating relative to one another ). the levers pointing toward the axis of the abaxial ring will have slower rates of rotation than those pointing away from it . the greater the displacement of the abaxial ring , the greater the difference in rotational speed between the slowest and fastest levers . torque enters this device at the speed of the slowest lever and exits at the speed of the fastest lever , and with the increased speed comes a proportional drop in torque . the load path is from the drive ring , to the torque - in ( drive ring ) clutch on the slowest lever , to the drive stud engaging that lever , and then around the abaxial ring to the stud engaging the fastest lever , and out the torque - out ( driven ring ) clutch on that lever to the driven ring . power is conveyed from the drive ring to the slowest lever purely tangentially to the drive ring rotation . power is conveyed between the levers and the abaxial ring not quite but nearly tangentially to the lever rotation . power is conveyed from the fastest lever to the driven ring purely tangentially to the driven ring rotation . friction losses between the clutches and rings and between the levers and studs should be minimal . the principle energy losses will most likely be flex losses and normal bearing losses at the abaxial ring and at the center of lever rotation . the ratio between input and output speed is not perfectly consistent once the abaxial ring is displaced to some distance from the axis of the levers . this is because the distance of the drive stud from the axis of the levers is not precisely constant through each lever &# 39 ; s turn at bearing the load . the amount of variation is a function of two factors : 1 ) the amount of displacement of the abaxial ring and 2 ) the number of levers in the device . the less the displacement and the greater the number of levers , the less gear ratio fluctuation there is . an odd number of levers is preferable to an even number because the fluctuation of the input lever will be out of phase with the fluctuation of the output lever . such a device with five levers , restricted to a maximum overdrive ratio of about 1 to 1 . 43 , would have a maximum gear fluctuation of less than 4 %— an amount comparable to the radial fluctuation that is already found on the smallest cogs currently used on bicycles ( owing to the fact that cogs are , in effect , polygons ). the chief benefit of this device is that it makes possible minute adjustments in the gear ratio so that the cyclist will be able to easily find the exact optimal ratio to match available strength to any given combination of terrain , wind , and cargo . because of the limited range of this device , it will probably find its most practical application in conjunction with another gearing scheme to achieve a wide gearing range , but even so , it covers a wide enough range that it can confer benefits with respect to 1 ) reducing the complexity , weight , and cost of the alternate gearing scheme ; 2 ) making the alternate scheme simpler to operate ; and 3 ) for making possible total gear ranges that would be impractical using the alternate scheme alone . if , for example , this were to be used in conjunction with a derailleur scheme ( which locates the drive chain onto cogs of various sizes ), a rear cogset of four cogs could replace the sets of eight or nine cogs found on many current bikes , and yet still offer a broader total range . on racing style bikes , the extra front chainring , front derailleur , and its shifter could be eliminated without any reduction in total gear range currently available . if used in conjunction with epicyclic ( internal hub ) gearing , the steps could be made fewer and larger , which could reduce the number of epicyclic gearsets needed along with weight , cost , and losses of energy . the weight and cost savings in whatever alternate scheme is used could at least partially offset the weight and cost of this device . it is believed there are many cyclists for whom it would be worthwhile to gain simpler operation and an unlimited number of gear ratios over a wider range than is currently available even if there is some overall increase in cost and weight . fig1 a and 1b illustrate details of applicant &# 39 ; s torque converter 10 . the torque converter 10 is seen to include a drive ring 12 and a driven ring 14 , the drive and driven ring both engaging drive levers ( here five in number , but that number may be smaller or larger ), designated 16 a through 16 e . engaging the levers is an abaxial ring 18 . a multiplicity of drive ring clutches 200 through 208 and driven ring clutches 220 through 228 complete the mechanism as illustrated in fig1 b . with reference to fig1 a through 1f , further details of applicant &# 39 ; s present invention may be appreciated . it is seen that applicant &# 39 ; s torque converter 10 includes a generally disk - shaped drive ring 12 , which drive ring engages the cogset or sprocket set b so as to move therewith . that is , when sprocket set b is driven through a chain from the bicycle crank set , the drive ring rotates about an axle c , the axle c extending through the hub d of wheel e . with reference to fig1 a through 1f , it is seen that applicant &# 39 ; s drive ring includes a perimeter lip 12 a which is circular about the disk - shaped body 12 d . applicant &# 39 ; s driven ring 14 consists of a similar perimeter lip designed to engage through fasteners or be integral with or otherwise move another member or portion of the bicycle such that ultimately the driven ring will cause the wheel to move in a direction to propel the bike forward . with reference to fig1 a through 1f , it is seen that there are a series of levers , again numbering five , and designated levers 16 a through 16 e . each lever is similarly ( but not necessarily identically ) shaped . each lever has a near end ( axis end ) 160 a through 160 e . likewise , each lever has a removed end 162 a through 162 e . further , each lever has a body 164 a through 164 e between the near and the removed end . finally , each lever has , in the body , walls defining a slot designated 166 a through 166 e . an abaxial ring 18 has a series of studs 18 a through 18 e arranged around said ring at angular intervals , each stud engaging a slot 166 a through 166 e in levers 16 a through 16 e , respectively . on the removed ends 162 a through 162 e of levers 16 a through 16 e , there is a multiplicity of drive ring clutches 200 , 202 , 204 , 206 , and 208 , the drive ring clutches for engaging the perimeter lip 12 a of the drive ring . also on the removed ends 162 a through 162 e of levers 16 a through 16 e are a series of driven ring clutches 220 , 222 , 224 , 226 , and 228 for engaging driven ring 14 . that is , on the removed ends of each lever is a drive ring clutch and a driven ring clutch . at the near end of each lever is a cut - out for a set of bearings . that is , each of the five ( or whatever number ) levers have at the near end cut - outs for needles , roller bearings , bushings , or other means by which they can articulate with axle c and revolve freely about said axle . further , it should be appreciated that the distance from the origin ( axis ) of the levers to the drive ring clutches on the removed ends of the levers for each of the levers is the same for all of the levers , and the distance from the origin of the levers to the driven ring clutches on the removed ends of the levers for each of the levers is the same for all of the levers . further still , it is seen with reference to the figures that the studs of the abaxial ring may travel ( for example , by sliding or rolling ) in the slots of the levers . lastly , and importantly , it should be noted with reference to fig1 a through 1f that in operation , the axis of rotation of the abaxial ring is not coincident with , but is parallel to , the common axis of rotation of the levers , drive ring , and driven ring . with an understanding of the components as set forth with reference to the figures and explanations above , applicant will again briefly summarize the operation of the torque converter . the condition of the abaxial ring will be such that its axis is not coincident with the axis of the axle ( i . e ., the device is acting to convert torque ). a bicycle rider through pedalling action causes to be applied to cogset b a torque which would tend to cause the cogset to be rotated in the direction indicated in fig1 a by the arrow adjacent the drive ring . the cogset is in turn coupled to the drive ring and causes the drive ring to rotate at the same speed and in the same direction that the cogset is rotating . the rotating drive ring will cause to engage at least one of the drive ring clutches , namely that of the slowest rotating lever , and cause that lever to rotate at the same speed as the drive ring . the drive ring will not cause to engage the drive ring clutches of the levers rotating faster than the drive ring . the rotation of the slowest lever will cause abaxial ring 18 to rotate at an angular speed greater than that of the slowest lever , and abaxial ring 18 will in turn cause the fastest lever to rotate at an angular speed greater than that of the abaxial ring . the driven ring clutch of the fastest lever will engage the driven ring and cause it to rotate at the same rate as the fastest lever . the driven ring clutches of levers rotating slower than the driven ring will not engage the driven ring . with this understanding and with reference to fig1 a through 1f , and with reference to the notes on the figures , an explanation of torque transfer and conversion between the drive ring and the driven ring follows . turning to fig1 c , at the instant of time shown , clutch 200 is engaged with drive ring 12 , and through clutch 200 , lever 16 a is being urged to rotate about its axis by the drive ring at the same rate of rotation as the drive ring . the rotation of lever 16 a urges the rotation of the other levers through the studs on the abaxial ring . further , it can be seen that lever 16 a is moving slower than levers 16 b through 16 e owing to the fact that the stud in the slot on lever 16 a is acting at a greater distance from the center of rotation of the levers than the distances of the studs acting on each of the other four levers . because levers 16 b through 16 e are rotating faster than drive ring 12 , drive ring 12 cannot engage the drive ring clutches of levers 16 b through 16 e . by extension , it can be seen that at the instant illustrated in fig1 c , the fastest moving levers are levers 16 c and 16 d with equal velocities at this instant because the studs engaging 16 c and 16 d are acting at an equal distance from the axis of the levers , that distance being less than the distances for the studs acting on each of the other three levers . however , lever 16 c is accelerating while lever 16 d is decelerating . in the next instant lever 16 c will attempt to rotate faster than driven ring 14 , causing its clutch 224 to engage the driven ring . as lever 16 d decelerates , clutch 226 will not be able to keep up with the driven ring , and will release . at the instant depicted in fig1 d the abaxial ring has advanced 18 degrees from fig1 c . lever 16 a has the slowest rate of rotation , so drive ring 12 drives lever 16 a via clutch 200 . no other drive clutch is engaged . lever 16 c has the fastest rate of rotation , so lever 16 c drives driven ring 14 via clutch 224 . no other driven clutch is engaged . at the instant depicted in fig1 e the abaxial ring has advanced 36 degrees from fig1 c . it can be seen that levers 16 a and 16 e are matched for slowest rates of rotation . lever 16 a is accelerating so clutch 200 is disengaging from drive ring 12 . lever 16 e is decelerating so clutch 208 is engaging with drive ring 12 . lever 16 c has the fastest rate of rotation so lever 16 c drives driven ring 14 via clutch 224 . at the instant depicted in fig1 f , the abaxial ring has advanced 54 degrees from fig1 c . lever 16 e has the slowest rate of rotation so drive ring 12 drives lever 16 e via clutch 208 . lever 16 c has the fastest rate of rotation so lever 16 c drives driven ring 14 via clutch 224 . another 18 degrees rotation of the abaxial ring and each lever will then occupy the position of the lever that preceded it in fig1 c and the cycle will repeat . fig2 a through 2c illustrate details of the applicant &# 39 ; s abaxial ring assembly 24 . the function of the abaxial ring assembly , of which abaxial ring 18 is a part , is to move the axis of the abaxial ring from a position of rotation coincident with the axis of the axle ( and , therefore , of the drive ring , driven ring , and rotating levers ) to a position non - coincident or spaced away from ( but still parallel to ) the axis of the axle , and thereby affecting the amount of torque conversion between the drive ring and the driven ring . moreover , the distance of displacement between the two axes of rotation ( the axis of the abaxial ring and the axis of the axle ) will correspondingly vary the amount of speed differential ( torque conversion ) between the drive and driven rings . the abaxial ring assembly 24 includes the abaxial ring 18 mounted to a carriage plate 36 through a series of ball ( or roller , or other ) bearings 28 . the carriage plate 36 does not rotate , but instead , is slideably mounted to the axle c through the use of a transverse section 30 , typically , a plate dimensioned to slideably engage walls 32 of cut - out 34 near the center of carriage plate 36 . turning down to fig2 b and 2c , as well as continuing reference to fig2 a , it is seen that carriage plate 36 may be caused to slide with respect to transverse section 30 ( fixed to the axle ) by the actuation of knuckle shift linkage 42 . normally , spring 40 will maintain plate 36 centered on axle c in the position indicated in fig2 b where the axis of rotation of the abaxial ring is the same as the axis of the axle , rotating levers , and the drive and driven rings . this position will provide no torque conversion between the drive and driven rings ; that is , the torque will pass unmodified from the drive ring to the driven ring giving them the same rates of rotation while torque is applied . however , as force , such as that from a cable attached to a rider - actuated twist grip on the handlebar of a bike , is applied to actuator arm 42 c , plate 36 is removed toward the position indicated in fig2 c , which position locates the axis of rotation of the abaxial ring away from the axis of the axle ( and , therefore , the axis of rotation of the drive ring , driven ring , and levers ). this is done through the use of shift linkage 42 , which shift linkage is knuckled and has a first end 42 a and a second end 42 b . the first end 42 a is rotatably pinned adjacent plate 36 and the second end is rotatably pinned adjacent transverse section 30 , such as on axis 44 . ( see also fig3 .) with reference to knuckle 42 d and the remaining structure of shift linkage 42 , as seen in fig2 a through 2c and fig3 it may be appreciated that when a force is applied to 42 c , the configuration between the transverse section 30 and the carriage plate 36 ( and , therefore , bearing 28 and abaxial ring 18 ) will move from that position illustrated in fig2 b to the position illustrated in fig2 c . further , when the force applied to 42 c is released , spring 40 will return carriage plate 36 back to the position illustrated in fig2 b . this may be done as a smooth , continuous movement , such as through rider - actuated rotation of a handlebar - mounted twist grip ( or lever ) which the bicycle rider can use to move the carriage assembly to any position between the position shown in fig2 b ( which represents no torque conversion ) and the position shown in fig2 c ( which represents maximal torque conversion ) and thus correspondingly affect the amount of torque conversion between the drive and driven rings . if this torque converter is used with an alternate gearing scheme ( such as is represented by cogset b ) then the rider may begin in a low gear with the carriage positioned as shown in fig2 b for no torque conversion , then gradually increase the amount of torque conversion as the rider &# 39 ; s speed increases until he reaches the limit shown in fig2 c , at which point he may move it back to the position in fig2 b and shift to a higher gear , and begin again to gradually increase the amount of torque conversion as his speed continues to increase . conversely , if his speed is decreasing , he may gradually decrease torque conversion until the carriage reaches the limit shown in fig2 b , at which point he may move the carriage back to the position in fig2 c and shift to a lower gear , and then begin again to gradually decrease the amount of torque conversion as his speed continues to decrease . fig3 illustrates the hub , torque converter and cogset in cross section . for simplification lever 16 a is shown as being directly opposite lever 16 c whereas in reality , with an odd number of levers , they would be only approximately opposite . the - drive and driven rings are shown to be of different diameters for reasons of axial compactness , as this makes possible an overlap between the drive and driven rings , but the drive and driven rings could just as well have the same diameter where radial compactness is desired . it can be seen with reference to fig3 and 4a that the levers , at the near end thereof , may be forked ( some of the levers may be forked and some may not be ). fig5 a shows detail of a preferred directional ring clutch with spring 240 , cylindrical roller 242 , and inclined surface 244 , such a clutch serving for both drive and driven rings . when the ring moves relative to the clutch in the direction marked to engage , the roller wedges between inclined surface 244 and the ring surface . when the ring moves in the direction marked to release , the roller is no longer wedged and the ring can proceed in that direction relative to the clutch while spring 240 holds the roller in contact with the inclined surface and the ring surface . fig5 b shows detail of an alternate directional ring clutch with spring 240 , and cam 246 pivotable about axis 248 , such a clutch serving for both drive and driven rings . when the ring moves to engage , the pivot forces the cam face against the ring surface . when the ring moves to release , the spring holds the cam face against the ring surface . fig6 a shows the approximate range of rotation of the levers through which drive ring clutches will be engaged with the drive ring , and fig6 b shows the range through which the driven ring clutches will be engaged with the driven ring . the angle of the range given in fig6 a decreases and the angle of the range given in fig6 b increases as the abaxial ring is displaced progressively away from the axis of the axle . fig7 shows the torque converter used in conjunction with an internal gearing scheme , wherein driven ring 14 drives gears g which in turn drive the hub d . although the invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments , this description is not meant to be construed in a limited sense . various modifications of the disclosed embodiments , as well as alternative embodiments of the inventions will become apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to the description of the invention . it is , therefore , contemplated that the appended claims will cover such modifications that fall within the scope of the invention .	1
in the following description , reference is made to the accompanying drawings , which form a part hereof , and which show , by way of illustration , specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced . the present invention , however , may be practiced without the specific details or with certain alternative equivalent embodiments that those described herein . fig1 shows a floor panel 1 according to the state of the art . the floor panel 1 is built up of a first skin layer 2 , which corresponds to the top layer of the floor panel , and a second skin layer 3 , which corresponds to the bottom layer . in between the top layer 2 and bottom layer 3 a core 4 is positioned . the core 4 is adhered to the inner surface 2 a of the top layer 2 and to the inner surface 3 a of bottom layer 3 . the top layer 2 , bottom layer 3 and core 4 have equal length and width . for clarity purposes , fig2 shows an exploded view of the floor panel 1 of fig1 . fig3 shows a perspective view on a floor panel 10 according to the invention . the floor panel 10 is built up of a first skin layer 11 , which is the top layer in this case , and a second skin layer 12 , which corresponds to the bottom layer of the floor panel 10 . the top and bottom layer are constructed as fiber - metal laminates , comprising layers of aluminium and layers of glass - fibers , embedded in an epoxy resin matrix . in between the top layer 11 and bottom layer 12 is positioned a core 13 , constructed as a honeycomb structure made from thin aluminium sheets ( not shown in detail in fig3 ). the core 13 is adhered to the inner surface 11 a of the top layer 11 , and the inner surface 12 a of the bottom layer 12 , using an epoxy based adhesive . the top layer 11 and the bottom layer 12 extend beyond the core 13 at an edge by protruding parts ( 11 b , 12 b ) of the first and second skin layers ( 11 , 12 ) respectively . a support member 15 is provided for supporting the protruding part 11 b of skin layer 11 . support member 15 comprises a first part 15 a that extends in an open edge space of the panel 10 , created by protruding parts ( 11 b , 12 b ) ( this first part 15 a is parallel hatched in fig3 ). the open edge space is delimited by the planes defined by the inner surfaces ( 11 a , 12 a ) of the first and second skin layers ( 11 , 12 ) respectively , the edge 10 a of core layer 13 , and a closing plane 18 perpendicular to the outer surface 11 c of the first skin layer 11 . a second part 15 b of the support member 15 extends outside the open edge space and up to the plane , defined by the outer surface of the first skin layer 11 ( this second part 15 b is crosshatched in fig3 ). the support member 15 extends along the edge of the floor panel 10 and comprises an opening 16 , facing away from the core 13 . in the embodiment shown , the support member 15 extends fully to the inner surfaces of protruding parts ( 11 b , 12 b ) of the first and second skin layers ( 11 , 12 ) respectively , and to the edge 10 a of core 13 , such that its shape conforms tot the shape of the open edge space , as defined above . when inserting support member 15 into the edge opening of floor panel 10 , support member 15 will be guided such that it takes a position wherein the second part 15 b extends up to the plane 20 , defined by the outer surface 11 c of the first skin layer 11 ( see also fig4 a - 4f ). an impact load f , for instance induced by an aircraft servicing trolley and applied to the edge 15 c of the support member 15 is transferred into the support member 15 , away from the first skin layer 11 and into the core 13 and the second skin layer 12 . referring to fig4 a , an embodiment of the floor panel 10 of fig3 is shown . the second part 15 b of the support member 15 extends beyond the open space and up to the planes ( 20 , 21 ), defined by the outer surfaces of both the first and second skin layers ( 11 , 12 ). the support member 15 comprises an opening 16 facing the core layer 13 . the first part 15 a of the support member 15 is bonded to the inner surfaces of the protruding parts ( 11 b , 12 b ) of the first and second skin layers ( 11 , 12 ), respectively , as well as to the core 13 . the support member 15 from fig4 b differs from the one shown in fig4 a in that the second part 15 b of the support member 15 extends beyond the open space and up to the plane 20 , defined by the outer surface of the first skin layer 11 and to the plane 22 defined by the inner surface of the second skin layer 12 . the support member 15 from fig4 c differs from the one shown in fig4 a in that the support member 15 comprises an opening 16 facing away from the core 13 , and in that the first part 15 a of the support member 15 contacts the core layer 13 over the height h of the core layer 13 . the support member 15 from fig4 d differs from the one shown in fig4 a in that the support member 15 extends beyond the open space and up to the plane 20 , defined by the outer surface of the first skin layer 11 and to the plane 22 defined by the inner surface of the second skin layer 12 , in that it the opening 16 is facing opposite from the core 13 and in that the first part 15 a of the support member 15 contacts the core layer 13 over the height h of the core layer 13 . additionally the length d 12 of the protruding part 12 b of the second skin layer 12 is larger than the length d 11 of the protruding part 11 b of the first skin layer 11 . the support member 15 from fig4 e differs from the one shown in fig4 a in that the support member 15 comprises a cavity 17 and in that the first part 15 a of the support member 15 contacts the core layer 13 over the height h of the core layer 13 . the support member 15 from fig4 f differs from the one shown in fig4 a in that the support member 15 extends beyond the open space and up to the plane 20 , defined by the outer surface of the first skin layer 11 and to the plane 22 defined by the inner surface of the second skin layer 12 , in that it comprises a cavity 17 , in that the first part 15 a of the support member 15 contacts the core layer 13 over the height h of the core layer 13 . additionally the length d 12 of the protruding part 12 b of the second skin layer 12 is larger than the length d 11 of the protruding part 11 b of the first skin layer 11 . the support member 15 from fig4 g differs from the one shown in fig4 a in that the second part 15 b of the support member 15 extends beyond the open space and beyond the plane 20 , defined by the outer surface of the first skin layer 11 . the support member 15 comprises a flange 15 c , extending over the outer surface of the skin layer 11 . the flange may be formed together with the first and second part 15 a , 15 b of the support member 15 , when the flange is an integral part of the second part 15 b of the support member 15 . during insertion of the support member 15 into the open edge space , the flange 15 c then slides over the outer surface of the first skin layer 11 . the flange 15 c may also be formed by bending or folding a part of the second part 15 b that extends beyond and out of the plane 20 over the outer surface of the first skin layer 11 , after the support member 15 has been inserted into the open edge space of the floor panel 10 . fig5 a shows a cross - section of two sandwiched floor panels 10 according to the invention . the floor panels are positioned such that each edge 10 a of the floor panels face each other . both floor panels comprise a support member 15 as shown in fig4 c . the second parts 15 b of the support members 15 of both floor panels 10 a contact each other . the openings 16 of both support members 15 face opposite from their corresponding core layers 13 and as a result the openings 16 face towards each other . a connecting member 30 is positioned between the floor panels 10 and extends in the two openings 16 , which openings 16 face each other . for clarity purposes , fig5 b shows a perspective view on the two floor panels 10 of fig5 b . the sandwich panel and support member according to the invention are particularly useful in vehicles such as trucks , aircraft , trains , and the like , particularly air - or spacecraft , in applications such as wall and floor panels , the latter being particularly preferred . the support member according to the invention provides strong and light weight sandwich panels with a reduced risk for delamination .	1
in general , according to one embodiment , there is provided an electric - vehicle control apparatus including : an inverter unit comprising a plurality of inverters each configured by a u - phase circuit , a v - phase circuit , and a w - phase circuit ; and a cooling mechanism , the plurality of inverters provided on the cooling mechanism and sharing the cooling mechanism , wherein the u - phase , v - phase , and w - phase circuits each are configured as a semiconductor device package including two semiconductor switching elements contained in one package and in series . the first embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the drawings . fig1 shows a circuit configuration of an electric - vehicle control apparatus of the first embodiment according to the present invention . fig2 is an equivalent circuit diagram of a semiconductor device package according to the first embodiment . fig3 is a chart showing a voltage output and a temperature increase of a semiconductor device package according to the first embodiment . fig4 is an exterior view showing the first embodiment . the circuit configuration of the electric - vehicle control apparatus according to the present embodiment comprises a first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 , as shown in fig1 . on a direct - current input side , a circuit of the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 is configured by a pantograph 4 , a high - speed breaker 5 , a charging - resistor shortcircuit contactor 6 , a charging resistor 7 , a release contactor 8 , a filter reactor 9 , an overvoltage limit resistor 10 , an overvoltage - limit switching element 11 , a wheel 12 , and a filter capacitor 14 . on an alternating - current - output - side , a circuit is configured by permanent - magnet - synchronous electric motors 2 ( 2 a , 2 b , 2 c , and 2 d ), motor release contactors 3 ( 3 a , 3 b , 3 c , and 3 d ), and electric current sensors 34 ( 34 a , 34 b , 34 c , and 34 d ). the pantograph 4 is connected to the high - speed breaker 5 , which is connected to the charging - resistor - shortcircuit conductor 6 . the charging - resistor - shortcircuit conductor 6 is connected in parallel with the charging resistor 7 and in series with the release contactor 8 . the release contactor 8 is connected to the filter reactor 9 . the filter reactor 9 is connected to a positive direct - current terminal of the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 , and a negative direct - current terminal is connected to a wheel 12 . an overvoltage - limit serial circuit 19 configured by serially connecting the overvoltage limit resistor 10 and the overvoltage - limit - control switching element 11 is connected , at one terminal , to the filter reactor 9 and the positive direct - current terminal of the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 , and is connected , at another terminal , to the negative direct - current terminal of the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 and the wheel 12 . the filter capacitor 14 and the direct - current voltage sensor 15 each are connected in parallel on the direct current side of the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 . on the alternating current side of the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 , current sensors 34 a , 34 b , 34 c , and 34 d are provided on two lines among output three - phase lines . connected to the alternating current side are four permanent - magnet synchronous motors 2 a , 2 b , 2 c , and 2 d through the motor release contactors 3 a , 3 b , 3 c , and 3 d . the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 is configured by vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d , and vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d are connected in parallel with each other on the direct current side . vvvf inverter 21 a is configured by a u - phase semiconductor device package 22 a , a v - phase - semiconductor device package 22 b , a w - phase - semiconductor device package 22 c , and an inverter filter capacitor 13 a . u -, v -, and w - phase semiconductor device packages 22 a to 22 c are connected in parallel with each other on the direct current side , and are connected in parallel with the inverter filter capacitor 13 a . vvvf inverters 21 b to 21 d each are configured in the same manner as vvvf inverter 21 a . the configuration of the control system is the same as fig1 , and each inverter 111 is controlled individually . fig2 is an equivalent circuit diagram of a semiconductor device package 22 . fig3 shows a switching state of a semiconductor device in the semiconductor device package , and a temperature state of the semiconductor device package by switching thereof . as shown in fig2 , the semiconductor device package 22 is configured by a serial circuit of a positive element 24 a of an upper arm and a negative element 24 b of a lower arm . this serial circuit is connected in parallel to the capacitor 13 . the positive element 24 a of the upper arm is a parallel connection circuit of a switching element tr 1 and a diode d 1 . the negative element 24 b of the lower arm is an parallel connection circuit of a switching element tr 2 and a diode d 2 . a connection point 26 between the positive element 24 a and the negative element 24 b is connected to an output terminal , and an output voltage is thereby provided . the switching element tr 1 of the positive element 24 a is turned on , and the switching element tr 2 of the negative element 24 b is turned off . then , an output current is made flow to a load through the switching element tr 1 and output terminal from a power line . meanwhile , the switching element tr 1 of the positive element 24 a is turned off , and the switching element tr 2 of the negative element 24 b is turned on . then , an output current is made flow from a load through the switching element tr 1 and an output terminal to a negative power - supply side . by repeating such switching , the direct current power is converted into an alternating power . fig3 ( a ) shows a waveform of a switching voltage ( gate signal ) waveform of the positive element 24 a , and fig3 ( b ) shows a switching voltage waveform of the negative terminal 24 b . fig3 ( c ) is an output voltage waveform of a semiconductor device package 22 . fig3 ( d ) is a graph showing a temperature increase of the positive element 24 a . fig3 ( e ) is a graph showing a temperature increase of the negative terminal 24 b . as shown in fig3 ( d ), the temperature of the positive element 24 a increases when the positive element 24 a shown in fig3 ( a ) is on . the temperature does not substantially change when the positive element 24 a is off . therefore , the temperature of the positive element 24 a gradually increases as switching operation of on / off is repeated . as shown in fig3 ( e ), the temperature of the negative element 24 b gradually increases as switching operation of on / off is repeated . here , the on state of the positive element 24 a and the on state of the negative element 24 b are alternately repeated . therefore , the entire heat generation of the semiconductor device package 22 is constant as shown in fig3 ( f ). the 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 is configured by packaging , into a unit , the four vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d which use the semiconductor device package 22 as described for each phase . fig4 shows an exterior of the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 thereof . as shown in fig4 , the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 is configured by providing four three - phase vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d on one cooling mechanism 23 . vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d are attached to a flat surface of a heat receiving plate 23 a forming part of the cooling mechanism 23 . to a surface of the heat receiving plate 23 a opposite to the flat surface to which vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d are attached , a heat radiator 23 b forming the other part of the cooling mechanism 23 is connected . the operation of the electric - vehicle control apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described . in fig1 , a direct current supplied from a power line through the pantograph 4 is supplied to the filter capacitor 14 through the high - speed breaker 5 which is normally on , the charging resistor 7 , the release contactor 8 which is also normally on , and the filter reactor 9 . a direct current flows through the capacitors 13 a to 13 d of the inverters connected in parallel with the filter capacitor 14 , and sufficient charges are stored . then , the charging - resistor shortcircuit contactor 6 turns on , and the direct current from the power line is supplied to the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 through the high - speed breaker 5 , charging - resistor shortcircuit contactor 6 , release contactor 8 , and filter reactor 9 . when the inverter filter capacitor 13 a - 13 d is fully charged and when direct - current line power is supplied to the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 , a direct current voltage is applied to semiconductor devices included in uvw - phase semiconductor device packages 22 a to 22 c in each of vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d . the supplied direct power is converted into alternating current power by switching of the semiconductor elements . the converted alternating - current power is supplied to and started to drive the four permanent - magnet synchronous motors 2 . in the present embodiment , for example , when the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 is applied with a power - line voltage of 1500 v , the same 1500 v is applied to each of vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d . the voltage of 1500 v is applied to each of vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d , a corresponding current to the voltage flows through the permanent - magnet synchronous motor 2 , and drives the permanent - magnet synchronous motor 2 . thus , the permanent - magnet synchronous motor 2 is driven by power conversion of converting direct - current power of the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 into an alternating - current power . however , power conversion loss occurs at the time of electric power conversion . the electric - power conversion loss is caused as heat from a semiconductor device . generated heat transfers to the heat receiving plate 23 a , then transfers from the heat receiving plate 23 a to the heat radiator 23 b , and is radiated out of the heat radiator 23 b . that is , the heat generated by power conversion loss does not stay in the vehicle but is radiated to outside . further , if one vvvf inverter 21 malfunctions in the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 during work of the electric - vehicle control apparatus and if the control apparatus ( not shown ) detects the malfunctioning , all the four vvvf inverters 21 a - 21 d are released by releasing the high - speed breaker 5 ( fig1 ). further , if the direct - current power sensor 15 detects excess of the direct - current voltage supplied to the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 by variation of the power - line voltage during work of the electric - vehicle control apparatus , the overvoltage - limit switching element 11 is turned on , thereby to consume the direct - current power by the overvoltage limit resistor 10 , and to remove an excess of the voltage . thus , the overvoltage - limit switching element 11 is controlled to turn on / off , based on an output of the direct - current voltage sensor 15 . in the electric - vehicle control apparatus configured in this manner , vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d each having ww - phase semiconductor device packages 22 a to 22 c share the heat radiator 23 b . therefore , a heat generation amount of the first 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 which contains vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d is equalized over the entire unit , and can therefore be efficiently cooled . further , if semiconductor elements are individually set on a heat radiator as in the conventional elements , a setting space for twenty four semiconductor elements is required . in the present embodiment , however , use efficiency of the cooler 23 improves and space saving can be performed , by using the device package 22 which contains two semiconductor devices so as to equalize the heat generation amounts of respective semiconductor devices . as a result of this , the 4 - in - 1 inverter unit in which twelve semiconductor device packages 22 are attached to the heat radiator 23 can be configured . further , the filter reactor 9 , overvoltage limit resistor 10 , overvoltage - limit switching element 11 are shared in one apparatus . accordingly , the number of components is reduced , and the entire electric - vehicle apparatus can be made smaller . further , the direct - current voltage sensor 15 , current sensors 34 a to 34 d , and motor release contactors 3 a to 3 d can be contained in the 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 1 . in this case , a further effect of space saving is achieved , and wiring is simplified by containing a great number of components in a housing . manufacture , placement , and maintenance of the entire apparatus can be facilitated . the second embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the drawings . fig5 shows a circuit configuration of the second embodiment . the same components as those in fig1 to 4 are respectively denoted at the same reference signs , and descriptions thereof will be omitted herefrom . the circuit configuration of the present embodiment differs from the circuit configuration of the first embodiment in that a different connection method is employed for vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d forming the 4 - in - 1 inverter unit , and in that , on the direct - current side of each inverter 21 , the direct - current voltage sensor 32 and inverter filter capacitor 13 each are connected in parallel . in this respect , descriptions will now be made below . a second 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 30 is configured by vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d . vvvf inverters 21 a and 21 b connected in series form a serial inverter circuit 33 a . vvvf inverters 21 c and 21 d form a serial inverter circuit 33 b . the serial inverter circuits 33 a and 33 b are connected in parallel with each other . on the direct - current side of vvvf inverter 21 a , the inverter filter capacitor 13 a and the direct - current voltage sensor 32 a are connected in parallel . vvvf inverters 21 c and 21 d have the same configuration as vvvf inverters 21 a and 21 b . the inverter filter capacitors 13 c and 13 d and the direct - current voltage sensors 32 c and 32 d are connected in parallel on the direct - current side . the operation of the electric - vehicle control apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described . in fig5 , for example , when a second 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 30 is applied with a power - line voltage of 1500 v , the voltage of 1500 v is applied to each of the serial inverter circuits 33 a and 33 b . in each of the serial inverter circuits 33 a and 33 b , the power - line voltage of 1500 v is divided into two partial voltages . a voltage of 750 v is applied to each of vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d , and a current corresponding to the voltage flows through a permanent - magnet synchronous motor 2 , and drives the permanent - magnet synchronous motor 2 . at this time , the direct - current voltage sensor 32 a detects a direct - current - side voltage of vvvf inverter unit 21 a . similarly , the direct - current voltage sensors 32 b to 32 c respectively detect direct - current - side voltages of vvvf inverter units 21 b to 21 d . an effect of the electric - vehicle control apparatus according to the second embodiment is that the voltage applied to each of vvvf inverters 21 is a voltage obtained by dividing the power - line voltage by two . that is , switching of the semiconductor devices is performed at a lower voltage than the first embodiment . therefore , heat generated as power conversion loss can be reduced . since heat generation is reduced , the cooling mechanism can be made smaller , and energy can be saved during driving of the apparatus . by detecting a direct - current - side voltage value of each vvvf inverter 21 by using the direct - current voltage sensor 32 . the inverters can be controlled more accurately . the third embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the drawings . fig6 shows a circuit configuration of the third embodiment . the same components as those in fig1 to 4 are respectively denoted at the same reference signs , and descriptions thereof will be omitted herefrom . the circuit configuration of the present embodiment differs from the circuit configuration of the first embodiment in that a different connection method is employed for vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d forming a 4 - in - 1 inverter unit , and in that , on the direct - current side of each inverter 21 , a direct - current voltage sensor 40 and a filter capacitor 41 each are provided . in this respect , descriptions will be made below . in fig6 , a third 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 42 is configured by vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d . vvvf inverters 21 a and 21 b connected in series form a parallel inverter circuit 43 a . vvvf inverters 21 c and 21 d form a parallel inverter circuit 43 b . the parallel inverter circuits 43 a and 43 b are connected in parallel with each other . on the direct - current side of vvvf inverter 43 a , the filter capacitor 41 a and the direct - current voltage sensor 40 a are connected in parallel . similarly , the parallel inverter circuit 40 b is connected to each of the filter capacitor 41 b and the direct - current voltage sensor 40 b . in the present embodiment , for example , when a third 4 - in - 1 inverter unit 42 is applied with a power - line voltage of 1500 v , a divided voltage of 750 v is applied to each of the parallel inverter circuits 43 a and 43 b . when the parallel inverter circuits 43 a and 43 b each are applied with the voltage 750 v , the voltage of 750 v is applied to each of vvvf inverters 21 a to 21 d . a current corresponding to the voltage flows through a permanent - magnet synchronous motor 2 , and drives the permanent - magnet synchronous motor 2 . the present embodiment can achieve the same effects as the first embodiment . that is , the voltage applied to each of vvvf inverters is a voltage obtained by dividing twice the power - line voltage . that is , switching of the semiconductor devices is performed at a lower voltage than the first embodiment . therefore , heat generated as power conversion loss can be reduced . since heat generation is reduced , the cooling mechanism can be made smaller , and energy can be saved during driving of the apparatus . since the direct - current side of parallel inverter circuits 43 a and 43 b are detected by direct - current voltage sensors 40 a and 40 b , the number of components can be smaller than the second embodiment . the fourth embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the drawings . fig7 is a circuit diagram of one of u , v , and w phases of 3 - level power conversion apparatus according to the fourth embodiment . hereinafter , this phase is referred to as a u - phase . fig8 is an exterior view showing the fourth embodiment . the same components as those in fig1 to 4 are respectively denoted at the same reference signs , and descriptions thereof will be omitted herefrom . the fourth embodiment is a modification of a semiconductor device package 22 ( 2 - level output ) according to the first embodiment into a semiconductor device package 22 of a 3 - level output , and is applied to the inverter unit . the modification will now be described below . fig7 shows a circuit configuration of the u - phase of the 3 - level power conversion apparatus according to the present embodiment . this u - phase circuit comprises a first element 65 a , a second element 65 b , a third element 65 c , a fourth element 65 d , and a first clamp diode 69 a , and a second clump diode 69 b . a serial u - phase circuit is configured by serially connecting the first element 65 a , second element 65 b , third element 65 c , and fourth element 65 d . the first clump diode 69 a and second clump diode 69 b are connected in series . an anode of the first clump diode 69 a is connected between the first element 65 a and the second element 65 b . a cathode of the second clump diode 69 b is connected between the third element 65 c and the fourth element 65 d . the first element 65 a and the third element 65 c are contained in the first u - phase semiconductor device package 66 a . the second element 65 b and fourth element 65 d are contained in the second u - phase semiconductor device package 66 d . fig8 is an exterior view of a power conversion apparatus according to the fourth embodiment . in fig8 , a first v - phase semiconductor device package 67 a , a second v - phase semiconductor device package 67 b , and a third v - phase semiconductor device package 67 c of a v - phase circuit 67 , a first w - phase semiconductor device package 68 a , a second w - phase semiconductor device package 68 b , and a third w - phase semiconductor device package 68 c of the w - phase circuit 68 are commonly configured in the same manner as the u - phase circuit 66 . next , the u - phase circuit 66 , v - phase circuit 67 , and w - phase circuit 68 are set on a heat receiving plate 23 a of the cooling mechanism . as shown in fig8 , the u - phase circuit 66 and the w - phase circuit 68 are provided on two sides of the heat receiving plate 23 a . the v - phase circuit 67 is provided between the u - phase circuit 66 and the w - phase circuit 68 . in the u - phase circuit 66 , a first u - phase semiconductor device package 66 a , a second u - phase semiconductor device package 66 b , and a third u - phase semiconductor device package 66 c are provided in this order from upside . in the v - phase circuit 67 , a first v - phase semiconductor device package 67 a , a second v - phase semiconductor device package 67 b , and a third v - phase semiconductor device package 67 c are provided in this order from upside . in the w - phase circuit 68 , a first w - phase semiconductor device package 68 a , a second w - phase semiconductor device package 68 b , and a third w - phase semiconductor device package 68 c are provided in this order from upside . in the u - phase circuit 66 , when a semiconductor element performs switching for power conversion , inductances of the second element 65 b and the third element 65 c are the greatest . that is , heat generation from the second element 65 b and third element 65 c is the greatest . next , a heat generation amount from the first element 65 a and fourth element 65 d is the greatest . a heat generation amount from the first clump diode 69 a and the second clump diode 69 b is the smallest . the same as described above also applies to the v - phase circuit 67 and w - phase circuit 68 . therefore , a heat generation amount generated from the first semiconductor device package 66 a ( 67 a and 68 a as well ) which contains the first element 65 a and the third element 65 c combined with each other is equal to a heat generation amount generated from the second semiconductor device package 66 b ( 67 b and 68 b as well ). a heat generation amount from the third semiconductor device package 66 c ( 67 c and 68 c as well ) which contains a first clump diode 69 a and a second clump diode 69 b combined with each other is lower than a heat generation amount generated from the first semiconductor device packages 66 a , 67 a , and 68 a and the second semiconductor device packages 66 b , 67 b , and 68 b . the electric - vehicle control apparatus configured as described above is arranged so as to sandwich the third semiconductor device packages 66 c , 67 c , and 68 c between the first semiconductor device packages 66 a , 67 a , and 68 a and the second semiconductor device packages 66 b , 67 b , and 68 b . in this manner , the heat transferred to the heat receiving plate 23 a is made uniform throughout the entire heat receiving plate 23 a , and efficient cooling can be achieved by the cooling mechanism 23 . further , the 3 - level power conversion apparatus having a greater number of semiconductor elements can be made even smaller than in a conventional apparatus . the semiconductor device package 22 can be applied not only to a 4 - in - 1 inverter unit in which four vvvf inverter units 21 are mounted on one cooling mechanism as shown in the first to fourth embodiments but also to a different configuration such as 2 - in - 1 inverter unit . while certain embodiments have been described , these embodiments have been presented by way of example only , and are not intended to limit the scope of the inventions . indeed , the novel embodiments described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms ; furthermore , various omissions , substitutions and changes in the form of the embodiments described herein may be made without departing from the spirit of the inventions . the accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended to cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope and spirit of the inventions .	8
the present invention relates to novel complexes of aluminum chlorhydroxide or aluminum chlorhydroxide propylene glycol and glycine and , more particularly , to an aluminum chlorhydroxy glycinate complex and an aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol glycinate complex . the novel complexes of this invention may be depicted as having the formulas : [ al 2 ( oh ) 4 cl ] x . [ h 2 nch 2 cooh ] y ( aluminum chlorhydroxy glycinate ) and [[ al 2 ( oh ) 4 cl ] [ c 3 h 8 o 2 ]] x . [ h 2 nch 2 cooh ] y ( aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol glycinate ) wherein x and y are each about 1 and refer to the number of mols of each component . in the foregoing formulas , al 2 ( oh ) 4 cl represents aluminum chlorhydroxide , h 2 nch 2 cooh represents glycine and c 3 h 8 o 2 represents propylene glycol . it is not necessary to utilize special reaction conditions to form the desired complexes . the complexes may be formed by a procedure in which the aluminum chlorhydroxide or aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol are combined with glycine and formed into a uniformly mixed damp mass with the addition of small quantities of water . the dmp mass is then dried at 160 ° to 180 ° f . until the product is dry and has a relatively constant weight . in another procedure , boiling water is added to a mixture of aluminum chlorhydroxide or aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol and glycine . the amount of water used in the reaction is not critical so long as an amount is utilized sufficient to wet the intimate mixture of reactants and form a slurry or solution of the reactants . after the reaction is complete , water is preferably removed from the product to a level below about 1 %, by weight , based on the weight of the complex . this may be accomplished by heating the complex to a temperature of from about 150 ° f . to about 160 ° f . until the product is dry and has a relatively constant weight . any drying means , including spray drying , may be employed , and vacuum may be employed to assist drying . it has also been found that the desired complexes may be prepared in a solid state reaction in which aluminum chlorhydroxide or aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol are combined with glycine and thoroughly blended to form a uniform mixture . the mixture is then passed through a micronizer where the material is pulverized to an extremely fine size ( generally less than 10 microns ) and intimately admixed with the formation of the desired complex occurring in a solid state reaction . the relative proportions of aluminum chlorhydroxide or aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol and glycine utilized in forming the desired complexes may vary somewhat . regardless of the proportions , however , the products are complex chemical compounds in which the components are chemically bound . in the complexes of this invention , the aluminum chlorhydroxide or aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol are preferably combined with glycine in a mol ratio of about 1 to 1 . therefore , in the preferred embodiments of this invention aluminum chlorhydroxide and glycine are combined in a mol ratio of about 1 to 1 to form the aluminum chlorhydroxy glycinate complex . likewise , aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol and glycine are combined in a mol ratio of about 1 to 1 to form the aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol glycinate complex . it has been found that the complexes produced as the result of the present invention are remarkably stable whether in solution ( aqueous or alcohol ) or heated . the complexes have the combined attributes of the aluminum containing compound and glycine , e . g . the astringent , bacteriostatic properties of the aluminum chlorhydroxide component and the buffering , moisturizing and conditioning properties of glycine . the complexes are thus useful in a myriad of topical preparations such as deodorants , antiperspirants and the like . the complexes have been found to be especially useful in antiperspirant - deodorant products especially antiperspirant - deodorant products formulated with aluminum salts such as aluminum sulfate , aluminum chloride and aluminum chlorhydroxide . such products cause staining , destruction or charring of wearing apparel which becomes impregnated with the aluminum salts through contact with those areas of the body where the antiperspirant - deodorant products have been applied . high temperatures encountered in laundering , ironing or pressing the apparel causes the impregnated aluminum salts to decompose forming their corresponding aluminum acids which cause the undesired staining and possible charring and destruction of the clothing . surprisingly , it has been found that formulating antiperspirant - deodorant products with the complexes of this invention eliminates the undesired staining and destruction of clothing . it is thought that the heat encountered in laundering causes ammonia to be released from the glycine component of the complex . the ammonia neutralizes the acid produced through decomposition of the aluminum salt portion of the complex , thereby eliminating the destructive effects of the acid . it has further been found that the glycine phase of the complex acts as a buffer for any free acid liberated through body heat or perspiration . the complex thus contributes &# 34 ; built - in &# 34 ; anti - staining and buffering action to antiperspirant - deodorant products . the built - in buffering action imparts anti - irritant and hypoallergenic properties to antiperspirant - deodorant products , especially those products containing the aluminum chlorhydroxy glycine complex , thereby increasing the spectrum of persons who can utilize such products without adverse effects . the following examples illustrate the preparation of typical complexes and the properties and suggested uses for the complexes . the examples are illustrative only and not intended to limit the scope of the invention . 190 g . of aluminum chlorhydroxide are thoroughly mixed with 75 g . of glycine . 10 cc . of distilled water is then added and the mixture is triturated until a uniformed mixed damp mass is formed . the resulting mass is then dried for 1 / 2 to 1 hour at 160 ° to 180 ° f . to a dry - granular powder . the product is an aluminum chlorhydroxy glycinate complex having the formula : where x and y are each about 1 based on glycine and al 2 o 3 content . a 20 % aqueous solution of the complex has a ph of about 4 . 5 to about 6 . the complex is soluble to the extent of 40 to 50 % in water at 25 ° c . and 75 % in boiling water . the complex may be formulated in pharmaceutically acceptable carriers at levels of from about 10 to about 25 %, by weight , based on the weight of the product to form an antiperspirant composition . a like complex is formed by suspending 190 g . of aluminum chlorhydroxide and 75 g . of glycine in 200 cc . of boiling , distilled water , followed by evaporating the reaction mixture to dryness under reduced pressure at 150 ° to 160 ° f . similarly , a like complex is formed by thoroughly blending 190 g . of aluminum chlorhydroxide with 75 g . of glycine and micronizing the mixture to a particle size less than 10 microns . an aerosol antiperspirant - deodorant of the following formulation may be prepared with the aluminum chlorhydroxy glycinate complex : % w . w . ______________________________________aluminum chlorhydroxy glycinate complex 9noval 3crodafos n - 10 acid 0 . 5crodafos n - 10 neutral 0 . 5alcohol 41 . 75perfume 0 . 25propellant 45______________________________________ dissolve the aluminum chlorhydroxy glycinate complex in a portion of the alcohol with vigorous agitation and heat to 50 ° c . combine the additional ingredients with stirring and filter producing a concentrate which may be filled in corrosion resistant cans with the propellant in manners known in the art . 230 g . of aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol are thoroughly mixed with 75 g . of glycine , 10 cc . of distilled water is then added and the mixture is triturated until a uniformly mixed damp mass is formed . the resulting mass is then dried for 1 / 2 to 1 hour at 160 ° f . to 180 ° f . to a granular powder . the product is an aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol glycinate complex having the formula : [[ al . sub . 2 ( oh ). sub . 4 cl [ [ c . sub . 3 h . sub . 8 o . sub . 2 ]]. sub . x . [ h . sub . 2 nch . sub . 2 cooh ]. sub . y where x and y are each about 1 based on glycine and al 2 o 3 content . a 20 % solution of the complex has a ph of about 4 . 5 to about 6 . 5 . the complex is soluble in alcohol and water . the complex may be formulated in pharmaceutically acceptable carriers at levels of from about 10 to about 25 %, by weight , based on the weight of the product to form an antiperspirant composition . a like complex is formed by suspending 230 g . of aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol and 75 g . of glycine in 200 cc . of boiling , distilled water , followed by evaporating the reaction mixture to dryness under reduced pressure at 150 ° to 160 ° f . similarly , a like complex is formed by thoroughly blending 230 g . of aluminum chlorhydroxy propylene glycol and 75 g . of glycine and micronizing the mixture to a particle size less than 10 microns .	0
referring to fig1 of the drawings , a wheel and brake assembly is generally indicated by reference numeral 10 , the conventional elements thereof being shown by dot - dashed ghost lines and a specific configuration for a reciprocating control means according to this invention being indicated generally by reference numeral 100 and illustrated in solid lines . the conventional elements of a wheel and brake assembly 10 include a torque tube 12 fixedly secured to a brake housing 14 by a plurality of bolts 16 and a wheel rim 18 rotatably mounted with respect to a wheel axle 20 and adapted for mounting of a tire ( not shown ). the axis of rotation of the rotating elements of the wheel and brake assembly is indicated by line a x . the wheel rim 18 includes a plurality of drive keys 18a located about an inner peripheral surface which engage a plurality of rotatable friction disks 24 , the disks 24 being alternate ones of a brake disk stack generally indicated by reference numeral 22 . the friction disks 24 are , of course , rotatable with the wheel 18 while other alternate ones of the brake disk stack 22 are relatively stationary disks 26 which are keyed about an inner peripheral surface 26a to the torque tube 12 . the disks 24 , 26 are therefore functional to provide braking of the wheel 18 when compressed in the axial direction by a forceful engagement imparted by a brake pressure plate 28 positioned at the inboard end of the brake disk stack 22 . the pressure plate 28 is also positioned for operative engagement with the reciprocating control means 100 , which control means is part and parcel of a brake actuator which functionally effects compression of the brake disk stack for braking of the wheel 18 . the reciprocating control means 100 generally comprises at least one torque motor 30 mounted in a relatively stationary housing member 40 and operatively positioned with respect to a rotatable ring gear member 50 to drive said member 50 into rotation about the a x axis by way of a pinion gear 32 mounted at the outboard extent of its drive shaft 34 . the rotatable ring gear member 50 drives a movable ram member 70 into and out of axial engagement with the brake pressure plate 28 through a plurality of roller means 60 operatively positioned and mounted between the ring gear member 50 and the ram member 70 . the roller means 60 , according to the first embodiment of this invention , comprises a plurality of planetary type rollers having annular ridges and grooves which engage matching ridges and grooves in a peripheral bore surface of the rotatable ring gear member 50 while also engaging helical ridges and grooves in the outwardly facing surface of the ram member 70 . more particularly and referring now to fig2 of the drawings , a torque motor 30 is mounted in a relatively stationary housing member 40 by being received within a cavity 42 and fixedly secured thereto by a plurality of fasteners which may be any suitable screw or bolt 44 . the fasteners 44 are carried within bores 46 in the housing 40 which also has a bore 48 for receiving the motor drive shaft 32 therethrough . a pinion gear 34 is attached at the outer extent of the drive shaft 32 . while fig2 merely shows a single motor 30 , the housing member 40 is actually an annular - shaped member which carries a plurality of such motors . fig4 clearly illustrates a configuration of a particular one such housing wherein ten motor mounting positions 42 are indicated . the actual number of motors 30 to be mounted in a housing 40 will , of course , depend upon the particular brake application and the requirements imposed on the brake assembly . for example , a housing 40 of the type indicated may be configured to mount as many as 15 or as few as two torque motors 30 and these will be positioned in a balanced arrangement within the housing 40 about the a x axis . finally , the housing member 40 is characterized by a ball race 40a machined or otherwise formed within an inside surface of its bore 40b . the ball race 40a is one - half of a thrust bearing which carries a plurality of ball bearings 80 and these are mounted within a passageway formed by the race 40a and an opposite race configured in the rotatable ring gear member 50 to be specifically described hereinafter . the rotatable ring gear member 50 comprises , primarily for ease in manufacture , two annular - shaped pieces 50a and 50b which are positioned inboardly and outboardly respectively about the a x axis . the inboard portion 50a is functionally a ring gear having gear teeth 52 about an inner bore surface , which teeth are positioned to engage matching teeth of the pinion gear 32 in a conventional manner . the inboard portion 50a is secured to the outboard portion 50b by fasteners 82 and both portions rotate as a single integral unit by the action of the pinion 34 on the ring gear teeth 52 . the outboard portion 50b is an l - shape in cross - section having a vertical leg 54 that attaches to the inboard piece 50a via fasteners 82 and an axial or horizontal leg 56 which carries the other half of the thrust bearing race indicated at 50c . a bore surface in the horizontal leg 56 is characterized by a plurality of annular ridges and grooves 58 which function to engage the planetary rollers 60 in a manner to be described hereinafter . the axially movable ram member 70 is mounted in the brake housing 14 and is restrained from rotational motion about the a x axis by reason of ball slots 72 which interact with anti - rotational balls 84 mounted in corresponding slots 86 in the brake housing structure 14 . the relationship which exists between the slots 72 , 86 and the balls 84 is clearly illustrated in fig4 of the drawings at three balanced locations within the bore of the ram member 70 . referring again to fig2 the ram member 70 is characterized by a plurality of ridges and grooves 74 in its outwardly facing surface and these have a particular helical pitch which when interacting with the rollers 60 effects an axial movement to the ram member . now therefore , and as hereinbefore stated , the rollers 60 are planetary type rollers and these are configured with a grooved drive surface 62 . the surface 62 comprises ridges and grooves which are annular rather than helical in configuration and may comprise a machined surface which is complimentary with the ridges and grooves 58 in the bore of the rotatable ring gear member 50 . alternatively , the roller ridges and grooves may be configured from a plurality of stacked washers , alternating ones of the stack having the major diameter of the roller which establishes the ridge height while the other alternating ones have a minor diameter which establishes the groove depth . in either of these above - mentioned configurations , each roller 60 is mounted between a pair of keeper plates 66 which are affixed to an inboard and to an outboard facing surface of the rotatable ring gear member 50 . referring now to fig3 of the drawings , each roller 60 is mounted between the keeper plates 66 such that its axis indicated at a r is offset with respect to the a x axis about which both the ring gear member 50 and the ram member 70 are axially mounted . accordingly , a line drawn parallel to the roller ridges and grooves 62 and which is perpendicular to the roller axis a r defines an angle α with respect to both the rotatable ring gear member ridges and grooves 58 as illustrated in the left hand portion of fig3 and to the ram member ridges and grooves 74 as illustrated in the right hand portion of the figure . preferably , the angle α is one - half the pitch angle of the helically turned ridges and grooves of the ram member 70 which are also perpendicular to an axis indicated at a h which is the axis of the helix with respect to the a x axis of the ram member 70 . it will be appreciated therefore that a rotation of the ring gear member 50 effects rotation of the rollers 60 and these in turn advance the ram member 70 in the axial direction dependent upon the direction of rotation of the ring gear member . furthermore , because the ridges and grooves 58 in the bore of the ring gear member 50 are annular and the ridges and grooves 62 about the surface of each roller 60 are also annular , there is no axial motion imparted relatively between these two members . however , because the ridges and grooves 74 in the surface of the ram member 70 are helical turns , the interaction of these with the rollers 60 effects a relative axial motion between these two members . the rollers 60 are , or course , stationary in the axial direction by reason of their mounting within the bore of the ring gear member 50 and therefore the axial motion is imparted to the ram member 70 . it will be further appreciated from the foregoing that the rollers 60 travel in a planetary path and do not move axially when the rotatable member 50 is rotated by the pinion 34 and consequently they do not have to be recirculated . fig5 of the drawings illustrates a second embodiment of the invention which is generally indicated by reference numeral 101 . according to this embodiment , a plurality of rollers 90 are mounted between the ring gear member 50 and the ram member 70 , which rollers 90 are characterized by a ridge and groove outwardly facing surface 92 having a continuous helical turn of the same pitch as the ridges and grooves 74 of the ram member 70 . in addition , the ring gear member 50 is characterized by a bore surface comprised of matching ridges and grooves generally indicated at 59 and these are helically pitched with respect to the a x axis . in this configuration , a rotation of the ring gear member 50 as effected by the pinion gear 34 will move each roller 90 in the axial direction within the confines of the ring gear bore 59 . the rotation and axial movement of the rollers 90 effects an axial movement of the ram member 70 into and out of contacting engagement with the brake pressure plate indicated at 28 in a ghost - line illustration . it will be appreciated that , because the roller ridges and grooves 92 are helical turns and the rollers move axially , they must be recirculated back to a starting position when the ring gear member rotates beyond a particular portion of the helical turn extent of its ridges and grooves . in this respect , each roller 90 has an axial length which is a particular portion of the axial length of the bore 59 and the actual length is dependent upon the helical pitch of its ridges and grooves and that of the interacting members . in any event , and to limit the axial excursion of each roller 90 , an end ring 53 is provided at the inboard end of the ring gear member 50 and it is affixed via fasteners 53a while an end ring 55 is provided at the outboard end and it is affixed via fasteners 55a . recirculation of each roller 90 may be accomplished , for example , by a cam and slot configuration wherein a slot ( indicated at 94 ) is machined axially within the bore of the ring gear member 50 and in - line cams 96 are provided which lift the roller radially out of contacting engagement with ram member 70 and into the slot 94 . upon continued rotation of the ring gear member 50 in the same direction , a roller 90 is moved back to its starting position within the bore of the ring gear member . it is anticipated that a roller 90 need only be moved back a single ridge and groove distance of the ram member ridges and grooves 74 at any point of recirculation . a recirculating roller screw mechanism which operates on the principle just described is produced by skf group of la technique integrale of chambery , france and sold under the trademark &# 34 ; transrol &# 34 ;.	5
hereunder , embodiments of the present invention will be explained with reference to the accompanying drawings . fig1 through 5 show a clamp 10 according to the present invention . the clamp 10 is formed of a fitting portion 16 to be fitted to a stud bolt 14 projecting from a body panel 12 of an automobile and a clamping portion 24 for holding pipes 18 , 20 , and 22 of an air conditioner as rod - shaped members . the fitting portion 16 has a box shape with openings 26 on sidewalls . a hole 28 for inserting the stud bolt 14 projecting from the body panel 12 is provided on an upper portion of the fitting portion 16 . a pair of guiding pieces 30 projects inwardly toward a lower side from the hole 28 for guiding the stud bolt 14 to a pair of stopping pieces 32 . the stopping pieces 32 are disposed at two positions on each of both inner walls 16 a of the fitting portion 16 in the vertical direction , and forward ends thereof have horizontal surfaces . a space between the two stopping pieces 32 in the vertical direction is equal to a pitch of the thread of the stud bolt 14 . forward end portions 32 a of the stopping pieces 32 enter the screw groove of the inserted stud bolt 14 to prevent the clamp 10 from pulling out from the stud bolt 14 easily . the clamp portion 24 has a substantially u - shape , and a partition wall 38 is provided at the central portion of the clamp portion 24 along the sidewalls 34 , 36 in the width direction . the clamp portion 24 is divided into a holding portion 40 and a holding portion 42 by the partition wall 38 . the holding portions 40 , 42 deform elastically . the sidewall 34 and the partition wall 38 can move closer to and away from each other , and the sidewall 36 and the partition wall 38 can move in the same way . therefore , when the holding portion 40 or the holding portion 42 is bent outward to widen a space between the sidewall 34 and the partition wall 38 or the sidewall 36 and the partition wall 38 , the pipes 18 , 20 can enter the holding portion 40 , or the pipes 18 , 22 can enter the holding portion 42 . hereunder , the holding portion 40 will be explained . the holding portion 40 has a receiving portion 44 ( second receiving portion ) at a bottom thereof . the receiving portion 44 has a circular arc shape having a curvature substantially the same as an outer curvature of the pipe 18 to make a surface contact with the pipe 18 . a pair of elastic pieces 46 extends from an upper end of the sidewall 34 and the partition wall 38 of the holding portion 40 ( along a width direction of the central wall 38 ), and bends toward the central portion of the receiving portion 44 . the elastic pieces 46 deform elastically toward the sidewall 34 and the partition wall 38 , respectively , and a space between upper surfaces 46 a of the elastic pieces 46 is narrower than the outer dimensions of the pipes 18 and 20 . a forward end surface of each elastic piece 46 is formed in a circular arc surface 46 b having a curvature radius substantially the same as the outer dimension of the pipe 20 to make a surface contact with the pipe 20 . further , a pair of receiving portions 48 ( first receiving portion ) is provided at central portions of the sidewall 34 and the partition wall 38 , and extends in the width direction of the partition wall 38 at a right angle with respect to the sidewall 34 or the partition wall 38 . forward end surfaces of the receiving portions 48 face the circular arc surfaces 46 b of the elastic pieces 46 , and have circular arc surfaces 48 a having a curvature radius substantially the same as the outer dimension of the pipe 20 to make a surface contact with the pipe 20 . an elastic piece 50 is formed just below the receiving portion 48 at the partition wall 38 , and extends toward the receiving portion 44 . the elastic piece 50 deform elastically toward the partition wall 38 , and a forward end surface of the elastic piece 50 has a circular arc surface 50 b having a curvature radius substantially the same as the outer dimension of the pipe 18 to make a surface contact with the pipe 18 . a pair of stoppers 52 is provided on the sidewall 34 at a position facing the elastic piece 50 along the width direction of the central wall 38 , and has a substantially t - shape . the stopper 52 is formed of a base portion 54 and a holding piece 56 . the base portion 54 extends from the sidewall 34 at a right angle , and has a forward end provided with the holding piece 56 . the holding piece 56 extends to both sides of the base portion 54 as a center , in which one end thereof is directed toward the receiving portion 48 and the other end thereof is directed toward the central portion of the receiving portion 44 . the holding piece 56 has a thickness larger than that of the base portion 54 . an upper surface of the holding piece 56 substantially faces the elastic piece 46 and has an arc surface 52 a with a gentle circular shape . the stopper 52 is rotatable around the base portion 54 . as shown in fig4 and 5 , when the pipe 18 passes through , the circular arc surface 52 a of the holding piece 56 rotates while making a surface contact with the pipe 18 , so that the circular arc surface 52 a of the holding piece 56 substantially faces the receiving portion 44 . next , the holding portion 42 will be explained . as shown in fig2 and 5 , the holding portion 42 has substantially the same structure as that of the holding portion 40 . therefore , explanations of the same portions are omitted . the holding portion 42 does not include the stopper 52 . in receiving portions 58 corresponding to the receiving portions 48 of the holding portion 40 , a distance between circular arc surfaces 58 a formed at forward end surfaces of the receiving portion 58 is larger than that between the forward end surfaces 48 a of the receiving portions 48 . the circular arc surface 58 a of the receiving portion 58 has a curvature radius larger than that of the circular arc surface 48 a of the receiving portion 48 , so that a pipe 22 having a diameter larger than that of the pipe 18 can be received therein . a pair of elastic pieces 60 is provided on inner walls of the sidewall 36 and the partition wall 38 , and extends from the forward end surfaces of the sidewall 36 and the partition wall 38 , respectively . a distance between a circular arc surface 60 a provided at a forward end surface of the elastic piece 60 and a circular arc surface 58 a of the receiving portion 58 is larger than that between the circular arc surface 46 b of the elastic piece 46 and the circular arc surface 48 a of the receiving portion 48 . therefore , the pipe 22 can be held between the circular arc surface 60 a of the elastic piece 60 and the circular arc surface 58 a of the receiving portion 58 . next , a method of mounting the pipes to the clamp according to the present embodiment will be explained . first , as shown in fig3 through 5 , the fitting portion 16 of the clamp 10 is fitted to the stud bolt 14 provided to the body panel 12 , and the clamp 10 is fixed to the body panel 12 . then , the pipes 18 , 20 , 22 are mounted to the clamp portion 24 . when the pipe 18 is inserted into the holding portion 40 through an insertion opening thereof , the pipe 18 abuts against the upper surfaces 46 a of the elastic pieces 46 . in this state , when the pipe 18 is pushed into the holding portion 40 , the elastic pieces 46 elastically deform toward the partition wall 38 , and the holding portion 40 elastically deforms through the elastic piece 46 , so that the space between the sidewall 34 and the partition wall 38 is widened . the pipe 18 is moved into the holding portion 40 along the upper surfaces 46 a of the elastic pieces 46 . then , when the pipe 18 passes through the forward end angular portions of the elastic pieces 46 , the elastic pieces 46 and the holding portion 40 are restored , and the pipe 18 is once received by the circular arc surfaces 46 b of the elastic pieces 46 and the circular arc surfaces 48 a of the receiving portions 48 . from this state , when the pipe 18 is further pushed into the holding portion 40 , the holding portion 40 elastically deforms through the receiving portions 48 , and the space between the sidewall 34 and the partition wall 38 is widened according to the movement of the pipe . thus , the space between the receiving portions 48 is widened to thereby allow the pipe 18 to pass therethrough . then , as shown in fig4 , the pipe 18 abuts against the upper surface 50 a of the elastic piece 50 and the circular arc surface 52 a of the stopper 52 . from this state , when the pipe 18 is further pushed into the holding portion 40 , the elastic piece 50 elastically deforms toward the partition wall 38 . at the same time , the stopper 52 rotates around the base portion 54 according to the movement of the pipe 18 , so that the circular arc surface 52 a of the stopper 52 substantially facing the elastic piece 46 substantially faces the receiving portion 44 . when the pipe 18 is further moved inward to pass through the upper surface 50 a of the elastic piece 50 and the forward end angular portion thereof , as shown in fig5 , the elastic piece 50 and the holding portion 40 restore . therefore , the pipe 18 makes a surface contact with the circular arc surface 44 a of the receiving portion 44 and the circular arc surface 50 b of the elastic piece 50 . accordingly , the pipe 18 is held by the circular arc surface 44 a of the receiving portion 44 , the upper surface 50 a of the elastic piece 50 , and the circular arc surface 52 a of the stopper 52 . after the pipe 18 is mounted on the inner side of the holding portion 40 , the pipe 20 is mounted on the entrance side of the holding portion 40 . the pipe 20 is pushed to the inner part of the holding portion 40 in a state that the pipe 20 abuts against the upper surfaces 46 a of the elastic pieces 46 of the holding portion 40 . the elastic pieces 46 elastically deform , and the holding portion 40 elastically deforms through the elastic pieces 46 to thereby move the pipe 20 in the holding portion 40 . when the pipe 20 is moved along the upper surfaces 46 a of the elastic pieces 46 to pass through the forward end angular portions of the elastic pieces 46 , the elastic pieces 46 and the holding portion 40 restore . accordingly , the pipe 20 is held by the circular arc surfaces 46 b of the elastic pieces 46 and the circular arc surfaces 48 a of the receiving portions 48 . as described above , the pipes 18 , 20 are mounted in the holding portion 40 . next , the pipes 18 and 22 are mounted in the holding portion 42 . since the pipes 18 and 22 are mounted in the same way as that for the pipes 18 , 20 mounted in the holding portion 40 , the explanation thereof is omitted . next , an operation of the clamp according to the invention will be explained . as shown in fig3 through 5 , according to the present invention , it is possible to mount the pipes 18 , 20 ( or 18 , 22 ) to the holding portion 40 ( or 42 ) through the same insertion opening . that is , the pipes 18 , 20 are inserted into the holding portion 40 in the same direction , resulting in good workability and reducing assembly work . also , the pipes 18 , 20 ( or 18 , 22 ) can be situated in two levels inside the holding portions 40 ( or 42 ), thereby reducing a space for installing the clamp portion 24 . the base portion 54 has a thickness less than that of the holding piece 56 , so that the stopper 52 easily rotates to receive the pipe 18 . as shown in fig5 , one end of the holding piece 56 of the stopper 52 is positioned under the pipe 20 . the pipe 20 with a smaller diameter is situated above the pipe 18 in the state that the clamp 10 is fixed to the body panel 12 . one end portion of the holding piece 56 of the stopper 52 is disposed under the pipe 20 . thus , the pipe 20 is restrained by the holding piece 56 of the stopper 52 , before the pipe 20 falls down through the space between the receiving portions 48 due to vibration of the car or the like . the pipe 20 is prevented from moving down to the receiving portion 44 , so that the pipe 20 does not fall down to the holding portion 40 . on the other hand , in the holding portion 42 , the pipe 22 having a larger diameter than that of the pipe 18 is mounted in an upper part of the holding portion 42 . accordingly , if the pipe 22 passes through the space between the receiving portions 58 , the space between the sidewall 36 and the central wall 38 must be widened larger than that of the case where the pipe 18 is inserted . therefore , there is no risk that the pipe 20 with a smaller diameter mounted at the upper side falls down on the receiving portion 44 as in the case of the holding portion 40 . in the holding portion 42 , while the stopper 52 is not required , depending on the outer dimension and an arrangement of the pipe 22 , the stopper 52 may be added to the holding portion 42 . in the present embodiment , the stopper 52 is provided only on the sidewall 34 of the holding portion 40 . alternatively , another stopper may be provided instead of the elastic piece 50 . also , the elastic piece 50 is not always required , and the receiving portion 44 and the stoppers 52 may hold the pipe 18 . further , in the present embodiment , each holding portion holds two pipes , but it is not limited thereto . each holding portion may hold three pipes . in this case , the stoppers are provided at positions constituting a middle step and a lower step of the holding portion in the state that the clamp is fixed to the body panel . in the present embodiment , the elastic pieces 46 , 60 , the receiving portions 48 , 58 and the stoppers 52 are provided in a pair along the width direction of the central wall 38 , respectively . the elastic pieces 46 , 60 , the receiving portions 48 , 58 and the stoppers 52 are formed in a non - continuous shape to easily deform elastically . so long as the pipes 18 , 20 and 22 can be inserted , it is not necessary to form in the non - continuous shape along the width direction of the central wall 38 . according to the present invention , with the structure as described above , the first rod - shaped member and the second rod - shaped member are inserted into the clamp portion in the same direction , so that the workability is excellent and the assembly work is reduced . also , the first rod - shaped member and the second rod - shaped member are situated in two levels . therefore , the installation area of the clamp portion can be reduced . further , the second rod - shaped member is held by the stopper , and the first rod - shaped member is prevented from entering into the second receiving portion . therefore , the first rod - shaped member does not fall down to the second receiving portion in the state that the clamp is fixed to an object to be attached . while the invention has been explained with reference to the specific embodiments of the invention , the explanation is illustrative and the invention is limited only by the appended claims .	5
fig1 shows a medical examination device 1 , suitable for executing the inventive method . a c - arm - x - ray system 2 , comprising a radiographic source 3 and a radiation detector 4 , as indicated by the arrow a , is supported to allow rotation , so that fluoroscopy images can be recorded from different angles . a biplanar x - ray device can also be used as an alternative . a patient 6 is arranged on a bed 5 . the ecg value of the patient is measured using suitable recording means 7 , processed in an ecg control unit 8 and assigned to an ecg phase . the connection with the x - ray control unit 9 enables two fluoroscopy images at an angle to each other to be recorded using triggering in the same ecg phase with the aid of the x - ray system 2 . a catheter 10 with an image recording device arranged at its tip , not shown in any greater detail here , is introduced into a hollow organ of the patient 6 . the catheter control unit 11 monitors the catheter 10 and is also embodied to perform an even withdrawal of the catheter through the hollow organ while precisely recording the withdrawal length . in addition a possibly further control unit 12 is provided for the image recording device of the catheter 10 . the control unit 12 has a communication connection to the ecg control unit 8 , so that an ecg triggering or recording can be undertaken . all control units 8 , 9 , 11 and 12 also communicate with a central processing unit 13 . a monitor 14 can be assigned to this unit , on which images , models and reconstructions can be displayed . the processing unit 13 is embodied in this case to execute the inventive method . within the framework of the present invention two types of catheter 10 can be used , these being shown in greater detail in fig2 and 3 . fig2 shows the catheter tip 15 of a first catheter 10 a . an annular window 17 is provided which runs around the circumference of the catheter shell 16 in the area of the catheter tip 15 , through which the images can be recorded with the aid of the image recording device 18 . the image recording device 18 records two - dimensional sectional images of the hollow organ . it is connected via suitable signal lines 19 , which run within the catheter shell 16 , to the control unit 12 in which the images are detected and buffered . a further catheter 10 b is shown in fig3 . as a sleeve catheter it comprises an outer sleeve 12 which remains in position in the patient 6 during withdrawal , which is transparent is and serves as a catheter guide for the inner catheter 21 , which in its turn comprises an image recording device 22 with assigned signal lines 23 . the image recording devices 18 or 22 recording sectional images of the hollow organ can be oct , ivus or ofdi devices in this case . the diameter of the catheter 10 is smaller in this case than the diameter of the hollow organ , mostly even considerably smaller . therefore the catheter 10 mostly does not align itself within the hollow organ 24 , cf . fig4 , along a central path 25 , but in the example shown follows a shortest path , even lying against the vessel wall 26 in some sections . in the example shown not even the start position 27 lies on the central path 25 . if the catheter 10 is now withdrawn in the direction of the arrow b , its catheter tip 28 will not move along the central path 25 , but will take another withdrawal path which essentially depends on the physical characteristics of the catheter 10 and of the hollow organ 24 . the effects of the behavior on the catheter images recorded are explained in greater detail by fig5 . this once more shows the hollow organ 24 and also its central path 25 . a sectional image recorded at point 29 with an orientation of the catheter tip along the local direction of the central path 25 would represent a section through the plane 30 at right angles to the direction of the central path 25 , with the catheter 10 lying precisely in the middle of the sectional image . such a catheter image is shown at 48 . the solid line represents the real withdrawal path 31 which the catheter 10 takes . in this case an image is recorded at point 32 . the catheter tip of the catheter 10 is not located here in the center of the hollow organ 24 and is oriented along the direction of the real withdrawal path 31 . this produces a slightly distorted catheter image 33 , in which the catheter 10 is not arranged in the middle of the lumen . it should be pointed out here that the hollow organ is obviously generally not round and the orientation of the catheter can thus also not be determined with reference to the elliptic shape of the recorded lumen . to reconstruct from the two - dimensional catheter images a 3d presentation of the hollow organ , to achieve the most correct possible presentation the orientation and the deviation of the position of the catheter tip from the central path must consequently be known for each of these catheter images . fig6 shows a flowchart of the method in accordance with the invention , as can be executed in the examination apparatus depicted in fig1 . at the start , step 34 , the catheter 10 is moved to its start position in the hollow organ . however the catheter 10 , since it was pushed in must not necessarily have followed the shortest path to the start position . so that this is adopted , in step 35 the catheter 10 is automatically advanced a slight distance distally by the catheter control unit 11 , in order to be withdrawn into the start position thereafter . this stiffens the catheter 10 and it assumes approximately the shortest path . then , in step 36 , two two - dimensional fluoroscopy images are recorded at an angle to each other with the aid of the x - ray system 2 . if the heartbeat , that is the phase of the heart cycle or the breathing cycle of the patient 6 , effects the hollow organ to be examined , two options are conceivable . one is that only two images are recorded for the same ecg phase , triggered via the ecg control device 8 . the catheter images are then triggered with the same ecg phase later during automatic withdrawal . it is however also possible to record two fluoroscopy images for each ecg phase of the heart cycle . the instantaneous ecg phase is then stored with the images . since this also occurs later when the catheter images are recorded , the images of the same ecg phases can be assigned to each other . the same obviously applies to the breathing cycle of the patient 6 , provided this is relevant . the three - dimensional model is then created in step 37 . in this case a sleeve catheter is not used as then starting point , but rather a normal catheter 10 a . the lumen of the hollow organ can now be reconstructed from the two - dimensional fluoroscopy images , where necessary for each ecg phase . if previously recorded image data sets are available , from which , if necessary more exactly , a model of the hollow organ can be derived , for example magnetic resonance images or computer tomography images , then , as shown in 38 , this image data can serve as a basis for creating the three - dimensional model . the fluoroscopy images recorded in step 36 are then used for registration of the two coordinate systems . here too ecg or breathing phase should be noted where necessary . in step 39 the three - dimensional start position of the catheter 10 is then determined in the three - dimensional model . if the three - dimensional model has been created from the fluoroscopy images recorded in step 36 , in which the catheter tip is also to be seen , the position of the catheter tip can be determined directly in the three - dimensional model . otherwise there must be reference back to the registration which links the coordinate systems . then the catheter 10 is automatically withdrawn in step 40 by the catheter control unit 11 while recording the two - dimensional catheter images , here sectional images , and while detecting a withdrawal length automatically assigned to the catheter image . in addition the associated ecg phase for each catheter image can be determined via the ecg control unit 8 if necessary and stored assigned to this image . alternatively it is possible for the catheter images to be recorded ecg - triggered . then , in step 41 the most probable withdrawal path of the catheter 10 from the start position is determined on the basis of the three - dimensional model . this is done with the aid of the processing unit 13 and a simulation which takes account both of the geometrical conditions of the lumen which are contained in the three - dimensional model and also physical principles as well as physical characteristics of the real or virtual catheter as well as of the hollow organ . the catheter &# 39 ; s diameter , specific weight , elasticity , rigidity and / or surface properties can be used for example as physical parameters which describe the catheter . these parameters can be both measured characteristics of the real catheter 10 and also assumed characteristics of the virtual catheter . the characteristics of the hollow organ are taken into account by a model for hollow organ deformations which occur . in addition possible discontinuous movements of the catheter 10 are taken into account in the simulation . examples of this are jumping across to another wall of the hollow organ or jumping further along the wall . after the most probable withdrawal path has been determined by the simulation by means of the processing unit 13 , in step 42 the deviation of the position of the catheter 10 from a central path leading through the middle of the hollow organ and the orientation of the catheter 10 can be determined for each catheter image . this is possible using the detected and recorded withdrawal length . the withdrawal length of the real catheter 10 corresponds to a withdrawal length of the virtual catheter along of the most probable withdrawal path . each catheter image is consequently assigned the deviation from the central path and the orientation to the corresponding position of the withdrawal path determined . in step 43 the deviation from the central path is additionally determined from the catheter image . now the difference between the deviation from the most probable withdrawal path determined and the deviation determined from the catheter image can be formed . this difference is compared in step 44 with a threshold value . if the difference is greater than the threshold value , the catheter 10 has evidently not followed the predicted withdrawal path but another path . in this case in step 45 the current position of the catheter 10 is set during image recording as the start position and the probable withdrawal path is determined once again in step 41 with this start position . if the difference is less than the threshold value in step 44 , then , step 46 , either the next catheter image is processed or , if this was the last catheter image , in step 47 the 3d presentation is reconstructed . at this point a general remark is included about the sequence of the method steps . the three - dimensional model , the start position determined within it and the withdrawal path determined from it are only linked to each other in step 42 . steps 37 , 39 and 41 must always be performed in the order shown . when however the withdrawal of the catheter 10 is performed precisely in step 40 , it is not decisive for the success of the inventive method , provided this lies after step 36 , the detection of two fluoroscopy images , and before step 42 , in which the three - dimensional model and the detected catheter images are related to each other . there can however be provision for the steps 42 , 43 and 44 to be performed in parallel with step 40 , that is directly after each recording of a catheter image . if a deviation from the withdrawal path is established , provided there is a difference exceeding the threshold value , is established in step 44 , the withdrawal can be interrupted if necessary and new two - dimensional fluoroscopy images can be recorded , from which the new start position inclusive orientation can be determined exactly . for the reconstruction of the 3d presentation in step 47 , the ecg phases or breath phases can again be taken into account if necessary . thus for each ecg phase a separate 3d presentation is determined if there has been no ecg triggering . the different 3d presentations can then either be fused into a single 3d presentation or appended to each other for forming a complete heart cycle as a film . it is important however that in step 47 for the deviation from the central path and orientation assigned to each image in step 42 to be taken into account in the reconstruction , which means that the errors arising from this will be corrected as much as possible . this means that in the final analysis a more correct 3d presentation of the hollow organ is obtained . finally it remains to be pointed out that , for reconstruction of the 3d presentation , images derived from the catheter images , such as elastography images for example , can be used .	0
the following description is of the best mode presently contemplated for carrying out the invention . this description is not to be taken in a limiting sense , but is made merely for the purpose of describing the general principles of the invention . in the description of the invention herein , reference is frequently made to a “ layer of alumina ” or to an “ alumina insulation layer ” as the preferred material for the coating or layer that comprises the invention . alumina , as is known in the art , comprises a shorthand notation for aluminum oxide , al 2 o 3 . it is to be understood that all such references to an insulating layer or coating made from “ alumina ” also apply to an insulating layer made from other suitable substances , such as magnesium oxide , zirconium oxide ( zirconia ), alloys of alumina and / or zirconia , and the like . in general , such oxides may be referred to as ceramics . an alumina insulation layer or coating for microminiature or other devices is applied by depositing one or successive layers of alumina to electrical connections and / or other electronic circuitry or components . in some cases , the component or object to be coated may comprise an ic chip by itself . each insulating layer applied is preferably made by depositing aluminum oxide (“ alumina ”), or other suitable insulating material , so as to coat the desired surface of the component or device . a common application for the alumina insulating coating of the present invention is to insulate or encapsulate the entire surface of a hybrid integrated circuit 12 formed on a ceramic substrate 14 , once the hybrid integrated circuit 12 has been formed , with an insulative layer 16 , as illustrated in fig1 a . in fig1 a , by way of example , the substrate 14 may have a capacitor 18 and an integrated circuit chip 20 mounted thereon , both of which are also coated with the insulative layer 16 . depending upon the function of the hybrid circuit 12 , an electrode 22 may also be connected thereto via a coated wire 24 . also , to provide a return path from the electrode 22 , a portion of the layer 16 that covers on end of the substrate 14 may be removed , thereby exposing a return electrode 26 . for other applications , the alumina insulating coating is applied to insulate or encapsulate just the integrated circuit ( ic ) chip 20 by itself . any electrical connections that may need to be made to the ic chip , e . g ., via an insulated wire , may be made prior to application of the insulating coating . in such instance , the ic 20 once coated could then be implanted directly into living tissue yet still perform its intended function . the insulative layer 16 is very thin , having a thickness “ t ” on the order of 5 - 25 microns . thus , the layer 16 is not readily visible in fig1 a , but is represented in the enlarged and magnified side - view of fig1 b . alternatively , an insulating coating 16 ′ may be used to insulate selected metal traces 28 and 30 , or components 32 and 34 , mounted on or to a ceramic substrate 14 ′ of a hybrid integrated circuit 12 ′, while other components , such as electrode 36 , or some portions of the surface of the substrate 14 ′, are not coated or encapsulated , as illustrated in fig2 a . in fig2 a , those components or surface areas not to be coated with the layer 16 ′ may be masked using conventional techniques at the time the coating 16 ′ is applied . in general terms , and for applications where a hybrid circuit , an ic chip , or other device is to be coated with alumina in accordance with the encapsulation / coating process of the present invention , the steps followed by the invention are illustrated in fig3 and may be summarized as : ( 1 ) atomically cleaning an insulating substrate or ic chip ( if necessary ) with a plasma cleaning , or equivalent , process ( block 102 of fig3 ). note : if an ic chip is being coated by itself , and if the ic chip has not yet left its clean fabrication environment , this step may not be needed . the insulating substrate , when used , may be made from , or already coated with , successive layers of alumina or other suitable insulating material , such as magnesium oxide or zirconia . ( 2 ) depositing metallized patterns of a suitable conductive material on one or more of the exposed surfaces of the substrate ( block 104 ). the metallized patterns are preferably deposited or etched on the substrate using conventional thin film deposition , painting or metallized etching techniques , as are common in the printed circuit board and integrated circuit fabrication arts . these patterns are used to make desired electrical connections between components of the circuit . ( 3 ) depositing a layer of titanium on the metallized portions of alumina substrate ( block 106 ). typically , such layer of titantium will be about 300 å thick . ( 4 ) depositing additional layers of alumina , using an ion - enhanced evaporative sputtering technique , or ion beam deposition ( ibd ) technique , over the entire surface of the substrate including the metallized traces . using an ibd technique , for example , one application of alumina may lay down a layer of alumina that is only 1 - 2 microns thick . through application of several such layers , an alumina coating may thus be formed of sufficient thickness to provide the desired insulative ( leakage current ) and encapsulation ( hermeticity ) properties . advantageously , the deposited alumina coating ( comprising a plurality of deposited layers ) need only be 5 - 10 microns thick . various techniques may be used to apply the alumina insulation over the device or component that is to be insulated . a preferred technique , for example , is to use an ion beam deposition ( ibd ) technique . ibd techniques are known in the art , as taught , e . g . in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 474 , 827 or 5 , 508 , 368 , incorporated herein by reference . using such ibd techniques , or similar techniques , the desired alumina layer may be deposited on all sides of an object 15 as illustrated in fig4 . as seen in fig4 , the object 15 is placed on a suitable working surface 40 that is rotatable at a controlled speed . the working surface 40 , with the object 15 thereon , is rotated while a beam 42 of ions exposes the rotating surface . assuming the object 15 has six sides , five of the six sides are exposed to the beam 42 as it rotates , thereby facilitating application of the desired layer of alumina onto the five exposed sides of the object . after sufficient exposure , the object is turned over , thereby exposing the previously unexposed side of the object to the beam , and the process is repeated . in this manner , four of the sides of the object 15 may be double exposed , but such double exposure is not harmful . rather , the double exposure simply results in a thicker coating of alumina on the double - exposed sides . other techniques , as are known in the art , may also be used to apply the alumina coating to the object . the steps typically followed in applying a coating of alumina to an object are illustrated in the flow chart of fig5 . as seen in fig5 , these steps include : ( a ) sputtering a layer of titanium of about 300 å thick over any metal conductor or other object that is to be coated with the alumina ( block 110 of fig4 ). ( b ) if selective application of the alumina to the object is to be made ( yes branch of block 112 ), spinning a photosensitive polyamide onto a ceramic hybrid substrate , or other component to be encapsulated with the alumina or other substance ( block 114 ). ( c ) applying a mask that exposes those areas where alumina is not to be applied ( block 116 ). ( d ) shining ultra violet ( uv ) light through the mask to polymerize the polyamide ( block 118 ). where the uv light illuminates the polyamide is where aluminum oxide will not be deposited . thus , the polymerization of the polyamide is , in effect , a negatively acting resist . ( e ) developing the photoresist by washing off the unpolymerized polyamide with xylene ( block 120 ), or an equivalent substance . once the unpolymerized polyamide has been washed off , the ceramic ( or other component ) is ready for aluminum oxide deposition . ( f ) if selective application of the alumina is not to be made ( no branch of block 112 ), i . e ., if alumina is to be applied everywhere , or after washing off the unpolymerized polyamide ( block 120 ), depositing aluminum oxide to a prescribed thickness , e . g ., between 4 and 10 microns , e . g ., 6 microns , over the object using ion enhanced evaporation ( or sputtering ), ibd , or other suitable application techniques ( block 122 ). ( g ) during application of the coating , rotate and / or reposition the object as required ( block 124 ) in order to coat all sides of the object , e . g ., as shown in fig4 , with a coating of sufficient thickness . this step may require several iterations , e . g ., incrementally depositing a thin layer of alumina ( block 126 ), checking the layer for the desired thickness or properties ( block 127 ), and repeating the repositioning ( block 124 ), depositing ( block 126 ), and checking ( block 127 ) steps as required until a desired thickness is achieved , or until the coating exhibits desired insulative and / or hermeticity properties . ( h ) breaking or scribing the aluminum oxide that resides over the polyamide , if present , with a diamond scribe , or laser , controlled by a computerized milling machine ( block 128 ). this permits a pyrana solution , explained below , to set under the oxide for subsequent lift off of the aluminum oxide . ( i ) lifting off the polyamide and unwanted aluminum oxide after soaking the substrate in pyrana solution ( h 2 so 4 × 4 + h 2 o 2 × 2 heated to 60 ° c .) ( block 130 ). soaking should occur for 30 to 60 minutes , depending on the thickness of the polyamide layer . for some applications , the device to be coated may comprise an entire ic chip or a permanent magnet , e . g ., a small ceramic magnet . when an ic chip or a magnet is to be coated with alumina , a similar process to that described above is followed , except that there are no metal traces or pads that need to be deposited or covered . rather , the entire chip or magnet is coated with one or more layers of alumina . leakage tests and voltage breakdown tests , when applicable , may also be performed in conventional manner in order to determine the insulative and / or sealing properties of the coating . typically , the device or component is immersed in a saline solution representative of living body tissue . next , a voltage is applied between a metal trace covered by the alumina and a platinum black electrode , or other reference electrode , positioned proximate the covered device . the voltage is slowly increased while watching / monitoring the current drain . the voltage increase is stopped and measured at the point where breakdown occurs . leakage current is measured by keeping the applied voltage at a constant value and monitoring the current drain . a useful test for determining how thick the alumina coating must be to eliminate micro - holes , or pinholes , is shown in the flow diagram of fig6 . as seen in fig6 , a first step is to apply a layer of pure aluminum to a test object ( block 140 ). this layer of pure aluminum serves as a base layer . then , n layers of a suitable oxide , such as alumina , are applied over the base layer , where n is an integer of from e . g ., 1 to 5 . each of these n oxide layers are applied in a controlled manner , using , e . g ., ibd techniques , so that each deposited layer has a thickness that is more or less consistent , e . g ., 1 - 2 microns . after application of n layers of alumina ( or other ceramic ), the coated device is dipped in an acid ( block 143 ). if any pinholes are present in the coating , then the acid immediately starts to react with the aluminum base layer , leaving a very detectable ring . thus , by performing a simple visual inspection of the device ( block 144 ), one can easily determine whether there is any evidence of pinholes ( block 146 ). if evidence of pinholes is seen ( yes branch of block 146 ), then that is evidence that the n layers of alumina that were deposited did not create a sufficiently thick coating ( block 150 ). thus , the value of n is increased ( block 152 ), and the test is repeated . if no evidence of pinholes is seen ( no branch of block 146 ), then that is evidence that the alumina coating is sufficiently thick . generally , 4 - 6 layers of alumina , creating a total coating thickness of 5 - 10 microns , is sufficient to reduce leakage current to less than about 6 pa . for desired hermeticity , at least about 6 layers of alumina are typically required . it is to be emphasized that while using alumina in an implanted device is not new , depositing extremely thin layers of alumina , e . g ., 5 to 10 microns thick , over components or devices to be implanted , and then relying on such thin layer of alumina to act as an insulative layer or coating , is new , and has produced surprising and unexpected results relative to its insulative properties . a test specimen that included a plurality of 75 mil by 25 mil and 75 mil by 5 mil metallized pads deposited on an alumina substrate was constructed using conventional techniques . the plurality of metallized pads are separated from one another by a distance of about 2 . 0 - 2 . 5 mils . a layer of alumina insulator approximately 5 - 6 microns thick was deposited on and between the metallized pads using an ion - enhanced evaporative sputtering technique . the ion - enhanced evaporative sputtering was performed in an evacuated chamber at a moderate temperature of about 60 - 100 ° c ., and allowed to cure for approximately 0 . 5 - 4 hours . the test specimen was subsequently submersed in a saline solution at 87 ° c . for three months . leakage current between the metallized pads and the saline solution was measured and did not exceed 10 pa across the 6 micron size insulating layer . in addition leakage current between each metallized pads did not exceed 10 pa across the 2 . 0 - 2 . 5 mil spacings .	8
as employed above and throughout the specification , the following terms , unless otherwise indicated , shall be understood to have the following meaning : &# 34 ; lower alkyl &# 34 ; means a saturated or unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbon which may be either straight -- or branched - chained containing from 1 to 4 carbon atoms . &# 34 ; alkyl &# 34 ; means a saturated or unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbon which may be either straight - or branched - chained containing from about one to about six carbon atoms . &# 34 ; alkoxy &# 34 ; means an alkyl oxy group in which &# 34 ; alkyl &# 34 ; is as previously defined . lower alkoxy groups are preferred which include methoxy , ethoxy , n - propoxy , i - propoxy , sec - propoxy , and n - butoxy . &# 34 ; aryl &# 34 ; means an aromatic hydrocarbon radical having 6 to 10 carbon atoms . the preferred aryl groups are phenyl , substituted phenyl and naphthyl . the term &# 34 ; substituted &# 34 ; means &# 34 ; alkyl &# 34 ; substitution . the pharmaceutically acceptable salts of the present invention include those formed from sodium , potassium , calcium , aluminum , lithium , magnesium , zinc , lysine , arginine , procaine , ethylenediamine and piperazine . the invention encompasses optical and stereoisomers of the compounds and mixtures thereof defined by the structural formula . the general procedure for producing the compounds of the present invention is as follows : reaction sequences a and b , corresponding with examples 1 and 2 respectively , illustrate the general methods for synthesizing the compounds of the present invention . ## str3 ## the starting materials were obtained from the aldrich chemical co . or they may also be synthesized in accordance with methods known in the art . to a solution of chloromethyl phenyl sulfoxide ( 3 . 70 g , 21 . 2 mmoles ) in anhydrous tetrahydrofuran ( thf ) at - 78 ° c . and under a n 2 atmosphere was added n - butyl lithium ( 8 . 5 ml of a 2 . 5m solution in hexane , 21 . 2 mmoles ) dropwise . the solution was stirred for 10 minutes and a solution of 2 -( 4 - fluorophenyl )- 1 - oxobicyclo [ 3 . 2 . 1 ] octane ( tetrahedron letters , 52 5327 ( 1967 )) ( 4 . 40 g , 20 . 2 mmoles ) in 20 ml thf was added . the solution was stirred for 60 minutes and diluted with ether and water . the organic layer was washed with water , dilute aqueous hcl , saturated nahco 3 and brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was treated with 100 ml of 20 % koh in methanol for 10 minutes . the volatiles were removed in vacuo and the residue was diluted with ether and water . the organic layer was washed with water and brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was recrystallized with hexes in ethyl acetate and provided 5 . 38 g of product . mp 178 °- 180 ° c . a solution of 3 -( 4 - fluorophenyl ) bicyclo [ 3 . 2 . 1 ] octane - 2 - spiro -( 2 &# 39 ;- oxirane ) ( 5 . 1 g ) and 5 . 1 ml of bf 3 etherate in 50 ml ch 2 cl 2 was stirred at 25 ° c . for 18 hours and diluted with ether and water . the organic layer was washed with brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was purified by hplc using 40 / 1 hexanes / ethyl acetate as the eluent . concentration in vacuo of the product rich fractions provided the product as an orange oil . to a 0 °- 5 ° c . solution of lda ( 26 . 5 mmoles ) in 25 ml anhydrous ether was added ethylidenecyclohexylamine ( org . syn . 50 66 ) ( 3 . 32 g , 26 . 5 mmlles ) in 25 ml anhydrous ether . the solution was stirred for 10 minutes , cooled to - 70 ° c . and 3 -( 4 - fluorophenyl ) bicyclo [ 3 . 2 . 1 ] oct - 2 - ene - 2 - carboxaldehyde ( 5 . 55 g , 24 . 1 mmoles ) in 25 ml ether was added . the solution was stirred for 60 minutes , warmed to 0 °- 5 ° c ., stirred for 90 minutes and diluted with water . the organic layer was washed with water and brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was purified by hplc using 3 % ethyl acetate in hexanes as the eluent . concentration in vacuo of the product rich fractions provided 2 . 53 g of the product as an orange oil . to a 0 °- 5 ° c . suspension of pentane - washed sodium hydride ( 0 . 43 g , 10 . 6 mmoles ) in 10 ml anhydrous thf was added dropwise methyl acetoacetate . the solution was stirred for 30 minutes and n - butyl lithium ( 5 . 8 ml of a 1 . 6m solution in hexanes , 9 . 31 mmoles ) was added dropwise . the solution was stirred for 20 minutes and a solution of 3 -[ 3 -( 4 - fluorophenyl ) bicyclo [ 3 . 2 . 1 ] oct - 2 - en - 2 - yl ] propenal ( 2 . 50 g , 9 . 75 mmoles ) in 15 ml anhydrous thf was added . the resulting solution was stirred for 60 minutes and quenched with ether and aqueous hcl . the organic layer was washed with water and brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided 3 . 3 g of the solid product which was used without further purification . to a solution of methyl ( e )- 7 -[ 3 -( 4 - fluorophenyl ) bicyclo [ 3 . 2 . 1 ] oct - 2 - en - 2 - yl ]- 5 - hydroxy - 3 - oxohept - 6 - enoate ( 2 . 85 g , 7 . 65 mmoles ) in 12 ml anhydrous thf was added triethylborane ( 11 . 5 ml of a im thf solution , 11 . 5 mmoles ). the mixture was stirred for 5 minutes and cooled to - 78 ° c . sodium borohydride ( 0 . 333 g , 8 . 8 mmoles ) was added followed by the dropwise addition of 5 ml methanol . the mixture was stirred for 60 minutes and quenched with the dropwise addition of aqueous h 2 o 2 ( 12 ml of 30 % h 2 o 2 in 27 ml h 2 o ). the mixture was warmed to 25 ° c . during 90 minutes and poured into a mixture of ethyl acetate and aqueous hcl . the organic layer was washed with water and brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was purified by hplc using 60 % hexanes in ethyl acetate . the product rich fractions were concentrated in vacuo and provided 1 . 32 g of the oily product . a solution of methyl ( e )- 7 -[ 3 -( 4 - fluorophenyl ) bicyclo [ 3 . 2 . 1 ] oct - 2 - en - 2 - yl ]- 3 , 5 - dihydroxy - hept - 6 - enoate ( 1 . 30 g , 3 . 47 mmoles ) and aqueous naoh ( 5 . 2 ml of a 1n solution ) in 15 ml methanol was stirred for 30 minutes at 25 ° c ., cooled to 0 °- 5 ° c ., acidified , diluted with water and extracted with ethyl acetate . the organic layers were washed with brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided 1 . 28 g of the solid product which was used without further purification . to a solution of 7 -[ 3 -( 4 - fluorophenyl ) bicyclo [ 3 . 2 . 1 ]- oct - 2 - en - 2 - yl ]- 3 , 5 - dihydroxyhept - 6 - enoio acid ( 1 . 28 g , 3 . 55 mmoles ) in 15 ml anhydrous ether at 0 °- 5 ° c . was added dicyclohexylcarbodiimide ( 0 . 74 g , 3 . 55 mmoles ). the mixture was stirred for 4 hours , filtered and the volatiles were removed in vacuo . purification of the residue using silica gel and 60 % hexanes in ethyl acetate as the eluent provided 0 . 518 g of the solid product . mp 123 °- 127 ° c . a solution of bicyclo [ 2 . 2 . 2 ] oct - 5 - en - 2 - one ( j . oro . chem . 33 , 2211 ( 1968 )) ( 3 . 34 g , 27 . 4 mmoles ), 4 - fluorobenzaldehyde ( 3 . 08 ml , 28 . 7 mmoles ) and koh ( 2 pellets ) in 10 ml of 2 - propanol was heated at 60 ° c . for 1 . 5 hours , cooled to room temperature and diluted with h 2 o and ether . the organic layer was washed with h 2 o , 2 % aqueous hcl , saturated nahco 3 and brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was recrystallized with hexanes . mp 85 °- 86 ° c . a mixture of 3 -( 4 - fluorobenzylidine ) bicyclo [ 2 . 2 . 2 ] oct - 5 - en - 2 - one ( 1 . 68 g , 7 . 37 mmoles ), zinc dust ( 4 . 79 g , 73 . 7 mmoles ) and glacial acetic acid ( 4 . 2 ml , 73 . 7 mmoles ) in 35 ml anhydrous tetrahydrofuran ( thf ) was stirred at ambient temperature for 4 hours and filtered through celite . the filtrate was concentrated in vacuo . the residue was diluted with ethyl acetate , washed with h 2 o , saturated nahco 3 and brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was purified by silica gel chromatography using 10 % ethyl acetate in hexanes as the eluent . concentration in vacuo of the product rich fractions provided the product ( 1 . 33g ) as an oil . to a solution of 3 - methoxy - 2 - propenyltriphenylphosphonium bromide ( 5 . 59 g , 13 . 6 mmoles ) in 50 ml anhydrous thf at - 40 ° c . was added dropwise n - butyl lithium ( 5 . 43 ml of a 2 . 5m solution in hexanes , 13 . 6 mmoles ). the solution was stirred 1 . 5 hours and exo - 3 -( 4 - fluorophenylmethyl ) bicyclo [ 2 . 2 . 2 ] oct - 5 - en - 2 - one ( 2 . 08 g , 9 . 04 mmoles ) in 20 ml anhydrous thf was added dropwise . the mixture was slowly warmed to ambient temperature , stirred overnight , and diluted with ether and aqueous hcl . the organic layer was washed with h 2 o , saturated nahco 3 and brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was purified by hplc using 2 % ethyl acetate in hexanes as the eluent . concentration in vacuo of the product rich fractions provided 1 . 14 g of the oily product as a mixture of ( e )- and ( z )- isomers . a solution of exo - 3 -( 4 - fluorophenylmethyl )- 2 -( 3 - methoxy - 2 - propenylidene ) bicyclo [ 2 . 2 . 2 ] oct - 5 - ene ( 1 . 4 g ) in 25 ml thf and 3 ml of 4n hcl was stirred for 5 days and the volatiles were removed in vacuo . the residue was diluted with ether , washed with h 2 o , saturated nahco 3 and brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was purified by silica gel chromatography using 5 % ethyl acetate in hexanes as the eluent . concentration in vacuo of the product rich fractions provided 0 . 60 g of the oily product . to a slurry of pentane - washed nah ( 94 mg of 60 %, 2 . 34 mmoles ) in 1 . 5 ml anhydrous thf at 0 °- 5 ° c . was added dropwise methyl acetoacetate ( 0 . 21 ml , 1 . 95 mmoles ). the solution was stirred for 30 minutes and n - butyl lithium ( 0 . 82 ml of a 2 . 5m solution in hexanes , 2 . 0 mmoles ) was added dropwise . the solution was stirred for 15 minutes and a solution of ( e )- 3 -[ cis - exo - 3 -( 4 - fluorophenylmethyl ) bicyclo [ 2 . 2 . 2 ] oct - 5 - en - 2 - yl ] propenal ( 0 . 58 g , 2 . 15 mmoles ) in 5 ml anhydrous thf was added . the solution was stirred for 90 minutes and quenched with 4n hcl and ether . the organic layer was washed with h 2 o , saturated nahco 3 and brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was purified by silica gel chromatography using 25 % ethyl acetate in hexanes . concentration in vacuo of the product rich fractions provided 0 . 23 g of the oily product . a solution of methyl ( e )- 7 -[ cis - exo - 3 -( 4 - fluorophenylmethyl ) bicyclo [ 2 . 2 . 2 ] oct - 5 - en - 2 - yl ]- 5 - hydroxy - 3 - oxohept - 6 - enoate ( 0 . 22 g , 0 . 57 mmoles ) and triethylborane ( 0 . 85 ml of 1m thf solution , 0 . 85 mmoles ) was stirred for 10 minutes and cooled to - 78 ° c . and nabh 4 ( 32 mg , 0 . 85 mmoles ) was added , followed by the dropwise addition of methanol ( 0 . 4 ml ) over 5 minutes . the solution was stirred for 30 minutes , quenched with h 2 o 2 ( 1 . 0 ml of 30 % in 2 . 5 ml h 2 o ), warmed to ambient temperature and stirred for 30 minutes . the solution was diluted with ethyl acetate and aqueous hcl . the organic layer was washed with h 2 o and brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was purified by silica gel chromatography using 50 % ethyl acetate in hexanes as the eluent . concentration in vacuo of the product rich fractions provided 0 . 18 g of the oily product . to a solution of methyl ( e )- 7 -[ cis - exo - 3 -( 4 - fluorophenylmethyl ) bicyclo [ 2 . 2 . 2 ] oct - 5 - en - 2 - yl ]- 3 , 5 - dihydroxyhept - 6 - enoate ( 0 . 15 g ) in 3 ml methanol at 0 °- 5 ° c . was added 0 . 2 ml of 2n naoh . the solution was stirred for 6 hours and the volatiles were removed in vacuo . the residue was diluted with water , acidified to ph 2 and extracted with ethyl acetate . the organic extracts were combined , washed with brine and dried ( mgso 4 ). removal of the volatiles in vacuo provided a residue which was diluted with 4 ml chcl 3 . the solution was heated at reflux for 16 hours and the volatiles were removed in vacuo . purification of the residue by silica gel chromatography using 33 % ethyl acetate in hexanes as the eluent provided the product . mp 144 °- 146 ° c . employing the general methods detailed in examples 1 and 2 the following compounds can be made : the compounds of the present invention are useful as hypocholesterolemic or hypolipidemic agents by virtue of their ability to inhibit the biosynthesis of cholesterol through inhibition of the enzyme hmg - coa reductase . having such ability , the compounds are incorporated into pharmaceutically acceptable carriers and administered to a patient in need of such cholesterol biosynthesis inhibition orally or parenterally . such pharmaceutical formulations to contain at least one compound according to the invention . suitable carriers include diluents or fillers , sterile aqueous media and various non - toxic organic solvents . the compositions may be formulated in the form of tablets , capsules , lozenges , trochees , hard candies , powders , aqueous suspensions , or solutions , injectable solutions , elixirs , syrups and the like and may contain one or more agents selected from the group including sweetening agents , flavoring agents , coloring agents and preserving agents , in order to provide a pharmaceutically acceptable preparation . the particular carrier and the ratio of active compound to carrier are determined by the solubility and chemical properties of the compounds , the particular mode of administration and standard pharmaceutical practice . for example , excipients such as lactose , sodium citrate , calcium carbonate and dicalcium phosphate and various disintegrants such as starch , alginic acid and certain complex silicates , together with lubricating agents such as magnesium stearate , sodium lauryl sulphate and talc , can be used in producing tablets . for a capsule form , lactose and high molecular weight polyethylene glycols are among the preferred pharmaceutically acceptable carriers . where aqueous suspensions for oral use are formulated , the carrier can be emulsifying or suspending agents . diluents such as ethanol , propylene glycol , and glycerin and their combinations can be employed as well as other materials . for parenteral administration , solutions or suspensions of these compounds in aqueous alcoholic media or in sesame or peanut oil or aqueous solutions of the soluble pharmaceutically acceptable salves can be employed . the dosage regimen in carrying out the methods of this invention is that which insures maximum therapeutic response until improvement is obtained and thereafter the minimum effective level which gives relief . doses may vary , depending on the age , severity , body weight and other conditions of the patients but are ordinarily in the area of 5 mg / kg to 500 mg / kg of body weight in oral administration ; such may , of course be given in two to four divided doses . with other forms of administration equivalent or adjusted doses will be administered depending on the route of administration . the utility of the claimed compounds is measured by the test method described hereunder . the method is based on the articles : &# 34 ; purification of 3 - hydroxy - 3 - methylglutarylcoenzyme a reductase from rat liver &# 34 ; by kleinsek et al ., proc . natl . acad . sci . usa , vol . no . 4 , pp . 1431 - 1435 , april 1977 biochemistry ; &# 34 ; mevinolin : a highly potent competitive inhibitor of hydroxy methyl glutaryl - coenzyme a reductase and a cholesterol - lowering agent &# 34 ; by alberts et al ., proc . natl . acad . sci . usa , vol 77 , pp . 3951 - 3961 , july 1980 , biochemistry ; &# 34 ; effects of ml - 236b on cholesterol metabolism in mice rats : lack of hypocholesterolemic activity in normal animals &# 34 ; by endo et al ., biochimica et biophysica acta , 575 ( 1979 ) 266 - 276 ; and &# 34 ; evidence of regulation of 3 - hydroxy - 3 - methylglutaryl coenzyme a reductase activity and cholesterol synthesis in nonhepatic tissues of rat &# 34 ; by balasubramaniam et al ., proc . natl . acad . sci . usa , vol . 73 , no . 8 , pp . 2564 - 2568 , aug . 1976 , biochemistry . the method used ( designated hmgr screen ) was as follows . male rats were acclimated to an alternate 12 hour light - dark cycle for a period of 2 - 3 weeks . the animals , weighing 180 - 230 g , were fed ad libitum a rat chow containing 2 % cholestyramine for 5 days prior to sacrifice at the mid - dark period . liver microsomes were prepared and hmgr enzyme was solubilized from the microsomes by freeze - thaw manipulation in high ionic strength buffer . the enzyme preparation was stored at - 80 ° c . in 300 μl portion samples . prior to use , the enzyme was activated at 37 ° c . for 30 minutes in a reaction mixture . the reaction mixture contained in a volume of 240 μl : 0 . 14 m potassium phosphate buffer ( ph 7 . 0 ); 0 . 18 m kcl ; 3 . 5 mm edta ; 10 mm dithiothreitol ; 0 . 1 mg / ml bsa ; 30 , 000 cpm of [ 14 c ] hmg - coa ; 20 μm hmg - coa , and 200 μg of solubilized enzyme with and without inhibitors ( in 10 μl dmso ). after 5 minutes incubation at 37 ° c . the reaction was initiated with 0 . 2 mm nadph . the final assay volume was 300 μl . the reaction then was terminated with 100 μl of in hcl . after an additional incubation for 15 minutes at 37 ° c . to allow for complete lactonization of the product , the mixture was diluted with 3 ml gdw . the diluted mixture was then poured over a 0 . 7 × 1 . 4 cm column containing 100 - 200 mesh bio - rex ion - exchange resin ( chloride form of bio - rad ) which was equilibrated with distilled water . with this resin the unreacted [ 14 c ] hmg - coa was adsorbed and the product [ 14 c ] lactone was eluted ( 80 % recovery ) directly into scintillation vials . after the addition of 10 ml of aquasol ®, radioactivities of the samples were measured in a scintillation counter . the compounds tested were found to inhibit the enzyme of hmg - coa reductase in the range of ic 50 = 0 . 5 - 10 μm and , therefore , can be used for the treatment and prevention of hypercholesterolemia , hyperlipoproteinemia and arteriosclerosis .	8
one of the problems that characterizes the aquaculture is that the animals and plants involved in the farm are under the water , and the most of them can not be observed , unless by using special equipment and instrumentation . in the case of the fish aquaculture , it is very difficult to verify in a visual and permanent way the amount of food that is consumed . the impossibility to verify the consumption in real - time originates two main problems : 1 ) the economic lost because of the food that is not consumed ; and 2 ) the negative environmental impact that produces the wasted food . the portion of food given to the fish is calculated in a theoretic way considering physical - chemistry parameters ( temperature of water , amount of oxygen in the water , etc . ), and biological parameters ( age and size , etc .). in this calculation there are not considered other factors that may affect in a direct way the level of consumption of food by fish . for example , the stress caused by any activity related to the fish farm management may provoke that fish stop consuming food for many days . another factor may be the time when fish get satisfied and stop consuming food . both factors may be determined only by observation in real - time . fish consume the food as long as it is dropped into the respective fish breeding cage , and in this process the fish must eat the pellets as long as they go downward through the water . the pellet that is not consumed , reach the bottom of the breeding cage and the environment and obviously became lost . as a way of example , in the salmon farm related with the industrial scale , the food costs represents about the 60 % of the total production costs . therefore , the optimization in the use of the food may influence significantly the economic result of the company . the invention introduced , comprises a system and a submarine camera located inside the cage under the big mass of fish arranged during the breeding process , providing a mean for observing the process of feeding and behavior of fish in real - time , in order to make the necessary changes in the proper time . on the other hand , the invention provides a good mean for minimizing the negative environmental impact caused by the excess of food provided to the fish . besides , it can be used for controlling predators or other problems in the fish behavior . even more , the invention is able to be used in any kind of fish farm in breeding raft - cages in which there is used mobile or static automatic or manual feeders , for feeding salmon , trout , croaker , sturgeon , carp , hake , sea bass , sea bream , tuna , eel and others . currently , in the prior art , in a pct searching , under ipc classifications a01k 61 / 02 and g01n 023 / 223 there are described some methods for monitoring by means of acoustic sounding , based on the doppler effect in order to detect the particles of food inside a determined perimeter , which uses sensors arranged inside and outside the raft - cage in which the fish are kept . the inconvenient of these systems is their low reliability in the interpretation of the acoustic sensor , because it may not discriminate another element from a food particle , and may present mistakes in their statistics because it quantify all the interferences inside its sweeping area . poro ab . uses a submarine camera for verifying the behavior and feeding of fish , focusing downward and using illumination systems in order to be able to observe the particles of food . the major inconvenient is that fish may be negatively affected by the illumination system . norcan electrical systems inc . uses a submarine camera connected by a serial connection to a central feeding system . an operator is visually monitoring each raft - cage from a base station , making the necessary adjustments to the feeding system . a disadvantage in this case is that all the rafts are connected to the system , therefore the operator must verify one by one each raft - cage which makes difficult to activate properly and in the right time the feeding system . in the prior art there is not disclosed any system able to capture images and quantifying in real - time the non consumed food particles , by means of a images processing system , which uses a submarine camera located under the mass of fish and that stops immediately the feeding of fish or decreases the related feeding rate when the assigned limit is exceeded . in fig1 it is shown a submarine camera ( 10 ) located inside a fish breeding raft - cage ( 11 ) of any demersal species ( i . e ., the ones that swim and eat in the column of water ) the submarine camera ( 10 ) must be located under the group of fish formed in the feeding zone ( 12 ) during the feeding process . depending on the specie of fish , a skilled fish farmer will determine easily the best location for the submarine camera ( 10 ), generally near the center of the cage and between 4 and 12 meters depth . the food is supplied in the top of the cage , and the fish ( 12 ) consume it as long as it gets inside the raft - cage ( 11 ) in which they are kept . the particles of food sink slowly through the column of water , therefore the images of the particles of non consumed food ( 13 ) may be easily captured by the submarine camera ( 10 ). the submarine camera ( 10 ) may be any model able to satisfy the ntsc or pal signal requirements , preferably one of the models equa vision , arranged preferably focusing upward or in the best possible arrangement for a better vision . in order to take the signal from the submarine camera ( 10 ) to the computer ( 16 ), it is used a wire connected to a conventional transmitter ( 14 ), located in the upper part of the raft - cage . this transmitter ( 14 ) transmits a signal to a conventional receiver ( 15 ), where the signal is received and sent to the computer ( 16 ) by means of a wire . a transmitter equipment that meets perfectly well the requirements is the module trup vision . the obtained signal of the submarine camera ( 10 ), is given to the system , by means of a image processing software , preferably the halcon of mvtec gmbh , which controls the image acquisition card ( frame grabber ). a proper card according to the requirements of the present invention is one of the falcon family of ids imaging gmbh . the food particles have a shape and texture relatively clear . by mathematical algorithms commonly used for determining shape and texture , the software discriminates the images of particles having certain characteristics respect to a predefined pattern . the imaging processing software takes an image and makes a grey scale spectrum analysis . by means of an algorithm of shape and texture there are determined all those shapes representing a food particle . methods like this are well known for any skilled person in that technical field . then , the captured image is analyzed is analyzed by the software by algorithms that determine , in real - time , the amount of particles of food that are passing through the feeding zone or that were not consumed by fish . the system may display information in a graphic way , in a screen and may be integrated by an electronic interface with duplex communication , with the automatic feeding control software . it may export the information by internet and / or magnetic means , as well as it makes possible the data acquisition . a skilled person in this area would know how to make a recognizing algorithm like the one mentioned above and the related equations in order to develop the software that provides the information in real - time of the number of particles over the predetermined limit values . for the same reason , the invention must not be limited by the specific algorithms used . on the contrary , the scope of the invention is to be limited only by the following claims .	8
for purposes of this disclosure , an information handling system may include any instrumentality or aggregate of instrumentalities operable to compute , classify , process , transmit , receive , retrieve , originate , switch , store , display , manifest , detect , record , reproduce , handle , or utilize any form of information , intelligence , or data for business , scientific , control , or other purposes . for example , an information handling system may be a personal computer , a network storage device , or any other suitable device and may vary in size , shape , performance , functionality , and price . the information handling system may include random access memory ( ram ), one or more processing resources such as a central processing unit ( cpu ) or hardware or software control logic , rom , and / or other types of nonvolatile memory . additional components of the information handling system may include one or more disk drives , one or more network ports for communication with external devices as well as various input and output ( i / o ) devices , such as a keyboard , a mouse , and a video display . the information handling system may also include one or more buses operable to transmit communications between the various hardware components . shown in fig1 is a block diagram of a typical information handling system . a processor or cpu 10 of the typical information handling system 5 is communicatively coupled to a memory controller hub or northbridge 30 . memory controller hub 30 is coupled to memory 20 and a graphics processing unit 40 . memory controller hub 30 is also coupled to an i / o controller hub or southbridge 60 . i / o hub 60 is coupled to storage elements of the computer system , including a storage element 50 such as flash rom for the bios of the computer system and the hard drive 70 of the computer system . i / o hub 60 may also be coupled to a super i / o chip 80 , which is itself coupled to many of the i / o ports of the computer system , including keyboard 90 , mouse 100 , and parallel ports . during startup of the information handling system 10 , the components of the system are initialized during bios setup . the initialization process includes mapping the system memory that will be available to the operating system ( os ) once the initialization is complete . the system memory map is created by bios and communicated to the os through the memory mapping call , such as int15 - e820 . during bios initialization , memory defect information stored in local memory defect maps is translated into a system memory defect map . the operating system uses iterative calls to the bios memory mapping functions to generate the complete usable memory map . the complete map details usable , non - usable , and acpi reclaimable address ranges . fig2 a is a diagram of the memory space that is reviewed by a memory mapping call , such as an e820 call , within the information handling system . the information handling system 10 may be comprised of numerous distinct components capable of being addressed as memory , including dual inline memory modules ( dimms ) 120 and pci devices 130 , such as discrete graphics cards . devices that include addressable memory are detected during the bios initialization period , and the memory within these devices is scanned and identified as system - accessible memory during the memory scanning operation . the memory scanning operation results in the iterative interrogation of possible memory locations , beginning with memory having the lowest possible address 110 within the system . the memory scanning operation reviews all addressable memory locations in succession , including memory blocks 124 , 125 and 126 , even though memory block 125 contains a memory defect . as system - accessible memory is located , including dimms 120 , memory regions are identified based on the type of memory in that region . these type - based memory region designations may be stored in numerous locations , including cmos or ram . consistent with this disclosure , the bios also generates a system memory defect map during post based on known memory defects . information regarding previously detected memory defects may be stored in a number of locations , including the serial presence detect ( spd ) eeprom of the dimm module that includes the associated defective memory cell . during bios initialization , the stored local memory defect map is read to determine the location of memory defect blocks in the corresponding dimm . this information is then translated into a system memory defect map which stores information for identifying defective memory blocks at the system level . in the system memory defect map , for instance , the memory defect blocks may be represented by a starting address in the system memory address space , the length of the memory block , and a flag indicating whether the memory block contains defective memory or not . by contrast , the local memory defect map for each memory device may simply be a series of flags representing the presence or absence of defective memory in sequentially identified blocks of the corresponding memory device . more sophisticated local memory defect maps are possible , but regardless of complexity , the information in the local memory defect map should be translated into the system memory address space used by the os . this function is best performed by the bios , though the os could do the same . the os ultimately identifies the usable memory available to it by calling a memory mapping function such as an int15 - e820 call . consistent with this disclosure , the memory mapping function reads the memory types of the memory regions identified by the memory scanning operation , and also reads the system memory defect map . the memory mapping function may check for overlaps to determine whether the memory defect blocks indicated by the system memory defect map coincide with the boundaries of the memory type regions identified by the memory scanning operation . the memory mapping function then returns information to the os indicating the next region of usable memory . because the system memory defect map is consulted during the e820 call , defective memory blocks will not be identified as usable memory . as a result , the operating system has no knowledge of or access to the defective memory , but instead sees only the usable and non - defective memory . defective memory is thus effectively quarantined without the use of software and without any decrease in hardware performance . fig2 b is a diagram of a usable memory map in which the unusable or defective locations in the memory of the computer system have been logically mapped out of the computer system . for example , memory blocks 124 and 126 are included in the usable memory map , but memory block 125 , which contains a defective memory element , is not . one method of mapping out defective memory blocks involves creating the entire system memory defect map during bios power - on self - test ( post ) and storing each memory map entry until the os requests it . because each standard e820 entry is 20 bytes , however , mapping any significant number of defects with this method requires a large quantity of storage . for an 8 dimm system supporting 8 defects per dimm , for example , this method would create 64 reserved entries and 64 usable entries , as well as standard entries for base memory , hecbase , reclaim area and reserved area below 4 gb . this totals 132 entries , or 2640 bytes from the bios runtime area . this quantity of storage is sufficiently large to require placement in a reserved memory area outside f000 , slowing down access to the map information and tying up limited memory resources . another method of mapping the memory could entail scanning the local memory defect map , for example from a dimm &# 39 ; s spd , during e820 entry creation , interpreting the local memory defect map and returning holes in real time as the os calls the memory mapping function . this method requires significant time to process the data , however , causing longer boot - up times . in a third method for building the system memory defect map with defect information , the map would be built during post for all of the reserved areas described in the dimm defect data . using efficient addressing techniques , the size of each entry could be reduced to as little as 8 bytes . in the 8 dimm system described previously , the entire map would be as small as 512 bytes , a reduction in size by a factor of 5 . this method requires a more intelligent memory mapping function than the current version of the e820 call , and could implement , for instance , an algorithm to retain pointer offset in the memory defect map ( located , for instance , in the dimm spd ) created during post and scanning forward and backward in the structure to determine next entry types , overlaps , etc . in one example of a more efficient memory mapping algorithm , a continuation value would temporarily store information about the progress of the iterative calls to the memory mapping function . the continuation value could be stored , for example , in the bx register of a typical information handling system . fig3 depicts one possible sequence of events implementing an efficient memory mapping algorithm . the system is initially powered on 305 and begins the post process 310 . as part of the post , the memory space is scanned 315 to determine which locations are reserved for other devices , which are reclaimable , and which are usable . next , the local memory defect map is read 317 , followed by the creation of the system memory defect map 318 . after the post process concludes 319 , the os initiates the first memory mapping call 320 . during the memory mapping call , the bios first examines the continuation value 325 to determine where the previous call , if any , left off . if no previous calls have been made , the continuation value will still be in its initialized state , pointing to the zero address of the memory defect map . the bios reads the memory defect map entry at the offset indicated by the continuation value 330 and compares that memory location against the reserved and reclaimable memory addresses 335 determined during its previous memory scan 315 and stored in cmos or memory . after reconciling any overlaps , the bios generates the memory map entry requested by the memory mapping function call 340 . before passing the memory map entry to the os 350 , however , the bios updates the continuation value to reflect its progress through the memory defect map 345 . once the memory map entry is sent to the os 350 , the os determines whether or not the continuation value indicates the end of the usable memory space 355 . if so , the memory mapping function is complete at the iterative process terminates 360 . if not , the memory mapping call is repeated , beginning with the bios examining to the continuation value to determine where it left off 325 . those skilled in the art will recognize that the continuation value could be structured in numerous ways to implement the foregoing memory mapping algorithm . in one implementation , a single bit could be used to determine whether the next memory map entry falls within a defective memory block . assuming a memory defect map size of 128 entries or less , seven bits would be sufficient to store an offset to either the current or previous location read from the memory defect map during the memory mapping iterations . another bit could be used to determine whether or not the current memory location is above the 4 gb threshold or not , and two more bits could serve as a counter to indicate how many entries have been created since crossing the 4 gb threshold . to further reduce the large size of individual memory map entries , the excess addressability of the fields of each memory map entry can be trimmed . in traditional e820 maps , for instance , each memory map entry includes a base address , the size of the memory block being sent to the memory map , and the type of memory . when excluding defective memory elements from the memory map , the length of the memory map entry field corresponding to the size of the memory block at issue can be reduced to the megabyte range , since dimms with capacity greater than 1 gb are still fairly rare . likewise , since only three general types of memory are returned to the os , the length of the memory map entry field denoting memory type could be reduced to as little as two bits . fig4 depicts one possible code sequence to implement the third method above , where the system memory defect map is built during post for the entries found in the local memory defect map . first , an entry handler 400 uses a continuation value to determine special handling routines for calling specific routines as well as basic fault checks . next , the first int15 e820 call 410 is made . during the first int15 call 410 , offsets are initialized into tables and returned entries and the standard base memory area is returned . the second int15 call 430 comprises five steps . first , the information handling system checks for valid memory defect entries and overlaps for a start address . next , the structure data is checked for invalid ranges and sizes . third , the information handling system checks for the next entry type and overlaps with reserved areas . fourth , flags and offsets are set for the next entry type and routine calls are made . finally , the needed entry type is return with its associated address and range . subsequent int15 calls differ for memory ranges above 4 gigabytes and below 4 gigabytes . if the memory range is blow 4 gigabytes , the int15 call 460 first checks for offsets and flags to determine the entry log type required . next , the structure data is checked for invalid ranges and sizes . third , the information handling system checks for overlaps and required ranges . fourth , the information handling system scans through structures to determine the next entry , setting flags and offsets . fifth , the needed entry type is returned with its associated address and range . finally , the system checks if the current entry is the last entry below 4 gb . for int15 calls above 4 gb 480 , the information handling system first checks for valid structure entries and overlaps . next , the information handling system checks the structure data for invalid ranges and sizes . third , flags and offsets are set for the next entry . finally the needed entry type is returned with the calculated address and range . although this disclosure has been described with respect to the creation of a usable memory map , such as an e820 map , in an information handling system , it should be recognized that the memory mapping system and method described herein may be implemented with any physical storage device with potential defects . although the present disclosure has been described in detail , it should be understood that various changes , substitutions , and alterations can be made hereto without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims .	6
a description of example embodiments of the invention follows . fig1 shows a prior art hydraulically actuated printing press adjustment 100 . a gear 104 is mounted to a frame member 102 of a printing press and the axis of rotation 103 of the gear 104 is connected to an adjustment mechanism ( not shown ) of the printing press . for example , gear 104 may be connected to a mechanism that adjusts one of lateral or circumferential position of a printing press cylinder ( not shown ). the gear has teeth 118 ( partially shown ), which mesh with corresponding gears 116 on a rack 106 . an end of the rack 106 is attached to a hydraulic actuator shaft 108 a . the hydraulic actuator shaft 108 a passes through a housing 110 and an opposite end of the hydraulic actuator shaft 108 b extends from the opposite end of the housing 110 . the housing includes a cylinder wall 120 and two end caps 112 a , 112 b . the end caps 112 a , 112 b are pressed against the ends of cylinder wall 120 by threaded rods 114 a , 114 b . note that fig1 only shows two threaded rods 114 a , 114 b . typically , the end caps 112 a , 112 b are pressed against the ends of cylinder wall 120 by four threaded , but only two of the four threaded 114 a , 114 b are visible in fig1 . hydraulic lines 122 a and 122 b feed hydraulic fluid under pressure into respective ends of the hydraulic cylinder 120 via the end caps 112 a , 112 b to push the hydraulic actuator shaft 108 a , 108 b in a direction towards or away from the gear 104 . for example , adding hydraulic fluid at hydraulic line 122 b into end cap 112 b pushes the hydraulic actuator shaft 108 a , 108 b towards the gear 104 . conversely , adding hydraulic fluid at hydraulic line 122 a into end cap 112 a pushes the hydraulic actuator shaft 108 a , 108 b away from the gear 104 . thus , by controlling the flow of hydraulic fluid , an operator can cause the hydraulic actuator shaft 108 a , 108 b to turn the gear 104 via the rack 106 . as discussed above , there are several disadvantages of a hydraulic system . first , the hydraulic system is relatively inaccurate . second , due to constraints on the hydraulic pressure supply , only one or a small number of hydraulic actuators can be operated at one time . fig2 a - 2c show an example embodiment of a retrofit kit 200 according to the present invention that replaces hydraulic fluid with an electric motor 232 to actuate the hydraulic actuator shaft 208 a , 208 b . the hydraulic cylinder 220 , end caps , and hydraulic actuator shaft 208 a , 208 b are left in place mounted to a frame member of the printing press ( not shown ). hydraulic lines ( not shown in fig2 a - 2c , but see 122 a - b in fig1 ) are disconnected from the end caps 212 a , 212 b and hydraulic fluid ( not shown ) inside the hydraulic cylinder 220 is drained . with the hydraulic cylinder 220 drained of hydraulic fluid ( not shown ), the hydraulic actuator shaft 208 a , 208 b can move freely . nuts 215 a - d are temporarily removed from threaded rods 214 a - c ( a fourth threaded rod is not visible in fig2 a - 2c ), and stationary bracket 230 is mounted next to end cap 212 b . the nuts 215 a - d are reassembled onto threaded rods 214 a - c ( and the fourth rod , which is not visible in fig2 a - 2c ) to also hold bracket against end cap 212 b . threaded rods 214 a - c ( and the fourth threaded rod not visible in fig2 a - 2c ) may be replaced with longer threaded rods to accommodate the thickness of the stationary bracket 230 . hydraulic actuator shaft 208 b passes through a hole 231 in the stationary bracket 230 . the stationary bracket 230 extends past a side of end cap 212 b and electric motor 232 mounts to the stationary bracket 230 at the extension . the motor 232 may be mounted to stationary bracket 230 by bolts 219 a - d , rivets ( not shown ), or any other commonly - used fastening mechanism . optionally , a space plate 221 may be included between the motor 232 and the stationary bracket 230 . typically , the electric motor 232 is a two - phase stepper motor having at least 200 steps per revolution ( 1 . 8 degree increments ). a two - phase electric stepper motor having 400 steps per revolution may also be used to achieve even higher degrees of accuracy . if a stepper motor having 400 steps per revolution is used , software in a controller 250 can provide for larger step increments , such as 200 steps per revolution when larger adjustments to the printing press are required . an output shaft 234 of the motor 232 extends through a hole 233 in the stationary bracket . in the embodiment shown in fig2 a - 2c , the output shaft 234 is threaded . the threaded output shaft 234 may be a separate piece connected to the output shaft of the electric motor 232 . when the end cap 212 b and electric motor 232 are both attached to the bracket 230 , the threaded output shaft 234 and hydraulic actuator shaft 208 b are parallel to each other . a movable bracket 236 is attached to the hydraulic actuator shaft 208 b and electric motor output shaft 234 . the movable bracket 236 is attached to the end of hydraulic actuator shaft 208 b with a bolt 238 that passes through hole 237 in the bracket 236 and threads into a threaded hole ( not shown ) in the end of the hydraulic actuator shaft 208 b . the hole ( not shown ) in the hydraulic actuator shaft 208 b may need to drilled and tapped . the threaded output shaft 234 is threaded through a threaded hole 239 in the movable bracket 236 . with the movable bracket 236 attached to the end of the hydraulic actuator shaft 208 b and threaded onto the threaded output shaft 234 of the electric motor 232 , rotation of the threaded output shaft 234 causes the movable bracket 236 to move towards or away from the electric motor 232 and hydraulic cylinder 220 . the movement of the movable bracket 236 causes the hydraulic actuator shaft 208 a , 208 b to also move with respect to the hydraulic cylinder 220 . the rack 206 attached to the end of hydraulic actuator shaft 208 a moves beneath the printing press adjustment gear 204 . fig2 a - 2c also show a guide shaft 240 attached to the stationary bracket 230 and passing through a hole 235 in the movable bracket 236 . the movable bracket 236 slides over the guide shaft 240 , the guide shaft 240 keeping the movable bracket 236 perpendicular to the axes of the hydraulic actuator shaft 208 b and the electric motor 232 output shaft 234 , thereby preventing the movable bracket 236 from binding on the threaded shaft . a bushing 242 may be fitting inside the hole 235 in the movable bracket 236 such that the guide shaft 240 is in sliding contact with the bushing 242 rather than the hole 235 in the movable bracket 236 . the bushing 242 may improve the effectiveness of the guide shaft 240 to prevent binding between the movable bracket 236 and the threaded output shaft 234 . the bushing 242 may be installed and fixed in place with nut 243 . fig2 a also shows a controller 250 attached to the electric motor 232 via wires or cables 252 . the controller 250 may be a programmable logic controller ( plc ) and is configured to send electrical signals to the electric motor 232 , causing the motor 232 to turn the threaded output shaft 234 in either a clockwise or counterclockwise direction . the controller for the removed hydraulic system may be repurposed to control the electric motor 232 . alternatively , a new controller 250 may be installed with the above - described assemblies . the controller may be configured to accept commands from a human operator , e . g ., the human operator may push a first button that causes the motor to turn clockwise or push a second button that causes the motor to turn counterclockwise . the controller may also be automated and computer controlled , responding to sensor readings to determine when an adjustment needs to be made and automatically making the required adjustment . the sensor is typically a camera pointed at a color register on each print page that indicates alignment of the print rollers for the different colors with respect to each other . when the camera detects a misalignment of a print roller , a computer coupled to the camera and receiving the misalignment information instructs the controller 250 to turn the motor 232 to adjust the print roller . the controller also may control other types of actuators , e . g ., a motor coupled to a hand adjustment wheel as described in u . s . pat . nos . 7 , 208 , 904 and 7 , 408 , 316 , both titled “ multiple motor position control ,” u . s . pat . no . 7 , 321 , 212 , titled “ restricted motion motor control with visual indication ,” u . s . application ser . no . 11 / 344 , 867 , titled “ quick disconnect motor mount ,” and u . s . application ser . no . 11 / 344 , 866 , titled “ flexible cantilever motor mount ,” all of which are incorporated herein by reference . a typical printing press has a total of eight printing rollers , one roller for each of the four colors printed on each side of a piece of paper . each roller has two adjustments : circumferential adjustment , i . e ., clocking the print roller with respect to the other print rollers , and lateral adjustment , i . e ., moving the print roller with respect to the other print rollers . thus , there are a total of sixteen gears , such as gear 104 on a printing press , and a total of sixteen retrofit kits , such as retrofit kit 200 in fig2 , may be used to upgrade a printing press . the electric motor 232 of each retrofit kit 200 may be controlled by a dedicated controller 250 or all sixteen motors 232 of the sixteen retrofit kits 200 may be controlled by a single controller 250 . fig3 - 5 show how a dedicated programmable logic controller ( plc ) may be incorporated into a third party system already operating on a printing press . as described in step 1 a . of fig3 , the third party plc maintains control of color registration adjustments unless it is disabled ( by failure or by being taken off line on purpose ). if the third party system is disabled , the dedicated plc automatically takes control of the color registration adjustments ( as described in steps 1 b . to 1 h .). embodiments of such a dual plc systems include a safeguard to ensure that both the dedicated plc and third party plc are not simultaneously enabled . fig4 shows a schematic diagram of a third party plc 402 and a dedicated plc ( labeled “ imc plc ”) 404 simultaneously connected to a motor driver 406 . if the third party plc 402 is in control , then the dedicated plc 404 does not control the stepper motors 408 . however , the dedicated plc 404 does monitor the positions of stepper motors 412 and any system alarms 410 . fig5 shows a schematic diagram how a dedicated plc 500 may be connected to a motor driver 502 . signals representing direction of motor driving ( pins 17 and 18 ), signals representing number of motor driving pulses ( pins 19 and 20 ), and signals representing alarms ( pins 25 and 26 ) are always provided to the dedicated plc 500 . also , the dedicated plc 500 can clear alarms via pins 21 and 22 if the 3 rd party plc 9not shown in fig5 ) is not capable of controlling electric motors . fig5 also shows a relay switch 504 that connects either the dedicated plc 500 or the third party plc ( not shown ) to the motor driver 502 ( pins 9 and 10 for motor direction and pins 11 and 12 for motor activation ). normally , the relay switch 502 closes an electrical circuit with the third party plc ( not shown ) such that the dedicated plc 500 cannot send control signals to the motor driver 502 . in the event the third party plc ( not shown ) is disabled , the relay switch 504 closes the circuit to the dedicated plc 500 so the dedicated plc 500 may send control signals to the motor driver 502 . while this invention has been particularly shown and described with references to example 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 scope of the invention encompassed by the appended claims .	8
referring to fig1 the conventional electronic timepiece depicted includes a pulse generator 11 for producing a high frequency time standard signal . the pulse generator may take the form of a quartz crystal oscillator or the like . the time standard signal output of pulse generator 11 is applied to a divider circuit 12 which consists of a divider chain which divides the signal into either a one minute or a one second signal , depending on the digits of time to be displayed . thus , if the seconds are to be displayed , as in the embodiment depicted , then the divider circuit 12 would produce a one - second signal having a period of one second . the one - second signal from the divider circuit 12 is applied to a series chain of divider circuits 13 through 18 which produce the timing signals . thus , divider circuit 13 is a one - tenth divider circuit for producing a ten - second signal ; divider circuit 14 is a one - sixth divider for producing a one - minute signal ; divider circuit 15 is a one - tenth divider circuit for producing a ten - minute signal ; divider circuit 16 is a one - sixth divider circuit for producing a one - hour signal ; divider circuit 17 is a one - tenth divider for producing a ten - hour signal and divider circuit 18 is a binary or a one - third divider for producing a resetting signal at a count of 12 or 24 hours as desired . one of external correcting switches 30 , 31 , 32 and 33 is connected to each of divider circuits 15 , 16 , 17 and 18 for the separate correction thereof as described below . divider circuits 13 through 18 each also produces instantaneous timing signals counted therein for application to decoders 35 through 40 which correspond respectively to the divider circuits 13 through 18 . decoder circuits 35 through 40 translate the timing signals from the divider circuits into a format suitable for driving the respective digits 41 through 46 of the digital display means . in the embodiments of the invention depicted in the drawings , each of said digits consists of a seven bar display , the corresponding decoder circuit being adapted to produce the appropriate drive signals required to energize the combination of bars of each digit required to digitally display the value of the respective instantaneous timing signals from divider circuits 13 through 18 . thus , if divider circuit 13 has counted one one - second signal , this information is transmitted to decoder 35 which excites only the two right - most vertical bars of digit 41 , as shown in fig1 . similarly , digit 42 is excited by the count of the ten - second signal from divider circuit 14 ; digit 43 is excited by the count of the one - minute signal from divider circuit 15 ; digit 44 is excited by the count of the ten - minute signal from divider circuit 16 ; digit 46 is excited by the count of the one - hour signal from divider circuit 17 ; and digit 46 is controlled by the count of the ten - hour signal from the divider circuit 18 ; digits 41 through 46 being depicted in inverse order in fig1 . the digital display devices incorporated in the electronic timepiece according to the invention may be formed from liquid crystal devices , light emitting diodes or other low powered digital displays . as is appreciated by the skilled artisan , the divider circuits 13 through 18 are counting circuits . thus , as hereinabove mentioned , the divider circuit 12 has a one - second output signal which is applied to divider circuit 13 which is a one - tenth divider circuit . thus , divider circuit 13 counts to 10 and upon the tenth one - second signal sends a ten - second signal , known as a carry signal to divider circuit 14 . the divider circuit which provides the carry signal is referred to as the lower column stage and is the divider circuit which receives the higher frequency signal and produces a lower frequency signal , i . e ., the carry signal , which is applied to the upper column stage to thereby effect actuation of the upper column stage . referring now to fig2 and 3 , the prior art method of correcting the timing rate between adjacent divider states is therein illustrated . a carry signal s c is shown being transmitted from a lower column stage 21 to an upper column stage 22 , for example , corresponding to divider circuits 16 and 17 respectively . a signal s m represents a correction signal selectively applied to the upper column stage , as by the manual manipulation of an external switch such as switches 30 , 31 , 32 and 33 . each pulse of correction signal s m is intended to increase the count of upper column stage 22 by one . since the upper column stage 22 is only actuated when it receives a positive pulse , the application of a correction signal s m in the form of a positive pulse to the upper column stage 22 during the period of the positive pulse of the carry signal , as shown in fig3 will not result in the desired increase in the count of said upper column stage . thus , even though a correction signal is applied , the correction of the count of the upper column stage , and therefore the correction of the corresponding digit of the display device is not achieved . similarly , if the correction signal is added to the upper column counter 22 at a time earlier than the positive pulse s c representing the carrier pulse applied to the upper column stage , the application of the carry signal s c will be ineffective and again time correction will not be performed . referring now to fig4 there is illustrated therein a combining circuit 24 , which circuit receives a carry signal s c from a lower column stage and a correction signal s m from an external switch , and combines the signals and supplies a corrected signal s w , as shown in fig5 to the upper column stage . the combining circuit 24 is formed of an electronic logic circuit capable of producing a signal for application to the upper column stage having one pulse for each pulse of carry signal s c and additionally one pulse for each pulse of correction signal s m , as illustrated , by way of example in fig5 . one embodiment of combining circuit 24 is the exclusive or gate illustrated in fig6 . if the input to the combining circuit 24 are pulses such as carry signal s c , and the correction signal s m is a rising signal applied at a certain time such as s m , exclusive or gate 26 will only produce a positive pulse in the combined signal s w at a time when either carry signal s c is positive or when correction signal s m is positive , but not when both s c and s m are coincidentally positive or negative . thus , the signal applied to the upper column stage includes one pulse for each pulse of the carry signal and one pulse for each positive excursion of the correction signal so that the count of the upper column stage is corrected by being increased by one for each operation of the external switch ( not shown ) which produces the correction signal . in this manner , the count of some or all of divider circuits 13 - 18 can be individually and surely corrected . a combining circuit 24 would be positioned in the series chain in advance of each divider circuit to be corrected and connected to an external switch means for application of the correction signal thereto . combining circuits formed of logic elements such as exclusive or gate 26 are of a size that they can be readily assembled as part of the same integrated circuit plate as the dividers associated therewith . one difficulty with the arrangement illustrated by the waveform diagram of fig5 is the inversion of the portion of the combined signal s w after the addition of the positive correction signal s m , which inversion is not corrected until the correction signal returns to a low state . this inversion causes a half - period shift in a portion of the combined signal , which is inconvenient . in order to overcome this difficulty , circuit means could be provided to detect either the rise or fall of the correction signal and convert said correction signal into a single pulse of short duration ( t o ) as shown in fig7 . when the modified correction signal s md is applied to a combining circuit 24 together with a carry signal , a modified combined signal s wd depicted in fig7 is produced . the additional correction pulse is added to the input to the upper column stage without the undesirable half - period shift of the embodiment of fig5 . in a similar manner , carry signal s c can be modified into a series of short duration pulses . either a modified carry signal ( s cd ) or a modified correction signal or both can be applied to combining circuit 24 , as is clearly depicted in fig9 . the duration ( t o ) of the pulse of said modified carry and correction signals is preferably of a value which cannot be detected by the eye of a user of the watch , for example , about 1 / 14 second . fig8 depicts one embodiment of the circuit for modifying the correction or carry signals as described above including a master - slave delay flip - flop 28 . the pulse signal s to applied to flip - slop 28 to reset the flip - flop is preferably obtained from the output of a higher frequency divider circuit of said divider chain , thereby avoiding the necessity of providing an oscillator . in the circuit of fig8 either carry signal s c or correction signal s m is applied to both delay flip - flop 28 and and gate 29 , the second input to said and gate being the output of said flip - flop . the output of and gate 29 is then s cd or s md respectively . the circuit of fig8 can be readily incorporated in a small space on an integrated circuit plate containing the divider circuits . it will thus be seen that the objects set forth above , and those made apparent from the preceeding description , are efficiently attained and , since certain changes may be made in the above constructions without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention , it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense . it is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described , and all statements of the scope of the invention which , as a matter of language , might be said to fall therebetween .	6
referring to fig1 a transponder 60 is arranged to receive the usual 1 , 030 mhz interrogations from secondary surveillance radars , and to transmit 1 , 090 mhz replies in response thereto . many transponders are provided with terminals where the p2 of sls pulse of the interrogation and the first frame pulse f1 of the reply are available ; others may be readily modified for external access to these pulses . a specially coded north reference signal , for example a po pulse preceding the standard p1 interrogation pulse while the ssr main beam points north , is made available by slight modification of the transponder decoder , or by addition of a simple special decoder . all transponders include reply encoders which may be set either manually or by electrical inputs to add any of 4096 coded messages to the reply signal . some of the available code groups are used to transmit identification , barometric altitude , and various emergency or situation messages ; many are not used presently . the transponder 60 is provided with an input line 61 connected to encode a special range command message on the replies when it is energized , for example , in response to the detection of the proximity of another aircraft &# 39 ; s transponder . another input line 62 is connected to a point in the transponder where the reply trigger pulse usually appears . when a pulse is applied to line 62 , the transponder is triggered to send a reply in the same manner as if it were interrogated by an ssr , although such interrogation is not received . a 1 , 090 mhz receiver and decoder 63 is adapted to receive and decode transponder replies of other aircraft in the general vicinity . the decoder portion of this device provides an output pulse on line 64 in response to the reception of both reply frame pulses f1 and f2 from another aircraft &# 39 ; s transponder , and an output pulse on line 65 in response to the reception of a range command message . a widened common azimuth sector proximity detector system 66 , which may be the same as that described in the abovementioned copending u . s . pat . application ser . no . 130 , 952 , now u . s . pat . no . 3 , 735 , 408 , receives the reply frame decode pulse on line 64 and the own transponder f1 pulse and p2 decode pulse on lines 67 and 68 . output from the proximity detector 66 energizes the transponder input line 61 to encode proximity and energizes a proximity indicator 53 . an alternative f1 input to the proximity detector 66 is provided under certain conditions by a phase locked prf pulse generator 69 , which can be synchronized to the pulse repetition frequency of a selected radar either by the repetitive burst of f1 pulses resulting from interrogations received from that radar , or by the continuous train of decoded p2 pulses received from that radar within the sls area . the output of the prf generator 69 is a &# 34 ; synthetic f1 &# 34 ; pulse , coincident with the actual f1 pulse when it is present , and substituting for the actual f1 pulse as a time reference when it is absent . the actual and synthetic f1 pulses are applied to a range computer 70 , which also receives as inputs the reply frame decode pulse on line 64 and the proximity decode pulse on line 65 . the range computer 70 , as will be described in detail with reference to fig3 later , utilizes measurement of the time interval between the f1 and proximity decode pulses , when said pulses are present , to determine the direct slant range y between the aircraft of a proximity pair . the range computer also utilizes measurement of the interval between synthetic f1 pulses and next following reply frame decode pulses to determine the difference x between the ranges of the two craft from a selected ssr . referring to fig2 the selected ssr is at point 71 , the &# 34 ; own &# 34 ;.[.).]. aircraft is at point 72 , and the other aircraft is at point 73 . the slant range y is proportional to the time required for a radio signal to travel from one aircraft to the other and back again , less system delays . the differential radar range x is proportional to the time interval between reception of an interrogation from the ssr by the own craft at 72 , and reception of the same interrogation by the other craft at 73 . returning to fig1 the computed slant range y is displayed by a meter or other quantitative indicator 74 . representations of x and y are applied to an other &# 39 ; s bearing computer 75 , which utilizes these and the output of an own ssr bearing computer 76 to determine the bearing of the other craft from one &# 39 ; s own craft . the own ssr bearing computer 76 , as will be described further below , utilizes measurements of the time intervals between successive decoded north reference signals , and between north reference signals and next subsequent f1 bursts , to determine own magnetic bearing φ from the selected ssr . the other &# 39 ; s bearing computer 75 , also to be described later , determines the angle θ between one &# 39 ; s own line of position from the radar as θ = cos - 1 x / y , adds own ssr bearing φ , and subtracts own magnetic heading h , to determine other &# 39 ; s bearing b relative to own &# 39 ; s heading . the angular quantities φ and b are displayed by indicators 77 and 78 , respectively . referring to fig2 it is seen that the arc 79 closely approximates a straight line perpendicular to the differential radar range line x , and also approximately perpendicular to the own line of position 80 . accordingly , the angle θ is approximately cos - 1 x / y , within one or two degrees in a typical situation . as shown in the diagram , b = φ + θ - h . the system of fig1 operates at all times in the usual manner of an ordinary ssr beacon transponder , replying to interrogations received during the dwell time as the main beam of an ssr sweeps by it . similar replies from transponders on other aircraft , received and decoded by the 1 , 090 mhz receiver - decoder 63 , are ignored unless the other aircraft enters the widened common azimuth sector that is swept by the main beam immediately before or immediately after the &# 34 ; own &# 34 ; aircraft carrying the equipment of fig1 . if these replies , as processed in the detector system 66 , define a proximity situation , the transponder 60 adds the proximity message to each of its .[. transmission .]. . iadd . transmissions . iaddend ., thereby alerting the air traffic control system by way of the ground based ssr display . if the other , or &# 34 ; intruder ,&# 34 ; aircraft is equipped with a receiver - decoder 63 and a detector system 66 , it will also add the proximity message to each of its replies . in the usual case , the two aircraft will not approach the proximity condition along a common radial from the ssr . accordingly , the rotating radar beam will first illuminate only one of the aircraft , then possibly both , if they are near enough to a common radial , then only the other . in the unusual case , when the aircraft approach proximity along a common radial from one ssr , they will nearly always be within operating range of another differently located ssr , and on different radials from that ssr . when one aircraft is being illuminated by a particular radar beam and the other is not , the one in the .[. baem .]. . iadd . beam . iaddend . will be replying with the added proximity message . this message received by the 1 , 090 mhz receiver - decoder on the aircraft which is not then in the radar beam , will trigger the transponder on that aircraft , causing it to transmit a reply , not solicited by a direct ssr interrogation , but by the other aircraft &# 39 ; s proximity message . the other aircraft , that is the one presently in the radar beam , will receive the special transmission at a time following its own ssr - solicited transmission by an interval corresponding to the direct slant range y between the two aircraft . thus either aircraft , if equipped with a range computer 70 , is .[. provid .]. . iadd . provided . iaddend . with slant range information updated with each rotation of the radar beam . the range computer also provides differential ssr range x . note that both y and x are available on the equipped aircraft even if the other aircraft does not carry a range computer . similarly , an aircraft with an own ssr bearing computer 76 and an other &# 39 ; s bearing computer 75 will obtain φ and b angle information from another that carries only the transponder 60 , receiver - decoder 63 and detector system 66 . referring to fig3 the 1090 mhz receiver - decoder 63 of fig1 includes a 1090 mhz receiver 10 , a reply frame decoder 11 and an altitude decoder 43 , all of which may be the same as the respective correspondingly designated elements of the system described in said copending u . s . pat . application ser . no . 130 , 952 , now u . s . pat . no . 3 , 735 , 408 . in addition , a proximity decoder 81 is provided for producing an output pulse whenever a proximity coded reply signal is received by receiver 10 . the widened common azimuth sector proximity detector includes resettable gate signal generators 3 , 12 , 35 and 49 , and 45 , all the same as the respective corresponding designated elements of the system described in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 735 , 408 , and interconnected in the same way . the output of and gate 52 is applied to the start input terminal of a resettable gate signal generator 82 designed for a gate time interval of several ssr beam rotation periods , say 12 seconds . the output of a gate generator 82 supplies the proximity encode input 61 to the transponder 60 , and energizes the proximity indicator 53 . the common azimuth sector and range warning signal on line 42 at the output of and gate 39 goes to an and gate 83 , which receives the output of proximity decoder 81 on line 65 as another input . simultaneous presence of both inputs to and gate 83 produces an output pulse for the external trigger input 62 of the transponder 60 . an or gate 84 is connected to supply the f1 pulse on line 67 or the decoded p2 pulse on line 68 if either is present , or both if both are present , to the gate generator 35 by way of or gate 34 , and to the phase locked prf generator 69 by way of a prf selector 85 . the prf selector consists of an and gate 86 and a delay device 87 connected as shown in fig4 . the delay 87 is made equal to the pulse period frequency , that is , to the interval between successive interrogations of a selected ssr . each ssr is assigned a characteristic prf to distinguish its transmissions from those of others . the delay 87 may be adjusted by the aircraft operator to select the transmissions of a favorably located ssr . each delay pulse reaches the and circuit coincidentally with the next undelayed pulse , producing an output pulse . referring to fig5 the phase locked prf generator 69 of fig1 includes an oscillator 88 with frequency control means 89 that can be adjusted , for example by selection of an appropriate crystal , to the desired prf . a voltage controlled reactance device 90 , for example a varactor diode , is coupled to the frequency control 89 to control the phase of the oscillator 88 in known manner . the oscillator output is coupled to a phase detector 91 , which also receives the selected f1 or decoded p2 pulses from the prf selector . when the aircraft is within the sls coverage area of the selected radar , decoded p2 pulses are present continuously . any phase difference between these and the output of oscillator 88 is detected by the phase detector 91 , which automatically adjusts the voltage controlled reactance device to null the difference . the oscillator 88 drives a pulse generally 92 to produce a continuous train of pulses , hereinafter referred to as &# 34 ; synthetic f1 &# 34 ; pulses , that are phase locked to the selected radar prf . when the aircraft is outside the sls coverage , a burst of about twenty actual f1 pulses occurs during the dwell time of the main beam . these adjust the phase of the oscillator 88 once during each beam rotation . the reactance device 90 is designed in known manner to hold its adjustment between bursts . an and gate 94 , controlled by a resettable gate signal generator 93 , couples the oscillator 88 to the pulse generator 92 . the gate generator 93 is designed for a gate time interval somewhat longer than one ssr beam rotation , say four seconds . when no f1 or decoded p2 pulses occur within about four seconds after the most recent burst , the and gate 94 is disabled , disconnecting the oscillator 88 from the pulse generator 92 and stopping it . returning to fig3 the synthetic f1 output of the phase locked prf generator 69 , when present , supplies an alternative input by way of or gate 34 to the range warning gate generator 35 . the synthetic f1 also goes through and gate 120 to the start input terminal of an interval timer 95 , which is one of the elements of the range computer 70 of fig1 . a second input to gate 120 is taken from the common azimuth sector range warning line 42 . the stop input terminal of interval .[. time .]. . iadd . timer . iaddend . 95 receives the output of an and gate 96 , which has one input from the common azimuth and range warning line 42 and another input from the reply frame decoder 11 , through a prf selector 97 . this selector , like the selector 85 , is adjusted to pass only the repetition frequency of a desired radar . the range computer also includes another interval timer 98 , which receives its start input from an and gate 99 connected to the f1 line 67 and the proximity signal gate 82 , and its stop input from the proximity decode 81 . gate 99 receives a third input from a 5 - millisecond resettable gate generator 109 , connected to be started by a proximity decode pulse on line 65 . outputs of the interval timers 95 and 98 are applied to a subtractor 100 , and the output of interval .[. time .]. . iadd . timer . iaddend . 98 is displayed on indicator 74 . referring now to fig6 the interval timers 95 and 98 may be digital devices each including a counter 101 , a buffer 102 , and gates 103 and 104 , a control flip - flop 105 , and delay .[. device .]. . iadd . devices . iaddend . 106 amd 107 . a common or system clock pulse generator 108 provides one input to and gate 103 . a pulse applied to the start input terminal sets the flip - flop 105 , energizing its 1 output terminal and enabling gate 103 to conduct clock pulses to the counter 101 . the counter continues to count until a pulse is applied to the stop input terminal , clearing the flip - flop and deenergizing its 1 output to disable the and gate 103 and stop the counter . the accumulated count at this time represents the length of the time interval between the start and stop input pulses . after a brief delay in device 106 , the stop pulse enables gate 104 to transfer the accumulated count into buffer 102 . gate 104 may be a multiple gate arranged in known manner to effect parallel transfer , or may be a known arrangement for slower , but adequately rapid serial transfer . in either case , the buffer 102 is simply forced into a state representing the count most recently transferred to it , holding that state until forced into another that represents a new , updated count . following a further delay in device 107 , long enough to complete the transfer , the stop input pulse clears the counter 101 . the output of the buffer , which may be either in digital or analog form , represents the most recently measured interval continuously until again updated . returning to fig3 the interval timer 98 operates only when a proximity condition has been detected , producing an output from gate generator 82 , and proximity messages are being received from another aircraft , producing an output from gate generator 109 . these two gate signals enable the and gate 99 to pass f1 pulses to start the timer 98 . each next following pulse from the proximity decoder 81 stops the timer , which thus measures the .[. inerval .]. . iadd . interval . iaddend . between the two pulses . this interval , taking system delays into account , is the round trip radio transit time between the two aircraft , and is therefore a measure of the direct slant range y . it should be noted that the described range measuring operation can occur between two suitably equipped aircraft in response to any ssr that illuminates them sequentially . two or more such radars can cause such ranging without interference , except at the extremely unusual times when both beams point simultaneously into the proximity space . that situation , when it does occur , can persist only temporarily because each radar has a different assigned beam .[. roation .]. rotation period and pulse repetition period . the interval timer 95 operates only when a common azimuth sector range warning signal exists on line 42 , enabling and gates 96 and 120 , the prf generator 69 is locked to a selected radar , producing synthetic f1 pulses , and reply frames are being received from another aircraft interrogated by the same selected radar . under these conditions , the interval timer is started by each synthetic f1 pulse and stopped by each decoded reply frame pulse that passes the prf selector 97 . the measured interval is that between one &# 39 ; s own decoded interrogation or the synthetic f1 and the reception of the other &# 39 ; s reply to the corresponding interrogation . this interval , taking system delays into account , is a measure of y + x , the algebraic sum of the slant range and the differential ssr range . the output of interval timer 95 goes to the subtractor 100 , where the difference between it and that of interval timer 98 produces a representation of the differential ssr range x , to be utilized by the other &# 39 ; s bearing computer . turning to the upper portion of fig3 the own bearing computer 76 of fig1 comprises prf selectors 121 and 122 , envelope detectors 123 and 124 , delay device 125 , interval timers 126 and 127 , divider 128 and function generator 129 . the interval times may be like those described above , but designed for operation on a large time scale , measuring intervals of up to a radar beam rotation period , say four seconds . alternatively , they may be simple electromechanical clock devices of known type . the envelope detectors are diode rectifiers with low pass filters , or any other convenient means for converting pulse bursts into single , preferably longer pulses . in operation , each north pulse from the selected ssr first stops interval timer 126 if it has been running , then after a brief delay in device 125 , starts both timers 126 and 127 . the next subsequent burst of f1 pulses , occurring as the radar beam sweeps by the aircraft , stops timer 127 , which remains stopped until the next north pulse occurs . the output of timer 126 , designated n , represents the length of time required for the radar beam to make a complete revolution . the output of timer 127 , designated m , represents the length of time required for the beam to rotate from magnetic north to the line of position of the aircraft from the radar . these outputs are applied to the divider 128 , which in turn produces an output representing the quotient m / n . the quantity m / n has a value between zero and unity representing the magnetic bearing φ of the aircraft from the ssr as a fraction of a complete circle , i . e ., 360 °. the representation may be digital or analog , electrical or mechanical , depending upon the specific design of the timers 126 and 127 and the divider 128 . the function generator 129 converts this representation to a form suitable for display by indicator 77 and for utilization in the other &# 39 ; s bearing computer . it is noted that the computed value of φ is independent of the individual beam rotation rate of the selected ssr . the other &# 39 ; s bearing computer 75 of fig1 appearing generally in the lower right hand portion of fig3 includes a divider 130 , a function generator 131 , an algebraic adding device 132 , an algebraic substracting device 133 , and a lead - lag logic device 134 . the usual magnetic compass 135 provides own heading , h , information for the computation . referring to fig2 it is seen that the angle θ between own ssr line of position 80 and the line from own craft to other craft , measured clockwise from the extension of line 80 past own location 72 , is less than 90 °. when the other aircraft is closer to the ssr , θ as thus measured is between 90 ° and 270 °. the differential ssr range x is considered positive when the other craft is farther from the ssr , and negative when the other is nearer . this sign convention is automatically taken into account by the normal operation of the interval timer 95 and subtractor 100 of fig3 because of the differential transit time measured by the timer 95 is proportional to y + \| x \| when the other craft is farther , and to y - \| x \| when the other is nearer . thus , when y is subtracted from y ± \| x \| is the subtractor 100 , the difference x is of the appropriate sign . again referring to fig2 all ssr beams rotate clockwise as viewed from above , as indicated by the arrow 136 . when the aircraft is illuminated before the other as would occur with the . iadd . own . iaddend . positions shown , the angle θ is between zero and 180 °. when the other craft is illuminated first , θ lies between 180 ° and 360 °. the first mentioned condition , shown , is called &# 34 ; lead .&# 34 ; the other , not shown , is called &# 34 ; lag .&# 34 ; adopting the convention that y is positive under the lead condition and negative under the lag condition , the sign of y is determined by the lead - lag logic device 134 . referring to fig7 the lead - lag logic comprises and gates 137 and 138 , and flip - flops 139 and 140 . a north pulse signal taken from the output of the envelope detector 123 clears both flip - flops , energizing their 0 outputs and enabling both and gates . gate 137 is connected to receive detected f1 burst signals from envelope detector 124 , and gate 138 is connected to receive decoded reply frame pulses in the output of and gate 96 of fig3 . after a north pulse signal occurs while the beam of the selected radar is pointing north , an f1 signal will appear while the beam points at the own aircraft and a reply frame signal will appear when the beam points at the other aircraft . when the f1 signal occurs first , flip - flop 139 is set , energizing its 1 output terminal to indicate a lead condition , and deenergizing its 0 output terminal . this disables and gate 138 to prevent a subsequent reply frame signal from setting flip - flop 140 . when a reply frame signal occurs before the f1 signal , flip - flop 140 sets , energizing its 1 output to indicate a lag condition , and deenergizing its 0 output to prevent setting of flip - flop 139 by a subsequent f1 signal . accordingly , the sign of y is determined by which of the flip - flop 1 outputs is energized . returning to fig3 the y sign information from lead - lag logic device 134 and the output of divider 130 , representing the quotient x / y with the x sign , are applied to the function generator 131 , which may be a digital or analog device of known type that produces an output representing the angle cos - 1 x / y , including its quadrantal position . this angle is a close approximation , .[. withint .]. . iadd . within . iaddend . two or three degrees in a typical situation , of the angle θ . the adding device combines the representations of θ and φ to produce an output representing θ + φ , which , as shown in fig2 is the magnetic bearing from the own aircraft to the other aircraft . a similar representation of own magnetic heading h , provided by the compass 135 , .[. is .]. . iadd . as . iaddend . subtracted in the subtractor 133 to provide an output representing θ + φ - h , which is seen in fig2 is the other craft &# 39 ; s bearing from own craft &# 39 ; s heading , b . this representation , exhibited by display device 78 , indicates directly the line of sight to an intruder aircraft with respect to the own craft &# 39 ; s longitudinal axis .	6
while natural antimicrobial peptides can be useful in combating pathogens exhibiting resistance to multiple antibiotics , either independently or in combination with antibiotic regimens or other antimicrobial peptides , conventional antimicrobial peptides have heretofore been viewed as being undesirably toxic , immunogenic , and / or short - lived . platelets contain potent antimicrobial peptides , termed platelet microbicidal proteins ( pmps ). our preliminary data support the concept that pmps play a key role in platelet antimicrobial functions , and , therefore , in antimicrobial host defense . pmps are locally released from platelets stimulated with microorganisms or agonists present at sites of endovascular infection . in vitro , pmps exert rapid , potent microbicidal actions against a broad spectrum of relevant hematogenous pathogens , including staphylococcus aureus and candida albicans . furthermore , organisms resistant to pmps cause more severe infections in animal models than genetically - related counterparts . these facts demonstrate that pmps are integral to antimicrobial host defense . our preliminary evidence indicates pmps are released into the vascular compartment to act in antimicrobial host defense . therefore , pmps likely have structures which optimize antimicrobial activity , without concomitant mammalian cell toxicity . this distinguishes pmps from neutrophil defensins , which arc cytotoxic when released , and lose potent antimicrobial activity in this setting . additionally , pmps differ in mass and composition from cytotoxic defensins . pmps exhibit potent antimicrobial activities against pathogens that are resistant to defensin hnp - 1 , and pmp mechanisms of action are distinct from that of hnp - 1 . furthermore , pmps exert significantly less cytotoxic effect on human vascular endothelial cells or erythrocytes as compared with hnp - 1 . these facts suggest pmps have structure - function correlates that optimize antimicrobial activity relative to toxicity . in addition to their direct microbicidal properties , it is highly likely that pmps amplify multiple antimicrobial activities of neutrophils . our preliminary data reveal that rabbit pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ) exhibits a c - x - c motif similar to those present in platelet factor - 4 and interleukin - 8 this determinant is a principal hallmark of α - chemokines that potentiate crucial neutrophil functions such as phagocytosis , chemotaxis , and oxidative burst . our initial data suggest pmps amplify in vitro phagocytosis and intracellular killing of s . aureus by rabbit neutrophils . furthermore , pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ) exerts enhanced microbicidal activities under conditions of ph that exist in the neutrophil phagolysosome . these findings strongly suggest that certain pmps may augment crucial neutrophil antimicrobial functions . our preliminary data provide a basis for our central discovery that pmps have specific , independent determinants responsible for direct antimicrobial activities and potentiation of neutrophil antimicrobial functions . we have shown that these determinants can be isolated , optimized , and utilized to design novel mosaic peptides with selective antimicrobial properties . with a goal of designing novel therapeutics that have potent and selective antimicrobial functions and low toxicity , optimizing the activities of the distinct structural determinants in such peptides is essential . our studies on pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ) are strategically based on our preliminary data : i ) it or a precursor is released from platelets exposed to agonists present at local sites of endovascular infection ; ii ) it exerts potent microbicidal activity vs . relevant pathogens in vitro ; iii ) it exhibits a c - terminal domain analogous to known antimicrobial peptides ; iv ) it has an n - terminal c - x - c motif related to immunomodulatory α - chemokines ; and v ) it exerts significantly greater microbicidal activity at ph 5 . 5 vs . 7 . 2 , suggesting it has enhanced and / or discriminative activity in neutrophil acidic phagolysosomes . pmps represent a unique opportunity to delineate structural determinants that likely govern discriminative antimicrobial host defense . mosaic peptides discovered may also lead to development of novel anti - infective agents with selective or enhanced microbicidal and / or immunomodulatory activities against antibiotic - resistant pathogens . thus , these peptides will additionally significantly advance our understanding of molecules that are likely central to host defense against infection , and may reveal important new strategies to potentiate antimicrobial host defense . it is clear that platelets respond rapidly and are numerically significant at sites of endovascular infection , including infective endocarditis , suppurative thrombophlebitis , mycotic aneurysm , septic endarteritis , catheter and dialysis access site infections , and infections of vascular devices . we reason that platelet degranulation ( e . g . pmp release ) following sequestration of microorganisms likely produces potent and direct antimicrobial activities , and facilitates neutrophil antimicrobial functions . the likelihood that platelets and pmps play a crucial role in antimicrobial host defense in these and other settings has been demonstrated by the following facts : i ) platelets are early and predominant cells at sites of microbial infection of vascular endothelium ; ii ) platelets target and internalize microbial pathogens ; iii ) platelets release microbicidal pmps when stimulated with microorganisms or agonists integral to infection in vitro ; iv ) pmps exert rapid and potent microbicidal activity against a broad spectrum of pathogens in vitro ; v ) pmps exhibit structural motifs similar to α - chemokines that potentiate crucial neutrophil antimicrobial functions such as chemotaxis and oxidative burst ; vi ) a broad spectrum of microbial pathogens are damaged or killed by activated platelets ; vii ) thrombocytopenia increases susceptibility to and severity of diverse types of infections ; and viii ) mutant pmp - susceptible pathogens are less virulent in vivo as compared with pmp - resistant counterpart strains . collectively , these facts suggest platelets are key to antimicrobial host defense , particularly through release of pmps . interaction with neutrophils and monocytes provides an additional mechanism by which platelets and pmps likely augment antimicrobial host defense . platelets activated by microbes or other agonists release chemotactic stimuli for neutrophils and monocytes . most important among these are the c - x - c chemokine platelet factor - 4 ( pf - 4 ), platelet activating factor ( paf ), or platelet derived growth factor ( pdgf ). a subcutaneous injection of pf - 4 or pdgf rapidly promotes neutrophil infiltration in animal models . intravenous injection of paf into animals causes eosinophil infiltration into peribronchiolar tissues . supportive of our discovery is the fact that pf - 4 potentiates both neutrophil chemotaxis and microbicidal activity in vitro . the fact that pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ) is related to human platelet factor - 4 strongly suggests pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ) shares these functions . additionally , jungi et al . found that monocytes and neutrophils avidly bind to activated platelets , but not to resting platelets . this interaction is mediated by p - selectin , gpiib / iiia , and / or thrombospondin expressed on activated platelets . molecules generated from activated monocytes or neutrophils counter - activate platelets . for example , neutrophil superoxide , peroxides , halides , and myeloperoxidase promote platelet degranulation . important to our discovery , platelet factor - 4 amplifies neutrophil fungicidal activity in vitro . serotonin and txa 2 released from platelet dense granules increase neutrophil adherence to vascular endothelial cells in vitro . monocyte - derived il - 6 induces cytotoxicity of human platelets to schistosoma mansoni larvae in vitro . most recently , christin et al . have demonstrated that platelets and neutrophils act synergistically in vitro to damage and kill aspergillus . collectively , these facts demonstrate that a relevant interplay exists linking platelet activation and degranulation with leukocyte activation in antimicrobial host defense . we reason that pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ) release from activated platelets is significantly involved in both the recruitment of neutrophils , and amplification of their antimicrobial functions . platelet antimicrobial functions are likely associated with release of potent antimicrobial peptides . in 1887 , fodor described the heat - stable bactericidal activity of serum , termed β - lysin , distinguished from heat - labile α - lysin complement proteins . gengou showed that β - lysin bactericidal activity in serum was derived from cells involved in the clotting of blood . hirsch later reported that platelets , not other leukocytes , reconstitute the bactericidal activity of platelet - free rabbit serum . others have isolated cationic β - lysins from rabbit serum that are bactericidal against s . aureus or b . subtilis . tew et . al . and dankert et . al . showed that β - lysins and platelet associated bactericidal substances ( pabs ) were released from rabbit platelets stimulated with thrombin . notably , darveau et al . studied peptides related to human platelet factor - 4 ( pf - 4 ) with antimicrobial capacity . the peptides disclosed herein differ both in origin and strategic modeling from these prior molecules , although some specific similarities exist . as detailed below , we have now isolated and characterized rabbit and human pmps that likely significantly contribute to the antimicrobial effects of platelets . evidence is mounting in support of our discovery that platelets play an integral role in antimicrobial host defense . thrombocytopenia ( tcp ) has been shown to be a significant , independent predictor of worsened morbidity and mortality in patients undergoing cytotoxic chemotherapy . in the absence of neutropenia , tcp correlates with increased incidence and severity of lobar pneumonia . anti - platelet agents in the experimental endocarditis model significantly increase bacteremia and mortality . moreover , berney and others have demonstrated that neutropenia in the setting of normal platelet count does not diminish host defense against endovascular infection following antibiotic prophylaxis in vivo . these findings suggest platelets attenuate infection in vivo . our studies in experimental animal models substantiate this concept . platelets have indisputable antimicrobial properties , and a compelling body of evidence strongly supports the concept that they are integral components in antimicrobial host defense . it is highly likely that the antimicrobial effects of platelets involve pmp release in response to relevant agonists present in the setting of infection . thus , pmps likely play a central role in host defense against infection through direct antimicrobial action , and potentiation of neutrophil antimicrobial functions . human pmps have structural and functional congruence with rabbit pmps . much of our current knowledge about endovascular infections has been obtained using the experimental rabbit model . this model closely simulates vascular infections in humans . thus , characterizing the structure - activity relationship in rabbit pmp - 2 has enabled opportunities to elucidate the role of pmps and platelets in host defense in rabbit or transgenic mouse models , as well as in humans . these long range goals may ultimately contribute to development of new therapeutic approaches in humans . additionally , these investigations have uncovered new insights into host - pathogen relationships , and novel approaches to the prevention or treatment of infections , particularly those caused by pathogens which exhibit multiple drug - resistance phenotypes . we have isolated pmps from rabbit and human platelets subjected to acid extraction or thrombin stimulation . thrombin is among the most potent platelet agonists elaborated in the setting of endovascular infection . fractions of these preparations were screened for antimicrobial activity by acid - urea and sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis . all active fractions contained small , and cationic ( pmps ). we then used reversed - phase high - performance liquid chromatography ( rp - hplc ) to purify pmps to homogeneity . we have since isolated a total of seven distinct pmps from rabbit platelets . five pmps are recovered from acid - extracted rabbit platelets , and two distinct pmps are predominant in thrombin - stimulated rabbit platelets . we have shown that microorganisms and microbial components are also capable of stimulating pmp release in vitro . these data indicate pmp release is linked to agonists generated by tissue damage and infection . we and others have demonstrated that human platelets contain microbicidal peptides analogous to rabbit pmps . these results provide evidence for interspecies conservation of pmps in mammalian platelets , underscoring their likely role ( s ) in antimicrobial host defense . recent evidence implicates platelets and pmps in host defense against infection in vivo , using two complementary approaches . we have examined the role of platelets in defense against a pmp - susceptible ( pmp s ) viridans streptococcal strain in experimental infective endocarditis in animals either with normal platelet counts , or those with selective immune tcp . thrombocytopenic animals had significantly higher streptococcal densities in vegetations as compared with their counterparts with normal platelet counts . dankert et al . have also implicated platelet - derived molecules as active in host defense against infective endocarditis . these data suggest that platelets and pmps are important in limiting the induction and evolution of endovascular infection . complementary to the above approach , we recently demonstrated that , for s . aureus or s . epidermidis , a positive correlation exists between infective endocarditis source and in vitro resistance to tpmp - 1 . these findings indicate pmp s organisms are less able to propagate endovascular infection in humans as compared with pmp r isolates . parallel findings suggest salmonella resistance to defensins corresponds with increased virulence in vivo . evidence also exists substantiating the likelihood that pmps participate in the observed antimicrobial function of platelets in vivo . we have shown that susceptibility to tpmp - 1 negatively influences the establishment and evolution of s . aureus of c . albicans infection . in the rabbit model , pmp s c . albicans exhibits significantly less proliferation in cardiac vegetations , and dramatically reduced incidence of splenic dissemination as compared with a related pmp r strain . similarly , we have demonstrated that in vitro phenotypic resistance to tpmp - 1 correlates with enhanced virulence in experimental endocarditis due to s . aureus . these results suggest that the host defense function of platelets involves pmp elaboration at sites of infection . we have also shown that pmps exert relevant and potent microbicidal activities against bloodborne pathogens in vitro . we have defined the microbicidal activities of purified pmps and tpmps . nanomolar concentrations of these peptides exert rapid , potent in vitro microbicidal effects against s . aureus , s . epidermidis , viridans group streptococci , escherichia coli ( 1 - 5 μg / ml ), and a variety of other bacterial pathogens . we have also demonstrated that pmps and tpmps are fungicidal in vitro to c . albicans and cryptococcus neoformans , suggesting their broad antimicrobial spectra . these peptides are microbicidal in physiological ranges of ph ( 5 . 5 to 8 . 0 ), and in the presence of plasma or serum . thus , the antimicrobial activities of pmps observed in vitro are relevant to conditions known to exist in vivo , as discussed below . furthermore , we have demonstrated that pmps are released from platelets stimulated with agonists present in the setting of endovascular infection , including s . aureus and c . albicans , staphylococcal α - toxin , or thrombin . these findings suggest certain pmps are released from platelets in response to tissue trauma , soluble mediators of inflammation , or pathogens themselves . therefore , pmps are likely to be introduced into the vascular compartment in a localized manner to participate in antimicrobial host defense . we reason that pmps have structural features that optimize their microbicidal activity and interaction with complementary antimicrobial host defense mechanisms ( e . g ., neutrophils ), without concomitant host cell toxicity . thus , our discovery is that structural determinants in pmps significantly influence their microbicidal and / or neutrophil - modulatory activities and / or selectivity . the current application is based on derivation of novel peptide sequences based in part on those present in one or more pmps or tpmps . pmps differ in structure from other endogenous antimicrobial peptides . we have used mass spectroscopy to confirm that pmps range from about 6 . 0 to 9 . 0 kda . compositional analyses reveal that pmps and tpmps contain high proportions of basic amino acids lysine , arginine , and histidine ( total content about 25 %); this composition is consistent with their cationic charge . notably , mass , cystine array , and lysine content differentiate pmps and tpmps from neutrophil defensins . additionally , pmps and tpmps are distinguished from platelet lysozyme by mass , composition , and antimicrobial activity . performic acid - oxidization reveals that pmps and tpmps have two to four cystine residues . we have also found that two cystine residues in pmp - 2 are aligned in a c - x - c motif , characteristic of α - chemokines that stimulate neutrophil response , as discussed below . together , these findings suggest there are structural features in pmps and tpmps that are integral to their direct microbicidal activities and / or abilities to influence neutrophil antimicrobial functions , discussed below . our preliminary structural data suggest pmps and tpmps exhibit similarities to and differences from other endogenous antimicrobial peptides . similarities of pmps to other antimicrobial peptides include : i ) composition rich in basic amino acids corresponding to cationic charge , ii ) broad antimicrobial spectra in vitro ; iii ) potent microbicidal activity ( nanomolar ); and iv ) disruption of microbial cytoplasmic membranes involved in their mechanisms of action , discussed below . in contrast , pmps and tpmps have structural characteristics that clearly distinguish them from other antimicrobial peptides . for example , defensins are 29 to 34 amino acid peptides of about 3 to 4 kda mass . similarly , amphibian magainins and insect cecropins range in mass from about 2 . 5 to 4 . 5 kda . pmps and tpmps are considerably larger ( 6 . 0 - 9 . 0 kda ). furthermore , neutrophil defensins have three invariate cystine residue pairs mediating disulfide bridges . these intramolecular bridges stabilize defensins , conferring their characteristic amphiphilic turn - sheet - helix conformations . magainins or cecropins lack such tertiary structure . however , the primary structures of these latter molecules induce amphiphilic α - helical motifs analogous to those of defensins . in comparison , pmps 1 - 5 each contain 3 - 4 cystine residues , similar to defensins , while tpmps 1 and 2 contain only 2 or 3 cystine residues , respectively . these findings indicate pmps have unique structural features related to their selective and unique antimicrobial activities . pmps and tpmps target and disrupt microbial cytoplasmic membranes . we have investigated morphologic consequences of rabbit pmp - 2 and tpmp - 1 exposure to bacterial cells , protoplasts , and lipid bilayers in vitro using transmission electron microscopy ( tem ) and biophysical techniques . rapid cytoplasmic membrane disruption , followed by cell wall swelling , occurs in s . aureus after exposure to 10 μg / ml pmp - 2 or tpmp - 1 for as little as 15 - 60 min . ultrastructural damage precedes detectable bactericidal and bacteriolytic effects . fungal pathogens are likewise damaged by these peptides in vitro , s . aureus protoplasts exhibit similar damage , indicating membrane injury is independent of the presence of cell wall . we have also demonstrated that pmps produce these effects through a selective mechanism of voltage - dependent membrane permeabilization , as discussed below . these ultrastructural findings suggest that one primary target of pmp action is the microbial cytoplasmic membrane . it is important to reiterate that pmps are likely released into the bloodstream in response to infection , such that they presumably accumulate locally at sites of infection to act directly and indirectly in antimicrobial host defense . this suggests pmp structural determinants optimize microbicidal activity , and minimize host cytotoxicity , underscoring the importance of understanding structure - activity relationships in pmps . pmps exhibit structural features likely related to their antimicrobial functions . we have used complementary n - terminal sequencing and pcr technology to show that pmps include novel peptides , and peptides not previously known to be microbicidal . thus , our proposed characterization of the pmp structural determinants that mediate their antimicrobial functions has provided information not previously attainable . several exciting findings have emanated from our studies of pmp structures . amino acid sequences of rabbit pmps 1 and 2 indicate that the initial 24 residues present in pmp - 1 are identical to those previously known for rabbit rpf - 4 . thus , we have tentatively identified pmp - 1 as rpf - 4 , furthermore , our preliminary sequencing of the majority of the 74 amino acid residues in native pmp - 1 and pmp - 2 reveal novel structural data regarding rpf - 4 . in addition , our preliminary data indicate that pmp - 2 is a variant of pmp - 1 , differing in a glycine - to - arginine substitution at pmp - 2 residue 25 . this suggests pmp - 2 is a novel microbicidal analogue of rpf - 4 . we have found that pmps - 1 , - 2 , and - 4 exhibit a cystine - variable - cystine ( c - x - c ) motif characteristic of the α - chemokines integral to neutrophil stimulation . we have given particular attention to the c - x - c motifs in pmps . clearly , c - x - c chemokines such as human pf - 4 ( hpf - 4 ) potentiate neutrophil chemotaxis , phagocytosis , and microbicidal activities in vitro . the fact that pmp - 2 has the c - x - c motif demonstrates that it potentiates neutrophil antimicrobial functions , in addition to its direct microbicidal action . this rationale underscores the approach we have taken to differentiate effects of pmp - 2 structural determinants on neutrophil antimicrobial activities as discussed below . in addition to rabbit pmps , we have isolated and characterized the structures of analogous human pmps . sequence analyses indicate that human pmps include : hpf - 4 ; connective tissue activating protein - iii ( hctap - iii ); thymosin β - 4 ( ht β - 4 ); platelet basic peptide ( hpbp ); rantes ( hrantes ); fibrinopeptides a and b ( hfp - a and hfp - b ; 4 , 5 ), and truncations or fragments of these peptides . like rabbit pmps , human pmps exert rapid and potent in vitro microbicidal activities against s . aureus , e . coli , and c . albicans . furthermore , several of these peptides ( e . g ., hpf - 4 ) possess a c - x - c motif analogous to rabbit pmp - 2 . together , these structural and functional similarities indicate close homologies among rabbit and human pmps . this evidence further substantiates our rationale to study rabbit pmp - 2 as a means of developing novel antimicrobial peptides , and as a model for future investigation of role ( s ) of human pmps in antimicrobial host defense . our recent studies have provided new evidence that pmps differ in mechanisms of action from those of other antimicrobial peptides . we used flow cytometry to study the mechanisms of action of pmps against s . aureus strain pair 6850 ( pmp s ) and jb - 1 ( pmp r ) in vitro . strain jb - 1 is a menadione auxotroph of parent strain 6850 , and has a decreased transcytoplasmic membrane potential ( δψ ). we used the fluorescent probes dioxycarbocyanine ( dioc 5 ) and propidium iodide ( pi ) to quantify the effects of pmp - 2 and human defensin np - 1 ( hnp - 1 ) on δψ and permeability , respectively . pmp - 2 rapidly depolarized , permeabilized , and killed the pmp s strain ; this activity was significantly greater at ph 5 . 5 vs . ph 7 . 2 . depolarization , permeabilization , and killing of the pmp r strain by pmp - 2 was significantly less than the pmp s strain . menadione reconstituted the pmp r strain δψ to a level equivalent to the pmp s strain . this was associated with increased depolarization , permeabilization , and killing of the pmp r strain due to pmp - 2 . therefore , the mechanism of pmp - 2 action involves rapid , ph - dependent membrane permeabilization with membrane depolarization . these effects were different from hnp - 1 , or the cationic antibacterial agents protamine or gentamicin . for example , membrane permeabilization due to hnp - i was equivalent in the pmp s and pmp r strains , and greater at ph 7 . 2 than at ph 5 . 5 . collectively , these data suggest pmps exert mechanisms of action which differ from hnp - 1 . these findings imply that specific structural determinants significantly influence pmp microbicidal activities . similarly , we have recently found that pmps are active against salmonella typhimurium strains resistant to hnp - 1 . for example , parental strain 14028 , intrinsically resistant to hnp - 1 , was as susceptible to pmp - 2 as hnp - 1 hypersusceptible strains 4252s and 5996s . these data further support the discovery that pmp microbicidal mechanisms differ from hnp - 1 . preliminary data suggest pmp - 2 amplifies neutrophil antimicrobial functions in vitro . we have initially studied the influence of pmp - 2 on in vitro neutrophil phagocytosis and intracellular killing of s . aureus . in our preliminary experiments , a heterologous system was established employing human neutrophils , pooled normal human serum , or crude rabbit pmp - 2 . organisms ( 5 × 10 7 / ml ) were pre - exposed to sub - lethal concentrations of serum or pmp - 2 for 30 minutes , washed , mixed with neutrophils ( 20 : 1 ), and incubated at 37 ° c . for 2 hours . we observed a significant increase in phagocytosis of s . aureus when pre - exposed to pmp - 2 ( mean organisms / neutrophil = 11 . 2 ), as compared with serum ( mean organisms / neutrophil = 6 . 4 ) or buffer control ( mean organisms / neutrophil = 3 . 7 ; p & lt ; 0 . 05 for pmp - 2 vs . serum or buffer ). to quantify intracellular killing , neutrophils were lysed , and aliquots quantitatively cultured to enumerate surviving s . aureus cells . initial results suggest pmp - 2 enhances intracellular killing of s . aureus at the 2 hour time point . for example , only 23 . 8 % of pmp - 2 - exposed cells survived , while 64 . 1 % of the serum exposed , and 78 . 6 % of the buffer control cells survived at this time point ( p & lt ; 0 . 05 for pmp - 2 vs . serum or buffer control ). these data support our central discovery that pmp - 2 augments antimicrobial functions of neutrophils . the fact that pmp - 2 exhibits a c - x - c chemokine domain that likely promotes neutrophil chemotaxis further justifies our rationale that pmp - 2 specific determinants amplify these neutrophil functions ( see below ). pmp - 2 exhibits sequences homologous to chemokine and microbicidal domains . recent advances in structural analyses have revealed important new information regarding structure - activity correlates among antimicrobial peptides . for example , it is now known that many antimicrobial peptides are small , cationic , and have amphiphilic α - helical domains . we have compared pmp - 2 and known microbicidal peptide sequences to predict structural features that are likely integral to pmp - 2 microbicidal activity . these studies revealed that pmp - 2 has many hallmarks of microbicidal peptides , including : 1 ) periodic amphiphilic domains ; 2 ) relatively high hydrophobic moment ( m h ); and 3 ) charge - clustering . additionally , we found that pmp - 2 possesses a c - x - c motif similar to that found in immunomodulatory chemokines . to test whether we could isolate and differentiate microbicidal domains from pmp - 2 , we employed solid - phase f - moc ” chain assembly to synthesize a novel peptide derived from amino acids 46 - 63 of pmp - 2 ( pmp - 2 46 - 63 ) ( fx - pmp - 2 - 46 - 63 , sequence no . 36 ) with the following sequence : h 2 n - atkkngrklcldlqaal - cooh . in preliminary structural analyses , we have found that pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) reflects the conformation of the same domain in native pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ) as is explained further below . moreover , pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) exerts the selective microbicidal properties characteristic of pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ), that are significantly amplified at ph 5 . 5 as compared to ph 7 . 2 . thus , the structure - activity relationship in pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) mirrors that of native pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ). we have integrated conventional structural analysis with molecular modeling in our preliminary studies of pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ). purification by rp - hplc reveals that synthetic pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) elution is consistent with an amphiphilic , cationic peptide . the fact that pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) rp - hplc elution time is about 8 min earlier than pmp - 2 ( 53 . 5 minutes ) under identical conditions corresponds with reduced hydrophobicity of pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ). we have confirmed that purified synthetic pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) has the correct sequence and mass by edman - degradation and maldi - tof mass spectroscopy , respectively ( mw = 1842 . 2 da ; predicted = 1842 . 3 da ). these data confirm the feasibility of our proposed approaches : we have identified , synthesized , purified , and evaluated a microbicidal domain of pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ). we have investigated pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) secondary conformation by fourier - transform infrared ( fter ) spectroscopy . multi - scan ftir was performed on pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) suspended in 0 . 01 % acetic acid adjusted to ph 5 . 5 or 7 . 2 , and with or without palmityl - oleoyl - phosphatidyl - glycerol ( popg in hexachloroisopropanol ) as simulation of a prokaryotic lipid membrane . in aqueous solution at ph 5 . 5 or 7 , 2 , these preliminary studies revealed a strong peak at 1629 cm − 1 indicating that pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) exists in a β - sheet conformation . however , in popg , pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) undergoes dramatic conformation shift to a ( β - turn / hairpin structure , exhibiting a peak at 1675 cm − 1 . these results indicate pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) likely undergoes a conformational shift when it interacts with the bacterial membrane . molecular modeling of pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) corroborates conventional structural analyses . our preliminary work to model the solution structure of pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) followed a multistep algorithm designed to predict the conformation of this and other peptides . this algorithm uses a serial four - step approach . first , multiple methods ( e . g ., chou - fasman analyses ) were employed to seek regions of consensus in the predicted secondary structure . next , we searched the brookhaven protein database for known sequences with homology to pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) ( e . g ., pf - 4 ). resulting peptides were screened , and those lacking consensus secondary structure were excluded . the remaining peptides were used as templates for pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) backbone trajectory . we then used molecular mechanics to allow each theoretical model pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) to relax to corresponding energy minima . molecular dynamics were then used to test conformer stability , and the average conformer was minimized using molecular mechanics . three conformers of pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) were initially identified . two of these were similar sheet - turn - sheet motifs ( forming a hairpin loop with c - and n - termini in close proximity ); another was a helical rod . the loop structures were both stable in molecular dynamics . the helical rod rapidly collapsed ( within 100 psec of simulation time ) into a hairpin - like structure and thus was excluded as a model candidate . after minimization , all models were similar , with & lt ; 1 å rms difference between backbone atoms . extended regions of pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) were extensively h - bonded . to confirm the predictive accuracy of this approach , the first three steps of this algorithm have been used on selected peptides ( 15 residues ) of known conformation . selected test peptides ( with known structures ) were removed from the brookhaven database so they would not self - recognize in the search . predicted conformers achieved through the above approach closely resembled experimentally determined structures ( rms deviations of ≦ 3 . 5 å ). thus , our knowledge - based algorithm is reliable , and corroborates the predictive value of our proposed modeling strategies . in addition to the knowledge - based algorithm described above , we have also used energy - based methods , we used systematic and monte carlo searches of the ramachandran angles ( φ and ψ ) of pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ). we found multiple minima on its energy surface , indicating that several conformers were possible . however , the molecular dynamics simulations demonstrated that the only stable conformer was that of the hairpin loop . in more extended simulations ( 10 nsec ), the peptide oscillated about the hairpin structure as judged by radius of gyration and ramachandran angles . the result suggests that the energy barrier between conformers is high , and that one conformer predominates or is exclusive . this conformer was the same as that identified by the knowledge - based algorithm described above . in addition , these modeling studies predicted that the - and c - terminal regions are extended structures , with a short helical span central to the peptide . these findings corroborate the β - sheet - turn - β - sheet structure suggested by our ftir analyses . preliminary modeling of pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) also predicts structural features likely integral to antimicrobial activity . for example , the electrostatic distribution analysis of pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) indicates that its charge is longitudinally polarized ( e . g ., strongly cationic c - terminus with a relatively non - charged n - terminus ). furthermore , pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) exhibits substantial periodic amphiphilic and hydrophobic clustering . segregation of charge and hydrophobicity are peptide motifs associated with microbicidal activity . therefore , our preliminary molecular modeling data reveal a likely structure - activity relationship in the microbicidal domains of pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ). it is important to note convergence of the predicted and determined pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) conformations from multiple starting points . these findings correspond with ftir data , indicating that pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) has an antiparallel strand structure with a short helix forming the connecting region . this agreement among two modeling algorithms and experimental and ftir data indicate the conformer identified is the likely solution structure for pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ). the next logical step would be to model pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) at the surface of a lipid bilayer . overall , these data indicate several important features substantiating the utility of our proposed molecular modeling strategies . first , we have gained important insights into the fundamental structure - activity relationship in pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ); these consistently translate to pmp - 2 . thus , we are poised to define the precise structural determinants in pmp - 2 using these methods . importantly , the predicted pmp - 2 46 - 63 ( sequence no . 36 ) conformer is not obvious from the primary structure . nonetheless , our experimental data corroborate our modeling data . in addition , the consistency in prediction of the same motifs by both energy - and knowledge - based strategies suggests this conformational preference is genuine . these relationships underscore a major advantage achieved through our integration of conventional structural analysis and molecular modeling : crucial structure - activity relationships may go undetected if either strategy were to be used exclusively . a basic peptide is expected to have especially strong interactions with bilayers of acidic phospholipids ( e . g ., those bearing phosphatidylglycerol and phosphatidylserine head groups ). the strong matrix of net negative charge will act as a cation exchanger for basic peptides to be investigated in this work . thus , only the interaction between the polar phospholipid head groups and pmp - 2 determinants can be simulated to focus computational resources . lipid environments ( bilayers ) simulating prokaryotic or eukaryotic membranes can be tested for interaction with peptides . two - dimensional grids of diacetylphosphatidylglycerol or diacetylphosphatidylserine molecules can be generated . in the primary simulation , pmp - 2 conformers corresponding to local minima ( as described above ) can be manually docked to the polar surface of this grid using the sybyl algorithm dock . molecular mechanics and molecular dynamics can then be used to estimate the influences of the phospholipid charge array on peptide conformation . this will also estimate the attraction of a peptide for the phospholipid head group , revealing insights into peptide / target - cell selectivity . solvent can be assigned as a distance - dependent dielectric function . initially , phospholipids can be fixed as an immovable aggregate ; conformational transitions of pmp - 2 determinants can then be simulated using molecular mechanics and molecular dynamics as above . in complex secondary models , a phospholipid array can form one wall of a cube comprised of a pmp - 2 determinant tip water , and counter ions ( e . g ., naci ) when appropriate , and phospholipids initially fixed as before . in other simulations , with and without explicit solvent , flexibility of the polar head groups can be allowed . in this case , the phospholipids can be anchored by the methyl groups on the acyl chains . we recognize there are limitations to these simulations , and potential pitfalls can be minimized as pointed out by jakobsson . these methods have been successfully used to characterize peptide - lipid interactions by numerous investigators . analytical ultracentrifugation can be used to study hydrodynamic shape , predicted radius of gyration , and therefore , overall fold of the peptide . as important , centrifugation can ascertain the degree of self - association of the peptide under the conditions used to assay its activity . self - association may occur through either open association ( aggregation increases continually with peptide concentration ), or closed association ( the peptide reaches a definite , multimeric state ). knowledge of the aggregation state is essential for complete interpretation of both the physical and biological data . experimental results can be compared to models ; accuracy of the comparisons can be well within the range to make qualitative differentiations ( e . g ., helical rod , folded helix , hairpin , antiparallel β - sheets , random coil ). the advantage of analytical ultracentrifugation is that all measurements come directly from first principles ; thus , they do not rely on standards ( as do most common analytical techniques ). additionally , only small quantities of peptide are required , and the technique is non - destructive . where s is the sedimentation coefficient , v is the partial specific volume , p is the density of the solution , n is avogadro &# 39 ; s number , and f is the frictional coefficient . the frictional coefficient ( f ) is given by where η is the viscosity and r s is the stokes radius . the diffusion coefficient ( d ) is given by where r is the gas constant and t is the temperature in degrees kelvin . therefore , stokes radii can be obtained by measurement of either sedimentation coefficient or diffusion coefficient . both can be determined in the centrifuge , and in favorable cases , in a single experiment . self - association can be determined from sedimentation equilibrium experiments , with the general relationship determined by the equation : m =[ 2rt1 / w 2 ( 1 − vp )][ dln ( c )/ dr 2 ]. in the absence of self - association , a plot of ln ( c ) vs . r 2 is linear . in the presence of self - association , the line can be concave upward . the slope of the line is analyzed and can be used to determine the propensity of the peptide to self - associate using the computer program origin . because of the large diffusion coefficients of small peptides , synthetic boundary centerpieces can be used to obtain an initial sharp boundary between peptide and solvent . band forming centerpieces can be used depending on preliminary results . the initial concentrations of peptide may vary between 0 . 01 and 100 μg / ml . diffusion coefficients can be obtained from boundary spreading experiments . while these can be obtained from the high - speed synthetic boundary experiments , generally the determinations can be made at low speed where sedimentation will be small . initially , the rotor speed can be set low , and adjusted upward during the experiment depending on the determined concentration gradient . in this way a range of concentrations can be generated in a single experiment , and any pressure dependencies can then be identified . due to the high diffusion coefficient of the peptides , equilibrium can be attained rapidly . equilibrium can be defined as lack of a detectable difference in measurements of the concentration gradient taken 1 hour apart . in cases where self - association of peptide is observed in the analytical ultracentrifuge , chromatography can be used to extend analysis to lower concentrations which may be more relevant to those used for measurement of biological activity . the total volume of a column v t = v 0 + v i + v g , where v 0 is the void volume , v i is the interior volume , and v g is the volume of the chromatographic matrix . the elution volume v e = v 0 + kv 1 , where k , the distribution function , vanes between 0 and 1 . the advantage of gel permeation chromatography is the ease of use , less interference from buffers , and the lower concentrations of peptide that can be analyzed . the disadvantage is that the column must be calibrated with standards of known stokes radii . guided by our initial experiments , sephadex gio , g15 or g25 ( or corresponding sepharcyl matrices ) can be used as the chromatographic matrix . chromatography can be conducted at constant temperature using an automated fraction collector , and peptide detected by optical absorbance . when peptide concentrations are low or the buffers strongly absorbing , peptide can be detected by reaction with fluorescamine or other reagents , which we can detect in the femtomolar range . the combination of analytical ultracentrifugation and gel permeation chromatography will allow experimental verification of predicted peptide conformations , and detection of any anomalies , such as self - association , that influence interpretation of the spectroscopic and biological findings . the conformational status of pmp - 2 determinants and other peptides can be determined using circular dichroism ( cd ) and / or fourier - transform infrared ( ftir ) spectroscopy as previously described . cd can be principally be used to assess helicity , and ftir has advantages in determining β - sheet structures . purified peptides can be solubilized to a concentration of 50 μg / ml in 50 mm nh 4 hco 3 . buffer - subtracted cd spectra ( 190 - 250 nm ) can be obtained from an average of three 25 ° scans , using a mean residue ellipticity based on a mean residue mass of 110 daltons . attenuated total reflectance ( atr ) crystals of selected peptides can be produced by adsorption of 500 picomoles onto aluminized mylar , coated with nitrocellulose . ftir spectra can be recorded at an accelerating voltage of 16 kv at 16000 nanosecond intervals , and analyzed using peak search software . we have developed novel tools for studies to examine pmp antimicrobial activities . as described above , we have recently utilized the rabbit model of infective endocarditis to explore the host defense properties of platelets and pmps in vivo . additionally , we have recently developed pathogen strain pairs that differ in susceptibility to pmps . these organisms have facilitated our investigations into the mechanisms of pmp action , and studies to evaluate the role of pmps and platelets in host defense against infection . the panel of organisms we have developed include both isogenic s . aureus and c . albicans strain pairs which differ in pmp susceptibility . we generated these strain pairs in two ways . first , we developed pmp - resistant ( pmp r ) strains from susceptible ( pmp s ) parental strains by serial passage through high concentrations of pmps in vitro . we then compared these strains ( s . aureus 19 s / 19 r ; c . albicans 36082 s / 36082 r ) by restriction mapping , immunoblotting , and phenotypic characterization in vitro and ex vivo . strains were indistinguishable by these techniques other than in pmp susceptibility . we have also developed a panel of pmp r s . aureus strains by transposon mutagenesis of pmp s strain isp479 engineered to possess the transposon tn 551 in a pi258 vector . we identified a clone ( isp479r ) with a stable tpmp - 1 r phenotype after serial passage in broth media and rabbit serum (& gt ; 85 % survival after 2 hour exposure to 10 μg / ml tpmp - 1 , vs . & lt ; 10 % survival of the parental strain ). the pmp r phenotype in this strain was also stable after in vivo passage in the rabbit . ecori and ncoi restriction analyses and southern hybridization were used to confirm that isp479r contained a single tn 551 insert , localized within the same restriction fragment pre - and post - in vitro and in vivo passage . the related strain isp479c , cured of the plasmid containing the pi258 vector , completes the control organisms in this s . aureus strain panel . we have studied this panel extensively in the rabbit model of infective endocarditis . in doing so , we have now demonstrated that artificially - induced resistance to pmps confers a survival advantage to organisms in the context of endovascular infection in vivo . thus , susceptibility to pmps is undoubtedly a significant parameter in overall antimicrobial host defense . studies beyond the scope of the current application are under way to define the precise influence of pmp resistance in various animal models . strain pain such as these are also crucial to future studies to define mechanisms of pmp action , and the genetic elements in pathogens that may be responsible for resistance to pmps and / or other antimicrobial peptides . in addition , relevant and well characterized strains available from the american type culture collection ( atcc ) will be important tools with which we can evaluate the potencies of our novel peptides against drug - resistant pathogens . our preliminary data strongly support our central hypotheses : i ) pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ) exerts direct antimicrobial activities linked to its specific structural determinants ; ii ) pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ) potentiates crucial antimicrobial functions of neutrophils likely due to structures such as c - x - c ; iii ) structure - activity relationships in pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ) antimicrobial determinants can be isolated and modeled , enabling design of novel peptides and mosaic peptides that achieve highly potent and / or selective antimicrobial activities . in this regard , a defined set of analogues can be synthesized , characterized , and assessed by the above screens for antimicrobial activity . these approaches have been used to identify specific structural determinants in pmp - 2 responsible for direct antimicrobial activities . first , truncated versions of pmp - 2 domains have been synthesized . next , compositions of these domains can be strategically varied to define the specific determinants responsible for their antimicrobial activities as described above . criteria for selection can include exceptional antimicrobial activity and / or selectivity . furthermore , combinatorial peptides can be synthesized at the 0 . 01 nmol scale by simultaneous peptide synthesis methods . systematic peptide truncation can be used to define domain size essential for antimicrobial activity . in addition , peptides of reduced chain length may be advantageous as therapeutic agents as compared with larger proteins : 1 ) smaller peptides typically have greater distribution via more efficient diffusion ; 2 ) they are generally less immunogenic than larger peptides ; and 3 ) shorter peptides tend to be less susceptible to proteolytic degradation than comparable larger proteins . thus truncated analogues of pmp - 2 functional domains have been synthesized , including n - terminal , c - terminal , or dual - terminal truncations using combinatorial synthesis ( e . g ., see sequence nos . 30 , 31 , 32 and 33 ). we have noted that charged , hydrophobic , and aromatic amino acid residues dramatically influence peptide antimicrobial activities . due to this relationship , peptide libraries can be derived from selected templates to vary peptide parameters believed integral to antimicrobial activity individually or in combination : 1 ) conformation ; 2 ) charge density and periodicity ; 3 ) amphiphilic density and periodicity ; 4 ) hydrophobic moment ( m h ); 5 ) mass - to - charge ratio ; and 6 ) terminal orientation , 1 . charge - conservation , neutralization , or - reversal : antimicrobial peptide potencies may vary relative to steric properties of charged amino acids . alternatively , net charge may dramatically influence peptide activity . therefore , charged amino acids can be substituted such that overall charge can be conserved , but varied sterically ( e . g ., lysine - to - arginine ), neutralized ( e . g ., lysine - to - glycine ), reversed ( e . g ., lysine - to - glutamic acid ), or a combination of these approaches . 2 . non - polar substitution : hydrophobic amino acids leucine , alanine , isoleucine , and valine are common residues among antimicrobial peptide sequences . these residues likely have a significant impact on hydrophobic density and mean hydrophobic moment ( m h ) as they relate to peptide antimicrobial activity . thus , peptides can be designed with non - polar substitution ( e . g ., leucine - to - isoleucine ) and / or conversion ( e . g ., valine - to - glycine ) to assess the influence of polarity in amino acids on antimicrobial activities of pmp - 2 structural domains . 3 . aromatic substitution : aromatic amino acids such as tyrosine , phenylalanine , and tryptophan directly influence mean hydrophobic moment and hydrophobic density . in addition , their molecular radii significantly influence the steric properties of peptides . these parameters are believed crucial to peptide microbicidal activity . therefore peptides derived from pmp - 2 structural domains can be assessed with aromatic substitutions for their antimicrobial activities , such as tryptophan - for - tyrosine , and phenylalanine - for - tyrosine scanning 4 . retromer peptides : stereo - specificity likely plays an important role in peptide - target cell interaction . however , previous studies have shown that l - and d - isomer peptides are indistinguishable in their antimicrobial activities . therefore , selected pmp - 2 domains exhibiting potent or selective antimicrobial activities can be synthesized as retromers , and tested as above to assess the influence of terminal orientation on such activities . the relative rates of modification of amino acid side chains can provide information about accessibility and dynamics of many of the study peptides . thus , synthetic analogues of selected peptides found to have exceptional or unique antimicrobial activities can be studied to further define their structure - activity relationships , as outlined below , and used to design subsequent peptide iterations . 1 . conformer - restriction amino acid substitution . an excellent method of conformational control is to replace selected amino acids in the original peptide with amino acids that will restrict the motion of the peptide chain . in selected peptides , proline , β - branched , n - methyl , α , β - dehydro ( unsaturated bond between the α and β carbons ), α , α - dialkyl , and / or d - amino acids can be placed at positions allowed or preferred , where ramachandran φ and / or ψ torsional angles are compatible with the predicted peptide backbone trajectories . both protein and non - protein amino acids can be introduced in combinatorial synthesis of the peptides . in this way , use of amino acids with restricted φ and ψ angles will create more active analogs , since these modifications will favor the conformer with the desired antimicrobial activity . 2 . disulfide - bridge conformer stabilization . we have used the cystine cross - linking method to verify the predicted conformation of an insect neuropeptide . precise and restricted geometries of disulfide bonds make engineering of these crosslinks rigorous tests of peptide conformation . measurement of the rates of disulfide formation in the reduced peptide , along with comparison of biological activity in oxidized and reduced states provide additional tests of the predicted conformation and activity relationship . therefore , selected peptides can be synthesized to contain cystine residues in strategic locations to facilitate disulfide bridge - mediated stabilization of test conformations . biological activities of the reduced (— sh ) or oxidized ( cystine cross - linked ) peptide can then be measured and compared . the reduced peptide provides a control on possible perturbations introduced by replacement of the original amino acid residue by cysteine . if the predicted tertiary structure is correct , the disulfide cross - linked peptide should have an efficacy equal to , or greater than , the original peptide . the possibility of greater efficacy arises because the disulfide link restricts the number of possible conformations of the peptide , thus increasing the effective concentration of the biologically active conformer . the quantifiable antimicrobial activities of peptides have been determined as described above . through molecular modeling , qualitative correlation among structure and activity can be identified . however , it is also important to ascertain quantitative structure - activity relationships ( qsar ) with robust predictive ability in designed peptides . comparative molecular field analysis ( comfa ) is a particularly useful tool in this regard . for example , comfa techniques have been applied to model and design novel hiv protease inhibitors , antibacterial agents , antidepressants , ace inhibitors , and several other molecules now recognized as important therapeutic agents . highly flexible molecules have also been successfully analyzed by comfa . furthermore , data from these analyses can be integrated with other physical data ( e . g ., octanol / water partitioning to measure hydrophobicity and solvation energy ), to augment predictive power . initially , two structure - activity analyses can be performed integrating all measures of antimicrobial activity , holographic - qsar ( hqsar ) analyses can be used , since this method does not require conformational information . therefore , rational mosaic peptide design can also be achieved , based on quantitative correlations of peptide primary structure and antimicrobial activity , as soon as the data set of biological properties becomes large enough to rise above background . as is illustrated in the drawings , the invention is accordingly embodied in novel , improved antimicrobial peptides designed from unique templates to act to inhibit or kill microorganisms that are otherwise resistant to existing antibiotics . two principal peptides , designated rp - 1 , sequence no . 3 , and rp - 13 , sequence no . 14 , were designed based in part upon microbicidal domains from platelet microbial proteins 1 and 2 ( pmp - 1 , sequence no . 2 , and pmp - 2 , sequence no . 1 ) as discussed in yeaman , m . r ., et al ., “ purification and in vitro activities of rabbit platelet microbicidal proteins ,” infect . immun . 65 : 1023 - 1031 , 1997 . in turn , these or other microbicidal peptides can also be used as structural templates from which iterative peptides can be modeled and synthesized . these peptides , and derived analogues , may eventually be developed as therapeutic agents to significantly improve treatment of life threatening infections in humans due to organisms resistant to conventional antibiotics . in addition to parameters known to be associated with antimicrobial activity , specific features have been identified which appear to be integral to maximal peptide microbicidal activity . these include : 1 ) conformation ; 2 ) charge density and periodicity ; 3 ) amphiphilic density and periodicity ; 4 ) hydrophobic moment ( mh ); 5 ) mass - to - charge ratio ; and 6 ) terminal orientation . the present invention applies a model which predicts relative antimicrobial activity for a given amino acid sequence . this model takes into account the following published equation for determination of the mean hydrophobic moment ( m h ): where n is the number of residues , h n is the hydrophobicity of the nth residue , δ is the repeat angle , 100 °, and m h is the mean hydrophobic moment . we have modified this equation to integrate α and β parameters , where α is the alpha helicity index ( helical fraction ), β is the beta - sheet index ( sheet fraction ). use of the variables α and β are described below . many cationic microbicidal peptides are known to exhibit amphiphilic α - helical or β - sheet conformation . it is also known that many antimicrobial peptides possess domains rich in hydrophobic amino acids . the mean hydrophobic moment m h dually assesses these parameters ; m h is essentially the amphiphilicity of a peptide in an α - helica conformation . in previous models , m h and amphiphilicity are among the most predictive parameters of actual antimicrobial activity . the inventors have additionally recognized that potent microbicidal peptides contain distinct hydrophobic , amphiphilic and hydrophobic domains . the above model has been refined to integrate m h and α - helical or β - sheet conformations in the context of such domains . in this model , peptide microbicidal activity ( predicted mic , also p mic ) is inversely related to m h and α - helicity such that : p mic = 1 /∝[( m h )·( α peptide )] where α is equal to the sum of the α helical fractions of the peptide . similarly , β - sheet peptides will be assessed for p mic as follows : p mic = 1 /∝[( m h )·( β peptide )], where β peptide is equal to the sum of the β sheet fractions of the peptide . p mic can be inferred from the respective outcome of these models as they apply to a helical , β - sheet , or other peptide conformations . in either case , the lower the p mic , the greater the predicted microbicidal activity . this model has proven successful in guiding selection of templates used in designing templates rp - 1 , sequence no . 3 , and rp - 13 , sequence no . 14 , and derived metapeptides , discussed further below . the peptide model has been used according to the principles of the invention to design rp - 1 , sequence no . 3 , and rp - 13 , sequence no . 14 , template peptides from microbicidal domains of pmps i and 2 , as illustrated in fig1 . these peptides exert rapid ( less than 2 hours ) and potent ( nanomolar concentration ) microbicidal activities against a spectrum of pathogens in vitro , many of which are resistant to conventional antibiotics , as is shown in fig2 a and 2 b , reflecting in three - dimensional graphs the antimicrobial spectra of rp - 1 , sequence no . 3 , and rp - 13 , sequence no . 14 , in vitro ( radial diffusion assay ). inocula were 1 × 10 6 cfu / ml , and incubation conditions were ph 7 . 2 ( rp - 1 , sequence no . 3 ) or ph 5 . 5 ( rp - 13 , sequence no . 14 ), for 24 hours at 37 ° c . ( key : ec , e . coli ; ef , ent . faecalis ; pa , ps . aeruginosa ; sm , st . mutans ; sa , s . aureus ( mrsa ); se , s . epidermidis ( mrse ); ca , c . albicans ; cn , crypto , neoformans ) moreover , these templates differ in secondary structure ( α - helix vs . β - sheet , respectively ) as determined by ftir spectroscopy and molecular modeling , and have differential ph optima for microbicidal activity ( ph 7 . 2 vs . 5 . 5 , respectively ). thus , the use of peptides derived from pmps 1 or 2 , rp - 1 or rp - 13 , or other templates will provide complementary opportunities to examine the relationship among peptide structure , microbicidal activity , pathogen specificity , mechanism of action , conditions for activity , and mammalian cell toxicity . these data will be incorporated into subsequent iterations of peptide design . with reference to fig2 a and 2b , designs for novel microbicidal metapeptides should maximize peptide parameters believed to be integral to microbicidal activity , as discussed above . specific design strategies can include charge substitution , non - polar substitution , aromatic substitution , peptide extension or truncation , and use of d - enantiomers , retromer , retroenantiomer , n - ε monomethyl - lysine , or other amino acids not normally found in native peptides , or any combination of these approaches . in addition , conformer restriction and / or disulfide bridge conformer stabilization can be used to create designs with specific conformational parameters found to be relevant to derived antimicrobial properties . in charge substitution , charged amino acids can be substituted with alternate amino acids such that the overall charge is essentially conserved . examples of interchangeable residues where charge conservation substitution can be used to create novel peptides are lysine and arginine , or aspartic acid and glutamic acid . peptides can also be designed with substituted non - polar residues to study this effect on peptide microbicidal activity . leucine and isoleucine are common examples of hydrophobic amino acids in antimicrobial peptides . such residues have a significant impact on hydrophobic density and mean hydrophobic moment ( m h ) as they relate to peptide microbicidal activity . peptides with enhanced microbicidal activity and reduced mammalian cell toxicity can also be generated with aromatic substitutions . aromatic amino acids such as tyrosine , phenylalanine , and tryptophan are believed to influence mean hydrophobic moment as well as hydrophobic density . peptide extension or truncation can also be used to model peptide designs with strategic modifications . peptides of reduced chain length generally exhibit features which may be advantageous as potential therapeutic agents as compared with larger proteins : 1 ) smaller peptides typically have greater distribution via more efficient diffusion ; 2 ) they are generally less immunogenic than larger peptides ; and 3 ) shorter peptides tend to be less susceptible to proteolytic degradation than comparable larger peptides . selected peptides which exhibit potent microbicidal activity can also be synthesized as n - ε monomethyl - lysine and / or d - amino acid analogues . these strategies can be useful to increase specificity , reduce toxicity , and extend half - life of these peptides . peptides derived from rp - 1 , sequence no . 3 , and rp - 13 , sequence no . 14 , or other natural or novel templates will be suitable in mass to model by energy based methods . this approach can be used to identify stable conformers , and thus the most likely to retain structures believed to confer microbicidal function . phi ( φ ) and psi ( ψ ) angles can be assigned systematically ; those incompatible with ramachandran indices for particular amino acids can be rejected to speed the search process . conformer side chains can be rotated to relieve unstable steric configurations , and promising conformers can be partially minimized using amber force - field strategies . lowest energy conformers can be further analyzed by molecular dynamics to determine stability . the brookhaven data base can also be searched for peptides homologous to these peptides , which can be used as comparative templates . side chain contacts can be relieved and minimized by molecular mechanics , and lowest energy conformations analyzed by molecular dynamics . data from these manipulations can be used to remodel first generation peptides , such as rp - 1 , sequence no . 3 , rp - 13 , sequence no . 14 , or other template peptides to further enhance their antimicrobial properties , and reduce their toxicity . conformation of peptides can also be significantly influenced by solvation . promising peptides identified can be solvated in tip3 water . solvent effects on molecular dynamic trajectories can be analyzed , and free energy perturbations used to assess solvent energies . selected solvents can be seeded with counter ions at various concentrations to investigate possible conformational changes in peptides induced by ionic interactions . furthermore , antimicrobial peptides likely interact with lipid bilayers . at the junction between the aqueous phase and the lipid bilayer , lipid polar head groups create a unique environment ; this environment can produce alterations in peptide conformation . lipid environments ( bilayers ) simulating bacterial or fungal cytoplasmic membranes ( e . g . phosphotidyl glycerol or ergesterol ) can be tested for interaction with peptides . two dimensional arrays of polar head groups will be made and immobilized . a uniform solvation field will be used on either side to simulate the aqueous and hydrocarbon environments . this will permit examination of the effect of charge array on peptide conformation in relationship to lipid interaction . the environment of the lipid bilayer can then be simulated by minimizing the dielectric constant , and removing distance - dependent terms in dielectric function . analysis of molecular dynamics can also be conducted to examine influence of lipid environments on peptide trajectory . comparative molecular field analysis ( comfa ) seeks predictions of biological activity from amino acid sequences . comfa can be conducted in two ways . first , all peptides can be equilibrated in a common extended conformation , and their side chains relaxed . a conventional comfa can then be constructed . this approach takes advantage of the fact that comfa does not appeal to any one mechanism of action , and seeks correlations between changes in structure and changes in biological activity . induced folding should be implicit in the comfa analysis . in a second method , each peptide can be modeled in the lowest energy conformer , and conformers can be used to construct potential fields to be analyzed by comfa . novel antimicrobial peptides suitable for use within the present invention can be synthesized directly , or , developed using combinatorial chemistry libraries ( silen , j , l , a . t . lu , d . w . solas , et al ., antimicrob . agents and chemother 42 : 1447 - 1453 ( 1998 )). briefly , combinatorial libraries can be made by using split - and - pool synthesis , as described by furka et al . ( furka , a ., f . sebestyen , m , asgedom , et al ., j . pept . protein res . 37 : 487 - 93 ( 1991 )). for example , beads are distributed into three reaction vessels , and an amino acid ( a , b , or c ) is coupled to the beads . the beads are pooled and redistributed to the same three reaction vessels , where the another amino acid is coupled , resulting in a dipeptide . this creates a set of 2 × 3 peptides : aa , ab , ac , etc . the process is repeated once more for example , to create a set of 27 tripeptides . a fundamental consequence of this approach is that there can be millions of beads used in the synthesis , with each bead carrying one unique compound that must be screened and identified . several approaches can be used to identify the structure of the compound carried on an individual bead . the compounds are tethered to the beads via uv photolabile linkers to allow release of the compound for assay ( holmes , c . p ., and d . g . jones , j . org . chem . 60 : 2318 - 2319 ( 1995 )). chemical identifier tags that can be detected more efficiently than the library compound that they represent , are added to the beads after each synthetic step . thus each bead carries a record of the synthesis of the compound also carried on that bead . by “ reading ” this tag , one can deduce the identity of the compound carried on the bead . numerous lags and analytical methods for reading these tags have been developed ( kerr , j . m ., s . c . banville , and r . n . zuckermann , j . am , chem . soc . 115 : 2529 - 2531 ( 1993 ); krchnak , v ., a . s . weichsel , d . cabel , et al ., pept . res . 8 : 198 - 205 ( 1995 ); needels , m . c ., d . g . jones , e . h . tate , g . l . et al ., proc . natl . acad . sci . usa ( 1993 )). jayawickreme et al . ( jayawickreme , c . k ., g . f . graminski , j . m . quillan , et al ., proc . natl . acad . sci . usa 91 : 1614 - 1618 ( 1994 )) presented the first evidence that single - bead activity from antimicrobial peptides could be detected on acid - cleavable beads in a bacterial cell lawn format assay . for sensitive screening the library of beads can be manually spread on 105 - μm - pore - size polyester mesh ( spectrum ) that is subsequently placed on a nitrocellulose membrane ( bio - rad ) resting on 0 . 4 % pbs agarose . following 30 min of photolysis , the mesh is covered with a layer 0 . 4 % lb agarose containing ˜ 10 7 cfu of b . subtilis and incubated overnight . compounds with antimicrobial activity are identified by zones of inhibited growth . beads located in the center of the zones are selected for decoding , by manually isolating them from the assay plates . the encoded peptide is re - synthesized and antimicrobial activity is confirmed by testing in a standard broth microdilution assay against b . subtilis or other target microorganism of interest . antimicrobial peptides desirably have minimum inhibitory concentrations against target microorganisms of & lt ; 32 μg / ml . promising metapeptides and their iterations designed from microbicidal templates such as those described ( e . g ., rp - 1 , sequence no . 3 , and rp - 13 , sequence no . 14 ) above can be synthesized by solid - phase fmoc ( 9 - fluorenyl - methyloxycarbonyl ) chemistry . the method is established , and has been extensively used in production of antimicrobial peptides . preliminary amino acid analysis can be performed on samples of material to estimate overall coupling efficiency and to confirm peptide composition . peptides can be cleaved and deprotected , and purified by gel filtration ( biogel p - 10 ) and reverse phase - hplc ( rp - hplc ). this latter instrument can be equipped with a variety of columns including c - 4 , c - 8 , and c - 18 silica - based reversed phases ( vydac ), and synthetic phases such as prp - 300 ( hamilton ) used to purify crude peptides on a preparative scale . following purification , peptides can be quantitated by amino acid analysis utilizing the pico tag system . molecular mass of each peptide can then be confirmed by fast atom bombardment or electrospray mass spectrometry . fourier - transform infrared spectroscopy ( ftir ) and molecular modeling can then be used to verify the predicted secondary structure of synthetic peptides . in some cases , conformational studies can be performed using analytical ultra - centrifugation using established stokes radius ( radius of gyration ) predictions to detect possible peptide - peptide interactions . this approach to peptide production and structural confirmation is highly efficient : a peptide can be synthesized , purified , and verified for sequence and conformation over a ten - day period . peptides are tested for antimicrobial potency and spectra against a panel of bacterial and fungal pathogens representing multiple antibiotic - resistance . this panel will include both clinical isolates as well as genetically - defined laboratory strains which exhibit mic values considered resistant to respective antibiotics . comparative control organisms to those assembled are summarized in table 1 below . a central goal is to correlate peptide structure with function to identify peptides with potent activity and reduced toxicity . criteria for success are two - to ten - fold increases in potency as compared with templates rp - 1 , sequence no . 3 , or rp - 13 , sequence no . 14 . in this regard , it is advantageous to assess the microbiostatic and the microbicidal activities of peptides , and to correlate these activities with mammalian cell toxicity . for all assays , organisms are cultured to logarithmic - phase per nccls guidelines . we have used the agar radial diffusion assay to determine antimicrobial activities of proteins against microbial pathogens in vitro . one million colony forming units are mixed into 10 ml ( i . e ., 1 × 10 5 cfu / ml ) of melted 1 % agarose ( in 10 mm nahpo 4 and cooled to 42 ° c .) containing minimal nutrient and adjusted to either ph 5 . 5 or ph 7 . 2 . the agar is solidified in culture dishes , and sample wells are formed . peptides at various concentrations are dissolved in 10 μl of 0 . 01 % acetic acid buffer ( ph 5 . 5 or 7 . 2 ), loaded into individual wells , and incubated at 37 ° c . for three hours . the plate is then overlayed with 1 % agarose containing nutrients and incubated ( 37 ° c ., for at least 24 hours ). peptides purified by rp - hplc lacking antimicrobial activity are tested in parallel as controls . zones of inhibition are measured to quantify antimicrobial activity . this assay will not distinguish between microbicidal and microbiostatic actions , but is highly sensitive to peptides with one or both functions . minimum inhibitory ( mic ) and microbicidal concentration ( mmc ) assays can also be performed , and may include a microvolume assay which is used to quantitatively screen peptides for antimicrobial activities . in this assay , suspensions of bacteria or fungi in appropriate media are placed in 100 - 200 μl final volumes in microtiter plates . standard ( uncoated ), poly - l - lysine coated , or otherwise positively charged plates may be used for these assays , since cationic peptides may bind to strongly anionic surfaces . purified peptides are then serially diluted , descending from 100 μl / ml . organisms are inoculated into wells to a concentration of 1 × 10 5 cfu / ml , and plates incubated ( 37 ° c ., for at least 24 hours ). well turbidities are then assessed visually and by spectrophotometry to quantify growth inhibition versus wells containing no peptide . mmcs are then determined by quantitative culture of mic wells exhibiting no visible growth . microbicidal kinetics of purified peptides are assessed by resuspending the peptides in 0 . 01 % acetic acid buffer ( ph 5 . 5 or 7 . 2 ), and organisms are resuspended to a concentration of 1 × 10 5 cfu / ml in 50 - 250 μl of sterile buffer containing peptide concentrations from 0 to 40 μl / ml . controls contain buffer alone or non - antimicrobial proteins and organism as above . mixtures are incubated at 37 ° c . for up to 48 hours , after which aliquots are quantitatively cultured and incubated for 24 to 48 hours . killing is expressed as decrease in logarithm 10 surviving cfu / ml . the limit of sensitivity in microbicidal assays is considered to be a 1 log reduction in viable cells . flow cytometry can also be used to examine kinetics and mechanisms of the action of the peptides on bacterial membrane integrity and energetics . peptides which differ in activity or specificity for their ability to depolarize and / or permeabilize microbial membranes can also be compared by analysis of membrane depolarization , and permeabilization . dioc 5 is a charged lipophilic dye which partitions into the cytoplasm , and is dependent on intact δψ for intracellular retention . organisms prepared as above are labeled in darkness for 30 minutes at about 20 ° c . in pbs containing 0 . 05 μm dioc 5 . organisms are resuspended to a concentration of 5 × 10 8 cfu / ml in k + mem containing an individual peptide , and incubated at 37 ° c . for flow cytometry , organisms are washed , sonicated , counted , and resuspended in k + mem buffer . reductions in mean dioc 5 fluorescence relative to controls are interpreted to represent loss of dioc 5 , indicating membrane depolarization . positive control cells exposed to valinomycin , as well as control cells not exposed to any peptides , are analyzed for dioc 5 fluorescence in parallel . propidium iodide is excluded from cells with normal membrane integrity , but enters cells permealized to molecules ≧ 2 nm in diameter , and can be stimulated to emit fluorescence at & gt ; 620 nm . organisms prepared as above are resuspended to a concentration of 5 × 10 8 cfu / ml in k + mem containing a selected peptide , and incubated for pre - selected times ( ranging from zero up to about 120 minutes ) at 37 ° c . cells are washed in fresh k − mem , sonicated , counted , and resuspended in kimem buffer containing 20 μm propidium iodide . control cells exposed to ethanol ( positive control for permeabilization ) are assessed for propidium iodide uptake in parallel . increases in mean propidium iodide fluorescence relative to control cells are interpreted to indicate increases in permeability . erythrocyte permeabilizing and hemolytic activities of peptides exhibiting potent microbicidal activity are also studied as indicators of potential in vivo toxicity . four - percent ( vol / vol ) of washed human erythrocytes ( in pbs alone , or in pbs plus 10 % heat - inactivated pnhs are incubated with selected peptides ranging in concentration up to 100 times greater than geometric mean mics . after 24 hours of incubation at 37 ° c ., erythrocyte permeabilization and hemolysis are determined spectrophotometrically . permeabilization and hemolysis will be compared to buffers alone , and with a triton x - i00 control ( 100 % hemolysis ). endothelial cell injury due to peptides is measured using a standard chromium ( 51 cr ) release assay , described in filler , s . g ., et al ., “ candida stimulates endothelial cell eicosanoid production ” j infect dis . 1991 , 164 : 928 - 935 ; filler , s . g ., et al ., “ mechanisms by which candida albicans mulates endothelial cell prostaglandin synthesis ” infect immun . 1994 , 62 : 1064 - 1069 ; filler , s . g ., et al ., “ penetration and damage of endothelial cells by candida albicans ” infect immun . 1995 , 63 : 976 - 983 . briefly , endothelial cells in 96 well tissue culture plates are incubated with na 51 cro 4 overnight . the following day , the unincorporated isotope tracer is removed by rinsing , and peptides in 0 . 01 % acetic acid buffer are added to the endothelial cells . control wells are exposed to buffer alone . after a predetermined incubation period , the medium is aspirated and the amount of 51 cr released into the medium is measured by scintillation . this approach facilitates toxicity screening of multiple peptides simultaneously , and minimizes the amount of peptide necessary for assessment . each antimicrobial and toxicity assay described above is performed independently a minimum of two times , and means ± standard error is calculated for each peptide under varying exposure conditions ( concentration or ph ) as compared with control samples . statistical analyses of microbicidal data are performed using student t test or kruskall - wallis rank sum analysis for non - parametric data , and corrected for multiple comparisons as appropriate . pmp - 2 structural determinants also have effects on neutrophil antimicrobial functions . the antimicrobial roles of neutrophils are critically linked to their capacity to respond to stimuli generated at sites of infection , undergo directed migration toward these sites , and execute antimicrobial functions once there . chemokines exhibiting the cystine - variable - cystine motif ( c - x - c ) are potent stimulants of these responses . peptides that selectively amplify this activity are not only integral to antimicrobial host defense , but they are also reasonable targets for study as novel anti - infective agents . pmp - 2 exhibits an n - terminal c - x - c motif . furthermore , our preliminary structural data indicate that pmp - 2 is an analogue of pf - 4 , a c - x - c chemokine known to amplify neutrophil chemotaxis and oxidative burst . moreover , our preliminary studies suggest that pmp - 2 amplifies in vitro neutrophil phagocytosis and intracellular killing of s . aureus . additionally , pmp - 2 exerts significantly greater microbicidal activity under conditions of ph consistent with those known to exist in the neutrophil acidic phagolysosome ( e . g ., ph 5 . 5 ). based on these rationale , we hypothesize that pmp - 2 has structural determinants that potentiate neutrophil functions crucial to antimicrobial host defense . alpha - chemokines such as pf - 4 and il - 8 are critical in amplifying the host inflammatory responses to infection . for instance , the concentration of macrophage - derived il - 8 is directly correlated with neutrophil number in human pleural effusions . furthermore , inhibition of il - 8 by monoclonal abs prevents neutrophil influx in lipopolysaccharide - induced pleuritis in rabbit models . these c - x - c chemokines also potentiate the microbicidal function of neutrophils . nibbering et . al . have noted that il - 8 potentiates non - oxidative intracellular killing of mycobacterium fortuitum by human granulocytes . additionally , il - 8 enhances in vitro neutrophil microbicidal activity against candida albicans . petersen et , al . have recently shown human pf - 4 acts along with other chemokines to potentiate neutrophil antimicrobial response . we have determined that rabbit pmp - 2 possesses a c - x - c motif homologous to that found in α - chemokines we have also determined that at least two microbicidal peptides from human platelets , hpf - 4 and hctap - iii , also contain this motif . hpf - 4 is chemotactic for neutrophils , and enhances neutrophil phagocytosis of microorganisms in vitro . an additional mechanism through which pmp - 2 may augment neutrophil microbicidal function lies in its enhanced microbicidal activities acidic ph , such as exist in the neutrophil phagolysosome . thus , pmp - 2 on the microorganism surface may have greater microbicidal activity once ingested by the neutrophil . results from our preliminary studies are consistent with this discovery . from these perspectives , pmp - 2 likely potentiates critical antimicrobial functions of neutrophils in addition to exerting direct antimicrobial activities . pmp - 2 contains a c - x - c motif , and exerts significantly greater microbicidal activity under conditions of ph that exist in the acidic phagolysosome of the neutrophil ( e . g . ph 5 . 5 ). the dominant thrombin - induced pmp ( tpmp - 1 ) tacks the c - x - c motif , and exhibits diminished microbicidal activity at ph 5 . 5 . therefore , evaluation of pmp - 2 domain influences on neutrophil function can permit assessment of the importance of both the c - x - c motif (± the e - l - r motif ; discussed below ) in the context of overall primary structure , as well as the relationship of ph and microbicidal activity in enhancing neutrophil antimicrobial functions . of interest is the influence of pmp - 2 domains on neutrophil antimicrobial function in vitro and the quantification of their effects on neutrophil chemotaxis , phagocytosis intracellular killing of microorganisms . pmp - 2 domains found to amplify phagocytosis or intracellular killing by neutrophils can be assessed for their influence on oxidative burst in neutrophils . pmp - 2 domain - mediated oxidative potentiation can be differentiated from non - oxidative neutrophil potentiation in this manner . results from these studies can be used to guide subsequent experiments to define the specificity of pmp - 2 determinants in augmenting neutrophil antimicrobial functions . a central goal of the differentiation of the effects of pmp - 2 structural determinants on neutrophil antimicrobial functions is the comparison of pmp - 2 domains that influence neutrophil microbicidal action with those that confer direct antimicrobial functions . the fact that c - x - c chemokines potentiate neutrophil antimicrobial functions has been well established . yet , how this occurs has been complicated by the recent discovery of two distinct c - x - c receptors , cxcri and cxcr2 , co - expressed on mammalian neutrophils . each of these receptors is a 7 - transmembrane domain protein functionally coupled to g protein activation . although both receptors bind il - 8 avidly , they differ in selectivity for other c - x - c chemokines , such as pf - 4 . the principal difference in structure between il - 8 and pf - 4 is a n - terminal glutamic acid - leucine - arginine ( e - l - r ) motif that immediately precedes the initial cystine residue in the c - x - c motif of il - 8 . interestingly , il - 8 is considered the only relevant ligand for cxcri . activation of neutrophils via the cxcri receptor also requires presence of a basic amino acid determinant in the sixth position after the second c - x - c motif cysteine residue . il - 8 exhibits this determinant , but pf - 4 does not . this fact has been suggested as a principal mediator of cxcri specificity . based on the fact that pmp - 2 exhibits an n - terminal c - x - c motif homologous with that of il - 8 , and that it is an analogue of rpf - 4 known to induce neutrophil chemotactic response , we hypothesize that pmp - 2 stimulates neutrophil chemotaxis . however , pmp - 2 lacks the e - l - r and the basic sixth - position motifs ( pmp - 2 has leucine in residue position 21 ) linked to cxcri specificity . thus , we further hypothesize that pmp - 2 stimulation of neutrophil chemotaxis specifically occurs through the cxcr2 receptor . thus , synthetic domains of pmp - 2 can be constructed that do or do not have the e - l - r and / or basic sixth residue motifs believed to interact specifically with the cxcri receptor . this approach can define whether pmp - 2 domains or other peptides influence neutrophil antimicrobial function via the cxcr1 or cxcr2 receptor . rabbit and human neutrophil responses to pmp - 2 structural domains ± e - l - r and / or basic residue motifs can be compared to define species specificity of these peptides . in addition to defining the specificity with which pmp - 2 determinants influence crucial neutrophil antimicrobial functions , such in vitro studies can facilitate future investigations to define the role of pmps in host defense in vivo . since such in vivo studies cannot initially be performed in humans , pmp - 2 can yield information applicable to these future studies using rabbit models of infection . in investigation of the influence and specificity of pmp - 2 domain peptides on neutrophil chemotaxis in vitro , rabbit neutrophils can be isolated from fresh whole blood and labeled with 51 cr . to conserve peptide , a micro - well assay can be used that is modified from those described by boyden and schroder . in these assays , 2 . 5 × 10 6 neutrophils are placed in the upper compartment of a chemotaxis microchamber ( neuroprobe ), separated from a lower chamber by a membrane having a 3 μm pore size . purified peptide ( 1 - 5 μg ) in 2 mm acetate buffer is then placed in the lower compartments . appropriate positive controls assessed in parallel can be n - f - met - leu - phe , il - 8 , rabbit or human pf - 4 , or pmp - 2 in the same buffer , or buffer alone . chambers are then incubated for 1 hr at 37 ° c . in 5 % c0 2 . upper chambers are removed , rinsed extensively , and counted by scintillation relative to respective controls : lower - compartment fluid ; rinses of the upper or lower compartment ; and a control for neutrophil specific activity . the number of neutrophils present in the upper and lower compartments can be interpreted in the context of these controls . mean standard error of the mean ( sem ) numbers of cells in each compartment can be determined and compared for each stimulus . each condition is tested in triplicate , including both experimental and control peptides . if a peptide increases migration of neutrophils , chemokinesis can be differentiated from chemotaxis using a modification of the checkerboard assay described by cutler . for these studies , chemotactic gradients can be eliminated by placing purified peptide in the upper compartments along with neutrophils . these assays are performed under incubation conditions (& lt ; 2 hr ) to prevent peptide diffusion beyond specified compartments . this could cause neutrophils responding chemotactically to cease or reverse direction , artificially reducing peptide - mediated neutrophil chemotaxis . neutrophil migration is assessed as above . a decrease in the magnitude of neutrophil migration is interpreted to indicate that the peptide is chemotactic for neutrophils . alternatively , no change in mean neutrophil migration indicates that the peptide upregulates neutrophil chemokinesis . results from chemotaxis studies above can be used to guide subsequent experiments to define the specificity of pmp - 2 determinants in neutrophil modulation , as outlined below : 1 . pmp - 2 domains stimulating neutrophil chemotactic response can be for tested for activity in the presence and absence of monoclonal ab directed against the cxcr1 receptor , or cxcr2 receptor , or both inhibition or reduction of pmp - 2 domain stimulation of neutrophil chemotaxis under these conditions will define the specificity of this effect to the cxcr1 or cxcr2 receptors , or to a mechanism that is independent of these receptors ( e . g . peptide activity in the presence of both monoclonal abs ). additionally , analogues of selected , antimicrobial peptides can be synthesized with either the e - l - r or basic sixth residue motifs , or both . resulting alterations of cxcr1 vs . cxcr2 peptide specificity in neutrophil chemotaxis provide further evidence for engineered selectivity of pmp - 2 determinants for specific neutrophil chemotactic receptors . 2 . likewise , selected pmp - 2 domains or other peptides that fail to prompt neutrophil chemotaxis can be synthesized as analogues that contain the e - l - r and / or basic sixth residue motifs . the conversion of an inactive peptide to one that stimulates neutrophil chemotaxis is interpreted as evidence that it lacks these specific structural motifs corresponding to its inherent selectivity in neutrophil stimulation . 3 . the influence of peptides and / or their analogues described above on human neutrophils can be assessed . these studies will lend insights into the specificity of peptide determinants or analogues on human neutrophils that co - express the cxcr1 and cxcr2 receptors . results from these studies can be used to guide future efforts to create novel therapeutics that exert selective modulatory effects on human neutrophils . additionally , peptide analogues can be achieved using a combinatorial method , and therefore highly efficient with regard to both time and expense . it is important to note that it is also possible that peptides will act via mechanisms not previously described . this possibility underscores a major advantage of the proposed approach , which is intentionally not biased to identify any single specificity . thus , the proposed approaches may also reveal novel interactions between peptides and neutrophils . flow cytometric analysis of neutrophil antimicrobial functions in vitro can be evaluated using contemporary flow cytometry techniques . use of flow cytometry has the advantages of analyzing the characteristics of individual cells , as well as the interactions between a large number of neutrophils and microorganisms . this methodology facilitates the rapid differentiation of subpopulations of neutrophils that have distinct antimicrobial responses . in addition , flow cytometry provides high specificity and quantitative precision . flow cytometric experiments can be performed using a facscan ( becton dickinson ) device when a single laser stimulation is sufficient . when multiple excitation wavelengths are required , the dual laser facstar iv ( becton dickinson ) can be used . influence of synthetic peptides on microorganism phagocytosis by neutrophils in vitro can be evaluated by multicolor flow cytometry . this can be done from two perspectives : i ) effect of microorganism exposure to peptide on subsequent neutrophil phagocytosis ; and ii ) effect of peptide priming of neutrophils on subsequent microorganism phagocytosis . target organisms in these studies are control strains , and neutrophils treated with cytochalasin d serve as phagocytosis - negative controls . microbial cells are fluorescence - labeled by incubation in appropriate medium containing 20 μm bis - carboxyethyl - carboxyfluorescein pentaacetoxymethylester ( bcecf - am , calbiochem ). bcecf - am diffuses into microorganisms , where it is cleaved by cytoplasmic esterases to yield the membrane - impermeable fluorescent marker bis - carboxyethyl - carboxyfluorescein ( bcecf ). bcecf is retained by viable organisms , thus serving as a microorganism - specific label . alternatively , neutrophils can be labeled in rpmi medium containing 5 μg / ml phycoerythrin ( pe )- conjugated monoclonal antibody my - 7 ( coulter instruments ; 45 min , 20 ° c .). my - 7 is directed against the neutrophil cd - 13 surface antigen . therefore , pe - labeled neutrophils are readily distinguishable from bcecf - labeled microorganisms . neither bcecf nor my - 7 labeling methods significantly alter microorganism or neutrophil physiology , respectively , as determined in previous studies . labeled microorganisms are then washed and suspended in 2 mm acetate buffer ( ph 5 . 5 or 7 . 2 ). peptide is added to labeled microorganism suspensions to achieve the following conditions : i ) final inocula of 10 6 cfu / ml ; and ii ) final sub - lethal peptide concentrations ranging from 0 . 5 to 5 μg / ml . to conserve peptides , volumes are 500 μl . incubation is initiated by the addition of peptide to the microbial inoculum , and continued at 37 ° c . at predetermined timepoints ( 0 , 15 , 30 , 60 , and 120 minutes ), 100 μl aliquots are washed in rpmi to remove excess peptide organisms are then assessed to ensure they have retained the bcecf label following peptide exposure . for phagocytosis assays , labeled , peptide - exposed microorganisms are mixed with neutrophils in rpmi ± 10 % pooled normal serum ( pnrs ) to achieve a neutrophil - to - target cell ratio of 1 : 100 . three samples of cells prepared as above are included in each phagocytosis assay : 1 ) labeled microorganisms in flow buffer alone ( control for bcecf label specificity and intensity ); 2 ) labeled neutrophils in flow buffer alone ( control for my - 7 label specificity and intensity ); and 3 ) labeled microorganisms mixed with labeled neutrophils . mixtures will be incubated for 0 , 15 , 30 , 60 , or 120 min at 37 ° c . with agitation . to differentiate microorganism binding from phagocytosis , mixtures are cooled on ice to prevent further phagocytosis , and texas red conjugated monoclonal antibody directed against respective organisms ( e . g ., anti - s . aureus protein a ; immunosys ) is added to samples containing neutrophil - organism mixtures . therefore , fluorescein emission ( 520 nm ) corresponds to phagocytized organisms , while texas red emission ( 620 nm ) specifies extracellular organisms when stimulated at 460 and 580 nm , respectively . furthermore , fluorescein and texas red emissions are distinguishable from that of phycoerythrin - labeled neutrophils ( 575 nm ). organisms which do not retain the bcecf label are gated out of data in all phagocytosis studies . we appropriately monitor forward and 90 ° light scatter to minimize the collection of artifactual data due to cell clumping . in parallel , 100 μl aliquots are removed and analyzed by flow cytometry to determine microorganism viability ( see below ). additionally , phagocytic assays are performed microscopically to confirm flow cytometric data . these controls allow us to adjust for underestimates in phagocytosis that may occur via microorganism loss of bcecf due to killing that may occur at later time points . as an alternative approach to differentiating ingested vs . neutrophil - bound organisms , the fluorescence of extracellular microorganisms labeled with bcecf can be quenched by crystal violet , while fluorescence of those within neutrophils is unchanged . additionally , fluorochrome - quenching reagents ( molecular probes ) that will de - fluoresce extracellular organisms , or use of fluorochromes with differential emission spectra within the neutrophil acidic phagolysosome ( e . g ., snarf ; molecular probes ) can also distinguish pathogen binding vs . phagocytosis . in order to determine the influence of peptides on intracellular killing of microorganisms by neutrophils , coincident with phagocytosis assays above ( 0 , 15 , 30 , 60 , and 120 minutes ), 100 μl aliquots from each phagocytic assay sample can be processed to quantify intracellular killing . neutrophils are lysed in cold distilled water and sonication , and microorganism survival assessed by flow cytometry . as above , viable microorganisms retain the bcecf label , while killed organisms lose the fluorescent label . thus , microorganisms released by neutrophil lysis can be gated into one of two populations based on fluorescence to quantify : i ) viable , fluorescent cells , or ii ) non - viable , non - fluorescent cells . interpretation of results in the context of control neutrophil killing of organisms permits comparison of the influence of peptide exposure ( either microorganism , or neutrophil , or both ) on additivity vs . potentiation of intracellular killing within neutrophils . in parallel , aliquots from each sample will be diluted into sodium polyanethol sulfonate buffer to discontinue peptide - mediated killing , and quantitatively cultured to corroborate flow cytometry analyses of intracellular killing . note that peptides , analogues thereof ( see above ), and pmp - 2 are compared for relative influences on rabbit and human neutrophil intracellular killing of pathogens . thus , specific determinants integral to or selective for potentiation of neutrophil intracellular killing can be identified for further characterization as outlined below . if a peptides is found to potentiate neutrophil phagocytosis or intracellular killing of microorganisms , it can be determined whether oxidative burst is linked to this effect . the generation of reactive oxygen intermediates such as superoxide anion is considered essential to neutrophil microbicidal potency . hydroethidine ( he ; molecular probes ) can be used to quantify the influence of peptide on generation of superoxide anion by neutrophils . neutrophils accumulate he in the cytoplasm ; it is oxidized to ethidium bromide by superoxide anion . thus , ethidium bromide excitation at 488 nm yields 590 nm emission correlating with superoxide anion production , and can be used as detailed below . neutrophils isolated as above can be labeled by incubation in rpmi containing 1 μm he for 15 minutes at 37 ° c . residual he is washed away , and neutrophils are exposed to 1 - 5 μg of selected pmp - 2 domains for predetermined times ( 0 , 15 , 30 , 60 , or 120 mins ) at 37 ° c . in rpme ± 10 % homologous pooled normal serum . the principal variables in these experiments are : i ) peptides with different structures ( e . g ., ± c - x - c motif ); ii ) varying durations and concentrations of neutrophil exposure to peptides ; and iii ) neutrophil priming by peptide followed by exposure to microorganisms . for these experiments , peptides can be selected that enhance microorganism phagocytosis and / or intracellular killing by neutrophils identified above . each experiment includes labeled neutrophils in buffer alone ( to control for background superoxide anion levels ) in comparison to neutrophils exposed to selected peptides , with or without organisms . calibration curves based on flow cytometric data from known superoxide concentrations using xanthine oxidase assays are used to estimate the absolute superoxide anion levels within neutrophils . additionally , selected peptide analogues above are used to ascertain the specificity with which they stimulate neutrophil oxidative burst . examples of novel antimicrobial peptides that act directly on pathogens to exert microbicidal or tvhcrobiostatic activity three basic groups can be categorized based on a source and / or design approach : a . rational peptides ( rp ) b . fragment peptides ( fx ) c . consensus peptides ( cs ) these groups are described in the present application ; they are not recognized categorizations . the majority of peptide sequences listed herein fall into one of these groups . examples of novel antimicrobial peptides that potentiate one or more antimicrobial acnvmes of leukocytes these peptides are derived from domains found in pmps or other molecules that are either known to or predicted to stimulate one or more of the inherent antimicrobial functions of leukocytes such as neutrophils , monocytes , macrophages , and / or lymphocytes . example sequences in this category are : variants of the above sequences or those present in fig1 , which have the described modifications in their glu - leu - arg ( elr ) and / or sixth basic residue components may also be suitable . examples include : further examples include any extension , truncation , substitution , retromerization , fusion , or conformer restriction of these peptides , related templates , or their iterations derived as discussed above . note that the full - length pmp - 2 is also included in this category by definition of its demonstrated inherent leukocyte potentiating properties as is illustrated in fig1 , showing the chemotactic index for rabbit pmp - 2 [ rpmp - 2 ]. examples of novel antimicrobial peptide mosaics that combine the above activities these include logical and / or strategic mosaic constructs of the above peptides in the categories above . conceptually , these mosaic peptides will consist of one or more domains exerting direct microbicidal and / or microbiostatic activity linked or otherwise combined with one or more domains exerting leukocyte potentiating activities . examples ( only a few of the logical constructs achievable from combining the above peptides ) are listed below : other examples of mosaic constructs include any extension , truncation , substitution , retromerization , fusion , or conformer restriction of these peptides , related templates , or their iterations derived as outlined herein . the antimicrobial peptides and derived metapeptides active alone or in combination with other agents against organisms such as bacteria and fungi can thus comprise peptides having amino acid sequences selected from the group consisting essentially of a first peptide template xzbzbxbxb and derivatives thereof selected from the group consisting of xzbbzbxbxb , bxzxb , bxzxzxb , xbbxzxbbx , and bbxzbbxz , and a second peptide template xbbxx and derivatives thereof selected from the group consisting of xbbxbbx , xbbxxbbx , bxxbxxb , xbbzxx , xbbzxxbb , and xbbzxxbbxxzbbx . b can be , for example , at least one positively charged amino acid ; x can be , for example , at least one non - polar , hydrophobic amino acid ; and z can be , for example , at least one aromatic amino acid . for example , b can be selected from the group of amino acids consisting of lysine , arginine , histidine , and combinations thereof ; x can be selected from the group of amino acids consisting of leucine , isoleucine , alanine , valine , and combinations thereof ; and z can be selected from the group of amino acids consisting of phenylalanine , tryptophan , tyrosine and combinations thereof . other amino acids , including glutamine , asparagine , proline , cystine , aspartic acid , glutamic acid , glycine , methionine , serine and threonine , may be interplaced within these primary structural motifs in a given case . despite these variations , the disclosed peptides will adhere to the general structural motifs indicated , thereby preserving their uniqueness . the first peptide template xzbzbxbxb corresponds to the peptide template rp - 1 , sequence no . 3 ; and the second peptide template xbbxx corresponds to the peptide template rp - 13 , sequence no . 14 . the antimicrobial peptides and derived metapeptides that potentiate antimicrobial activity of leukocytes and are active alone or in combination with other agents directly against organisms such as bacteria and fungi can thus comprise peptides having ammo acid sequences selected from the group consisting essentially of combined amino acid sequences al and la , wherein a represents an antimicrobial domain consisting essentially of a first peptide template xzbzbxbxb and derivatives thereof selected from the group consisting of xzbbzbxbxb , bxzxb , bxzxzxb , xbbxzxbbx , and bbxzbbxz , and a second peptide template xbbxx and derivatives thereof selected from the group consisting of xbbxbbx , xbbxxbbx , bxxbxxb , xbbzxx , xbbzxxbb , and xbbzxxbbxxzbbx and l represents a leukocyte potentiating domain consisting essentially of jjjcjcjjjjjj , and j is selected from x , z and b . thus , an example of al can be : xzbzbxbxbjjjcjcjjjjjj ; and an example of la can be : jjjcjcjjjjjjxzbzbxbxb . the method for developing the novel antimicrobial peptides according to the principles of the invention is summarized in the flow chart shown in fig3 . initially , the antimicrobial peptide database is inspected visually , and the literature is reviewed , utilizing comparative sequence techniques , in order to identify likely antimicrobial peptide domains . cidokinins ( peptide domains associated with antimicrobial activity ) and toxokinins ( peptide domains associated with mammalian cell toxicity ) are organized and domains and structural motifs are identified , and modeled to maximize the cidokinins and minimize the toxokinins similarly , immunopotentiating and directly microbicidal peptides may be derived in this manner . from this modeling , template designs such as rp - 1 ( sequence no . 3 ), rp - 13 ( sequence no . 14 ), or others are devised , and in turn are used for remodeling , by testing for toxicity , structure and antimicrobial activity , to identify promising candidates for further evaluation in vivo . the antimicrobial peptides of the invention can include truncations , extensions , combinations , mosaics , or fusions of any of the above template peptides ( e . g ., pmp - 2 , sequence no . 1 ), analogues derived from the approaches contained herein ( e . g ., rp - 1 or sequence no . 3 ), or modified analogues thereof as described above . examples of such truncation , extension , combination , mosaic , and / or fusion sequences are described below : pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ) is a 74 residue ( amino acids 1 - 74 ) antimicrobial peptide . novel antimicrobial peptides may be derived from truncation of pmp - 2 ( sequence no . 1 ), or any of the peptides or their derivatives described herein . for example , the novel effective antimicrobial peptide fx , sequence no . 30 , is a truncation of pmp - 2 , sequence no . 1 , utilizing residues 45 - 74 : another novel effective antimicrobial peptide resulting from truncation of pmp - 2 , sequence no . 1 , is pmp - 2 residues 28 - 74 ( f28 - 74 , sequence no . 31 , with 47 residues ; linear / fold ; internal fragment ) having the following sequence : another novel effective antimicrobial peptide that is a truncation fragment of pmp - 2 , sequence no . 1 , is pmp - 2 residues 43 - 74 ( f43 - 74 , sequence no . 32 , with 32 residues ; linear ; internal fragment ) having the following sequence : another novel effective antimicrobial peptide derived by truncation of pmp - 2 , sequence no . 1 , is pmp - 2 residues 59 - 74 ( f59 - 74 , sequence no . 33 , with 16 residues ; linear ; internal fragment ): rp - 1 ( sequence no . 3 ) is an 18 residue antimicrobial peptide . novel antimicrobial peptides may be derived from extension of rp - 1 or any of the other peptides , fragments , or derivatives described herein . for example , the novel antimicrobial peptide rp - 1 extension by rp - 1 residues 1 - 10 ( rp - 1 + rp - 1 - 10 , sequence no . 34 , having 28 residues ; linear ; internal fragment ) has the following sequence : rp - 1 ( sequence . no . 3 ) is an 18 residue antimicrobial peptide . rp - 13 ( sequence no . 14 ) is a 17 residue antimicrobial peptide . novel antimicrobial peptides may be derived from combination of rp - 1 with rp - 13 or any of the other peptides , fragments , or derivatives described herein . for example , the novel antimicrobial peptide rp - 1 combination with rp - 13 ( rp - 1 : rp - 13 , sequence no . 35 , with 35 residues ; linear ; internal fragment ) has the following sequence : any of the truncations , extensions , or combinations of any of the above peptides may occur in any orientation . for example , an n - terminal portion of rp - 1 ( sequence no . 3 ) may be combined with a c - terminal portion of rp - 13 . alternatively , a c - terminal portion of rp - 1 may be combined with an n - terminal portion of rp - 13 . likewise , other internal fragments may be oriented either n - or c - terminally in any of the above modifications . further examples of the modifications that can be made to promising peptides are set forth below , beginning with various peptides as the parent template to which modifications are made : the antimicrobial peptides of the invention can be utilized as 1 ) individual antimicrobial agents , 2 ) antimicrobial agents in combination with other antimicrobial peptides herein , 3 ) agents that enhance , potentiate , or restore efficacy of conventional antimicrobials , such as fluoroquinolones , tetracyclines , macrolides , beta - lactams , aminoglycosides , anti - metabolites , azoles , polyenes , or anti - virals , 4 ) agents that enhance the antimicrobial functions of leukocytes such as neutrophils , 5 ) prophylactic agents for the prevention of infectious diseases , 6 ) antimicrobial components of vascular catheters or indwelling prosthetic devices , 7 ) disinfectants or preservatives for use in foods , cosmetics , contact lens solutions , and the like , and 8 ) agents to improve efficiency of molecular biology techniques ( e . g ., transformation ). the novel antimicrobial peptides of the invention can , for example , be formulated in a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier , to form i ) powdered or liquid formulations in buffers suitable for intravenous administration , 2 ) solid or liquid formulations for oral administration , 3 ) opthalmalogic solutions or ointments , 4 ) topical solutions or ointments , 5 ) aerosolized suspensions , lavage , or inhalation formulation , and 6 ) any combination of the above with medical instrumentation or materials . as an example , the mean activity of several peptides according to the invention , in various pharmaceutically acceptable carrier solutions , against staphylococcus aureus and salmonella typhimurium , is illustrated in fig4 to 11 . d . determination of antimicrobial peptide in vitro activity by using an agarose radial diffusion assay the following assay is designed to measure the relative antimicrobial activity of peptides by determining zones of growth inhibition . stock concentrations of antimicrobial peptides are prepared at 1 mg / ml in 0 . 01 % acetic acid are adjusted to ph 7 . 2 . molecular grade agarose ( 1 . 0 %) in 10 mm nah 2 po 4 h 2 o is autoclaved for 15 minutes at 121 ° c ., then held in a waterbath set at 48 ° c . until use . mueller hinton ii overlay agarose is prepared by adding molecular grade agarose to mueller hinton ii broth at a final concentration of 1 . 0 %, autoclaving for 10 minutes at 121 ° c ., then holding at 48 ° c . until use . trypticase soy broth ( tsb ) ( 10 ml ) is inoculated with overnight growth of the test organism and incubated three to six hours until organism reaches log phase . the cells are collected by centrifugation , washed in pbs , then 0 . 01 % acetic acid adjusted to ph 7 . 2 . the pellet is resuspended in tsb and standardized to a 0 . 5 mcfarland turbidity standard . a 10 μl aliquot of the inoculum is added to 10 ml of 1 . 0 % molecular grade agarose cooled to 48 ° c . resulting in a final inoculum concentration of 5 × 10 5 cfu / ml . the suspension is poured into a 15 × 100 mm petri dish and allowed to solidify . after solidification has occurred , five 4 mm diameter wells are bored into the agarose . the central well is used as the acetic acid control while 10 μl of peptide stock solution is added to each of the other well resulting in a final concentration of 10 μg peptide / well . the plates are incubated upright for three hours at 37 ° c ., then overlaid with 10 ml of mueller hinton ii agarose . after the overlay solidifies , the plates are inverted and incubated overnight at 37 ° c . zones of growth inhibition are measured . the larger the zone size , the greater the antimicrobial activity of the peptide . the lack of a zone is an indication of no antimicrobial activity against the target organism . e . investigation of the acute toxicity of antimicrobial peptides in a murine model when administered by a single intravenous , intraperitoneal . intramuscular or subcutaneous injection the acute toxicity of the antimicrobial peptides can be determined by dosing mice by intravenous ( iv ), intraperitoneal ( ip . ), intramuscular ( im .) or subcutaneous ( sc .) injection . the highest dose for which the animals show no signs is considered to be the maximum tolerable does ( mtd ). swiss cd1 icrbr male mice of approximately 5 - 6 weeks of age are weighed and randomized into groups of four mice . the antimicrobial peptide test article is administered as a single iv , sc ., im or ip injection to the first mouse in each group then the animal is observed for 10 to 30 min . based on the mortality and morbidity outcome of this administration , the test article dose , dose volume and route of administration is reassessed before the test article is administrated to the next animal . the individual dose volume for administration will fall within the range of 5 - 15 ml / kg with the actual dose administered based on the weight of each animal on the day of the experiment . each mouse is to be observed 0 to 30 min post administration and again at 1 - 2 , 4 - 6 and 24 hours . surviving mice are observed once daily for the next 6 days . observations include the activity level of the mouse as well as any physical side effects of the dose . the maximum tolerable dose ( mtd ) in mg / kg is the concentration of peptide for which no observable adverse effect in noted . antimicrobial peptides with mtd values of & gt ; 40 mg / kg are preferred . it will be apparent from the foregoing that while particular forms of the invention have been illustrated and described , various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .	2
fig1 extensively shows schematized curves of speed signals of an output train . each of the curves shown is a pressure curve p_kab , p_kzu of an engaging or of a disengaging shifting element wherein , especially in the pressure curve p_kzu of the engaging shifting element , an adaptation band 1 is shown for an adaptation of a rapid filling time t_sf during a filling phase of the engaging shifting element . in the adaptation that follows , described in detail by way of example of the rapid filling time t_sf , for compensation of divergences found during the adaptation of actual values n_ab_ist , n_t_ist of an output speed and / or of a turbine speed from a determined nominal value curve n_ab_soil , n_t_soll , the output speed and / or the turbine speed within the adaptation band 1 are changed so that the divergences found are neutralized . at the same time , the rapid filling time t_sf for adjusting an optimal filling of the shifting element is gradually adapted by an offset value t_tsfhainc , t_zwtsfinc , t_tsfraubinc ; t_tsfrainc . in addition is shown one other adaptation band 2 in the pressure curve k_ab , p_kzu of the engaging element within which a charge pressure p_f is adapted for compensation of divergences of the actual value curve n_ab_ist , n_t_ist of the output speed and / or of the turbine speed from a determined nominal value curve n_ab_soll , n_t_soll . here takes place for adjustment of an optimal filling of the shifting element , a gradual adaptation of the charge pressure p_f by an offset value p_pfhainc , p_zwpfinc , p_pfrauebinc , p_pfrainc . fig2 shows a nominal value curve n_ab_soll , n_t_soil of the output speed and of the turbine speed which is determined with the aid of measured values or actual values n_ab_ist , n_t_ist of the output speed and of the turbine speed via a calculation pattern stored in an electronic unit of the transmission . herebelow the cycle of the inventive method is described with the aid of the output speed n_ab wherein the described cycle obviously is to be applied also to an observation of the turbine speed n_t , of a web speed of an acceleration signal , or of any other speed signal of the output train . to determine the nominal curve n_ab_soll of the output speed , the speed signal of the output speed n_ab is continuously observed during a certain period such as 500 ms . during the time period or the defined time window , a measurement is carried out at uniform intervals such as of 10 ms . in each of said measurements is determined an actual value n_ab_ist of the output speed . during the whole space of time thus result 50 actual values n_ab_ist of the output speed which are used for calculating the nominal value curve n_ab_soil of the output speed . by means of this nominal value curve n_ab_soil of the output speed is precalculated for a certain time , the nominal value curve n_ab_soil of the output speed for a determined period in the future . the precalculated time curve n_ab_soil or nominal curve represents a curve averaged via a calculation pattern of the actual values of the speed signal n_ab_ist of the output train used to determine said nominal value curve , there being taken as base in the precalculation as calculation pattern in the instant embodiment , an extrapolation process . as shown in fig2 the measurement of the output speed n_ab is carried out in the time period between the moment t_ 50 and the moment t_ 0 . the nominal value curve n_ab_soll of the output speed is precalculated , for example , up to one other moment t_ 1 and compared with one value of the output speed n_ab measured at this moment . thus is evaluated an already existing sensor signal , namely , one of the already mentioned output speed n_ab , from which can be determined a curve foreseeable in time . if measured and calculated values of the output speed n_ab coincide , then there is no interference of the speed signal . but if a sufficiently great divergence between measured and calculated value is found , it is to be assumed that an acceleration change or a change of the output speed n_ab has taken place . by assessing when , how long , to what extent and with what sign the acceleration change has occurred , it is possible to conclude which event has led to the acceleration change . for example , if a measured value is below the calculated value , then what exists is a deceleration of the vehicle which in the first place could have different causes . but when this occurs precisely at the end of the rapid filling phase of the engaging clutch , it can be assumed that the rapid filling time t_sf for this clutch and for the actual operating point was set too long . on the contrary , if the measured value of the output speed n_ab_ist is above the extrapolated value , for example , at a quite specific moment at the end of the grinding phase of a pull upshift , then this indicates a closing ramp of the engaging clutch that has started too soon . in each case , a measured value strongly diverging from the extrapolated value should not be used , or used only with limitation , for further calculation of the nominal value curve n_ab_soll . this limitation can obviously be variably established for the existing utilization . the straight line shown in fig2 reproduces a relatively constant engine and output torque where accelerator pedal movements during the gear shift are mostly disregarded . but such accelerator pedal movements have , as a consequence of the torque changes , slight changes in the output speed gradient which lead to an inaccurate extrapolation . but since the influence of the torque upon the output speed gradient is known at all operating points , it is possible during load changes to promptly correct the calculation of the nominal value curve n_ab_soll or of the compensation straight lines . to be able to counteract or neutralize divergences or speed differences of the actual value curve n_ab_ist of the output speed from the nominal value curve n_ab_soll which are determined via the nominal value curve n_ab_soll of he output speed , an adaptation of a rapid filling time , shown in fig3 in a flow chart , is carried out . as is to be understood from fig3 different starting criteria are first analyzed in a starting module sm 1 , the adaptation of the rapid filling time t_sf being started in the presence of the starting criteria . the separate starting criteria will be discussed in detail in the description of fig6 . during the adaptation of the rapid filling time t_sf , the rapid filing time t_sf , to determine an optimal filling of the shifting element , is gradually lengthened or shortened by an offset value t - tsfhainc , t_zwtsfinc , t_tsfraubinc , t_tsfrainc , the shifting element being controlled with a rapid filling test pulse as interference signal during the adaptation of the rapid filling time t_sf , and a rapid filling test pulse represents a loading of a shifting element with a preset rapid filling pulse pressure over a preset rapid filling pulse time t_p . the shifting element is first controlled with a first rapid filling test pulse p 1 and , in case of a speed difference nd_ab , nd_t found between the actual value n_ab_ist of the output speed or the actual value n_t_ist of the turbine speed and the nominal value curve n_ab_soll , n_t_soll which speed difference is smaller than a lower threshold value nd_tsfpuls of a first tolerance band , the rapid filling time t_p is lengthened by an offset value t_tsfhainc and the shifting element is again loaded with the first rapid filling test pulse p 1 over the correspondingly increased actual rapid filling pulse time t_sf . in a speed difference nd_ab found after the loading of the shifting element with the first rapid filling test pulse p 1 which is greater than an upper threshold value nd_tsfpulszw of the tolerance band , the rapid filling pulse time t sf is reduced by an offset value t_zwtsfinc and the shifting element again is loaded with the first rapid filling test pulse p 1 over the correspondingly reduced rapid filling time t_p . on the contrary , after the loading of the shifting element with the first rapid filling test pulse p 1 , if a speed difference nd_ab of the output speed is established which is greater than the lower threshold value nd_tsfpuls and smaller than the upper threshold value nd_tsfpulszw , an expected reaction is detected in the speed curve . to confirm this information , the shifting element is loaded with a second rapid filling test pulse p 2 over the actual rapid filling pulse time t_p of the first rapid filling test pulse p 1 . if an evaluation of the pulse test with the rapid filling test pulse p 2 results in that a speed difference n_ab found after the loading or control of the shifting element with the second rapid filling test pulse p 2 is lower than the threshold value nd_tsfpuls , a jump back is made again in the adaptation to before the first rapid filling test pulse p 1 and again controlled with the first rapid filling test pulse p 1 over the actually adjusted rapid filling pulse time t_p . however , during the evaluation after the loading of the shifting element with the second rapid filling test pulse p 3 , if it is found that a speed difference nd_ab of the output speed is higher than the threshold value nd_tsfpuls , the actual rapid filling pulse time t_p is reduced by an offset value t_tsfrauebinc and the shifting element is loaded with a third rapid filling pulse p 3 over the shortened actual rapid filling pulse time t_p . the actual rapid filling pulse time t_p is stored as rapid filling time t_sf in an intermediate memory which , in the instant embodiment , is situated in the electronic control unit of the transmission . on the contrary , the actual rapid filling pulse time t_p is reduced by an offset value t_sfrainc and the shifting element is loaded with the third rapid filling test pulse p 3 over the re - adapted actual rapid filling pulse time t_p when during a control of the shifting element with the third rapid filling test pulse p 3 it is found that a speed difference nd_ab is higher than the threshold value nd_tsfpuls . however , when after the loading of the shifting element with the third rapid filling test pulse p 3 a speed difference nd_ab of the output speed is found which is lower than the threshold value nd_tsfpuls , the shifting element is controlled with a fourth rapid filling test pulse p 4 over the actual rapid filling pulse time t_p . if an evaluation of the fourth pulse test results in that a speed difference found after the control of the shifting element with the fourth rapid filling test pulse p 4 is higher than a threshold value nd_tsfpuls , the actual rapid filling time t_p is reduced by an offset value t_sfrainc and a jump back is made during the adaptation to before the third rapid filling test pulse p 3 . the shifting element is again loaded with the third rapid filling test pulse p 3 over the actual rapid filling pulse time t_p reduced after loading of the shifting element with the fourth rapid filling test pulse p 4 . after the loading of the shifting element with the fourth rapid filling test pulse p 4 , if a speed difference nd_ab of the output speed is found which is lower than the threshold value nd_tsfpuls , the actual rapid filling pulse time t_p is stored as re - adapted rapid filling time t_sf_ad in an adaptation memory of the electronic control unit and used as rapid filling time t_sf of a filling phase of the shifting element observed . prior to storing the adapted rapid filling time t_sf_ad in the adaptation memory , there is preferably undertaken a weighting in relation to a value of the rapid filling time formerly stored in the adaptation memory . this weighting is implemented , for example , with a usual filter algorithm . prior to carrying out the weighting , in the preferred embodiment shown , to the adapted rapid filling time t_sf a clutch - related offset value t_sfc is added , the correct value t_sfc representing a correction of the adapted rapid filling time t_sf relative to a rapid filling time found during a tuning of the transmission . the variable offset values t_tsfhainc , t_zwtsfinc , t_tsfraubinc , t_tsfrainc with which the rapid filling time t_psf is increased lie according to amount in a value range of preferably from 10 ms to 50 ms , it evidently lying in the expert &# 39 ; s judgment to increase or reduce the value range in relation to the existing utilization . the inventive rapid filling time adaptation shown applies to the pressure control of all clutches or brakes , that is , to all types of shifting and to every shifting , the same as to adaptations outside current gear shifts . at the same time , a re - adaptation , that is , the reduction of an actual value by an offset value , always takes place when , at a defined moment at the end of the rapid filling phase , an irregularity on the speed signal is detected with certainty . upward adaptations shown in which an actual value is increased by an offset value are carried out during a very short rapid filling time t_sf , the rapid filling time t_sf being gradually increased until a reaction is detectable on the speed signal . thereafter the rapid filling time t_sf , for example , is again taken back by a time quantum . fig4 and 5 show a flow chart and a pressure curve for the cycle of the adaptation of the charge pressure p_f which is advantageously carried out after the adaptation of the rapid filling time t_sf . the charge pressure p_f is raised or lowered by an offset value p_pfhainc , p_zwpfinc , p_pfrauebinc , p_pfrainc for adjustment of an optimal filling of the shifting element during the adaptation . when the charge pressure p_f is too high , an overlapping occurs in the filling phase which causes a detectable acceleration mainly during low torques . this is also detectable on the output speed signal n_ab . by a re - adaptation shown below , the charge pressure p_f is again reduced to an admissible value . the gradual increase of the charge pressure p_f in upward adaptation is , on the contrary , carried out until an overlapping or an acceleration break is clearly detected . thereafter the charge pressure p_f can be taken back again by one step . before start of the adaptation of the charge pressure p_f , different starting criteria are tested in the starting module sm , shown in detail in fig6 the adaptation of the charge pressure p_f being started when the starting criteria are met . to this end , the shifting element is first controlled with a rapid filling test pulse after which a hysteresis compensation is carried out . after the control with the rapid filling test pulse during a time t_puls with a pressure p_puls , the shifting element is loaded for a defined moment t_vpfpuls with a present charge pressure p_f . after lapse of the defined moment t_vpfpuls , the shifting element is controlled with a charge pressure test pulse pf 1 , pf 2 , pf 3 , pf 4 , a charge pressure test pulse representing each time a constructive loading of a shifting element with a preset charge pressure pulse pressure p_pfpuls to the charge pressure p_f during a preset charge pressure pulse time t_pfpuls . the shifting element is first controlled with a first charge pressure pulse pf 1 and in case of a speed difference nd_ab between the actual value n ab ist of the output speed and the nominal curve n_ab_soil of the output speed , which speed difference was found after the control and is lower than a lower threshold value nd_pfpuls of a second tolerance band , the charge pressure p_f is increased or upwardly adapted by an offset value p_pfhainc and the shifting element is again constructively loaded during the first charge pressure test pulse pf 1 to the increased actual charge pressure p_f . the actual charge pressure p_f is then stored in an intermediate memory of the electronic control unit and , after an evaluation effected after control of the shifting element with the diverse charge pressure test pulses , is changed by the respectively provided offset value or increment value and again stored in the intermediate memory . in a speed difference nd_ab found after control of the shifting element with the first charge pressure test pulse pf 1 , which speed difference is higher than an upper threshold nd_pfpulszw of the second tolerance band , the actual charge pressure p_f is reduced by an offset value p_zwpfinc and the shifting element is again constructively loaded during the first charge pressure pulse pf 1 with the change pressure pulse pressure p_pfpuls to the reduced actual charge pressure p_f . if during the adaptation of the charge pressure p_f , after loading of the shifting element with the first charge pressure test pulse pf 1 , a speed difference nd_ab of the output speed is found which is higher than a lower threshold value nd_pfpuls and lower than an upper threshold value nd_pfpulszw , then an expected reaction is detected in the speed curve . to confirm this statement , the shifting element is constructively loaded with the charge pressure pulse pressure p_pfpuls , during the charge pressure test pulse pf 2 , to the actual charge pressure p_f_akt of the first charge pressure test pulse pf 1 . if after the loading of the shifting element with the second charge pressure test pulse pf 2 , a speed difference nd_ab of the output speed results which is lower than the threshold value nd_pfpuls , the shifting element again constructively controlled with the charge pressure pulse pressure p_pfpuls , during the first charge pressure test pulse pf 1 , to the actually adjusted charge pressure p_f . in case of a pressure difference nd_ab of the output speed found after control of the shifting element with the second charge pressure test pulse pf 2 higher than the threshold value nd_pfpuls , the actual charge pressure p_f is reduced by an offset value p_pfrauebinc and the shifting element is then loaded constructively with the charge pressure pulse pressure p_pfpuls , during the third charge pressure test pulse pf 3 , to the reduced actual charge pressure p_f . during a control of the shifting element with the third charge test pulse pf 3 , when a speed difference nd_ab of the output speed is found , which is higher than the threshold value nd_pfpuls , the actual charge pressure p_f is reduced by an offset value p_pfrainc and a jump results before the third pulse test so that the shifting element again is constructively loaded during the third charge pressure test pulse pf 3 with the charge pressure pulse pressure p_pfpuls to the reduced actual charge pressure p_f . on the contrary , if a speed difference nd_ab of the output speed found after loading of the shifting element with the third charge pressure test pulse pf 3 is lower than a threshold value nd_pfpuls , the shifting element , during a fourth charge pressure pulse pf 4 is constructively controlled with the charge pressure pulse pressure p_pfpuls to the actual charge pressure p_f . after the control of the shifting element with the fourth charge pressure test pulse pf 4 , if a speed difference nd_ab of the output speed results which is higher than a threshold value nd_pfpuls , the actual charge pressure p_f_akt is reduced by an offset value p_pfrainc and during the third charge pressure test pulse pf 3 the shifting element is constructively loaded with the charge pressure pulse pressure p_pfpuls to the re - adapted actual charge pressure p_f jumping back for this purpose before the third pulse test . after loading of the shifting element with the fourth charge pressure test pulse pf 4 , if a speed difference nd_ab of the output speed is found which is lower than the threshold value nd_pfpuls , an expected reaction is detected in the speed curve . the actual charge pressure p_f is then stored in the adaptation memory as new adapted charge pressure p_f_ad and used for a gear shift as charge pressure p_f of a filling phase of the shifting element in the pressure curve of the engaging shifting element p_kzu . before storing the adapted charge pressure p_fad in the adaptation memory , a weighting is made in comparison with a value of the charge pressure p_f formerly stored in the adaptation memory , which weighting is implemented , e . g ., via a usual filter algorithm . in the preferred performance of the inventive method shown , prior to the weighting , a clutch - based offset value p_sfc is added to the adapted charge pressure p_f_ad , said offset value p_sfc representing a correction of the adapted charge pressure p_f_ad relative to a charge pressure empirically established during a preceding tuning of the transmission . according to the instant embodiment , the rapid filling time t_sf and the charge pressure p_f are adapted outside a gear shift , each adaptation taking place after expiration of a retention cycle t_sperr which s started with termination of a gear shift , an initiation of a gear , or a termination of a rapid filling test pulse or of a charge pressure test pulse . in the presence of a predefined breakdown criterion , the adaptation of the rapid filling time t_sf and the adaptation of the charge pressure p_f are terminated , an actual value of the rapid filling time t_sf or an actual value of the charge pressure p_f being stored upon the breakdown in an intermediate memory of the electronic control unit . when conditions or the predefined starting criteria for the performance of the adaptation of the rapid filling time t_sf or the adaptation of the charge pressure p_f are again present , the adaptations can be continued with the stored values with the state at the moment of the breakdown . this means that the adaptations are continued precisely at the point at which the breakdown occurred . in one other variant of the method , diverging from the instantly described cycle , it can be provided that in the presence of the predefined starting criteria the adaptation is again started from the beginning . breakdown criteria , which lead to a non - evaluation of the adaptations , for example , are a change of load greater than a limit value of the load change , a turbine torque change greater than a limit value , or when a speed difference is found which is outside a defined limit range . the repeated examination shown of the established reaction or of the speed difference nd_ab of the output speed during the adaptation of the rapid filling time t_sf and the adaptation of the charge pressure p_f is to be recommended in order to rule out an erroneous adaptation . but in a reliability of the method established over the operating duration , the repeated verification of the reactions found can also be reduced . optimally top priority is to adjust the pressure curve of the engaging shifting element , especially during the filling phase , and under all circumstances to prevent a draining of the clutch during the charge pressure phase . fig6 shows the starting module sm in which different starting criteria are consecutively tested and when all starting criteria have been satisfied , the adaptation of the rapid filling time t_sf or the adaptation of the charge pressure p_f is started . if one of the starting criteria has not been met the adaptations are not carried out . in step ssm 1 is examined whether the shifting element observed is engaged in a gear shift or in the power flow of the transmission . if it is found that the shifting element is not taking part in a gear shift or is not involved in the power flow , in step ssm 2 is examined whether , since the last gear shift in which the shifting element observed took part or a gear initiation or an earlier test pulse , the retention cycle t_sperr has lapsed . if the retention cycle t_sperr still has not elapsed since the events , the starting module is discontinued branching back before the step ssm 1 wherein after lapse of the retention cycle t_sperr it is examined in step ssm 3 whether a transmission oil temperature c_getr is within an admissible temperature range . the temperature range is formed by a top limit cs_adpulsob and a bottom limit cs_adpulsun . if the detected value of the transmission oil temperature c_getr is outside the temperature range , the starting module sm is discontinued branching back before step ssm 1 . otherwise , it is examined in step ssm 4 whether a turbine torque n_t is within a torque range formed by the top limit mt_adpulsob and a bottom limit mt_adpulsun and in the presence of a turbine torque m_t the starting module sm is discontinued . if the actual turbine torque m_t is within the turbine torque range , in step ssm 5 is examined whether an engine speed n_mot is within an admissible engine speed nmot_adpulsun , nmot_adpulsob and in case of a positive result of the inquiry , in step ssm 6 is tested whether a turbine speed n_t is lower than a top limit value nt_adpulsob and higher than a lower bottom value nt_adpulsun . in a positive result of the inquiry in step ssm 6 , in step ssm 7 is tested whether a sbc function ( stand - by - control ) is active . in case of non_activated sbc function , the starting module sm is left and the adaptation of the rapid filling time t_sf or the adaptation of the charge pressure p_f is started . it should finally be emphasized again that diverging from the variant described in the instant embodiment of the inventive method in the adaptation to a shifting element not precisely involved in a shifting operation , it also can be provided that the adaptation of the rapid filling time t_sf and the adaptation of the charge pressure p_f take place during one gear shift . 1 adaptation band for an adaptation of a rapid filling time t_sf t_sperr retention cycle for filling test after last gear shift or test t_sperr retention cycle for filling test after last gear shift or test	8
apparatus 10 consists of a liquid / vapor contacting column 12 of approximately 9 . 84 meters in height by about 0 . 9 meters in diameter . column 12 is provided with an oxygen inlet 14 and a spent caustic inlet 16 to bottom and top regions 18 and 20 of column 10 respectively . an oxygen stream is introduced into the column through inlet 14 and a spent caustic stream is introduced into the column through inlet 16 . the spent caustic and oxygen are brought into intimate contact by contacting elements which are preferably formed by beds of structured packing designated by reference numeral 22 . as would be known by those skilled in the art , liquid distributors would be located between pairs of beds . the spent caustic is introduced into structured packing 22 by a liquid distributor 24 and the oxygen rises through the open area of structured packing 22 . structured packing is efficient and has a very low pressure drop . this allows the recycling of the gas stream without a blower . as will be discussed , a simple eductor is sufficient . it is to be noted that to preclude clogging of the packing by particulates , the packing type and crimp angle are important . in this regard , structured packing 22 can have a packing density of between about 500 m 2 / m 3 and is preferably koch type 1x or 1y which can be obtained from koch engineering company , inc ., of wichita , kan . random packing and trays could also be used with less effectiveness . in order for the reaction to proceed as mentioned above , an oxygen containing gas can be used so long as the total pressure during the reaction does not drop below about 9 . 2 atmospheres absolute . the oxygen should have a purity as high as is economical with 90 % and above being preferred . the reaction should proceed at a total pressure of no less than about 9 . 2 atmospheres absolute and more preferably at least about 11 . 2 atmospheres absolute . additionally , the reaction between the oxygen and the sodium sulfide should occur at a minimum temperature of about 110 ° c . a minimum reaction temperature of about 120 ° c . is more preferred and reaction temperatures at or above 150 ° c . are particularly preferred . a particularly preferred temperature and pressure are about 200 ° c . and about 18 atmospheres absolute . as mentioned above , the minimum pressure for conducting a process in accordance with the present invention would increase five - fold in air . the reaction of oxygen and sodium sulfide is an exothermic reaction . however , to start the reaction , heat must be added to the spent caustic to raise it to the requisite reaction temperature . to this end , a heat exchanger 25 can be provided before inlet 16 in which the incoming spent caustic is heated by indirect heat exchange with steam . after the reaction progresses , heat exchanger 25 can be shut down . the heat exchanger could also be charged on the hot side with treated spent caustic . the oxidized spent caustic collects as a column bottom 26 of column 59 . at the same time , an oxygen - containing tower overhead collects within top region 20 of column 12 . it is possible to conduct a method in accordance with the present invention in which a stream of the column overhead is continually vented . in such case , a high rate , approximately three to four times the stoichiometric rate of pure oxygen , would be supplied through oxygen inlet 14 . this would produce excess oxygen which when vented as tower overhead could be used for other oxygen applications elsewhere . in order to prevent cooling of the column through evaporation of water , the oxygen should be pre - saturated at the column temperature . for the most common concentrations of sodium sulfide , it is necessary to circulate the tower overhead rather than vent it so that the oxygen added into the column is a saturated gas at the desired column temperature . cold , unsaturated gas can serve to cool the column and thereby inhibit the reaction . this recirculation is effected by pumping a stream of the column overhead into the bottom region 18 of column 12 . not only does this conserve oxygen , but also it has been found to make the vapor / gas conditions , such as temperature and composition , more uniform throughout the packing , and to flatten the vapor flux profiles along the column length . the end result is that less packing has to be utilized with recirculation because all parts of the column are operating in high efficiency regions . because of the heat generated by the reaction , the column must be cooled . any conventional means for cooling the packed column may be applied such as a cooling jacket 13 or cooling coil wrapped around the column . although a blower could be used to recirculate the column overhead stream , it has been found that , more efficiently , the column overhead stream can be circulated by an eductor 30 having a low - pressure inlet 32 . a stream of in - process spent caustic is directed by a pump 38 through line 31 through eductor 30 . low - pressure inlet 32 of eductor 30 draws the column overhead stream from top region 20 of column 12 . the pumped oxidized spent caustic is introduced into a high - pressure inlet 36 of eductor 30 and a combined stream of column overhead and oxidized spent caustic is discharged through line 34 to a vessel 59 which connects with the column bottom where the gas phase is recirculated . stripped gas impurities and reaction products which may serve to dilute the tower overhead stream and thereby lower oxygen partial pressure can collect at the top of column 12 . in order for such gas impurities and reaction products to not affect the reaction , they can be periodically or continually vented through the use of a small vent 40 provided for such purpose . although not illustrated , the incoming spent caustic feed could be preheated by introducing it into a heat exchanger located within bottom region 26 of column 59 . the heat exchanger would be provided with a conduit connected to liquid distributor 24 . additionally , part of the pumped spent caustic stream could be diverted from eductor 30 to spent caustic inlet 16 to preheat the spent caustic by direct heat exchange . in addition to preheating the spent caustic feed through the use of a heat exchanger in bottom region 26 of column 59 , an external heat exchanger utilizing steam could be used to further heat the spent caustic feed prior to its entry into liquid distributor 24 . a line 61 leads from the bottom of the vessel 59 to a line 62 and connects with a pump 38 where the partially oxidized spent caustic is recirculated through eductor 30 to the packed column . line 61 also connects to a heat exchanger 64 where the hot spent caustic stream is cooled prior to entering mixed reactor 74 through line 66 . line 66 leads from the heat exchanger 64 to mixed reactor 74 where the caustic stream is reacted with slaked lime , ca ( oh ) 2 , which is added through line 75 . the sodium sulfate present in the fully - oxidized caustic stream reacts with the lime and calcium sulfate precipitates . the calcium sulfate slurry is removed via line 76 into a clarifier 78 and is removed from the bottom of the clarifier through line 79 where it can be treated either biologically or by other treatment to render environmentally acceptable for disposal . the supernatant caustic stream exits the clarifier through line 80 where it can be either recycled and mixed with make up solution for use elsewhere in caustic washing or disposed in an environmentally friendly manner . typical industrial flow rates for apparatus 10 can be about 178 . 0 liters / min of spent caustic containing about 10 - 170 g / l of sodium sulfide . the recirculation factor ( recirculation rate in kg / sec . divided by rate that oxygen is supplied in kg / sec .) of tower overhead should be between about 3 . 0 and 4 . 0 to maintain an f s ( allowable gas load or gas velocity times gas density 0 . 5 ) of between 1 . 0 - 1 . 3 ( m / s )( kg / m 3 ) 0 . 5 where structured packing 22 ( koch flexipac 1y ) is most efficient . the resulting pressure drop is in the order of about 0 . 017 to about 0 . 008 meters of water per meter of packing . a 0 . 15 meter diameter eductor 30 ( such as can be obtained from baker process equipment co ., inc ., corropolis , pa .) with a large nozzle and a pumped spent caustic flow of between about 303 . 0 liters / min at about 16 . 4 atmosphere absolute will produce the necessary gas recirculation . consequently , only a very small recirculation pump need be used having low power requirements . mercaptans are more resistant to oxidation compared to sulfides . typically , mercaptans are oxidized in the presence of a catalyst . however , the oxidation of mercaptans in a caustic solution without a catalyst was tested in an autoclave reactor at elevated temperatures and pressures . a sample caustic waste was prepared as 25 wt % sodium hydroxide with less than 1000 ppmw of propyl mercaptan . this solution was then loaded into a 1 l autoclave reactor and oxidized with oxygen at 150 ° c . and at 14 . 6 atm absolute . samples were withdrawn at regular intervals and analyzed for propyl mercaptan . the reaction was followed by measuring the depletion of mercaptan over time . the mercaptan was completely oxidized without a catalyst in about 10 minutes . spent caustic contains primarily methyl and ethyl mercaptans which are more reactive than propyl mercaptans and should be readily oxidized in the packed column . while this invention has been described with respect to particular embodiments thereof , it is apparent that numerous other forms and modifications of the invention will be obvious to those skilled in the art . the appended claims and this invention generally should be construed to cover all such obvious forms and modifications which are within the true spirit and scope of the present invention .	2
referring to fig1 , a zero intermediate frequency ( zif ) receiver 5 comprises an antenna 10 connected to a low noise amplifier ( lna ) 12 . the zif receiver 5 further comprises a local oscillator ( lo ) 14 and two mixer circuits 16 , 18 . each mixer circuit 16 , 18 is provided with an rf port 20 , 22 and an lo port 24 , 26 , wherein the rf ports 20 , 22 are connected to the lna 12 and the lo ports 24 , 26 are connected to a local oscillator ( lo ) 14 . in use , the lo 14 transmits an lo signal ( lo_sig ) to the mixer circuits 16 , 18 through a phase shifter 28 , which shifts the phase of the lo signal ( lo_sig ) received by one of the mixer circuits 16 , 18 by 90 ° compared with the lo signal ( lo_sig ) received by the other mixer circuit 16 , 18 . similarly , the antenna 10 receives an incoming signal ( rx_sig ) which is amplified by the lna 12 . the amplified incoming signal ( rx_sig ) is transmitted through the rf ports 20 , 22 to the mixer circuits 16 , 18 , wherein the amplified incoming signal ( rx_sig ) is mixed with the lo signal ( lo_sig ). the mixing process down - converts the incoming signal ( rx_sig ) into separate baseband in - phase ( i ) and quadrature phase ( q ) components , wherein the output from each mixer circuit 16 , 18 comprises a baseband difference signal and a sum signal ( with a frequency twice that of the lo signal ( lo_sig )). the sum signal is attenuated by a low pass filter ( lpf ) 30 , 32 connected to the output of each mixer circuit 16 , 18 and the remaining difference signal is converted into the digital domain by baseband analogue to digital converters ( adc ) 34 , 36 . the resulting digital signal is filtered by high pass filters ( hpf ) 38 , 40 which remove a dc offset signal and low frequency noise to produce output signals i out and q out . for simplicity , the path of an i component through its associated lpf 30 , adc 34 and hpf 38 to produce the i out signal , will be known henceforth as an “ i path ”. similarly , the path of a q component through its associated lpf 32 , adc 36 and hpf 40 to produce the q out signal , will be known henceforth as a “ q path ” 2 . sources of interference in a zero intermediate frequency ( zif ) receiver dc offset signals are offset voltages that exist at the baseband frequency . however , since the mixer circuits 16 , 18 directly down - convert an incoming signal ( rx_sig ) to the baseband , a dc offset signal can appear as an interfering signal in the resulting i and q components . more particularly , a dc offset signal can arise from lo self mixing which occurs because of the finite isolation ( resulting from capacitive and substrate coupling ) of the lo ports 24 , 26 and the rf ports 20 , 22 of the mixer circuits 16 , 18 . the finite isolation of these ports enables some of the lo signal ( lo_sig ) to leak through the rf ports 20 , 22 ( towards the lna 12 ), whereupon the leaked lo signal ( lo_sig ) is reflected ( because of interface mismatch ) back into the mixer circuits 16 , 18 and mixed with the original lo signal ( lo_sig ) to produce a dc offset signal . similarly , a time - varying dc offset signal is generated if the leaked lo signal ( lo_sig ) is radiated by the lna 12 and subsequently reflected from moving objects back to the receiver 5 . the mixer circuits 16 , 18 provide quadrature mixing which should , in theory , provide infinite attenuation of the foldover of image band energy into the desired signal band . if quadrature mixing is perfect then there is no image foldover . however , in practice , there is always some imbalance between the i and q paths of a receiver , mainly because of the finite tolerances of the capacitance and resistance values of its analogue components . quadrature imbalance corrupts a received signal within a desired channel with a portion of the energy contained within the image band of the desired signal ( and is also known as alternate channel foldover ). to date , elaborate circuitry and dsp techniques have been developed to combat these problems . however , these approaches have limited success ( e . g . dc cancellation is unable to handle variations in a dc offset signal ) and have added to the complexity and cost of zif receivers . the very low intermediate frequency ( vlif ) receiver architecture was developed in an effort to circumvent the problems of dc offset signals and 1 / f noise whilst preserving the advantages of the zif receiver architecture . referring to fig2 , at first glance , a vlif receiver looks very similar to a zif receiver . in particular , a vlif receiver 42 employs an antenna 44 to receive an incoming signal ( rx_sig of frequency f chan ) and an lna 46 to amplify the signal . however , in contrast with the zif receiver ( which directly down - converts an incoming signal to the baseband ), the vlif receiver 42 down - converts ( by mixer circuits 48 , 50 , phase shifter 52 and an lo 54 operating at a frequency of f chan + f vlif ) the incoming signal ( rx_sig ) to a frequency very close to , but not equal to , the baseband . in particular , the incoming signal ( rx_sig ) is down - converted to an intermediate frequency ( if ) signal ( ifrx_sig ) of frequency ( f vlif ) of approximately 100 khz . the if signal ( ifrx_sig ) is then filtered by low pass filters 56 , 58 , converted to the digital domain by analogue to digital converters 60 , 62 and high pass filtered by filters 64 , 66 . the resulting signal is down - converted to the baseband by digital mixing circuits 68 , 70 , a phase shifter 72 and an lo 74 ( operating at the frequency − f vlif ). as in the zif receiver , the output from each of the mixer circuits 68 , 70 comprises a baseband difference signal and a sum signal ( with a frequency equal to 2 × f vlif ), wherein the sum signal is attenuated by a low pass filter ( lpf ) 76 , 78 connected to the output of each mixer circuit 68 , 70 . in theory , the main advantage of the vlif receiver compared to the zif receiver is that since the incoming signal ( rx_sig ) is down - converted ( by the first mixer circuits 48 , 50 ) to an intermediate frequency , rather than to 0 hz , a dc offset signal does not overlap with the down - converted incoming signal ( ifrx_sig ). consequently , the dc offset signal can be removed by the high pass filters 64 , 66 . nonetheless , in practice , the vlif receiver architecture still experiences problems with dc offset and quadrature imbalance . the high pass filters in a vlif receiver must pass a down - converted incoming signal ( ifrx_sig ) without distortion , whilst removing any dc offset signal and low frequency noise therefrom . however , simulations have shown that when no dc component is present in a down - converted incoming signal ( ifrx_sig ), the high pass filters 64 , 66 can degrade the performance of a vlif receiver by more than 2 db , because the filters remove some of the energy from the down - converted incoming signal ( ifrx_sig ) itself . however , this problem can be mitigated by increasing the intermediate frequency ( f vlif ), so that the high pass filters 64 , 66 have less impact on the down - converted incoming signal ( ifrx_sig ). fig3 shows an incoming signal band ( of pass band f pb ) whose central frequency is down - converted to a first intermediate frequency ( f vlif1 ). for simplicity , this signal band will be referred to henceforth as the “ first down - converted signal band ”. the frequencies of the lower and higher band - edges ( e 11 , e 12 ) of the first down - converted incoming signal band are given by f vlif1 − f pb and f vlif1 + f pb respectively . fig3 also shows the same incoming signal band down - converted to a second intermediate frequency ( f vlif2 ), wherein f vlif1 & lt ; f vlif 2 . for simplicity , this signal band will be referred to henceforth as the “ second down - converted signal band ”. as before , the frequencies of the lower and higher band - edges ( e 21 , e 22 ) of the second down - converted incoming signal band are given by f vlif2 − f pb and f vlif2 + f pb . superimposed on these first and second down - converted signal bands , is the amplitude - frequency response of a hypothetical high pass filter ( with notch n ). since f vlif1 & lt ; f vlif2 , the lower band edge ( e 11 ) of the first down - converted incoming signal band , is closer to the notch ( n ) of the high pass filter than the lower band edge ( e 21 ) of the second down - converted incoming signal band . the difference δ 1 between the plateau amplitude response of the hpf and its amplitude response at lower band - edge frequency ( e 11 ) of the first down - converted incoming signal band is 3 . 5 db . similarly , the difference δ 2 between the plateau amplitude response of the hpf and its amplitude response at lower band - edge frequency ( e 21 ) of the second down - converted incoming signal band is 2 . 3 db . generalising from this , it can be seen that the closer the lower band edge of a down - converted incoming signal ( ifrx_sig ) is to 0 hz , the more the down - converted incoming signal ( ifrx_sig ) is attenuated by a high pass filter . to overcome this problem , the amplitude cutoff response of the high pass filter must be steepened . in the case of a finite impulse response ( fir ) filter this approach will rapidly increase the latency of the filter . similarly , with an infinite impulse response ( iir ) filter , both the latency and the non - linearity of the group delay distortion at the high pass filter band edge will increase . however , in a time division multiple access ( tdma ) system such as global system for mobile communications ( gsm ), there are absolute upper limits on the tolerable latency of a receiver &# 39 ; s circuitry . furthermore , the span of samples that can be combined by an equalizer ( e . g . an adaptive filter configured to implement an inverse of a channel frequency response to remove any dispersive filtering effects experienced by a signal between a transmitter and a receiver ) in the baseband modem will dictate the acceptable level of group delay distortion . on the other hand , if the intermediate frequency ( f vlif ) is too large , the down - converted incoming signal ( rx_sig ) will not pass through the low pass filters of the vlif receiver , without substantial attenuation . thus , the bandwidth of the vlif receiver &# 39 ; s low pass filters , limits the extent to which the intermediate frequency of a down - converted incoming signal ( ifrx_sig ) can be moved away from a dc offset signal . reverting to fig2 , quadrature imbalance occurs when the operation of the mixer circuits 48 , 50 permits energy at the image frequencies to leak into the bandwidth of the incoming signal ( rx_sig ) and to act as an interference therewith . in particular , the performance of a vlif receiver is very sensitive to blocking signals that are located at an alternate channel ( i . e . the negative vlif ). these blocking signals will ( with quadrature imbalance ) produce images that directly fall within the band of the incoming signal ( rx_sig ). typically , vlif receivers will incorporate a quadrature balancing scheme to minimize these images . however , these schemes are not perfect and always leave some residual quadrature imbalance . in a gsm vlif system where there is a strong adjacent channel interferer to an incoming signal ( rx_sig ), any attempt to increase the intermediate frequency ( f vlif ) to overcome dc offset will require an improvement in the receiver &# 39 ; s quadrature balance . thus , the above - mentioned limitations on the ability to eliminate quadrature imbalance will also restrict any increases in the intermediate frequency of the vlif receiver . in view of the above , the choice of a particular intermediate frequency ( f vlif ) is driven by a number of conflicting demands including : increasing f vlif to facilitate dc offset removal ; minimising f vlif to minimize the proportion of image energy overlapping with the incoming signal ( rx_sig ) ( even with a quadrature balancing scheme , the large blockers that can occur in a gsm system mean that this factor is always significant ); and ensuring that f vlif is greater than half the bandwidth of the incoming signal ( rx_sig ) ( to ensure that any residual dc offset does not fall within the incoming signal ( rx_sig ) band . the present embodiment is based on the observation that if little or no interference can be measured in an image band , then quadrature imbalance is unlikely to be a problem in a vlif receiver , since the amount of energy in the image band that could fold over into a desired signal band would not be large enough to form a dominant source of impairment . accordingly , the present embodiment compares the energy in a desired signal band with the energy in a wider band which contains the desired signal band . the result of this comparison indicates whether there is significant energy in the portion of the wider band which is not occupied by the desired signal band . the presence of a significant energy in the unoccupied portion of the wider band can be considered as an indication of the possible presence of energy in the image band . thus , the vlif should be set to a low frequency value . conversely , a failure to detect a significant energy in the unoccupied portion can be used to justify an increase in the vlif . for simplicity , fig4 only shows the i path of the vlif receiver of the present embodiment 80 . however , it will be appreciated that the q path of the vlif receiver of the present embodiment 80 has mirroring features to those depicted in fig4 . thus , the i path of the vlif receiver of the present embodiment 80 comprises an antenna 144 which receives an incoming signal ( rx_sig ), wherein the incoming signal ( rx_sig ) is processed by a lna 146 and the resulting signal is downconverted to an intermediate frequency ( f vlif ) by a mixer circuit 148 and local oscillator 154 ( operating at a frequency of f chan + f vlif ). the resulting intermediate frequency signal is filtered by a low pass filter 156 and converted into the digital domain by an adc 160 . the dc offset signal from the resulting digital signal is removed by a high pass filter 164 . as before , the second stage of the downconversion process is performed by a mixer circuit 168 and a local oscillator 174 ( operating at the frequency − f vlif ). the resulting baseband signal is processed by a low pass filter 176 . in contrast with the prior art vlif receiver , the i and q paths of the vlif receiver of the present embodiment 80 also comprise two energy estimators 82 , 84 which operate under the controller of a control logic unit 86 . the first energy estimator 82 is connected between the high pass filter 164 and the mixer circuit 168 . accordingly , the first energy estimator 82 receives a wideband signal including the desired signal and any interference present . accordingly , the energy ( e c + i ) estimated by the first energy estimator 82 represents the energy of the carrier signal and the interference . the second energy estimator 84 is connected to the output of the low pass filter 176 . the low pass filter 168 is designed to pass only the desired signal . accordingly , the energy ( e c ) estimated by the second energy estimator 84 represents energy of the desired signal only . referring to fig5 together with fig4 , in use , the control logic unit 86 compares 90 the energy estimates generated by the first energy estimator 82 and the second energy estimator 84 to determine whether or not a strong blocker is present . this allows the ratio of the energy of the carrier signal to the energy of the interferers to be estimated . if e c + i ≈ αe c then the interference is very small . thus , even if there is signal energy present in the image band , it would not significantly interfere with the desired signal even if the quadrature imbalance is relatively poor . thus , the intermediate frequency ( f vlif ) can be increased 92 . by increasing the intermediate frequency ( f vlif ), the separation between a desired signal and any dc offset signal or low frequency noise is increased . in contrast , if e c + i ≧ αe c , then a very large interference is present in the signal . in other words , if the wideband energy is much larger than the desired signal energy , then there is a possibility that there is significant energy in the image band . thus , there is a possibility of a foldover of some of this energy into the desired signal band ). accordingly , the intermediate frequency ( f vlif ) is maintained 94 at a low , or default , value . in use , any increase in the intermediate frequency ( f vlif ) is not applied until the next tdma slot allocated to the vlif receiver 80 . the present embodiment provides a mechanism for removing dc offset signals and low frequency noise with minimal impact on a desired signal whilst maintaining acceptable performance in the face of large blockers in the image frequencies . furthermore , the present embodiment provides a technique for dynamically reconfiguring a vlif receiver to ensure optimal performance in view of changes in the rf environment observed at its antenna . finally , the present embodiment provides a control algorithm to dynamically alter an intermediate frequency ( f vlif ) in search of improved performance in a manner which has not been used before in a gsm / edge receiver . on another note , the energy comparison approach of the present embodiment can be used to track interference energy over a period of time . similarly , when frequency hopping is active , the present embodiment can be used to track interference energy over different frequencies . in this case , the control logic unit need only keep track of a currently examined channel and keep independent data for each channel used . in other words , like most cellular communication systems , gsm operates over many frequency channels . when a phone initiates communication with a base station it will be dynamically assigned a channel or number of channels to operate on . the assignment of channels will vary over time . the presence or absence of interfering signals will also change over time . therefore , it is necessary to have a mechanism to keep track of which channels interference is occurring on . for example a gsm phone may be communicating with the base station using two channels that it hops between . if channel a has an associated interferer and channel b does not then it is beneficial to configure the receiver differently for channel than for channel b ). alterations and modifications may be made to the above without departing from the scope of the invention .	7
according to an embodiment of the present invention , a new method and apparatus is provided for facilitating entry of records by either point , click , or type with computer interfaces , or by voice dictation , or by a combination of point , click , type , and dictate . the entry of records is stored in an electronic database . the entry of records can be communicated over an electronic network . the illustrative embodiments are explained herein for entry , documentation , and reporting of medical records , but one skilled in the art readily appreciates that the system and method can be applicable for other professional or commercial services and reports . fig1 provides a computer network system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention . in fig1 , the computer network system 10 comprises a central server 20 , which includes a central controller 22 , memory 36 , various software modules including a voice processing unit 24 , a speaker identification unit 26 , and word processing / transcription unit 28 . each software module may include associated cache memory to facilitate direct and speedy access to corresponding stored templates or data . for example , the voice processing unit 24 includes speech recognition capability to facilitate recognition of voice input by a user over a network ( described below ). the associated memory may store the user &# 39 ; s pre - recorded ( or templated ) words and phrases to facilitate the voice recognition process . the speaker identification unit 26 is used to identify users seeking entry into the system . the word processing / transcription unit 28 , along with template files 30 , transcribes entries of medical information from voice into text . the template files 30 may store pages of templates accessible through the network from a browser at the user &# 39 ; s computer terminal 52 . the memory 36 stores executable codes executable by central controller 22 to perform processes including accessing records from memory and storing data including data usable by the central server 20 to communicate with subscriber users , subscriber authentication data , medical records , etc . a network server 40 includes modules to facilitate access to / from the central server 20 to computers / servers connected to the network . the network server modules interface the servers using local area network ( lan ) protocol in a lan environment or , preferably uses internet protocol ( ip ) to interface the client stations / servers to the central server 20 over a global electronic network such as the internet . generally , the user work station 52 , which , for example , includes a computer cpu fitted with software for connection with the user server 50 . the use of a user server 50 is optional ( as shown by the dashed lines ) if the user work station 52 is equipped with the interfacing tools compatible with that of the network server 40 . the user computer work station 52 may be a fixed or portable personal computer equipped with a computer screen , a keyboard , a microphone and / or a camera , software modules for browsing hypertext or hypermedia pages , a set of computer speakers and a computer mouse . data or information can be input into the central server 20 from the user &# 39 ; s computer work station 52 over the internet without software specially made for the central server 20 . specific software that may be needed from time to time can be downloaded from the central server 20 and installed at the user &# 39 ; s station 52 . for example , security software for user identification or authentication can be loaded at the user &# 39 ; s station and used to ensure the user is a registered subscriber . according to an aspect of the present invention , the speaker identification unit 26 serves to identify specific users , such as a physician or healthcare worker , to access the patient database file stored in memory 36 . fig1 a shows an exemplary process for user identification according to an embodiment of the present invention . when a user accesses the url for accessing the medical system ( e . g ., www . medicasystem . com ), the user is presented with a home page having a user sign - on area ( see fig2 ). the user enters its pre - registered user login name and password ( step 1000 ). the central server 20 compares the sign - on entries against its subscriber database with the stored pre - registered information and if the sign - on information matches ( step 1010 ), the user information stored in the memory 36 specific to the sign - on data is retrieved . the user is prompted to speak a random phrase into its microphone ( step 1020 ). the spoken phrase is received by the central server 20 and the voice processing unit 24 parses the received voice information and performs biometric analysis against voice information previously collected from this user ( step 1040 ). if the biometric analysis returns with a high percentage match , the user is identified and authenticated ( step 1050 ) and the user gains access to the system . if the biometric analysis returns with a negative match , the user is asked to repeat the login procedure . an alternative process to identify the speaker may dispense with the login name and password entry ( e . g ., the speaker skipping onto the speak phrase portion ) if the biometric analysis returns with a very high percentage ( e . g ., 99 %) match . a commercially available software such as voiceid , from pronexus can be used for the speaker identification process . the voice identification system can be used to authorize the user emergency access from remote locations and allow only certain individuals whose voice has been specifically identified by the voice identification database to access . with a random phrase access basis , access to the patient database file is not possible through a recording device , which is , merely re - transmitting a person &# 39 ; s voice , unlike other speaker identification that ordinarily would have allowed the user access to the patient database file , from a recording device without the correct combination of words . only specific words identified by the voice identification program 30 would allow access in this embodiment . a presently preferred embodiment is typically operated in a medical clinic environment where the user ( medical practitioners and staff ) requires access to various types of information previously recorded about existing patients and also requires the ability to add new patients to the clinic &# 39 ; s files . every user having access to the central computer network system 10 can access specific patient databases based on the above - described speaker identification database , and different levels of data access can be granted to different users . henceforth , the description to pages corresponds to pages displayable using a web browser or other medium to display hypertext or hypermedia pages , as shown in some of the figures later in this application . some pages are a part of the template files , and serves as the basis for the patient database entry and report system . that is , the web pages have customized features that have been prearranged for the user . for example , the page may contain a designated space on the page to allow the user to enter information on the patient &# 39 ; s current status . the file may contain a space to view previous entries (“ persistent data ”) for reviewing the history of the patient &# 39 ; s status . the file may contain a set of boxes for the user to check ( by point - and - click mechanism ) with regard to medical conditions like low back pain , neck pain , double vision , headaches , etc . although the forms shown in the drawings are applicable to patient records accessed by health care professionals as illustrations , the forms can be made applicable to other professions or services by changing the content of the forms . one ordinary skilled in the art can readily appreciate that the form features usable by any professional include the presentation to the user of forms with areas of pre - filled information and areas for filling in , in most cases interactively , information which is contemporaneous , such as patient examination data , building inspection data , billing information , etc ., as the exam , inspection , or billing is occurring . preferably , the user may enter information into the form and thus the database through one or more combination of voice , type , or point - and - click mechanism . again referring to patient data for illustration , the type of input criteria on each page of the patient database entry and report system is specific for each user . although a user may choose to select one or more pages that are pre - filled or pre - arranged , the type of information for entry into the file may be modified for the user by the host . for example , the user may enter data using a voice input device , a computer mouse or a keyboard . the data may be left as a digitally stored voice data or translated into textual data from the stored voice data . the date , name , and other voice - recognizable information may be translated into text . in one preferred embodiment , the user accesses the patient databases though a specific internet address or url . fig2 shows an embodiment of the access page 210 . the webpage presents several selectable entries , such as physician portal 240 , patient portal 250 , new physician account portal 260 , new patient account 265 , transcription portal 270 , new transcription account 275 , apply for transcription directorship button 285 , or emergency access 290 . in this access page , optional other information may be provided . for example , company identification , like company logo 280 , may be provided . in another embodiment , other forms of advertisement may be provided as an on - screen display prior to displaying a page . in an embodiment , the user identified in the login entry 220 may be locked out from further use if the user enters the incorrect password assigned to the user in the password entry 220 for a fixed number of attempts , after which time access may be allowed only by an administrator of the main computer network system 10 , preferably by resetting the password . depending on the administrator , the user may be required to set a different password in resetting the password . also , the administrator may require the password to be of a specific length , and it may be case - sensitive , or it may include both numbers and alphabets . even with the correct login entry and password entry , the user may be authorized to access only certain databases , depending upon the associated login / password entries . the physician portal 240 provides the database containing the page that the user requires to view patient information and to dictate ( and transcribe ) patient information . the patient portal 250 provides a database that a patient may access at a work station 52 in the physician &# 39 ; s office or a separate location so that the patient can provide preliminary ( demographic ) information . such information may include personal data and description of medical symptoms to allow the physician to access this patient information prior to examination or treatment . the level of security and the basis for entering the patient portal 250 is dependent on the user &# 39 ; s requirement . the transcription portal 270 , new transcription account 275 , and apply for transcription directorship button 285 are selected and portals accessed by professional transcribers to retrieve voice records to transcribe , to set up an account as a registered transcriber to transcribe the voice records in exchange for fee , or to apply for further transcription services . fig2 a shows an exemplary emergency access process according to an embodiment of the present invention . a subscriber accesses the portal by clicking on the emergency access portal button on the portal selection page after sign - on ( step 2010 ). a form is presented for the user to enter demographic data such as patient id , name , date of birth and residence and a space for the user to describe the emergency and provide location of access and contact information for the hospital . user is presented with a “ send by secure mail ” button , which upon clicking by the user , the entered information is sent to an emergency attendant ea ( step 2020 ). the ea receives the information and checks it against the stored patient database ( step 2030 ), if there is a match , the ea contacts the hospital using the contact information in the mailed message . the physician treating the patient requiring emergency aid is given a temporary login and temporary password ( step 2040 ) to gain access to the central server and database ( step 2050 ). if there is no match to the patient records , the user is returned to the login page to try entry again . it is contemplated that subscribers or patients of subscribers whose records are stored in the database are given a custom emergency card for the users to carry . the card indicates the url or the web address of the record system and notification on the card to access the url in an emergency . fig3 provides a physician greetings page 310 dedicated to a specific user after the user selects the physician portal 270 . this dedicated physician greeting page recognizes the users by the login entry 220 , and provided its identification by name as provided in block 320 . the user may access the computer network system 10 from one of several user work stations 50 . through a location / office dropdown menu tab 330 , the user chooses one of several locations from where the user is working . the choice of location / office in conjunction with entering the dictate report 340 entry will lead the user to a page shown in fig4 . the location / office is specific , for example , to various offices or clinics that the user examines patients . a separate sign off 459 entry button enables the user to sign off and return to the previous physician greetings page 310 . fig4 is the scheduling page 410 specific for a given location / office . this page enables the user to gain an overview on the patients . various patient information are provided on this page including patient name 420 , dictation id 422 that is specific to each session , provider name 424 , and user name 426 . the location / office identification 430 is prominently provided . specific to each patient is the patient &# 39 ; s problem type 432 that can be chosen through a dropdown menu . the category of problem type may include general , cardiologic , ed - head injury , neurological , orthopedic , rheumatoid and urologic . the choice of the category in the problem type dropdown menu may be changed in accordance to a pre - set menu chosen by the user . the report type 434 is chosen from a dropdown menu . the category of report type includes consultation ( h + p ), narrative , discharge and operative . the choice of the category in the report type 434 dropdown menu may be changed in accordance to a pre - set menu chosen by the user . after the report type 434 drop down menu is chosen , the go button 436 enables the user to proceed to the next page of the chosen report type 434 . other information relating to the patient is also provided in this scheduling page 410 , including identification of the primary physician in primary md 440 , the referring physician in referring md 442 , and the patient &# 39 ; s insurance company in insurance 444 . the scheduling page 410 provides a set of dropdown menus ( 450 , 452 , 454 , 456 , 457 , 458 and 459 ) that enables the user to access other pages . in a preferred embodiment , the dictation 450 dropdown menu provides hyperlink to pages for new dictation , today &# 39 ; s dictation , and show full dictation . the medical record 452 dropdown menu provides hyperlink to pages for synchronize ( to synchronize entries ), new / add patients , and medical record list . the account info 454 drop down menu provides hyperlink to doctor &# 39 ; s address book , account status , billing info and account setting . the message 456 drop down menu provides hyperlink to new message , delete , read add and read unread message . other entries also include news 457 , help 458 and sign off 459 buttons . these dropdown menus are operable by point - and - click ( and in some cases , point - click - and - drag mechanism ). the scheduling page 410 includes a number of hyperlinked objects which upon selection by clicking by the user , links to other pages for documenting patient medical history and physical examination . various hyperlinked objects are located on the left column of the scheduling page . in this particular embodiment , the hyperlink dictate all 460 , enables the user to access a page for dictation , and show report enables the user to access a summary page . other hyperlinks in this column are directed to patent medical history 462 and physical examination 470 . for example , the hyperlinks under the medical history 462 category includes prefix phrase 464 , demographics 466 , cc , hpi , meds , allergy , pmed hx , psurg hx , fam hx , soc hx , hospitalizations , handedness and ros . the hyperlinks under physical exam 470 includes vs , heent , chest , abdomen , extremities , back , mentation , speech , summary , assessment , plan 472 , suffix phrase 474 and correspondence 476 . for further illustrations , each of the hyperlinks to dictate all 460 , prefix phrase 464 , demographics 466 , plan 472 , suffix phrase 474 and correspondence 476 will be discussed in a separate figure below . the hyperlink enables the user to access a separate page in the patient file database , which the user accesses using a point - and - click mechanism . for each page , the user may input data at a dialogue box presented on the page , using one of or a combination of text data , voice data captured by the microphone , or a video file captured by the camera and / or point - and - click mechanism to record information relating to the patient &# 39 ; s medical history and physical examination . individualize information in the scheduling page 410 include information on each patient . the personal information 490 include the patient &# 39 ; s full name , date of birth , time of appointment , dictation id to access and document medical informational data , indication of the completeness of the patient &# 39 ; s documentation , and an indication of the chief complaint of the patient . the user may click on the name of the patient in 490 , which also serves as a hyperlink to further general identification information including patient name 420 , dictation id 422 , provider name 424 , user name 426 , primary md 490 , referring md 442 and insurance 444 . it should also be noted that all of the hyperlinks in the left column , specifically , dictate all 460 , show report 468 and all the hyperlinks under medical history 462 and physical exam 470 are directed to the specific patient as identified in the patient name 420 . to access the hyperlink pages to another patient , the user clicks on the name of another patient in the personal information 490 section . this scheduling page 410 , as well as any other pages , may also contain a space for advertisement 498 . specifically targeted advertisements are placed in pages of the specific template files to enable the user to consider its products and services . fig5 provides a page that the user accesses through hyperlinked objects on the left column of the page . the hyperlinks are the same as those from the scheduling page 410 for the same patient in fig4 . this enables the user to input medical data in the form of medical history or physical examination in accordance with specific topics . the user may input data under one patient &# 39 ; s demographics 466 page by clicking on the hyperlink associated with the data that the user desires to input or modify . by doing so , the user can move back and forth through various pages under the specific patient &# 39 ; s medical history and physical examination files and input medical data . the user can access the dictate all page by clicking on the dictate all hyperlink 460 . in this dictate all page , the user may effect dictation of medical information directly through the internet and store the information in the central file memory 36 . fig5 provides a number of recording management buttons accessible through the computer mouse . the play button 530 allows the user to listen to the recorded documentation . the stop button 532 stops the playback or recording process . the rewind button 534 and forward button 536 move the recorded document in a reverse or forward direction . the sound button 540 enables sounding or muting the recorded document . the volume button 542 enables the user to change the volume output of the recorded documentation . the recordation button 544 allows the user to record the document . recordation is preferably performed by voice dictation . if the media to be played or recorded is video , a media player having functions such as the media player x or the realnetwork player can be used . dictation recordation identification 550 provides identification of the dictation recording along with the identification of the user who dictated the recording and the date of recordation . the recordation identification is preferably entered by text . here , it is shown that the record is entered by voice in combination with typing . according to one embodiment of the invention , the functions of the voice processing unit 24 can be implemented by use of the voicexml websphere studio , commercially available from ibm corp . voice over ip ( voip ) technology can also be employed to communicate the voice information from the user to the central server . in another embodiment , the user performs dictation of medical information data through the internet . to facilitate the user &# 39 ; s dictation , the user may access other patient medical files ( or pages ), which in the present case , may be the medical history or physical examination status . as the user dictates the information , the information is then transcribed into textual data . in the dictate all page shown in fig5 , it is contemplated that the user / physician dictates portions or an entire patient record , including demographic and clinical information for the patient . the dictate all page is thus useful for use in generation of a complete report without segregation . a more efficient or hipm compliant record entry method can be entered by use of the hpi page , selectable from the hpi button on the left column of fig5 . the hpi page is shown in fig5 a . it can be seen that the physician can select from one of ‘ voice recording ’, ‘ previous entry ’, ‘ type text ’, or ‘ standard phrases ’ to input clinical data . the selection of ‘ previous entry ’ will access from the database the previously entered information on this patient . this data is the ‘ persistent ’ data such as the information from the last examination , the previous prescription or diagnosis , etc . the ‘ standard phrases ’ button will cause the doctor constant or patient constant or pre - filled information to be accessed and presented to the user . the “ voice recording ’ selection will bring up the voice player as shown in fig5 for interactive voice dictation entry . the ‘ type text ’ button selection opens a dialogue box for entry of clinical information , in this case , patient complaint information as shown in fig5 a . thus , fig5 a shows again the use of interactive point , click , or type , in combination of voice entry of records . different from the dictate all page shown in fig5 , this page records only the clinical portion of the record . it is contemplated that the patient &# 39 ; s demographic data is already or separately entered , preferably by the patient or by staff member . the patient demographic data is separately stored in a different file from the patient &# 39 ; s clinical data . the system uses reference coding , such as a patient &# 39 ; s id number , to link the demographic and the clinical data and to maintain patient &# 39 ; s identity confidential , for example , if a patient &# 39 ; s record is accessed or sent using the patient &# 39 ; s id number , the demographic and clinical data are accessed and transmitted separately . a combined patient demographic and clinical data is accessible only if the patient &# 39 ; s name and other identification information set by the system is entered . such use makes entry of data secure , cost efficient , and hipaa complaint . the clinical information input can be made in segmented portions , each segmented portion can be entered by different users , such as one segment input by a physician and another segment input by another health care provider or physician . the segmented portions are linked to the patient by the index such as the patient &# 39 ; s id . each segmented portion can be retrieved , displayed , or input separately , independent of other segments , or in combination with other segmented portions . preferably , the segmented portions are organized into corresponding sections and subsections , as further shown as described below . fig6 provides a prefix phrase 610 page that the user pre - records prefix phrases particular to the user . this page is accessed through the hyperlink on the left column of the scheduling page 410 for the same patient in fig4 , and the hyperlink is the same for each page of the database for each patient . patient identification as described in fig4 is also found in this page , and is not described herein . the prefix phrase 610 page allows the user to record certain prefix phrases that are commonly used by the user to facilitate dictation . box 650 provides the dictation document that the user transcribes . for example , the user may transcribe a medical data entry by voice dictation using the dictation method as described for fig5 through the use of the set of dictate text 660 commands . previously recorded information , or ‘ persistent ’ data is found in the previously entered text 670 box . the user may use the previously entered text to facilitate the present dictation if persistent data is useful to the present dictation by checking box 672 . alternatively , the user may transcribe medical information by typing the text of the transcription into text box 674 and checking the add text box 680 . the your standard phrases box 682 lists all of the commonly used text that the user uses in transcribing medical information . the user &# 39 ; s dictation can be facilitated by viewing the user &# 39 ; s standard phrases in the your standard phrases box 682 onto the transcription text in box 650 . the normal button 654 reverts the text to a normal text without the use of prefix phrases . after the user transcribed the medical information by dictation and / or text input , the user submits the report for recordation to the central file memory 36 . alternatively , the user may quit the page before , during or after transcription without submitting the report for recordation to the central file memory 36 by selecting the close button 692 . fig7 provides a demographics 710 page that the user pre - records demographic information of the patient . this page is accessed through the hyperlink on the left column of the scheduling page 410 for the same patient in fig4 , and the hyperlink is the same for each page of the database for each patient . in one embodiment , selected patient information data that the patient entered from the patient &# 39 ; s portal 250 can be transferred to this demographics page . the user may modify the demographics information that the patients entered . this demographics page enables the user to view the demographics of the patient while transcribing the medical report . dictation is effected through a set of command buttons 720 , which is the same as 660 in fig6 and legend numbers 530 , 532 , 534 , 536 , 540 and 544 in fig5 . the demographic information includes the date of service 730 , location of service 732 , billing information 734 , and identification and address information of the patient 736 , 738 , 740 , 742 , and 744 . information relating to the patient &# 39 ; s primary physician is in primary md box 746 and information relating to the patient &# 39 ; s referring physician is in referring md box 750 . address book buttons 748 and 752 provides a list of pre - recorded names of physician so that the user may view , insert or modify as needed . other patient data includes marital status checkboxes 750 , and employment information in the set of check and text boxes 760 . another added feature in this demographics page is the photograph of the patient 724 . the feature of this photograph enables the user to upload a picture of the patient onto a designated space in the demographics page . this can be done by prompting the user with an ‘ attach image ’ button ( not shown ). upon selection , the user can attach an image file , such as jpeg or tiff and press send . image files in digitized versions of medical images such as xray photos can also be stored in the patient records using the ‘ attach image ’ button . further , a recorded video , for example , for showing an injury can also be uploaded to the patient records . the central server 20 places the image onto the designated space upon receipt of the image file . this particular feature is of importance to the user as the user may see numerous patients in the course of a day &# 39 ; s schedule . the picture of the patient will help jug the user &# 39 ; s memory of the user &# 39 ; s experience with the patient during the patient &# 39 ; s examination . the type text box 762 allows the user to input textual information and the your standard phrases box 764 allows the user to visualize his standard phrases used in dictating the patient &# 39 ; s medical information . according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention , a user has access to a voice activated program to dictate information over the internet interface , and at the same time , has access to the patient &# 39 ; s medical information ( including , for example , the patient &# 39 ; s medical history and physical examination ). accordingly , the pages under the title medical history and physical examination have the same hyperlink on the left column of each page so that the user may visually review all of these information available over the computer screen and interactively dictating in front of the same computer screen . the user can see different pages of the medical information using the hyperlinks , while at the same time dictating ( and subsequently transcribing ) a medical report . fig8 shows a dictate correspondence page 810 , which is accessible through the hyperlink on the left column of the page , and the hyperlinks are the same for each patient . as discussed earlier , many of the patient information ( such as 420 , 422 , 424 , 426 , 440 442 and 444 ) are the same in each page that is specific to that patient . additionally , the left column containing hyperlinks to other pages for the same patient are also the same to facilitate the user to move from one page to another for the same patient . this dictate correspondence page 810 facilitates the dictation process . the user may dictate correspondence for reporting to physicians and other requesters . features in this page include automated report of the dictated document as well as the use of templated cover letters . the user may use the automated feature by clicking on the automated box 822 in conjunction with each of the templated cover letters by clicking the box corresponding to the correspondence standard cover letter a , b or c , which is designated as 824 , 826 and 828 , respectively . the standard cover letters are pre - recorded by the user or others . the standardize letter may contain boiler - plate content to facilitate the user in reporting to physicians and other requesters . to use the standard cover letters , the user checks the automated box 822 and one of the box associated with the correspondence cover letters , i . e ., 824 , 826 or 828 . the user supplements the text in the correspondence by entering textual data in the typed text box 830 or dictating using the set of buttons 840 . alternatively , the user types a new cover letter in the typed text box 830 or dictating using the set of buttons 840 . the voice recognition program automatically transcribes the voice data to textual data in the types text box 830 , which the user can edit using either entering textual data into types text box 830 or dictating using the set of buttons 840 . the dictate correspondence 820 page also facilitates the transmission of the correspondence . the user chooses the recipient of the correspondence by checking the boxes associated with the patient &# 39 ; s primary md , referring md , and others at the user &# 39 ; s choosing . for example , the user directing the correspondence to the primary physician checks off the primary md box 850 and input the dictation id number ( or msid ) in msid box 852 . the user chooses the mode of transmission using fax , e - mail or mail in the set of boxes 854 . similarly , the user directs the correspondence to the referring physician by checking off referring md box 860 , inputting the dictation id number ( or msid ) in the set of boxes 862 . the user may transmit the correspondence to others by checking off provider name button 870 , inputting the msid in 872 and selecting the mode of transmission using boxes 874 . these commands are performed by the point - and - click mechanism using the computer pointer or mouse . address book box 880 provides a list of pre - recorded physician addresses . these reports may be provided on a regularly scheduled basis or at a period chosen by the user . to ensure complete record - keeping of all transmitted records , audit trail section 890 provide information of previously transmitted correspondence , that is listed by name of physician , document identification number , date / time of transmission , and the action taken . the user may also dictate correspondence to other service providers and health / managed care insurance companies . hyperlinks through this page have pre - recorded medical / medical insurance codes and billing information , such as basis for billing , symptoms , standard phrases and other templates for the physician &# 39 ; s use . one of the more time consuming tasks that the physician faces is the billing and collection process . the hyperlinks to this and / or other dedicated pages will facilitate the user in submitting billing statements for collection . various medical service codes are part of the pre - recorded web page forms to allow the user to input data in conjunction to the billing and collection process . referring to fig9 , the user accesses the report 910 page by entering the show report hyperlink 468 . this hyperlink , and similar hyperlinks , is patient specific and is found on the left column in each page specific to the patient . the report 910 page provides a summary of the input generated from each page of the medical history and physical examination hyperlinks . for example , the demographics 940 section provides the data entered from the demographics page 710 ( see fig7 ). similarly other medical history sections , such as chief complaints ( cc ) 950 section and hpi 960 sections , provide the same information as each of the respective pages . the user can access the demographics page 710 , cc page and hpi page by entering through demographics hyperlink 940 , chief complaints hyperlink 950 and hpi hyperlink 962 , respectively . voice data 962 logo refers to the input being provided by voice activated dictation . other report sections corresponding to the hyperlinks under the heading medical history and physical examination are also provided in the summary , but not described herein . the entire report 910 may be downloaded to various readable forms . operation 920 enables the user to download the report page 910 into the pdf format , and operation 930 enables the user to download the report page 910 into the word format . fig1 shows a page from the medical record screen page 1010 . this page enables the user to search patient medical records by a number of search criteria in the search section 1020 . the search criteria includes searching by last name 1030 , by the patient &# 39 ; s social security number 1032 , by msid 1034 and by the patient &# 39 ; s date of birth 1036 . the search results 1044 provides the patient name 1040 , the date of service 1042 , the reporting type 1046 and the patient &# 39 ; s problem type 1048 . fig1 shows the account setting 1110 specific for the user subscribing to the system of the present invention . setting the account will serve as a basis of the type of information to which the user has access and the type of medical data input , retrieval and reporting that the user can perform . the user chooses the download options 1120 in various forms including word format 1122 , text format 1124 , pdf format 1128 and doctation format 1128 . correspondence options 1130 includes a choice of e - mail 1132 , mail 1134 , fax 1136 and docmail ( through membership ) 1138 . the report transmission option 1140 includes delivery by e - mail 1142 . these categories and the corresponding options are merely one embodiment ; various other embodiments are possible and contemplated by this invention . the account setup for a particular user also includes the list of places of service 1150 , specialties and board certification status 1152 , information about training ad service of practice 1154 , cost of referring md 1156 , default text for operative procedure codes and finding services 1160 and template setup 1162 . by properly setting up the account , the user has access to numerous search and reporting criteria at the user &# 39 ; s choosing , as well as the level of services that the user chooses to subscribe . fig1 shows an exemplary voice transcription page accessible from the transcription portal ( 270 of fig2 ). this page is intended for access by the registered transcriber . a list of transcribed files 1210 is presented on the page for the transcriber should she wishes to access one of the files . a foot pedal set up button 1220 is available for the transcriber to actuate the voice record as by use of a foot pedal . the transcriber can access a voice file by entering the file name in box 1230 . player 1240 is available to play , pause , or stop the voice record as it is being played . the transcriber enters the text in the type text box as she listens to the voice record . upon completion , the transcriber selects the select button and the transcribed text is submitted for storage . having thus described exemplary embodiments of the interactive dictation , click , point , and type remote entry system and method , it is to be understood that although the record entries and reporting are described above using medical / patient records , the system and method is applicable to other fields where record documentation benefits from remote entry and reports automatically generated . thus , the invention defined by the appended claims is not to be limited by particular details set forth in the above description of exemplary embodiments , as many apparent variations thereof are possible without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as hereafter claimed .	6
fig1 shows the components of a buried object detector 100 in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention . the buried object detector 100 includes a marginal oscillator 101 . the marginal oscillator 101 is coupled to a loop antenna 102 . together , the marginal oscillator 101 and the loop antenna 102 form a tuned resonance circuit . the circuit is tuned to oscillate at a predefined frequency ( e . g ., 15 mhz ). the antenna may consist of an aluminium strip bent to form a loop of a predefined diameter ( e . g ., 15 cm ). an output of the marginal oscillator 101 is fed to a rectifier 103 . an output of the rectifier 103 is coupled to feedback amplifier 104 . the feedback amplifier 104 acts as a slow control loop for marginal oscillator 101 . an output of the rectifier 103 is also fed to detector amplifier 105 . the detector amplifier 105 is coupled to voltage - to - frequency converter 106 which is in turn coupled to tone generator 107 . fig2 is a circuit diagram for the buried object detector 100 . the marginal oscillator 101 comprises two fet devices 200 a and 200 b . a suitable fet for this application is the bf245b mosfet which is produced by various manufacturers . the source of fet 200 a is coupled to the common collector voltage ( vcc ). the drain of fet 200 a and the drain of fet 200 b are coupled to each other and to resistor 201 which is coupled to ground . resistor 201 may take a value of 1 kω . the gate connection of fet 200 b is also coupled to ground . the source connection of fet 200 a is also coupled to capacitor 202 , which may take a value of 10 nf and is also coupled to ground . the source connection of fet 200 b is coupled to resistor 203 , which may take a value of 3 . 9 kω . resistor 203 is also coupled to the output of feedback oscillator 104 . the source of fet 200 b is also coupled to capacitor 204 which is in turn coupled to the gate connection of fet 200 a . capacitor 204 may take a value of 4 . 7 pf . the gate connector of fet 200 a is also coupled to variable capacitor 205 which is in turn coupled to ground . variable capacitor 205 may take a nominal value of 220 pf . the variable capacitor 205 may be used to adjust the frequency of oscillation of marginal oscillator 101 . loop antenna 102 is coupled in series between the gate connector of fet 200 a and the gate connector of fet 200 b . the gate connector of fet 200 a acts as the output of oscillator 101 which is fed to rectifier 103 . rectifier 103 may be a 5082 - 2835 diode , as manufactured by various companies . the rectifier 103 converts the output of marginal oscillator 101 to a dc voltage . the output of rectifier 103 is fed to feedback amplifier 104 and to detector amplifier 105 . feedback amplifier 104 may comprise a tlc271 operational amplifier 206 . a 1 μf capacitor 207 is coupled between the inverting input ( pin 2 ) and the output ( pin 6 ) of amplifier 206 . a resistor 208 ( e . g ., 10 mω ) is coupled in series between the rectifier 103 output and the inverting input of the operation amplifier 206 . the non - inverting input of the operational amplifier 206 ( e . g ., pin 3 ) is coupled to a potential divider consisting of resistor 209 ( e . g ., 10 kω ) and a resistor 210 ( e . g ., 1 kω . resistor 209 is coupled to the vcc and the resistor 210 is coupled to ground . the output of the rectifier 103 is also coupled to ground by the parallel combination of resistor 211 9e . g ., 10 mω ) and the capacitor 212 ( e . g ., 1 nf ). the feedback amplifier 104 forms a very slow control loop which has a predetermined time constant ( e . g ., approximetly 10 seconds ). the value of the time constant is set by resistor 208 and capacitor 207 . the nominal oscillator output level is set by the value of the potential divider combination of resistors 209 and 210 . the output of rectifier 103 is also connected to detector amplifier 105 . detector amplifier 105 comprises an operational amplifier 213 which is may also be a tlc271 operational amplifier . a resistor 214 ( e . g ., 100 kω ) is coupled between the inverting input of operational amplifier 213 ( e . g ., pin 2 ) and the output of the operational amplifier ( e . g ., pin 6 ). the inverting input of operational amplifier 213 is also coupled to ground via 1 kω resistor 215 ( e . g ., 1 kω ). the output of rectifier 103 is coupled to the non - inverting input of operational amplifier 213 ( e . g ., pin 3 ). the output of operational amplifier 213 ( e . g ., pin 6 ) is the output of detector amplifier 105 and is coupled to the voltage - to - frequency converter 106 . voltage - to - frequency converter 106 comprises a integrated phase - lock loop circuit 216 . in this example , the phase - lock loop circuit 216 may be an hef4046 phase - lock loop integrated circuit . a capacitor 217 ( e . g ., 22 nf ) may be coupled between pins 6 and 7 of the hef4046 integrated circuit . pin 16 the hef4046 integrated circuit may be connected to vcc . the output of detector amplifier 105 may be coupled to pin 9 of the hef4046 integrated circuit 216 . pins 3 , 5 , 8 and 14 of the hef4046 integrated may all be coupled to ground . pin 11 may be coupled to ground via resistor 218 ( e . g ., 10 kω ). pin 4 of the hef4046 integrated circuit may be the circuit output which is fed to the tone generator 107 . the operation of the buried object detector 100 will now be described . the loop antenna 102 forms part of a resonant circuit with the marginal oscillator 101 . the feedback amplifier 104 is adjusted so that the dc power level being fed to fet 200 b is set to fix the oscillator at a nominal output level . when a lossy object is placed near the loop antenna 102 , the q factor of the circuit is reduced and the output of the marginal oscillator 101 dips for a few seconds before the feedback amplifier 104 compensates . the dip in voltage supplied to the voltage - to - frequency converter 106 causes a change in frequency supplied to the tone generator 107 , thereby alerting a user to the presence of an object . the device operates by monitoring the absorption of a radio frequency magnetic field which is generated by the loop antenna 102 and the marginal oscillator 101 . a buried wire or pipe is tightly coupled to the ground around it at rf frequencies . the ground has a resistive loss at rf frequencies and therefore absorbs a proportion of any rf signal carried by a wire or pipe . a tuned loop ( such as loop antenna 102 ) placed above the ground in which a wire or pipe is buried , magnetically couples with the wire or pipe . the resistive loss in the ground is transferred via the wire or pipe to the tuned loop . as a result , the quality factor of the tuned loop is reduced by the loss and the impedance across the ends of the tuned loop is reduced at its resonant frequency . magnetic coupling occurs with both metallic and non - metallic objects , and the device may therefore be used to detect both metallic and non - metallic objects . the operating point of the marginal oscillator 101 is adjusted to be near its oscillation threshold by controlling its feedback gain . one feature of a marginal oscillator is that its oscillation level is extremely sensitive to the quality factor ( q ) of the tank circuits ( in this case the feedback amplifier 104 ) controlling the frequency . absorption of the magnetic field can therefore be measured by monitoring the input power required to maintain oscillation as the loop antenna 102 is scanned over a lossy object , such as a pipe or wire . a marginal oscillator is one example of how the present invention may be implemented . a buried object detector in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention may detect an object by directly measuring changes in certain measurable parameters , such as the impedance across the ends of the tuned loop , the rf voltage across the tuned loop , or the current running through it . it will be appreciated by the skilled person that various changes and modifications may be made to the buried object detector within the scope of the claims . the detector 100 is most sensitive to lossy non - metallic objects when the object is at the centre of the loop antenna 102 . however , the detector 100 is most sensitive to buried metallic wires or pipes when the loop is at right angles to the plane of the ground and in line with the pipe or wire . in this position , the loop is least sensitive to losses in the ground itself and therefore it is a preferred configuration for pipe and wire detection . even a short piece of buried pipe or wire is affected by the surrounding lossy ground and therefore absorbs some of the rf power that is received from the detector loop 102 . the marginal oscillator 101 is extremely sensitive to all losses . the performance of the buried object detector 100 is therefore determined mainly by the discrimination between the loss due to the target and the loss due to the wall or ground . examples of effects that can be used to achieve more discrimination are given below . stepping the frequency of the marginal oscillator 101 over a range of frequencies can supply additional information to discriminate between different non - metallic materials and the ground or wall . the loss characteristics or loss profile of each material varies differently with frequency . sweeping widely over a buried object tends to produce sharp changes in the signal as the object is swept over and much slower changes from the surrounding ground . discrimination can therefore be obtained just by filtering the detector output or shaping the time constant of the oscillator control loop in order to favour faster changing signals . the detection of a buried wire or pipe is sensitive to the orientation of the antenna loop 102 . if the plane of the loop is at right angles to the pipe or wire , there is a complete null in the signal and therefore no detection . in a further embodiment , the loop antenna may be mounted on a mechanically rotating disc . the detector 100 therefore produces a signal modulated at the rotation rate . simple signal processing can easily extract the modulation . in an alternative embodiment , two crossed antenna loops may be used . each loop is connected to a separate detector system , each operating on slightly different frequencies . the output from the two detectors may then be added or subtracted to reduce the effects orientation or ground effects . orientation effects can also be reduced using two crossed loops that form two independent tuned circuits coupled together , both feeding a single system . the main requirement of the latter option is that the rf signals radiated from the loops should be at phase quadrature to one another to prevent cancellation ( at some loop orientations ) within the pipe / wire . this can be achieved by connecting one tuned loop directly to the marginal oscillator and energising the second tuned loop with light inductive coupling to the first . the systems described above may have problems with unwanted detection of long grass and poor performance in very wet ground . poor electromagnetic coupling in the presence of local high level signals is also a problem . an alternative approach is to use a horizontal loop . loss detection due to coupling between a horizontal loop and a wire is at a maximum when the loop ( in any orientation ) is placed either side of the wire . there is a distinctive very sharp null in the absorption when the loop is symmetrically over the top of the wire . unfortunately , in this arrangement the loop is also very sensitive to the losses in the ground , with or without the target , and therefore , except at very short range , the detector performs badly because ground effects mask the wire loss . one method of reducing all these limitations is to make the detector sensitive only to the null when the centre of the horizontal loop passes over the wire . this may be done as follows . the electrical centre of the loop antenna could be rapidly scanned , electronically or mechanically , in a circular pattern . there are several ways of doing this . the circular scan could be easily achieved at a rate of at least a few tens of rotations per second . using this system , when the loop is directly over a buried wire , the absorption null is passed twice for each complete revolution of the loop centre . the oscillator therefore produces an output modulated at double the frequency of the rotation , due only to the presence of the null . ground and other unwanted effects due not produce a sharp null and only produce modulation at the fundamental frequency of the rotation . note that the output from the detector can be a correlation of several rotations as the detector passes over the wire in a broader sweep of the ground . this results in much improved sensitivity . fig3 shows a block diagram of a detector using a simple mechanical scan . a rotating disc 300 is rotatable by means of motor 301 . the output of the rectifier is passed through bandpass filter 302 . the marginal oscillator is a very sensitive device and it includes a large loop antenna . it is therefore very vulnerable to interference from strong local signals at any frequency . the oscillator circuit should therefore include filters to suppress signals outside its operating frequency range . an example of how this can be done is shown in fig4 . a coil 400 is connected across the tuned loop antenna , forming part of the resonant circuit . two loops 401 a , 401 b are placed either side of the coil such that any coupling between the loops is predominantly via the resonant circuit . the loops are connected to the input and output of an amplifier 403 via bandpass filters 402 a , 402 b that are centred on the resonant frequency of the loop system . oscillation occurs at the frequency of maximum coupling between the input and output of the amplifier ( i . e . the resonant frequency of the loop system ) provided that the input signal to the amplifier is in phase with its output . the polarity of the two loops and the delay characteristics of the filters must be taken into account in the circuit design to achieve this . while the present invention has been described in connection with the detection of wires and pipes buried in the ground , it may also be used to detect other objects buried in a lossy material such as the ground . for example , it may be used to detect objects buried within the walls of a building .	6
the embodiment of the hybrid circuit - breaker of the invention is a circuit - breaker having nominal voltage of 800åkv and comprising a compressed - air circuit - breaker having two chambers in series , and an sf 6 circuit - breaker having three interrupting chambers in series . the chambers of the compressed - air circuit - breaker ( a ) are referenced 1 and 2 . each of them has a casing made of a composite material such as glass fiber impregnated with epoxy resin , with fins made of silicone or of epdm . resistors 3 and 4 , of high resistance ( of the order of several thousand ohms ), are electrically connected in parallel to the chambers 1 and 2 respectively . in a variant , the resistors are replaced by capacitors having capacitance of several hundreds of thousands of picofarads . the resistors or the capacitors are installed in insulating casings made of composite material and disposed parallel to the chambers 1 and 2 . the chambers include moving electrical contacts controlled by an opening valve and a closing valve contained in a central tank 5 . the chambers are mounted on an insulating column 6 made of ceramic 6 . an insulating control rod referenced 9 in fig2 passes through the insulating column . a tank of compressed air 7 and a control 8 are placed at the base of the column 6 . the sf 6 circuit - breaker ( b ) includes sf 6 interrupting chambers 41 , 42 , and 43 , equipped with respective distribution capacitors 44 , 45 , and 46 . capacitors and interrupting chambers are mounted on insulating supports 47 , 48 , and 49 . the chambers are driven by hydraulic , mechanical , or pneumatic controls 50 , 51 , and 52 . the controls are dependent on a winding 39 powered when a command is given by a control box 40 . fig2 shows an embodiment of the compressed - air circuit - breaker . only one chamber , namely chamber 1 , is shown , the other chamber being completely identical . in order to make the drawing clearer , the resistor 3 is not shown . fig3 shows the interrupting chamber and the make and break mechanism in more detail . the chamber includes inter alia a fixed arcing contact 32 and a moving arcing contact 22 equipped with a piston 50 , an opening valve h controlled by a control valve g , a closing valve k , and a blast valve l . the control 8 includes a valve 17 including a piston 18 , and a solenoid valve 20 controlled by a winding 21 . the command given to the winding 21 by the control box 40 fig1 causes the solenoid valve 20 to open and to allow compressed air into the space 19 overlying the piston 18 , thereby causing the piston to move downwards towards the bottom of fig2 and , as a result , causing the control valve g fig3 to open and the opening valve h fig3 to move downwards towards the bottom of fig3 . when the opening valve operates , it releases its seat 14 . the compressed air in the volume 15 inside the arcing contact 22 flows out towards the space 54 , and then towards the atmospheric air via the silencer 31 . reducing the pressure in the volume 15 to atmospheric causes the blast valve l to open automatically . the pressure drop in the volume 16 behind the piston 20 causes the moving arcing contact 22 to be displaced towards right of the fig3 and an electric arc to appear between the contacts 22 and 32 . the compressed air in the enclosure 25 flows out towards the spaces 33 and 59 , thereby applying a strong blast to the arc as it is displaced towards the right , fig3 . the silencers 31 and 34 enable the noise from the blast of compressed air to be reduced . when the contact 22 reaches the end of its stroke , the arc is blasted when the current passes through current zero for the first time . by interrupting the command to the winding 21 quickly , it is possible to rapidly re - close the solenoid valve 20 , the control valve g , and the opening valve h . the puffer valve l re - closes automatically a few hundredths of a second after it has been opened . according to a characteristic of the invention , a pipe 10 interconnects the inlet channel 11 , via which high pressure is applied to the opening valve h , and the inlet channel 12 , via which compressed air is applied to the control piston 13 for controlling the closing valve k . the pipe 10 acts as follows : at the same time as compressed air is being taken in via the channel 11 , compressed air also passes through the pipe 10 and penetrates into the channel 12 with a certain delay , of about 2 to 3 hundredths of a second , to operate the closing valve k . when the valve k operates , the space 26 in front of the piston 50 , fig3 is connected to the atmosphere , and the circuit - breaker is re - engaged because of the high pressure that is present inside the space or volume 16 behind the piston 50 as a result of the valve h being closed . in this way , the compressed - air circuit - breaker can be reclosed quickly and automatically after it has been opened , without requiring a make rod or a closing solenoid valve . by opening the compressed - air circuit - breaker for a very short time , it is possible to increase the arcing voltage sufficiently to enable the current to pass through current zero so that it can then be interrupted easily by the sf 6 circuit - breaker . the duration during which the compressed - air circuit - breaker remains open is adjusted by selecting the length and the cross - sectional area of the pipe 10 . if necessary , the pipe 10 may go round the valve h several times . it is necessary for the interrupting chambers in the compressed - air circuit - breaker and the interrupting chambers in the sf 6 circuit - breaker to open simultaneously , or preferably for those in the compressed - air circuit - breaker to open a few milliseconds before those in the sf 6 circuit - breaker . it should be noted that in order to avoid any error or delay in commands , the open electrical command is given simultaneously both to the opening winding 21 fig2 in the compressed - air circuit - breaker and to the opening winding 39 fig1 in the sf 6 circuit - breaker , with the two windings either in parallel or in series . it is possible to operate the valve 17 either directly , or else via a relay with the pneumatic or hydraulic command coming from the control 40 of the sf 6 circuit - breaker . fig3 shows the opening valve h which blasts the gas that is common to both the adjacent interrupting chambers . when a circuit - breaker having two chambers with one opening valve per chamber is used , using the pipe 10 for re - closing remains valid .	7
with reference to fig3 a , a multi - layer shadow mask 300 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention includes a deposition mask 310 and a sacrificial mask 312 . deposition mask 310 includes a first surface 314 and a second surface 316 . sacrificial mask 312 includes a first surface 318 and a second surface 320 . deposition mask 310 and sacrificial mask 312 both include an identical pattern of apertures 322 . with reference to fig3 b and 3c , and with continuing reference to fig3 a , deposition mask 310 and sacrificial mask 312 are oriented such that first surface 318 of sacrificial mask 312 is in contact with second surface 316 of deposition mask 310 and the pattern of apertures 322 of deposition mask 310 and sacrificial mask 312 are aligned one to another . the multi - layer shadow mask of the present invention is not limited to a two mask structure , such as multi - layer shadow mask 300 shown in fig3 a , 3b , and 3 c . alternative embodiments may include more than one sacrificial mask 312 in combination with deposition mask 310 . deposition mask 310 and sacrificial mask 312 can each be formed of , without limitation , a sheet of nickel , chromium , steel , copper , kovar ®, invar ® or other material . kovar ® and invar ® are low coefficient of thermal expansion ( cte ) materials available from , for example , espicorp inc . ( ashland , oreg .). in the united states , kovar ® is a registered trademark , registration no . 337 , 962 , currently owned by crs holdings , inc . of wilmington , del ., and invar ® is a registered trademark registration no . 63 , 970 , currently owned by imphy s . a . corporation of france . apertures 322 are openings of predetermined size , shape and location according to an associated circuit layout . the overall dimension of deposition mask 310 and sacrificial mask 312 is user defined . the thickness of deposition mask 310 and sacrificial mask 312 are each typically in the range of , without limitation , 20 to 40 microns , but may be in the range of 10 to 100 micrometers . in order to match the coefficient of thermal expansion ( cte ) of deposition mask 310 and sacrificial mask 312 , it is preferable to form them both of the same material . cte is defined as the linear dimensional change of a material per unit change in temperature . alternatively , deposition mask 310 and sacrificial mask 312 can be formed of different materials having different cte values . however , the dimension of apertures 322 of deposition mask 310 vs . the dimension of apertures 322 of sacrificial mask 312 may have to differ slightly in order to compensate for the different cte values . with reference to fig4 a , prior to a first deposition event , first surface 314 of deposition mask 310 is positioned in intimate contact with substrate 210 , first surface 318 of sacrificial mask 312 is positioned in intimate contact with second surface 316 of deposition mask 310 , and second surface 320 of sacrificial mask 312 is oriented facing a deposition source ( not shown ) which supplies the material , such as metal , semiconductor , insulator or organic electroluminescent material , to be deposited via an evaporation process . with reference to fig4 b , in response to multi - layer shadow mask 300 and substrate 210 experiencing one or more deposition events , layer 212 ( described in connection with fig2 b ) forms on second surface 320 of sacrificial mask 312 . second surface 320 of sacrificial mask 312 becomes the land area for evaporant material that does not pass through apertures 322 whereupon layer 212 forms thereon by condensing and solidifying during one or more deposition events . fig4 b illustrates how sacrificial mask 312 between apertures 322 deforms as a result of one or more deposition events while , at the same time , deposition mask 310 between apertures 322 is not deformed . specifically , sacrificial mask 312 between or adjacent apertures 322 curls or warps away from second surface 316 of deposition mask 310 whereupon the edges of apertures 322 of only sacrificial mask 312 lift away from second surface 316 of deposition mask 310 . the material of sacrificial mask 312 between apertures 322 curls because of the difference in stress between sacrificial mask 312 ( with its surface compressed ) and layer 212 ( with its surface tensioned ) that is deposited thereon . however , the intimate contact of first surface 314 of deposition mask 310 against substrate 210 is maintained even though evaporant material may spill into the gap between first surface 318 of sacrificial mask 312 and second surface 316 of deposition mask 310 . even though evaporant material fills this gap , it does not have a curling effect on deposition mask 310 because there is no continuous run of second surface 316 of deposition mask 310 between apertures 322 for evaporant material to accumulate upon . as a result , first surface 314 of deposition mask 310 remains in intimate contact with substrate 210 . consequently , the geometry and dimensions of apertures 322 of deposition mask 310 remain unchanged because deposition mask 310 is shielded by sacrificial mask 312 from the negative effects of layer 212 . with reference to fig5 , a flow diagram of a method 500 of making and using multi - layer shadow mask 300 of the present invention in a standard shadow mask vacuum deposition process includes step 510 , wherein deposition mask 310 of multi - layer shadow mask 300 is formed of , without limitation , nickel , chromium , steel , copper , kovar ®, invar ®, or other suitable metal to any user - defined dimension and with any user - defined pattern of apertures 322 . the method then advances to step 512 , wherein sacrificial mask 312 of multi - layer shadow mask 300 is formed of , without limitation , nickel , chromium , steel , copper , kovar ®, invar ® or other suitable metal to the same user - defined dimension as deposition mask 310 in step 510 and with the same user - defined pattern of apertures 322 as deposition mask 310 in step 510 . the method then advances to step 514 , wherein second surface 316 of deposition mask 310 and first surface 318 of sacrificial mask 312 are mechanically or optically aligned and bonded together using , without limitation , an adhesive , around their perimeters . alternatively , deposition mask 310 and sacrificial mask 312 are aligned and stitched together ultrasonically . the method then advances to step 516 , wherein first surface 314 of deposition mask 310 is brought into intimate contact with substrate 210 and secured via any conventional technique . lastly , the method advances to step 518 , wherein a deposition process is performed , such as the deposition process described in u . s . patent application publication no . 2003 / 0228715 , entitled “ active - matrix backplane for controlling controlled elements and method of manufacture thereof ”, which is incorporated herein by reference . the &# 39 ; 715 patent application describes an electronic device formed from electronic elements deposited on a substrate . the electronic elements are deposited on the substrate by the advancement of the substrate through a plurality of deposition vacuum vessels that have at least one material deposition source and a shadow mask positioned therein . the material from at least one material deposition source positioned in each deposition vacuum vessel is deposited on the substrate through the shadow mask that is positioned in the deposition vacuum vessel , in order to form on the substrate a circuit formed of an array of electronic elements . the circuit is formed solely by the successive deposition of materials on the substrate . in summary , multi - layer shadow mask 300 of the present invention is particularly well suited for use in a continuous flow shadow mask vacuum deposition process , because multi - layer shadow mask 300 is able to withstand an increased number of deposition events without deforming , as compared to a standard shadow mask , such as conventional deposition mask 110 of fig1 a and 2 b . more particularly , sacrificial mask 312 shields deposition mask 310 from an accumulation of evaporant , such as layer 212 , and , therefore , prevents deposition mask 310 between apertures 322 from deforming because of the material stresses of evaporant material cooling and solidifying on deposition mask 310 . as a result , multi - layer shadow mask 300 of the present invention has an increased lifetime in a continuous flow shadow mask vacuum deposition system while , at the same time , manufacturing irregularities are avoided by the use of multi - layer shadow mask 300 . if desired , after a number of deposition events , multi - layer shadow mask 300 , including layer 212 on second surface 320 of sacrificial mask 312 can be removed from a deposition vacuum vessel after the thickness of layer 212 has built up sufficiently to negatively affect future deposition events . once multi - layer shadow mask 300 is removed from the deposition vacuum vessel , sacrificial mask 312 , including layer 212 thereon , can be separated from deposition mask 310 . thereafter , a new sacrificial mask absent layer 212 can be joined to the original deposition mask 310 in the manner described above in connection with sacrificial mask 312 to form a new multi - layer shadow mask 300 . thereafter , first surface 314 of deposition mask 310 of new multi - layer shadow mask 300 can be brought into intimate contact with substrate 210 and secured via any conventional technique for subsequent deposition events . thus , a single deposition mask 310 can be utilized with a plurality of different sacrificial masks 312 . the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments . obvious modifications and alterations will occur to others upon reading and understanding the preceding detailed description . it is intended that the invention be construed as including all such modifications and alterations insofar as they come within the scope of the appended claims or the equivalents thereof .	2
the present invention is described in more detail below . the term “ mass ” in this specification is equivalent to “ weight ”. the proteoglycan extraction method of the present invention is a method for extracting proteoglycan from fish cartilage . the method comprises the step of ( a ) heating small pieces of frozen fish cartilage in water . the fish cartilage is cartilage obtained from fish , preferably from oncorhynchus ( salmonidae ). examples of the fish include trout ( humpback salmon , cherry salmon , satsukimasu salmon , etc . ), salmon ( chum salmon , sockeye salmon , silver salmon , chinook salmon , steelhead , etc . ), shark , and cod . salmon and trout are particularly preferable . the cartilage to be used is not particularly limited ; however , head cartilage , in particular , nasal cartilage , is preferable . moreover , since fish heads are usually discarded when fish is processed into food products , the cost of fish heads is low , and a large amount of fish heads can be stably supplied . the small frozen pieces of fish cartilage can be obtained either by ( i ) freezing fish cartilage and then pulverizing it into small pieces or ( ii ) pulverizing fish cartilage into small pieces and then freezing it . it is also possible to use ( iii ) frozen fish cartilage itself . the small frozen pieces of fish cartilage obtained by method ( i ) are particularly preferable in the present invention . the present invention also encompasses a proteoglycan extraction method further comprising , before step ( a ), the steps of ( α ) freezing fish cartilage and / or ( β ) pulverizing fish cartilage into small pieces . the freezing method is not particularly limited , and any known freezing method can be used . for example , a method of storing fish cartilage in a freezer at about − 20 to − 80 ° c . for about 24 to 72 hours can be used . the pulverization may be performed using a known method . for example , the pulverization of fish cartilage ( preferably frozen fish cartilage ) into powder may be performed using known devices such as a blender or a mill . the pulverization is preferably performed at a low temperature ( e . g ., not more than 4 ° c .). each small piece of frozen fish cartilage is preferably about 0 . 001 to 0 . 5 g , more preferably about 0 . 005 to 0 . 3 g , further preferably about 0 . 001 to 0 . 1 g . the pulverization of fish cartilage into small pieces is preferably performed in a manner enabling production of such small pieces of frozen fish cartilage . further , if the small pieces of frozen fish cartilage having a weight in the above range are obtained after freezing fish cartilage , it is not necessary to perform the pulverization . although it is not particularly limited , the small pieces of frozen fish cartilage having a weight in the above range are preferably not less than 50 mass %, more preferably not less than 70 mass %, further preferably not less than 90 mass % among all the small pieces of frozen fish cartilage subjected to heating . this ratio is found by randomly selecting 20 pieces from all the small pieces of frozen fish cartilage subjected to heating , measuring the mass of each of the 20 small pieces , and calculating the proportion (%) of the pieces that have a weight in the above range in the 20 small pieces . “ all the small pieces ” herein refers to a group of small pieces , i . e ., an collection consisting of multiple small pieces . although it is not particularly limited thereto , defatted fish cartilage is preferably used . by using defatted fish cartilage , a highly purified proteoglycan - containing fish cartilage extract that incorporates less lipid can be obtained . the defatting may be performed by using a known method . for example , a method of running fish cartilage under water ( e . g ., tap water ) for about 1 to 24 hours can be performed . preparation of fish cartilage can be performed using a known method , including a method of immersing fish tissues ( preferably a fish head ) in water for about 1 to 24 hours to make the tissues swell , and removing tissues other than cartilage ( preferably nasal cartilage ), and a method of thawing a frozen salmon head , then immediately separating the nasal cartilage and running the nasal cartilage under water for about 1 to 24 hours , thereby washing and defatting the cartilage . if the cartilage has residual flesh , it is preferable to remove the flesh with tweezers or the like . the proteoglycan extracted by the proteoglycan extraction method of the present invention contains a high - molecular - weight proteoglycan . the inventors of the present invention suggest that the effect of treating and preventing inflammatory enteric diseases of the proteoglycan increases as the molecular weight of proteoglycan increases . thus , the present invention , which enables production of high - molecular - weight proteoglycan , is advantageous also in this regard . the term “ high - molecular - weight proteoglycan ” used herein specifically refers to a proteoglycan having a molecular weight of not less than 900 , 000 ( 90 × 10 4 ), preferably not less than 1 , 000 , 000 ( 100 × 10 4 ), more preferably not less than 1 , 200 , 000 ( 120 × 10 4 ). the present invention is assumed to be capable of producing a proteoglycan having a molecular weight of not less than 2 , 500 , 000 ( 250 × 10 4 ), or even 5 , 000 , 000 ( 500 × 10 4 ). the preferable high - molecular - weight proteoglycan is determined by subjecting the proteoglycan - containing extract obtained by the proteoglycan extraction method of the present invention to gel filtration chromatography under the following conditions , determining the uronic acid amount ( reflecting the proteoglycan amount ) in each fraction by using a carbazole - sulfuric acid method , creating a chromatogram based on the determined uronic acid amounts , and confirming that the peak of the chromatogram is equal to or more than the above range of molecular weight ( not less than 900 , 000 ( 90 × 10 4 ), preferably not less than 1 , 000 , 000 ( 100 × 10 4 ), more preferably not less than 1 , 200 , 000 ( 120 × 10 4 )). such a chromatogram based on the uronic acid amount may be hereinafter referred to as “ proteoglycan uronic acid amount chromatogram . further , it is also possible to make a chromatogram ( reflecting the protein amount ) based on the absorbencies by measuring the absorbencies of the fractions at 280 nm , and then finding the relative values of the protein amounts based on the measurement results ( i . e ., the measurement values are assumed to be values that reflect the protein amounts ). hereinafter , such a chromatogram may be referred to as “ proteoglycan protein amount chromatogram ”. column : sepharose cl - 4b packed column ( 1 - cm dia .× 38 . 5 cm column packed with sepharose cl - 4b as a carrier . sepharose cl - 4b is available from , for example , ge healthcare and other companies . sepharose cl - 4b , cas registry no . 61970 - 08 - 9 , is a 4 % crosslinked agarose with a particle size of 40 to 165 μm ( measured by the laser diffraction scattering method ).) buffer : 0 . 1 m phosphate buffer ( ph of 7 . 0 , containing 0 . 2 m nacl ) amount of fraction : 1 ml / tube molecular weight analytical curve : an analytical curve for use is prepared by subjecting the various dextran molecular weight markers described below to gel filtration chromatography under the same conditions as described above and measuring the absorbency ( which reflects the amount of dextran ) of each fraction by the phenol - sulfuric acid method , which is a well - known method for detecting sugar chains . dextran standard 1 , 400 , 000 ( sigma ) 1400 kda dextran standard 670 , 000 ( sigma ) 670 kda dextran standard 410 , 000 ( sigma ) 410 kda dextran standard 270 , 000 ( sigma ) 270 kda quantification of dextran ( absorbency measurement ) is performed as follows , according to the method described in hodge , j . e ., and hofreiter , b . t ., method in carbohydrate chemistry , 1 , 338 ( 1962 ). 500 μl of a sample aqueous solution or a standard monosaccharide ( mannose ) aqueous solution is placed in a 105 × 15 mm test tube . [ 2 ] 500 μl of a phenol reagent ( 5 v / v % aqueous phenol solution ) is added thereto , and the mixture is stirred . [ 3 ] 2 . 5 ml of concentrated sulfuric acid is added thereto , and immediately the mixture is stirred vigorously for 10 seconds . [ 4 ] the mixture is left to stand for 20 minutes or more at room temperature . [ 5 ] the absorbency at 490 nm is measured with a spectrophotometer . the carbazole - sulfuric acid method refers to a well - known method performed by adding a carbazole solution , which is a color component of uronic acid ( glucuronic acid ( glc a ), iduronic acid , etc . ), to a measurement specimen , and measuring the absorbency by using a spectrophotometer . an analytical curve is plotted using the glucuronic acid standard solution having a specific concentration , thereby finding the glucuronic acid content in the specimen . more specifically , the carbazole - sulfuric acid method is performed as follows . 2 . 5 ml of a reagent obtained by dissolving 0 . 95 g of sodium borate decahydrate in 100 ml of a concentrated sulfuric acid is placed in a test tube and ice - cooled . 0 . 5 ml of a test object ( preferably containing 2 to 20 μg of uronic acid ) is gently layered thereon . the mixture is stirred well while being ice - cooled , thereby keeping it at room temperature or below . after the test tube is covered with a glass ball , the test tube is heated in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes , followed by water cooling to decrease the temperature to room temperature . then , 0 . 1 ml of a reagent obtained by dissolving 125 mg of carbazole in 100 ml of anhydrous methyl alcohol is added and mixed therewith , and the mixture is heated in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes . thereafter , the mixture is water - cooled to room temperature , and the absorbency at 530 nm is measured . in the blank test , 0 . 5 ml of distilled water is used . simultaneously , an analytical curve is plotted using a glucuronic acid . the heating in step ( a ) is performed to the extent in which the effect of the present invention is ensured . although the heating conditions are not limited insofar as the effect of the present invention is obtained , an example of the heating conditions is as follows . although it depends on the heating temperature , the heating time is preferably more than 3 hours , more preferably not less than 3 . 5 hours , further preferably not less than 4 hours . although it depends on the heating time , the temperature of water used for the heating is preferably not less than 80 ° c ., more preferably not less than 90 ° c ., further preferably a boiling temperature ( 100 ° c . or more under 1 atmospheric pressure ). further , although the amount of small pieces of frozen fish cartilage to be subjected to heating and the water amount may be suitably determined , it is preferable to immerse all the small pieces in water . specifically , the mass ratio of all the small pieces to water ( all the small pieces : water ) is preferably about 1 : 1 to 1 : 10 . when the small pieces of frozen fish cartilage are immersed in water , the small fish cartilage pieces swell as the water permeates into the pieces . further , during the heating , the small swollen fish cartilage pieces are gradually softened and deformed , and finally become a thick fluid partially dissolved in water . therefore , the appropriate heating level may be determined according to the mass of the small swollen fish cartilage pieces after the heating ( i . e ., the residue remaining after the heating ). more specifically , in the present invention , it is preferable to perform the heating until the mass of all the small swollen fish cartilage pieces ( i . e ., residue ) resulting from the heating falls below the total mass of the small pieces of frozen fish cartilage subjected to the heating ; more preferably , the heating is performed until the mass of all the small swollen fish cartilage pieces ( i . e ., residue ) resulting from the heating falls to 70 % or less , more preferably 50 mass % or less , of the total mass of the small pieces of frozen fish cartilage used for the heating . the expression “ all the small swollen fish cartilage pieces ” ( i . e ., residue ) herein refers to a precipitate obtained by 20 - minute centrifugation at 5000 rpm and 4 ° c . ( the precipitate obtained by removing the solution after the centrifugation ). the liquid portion ( water ) of the product obtained after step ( a ) contains a large amount of proteoglycan . therefore , by collecting the liquid portion , it is possible to obtain a proteoglycan - containing extract . the collection of the liquid portion is performed by removing the supernatant through , for example , a centrifugation treatment ( preferably the centrifugation under the above conditions ). the liquid ( supernatant ) may be used as it is , or it may further be purified by a known method . it is also possible to concentrate the liquid by distillation , freeze - drying , or the like . it is also possible to powderize the liquid according to the freeze - drying method or the spray drying method . the other processes may also be performed insofar as the effects of the present invention are not impaired . the proteoglycan thus obtained may be used as , for example , materials for food , cosmetics , medicinal products , and the like . the usage of the proteoglycan obtained by the method of the present invention is not limited ; however , since the proteoglycan provides the aforementioned effects , the proteoglycan of the present invention is suitable for compositions for external use or oral compositions . more specifically , a preferable usage is a composition for external use or an oral composition containing the proteoglycan obtained by the method of the present invention . the proteoglycan - containing extract may be used directly as a composition for external use or as an oral composition . the composition for external use or an oral composition may be used , for example , as a medicinal composition , a quasi - drug composition , a cosmetic composition , or a food composition . these may be produced by a standard method using the proteoglycan obtained by the method of the present invention . they are particularly useful for products in the oral - care industry , cosmetics industry , and food and drink industry . the oral compositions containing the proteoglycan - containing extract obtained by the method of the present invention ( which may be hereinafter referred to as oral compositions of the present invention ) used in the oral - care industry may be the proteoglycan - containing extract itself , or a composition produced by appropriately combining the proteoglycan - containing extract with other components ( e . g ., abrasives , foaming agents , cleaners , surfactants , wetting agents , ph adjusters , thickeners , flavoring agents , and the like ) generally used for oral compositions . examples of the oral composition products include paste agents , ointments , gels , embrocations , sprays , supplements , liquids , mouthwashes , pasta , chewing gum , troches , and tablets , which may be manufactured by standard methods . such oral compositions of the present invention can be preferably used for alleviation of inflammation in oral tissues , or anti - aging in oral tissues . more specifically , the oral compositions of the present invention encompass an inflammation alleviation oral composition and an anti - aging oral composition . the cosmetic composition ( hereinafter may be referred to as “ cosmetic composition of the present invention ”) containing the proteoglycan - containing extract obtained by the method of the present invention may be the proteoglycan - containing extract of the present invention itself , or a composition produced by appropriately combining the proteoglycan - containing extract with cosmetically acceptable media , bases , carriers , additives , or other cosmetically acceptable components or materials using a standard method . more specifically , the cosmetic compositions produced by incorporating the proteoglycan - containing extract of the present invention include emulsions , lotions , creams , serums , foundation , face masks , and sunscreens . such a cosmetic composition of the present invention may be preferably used for alleviation of inflammation or for anti - aging . examples of preferable usages include compositions for sun protection , sunburn care , moisturizing and anti - aging of the skin ( e . g ., prevention or alleviation of dry skin , rough skin , facial wrinkles , or sagging skin ). the food and beverage compositions ( food and beverages ) containing the proteoglycan - containing extract obtained by the method of the present invention ( which may be hereinafter referred to as food and beverage compositions of the present invention ) used in the food industry may be the proteoglycan - containing extract itself , or a composition produced by appropriately combining the proteoglycan - containing extract with bases , carriers or additives that are acceptable in terms of food hygiene , or other components or materials that are used for food and beverages . examples of these include processed food and beverages containing the proteoglycan - containing extract with claimed effects of moisturizing and anti - aging of the skin ( e . g ., prevention or alleviation of dry skin , rough skin , facial wrinkles , or sagging skin ), health food ( food with nutrient function claims , food for specific health uses , etc . ), dietary supplements , beauty food , and food for patients . moreover , the present invention also includes moisturizers and skin anti - aging agents formed of the aforementioned food and beverage compositions of the present invention . the moisturizers and skin anti - aging agents may be supplied in the forms of drinks , pills , tablets , capsules , granules , jelly , troches , or the like for cosmetic or skin anti - aging purposes ( e . g ., prevention or alleviation of dry skin , rough skin , facial wrinkles , or sagging skin ). the amount of the proteoglycan - containing extract contained in the oral compositions , cosmetic compositions , or food or beverage compositions of the present invention is , for example , but not limited to , generally 0 . 001 to 100 mass %, preferably 0 . 01 to 95 mass %, based on the entire composition . the proteoglycan - containing extract obtained by the proteoglycan extraction method of the present invention contains a proteoglycan extracted with high efficiency . more specifically , based on the uronic acid amount ( i . e ., based on the uronic acid amount found by the carbazole - sulfuric acid method ), not less than 60 mass %, preferably not less than 70 masse , more preferably not less than 80 mass %, further preferably not less than 90 mass % of the proteoglycan contained in the small pieces of frozen fish cartilage used for the extraction can be extracted by the method of the present invention . further , as described above , the proteoglycan obtained by the proteoglycan extraction method of the present invention is a high - molecular - weight proteoglycan . more specifically , the proteoglycan - containing extract obtained by the proteoglycan extraction method of the present invention preferably contains a proteoglycan having a molecular weight of not less than 900 , 000 ( 90 × 10 4 ) ( more preferably a molecular weight of not less than 1 , 000 , 000 ( 100 × 10 4 ), further preferably a molecular weight of not less than 1 , 200 , 000 ( 120 × 10 4 )). the proteoglycan having the molecular weight of not less than the above range is preferably not less than 60 mass %, more preferably not less than 70 mass %, further preferably not less than 80 mass %, further more preferably not less than 90 mass % of all the proteoglycan extracted . the proportion can be found from a peak area in the aforementioned proteoglycan uronic acid amount chromatogram by calculating a proportion of the area of a proteoglycan having a molecular weight of not less than the above range . more specifically , the proportion can be found by calculating a proportion of the area of a proteoglycan having a molecular weight of not less than the above range based on the entire peak area of the proteoglycan uronic acid amount chromatogram . further , the present invention also encompasses a method for increasing efficiency in proteoglycan extraction from fish cartilage , comprising the step of heating small pieces of frozen fish cartilage in water . in this method , the preparation of small pieces of frozen fish cartilage , the heating , the measurement of proteoglycan extraction efficiency , and the like may be performed using the aforementioned methods and conditions . according to the methods described above , the present invention enables easy extraction of proteoglycan from fish cartilage with very high efficiency , as well as increasing efficiency in proteoglycan extraction from fish cartilage . in particular , the method of the present invention enables extraction of high - molecular - weight proteoglycan . although a restrictive interpretation is not desired , the present invention succeeded in such a highly efficient extraction of proteoglycan ( in particular , a high - molecular - weight proteoglycan ) not only by using small pieces of fish cartilage , but also by pulverizing frozen fish cartilage into small pieces . more specifically , in this method , the function of the enzyme ( in particular , the enzyme for decomposing proteoglycan ) contained in the bone tissue is assumed to be suppressed , and the heating process is assumed to further deactivate the enzyme . in this view , it is further assumed that the fish cartilage is preferably handled at a low temperature , and that the water used for extraction is preferably heated to a high temperature at the time of addition of the small pieces of frozen fish cartilage . the present invention is described below in more detail . however , the scope of the invention is not limited to these examples . the following three types (( 1 ) to ( 3 )) of samples derived from salmon nasal cartilage were used for analyzing extraction of proteoglycan . salmon nasal cartilage used for the analysis was obtained by separating nasal cartilage immediately after thawing a frozen salmon head , washing and defatting the nasal cartilage by running it under water for 6 hours , removing pieces of flesh and the like with tweezers , and washing the nasal cartilage with water by hand . salmon nasal cartilage was stored and frozen in a freezer , and the frozen nasal cartilage was used as a frozen salmon nasal cartilage block . the frozen salmon nasal cartilage block had a size of about 2 . 5 × 1 . 5 cm to about 4 . 5 × 2 cm and a weight of about 1 . 71 g to about 6 . 91 g . ( the average weight of 7 blocks was 3 . 701 g . ), although the size and weight depend on the size of the salmon head used . fig1 a shows a photo of a frozen salmon nasal cartilage block . frozen salmon nasal cartilage blocks from item ( 1 ) above were placed in a blender and crushed for 10 seconds to prepare small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage . fig1 b shows a photo of small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage . twenty pieces were randomly collected , and the size and the weight of each piece were analyzed . each piece had a size of about 0 . 2 cm to about 0 . 7 cm and a weight of about 0 . 0116 g to about 0 . 0890 g . ( the average weight of 20 pieces was 0 . 033 g .) from 100 g of the frozen salmon nasal cartilage blocks , 95 . 6 g of small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage was obtained . proteoglycan composition powder was prepared using frozen salmon nasal cartilage from item ( 1 ) above by the method disclosed in example 1 of patent document 1 ( jp2009 - 173702a ). this powder was used as defatted salmon nasal cartilage powder . from 100 g of the frozen salmon nasal cartilage blocks , 5 . 83 g of defatted salmon nasal cartilage powder was obtained . fig1 c shows a photo of defatted salmon nasal cartilage powder . the following is an excerpt from the disclosure of example 1 of patent document 1 . “ frozen salmon nasal cartilage ( 100 g ) was crushed , and an equal volume of tap water at 15 ° c . was added to the crushed salmon nasal cartilage . the mixture was gently stirred to mix it thoroughly , and the mixture , which was maintained at about 5 ° c ., was immediately centrifuged with a centrifugal separator at 9 , 000 rpm at 4 ° c . for 30 minutes to separate lipid and other components including proteoglycan . three layers were obtained after the centrifugation . the lipid layer in the upper layer and the aqueous layer in the middle layer were removed , and the precipitate was collected . the precipitate was freeze - dried and then pulverized with a centrifugal mill to prepare a water - defatted fine powder . at this stage , some of the fine powder was subjected to ether extraction for measurement of lipid , and it was found that 8 . 8 % lipid remained , that the removal rate was 75 . 0 % when lipid before defatting was defined as 100 %, and that the lipid had a faint foul odor . subsequently , a 10 - fold volume of ethanol was added to the water - defatted fine powder to dissolve and extract the lipid with the foul odor . this operation was repeated twice . the ethanol solution was filtered off and the solvent was evaporated to obtain a pale yellow - brown , odorless proteoglycan composition powder . the yield relative to the salmon nasal cartilage was 58 . 7 % ( dry basis ), and the proteoglycan content was 77 . 7 %. the foul odor of the proteoglycan composition powder completely disappeared .” the “ frozen salmon nasal cartilage ” of example 1 of patent document 1 corresponds to the “ frozen salmon nasal cartilage blocks ” described above . the term “ dry basis ” means a dry mass basis . analysis of proteoglycan extraction using small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage extraction of proteoglycan was attempted by adding water to small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage prepared as described above in item ( 2 ), and heating the mixture at 100 ° c . more specifically , the analysis was performed as follows . four samples were prepared . each sample was prepared by adding 60 ml of distilled water to about 12 g of the small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage . these four samples were heated at 100 ° c . for 1 hour , 2 hours , 3 hours , and 4 hours , respectively , and each sample was centrifuged with a centrifugal separator at 5 , 000 rpm at 4 ° c . for 20 minutes to remove insoluble matter ( residue ) and collect the supernatant . after the amount of the collected supernatant was measured , the amount of proteoglycan in the supernatant was measured as a uronic acid equivalent by the carbazole - sulfuric acid method . ( in tables and figures , uronic acid is represented by the term “ glca ,” an abbreviation of glucuronic acid .) in addition , the amount of protein in the collected supernatant was measured by the bradford method . the results are shown in table 1 . fig2 is a graphical representation of table 1 . from table 1 and fig2 , it was found that the extraction amount of proteoglycan increases as the heating time is increased . it was also found that heating for more than 3 hours ( e . g ., 4 hours ), in particular , increases the extraction amount of proteoglycan significantly . comparison of small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage , frozen salmon nasal cartilage blocks , and defatted salmon nasal cartilage powder proteoglycan was also extracted from the frozen salmon nasal cartilage blocks from item ( 1 ) and from the defatted salmon nasal cartilage powder from item ( 3 ) under the same conditions as for the small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage from item ( 2 ) above , and the extraction amounts thereof were compared . the results are shown in table 2 . in table 2 , the amount of extracted proteoglycan and the amount of extracted protein are represented in terms of amounts per 100 g of the frozen salmon nasal cartilage blocks . fig3 is a graphical representation of table 2 . the descriptions of the samples ( 1 to 9 ) shown in fig3 correspond to the descriptions in the graph no . column in table 2 . from table 2 and fig3 , it was found that the amount of extracted glucuronic acid ( reflecting the amount of proteoglycan ) significantly increased when the small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage were heated at 100 ° c . in water for 4 hours . in particular , considering the fact that the amount of uronic acid ( reflecting the amount of proteoglycan ) contained per 100 g of the salmon nasal cartilage was about 1 . 6 g ( value determined using the carbazole - sulfuric acid method by crushing the nasal cartilage after freeze - drying and by performing extraction with 4 m guanidine hydrochloride / 50 mm acetate buffer ), the amount of uronic acid extracted at 100 ° c . for 4 hours from the frozen salmon nasal cartilage blocks was 832 mg ( extraction percentage : 52 %), whereas the amount of uronic acid extracted at 100 ° c . for 4 hours from the small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage was 1490 . 6 mg , and the extraction percentage thereof was 93 . 2 %. proteoglycan extraction methods with such high extraction efficiency have not been known . it can be said that the present invention has made such high extraction efficacy possible for the first time . note that since 5 . 83 g of the defatted salmon nasal cartilage powder was obtained from 100 g of the frozen salmon nasal cartilage blocks , the amount of uronic acid obtained when the defatted salmon nasal cartilage powder was subjected to extraction at 100 ° c . for 4 hours was 733 mg in terms of the amount per 100 g of the nasal cartilage , and the extraction percentage thereof was 45 . 8 %. proteoglycan extracted as described above was analyzed for molecular weight . more specifically , the analysis was performed as follows . the collected supernatant obtained in “ analysis of proteoglycan extraction using small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage ” described above , which contains proteoglycan extracted from the small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage of item ( 2 ), was separated into fractions by gel filtration chromatography under the following conditions . the amount of uronic acid ( reflecting the amount of proteoglycan ) contained in each fraction was quantified by the carbazole - sulfuric acid method . in addition , absorbency at 280 nm of each fraction was measured , and the absorbency was defined as a value reflecting the amount of protein contained therein . based on these results , a proteoglycan uronic acid amount chromatogram and a proteoglycan protein amount chromatogram were drawn . the results are shown in fig4 . column : sepharose cl - 4b packed column ( 1 - cm dia .× 38 . 5 cm column packed with sepharose cl - 4b as a carrier . sepharose cl - 4b is available from , for example , ge healthcare and other companies . sepharose cl - 4b , cas registry no . 61970 - 08 - 9 , is a 4 % crosslinked agarose with a particle size of 40 to 165 μm ( measured by the laser diffraction scattering method ).) buffer : 0 . 1 m phosphate buffer ( ph of 7 . 0 , containing 0 . 2 m nacl ) amount of applied sample : about 0 . 5 ml of the collected supernatant ( uronic acid amount : about 1 mg ) molecular weight analytical curve : an analytical curve was prepared by subjecting the various dextran molecular weight markers described below to gel filtration chromatography under the same conditions as described above ( except that the amount of the applied sample was 1 mg ) and quantifying the amount of saccharide ( i . e ., amount of dextran ) contained in each eluted fraction by the phenol - sulfuric acid method . dextran standard 1 , 400 , 000 ( sigma ) 1400 kda dextran standard 670 , 000 ( sigma ) 670 kda dextran standard 410 , 000 ( sigma ) 410 kda dextran standard 270 , 000 ( sigma ) 270 kda dextran was quantified , specifically , as follows , according to the method described in hodge , j . e ., and hofreiter , b . t ., method in carbohydrate chemistry , 1 , 338 ( 1962 ). 500 μl of a sample aqueous solution or a standard monosaccharide ( mannose ) aqueous solution was placed in a 105 × 15 mm test tube . [ 2 ] 500 μl of a phenol reagent ( 5 v / v % aqueous phenol solution ) was added thereto , and the mixture was stirred . [ 3 ] 2 . 5 ml of concentrated sulfuric acid was added thereto , and immediately the mixture was stirred vigorously for 10 seconds . [ 4 ] the mixture was left to stand for 20 minutes or more at room temperature . [ 5 ] the absorbency at 490 nm was measured with a spectrophotometer . as shown in fig4 , the peaks for uronic acid and protein are observed around fraction nos . 10 to 25 ( i . e ., peaks for uronic acid and protein overlap ). also from these results , it was confirmed that these fractions contained proteoglycan . this is because it is believed that proteoglycan is contained in a fraction in which both uronic acid and protein are detected , since proteoglycan has a structure in which a number of sugar chains ( containing a large amount of uronic acid as constituent sugar ) are bonded to a protein ( core protein ) that serves as a core . it was also believed that from the molecular weight analytical curve , the molecular weight of the component contained in fraction no . 20 was about 900 , 000 ( 90 × 10 4 ), and the molecular weight of the component contained in fraction no . 30 was about 150 , 000 ( 15 × 10 4 ). accordingly , it was found that the collected supernatant obtained from the small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage contained high - molecular - weight proteoglycan having a molecular weight of not less than about 900 , 000 ( 90 × 10 4 ). in the figures , the fraction no . is indicated as “ tube no .”, and these are synonymous . in addition , the collected proteoglycan - containing supernatant extracted from the small pieces of frozen salmon nasal cartilage was separated into fractions by anion exchange chromatography under the following conditions , and a proteoglycan uronic acid amount chromatogram and a proteoglycan protein amount chromatogram were drawn in the same manner as described above . it was found that the peak for uronic acid and the peak for protein overlapped ( fig5 , left - right arrow ). this also provides evidence that proteoglycan was contained in the collected supernatant . column : deae sephacel packed column ( 2 . 5 - cm dia .× 10 cm column packed with deae ( diethylaminoethyl ) sephacel as a carrier . deae sephacel is available from , for example , ge healthcare and other companies .) buffer : 7 m urea / 50 mm tris - hcl buffer ( ph of 7 . 4 ) ( linear gradient elution is performed with 0 . 1 m nacl .)	0
fig1 shows a first exemplary embodiment of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention in schematic representation . the transmission comprises an input shaft an and an output shaft ab , as well as four planetary gearsets rs 1 , rs 2 , rs 3 , rs 4 and five shifting elements a , b , c , d , e , which are all arranged in a housing gg of the transmission . in this exemplary embodiment , the four planetary gearsets rs 1 , rs 2 , rs 3 , rs 4 , are arranged co - axially , one after the other , in an axial direction in the sequential order of “ rs 1 , rs 4 , rs 2 , rs 3 ”. the planetary gearsets rs 1 , rs 3 and rs 4 are configured as simple negative planetary gearsets . as is generally known , a negative planetary gearset features planetary gears that mesh with sun and ring gears of this planetary set . the ring gears of the planetary gearsets rs 1 , rs 3 , rs 4 , are identified with ho 1 , ho 3 and ho 4 ; the sun gears are identified with so 1 , so 3 and so 4 ; the planetary gears are identified with pl 1 , pl 3 and pl 4 ; and the carriers , on which the planetary gears are rotatably mounted , are identified with st 1 , st 3 and st 4 . the planetary gearset rs 2 is configured as a simple positive planetary gearset within double planetary design . as is generally known , a positive planetary gearset features inner and outer planetary gears that mesh with each other , wherein the inner planetary gears also mesh with the sun gear of this planetary gearset , and the outer planetary gears also mesh with the ring gear of this planetary set . the ring gear of the planetary gearset rs 2 is identified with ho 2 , the sun gear is identified with so 2 , the inner planetary gears are identified with pl 2 i , the outer planetary gears are identified with pl 2 a , and the carrier , on which the inner and outer planetary gears pl 2 i , pl 2 a are rotatably mounted , is identified with st 2 . the shifting elements a and b are configured as brakes , which in the exemplary embodiment presented herein are both configured as non - positive , shiftable disk brakes , which in another embodiment can , of course , be configured as non - positive shiftable band brakes , for example , and also as non - positive shiftable claw brakes or conical brakes . the shifting elements c , d and e are configured as clutches , which in the exemplary embodiment shown are all configured as non - positive , shiftable disk clutches , and can naturally also be configured , for example , as non - positive shiftable claw or conical clutches . with these five shifting elements a to e , eight forward gears and at least one reverse gear can be implemented by selective shifting . the multi - speed transmission according to the invention therefore features at least eight rotary shafts that are identified with reference numerals 1 to 8 . with regard to the kinematic coupling of the individual elements of the four planetary gearsets rs 1 , rs 2 , rs 3 , rs 4 to each other and to the input and output shafts an , ab the following is provided : the carrier st 4 of the fourth planetary gearset and the input shaft an are permanently connected to each other and form the shaft 1 . the carrier st 3 of the third planetary gearset rs 3 and the output shaft ab are permanently connected with each other and form the shaft 2 . the sun gear so 1 of the first planetary gearset rs 1 and the sun gear so 4 of the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 are permanently connected to each other and form the shaft 3 . the ring gear ho 1 of the first planetary gearset rs 1 forms the shaft 4 . the carrier st 2 of the second planetary gearset rs 2 and the sun gear so 3 of the third planetary gearset rs 3 are permanently connected to each other and form the shaft 5 . the carrier st 1 of the first planetary gearset rs 1 and the ring gear ho 3 of the third planetary gearset rs 3 are permanently connected to each other and form the shaft 6 . the sun gear so 2 of the second planetary gearset rs 2 and the ring gear ho 4 of the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 are permanently connected to each other and form the shaft 7 . the ring gear ho 2 of the second planetary gearset rs 2 forms the shaft 8 . with regard to the kinematic coupling of the five shifting elements a to e to the above described shafts 1 to 8 of the transmission , the multi - speed transmission according to fig1 provides the following : the brake a is arranged as first shifting element within the power flow between the shaft 3 and a housing gg of the transmission . the brake b is arranged as second shifting element within the power flow between the shaft 4 and the housing gg . the clutch c is arranged as third shifting element within the power flow between the shaft 1 and the shaft 5 . the clutch d is arranged as fourth shifting element between the shaft 2 and the shaft 8 . the clutch e is arranged as fifth shifting element within the power flow between the shaft 7 and the shaft 8 and locks the second planetary gearset rs 2 in the engaged or shifted state . in the exemplary embodiment shown in fig1 , the first planetary gearset rs 1 is the gearset of the transmission that is near the input , and the third planetary gearset rs 3 is the gearset near the output of the transmission , wherein the input shaft an and the output shaft ab are arranged , for example , co - axially with respect to each other . it is obvious to the person skilled in the art that this transmission can be modified without great effort so that the input and output shafts are no longer arranged co - axially with respect to each other , but , for example , axially parallel or at an angle with respect to each other . with an arrangement of this type , the person skilled in the art will , if needed , arrange the input of the transmission close to the third planetary gearset rs 3 , that is , on the side of the third planetary gearset rs 3 that faces away from the planetary gearset rs 1 . in principle , the spatial arrangement of the shifting elements within the transmission is optional in the exemplary embodiment of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention shown in fig1 and is limited only by the measurements and the external shape of the transmission housing gg . in the exemplary embodiment shown in fig1 , the two brakes a , b are arranged , with respect to the spatial layout , within the area of the first planetary gearset rs 1 , which is near the input in this case , and axially side by side , wherein the kinematic connection of the two brakes a , b to the first planetary gearset rs 1 requires that the brake b be nearer to the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 , which is adjacent to the first planetary gearset rs 1 , than to the brake a or that the brake a be arranged nearer to the drive of the transmission than the brake b . with respect to the spatial layout , the brake b is at least partially arranged within an area located radially above the first planetary gearset rs 1 , and the brake a is arranged correspondingly on the side ( near the input ) of the first planetary gearset rs 1 that faces away from the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 . an internal disk carrier of the brake a forms a section of the shaft 3 of the transmission and is connected in a rotationally fixed manner to the sun gear so 1 of the first planetary gearset rs 1 on the side of the first planetary gearset rs 1 that faces away from the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 . the shaft 3 is configured by sections as a kind of sun shaft that connects the sun gears so 1 , so 4 of the planetary gearsets rs 1 , rs 4 to each other . the shaft 3 can therein be rotatably mounted on either the input shaft an or a hub ( not shown in more detail in fig1 ) that is attached to the transmission housing . an interior disk carrier of the brake b forms a section of the shaft 4 of the transmission and is attached in a rotationally fixed manner to the ring gear ho 1 of the first planetary gearset rs 1 . the external disk carriers of the brakes a and b can each be integrated in the housing gg or also configured as separate components , which are then attached in a rotationally fixed manner to the housing gg . the servo unit units necessary for actuating the friction elements of the two brakes a , b are not represented in detail in fig1 for the sake of simplicity and can , for example , be mounted in the transmission housing gg or a housing cover that is affixed on the transmission housing . the person skilled in the art will modify this example of spatial arrangement of the two brakes a , b as needed , without particular inventive effort . the brake a can be arranged , at least in part , radially above the first planetary gearset rs 1 , and the brake b can be arranged , at least in part , radially above the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 . in yet another embodiment , the two brakes a , b can , for example , be arranged on the side of the first planetary gearset rs 1 that faces away from the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 , radially one above the other and axially adjacent to the first planetary gearset rs 1 , wherein the brake b , for example , is then arranged on a larger diameter than the brake a . as can also be seen from fig1 , the clutches c and d — at least their disk packets — are arranged from a spatial point of view within an area located axially between the second and third planetary gearsets rs 2 , rs 3 , while the clutch e — at least its disk packet — is arranged from a spatial point of view within an area located axially between the fourth and second planetary gearset rs 4 , rs 2 . the servo units of the three clutches c , d , e , required to activate these disk sets , are not shown in detail in fig1 for the purpose of simplification . in the example , the clutches c , d are arranged essentially axially adjacent , with the disk set of the clutch d is arranged at a larger diameter than the disk set of the clutch c . the clutch c is herein arranged axially adjacent to the second planetary gearset rs 2 , therefore closer to the second planetary gearset rs 2 than to clutch d . accordingly , the clutch d is arranged axially adjacent to the third planetary gearset rs 3 , therefore closer to the third planetary gearset rs 3 than the clutch c . an external disk carrier of the clutch c is connected to the carrier st 2 of the planetary gearset rs 2 on the side of the disk set of the clutch c that faces the second planetary gearset rs 2 and is also connected to the sun gear so 3 of the third planetary gearset rs 3 on the side of the disk set of the clutch c that faces the third planetary gearset rs 3 and , therefore , can be identified as a section of the shaft 5 of the transmission . an internal disk carrier of the clutch c is connected to the carrier st 4 of the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 and to the input shaft an of the transmission and can therefore also be identified as a section of the shaft 1 of the transmission . in a simple manner , the servo unit required for actuating the disk set of the clutch c can be mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the internal disk carrier of the clutch c and , therefore , rotates constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 1 , for example , the input shaft an . however , the servo unit of the clutch c can be preferably arranged inside a cylindrical chamber formed by the external disk carrier of the clutch c and mounted in an axially displaceable manner on this external disk carrier of clutch c and , therefore , constantly rotates with the rotational speed of the shaft 5 . in order to compensate for the rotational pressure of the rotating pressure chamber of this servo unit , the clutch c can have a known dynamic pressure compensation . an external disk carrier of the clutch d is connected on the side of the disk set of the clutch d facing the third planetary gearset rs 3 of the disk set of the clutch d to the carrier st 3 of this planetary gearset rs 3 and , via this carrier st 3 , also to the output shaft ab of the transmission and , therefore , can be identified as a section of the shaft 2 of the transmission . an internal disk carrier of the clutch d is connected , on the side of the disk set of the clutch d that faces the second planetary gearset rs 2 to the ring gear ho 2 of the second planetary gearset rs 2 and can therefore also be identified as a section of the shaft 8 of the transmission . over its axial length , this shaft 8 completely overlaps the clutch c . the servo unit necessary to actuate the disk set of the clutch d can be arranged in a simple manner inside the cylindrical chamber formed by the external disk carrier of the clutch d and can be mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the external disk carrier of the clutch d and , therefore , can constantly rotate at the rotational speed of the shaft 2 or the rotational speed of the output . however , it can , for example , also be provided that the servo unit of the clutch d is mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the internal disk carrier of the clutch d and , therefore , rotates constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 8 . in order to compensate for the rotational pressure of the rotating pressure chamber of the servo unit of the clutch d , known dynamic pressure compensation can be provided . for the person skilled in the art , it is easy to see that , differing from fig1 , in another embodiment of the transmission , the disk set of the clutch d can also be arranged , at least in part , radially above the disk set of the clutch c , wherein the axial distance for installation of the transmission is shortened . in the exemplary embodiment shown in fig1 , the clutch e , which locks the second planetary gearset rs 2 in the engaged or shifted state , is arranged within an area located axially between the second planetary gearset rs 2 and the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 , therein axially directly adjacent to the secondary planetary gearset rs 2 . an external disk carrier of the clutch e is connected to the ring gear ho 2 of the second planetary gearset rs 2 on its side facing the planetary gearset and , therefore , forms an additional section of the shaft 8 of the transmission . an internal disk carrier of the clutch e is connected to the sun gear so 2 of the second planetary gearset rs 2 and to the ring gear h 04 of the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 , and can therefore be identified as a section of the shaft 7 of the transmission . the servo unit required for the actuation of the disk set of the clutch e can be simply mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the internal disk carrier of the clutch e and , therefore , rotates constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 7 . the servo unit of the clutch e can , however , also be mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the external disk carrier of the clutch e and , therefore , rotates constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 8 . in order to compensate for the rotational pressure of the pressure chamber of the servo unit of the clutch e , known dynamic pressure compensation can be provided . according to the gearset arrangement corresponding to the sequential order of “ rs 1 - rs 4 - rs 2 - rs 3 ” of the four planetary gearsets rs 1 , rs 2 , rs 3 , rs 4 , and corresponding to the arrangement of the three clutches c , d , e within an area located axially between the fourth and third planetary gearset rs 4 , rs 3 , the shaft 6 of the transmission completely overlaps within its axial length the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 , the clutch e , the second planetary gearset rs 2 , and the two clutches c and d . at the same time , the shaft 6 radially encloses the shaft 7 and the shaft 8 and a section of the shaft 2 . it is expressly pointed out that the arrangement of the five shifting elements a , b , c , d , e stated above is to be considered as an example only . if required , the person skilled in the art will modify , in this example , the spatial arrangement of the five shifting elements a , b , c , d , e ; numerous proposals for this can be seen , for example , in the patent application of the generic kind de 10 2005 002 337 . 1 . based on the consideration that the clutch e , being the fifth shifting element of the transmission , locks the second planetary gearset rs 2 in a shifted or engaged state , two other possibilities of two exemplary embodiments of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention for locking the cited second planetary gearset rs 2 by way of the cited clutch e are shown in the following . fig2 illustrates a second exemplary embodiment and fig3 shows a third exemplary embodiment of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention , again in simplified schematic presentation , both based on the first exemplary embodiment of the inventive transmission explained in detail above with regard to fig1 . it can be easily seen from fig2 that the only difference , relative to the transmission kinematics of the second exemplary embodiment shown here , of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention in comparison to fig1 , is that the clutch e is now arranged within the power flow between the shaft 5 and the shaft 7 . in the shifted or engaged state , the clutch e now therefore connects the carrier st 2 and the sun gear so 2 of the second planetary gear rs 2 . it can also be seen in fig2 that the most important difference in the shifting element arrangement inside the housing gg in the second exemplary embodiment of a multi - speed transmission , shown herein , in comparison with fig1 is that the clutch e is now arranged with respect to the spatial layout within an area located axially between the second and third planetary gearsets rs 2 , rs 3 , and therein axially directly adjacent to the second planetary gearset rs 2 , wherein the clutch c is axially adjacent to the clutch e on the side of the clutch e that faces away from the planetary gearset rs 2 . on its side facing the planetary gearset rs 2 , the external disk carrier of the clutch e is connected to the carrier st 2 of this planetary gearset , and on its side facing away from the second planetary gearset rs 2 to the external disk carrier of the clutch c , and via this external disk carrier of the clutch c , to the sun gear so 3 of the third planetary gearset rs 3 , thereby forming a section of shaft 5 of the transmission . the internal disk carrier of the clutch e is connected to the sun gear so 2 of the second planetary gearset rs 2 , and via this sun gear so 2 , to the ring gear h 04 of the fourth planetary gearset rs 4 , thereby forming a section of shaft 7 of the transmission . a servo unit of the clutch e — not depicted in fig2 for the purpose of simplification — can be simply mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the internal disk carrier of the clutch e and , therefore , rotates constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 7 ; however , it can of course also be mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the external disk carrier of the clutch e to therefore rotate constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 5 . here too , of course , known dynamic pressure compensation can also be provided for the servo unit of the clutch e . as is also clearly seen in fig2 , it is advantageously possible in terms of manufacturing technology , to provide a common disk carrier for these to clutches c , e through the kinematic connection of the two clutches c and e to the shaft 5 . if the disk sets of the two clutches c , e , as in the exemplary embodiment shown here ( as an example ), are arranged axially side - by - side at the same diameter , a common disk carrier of this kind can be configured as an external disk carrier for both clutches c , e , which , together with the carrier st 2 of the second planetary gearset rs 2 , or together with the sun gear s 03 of the third planetary gearset rs 3 , forms a preassembled arrangement . if required , however , the person skilled in the art will also consider other suitable constructive configurations of a common disk carrier for both clutches c , e . in the same manner , if needed in fig2 , the person skilled in the art will modify the example of spatial arrangement of the clutch d relative to the two clutches c , e and arrange the disk set of the clutch d , for example , at least in part radially above the disk set of the clutch d , or at least radially above the second planetary gearset rs 2 . the exemplary embodiment of the inventive transmission , shown in fig2 , are reproduced , in regard to the spatial arrangement and constructive design of the shifting elements of fig1 , so that this description does not have to be repeated here . it can clearly be seen in fig3 that the only difference in transmission kinematics in the third exemplary embodiment of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention shown here in comparison with fig1 is that the clutch e is now arranged within the power flow between the shaft 5 and the shaft 8 . in the shifted or engaged state , the clutch e now therefore connects the carrier st 2 and the ring gear ho 2 of the planetary gearset rs 2 . in the third exemplary embodiment of the inventive transmission shown herein , the spatial arrangement of the shifting elements and the planetary gearsets relative to each other , as well as the constructive design of the shifting elements and planetary gearsets were largely taken from fig1 , so that the following description can be limited to the details applicable to clutch e . as can be seen in fig3 , the clutch e is now arranged with respect to the spatial layout within an area located axially between the second and third planetary gearsets rs 2 , rs 3 , and also axially adjacent to the second planetary gearset rs 2 , similar to the arrangement in fig2 . in contrast with fig2 , the disk set of the clutch e is now arranged with respect to the spatial layout within an area located radially above the clutch c . the external disk carrier of the clutch e forms a section of the shaft 8 of the transmission , is now connected at its side facing the second planetary gearset rs 2 to the ring gear ho 2 of that gearset , and is now also connected at its side facing away from the second planetary gearset rs 2 to the internal disk carrier of the clutch d . the internal disk carrier of the clutch e now forms an additional section of the shaft 5 of the transmission and is connected to the carrier st 2 of the second planetary gearset rs 2 , the external disk carrier of the clutch c , and the sun gear so 3 of the third planetary gearset rs 3 . a servo unit of the clutch e , which is intended for the actuation of the disk set of the clutch e — which is not illustrated in fig3 , for the purpose of simplification — can easily be mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the internal disk carrier of the clutch e to therefore constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 5 . the servo unit of the clutch e can also be mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the external disk carrier of the clutch e to therefore rotate constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 8 . it is obvious to the person skilled in the art that a common disk carrier can be respectively provided in an advantageous way , in terms of construction technology , for both the clutches c and e and the clutches d and e due to the special kinematic connection of the clutch e to the shafts 5 and 8 of the transmission . as an example of this , in fig3 , a common disk carrier of this type is designed for the clutches c , e as an internal disk carrier for the clutch e , a common disk carrier of this type for the clutches d , e as external disk carrier for the clutch e , and as internal disk carrier for the clutch d . if needed , a person skilled in the art will naturally also consider other suitable constructive designs for the disk carriers of the three clutches c , d , e . in other respects , the exemplary embodiments shown in this context for fig2 can also be transferred , at least analogously , to the exemplary embodiment of a transmission according to the invention shown in fig3 . fig4 illustrates a shift pattern , which can be provided for the inventive multi - speed transmission according to fig1 , 2 , and 3 . in each gear , three shifting elements are engaged , and two shifting elements are disengaged . in addition to the shifting logic , examples of values of the respective transmission ratios in individual gear ratios i can be obtained along with the progressive ratio codes φ determined from them . the specified ratios i are obtained from the ( typical ) stationary transmission ratios of the four planetary gearsets rs 1 , rs 2 , rs 3 , rs 4 of negative 2 . 00 , positive 2 . 60 , negative 3 . 70 , and negative 2 . 00 . in addition , it can be seen from the shift pattern that double shifts or range shifts can be avoided with sequential shifting , because two adjacent gears in the shifting logic use two shifting elements in common . the sixth gear is configured as a direct gear . the first forward gear results by engaging the brakes a and b and the clutch c , the second forward gear results by engaging the brakes a and b and the clutch e , the third forward gear results by engaging the brake b and the clutches c and e , the fourth forward gear results by engaging the brake b and the clutches d and e , the fifth forward gear results by engaging the brake b and the clutches c and d , the sixth forward gear results by engaging the clutches c , d , and e , the seventh forward gear results by engaging the brake a and the clutches c and d , and the eighth forward gear results by engaging the brake a and the clutches d and e . as can also be seen from the shift pattern , the reverse gear results by engaging the brakes a and b and the clutch d . according to the invention , it is possible to initiate driving the motor vehicle with a shifting element integrated into the transmission . a shifting element that is used in both the first forward gear and in the reverse gear , the brake a or the brake b is particularly suitable for this purpose in this case . advantageously , both of these brakes , a , b are also required in the second forward gear . if the brake b is used as the starting element integrated into the transmission , it is even possible to initiate driving in the first five forward gears and the reverse gear . as can be seen from the shift pattern , the clutch c can also be used when starting in a forward direction and the clutch d can be used as an internal transmission starting element for initiating driving in a reverse direction . fig5 now shows a fourth exemplary embodiment of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention based on the first exemplary embodiment of a transmission according to the invention as explained in detail above with regard to fig1 . it is easy to see from fig5 that the only difference with regard to the transmission kinematics of the fourth exemplary embodiment illustrated herein when compared to fig1 consists in that the clutch d , as the fourth shifting element of the transmission , is now arranged within the power flow between the shaft 6 and the shaft 8 of the transmission . in a shifted or engaged state , the clutch d now connects the ring gear ho 2 of the planetary gearset rs 2 to the carrier st 1 of the first planetary gearset rs 1 and the ring gear h 03 of the third planetary gearset rs 3 . it is also easy to see in fig5 that the spatial arrangement of the components of the transmission relative to each other within the transmission housing , except for the details applying to clutch d , is the same as that of fig1 . the following description , therefore , can be limited to these differing details . as can be seen in fig5 , the clutch d is axially arranged as in fig1 , with respect to the spatial layout , within an area located between the second and third planetary gearsets rs 2 , rs 3 . the person skilled in the art will be able without problem , however , to slightly modify this spatial arrangement of the clutch d , if needed , and arrange the disk set of the clutch d , for example , within an area located radially above the second planetary gearset rs 2 , or also within an area located axially between the second and fourth planetary gearsets rs 2 , rs 4 , and radially above the clutch e . according to fig5 , the external disk carrier of the clutch d now forms a section of the shaft 6 of the transmission and is connected to the ring gear h 03 at its side facing the third planetary gearset rs 3 , and to the carrier st 1 of the first planetary gearset rs 1 at its side facing away from the third planetary gearset rs 3 . similar to fig1 , the internal disk carrier of the clutch d forms a section of the shaft 8 of the transmission and is connected to the ring gear ho 2 at its side facing the second planetary gearset rs 2 , and to the external disk carrier of the clutch e via this ring gear ho 2 . a servo unit of the clutch d — not shown in detail in fig5 — for the actuation of its disk set can be arranged in a simple manner inside the cylindrical chamber formed by the external disk carrier of the clutch d and can be mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the said external disk carrier of the clutch d , to rotate constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 6 . the servo unit of the clutch d , however , can also be mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the internal disk carrier of the clutch d and to rotate constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 8 . the servo unit of the clutch d can feature a known dynamic pressure compensation . based on the consideration that the clutch e locks the second planetary gearset rs 2 in a shifted or engaged state as the fifth shifting element of the transmission , the following two exemplary embodiments of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention illustrate two other possibilities for locking the second planetary gearset rs 2 by way of the clutch e . fig6 shows a fifth exemplary embodiment and fig7 shows a sixth exemplary embodiment of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention , also in simplified schematic representation , both based on the fourth exemplary embodiment of an inventive transmission explained with reference to fig5 . it can be clearly seen in fig6 that the only difference with regard to transmission kinematics in the fifth exemplary embodiment of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention , illustrated herein , in comparison with fig5 is that the clutch e is now arranged within the power flow between the shaft 5 and the shaft 7 . in the shifted or engaged state , the clutch e now connects other the carrier st 2 and the sun gear so 2 of the planetary gearset rs 2 . it is also obvious in fig6 that the spatial arrangement of the components of the transmission relative to each other within the transmission housing is the same as that of fig2 , with the exception of the description applying to clutch d . the following description can therefore be limited to these differing details . as seen in fig6 , the clutch d is now arranged from a spatial point of view within an area located radially above the second planetary gearset rs 2 . this kind of arrangement option has already been discussed in connection with the description of fig5 . it is clearly seen in fig7 that the only difference with regard to the transmission kinematics in the sixth exemplary embodiment of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention , illustrated herein , in comparison with fig5 is that the clutch e is now arranged within the power flow between the shaft 5 and the shaft 8 . in the shifted or engaged state , the clutch e , therefore , now connects the carrier st 2 and the ring gear ho 2 of the second planetary gearset rs 2 . it is also clearly seen in fig7 that the spatial arrangement of the components of the transmission relative to each other within the transmission housing remains unchanged , except for the description pertaining to clutch d . the following , therefore , will be limited to these deviating description . as seen in fig7 , the external disk carrier of the clutch d now forms a section of the shaft 6 of the transmission and is connected to the ring gear ho 3 of that gearset on its side facing the third planetary gearset rs 3 , and to the carrier st 1 of the first planetary gearset rs 1 on its side facing away from the third planetary gearset rs 3 . similar to fig3 , the internal disk carrier of the clutch d forms a section of the shaft 8 of the transmission and is connected to the external disk carrier of the clutch e on its side facing the planetary gearset rs 2 and to the ring gear ho 2 of the second planetary gearset rs 2 . a servo unit of the clutch d — not shown in detail in fig7 — can be arranged in a simple manner inside the cylindrical chamber formed by the external disk carrier of the clutch d and can be mounted in an axially displaceable manner on the external disk carrier of the clutch d to rotate constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 6 , but can be displaceably mounted on the internal disk carrier of the clutch d to rotate constantly at the rotational speed of the shaft 8 . the servo unit of the clutch d can also be provided with known dynamic pressure compensation . finally , in fig8 illustrates a shift pattern that could be provided for the inventive multi - speed transmission according to the fig5 , 6 and 7 . in each gear , three shifting elements are engaged and two shifting elements are disengaged . in addition to the shifting logic , examples of values for the respective transmission ratios in individual gear ratios i can be obtained along with the progressive ratio codes φ determined from them . the specified ratios i are obtained from the ( typical ) stationary transmission ratios of the four planetary gearsets rs 1 , rs 2 , rs 3 , rs 4 of negative 2 . 00 , positive 2 . 60 , negative 3 . 70 , and negative 2 . 00 . in addition , it can be seen from the shift pattern that double shifts or range shifts can be avoided with sequential shifting , because two adjacent gears in the shifting logic use two shifting elements in common . it can be clearly seen in fig8 that the shifting logic is identical to that of fig4 , which is why it is not necessary to provide a more detailed description at this time . according to the different kinematic connections of the clutch d in comparison with the gearset diagrams illustrated in fig1 , 2 , and 3 , and the slightly changed stationary transmission ratios of the second planetary gearset rs 2 that are reasonable in this context , slightly different ratios i and progressive ratio codes φ are obtained for the gearset diagrams according to fig5 , 6 , and 7 in comparison with fig4 . the following also applies to all of the previously illustrated or described exemplary embodiments of a multi - speed transmission according to the invention . according to the invention , different gear transitions can be produced , even with the same gear gearbox diagram , depending on the stationary gearing multiplication , which makes it possible to have variations specific to use or vehicle : it is also possible , as shown in fig1 , to provide additional one - way clutches 38 at any suitable position in the multi - speed transmission , for example , between a shaft and the housing , or in order to connect two shafts , if necessary . an axle differential and / or a distributor differential 20 can be arranged on either the input side or the output side , as shown in fig9 . in an advantageous further development , as shown in fig1 , the input shaft an can be separated , if needed , by coupling element 24 from a drive motor 30 , wherein a hydrodynamic converter , a hydraulic clutch , a dry starting clutch , a wet starting clutch , a magnetic particle clutch , or a centrifugal clutch can be used as such a coupling element . it is also possible , as shown in fig1 , to arrange a driving element 25 of this kind within the power flow behind the transmission , whereby in this case , as shown in fig1 , the input shaft an is permanently connected to the crankshaft 32 of the drive motor 30 . in addition , the multi - speed transmission according to the invention , as shown in fig1 , provides the possibility of arranging a torsional vibration damper 34 between the drive motor 30 and the transmission . within the scope of an additional embodiment of the invention , shown in fig1 , a wear free brake 42 , such as a hydraulic or electric retarder , or the like can be arranged on the input shaft an or the output shaft ab , which is particularly important for use in commercial vehicles . in addition , power take off 44 can be provided on each shaft , preferably on the input shaft an or the output shaft ab , in order to drive additional units 37 on each shaft , as shown in fig1 . additionally , as shown in fig1 , the input and the output can be provided on the same side of the transmission housing gg . the shifting elements used can be configured as power - shifting clutches or brakes . in particular , non - positive clutches or brakes , such as disk clutches , band brakes and / or conical clutches , can be used . in addition , non - positive brakes and or / clutches , such as synchronizations or claw clutches , can be used as shifting elements . a further advantage of the multi - speed transmission described herein , as shown in fig1 , is that an electric machine 40 can also be affixed to each shaft as a generator and / or auxiliary main engine . any constructive design , in particular every spatial arrangement of the planetary sets and the shifting elements per se , as well as with respect to each other , and insofar as technically practical , can be included under the scope of the protection of the claims , without influencing the function of the transmission as specified in the claims , even if these designs are not explicitly presented in the figures or in the specification . pl 2 a outer planetary gears of the second planetary gearset pl 2 i inner planetary gears of the second planetary gearset	5
the inventor has found the problem in the conventional technique described in the background of the invention . now the problem will be explained . as described above , over - etching must be performed to remove the exposed part of the tin layer 87 reliably in the conventional method . when the over - etching is carried out , however , a gap 88 is made between the dd wiring 83 and the trench as is illustrated in fig5 . the gap 88 cannot always be filled up with silicon nitride during the cvd performed to deposit a silicon nitride film that may be etched at a different rate from silicon oxide film . the gap 88 may therefore remain between the dd wiring 83 and the trench . since the insulating films 85 and 86 are made mainly of sio 2 , they may allow passage of water . water may pass through the films 85 and 86 and flow into the gap 88 . water , if accumulated in the gap 88 , will evaporate during an ensuing heating step , affecting the operating reliability or efficiency of the device . even in the right - half region of the device shown in fig5 where the wiring 83 and the plug 84 have the same width , the tin layer 87 must be over - etched in the same way as in the left - half region . when the tin layer 87 is over - etched , there arise the same problem as described above . embodiments of the present invention will be described , with reference to the accompanying drawings . fig1 a to 1 h are sectional views illustrating the steps of manufacturing a semiconductor device according to the first embodiment of the present invention . shown in the left half of each figure is a region of the device , which has a contact hole and a wiring having a width greater than the diameter of the contact hole . shown in the right half of each figure is another region of the device , which has a contact hole and a dd wiring a width equal to the diameter of the contact hole . first , as shown in fig1 a , diffusion layers 2 are formed in one surface of a silicon substrate 1 . tisi 2 layers 3 ( metal silicide layers ) are then formed , each in the exposed surface of one diffusion layer 2 . the diffusion layers 2 are source / drain diffusion layers of , for example , mos transistors . then , as fig1 b shows , the first inter - layer insulating film 4 is formed on the silicon substrate 1 , covering the diffusion layers 2 and tisi 2 layers 3 . further , the second inter - layer insulating film 5 is formed on the first inter - layer insulating film 4 . etching is performed on both insulating films 4 and 5 . a wiring groove is thereby made in the second inter - layer insulating film 5 , and a contact hole is thereby made in the first inter - layer insulating film 4 . next , as illustrated in fig1 c , a tin film 6 , i . e ., a barrier metal film , is deposited on the upper surface of the structure and on the inner surfaces of the wiring groove and contact hole . further , a w film 7 , which will be processed to provide dd wirings , is deposited on the upper surface of the structure , filling the wiring groove and the contact hole . as shown in fig1 d , cmp ( chemical mechanical polishing ) is performed , thereby removing those parts of the tin film 6 and w film 7 which lie outside the wiring groove and contact hole . dd wirings 7 are thereby formed on the tin films 6 that are provided in the wiring groove and contact hole . then , as fig1 e shows , the surface region of each dd wiring 7 , which is about 50 to 100 nm thick , is removed by means of rie . the upper part of each tin film is thereby exposed . the exposed part of each tin film , which may cause short - circuiting , is oxidized by means of selective oxidation , thereby forming a tio 2 film 8 ( insulating film ). to provide a sac structure , silicon nitride film 9 about 50 to 200 nm thick is formed by lp - cvd on the entire surface of silicon substrate 1 , as is illustrated in fig1 f . further , cmp is effected , removing silicon nitride film 9 , except those parts provided on dd wirings 7 . thus , second inter - layer insulating film 5 is exposed and silicon nitride film 9 covers dd wirings 7 only . in the first embodiment , those parts of the tin films , which may cause short - circuiting , are not removed , but are oxidized . hence , such a gap 88 as shown in fig5 is not made at all . the problem described above , which may results from such a gap , will not arise in the present embodiment . to demonstrate the advantage of the first embodiment , the inventor hereof made three types of structures that were generally identical to the structure of fig1 . the three types of structures had the same dd wiring length of 10 nm and different line - and - spaces for the dd wirings made of w . more precisely , the first type had a line - and - space of 100 nm , the second type a line - and - space of 130 nm , and the third type a line - and - space of 150 nm . a short - circuit test was carried out on 8 - inch wafers , each having many structures of one type . that is , one hundred ( 100 ) parts of each 8 - inch wafer were examined for short - circuiting . the test results were as is shown in the following as seen from table 1 , the ration of the non - short - circuiting parts to the short - circuiting parts ( i . e ., non - short - circuiting yield ) much increased . more specifically , the first embodiment achieved a non - short - circuiting yield 30 % higher than that attained in the conventional method . the invention is advantageous , particularly for semiconductor devices the design rule of which is 0 . 13 μm or less . as seen from fig1 e and 1f , the interface between the tin film 6 and the tio 2 film 8 is at the same height as the upper surface of the dd wiring 7 . nonetheless , the interface may be lower than the upper surface of the dd wiring 7 . if this is the case , the dd wiring 7 is formed not only on the tin film 6 , but also on the tio 2 film 8 . in the manufacturing step of fig1 e , the tio 2 film 8 can be oxidized , while not oxidizing the dd wiring ( w wiring ) 7 , in an atmosphere of low oxygen content and a low temperature of 300 ° c . or less or by oxidation using water vapor diluted with hydrogen . to accomplish selective oxidation of the tin film 6 at high efficiency , it is desired that the tin film 6 be placed in an atmosphere consisting of hydrogen and water vapor , an atmosphere consisting of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide , or a similar oxidizing atmosphere . to operate a selective oxidation apparatus in safety , it is recommendable to dilute the oxidizing atmosphere with nitrogen or argon . if the atmosphere is diluted with nitrogen , it is necessary to set the partial pressure of nitrogen within the range illustrated in fig2 . the shaded region shown in fig2 indicates the range of n 2 partial pressure that can be applied to accomplish selective oxidation of the tin film 6 . any n 2 partial pressure outside this range cannot be applied in the selective oxidation . in other words , the n 2 partial pressure must be set within a certain range in order to perform selective etching on the tin film 6 . it may be necessary to remove the tio 2 film 8 . if so , hot concentrated sulfuric acid should better be used as etching solution . when hot concentrated sulfuric acid is applied , the tio 2 film 8 is etched , etching neither the dd wiring ( w wiring ) 7 nor the tin film 6 , as is illustrated in fig1 g . if the tin film 6 is oxidized at 500 ° c . or more to form the tio 2 film 8 , however , the tio 2 film 8 is crystallized . in this case , the tio 2 film 8 cannot be completely etched away , and residue inevitably remains on the dd wiring 7 . thus , it is desirable to oxidize the tin film 6 at a low temperature of 400 ° c . or less . tio 2 film 8 is removed in such a way that the surface of dd wiring 7 becomes almost flush with the surface of tin film 6 . as shown in fig1 h , gaps are not formed which are so large as to prevent silicon nitride film 9 from incompletely filling the wiring groove and contact hole . fig3 a to 3 c are sectional views showing the steps of manufacturing a semiconductor device according to the second embodiment of the invention . this device has rie wirings formed by performing rie on a conductive film . in this regard it should be recalled that the first embodiment has dd wirings . shown in the left half of each of fig3 a to 3 c is a region that has a contact hole and a rie wiring having a width greater than the diameter of the contact hole . shown in the right half of each figure is another region that has a contact hole and a rie wiring having a width equal to the diameter of the contact hole . the components equivalent to those shown in fig1 a to 1 h are designated at the same reference numerals in fig3 a to 3 c and will not be described in detail . first , as shown in fig3 a , a tin film 6 , i . e ., a barrier metal film , is formed on the second inter - layer insulating film 5 . thereafter , a w film 7 is formed on the tin film 6 . as shown in fig3 a , the inter - layer insulating film 5 has trenches . in each trench , a plug 7 ′ made of w is formed . the plug 7 ′ is covered , at all its sides , with a tin film 6 ′ that is a barrier metal film . next , as shown in fig3 b , photolithography and rie are performed on the w film 7 , forming w wirings 7 . as shown in fig3 c , the tin film 6 is oxidized by using the w wirings 7 as a mask . those parts of the tin film 6 which not covered with the w wirings 7 are thereby changed to tio 2 films 8 . the tin film 6 is oxidized in the same condition as in the first embodiment . a part of each tio 2 films 8 thus formed lies beneath the edge of one rie wiring 7 . nevertheless , this part is not so large as to increase the resistance of the rie wiring 7 . since the tin film 6 is oxidized , it is unnecessary to remove , by etching , that part of the tin film 6 which is not covered with the rie wiring 7 . over - etching that may affect the second inter - layer insulating film 5 can be therefore prevented . further , the tio 2 films 8 may be removed by means of etching , if they are unnecessary . the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above . for example , the wirings may be made of , for example , cu , ag , au , ru or mo , not tungsten ( w ) that is used in the embodiments described above . alternatively , the wirings may be made of alloy of two or more metals selected from the group consisting of w , cu , ag , au , ru and mo . the barrier metal film may be made of material other than tin . they may be made of , for example , metal nitride such as tantalum nitride , niobium nitride , zirconium nitride or hafnium nitride . alternatively , they may be made of metal carbide , metal boride , metal - si nitride or metal - carbon nitride . furthermore , the substrate may be other the silicon substrate used in the above embodiments . for example , the substrate may be an soi substrate to minimize the parasitic capacitance , thereby to provide a high - speed device . alternatively , the substrate may be a semiconductor substrate that has an active region made of sige . additional advantages and modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art . therefore , the invention in its broader aspects is not limited to the specific details and representative embodiments shown and described herein . accordingly , various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the general inventive concept as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents .	7
information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques . for example , data , instructions , commands , information , signals , bits , symbols , and chips may be referenced by voltages , currents , electromagnetic waves , magnetic fields or particles , optical fields or particles , or any combination thereof . a digital signal may represent , for example , an image signal , a sound signal , a data signal , a video signal , or a multiplex of different signals . a digital signal , whatever its origin , may be coded and decoded . for example , u . s . pat . no . 6 , 307 , 487 describes a coding and decoding system . the embodiments described herein may be applied to any type of transmission , by radio frequency or by cable . one field of application is digital information transmission with a certain degree of reliability on highly noise - ridden channels . for example , the embodiments may be implemented for the transmission and reception of signals by satellite or wireless communication systems . the embodiments may also be used for spatial transmission towards or between spaceships and / or space probes and , more generally , whenever the reliability of the decoding is of vital importance . fig1 illustrates a system with a transmit device 100 and a receive device 120 , which communicate via a medium or channel 110 . the channel 110 may be a real - time channel , such as a path through the internet or a broadcast link from a television transmitter to a television recipient or a telephone connection from one point to another . alternatively , channel 110 may be a storage channel , such as a cd - rom , disk drive , web site , or the like . channel 110 might even be a combination of a real - time channel and a storage channel , such as a channel formed when one person transmits an input file from a personal computer to an internet service provider ( isp ) over a telephone line . the input file is stored on a web server and is subsequently transmitted to a recipient over the internet . the transmit device 100 comprises an encoder 102 , a modulator 103 and a transmitter 104 . the receive device 120 comprises a receiver 122 , a demodulator 123 , and a decoder 124 . the transmit device 100 and the receive device 120 may comprise other elements in addition to or instead of the elements shown in fig1 . in one embodiment , the transmit device 100 may be a wireless communication device ( also called a remote unit , an access terminal , a subscriber unit , etc . ), such as a mobile phone , lap top computer , or personal digital assistant ( pda ). the receive device 120 may be a base station in a communication system , such as a code division multiple access ( cdma ) system . in another embodiment , the transmit device 100 may be a base station in a communication system , and the receive device 120 may be a wireless communication device . the encoder 102 and decoder 124 may use a novel , low complexity , error - correcting code ( ecc ) to encode and decode data . the code may achieve capacity of a binary erasure channel ( bec ), such as the channel 110 , with modest ( bounded ) complexity . a bec can erase a code bit with probability p and can then transmit the correct value with probability 1 − p . a decoding method for this code may have a particularly simple form for a bec . desirable properties of a code may apply to other channels as well , as described in “ on the design of low - density parity - check codes within 0 . 0045 db of the shannon limit ” by sae - young chung , g . david forney , jr ., thomas j . richardson , and rüdiger l . urbanke , ieee commun . letters , 5 ( 2 ): 58 - 60 , february 2001 . the code described herein is not limited to a bec and may be used to improve communications on many other channels . codes with desirable properties for a bec may also be desirable for any packet erasure channel , such as an internet packet loss channel . encoding and decoding of the code described herein may be understood via message passing on a sparse bipartite graph , which is described in “ low - density parity - check codes ” by robert g . gallager , research monograph 21 , the m . i . t . press , cambridge , mass ., usa , 1963 and “ the capacity of low - density parity check codes under message - passing decoding ” by thomas j . richardson and rüdiger l . urbanke , ieee trans . inform . theory , 47 ( 2 ): 599 - 618 , february 2001 . one embodiment of an error - correcting code ( or sequence of codes ) described herein may be a non - systematic , irregular repeat - accumulate ( ira ) code . fig2 a shows an encoding process , which may be used by the system of fig1 , as viewed as a serial concatenated code . information bits are input to a repeat unit 250 , which repeats one or more of the information bits . a permutation unit 252 permutates the order ( e . g ., randomly selects an order ) of the information bits and repeated information bits . a parity check unit 254 generates output bits based on selected information bits and repeated information bits . an accumulation unit 256 accumulates the output bits from the parity check unit 254 . fig2 b shows one embodiment of an error correction code ( ecc ) structure 200 , which may be used by the system of fig1 . there are k information bit nodes ( top shaded circles ), which correspond to k information bits . although only 6 information bit nodes are shown , there may be any k number of information bit nodes . each information bit node has one or more edges ( or lines , connections , paths ) connected through a random or pseudo - random permutation to one or more parity - check nodes ( squares ). pseudo - random refers to a distribution that is not completely random but resembles a random distribution . there are n parity - check nodes ( squares ) and n code bit nodes ( bottom white circles ), which correspond to n code bits . the code structure 200 comprises both deterministic elements and a random or pseudo - random element . the deterministic elements are the information bit and parity - check degrees , i . e ., the number of edges ( lines ) attached to each circle and square . the random element ( or permutation ) is mapping between edges at each layer , i . e ., exactly which information bit node is attached to which edge of a parity check node . let q ( i ) be a number of edges ( or lines ) attached to an information bit node i for 1 ≦ i ≦ k . let s ( j ) be a number of edges emanating upwards from a parity check node j ( for 1 ≦ j ≦ n ). let e be the total number of edges attaching the information bit nodes to the parity - check nodes , such that : e = ∑ i = 1 k ⁢ ⁢ q ⁡ ( i ) = ∑ j = 1 n ⁢ ⁢ s ⁡ ( j ) in fig2 b , e is equal to 19 , but other embodiments may use other values of e . consider the lth edge of the jth parity - check node ( numbered from left to right ), and let t ( j , l ) represent a number of the information bit node to which this lth edge attaches ( for 1 ≦ j ≦ n and 1 ≦ l ≦ s ( i )). these parameters ( q ( i ), s ( j ), and t ( j , l )) may define the entire structure of the code . the code bit nodes at the bottom of fig2 b may be attached to the parity - check nodes in a zigzag pattern . the encoder 102 may transform k information bits into n code bits using the following method . the information bits may be denoted by u ( 1 ), . . . , u ( k ). the code bits may be denoted by x ( 1 ), . . . , x ( n ). both information bits and code bits can be taken from the binary alphabet { 0 , 1 }. the encoder 102 may compute the code bits recursively using a formula : x ⁡ ( j ) = [ x ⁡ ( j - 1 ) + ∑ l = 1 s ⁡ ( j ) ⁢ ⁢ u ⁡ ( t ⁡ ( j , l ) ) ] ⁢ mod ⁢ 2 , after encoding , all information bits and code bits are known . a “ true value ” of each edge may be defined to be the value of the bit node ( either information bit node or code bit node ) to which the edge attaches . this value is unique because each edge attaches to only one bit node ( either information bit node or code bit node ), and all edges in fig2 b connect bit nodes ( information bit nodes or code bit nodes ) to parity - check nodes . fig3 illustrates another embodiment of a code structure 300 , where all information bit nodes have an equal number of edges , e . g ., each information bit node has three edges . fig4 illustrates an example of encoding a sequence of six information bits ( 0 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 0 ) to nine code bits ( 1 , 0 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 ). the arrows in fig4 illustrate directions of binary values being passed from information bit nodes to the permutation block 402 to the parity check nodes 404 to the code bit nodes 406 . the permutation block 402 may provide random permutation or pseudo - random permutation of values from the information bit nodes 400 to the parity check nodes 404 . once a permutation is selected , the encoder 102 and decoder 124 will use the same permutation . each parity check node 406 receives one or more inputs from the permutation block 402 and outputs a value to a code bit node 406 . for example , the first parity check node 404 a receives a 1 and a 0 from the permutation block 402 and outputs a 1 . an even parity - check node is represented by an empty square , where all edges entering the even parity check node from the bottom and / or top should sum ( modulo - 2 ) to zero . each code bit node 406 ( such as 406 a ) receives a value from a parity check node 404 ( such as 404 a ) and may output its value to another parity check node 404 ( such as 404 b ). a decoding method for the ecc described herein may be based on fig2 b ( see also fig5 a – 5c and 6 ), which may be called a decoding graph . the goal of decoding may be to recover all information bits from a subset of code bits . each bit node ( i . e ., circle ) in fig2 b may represent an “ equality constraint ,” where all edges entering a bit node must have the same ( equal ) true value . there are two types of parity constraints : even parity and odd parity . an even parity - check node is represented by an empty square , where all edges entering the even parity check node from the bottom and / or top should sum ( modulo - 2 ) to zero . an odd parity - check node is represented by a filled square , where all edges entering the odd parity check node from the bottom and / or top should sum ( modulo - 2 ) to one . by definition , every codeword in the code is a binary sequence that satisfies all of these constraints . if symbols ( e . g ., 00 , 01 , 10 , 11 ) are used instead of bits , then there may be a plurality of parity constraint types . in this case , each type corresponds to all edges ( e . g ., a , b , c ) entering the parity check summing to a particular value ( e . g ., d , i . e ., a + b + c = d ). a channel model used herein may specify that each code bit is observed as transmitted across a noisy channel . this observation may be used to initialize the code bits . after initialization , the message - passing decoder 124 may allow each node in fig2 b to act as a separate processor , which receives messages , processes them , and then sends new messages . the decoding process may either terminate with a valid codeword or may be stopped after a fixed number of iterations . the bec may have particularly simple message passing rules because each bit is either known or unknown , and a “ known ” bit is never in error . the decoder 124 may operate by removing edges from the graph in fig2 b and iteratively computing the original information bits . if the true value of any edge entering a bit node is known , then the equality constraint says that the true values of all edges entering that bit node are known because they must all be equal . if the true values of all but one of the edges entering a check node are known , then the even - parity constraint may be used to compute the true value of the last edge because it must equal the modulo - 2 sum of all of the known edges . these two rules can be iteratively applied to the graph until the true values of all edges are known . the decoding method may be described as a graph reduction by using odd and even parity - check nodes . fig6 a - 6f illustrate a decoding example with a received sequence of code bits ( 1 , 0 , ?, 0 , 1 , ?, 0 , 0 , ? ), where “?” represents code bits erased by the channel 110 . the decoding method may first perform “ initialization .” in fig6 a , for each code bit received from the channel 110 ( i . e ., each bit that is not erased by the channel 110 ), if the code bit is a 1 , the method toggles the color of each parity - check node attached to the code bit node ( i . e ., changing even - parity & lt ;-& gt ; odd - parity ). for example , the method changes the color of the first two parity check nodes 600 a , 600 b from empty to filled because the first code bit is a 1 . for both 1 and 0 received code bits , the method then deletes all edges attached to the known code bit nodes , as shown by the “ xs ” in fig6 b . the decoding method may then perform “ iteration ,” as shown in fig6 c . for each parity check node with only one remaining edge ( such as parity check node 600 b in fig6 b and 6c ), the value of the only connected bit node ( code or information bit node ) is 0 if the check node is an even - parity constraint ( empty square ) and 1 if the check node is an odd - parity constraint ( filled square ). thus , the information bit node 602 b connected to filled parity check node 600 b is a 1 . the method sets the connected bit node ( e . g ., information bit node 602 b ) to its correct value ( 1 ) and deletes the edge , as shown in fig6 d . if the value of the bit is a 1 , the method toggles the color of each parity - check node attached to the bit node ( information or code bit node ), i . e ., change even - parity & lt ;-& gt ; odd - parity . thus , since information bit node 602 b is connected to parity check nodes 600 d and 600 g , the 1 from information bit node 602 b changes the color of parity check nodes 600 d and 600 g from empty to filled . the method deletes all edges attached to the known bit node 602 b , as shown in fig6 e . after the edge between information bit node 602 b and parity check node 600 g is deleted , parity check node 600 g has only one edge remaining : the edge connected to code bit 604 f . following the iteration method described above , the code bit node 604 f is set to 1 , as shown in fig6 e , and the edge between parity check node 600 g and code bit node 604 f is deleted , as shown in fig6 f . the 1 at code bit node 604 f causes the color of parity check node 600 f to toggle from filled to empty , as shown in fig6 f . then the edge between code bit node 604 f and parity check node 600 f is deleted . the decoding method may then perform “ termination .” when there are no parity - check nodes with only a single edge remaining , the method may terminate . if all edges in the decoding graph have been deleted , then decoding was successful , and all bit node values ( information bits and code bits ) are known . otherwise , some bits remain unknown , as shown in fig6 f , as decoding was unsuccessful . in contrast to binary erasure channels , decoding for general channels may require more complex messages to be passed between the nodes in the graph . these messages may represent a probability that the true value of an edge is a 0 or a 1 . representing this probability as a log - likelihood ratio ( llr ) usually leads to a simpler decoder . assume the transmitter 104 transmits a code bit x , which is equally probable to be 0 or 1 , and a channel output y is observed at the receiver 122 . in this case , the llr may be defined as : llr ⁡ ( x ) = log ⁢ pr ⁡ ( y \| x = 0 ) pr ⁡ ( y \| x = 1 ) . the channel statistics , pr ( y \| x ), may be estimated from channel output by the receive device 120 . the decoding method may proceed by passing llr messages around the decoding graph . fig5 a - 5b illustrate a log - likelihood ratio ( llr ) decoding example . the decoding method may first perform “ initialization .” in fig5 a , the llr of each code bit 506 may be computed from channel observations . in fig5 b , the llr of each information bit 500 may be set to 0 ( i . e ., bit is equiprobably 0 or 1 ). the llr of each edge may be set to the value of its adjacent bit node . the decoding method may then perform “ check node iteration .” each check node 504 has s edges , and c ( 1 ), . . . , c ( s ) represent the llrs of the input messages . the llrs of the output messages , denoted by d ( 1 ), . . . , d ( s ), may be represented as : the decoding method may then perform “ bit node iteration .” as shown in fig5 a , each code bit node 506 has q edges , and a ( 1 ), . . . , a ( q ) represent the llrs of the input messages . the intrinsic llr received from the channel 110 for a code bit node 506 may be represented as a ( 0 ) for information bits a ( 0 )= 0 . the llrs of the output messages , denoted by b ( 1 ), . . . , b ( q ), may be expressed as b ( j )= b − a ( j ), where b = ∑ i = 0 s ⁢ a ⁡ ( i ) . a hard decision ( decision to either one or zero ) for this bit may be given by the sign ( positive or negative ) of b and may be output or stored . the decoding method may then perform “ termination .” if the hard decision bits satisfy all of the code constraints , then the method found a codeword and can terminate successfully . if a codeword has not been found , and a maximum number of iterations is exceeded , then the method terminates unsuccessfully . one aspect of the invention relates to choosing the values of q ( i ) and s ( j ). let l m be a fraction of information bit nodes with m edges , as shown in fig2 b . let r t be a fraction of parity check nodes with t edges attached to the information bit nodes , as shown in fig2 b . mathematically , these fractions can be expressed as : l m =  { i  ⁢ q ⁡ ( i ) = m  k which is equal to the number of i &# 39 ; s in the set 1 ≦ j ≦ k such that q ( i )= m and r t =  { j  ⁢ s ⁡ ( j ) = t  n which is equal to the number of j &# 39 ; s in the set 1 ≦ j ≦ n such that s ( j )= t . a method is now described for choosing optimal values for r t given a particular choice of the l m . first , degree distribution polynomials for r t and l m may be defined as : r ⁡ ( x ) = ∑ t ≥ 1 ⁢ r t ⁢ x t ⁢ ⁢ and l ⁡ ( x ) = ∑ m ≥ 1 ⁢ l m ⁢ x m ⁢ . ρ ( x )= r ′( x )/ r ′( 1 ) and λ ( x )= l ′( x )/ l ′( 1 ), as shown in fig2 b . r ′( x ) is the derivative of r ( x ), and l ′( x ) is the derivative of l ( x ): r ′ ⁡ ( x ) = ∑ t ≥ 1 ⁢ tr t ⁢ x t - 1 ⁢ l ′ ⁡ ( x ) = ∑ m ≥ 1 ⁢ m ⁢ ⁢ l m ⁢ x m - 1 . using these polynomials , an optimal r ( x ) for the bec may be written as the power series expansion of r opt ( x ) may be found using a program such as mathematica , which can manipulate symbolic mathematics . appendix b lists one embodiment of a computer program for mathematica configured to implement a code described herein . if q ( i )= q for 1 ≦ i ≦ k ( i . e ., q ( i ) is a set number for all information bit nodes ), then the code may be called “ information bit regular ,” as shown in fig3 . in this case : and therefore the formula for r opt ( x ) may be simplified to : if all parity check nodes have the same number of edges , then the code may be called “ check regular .” “ irregular ” means each information bit node ( or check node ) has an unequal number of edges compared to other information bit nodes ( or check node ). for most choices of λ ( x ), the optimal parity - check degree sequence may be positive for all finite i ≧ 2 . since one embodiment of the code will not have parity - check nodes with an infinite number of edges , this distribution may be truncated . let s be a maximum number of edges that can be attached to a single parity - check node . there may be numerous ways to truncate r opt ( x ), which may provide good performance . let the total truncated weight for r opt ( x ) be : r 1 opt = q ⁢ ⁢ ɛ / ( s + q ) ⁢ ⁢ and ⁢ ⁢ r s + 1 opt = s ⁢ ⁢ ɛ / ( s + q ) . the second truncation method may also be tuned based on the block length of the code . and this requires that a small fraction of the information bits are also transmitted to get decoding started . fig7 illustrates a method of configuring the information encoder 102 of fig1 . in block 700 , for a plurality of information nodes , the method selects a number of outputs for each information node , wherein a total number of outputs is greater than a total number of information nodes . in block 702 , the method selects a permutation for the outputs of the information nodes to reach inputs of a plurality of parity check nodes , wherein a total number of information node outputs is equal to a total number of parity check node inputs . in block 704 , the method selects a number of inputs for each parity check node , wherein at least two parity check nodes have an unequal number of inputs . each node and each edge in fig1 - 6c can represent a vector or group of bits , i . e ., a symbol . for example , a symbol may comprise 2048 bits . one of ordinary skill in the art would understand how to implement the graphs described above for encoding and decoding symbols . appendix a describes mathematical proofs of properties for codes described herein . those of skill would further appreciate that the various illustrative logical blocks , modules , circuits , and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware , computer software , or combinations of both . to clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software , various illustrative components , blocks , modules , circuits , and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality . whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system . skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application , but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present invention . the various illustrative logical blocks , modules , and circuits described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented or performed with a general purpose processor , a digital signal processor ( dsp ), an application specific integrated circuit ( asic ), a field programmable gate array ( fpga ) or other programmable logic device , discrete gate or transistor logic , discrete hardware components , or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein . a general purpose processor may be a microprocessor , but in the alternative , the processor may be any conventional processor , controller , microcontroller , or state machine . a processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices , e . g ., a combination of a dsp and a microprocessor , a plurality of microprocessors , one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a dsp core , or any other such configuration . the steps of a method or algorithm described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware , in a software module executed by a processor , or in a combination of the two . a software module may reside in ram memory , flash memory , rom memory , eprom memory , eeprom memory , registers , hard disk , a removable disk , a cd - rom , or any other form of storage medium known in the art . an exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor such the processor can read information from , and write information to , the storage medium . in the alternative , the storage medium may be integral to the processor . the processor and the storage medium may reside in an asic and the asic may reside in a user terminal . in the alternative , the processor and the storage medium may reside as discrete components in a user terminal . the previous description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the present invention . various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art , and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention . thus , the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein .	7
the present invention is more particularly described in the following examples and embodiments that are intended as illustrative only since numerous modifications and variations therein will be apparent to those skilled in the art . various embodiments of the invention are now described in greater detail . as used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow , the meaning of “ a ”, “ an ”, and “ the ” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise . also , as used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow , the meaning of “ in ” includes “ in ” and “ on ” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise . moreover , titles or subtitles may be used in the specification for the convenience of a reader , which are not intended to influence the scope of the present invention . additionally , some terms used in this specification are more specifically defined below . without intent to limit the scope of the invention , exemplary instruments , apparatus , methods and their related results according to the embodiments of the present invention are given below . note that titles or subtitles may be used in the discussion of exemplary embodiments of the present invention for convenience of a reader , which in no way should limit the scope of the invention . moreover , certain theories are proposed and disclosed herein ; however , in no way they , whether they are right or wrong , should limit the scope of the invention so long as the invention is practiced according to the invention without regard for any particular theory or scheme of action . turning first to fig1 , a high level overview 100 of the steps undertaken to harvest , process , and prepare placental material for later use as an allograft is disclosed . more detailed descriptions and discussion regarding each individual step will follow . at a high level , initially , the placenta tissue is collected from a consenting patient following an elective cesarean surgery ( step 110 ). the material is preserved and transported in conventional tissue preservation manner to a suitable processing location or facility for check - in and evaluation ( step 120 ). gross processing , handling , and separation of the tissue layers then takes place ( step 130 ). acceptable tissue is then decontaminated ( step 140 ), dehydrated ( step 150 ), cut and packaged ( step 160 ), and released ( step 170 ) to the market for use by surgeons and other medical professionals in appropriate surgical procedures and for wound care . the recovery of placenta tissue originates in a hospital , where it is collected during a cesarean section birth . the donor , referring to the mother who is about to give birth , voluntarily submits to a comprehensive screening process designed to provide the safest tissue possible for transplantation . the screening process preferably tests for antibodies to the human immunodeficiency virus type i and type 2 ( anti - hiv - 1 and anti - hiv - 2 ), hepatitis b surface antigens ( hbsag ), antibodies to the hepatitis c virus ( anti - hcv ), antibodies to the human t - lymphotropic virus type i and type ii ( anti - htlv - i and anti - htlv - ii ), cmv , and syphilis , using conventional serological tests . the above list of tests is exemplary only , as more , fewer , or different tests may be desired or necessary over time or based upon the intended use of the grafts , as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art . based upon a review of the donor &# 39 ; s information and screening test results , the donor will either be deemed acceptable or not . in addition , at the time of delivery , cultures are taken to determine the presence of , for example , clostridium or streptococcus . if the donor &# 39 ; s information , screening tests , and the delivery cultures are all negative ( i . e ., do not indicate any risks or indicate acceptable level of risk ), the donor is approved and the tissue specimen is designated as initially eligible for further processing and evaluation . human placentas that meet the above selection criteria are preferably bagged in a saline solution in a sterile shipment bag and stored in a container of wet ice for shipment to a processing location or laboratory for further processing . if the placenta tissue is collected prior to the completion or obtaining of results from the screening tests and delivery cultures , such tissue is labeled and kept in quarantine . the tissue is approved for further processing only after the required screening assessments and delivery cultures , which declare the tissue safe for handling and use , are satisfied . upon arrival at the processing center or laboratory , the shipment is opened and verified that the sterile shipment bag / container is still scaled and intact , that ice or other coolant is present and that the contents are cool , that the appropriate donor paperwork is present , and that the donor number on the paperwork matches the number on the sterile shipment bag containing the tissue . the sterile shipment bag containing the tissue is then stored in a refrigerator until ready for further processing . all appropriate forms , including a tissue check - in form , such as that shown in fig2 , are completed and chain of custody and handling logs ( not shown ) are also completed . when the tissue is ready to be processed further , the sterile supplies necessary for processing the placenta tissue further are assembled in a staging area in a controlled environment and are prepared for introduction into a critical environment . if the critical environment is a manufacturing hood , the sterile supplies are opened and placed into the hood using conventional sterile technique . if the critical environment is a clean room , the sterile supplies are opened and placed on a cart covered by a sterile drape . all the work surfaces are covered by a piece of sterile drape using conventional sterile techniques , and the sterile supplies and the processing equipments are placed on to the sterile drape , again using conventional sterile technique . processing equipment is decontaminated according to conventional and industry - approved decontamination procedures and then introduced into the critical environment . the equipment is strategically placed within the critical environment to minimize the chance for the equipment to come in proximity to or is inadvertently contaminated by the tissue specimen . next , the placenta is removed from the sterile shipment bag and transferred aseptically to a sterile processing basin within the critical environment . the sterile basin contains , preferably , 18 % nacl ( hyperisotonic saline ) solution that is at room or near room temperature . the placenta is gently massaged to help separate blood clots and to allow the placenta tissue to reach room temperature , which will make the separation of the amnion and chorion layers from each other , as discussed hereinafter , easier . after having warmed up to the ambient temperature ( after about 10 - 30 minutes ), the placenta is then removed from the sterile processing basin and laid flat on a processing tray with the amniotic membrane layer facing down for inspection . the placenta tissue is examined and the results of the examination are documented on a “ raw tissue assessment form ” similar to that shown in fig3 . the placenta tissue is examined for discoloration , debris or other contamination , odor , and signs of damage . the size of the tissue is also noted . a determination is made , at this point , as to whether the tissue is acceptable for further processing . next , if the placenta tissue is deemed acceptable for further processing , the amnion and chorion layers of the placenta tissue are then carefully separated . the materials and equipments used in this procedure include the processing tray , 18 % saline solution , sterile 4 × 4 sponges , and two sterile nalgene jars . the placenta tissue is then closely examined to find an area ( typically a corner ) in which the amniotic membrane layer can be separated from the chorion layer . the amniotic membrane appears as a thin , opaque layer on the chorion . with the placenta tissue in the processing tray with the amniotic membrane layer facing down , the chorion layer is gently lifted off the amniotic membrane layer in a slow , continuous motion , using care to prevent tearing of the amniotic membrane . if a tear starts , it is generally advisable to restart the separation process from a different location to minimize tearing of either layer of tissue . if the chorion layer is not needed , it may be gently scrubbed away from the amniotic membrane layer with one of the sterile 4 × 4 sponges by gently scrubbing the chorion in one direction . a new , sterile 4 × 4 sponge can be used whenever the prior sponge becomes too moist or laden with the chorion tissue . if the chorion is to be retained , then the separation process continues by hand , without the use of the sponges , being careful not to tear either the amnion layer or the chorion layer . care is then taken to remove blood clots and other extraneous tissue from each layer of tissue until the amniotic membrane tissue and the chorion are clean and ready for further processing . more specifically , the amnion and chorion tissues are placed on the processing tray and blood clots are carefully removed using a blunt instrument , a finger , or a sterile non - particulating gauze , by gently rubbing the blood until it is free from the stromal tissue of the amnion and from the trophoblast tissue of the chorion . the stromal layer of the amnion is the side of the amniotic membrane that faces the mother . in contrast , the basement membrane layer is the side of the amnion that faces the baby . using a blunt instrument , a cell scraper or sterile gauze , any residual debris or contamination is also removed . this step must be done with adequate care , again , so as not to tear the amnion or chorion tissues . the cleaning of the amnion is complete once the amnion tissue is smooth and opaque - white in appearance . if the amnion tissue is cleaned too much , the opaque layer can be removed . any areas of the amnion cleaned too aggressively and appear clear will be unacceptable and will ultimately be discarded . the amniotic membrane tissue is then placed into a sterile nalgene jar for the next step of chemical decontamination . if the chorion is to be recovered and processed further , it too is placed in its own sterile nalgene jar for the next step of chemical decontamination . if the chorion is not to be kept or used further , it can be discarded in an appropriate biohazard container . next , each nalgene jar is aseptically filled with 18 % saline solution and sealed ( or closed with a top . the jar is then placed on a rocker platform and agitated for between 30 and 90 minutes , which further cleans the tissue of contaminants . if the rocket platform was not in the critical environment ( e . g ., the manufacturing hood ), the nalgene jar is returned to the critical / sterile environment and opened . using sterile forceps , the tissue is gently removed from the nalgene jar containing the 18 % hyperisotonic saline solution and placed into an empty nalgene jar . this empty nalgene jar with the tissue is then aseptically filled with a pre - mixed antibiotic solution . preferably , the premixed antibiotic solution is comprised of a cocktail of antibiotics , such as streptomycin sulfate and gentamicin sulfate . other antibiotics , such as polymixin b sulfate and bacitracin , or similar antibiotics now available or available in the future , are also suitable . additionally , it is preferred that the antibiotic solution be at room temperature when added so that it does not change the temperature of or otherwise damage the tissue . this jar or container containing the tissue and antibiotics is then sealed or closed and placed on a rocker platform and agitated for , preferably , between 60 and 90 minutes . such rocking or agitation of the tissue within the antibiotic solution further cleans the tissue of contaminants and bacteria . again , if the rocker platform was not in the critical environment ( e . g ., the manufacturing hood ), the jar or container containing the tissue and antibiotics is then returned to the critical / sterile environment and opened . using sterile fbrccps , the tissue is gently removed from the jar or container and placed in a sterile basin containing sterile water or normal saline ( 0 . 9 % saline solution ). the tissue is allowed to soak in place in the sterile water / normal saline solution for at least 10 to 15 minutes . the tissue may be slightly agitated to facilitate removal of the antibiotic solution and any other contaminants from the tissue . after at least 10 to 15 minutes , the tissue is ready to be dehydrated and processed further . next , the now - rinsed tissue ( whether it be the amniotic membrane or chorion tissue ) is ready to be dehydrated . the amniotic membrane is laid , stromal side down , on a suitable drying fixture . the stromal side of the amniotic membrane is the “ tackier ” of the two sides of the amniotic membrane . a sterile , cotton tipped applicator may be used to determine which side of the amniotic tissue is tackier and , hence , the stromal side . the drying fixture is preferably sized to be large enough to receive the tissue , fully , in laid out , flat fashion . the drying fixture is preferably made of teflon or of delrin , is the brand name for an acetal resin engineering plastic invented and sold by dupont and which is also available commercially from werner machines , inc . in marietta , ga . any other suitable material that is heat and cut resistant , capable of being formed into an appropriate shape to receive wet tissue and to hold and maintain textured designs , logos , or text can also be used for the drying fixture . the tissue must be placed on the drying fixture so that it completely covers as many “ product spaces ” ( as explained hereinafter ) as possible . in one embodiment , similar to that shown in fig5 , the receiving surface of the drying fixture 500 has grooves 505 that define the product spaces 510 , which are the desired outer contours of the tissue after it is cut and of a size and shape that is desired for the applicable surgical procedure in which the tissue will be used . for example , the drying fixture can be laid out so that the grooves are in a grid arrangement . the grids on a single drying fixture may be the same uniform size or may include multiple sizes that are designed for different surgical applications . nevertheless , any size and shape arrangement can be used for the drying fixture , as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art . in another embodiment , instead of having grooves to define the product spaces , the drying fixture has raised ridges or blades . within the “ empty ” space between the grooves or ridges , the drying fixture preferably includes a slightly raised or indented texture in the form of text , logo , name , or similar design 520 . this textured text , logo , name , or design can be customized or private labeled depending upon the company that will be selling the graft or depending upon the desired attributes requested by the end user ( e . g ., surgeon ). when dried , the tissue will mold itself around the raised texture or into the indented texture — essentially providing a label within the tissue itself . preferably , such texture / label can be read or viewed on the tissue in only one orientation so that , after drying and cutting , an end user ( typically , a surgeon ) of the dried tissue will be able to tell the stromal side from the basement side of the dried tissue . the reason this is desired is because , during a surgical procedure , it is desirable to place the allograft in place , with basement side down or adjacent the native tissue of the patient receiving the allograft . fig5 illustrates a variety of marks , logos , and text 520 that can be included within the empty spaces 510 of the drying fixture 500 . typically , a single drying fixture will include the same design or text within all of the empty spaces ; however , fig5 shows , for illustrative purposes , a wide variety of designs that can be included on such drying fixtures to emboss each graft . in a preferred embodiment , only one layer of tissue is placed on the drying fixture . in alternate embodiments , multiple layers of tissue are placed on the same drying fixture to create a laminate - type allograft material that is thicker and stronger than a single layer of allograft material . the actual number of layers will depend upon the surgical need and procedure with which the allograft is designed to be used . once the tissue ( s ) is placed on the drying fixture , the drying fixture is placed in a sterile tyvex ( or similar , breathable , heat - resistant , and sealable material ) dehydration bag and scaled . such breathable dehydration bag prevents the tissue from drying too quickly . if multiple drying fixtures are being processed simultaneously , each drying fixture is either placed in its own tyvex bag or , alternatively , placed into a suitable mounting frame that is designed to hold multiple drying frames thereon and the entire frame is then placed into a larger , single sterile tyvex dehydration bag and sealed . the tyvex dehydration bag containing the one or more drying fixtures is then placed into a non - vacuum oven or incubator that has been preheated to approximately 35 to 50 degrees celcius . the tyvex bag remains in the oven for between 30 and 120 minutes , although approximately 45 minutes at a temperature of approximately 45 degrees celcius appears to be ideal to dry the tissue sufficiently but without over - drying or burning the tissue . the specific temperature and time for any specific oven will need to be calibrated and adjusted based on other factors including altitude , size of the oven , accuracy of the oven temperature , material used for the drying fixture , number of drying fixtures being dried simultaneously , whether a single or multiple frames of drying fixtures are dried simultaneously , and the like . an appropriate dehydration recordation form , similar to that shown in fig4 , is completed at the end of the dehydration process . once the tissue has been adequately dehydrated , the tissue is then ready to be cut into specific product sizes and appropriately packages for storage and later surgical use . first , the tyvex bag containing the dehydrated tissue is placed back into the sterile / critical environment . the number of grafts to be produced is estimated based on the size and shape of the tissue on the drying fixture ( s ). an appropriate number of pouches , one for each allograft , are then also introduced into the sterile / critical environment . the drying fixture ( s ) are then removed from the tyvex bag . if the drying fixture has grooves , then the following procedure is followed for cutting the tissue into product sizes . preferably , if the drying fixture is configured in a grid pattern , a # 20 or similar straight or rolling blade is used to cut along each groove line in parallel . then , all lines in the perpendicular direction are cut . if the drying fixture has raised edges or blades , then the following procedure is followed for cutting the tissue into product sizes . preferably , a sterile roller is used to roll across the drying fixture . sufficient pressure must be applied so that the dehydrated tissue is cut along all of the raised blades or edges of the drying fixture . after cutting , each separate piece or tissue graft is placed in a respective “ inner ” pouch . the inner pouch , which preferably has a clear side and an opaque side , should be oriented clear side facing up . the tissue graft is placed in the “ inner ” pouch so that the texture in the form of text , logo , name , or similar design is facing out through the clear side of the inner pouch and is visible outside of the inner pouch . this process is repeated for each separate graft . each tissue graft is then given a final inspection to confirm that there are no tears or holes , that the product size ( as cut ) is within approximately 1 millimeter ( plus or minus ) of the specified size for that particular graft , that there are no noticeable blemishes or discoloration of the tissue , and that the textured logo or wording is readable and viewable through the “ inner ” pouch . to the extent possible , oxygen is removed from the inner pouch before it is scaled . the inner pouch can be sealed in any suitable manner ; however , a heat seal has shown to be effective . next , each inner pouch is separately packaged in an “ outer ” pouch for further protection , storage , and shipment . it should be noted that the above process does not require freezing of the tissue to kill unwanted cells , to decontaminate the tissue , or otherwise to preserve the tissue . the dehydrated allografts are designed to be stored and shipped at room or ambient temperature , without need for refrigeration or freezing . before the product is ready for shipment and release to the end user , a final inspection is made of both the inner and outer pouches . this final inspection ensure that the allograft contained therein matches the product specifications ( size , shape , tissue type , tissue thickness (# of layers ), design logo , etc .) identified on the packaging label each package is inspected for holes , broken seals , burns , tears , contamination , or other physical defects . each allograft is also inspected to confirm uniformity of appearance , including the absence of spots or discoloration . appropriate labeling and chain of custody is observed throughout all of the above processes , in accordance with accepted industry standards and practice . appropriate clean room and sterile working conditions are maintained and used , to the extent possible , throughout the above processes . in practice , it has been determined that the above allograft materials can be stored in room temperature conditions safely for at least five ( 5 ) years . when ready for use , such allografts are re - hydrated by soaking them in bss ( buffered saline solution ), 0 . 9 % saline solution , or sterile water for 30 - 90 seconds . amnion membrane has the following properties and has been shown to be suitable for the following surgical procedures and indications : guided tissue regeneration ( gtr ), schneiderian membrane repair , primary closure , and general wound care . laminated amnion membrane has the following properties and has been shown to be suitable for the following surgical procedures and indications : gtr , reconstructive , general wound care , neurological , ent . chorion tissue grafts have the following properties and have been shown to be suitable for the following surgical procedures and indications : biological dressing or covering . laminated chorion tissue grafts have the following properties and have been shown to be suitable for the following surgical procedures and indications : gtr , reconstructive , general wound care , neurological , ent . laminated amnion and chorion combined tissue grafts have the following properties and have been shown to be suitable for the following surgical procedures and indications : advanced ocular defects , reconstructive , general wound care , biological dressing . although the above processes have been described specifically in association with amnion membrane and chorion recovered from placenta tissue , it should be understood that the above techniques and procedures are susceptible and usable for many other types of human and animal tissues . in addition , although the above procedures and tissues have been described for use with allograft tissues , such procedures and techniques are likewise suitable and usable for xenograft and isograft applications . in view of the foregoing detailed description of preferred embodiments of the present invention , it readily will be understood by those persons skilled in the art that the present invention is susceptible to broad utility and application . while various aspects have been described in the context of screen shots , additional aspects , features , and methodologies of the present invention will be readily discernable therefrom . many embodiments and adaptations of the present invention other than those herein described , as well as many variations , modifications , and equivalent arrangements and methodologies , will be apparent from or reasonably suggested by the present invention and the foregoing description thereof , without departing from the substance or scope of the present invention . furthermore , any sequence ( s ) and / or temporal order of steps of various processes described and claimed herein are those considered to be the best mode contemplated for carrying out the present invention . it should also be understood that , although steps of various processes may be shown and described as being in a preferred sequence or temporal order , the steps of any such processes are not limited to being carried out in any particular sequence or order , absent a specific indication of such to achieve a particular intended result . in most cases , the steps of such processes may be carried out in various different sequences and orders , while still falling within the scope of the present inventions . in addition , some steps may be carried out simultaneously . accordingly , while the present invention has been described herein in detail in relation to preferred embodiments , it is to be understood that this disclosure is only illustrative and exemplary of the present invention and is made merely for purposes of providing a full and enabling disclosure of the invention . the foregoing disclosure is not intended nor is to be construed to limit the present invention or otherwise to exclude any such other embodiments , adaptations , variations , modifications and equivalent arrangements , the present invention being limited only by the claims appended hereto and the equivalents thereof .	0
the devices and the related methodologies of this invention allow molecular biology and diagnostic reactions to be carried out under “ complete electronic control .” the meaning of “ electronic control ” as referred to in this invention goes beyond the conventional connotation of the term . most conventional electronic devices , instruments , and detector systems are always at some level under electronic control . the electronic devices of this invention are not only under conventional electronic control , but more importantly , they also provide further direct electronic control over the physical aspects of carrying out molecular biological and diagnostic reactions . this invention provides an electronic device with an electrode . the electronic device may have a single electrode or multiple electrodes . for instance , the electronic device may have 1 , 4 , 8 , 6 , 16 , 25 , 36 , 100 , 400 , 1000 , or 10 , 000 electrodes . one such device is the apex system . the details of the apex device are in u . s . application ser . no . 08 / 146 , 504 , now issued as u . s . pat . no . 5 , 605 , 662 , which is referred to and incorporated by reference above . briefly , fig1 shows a basic design of self - addressable microlocations fabricated using microlithographic techniques . the three microlocations ( 10 ) ( ml - 1 , ml - 2 , ml - 3 ) are formed on the surface of metal sites ( 12 ) that have been deposited on an insulator layer / base material . the metal sites ( 12 ) serve as the underlying microelectrode structures ( 10 ). an insulator material separates the metal sites ( 12 ) from each other . insulator materials include , but are not limited to , silicon dioxide , glass , resist , rubber , plastic , or ceramic materials . fig2 shows the basic features of an individual microlocation ( 10 ) formed on a microlithographically produced metal site ( 12 ). the addressable microlocation is formed on the electrode / metal site ( 12 ), and incorporates a permeation layer ( 22 ). the electrode / metal site may include platinum , platinum - silicide , carbon , and any other suitable material known to one of ordinary skill in the art . the permeation layer provides spacing between the metal surface and the probes or specific binding entities and allows for solvent molecules , small counter - ions , and gases to freely pass to and from the surface of the electrode . probes or specific binding entities can couple to attachment sites in the permeation layer . details of various permeation layers can be found in u . s . application ser . nos . 10 / 014 , 895 , filed dec . 10 , 2001 ; 09 / 464 , 670 , filed dec . 15 , 1999 , now issued as u . s . pat . no . 6 , 303 , 082 ; and 09 / 922 / 349 , filed aug . 3 , 2001 , all of which are herein expressly incorporated by reference in their entirety . after the initial fabrication of the basic microelectronic structure , the device is able to self - direct the addressing of each specific microlocation with specific binding entities or capture probes . thus , the devices and methods of this invention can be combined into an instrument system that allows addressing of an apex chip device with any dna or rna probe , or any other ligand . such a system allows “ make your own chip ” products and applications . such products and applications would be useful to many researchers and end users for clinical diagnostic , molecular biology , functional genomic and drug discovery applications . the self - addressed device is subsequently able to actively carry out individual multi - step and combinatorial reactions at any of its microlocations . the device is able to carry out multiplex reactions , but with the important advantage that each reaction occurs at the equivalent of a truly independent test site . the device is able to electronically direct and control the rapid movement and concentration of analytes and reactants to or from any of its microlocations . the ability of the device to electronically control the dynamic aspects of various reactions provides a number of new mechanisms and important advantages and improvements . there are various physical parameters that relate to the electrophoretic transport of dna and other charged analytes in various types of electrolyte / buffer solutions . certain of the devices , e . g ., the apex device as described in ser . no . 08 / 146 , 504 , referenced above , are primarily dc ( direct current ) electrical devices . electrophoretic transport of charged molecules occurs between oppositely (±) biased microlocations on the device surface . apex type devices produce significant net direct current ( dc ) flow when a voltage is applied , which is recognized as “ the signature of electrophoresis .” in electrophoresis , the migration of ions or charged particles is produced by electrical forces along the direction of the electric field gradient , and the relationship of current and voltage are important to this technology . the electrophoretic migration shows itself macroscopically as the conduction of electric current in a solution under the influence of an applied voltage and follows ohm &# 39 ; s law . v = r × i v is the electric potential r is the electric resistance of the electrolyte [ v × a − 1 = r ( ω )] i is the electric current [ a ]. the resistance of the solution is the reciprocal of the conductance , which can be measured by a conductometer . the conductance depends mainly on the ionic species of the buffer / electrolytes and their concentration ; therefore these parameters are very important for electric field related molecular biology technology . the basic current / voltage relationships are essentially the same for the apex technology as for any other electrophoretic system , although the electric fields produced are in truly microscopic environments . there are unique features of the apex system regarding the various ways of sourcing the current and voltage , and how the current and voltage scenarios have been found to improve the performance of our systems . in particular , various dc pulsing procedures ( linear and logarithmic gradients ) appear to provide improved hybridization stringency . the details of complexity reduction devices are in u . s . application ser . no . 08 / 709 , 358 , now issued as u . s . pat . no . 6 , 129 , 828 , which is hereby expressly incorporated by reference in its entirety . it is well established in the field of electrophoresis that there is a logarithmic decrease in the mobility of the charged analyte species ( proteins , dna , etc . ), which is inversely proportional to the square root of the ionic strength of the electrolyte solution ( see page 83 and fig3 . 16 in “ capillary electrophoresis : principles and practice ”, r . kuhn and s . hoffstetter , springer - verlag , 1993 ). at any given constant electric field strength , as the electrolyte concentration decreases relative to the analyte species ( protein , dna , etc . ), the analyte will be transported at a faster rate . similar results demonstrating this effect for a danyslated amino acid have been shown by j . j . issaq et . al ., chromatographia vol . 32 , # 3 / 4 , august 1991 , pages 155 to 161 ( see in particular fig3 on page 157 ). results demonstrating this effect for dna in different electrolyte solutions has been shown in p . d . ross and r . l . scruggs , biopolymers vol . 2 , pages 231 to 236 , 1964 ( see in particular fig1 page 232 ). for those non - buffering electrolytes ( sodium chloride , potassium chloride , etc .) that involve completely dissociated anion and cation species in solution ( na + ⇄ cl − , k + ⇄ cl − , etc . ), the ionic strength and conductance are equivalent , i . e ., the conductance will usually be proportional to the ionic strength . for those buffering electrolytes ( phosphate , acetate , citrate , succinate , etc .) that are in their dissociated states ( example : 2 na + ⇄ po 4 − 2 ), the ionic strength and conductance will usually be equivalent , i . e ., conductance is proportional to the ionic strength . for those buffering electrolytes ( good buffers — mops , hepes , taps , tricine , bicine , amino acid buffers , ampholytes , etc .) that can have a zwitterionic species ( no net charge at their pi ), the conductance will decrease by approximately a factor of 10 for every ph unit difference between the isoelectric point ( pi ) and the ( pka ). for example , an amino acid in its zwitterionic state ( − ooc — ch ( r )— nh 3 + ) will have a conductance value that will be approximately 1000 fold lower than when the “ amino acid moiety ” has a full net positive charge ( hooc — ch ( r )— nh 2 + x − ), or a full negative charge ( y +− ooc — ch ( r )— nh 2 ). thus , a formal negative or positive charge develops on the amino acid moiety as it moves away from its pi , and the conductivity and ionic strength will begin to correlate . when at or near the pi , however , the conductance will be much lower than is expected for that given ionic strength or concentration . when used at or near their pi &# 39 ; s , electrophoresis texts refer to the good buffers and amino acid buffers as having “ low conductance &# 39 ; s at high ionic strength or concentration ” ( see page 88 of capillary electrophoresis : principles and practice ”, r . kuhn and s . hoffstetter , springer — verlag , 1993 ). a commonly used electrophoresis buffer “ tris - borate ” actually has a significantly lower conductivity than would be expected from its ionic strength or concentration . this may be due to the “ tris cation ” and “ borate anion ” forming a relatively stable zwitterionic complex in solution . the conductivity of a 100 mm tris - borate solution was determined to be 694 μs / cm , which is approximately 20 times lower than would be expected from its ionic strength , and is roughly equivalent to a 5 mm sodium phosphate or sodium chloride solution . table 1 shows conductivity measurements of a number of transport buffers . certain advantages exist regarding the rate or speed of electrophoretic transport of dna when using zwitterionic buffers ( good buffers , amino acid buffers ), or the tris - borate buffer at or near their pi &# 39 ; s . these advantages include : 1 ) zwitterionic buffers can be used at relatively high concentrations to increase buffering capacity ; 2 ) the conductance of zwitterionic buffers is significantly lower than other types of buffers at the same concentration , and 3 ) zwitterionic buffers have higher electrophoretic transport rates for the analyte of interest ( e . g ., dna , rna ). amino acid buffers have buffer properties at their pi &# 39 ; s . while a given amino acid may or may not have its “ highest buffering capacity ” at its pi , it will have some degree of buffering capacity . buffer capacity decreases by a factor of 10 for every ph unit difference between the pi and the pka ; those amino acids with three ionizable groups ( histidine , cysteine , lysine , glutamic acid , aspartic acid , etc .) generally have higher buffering capacities at their pi &# 39 ; s than those amino acids with only two ionizable groups ( glycine , alanine , leucine , etc .). for example , histidine ( pi = 7 . 47 ), lysine ( pi = 9 . 74 ), and glutamic acid ( pi = 3 . 22 ), all have relatively good buffering capacity at their pi &# 39 ; s relative to alanine or glycine , which have relatively low buffering capacities at their pi &# 39 ; s ( see a . l . lehninger , biochemistry , 2ed , worth publishers , new york , 1975 ; in particular fig4 - 8 on page 79 , and fig4 - 9 on page 80 ). histidine has been proposed as a buffer for use in gel electrophoresis , see , e . g ., u . s . pat . no . 4 , 936 , 963 , but hybridization is not performed in such systems . cysteine is in a more intermediate position , with regard to buffering capacity . the pi of cysteine is 5 . 02 , the pka for the α - carboxyl group is 1 . 71 , the pka for the sulfhydryl is 8 . 33 , and the pka for α amino group is 10 . 78 . an acid / base titration curve of 250 mm cysteine , shows that cysteine has a better “ buffering capacity ” at ˜ ph 5 than a 20 mm sodium phosphate . in the ph 4 to 6 range , the buffering capacity of cysteine is significantly better than 20 mm sodium phosphate , particularly at the higher ph . in these ph ranges , however , the conductance of the 250 mm cysteine solution is very low ˜ 23 μs / cm , compared to 20 mm sodium phosphate , which has a value of ˜ 2 . 9 ms / cm ( a factor of 100 times greater ). low conductance zwitterionic buffers suitable for apex devices have been disclosed in u . s . application ser . nos . 09 / 986 , 065 , filed dec . 5 , 1997 , now issued as u . s . pat . no . 6 , 051 , 380 ; 09 / 444 , 539 , filed nov . 22 , 1999 , now issued as u . s . pat . no . 6 , 518 , 022 ; 10 / 170 , 172 , filed jun . 11 , 2002 ; and 08 / 708 , 262 , filed sep . 6 , 1996 , now abandoned , all of which are herein expressly incorporated by reference in their entirety . several electrophoretic techniques developed over 20 years ago are based on the ability to separate proteins in zwitterionic buffers “ at their pi &# 39 ; s ,” these techniques are called isoelectrophoresis , isotachophoresis , and electrofocusing ( see chapters 3 and 4 in “ gel electrophoresis of proteins : a practical approach ” edited by b . d . hames & amp ; d . rickwood , irl press 1981 ). various amino acid buffers and good buffers were used for these applications , all at their pi &# 39 ; s ( see table 2 , page 168 of the above reference ). a series of fluorescent checkerboard experiments were carried out using 2 . 5 % agarose coated 5580 chips and the bytr - rca5 fluorescent probe . rapid ( 6 second ) checkerboard addressing was achieved in all of the following systems : ( 1 ) 250 mm hepes ( low conductance ), ( 2 ) 10 μm sodium succinate , ( 3 ) 10 μm sodium citrate , and ( 4 ) distilled water . while some types of low conductance or low ionic strength solutions may have somewhat better characteristics , checkerboard addressing and rapid dna transport ( 6 to 12 second dna accumulation on an 80 μm pad ) were achieved using all of these systems . additionally , dna addressing apex chips in distilled water is possible because the dna , which is itself a polyanion , is the electrolyte present in the bulk solution that provides the conductance . in addition to the fact that the mobility of the charged analyte species ( dna , proteins , etc .) is related to the ionic strength of the electrolyte solution , the mobility is also greatly influenced by the nature of the cationic and anionic species in the electrolyte solution ( see pp 89 of “ capillary electrophoresis : principles and practice ” reference ). this particular point is demonstrated for dna transport in the above - referenced biopolymers , vol . 2 , pp . 231 - 236 , 1964 reference . fig1 on page 232 of this reference shows the change in dna mobility when using electrolytes with different univalent anions ( li + & gt ; na + & gt ; k + & gt ; tma + ) at the same ionic strength . basically , different cations can have different association constants with the dna phosphate groups , and / or change the hydration spheres around the dna molecules , which leads to a change in their transport rate . the instant invention also relates to our discoveries concerning the various parameters , electrolytes ( buffers ), and other conditions that improve or optimize the speed of dna transport , the efficiency of dna hybridization reactions , and the overall hybridization specificity in electric field molecular biology devices , especially apex microelectronic chips and devices . in particular , this invention relates to our discovery that low conductance zwitterionic buffer solutions containing a reducing agent provides good conditions for both rapid electrophoretic dna transport and efficient hybridization reactions . the zwitterionic buffer component can be any molecule that can have a zwitterionic species ( no net charge at its pd ). in one embodiment , the zwitterionic species is an amino acid . the amino acid can include , but is not limited to , histidine , alanine , arginine , glutamic acid , lysine , γ - aminobutyric acid ( gaba ), etc . in a preferred embodiment , the amino acid is histidine . the concentration of histidine can range from 10 - 200 mm , alternatively 10 - 100 mm , alternatively 50 - 100 mm , alternatively about 50 mm , alternatively about 100 mm , at or near the pi ( isoelectric point ˜ 7 . 47 ). the concentration of histidine in the buffer will depend on the salt composition and can be determined by one of ordinary skill in the art . the advantages of the histidine buffer is particularly important for the apex chip type devices . these particular devices ( as opposed to the micromachined type devices ) have limitations as to the amount of current and voltages that can be applied . this limitation makes it difficult to achieve both rapid transport and efficient hybridization using the same buffer system . in one embodiment , dna transport was carried out in a low conductance buffer ( cysteine or alanine ) where the limited current / voltage still produced rapid transport . under these conditions , the dna accumulated at the test site , but did not hybridize as efficiently . after transport in these low conductance buffers , the solution was changed to a high salt buffer (& gt ; 100 mm sodium chloride or sodium phosphate ), which then produced an efficient hybridization at the test site . table 2 shows the results for a series of experiments that correlate the parameters of buffer capacity , ph , and the conductivity , with dna accumulation and hybridization sensitivity ( efficiency ) using the apex chip device . table 2 clearly shows the correlation of dna transport ( accumulation ) with low conductivity ( β - alanine , taurine , cysteine , histidine ). the table also shows good sensitivity for the streptavidin / biotin probe affinity reaction using β - alanine , cysteine , and histidine . as reflected in the sensitivity data in table 2 , histidine provides over four orders of magnitude better hybridization efficiency then either cysteine or other buffers , such as 20 mm napo 4 . the improvement relative to cysteine is at least a factor of 10 , alternatively a factor of 10 2 , and alternatively at least a factor of 10 4 . histidine was found to provide both good transport and good dna / dna hybridization efficiency . during the transport and addressing procedures for dna concentration and hybridization , the ph immediately above the positively biased electrode is found to be lowered , in a buffer dependent fashion . in separate experiments , it was observed for passive hybridization at acidic ph that histidine can facilitate hybridization when possessing a net positive charge but not when neutral . the ability of these histidine and associated buffers to facilitate electronic hybridization is linked to four important properties : ( 1 ) the ability to maintain target dna in a relatively denatured state , ( 2 ) the ability to facilitate electric field concentration of dna , ( 3 ) the ability to buffer acidic conditions present at the positively biased microlocation , ( 4 ) the ability to acquire a net positive charge capable of shielding or diminishing repulsion between the dna phosphodiester backbone stabilizing the double - stranded structure . fig3 shows the possible mechanism for histidine stabilization of dna structures . basically , as the histidine molecule becomes protonated and more dicationic with a positive charge on both the α - amino group and imidazole ring , the molecule begins to stabilize the double - stranded dna structures , promoting hybridization at the positive electrode on the apex chip . cations , dications , and polycations are known to help stabilize dna / dna hybrids by reducing the repulsion of the negatively charged phosphate backbones on the double - stranded dna structure . indeed , upon examining cpk space filling molecular structures of histidine and ds - dna , the dicationic histidine species , appears to “ fit ” well to the phosphate oxygen anion spacing along the dna backbone . furthermore , examination of cpk space filling structures suggests that di - histidine and other di -, tri -, and polypeptide structures will further significantly stabilize ds - dna structures . it is believed that in addition to these peptide structures , a large number of peptide derivatives and synthetic structures can be designed to stabilize ds - dna . it is also possible that the dna / dna / histidine may also form some type of stabilizing adduct from other electrochemical products being produced at the positive electrode ( hydrogen peroxide , etc .). the advantage of the histidine and associated buffers , is particularly important for the apex microchip type devices . these particular devices are covered with thinner permeation layer ( about 1 to 10 microns ), as opposed to deep well devices ( about 10 to 100 micron permeation layers ) and micromachined or macroscopic type devices ( sample preparation , complexity reduction , amplification , electronic dot blots , etc . ), and are generally used at a lower range of currents ( about 10 na to about 5 ua ) and voltages ( about 1 . 2 to about 5 volts ). this lower current and voltage reduces transport rate and hybridization efficiency in the higher conductance buffers and electrolytes . generally , in these cases , dna transport would be carried out in a low conductance buffer ( such as cysteine or alanine ) where relatively lower current and voltage still produces rapid dna transport . under these conditions , dna is rapidly accumulated at the test site , but does not hybridize efficiently . after transport in these low conductance buffers , the solution is usually changed to a high salt buffer (& gt ; 100 mm sodium chloride or sodium phosphate ), which then promotes very efficient hybridization of the concentrated target dna to the dna probes at a microlocation test site . while this embodiment utilizes naturally occurring amino acids , such as histidine , this invention is fully applicable to other natural or synthetic compounds that have good buffering capacity , low conductivity ( or zwitterionic characteristics ) and have properties that allow dna hybridization to be stabilized by charge stabilization or adduct formation . the addition of a reducing agent to the zwitterionic buffer system also improves dna transport to the electrodes . the oxidation products at the electrodes , consisting mainly of o 2 ( g ), free radicals , and peroxide species , have been found to contribute to fluorophore , dna , and permeation layer damage . in addition , oxidation products of buffer components may also deposit on or into the permeation layer and increase the background signal level of the permeation layer above the electrodes . the presence of a reducing agent significantly reduces water oxidation , water oxidation products , and buffer oxidation products at the positive electrode . in particular , the reduction in the generation of o 2 ( g ) bubbles significantly reduces the amount of turbulence in the area immediately surrounding the electrodes , thereby increasing the rate of accumulation of charged particles ( e . g ., dna or rna ) to the microlocations . additionally or alternatively , the presence of the reducing agent allows the application of a higher current to the electrodes , resulting in improved transportation and / or hybridization . the reducing agent can be , but is not limited to , cysteine , dithitreitol ( dtt ), β - mercaptoethanol , α - thioglycerol , other thiol - containing reducing agents , and combinations thereof . the addition of a reducing agent to the low conductance zwitterionic buffers provides the additional advantages of providing a low fluorescent signal background (˜ 75 %), protective effects for dna , rna , etc ., and faster transport of charged materials . the concentration of reducing agent in the buffer is about 25 - 700 mm , alternatively about 25 - 500 mm , alternatively about 25 mm , alternatively about 50 mm , alternatively about 100 mm , alternatively about 125 mm , alternatively about 150 mm , alternatively about 250 mm , alternatively about 500 mm . the concentration of reducing agent may depend on the salt composition and can be determined by one of ordinary skill in the art . in one embodiment , the reducing agent has a thiol group . in this case , the reducing agent has no charge at a ph below the pi of the thiol group . therefore , there is no significant increase ( minimal increase ) in the conductivity of the buffer solution . in a preferred embodiment , the reducing agent is α - thioglycerol . although all of the compounds mentioned above are effective reducing agents , the long carbon chain of α - thioglycerol ( for instance , as compared to β - mercaptoethanol ) results in lower solution conductivity , lower transference number , and less odor . l - cysteine tends to have a lower rate of dna binding and a residual background increase . dtt is very expensive compared to α - thioglycerol . β - mercaptoethanol is toxic and has a distinct odor . α - thioglycerol is nontoxic and has very little to no odor . when used in combination with at least one zwitterionic species ( e . g ., histidine ) at various concentrations , reducing agents , and α - thioglycerol ( seen below ) in particular , were found to prevent extensive bubbling on electrode devices . in particular , for apex devices , the addition of α - thioglycerol was found to prevent bubbling on pt chip electrodes at currents in excess of 1 μa . fig4 is a graph of oxidation / reduction potential sweeps . the oxidation potential of α - thioglycerol in a solution of 100 mm histidine is less than that necessary for o 2 ( g ) generation from the electrolysis of water in 100 mm histidine . in addition , the potential at which o 2 ( g ) is generated is raised significantly ( 0 . 25 volts ) in the presence of α - thioglycerol . therefore , in the presence of α - thioglycerol , there is sufficient current generated to induce mobility of a charged biomolecule ( e . g ., dna or rna ), but o 2 ( g ) generation is substantially reduced in favor of the oxidation of α - thioglycerol . additionally , the oxidative products of the reducing agents are less harmful to the electrode devices . the products of water and α - thioglycerol oxidation are depicted in fig5 . the generation of hydrogen ions from the oxidation of α - thioglycerol helps consume oxygen and its radicals , reduces the oxidation and formation of polyhistidine adducts , provides hydrogen ions as charge carriers for electrophoresis and reduces the local ph to facilitate hybridization . the oxidation products of α - thioglycerol are water soluble and do not leave a precipitate . for apex devices , which have a permeation layer coupled to the electrode , such a precipitate is harmful to the permeation layer . fig6 is an electrospray mass spectrum of an electrolyzed histidine buffer solution . the peak at m / z 154 . 1 corresponds to histidine ( his ). the peaks at m / z 309 . 3 and 463 . 7 correspond to his adducts , his - his and his - his - his , respectively . fig7 is an electrospray mass spectrum of an electrolyzed histidine buffer solution containing α - thioglycerol . as apparent in a comparison of fig6 and 7 , the his adducts at m / z 309 and 463 are significantly reduced in the presence of α - thioglycerol and peaks corresponding to α - thioglycerol and oxidized adducts of α - thioglycerol are now present . additionally , a comparison of the mass spectra of the histidine / α - thioglycerol buffer ( not electrolyzed , see fig8 ) to the spectrum of the electrolyzed buffer ( see fig7 ) shows that the buffer components did not change significantly after electrolysis . transport of dna is significantly faster in the presence of reducing agents as a result of the higher currents that can be applied when a buffer containing a reducing agent is used . fig9 is a graph of the accumulation of signal , which corresponds to the amount of dna transported to a particular microlocation after applying a 400 μa pulse for 1 minute . dna transport appears to be the faster in α - thioglycerol , as compared to dtt and β - mercaptoethanol . the amount of dna transported in 250 mm dtt is almost twice as much as compared to 50 mm histidine . the amount of dna transported in 250 mm β - mercaptoethanol is about four - times as much as compared to 50 mm histidine . and the amount of dna transported in 250 mm α - thioglycerol is over four - times as much as compared to 50 mm histidine . in addition , α - thioglycerol does not significantly increase the conductivity of histidine buffers . at working concentrations , α - thioglycerol contributes & lt ; 35 % to the conductivity of histidine buffer solutions ( see table 3 ). the addition of a reducing agent results in a lower background signal as compared with a buffer without the reducing agent . table 4 reports the signals where target oligos p1 , p2 , p3 , fa , and fb were sequentially biased to specific sites on the chip and allowed to hybridize to capture oligos fa , rb , ra , and ic ( internal control ). as seen for target fa , hybridization only occurred with capture oligo fa . additionally , the background signal for all of the other target oligos are lower in the buffer with α - thioglycerol as compared to the buffer without α - thioglycerol . experiments also suggest that the reducing agent , in this case α - thioglycerol , may act as a chaotropic agent . as seen in table 5 , there is no significant change in signal intensity when target samples p1 , p3 , inf b , inf a , and rsv a were addressed in the zwitterionic buffer containing α - thioglycerol with and without the heat denaturation step . therefore , it appears that the target samples that were not subjected to heat denaturation were denatured by the buffer containing the reducing agent . although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail by way of illustration and example for purposes of clarity and understanding , it will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in light of the teachings of this invention that certain changes and modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit or scope of the appended claims .	2
shown in fig1 is a schematic representation of cell site 10 which illustratively includes three different frames , namely a radio frame set 11 , an amplifier frame 12 and an antenna interface frame 13 . included within the radio frame set 11 is at least one radio channel frame 14 , called the primary frame . additional radio channel growth frames , such as frames 15 and 16 , may be selectively added to the primary radio channel frame 14 depending upon the capacity desired at the cell site 10 . similarly , an additional amplifier frame and a second antenna interface frame may be added to the cell site 10 based upon the overall requirements and capacity of the cell site 10 . also shown in fig1 is a mobile telephone switching office ( mtso ) 17 which is adapted to link a cellular or mobile subscriber ( not shown ) into the standard telephone network as well to other cellular subscribers . all data and voice communications between the mtso 17 and the cell site 10 are achieved , respectively , over data links 18 and voice trunks 19 connected between the radio frame , such as primary radio channel frame 14 , and the mtso 17 . although links 18 and trunks 19 are each illustratively shown as a single connecting line , each such link or trunk consists of a plurality of physical connections between the mtso 17 and the primary radio channel frame 14 , for example . radio signals to be transmitted from the mtso 17 via the cell site 10 to a cellular subscriber , i . e ., radio transmissions in the forward direction , are derived from the radio frame set 11 and coupled , via lead 20 , to the amplifier frame 12 for appropriate amplification prior to transmission . the amplified signals to be transmitted are then connected , via lead 21 , to the antenna interface frame 13 for radio transmission via a transmitting antenna 22 . radio transmission in the reverse direction , i . e ., signals received at the cell site 10 from cellular subscribers , are received at the receiving antennas 23 , and coupled to the radio frame set 11 via the antenna interface frame 13 and lead 24 . in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the invention , the primary radio channel frame 14 , shown in fig2 includes an interconnection panel 30 , a radio control complex 31 , a plurality of radio channel units 32 arranged in several shelves within the frame , with each shelf comprising associated power supplies , power combiners / dividers , switches , and digital signaling format , e . g ., ds1 , interfaces . also included in the radio channel frame 14 is a radio test unit 33 used primarily to check the performance of the total rf path to and from the receive and transmit antennas 23 and 22 . referring now to fig3 which shows an overall functional block diagram of the primary radio channel frame 14 , the radio control complex 31 is illustratively shown as having two interconnected identical sides , referred to as side 0 and side 1 . however , as it will become clear from the following description , only one side is necessary for the operation of the radio control complex 31 . clearly , a duplex configuration of the radio control complex 31 substantially enhances reliability of the cell site through duplication , in that while one side is active , its mating side is kept in a dormant state but ready to take control with a minimum loss of information in the event of failure of the active side . the radio control complex 31 includes two identical processors 40 and 41 interconnected by an update bus 42 . each processor provides the control processing function for the radio control complex 31 . normally , one processor , e . g ., 40 , is active and the other processor , i . e ., 41 , is in a standby mode . on side 0 of the radio control complex 31 , the processor 40 is connected to a system bus 43 which in turn is coupled to a memory circuit 44 , a communication processor interface circuit 45 , at least one network control interface 46 , and an alarm interface 47 . similarly , on the side 1 of the radio control complex 31 , the processor 41 is connected to a system bus 48 which in turn is coupled to a memory circuit 49 , a communication processor interface circuit 50 , at least one network control interface 51 and an alarm interface 52 . the update bus 42 lets the active , call processing , processor , e . g ., 40 , keep its mate &# 39 ; s memory 49 updated to allow the processors to switch roles , i . e ., responsibility for call processing , without losing valuable information . also , the update bus 42 allows the active processor , e . g ., 40 , to perform diagnostics on the mate processor , i . e ., processor 41 . alternatively , if processor 41 is the active one , then the update bus 42 allows the updating of memory 44 so that processor 40 can take over the control of the call processing in case of failure of processor 41 . in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the invention , the primary radio control frame 14 further includes at least one time division multiplexed bus 53 adapted to selectively connect , under control of either processors 40 or 41 , a corresponding side of the radio control complex 31 to additional circuits within the frame 14 . such additional circuits include several radio channel units , of which only one is shown as rcu 54 , clock and tone circuits 55 and 56 , several digital facility interface circuits of which only one is shown in fig3 as dsi 57 , and at least one radio test unit 58 . in accordance with a preferred embodiment , the processors 40 and 41 include known commercially available processing units , such as mc68020 microprocessors and support logic including timers , registers , memory ( read only memory and random access memory ) and update bus control circuitry . the memory circuits 44 and 49 may each , for example , contain a 36 bit one megabit dram of known type with associated control , refresh , timing and write protect logic necessary to access it . the communication processor interface circuits 45 and 50 are adapted to provide reliable control channels with the mtso 17 through the time division multiplexed bus 53 and the digital interface facility 57 . synchronization of control channel messages between the processors 40 and 41 and the time division multiplexed bus 53 is provided by the network control interface circuits 46 and 51 respectively associated with side 0 and side 1 of the radio control complex 31 . as shown in fig3 the time division multiplexed bus 53 preferably employs a pair of buses designated &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; and &# 34 ; b &# 34 ; to connect all the radio channel units , such as rcu 54 , within the primary radio channel frame 14 and selected radio channel units in any optional growth radio channel frames , e . g ., 15 or 16 , in the event that such growth frames are used . in such case , an additional time division multiplexed bus is needed to interconnect the additional rcus in the growth frames . all external interfaces , i . e ., voice trunks 19 and data links 18 to and from mtso 17 , are connected to the time division multiplexed bus 53 via digital facility interfaces such as interface 57 . all data links 18 from the mtso 17 are connected to the bus 53 in the primary frame even through additional growth radio channel frames , such as 15 and 16 , may be utilized . in accordance with a preferred embodiment , the bus 53 comprises a pair of 8 - bit time division multiplexed buses &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; and &# 34 ; b &# 34 ; to permit voice , data , and control connectivity to any circuit connected to the bus 53 . illustratively , each bus &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; and &# 34 ; b &# 34 ; may support 256 time slots and operates at a clock frequency of 2 . 048 mhz . separating the bandwidth into two physically separate buses &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; and &# 34 ; b &# 34 ; has two advantages . first , it cuts in half the frequency at which a single 512 time slot bus must operate at , and second it provides increased system reliability . if one bus fails , the system can still operate at reduced capacity on the remaining bus . synchronization of bus control channel messages between either processor 40 or 41 and any circuit pack is performed by the associated network control interface 46 or 41 , respectively . the messages transmitted over a control channel may comprise the first five time slots of either tdm bus &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; b &# 34 ;. only one bus can carry control information at any one time , and in the event of failure , control information is carried on the other bus . the control channel operates in a master / slave configuration with the network control interface 46 or 51 as master and the circuits 54 through 58 as slaves . each such circuit must have a unique address and can only communicate with the network control interface when granted permission . this protocol prevents collisions on the tdm bus 53 , where two circuits might otherwise try to transmit simultaneously . in accordance with a preferred embodiment , the radio channel unit 54 shown in fig3 is preferably a plug - in module containing all rf , baseband and control circuitry required to perform setup , locate or voice channel functions . the radio channel unit function as well as its operating channel , transmit power level , and other specific parameters are downloaded to each radio at initialization via the time division multiplexed bus 53 under control of the active processor 40 or 41 . in addition , radio channel unit call processing algorithms are contained in nonvolatile memory circuits within each unit and may be updated via the time division multiplexed bus 53 , if necessary . the down loadable parameter and nonvolatile memory update features advantageously allow remote reconfiguration of the radio channel unit and eliminate the need for many on - site visits . also , the radio channel unit 54 contains built - in self test capabilities which are automatically executed at initialization and test results are reported to the radio control complex 31 . the radio test unit 58 is used , primarily , to check the performance of the total rf path to and from receive and transmit antennas 23 and 22 ( shown in fig1 ). the basic circuit of the radio test unit 58 is similar to that of a radio channel unit 54 , with a few differences . the radio channel units 54 have two inputs , one for each diversity ; the radio test unit 58 has only one . another difference is in the rf switch control interfaces . on each radio channel unit shelf ( 32 in fig2 ), the rf antenna selector switches associated with a channel unit are controlled via six parallel bit lines . three bits are for the switches in the two receiver input diversity paths to each channel unit . the other three bits are for the switch in the transmit path . the radio test unit 58 controls rf switches located in the antenna interface frame 13 . the radio test unit 58 contains a test receiver and test generator which serve to simulate a cellular / mobile subscriber unit . the test receiver can be tuned to any receive channel , and the test generator can be tuned to any transmit channel . tuning is accomplished by commands sent by the time division multiplexed bus 53 to a transmit / receive frequency synthesizer ( not shown ) within the radio test unit 58 . during receive testing on a cell site radio channel unit 54 , the test generator within the radio test unit 58 is tuned to the channel under test , and the output of the test generator is applied to the appropriate cell site receiving antenna 23 . control is applied to the antenna interface frame 13 to select omni receive or one face of the directional antenna . in accordance with a preferred embodiment , all the data and voice communications between the mtso 17 and the cell site 10 are based on a digital signaling format ds1 which is a bipolar return - to - zero signal at a 1 . 544 mb / s rate for t1 - carrier . alternatively , other digital signal formats may be used . the cell site data communication links 18 are selected , under the control of the communication processor interface 45 or 50 , to operate at 9 . 6 kb / s , 56 kb / s or 64 kb / s rates . a ds1 carrier link can accommodate 24 digital voice communication channels or a combination of digital voice and data channels . for each ds1 carrier , the radio channel frames 14 , 15 and 16 must each have at least one ds1 interface circuit 57 . two data links are required between the primary radio channel frame 14 and the mtso 17 for reliability . this is best accommodated via two ds1 carriers , with one data channel in each link . all cell site interfaces are digital , using ds1 boards with ds1 interface circuits . when the facility is a t1 - carrier , the ds1 interface allows connection directly to the radio control units without the need for d4 channel banks . if analog facilities are used , d4 channel banks would , however , be required . the ds1 interface also allows connection directly to microwave systems or to fiber optic systems such as , for example , at & amp ; t &# 39 ; s fiber optics multiplexer ddm - 1000 . although the present invention has been described in connection with particular embodiments thereof , additional embodiments , modifications and applications which will be apparent to those skilled in the art are included within the spirit and scope of the invention .	7
referring to fig1 through 12b , wherein like reference numerals refer to like components in the various views , there is illustrated therein a new and improved dry stack masonry system . block units : the inventive cementitious blocks and system for constructing walls using the same comprises , in the first instance , a unique combination of monolithic wall , corner , and end units . two walls 10 , 12 , joined at a 90 degree corner 14 , using the inventive system are shown in fig1 . as will be immediately appreciated from this view , a wall so constructed comprises three block units , including wall units 16 , end units 18 , and corner units 20 . referring now to fig2 - 2a , there is shown in schematic form a top plan view of the principle wall unit 16 of the inventive dry stack masonry block system . the wall unit includes a front face 22 having a front face width 24 , a back side 26 and a depth 28 defined as the distance from the front face to the back side ; and two angled sides 30 , 32 , each of which angle outwardly from the front face to join the back side at a rounded corner 34 , 36 . collectively , these elements form a male body portion 38 having a central region 40 with a center line 42 bisecting the block into identical first and second halves . two generally triangular wings 44 , 46 , each defined by an angled side and the rear side , extend outwardly from the central region . a female body portion 48 integrally formed in the monolithic block extends rearwardly from the central region of the male body portion and includes a base portion 50 , a distal portion 52 , and two concavities 54 , 56 , disposed between the base and distal portions and shaped to conform to and accommodate the corner of a male wing ( with generally tight tolerances ) in a block in a reverse orientation . it should be noted that only the top side of the units include recesses or depressions , as the bottom side of the blocks is preferably substantially planar . next , the wall unit includes a top surface 58 covering all portions and including a rectangular shaped depression 60 , 62 in the surface of the rear area of each wing and a depression 64 on the entire surface of the base area . the depth of the depressions in the wings is greater than that of the depression in the base portion , in that the former accommodates a bolt plate and is disposed underneath a bond strap when installing the hardware system for connecting and securing the units . these elements are described in detail below . finally , the wall unit includes a rear face 66 , which is disposed between the angled sides of adjoining blocks in a constructed wall . referring now to fig3 , there is shown the corner unit 20 of the inventive dry stack masonry system . the corner unit includes a front face 70 , and angled inboard side 72 , a flat rear side portion 74 , a triangular rear side portion 76 , and a projection 78 extending rearward from the rear side and disposed between the flat rear side portion and the triangular rear side portion and having a surface 80 depressed to the same depth as the depressions 60 , 62 in the wall unit . opposite the angled inboard side 72 is a flat outboard side 82 which is substantially normal to the front face 70 . a slot 84 is cut into the main body 86 of the block and extends into the projection 78 so as to accommodate a bend in the bond strap of the hardware . as with the wall unit , the corner unit includes an angled side that joins the rear side in a rounded corner 88 and the geometry defines a wing 90 for insertion into a female concavity in an adjoining block . additionally , disposed between the projection 78 and the triangular rear portion 76 is a female concavity 92 shaped and sized to accommodate ( with tight tolerances ) the corner of a wing of a block disposed generally normal to the corner unit . next , and referring now to fig4 - 4a , there is shown an end unit 18 , which includes a front face 100 ( preferably flat ), and outside face 102 ( preferably contoured and including a trough - shaped recess 104 shaped to generally match in appearance to the recesses between the front faces of adjoining blocks in a constructed wall ), and a rear face 106 . a wing 108 is defined by an angled side 110 and a flat rear side 112 that is generally perpendicular to the outside face 102 . the angled side and flat rear side join in a rounded corner 114 , which , again , fits into a female concavity of an adjoining block . disposed between the wing and outside face 106 are a triangular projection 116 , a first recessed area 118 for cradling the end of a bond strap , and a second recessed portion 120 for accommodating an edge of a bolt plate . the first recessed area terminates in a slot 122 which accepts a bent end of a bond strap . disposed between the first depressed area 118 and the triangular projection 116 is a female concavity 124 matching its counterparts in the wall and corner units . hardware : the unique hardware system of the present invention minimally includes : ( a ) anchor bolts ; ( b ) bond straps ; ( c ) bolt plates ( including corner bolt plates ); ( d ) end tie straps ; and ( e ) column plates . the above - referenced anchor bolts are shown in an assembled hardware layout in fig1 . such j - bolts are well known in the art . for use in the present invention , they preferably comprise standard , off the shelf , ⅝ ″ or ¾ ″ diameter , 27 - 30 ″ length , right angle bend anchor bolts , all thread rods and nuts . the bond strap 130 is shown in fig5 - 5b , and preferably comprise an elongate , rectangular galvanized sheet metal bond strap , 1½ ″× 113 ″ straps of 16 gauge to 10 gauge thickness and having a pre - punched hole 132 and tab 134 pattern , the latter to form bends 136 for insertion into slots in blocks . next , and referring now to fig6 a - 8 , the hardware system includes bolt plates 140 , which preferably comprise 3 ″× 3 ″× ⅜ ″ plates with one punched 11 / 16 ″ diameter hole 142 and one drilled and threaded standard ⅝ ″× 11 hole 144 . alternatively , and referring now fig6 b , the bolt plate may comprise a 3 ″× 3 ″ ⅛ ″ gauge sheet metal plate 146 with an 11 / 16 ″ hole 148 , and a partial hole 150 with a thread - capture cut 152 . referring now to fig7 a - d , corner bolt plates 160 comprise a ⅛ ″ gauge sheet metal square with diagonal slots 162 , 164 , which facilitate breaking the plates in half to form two discrete right triangle halves 166 , 168 . each half includes pre - drilled holes 170 for passing bolts , a center hole 171 , crimps or small cuts 172 and diagonal cuts 174 at the vertices 176 of each triangle so as to form tabs 178 that enable easy bending of the corners for insertion into corner unit slots . in a manner well known in the art , slots 173 disposed on the diagonal and having bridges disposed therebetween define frangible lines and provide means for weakening the plate for breaking it into the halves described above by bending the plate along the diagonal line defined by the slots . fig7 e is a top plan view showing a column assembly before the installation of the corner plate of fig7 a - d . fig7 f shows the column of fig7 e after installation of the intact corner plate of fig7 a . the tabs 178 are bent for insertion into alignment slots 84 and anchor ( or threaded extension bolt ) 200 is disposed through center hole 171 . the bolt holes 170 are shown arrayed alongside cuts 173 . alternative corner plate configurations are possible , as is shown in fig7 g . in this bolt plate design 160 b , fold up / fold down tabs 178 b are provided by slots 172 b that facilitate folding for insertion either up or down into alignment slots according to the orientation of the stacked units in the particular bolting course . this plate also includes an alternative arrangement of bolt holes 170 b . fig7 h shows still another alternative corner plate 160 c . this design is used only on bond strap courses and includes a rectangular body portion 160 c with two triangular end portions 161 c , each having an end vertex 162 c with a 90 degree angle joining two sides 163 c each angled 45 degrees relative to their respective outside edges 165 c . this singular hardware piece is positioned in the same way that the triangular plate of fig7 c - 7d is positioned . punched bolt holes 170 c are positioned on the longitudinal centerline on each side of the transverse midline 175 c . a triangular cut 176 c on one side at the midline facilitates placement toward the inside portion of a corner ( closest where the masonry unit sides converge ). next , and referring now to fig8 , the hardware system includes elongate end tie straps 180 , preferably 1½ ″× 8¼ ″× 16 gauge galvanized sheet metal end straps with pre - punched holes 182 disposed longitudinally along a center line , and tabs 184 for ends and corners . next , as seen in fig9 a , the hardware system includes column plates 190 , preferably 5 7 / 16 ″× 10 gauge square galvanized sheet metal plates with a pre - punched center hole 192 and tabs 194 disposed on each side proximate a corner . finally , as seen in fig9 b , it will be clear that an alternative to the corner plates shown in fig7 a - d may be employed . this comprises a simple plate el 195 may be employed for securing corner units to wall units in an assembly . the el includes bolt holes 196 , and may further include end cuts 197 and a corner cut 198 for forming tabs 199 suitable for insertion in block slots , as needed . use of this el obviates the need to carve a recess in the wall unit , as is required when using the corner plate , as shown in fig1 a . as can be seen by reference to fig1 and fig1 - 12b , the fundamental stacking orientation of adjoining blocks in any given course is simply end - to - end abutment . that is , the blocks are merely pushed together into an abutting relationship by sliding the wing of one block into the female concavity of an adjoining block , at which point they cannot be further approximated . if both blocks are wall units , each block “ interlocks ” with the other inasmuch as a wing of each block is inserted into a female concavity of the adjoining block . with the wall units in this orientation , they also cannot be translated radially , i . e ., rotated , and this prevents gross misalignments or an accumulation of successive small misalignments that add up to a grossly misaligned wall . however , the blocks ( at least when looked at as simple pairs ) could possibly be separated by translating them laterally , which is to say , apart . furthermore , end and corner units may still be subjected to radial translation , and this is where the inventive hardware plays its essential role . the hardware system employed in the present invention provides structural integrity where it is needed the most , namely , the lower portion of the wall . at the same time it still provides the flexibility of eliminating the cost and time required to employ all of the structural elements the full height of the wall . one unique feature of the hardware system is that it enables users to bolt the lower courses of blocks on a different spacing schedule than the higher courses of blocks . for instance , bolts can be provided every eight inches on center , if needed for the lowest course or courses , but bolts can be placed at 16 inches on center in the middle courses , and 32 inches on center for the highest courses . accordingly , for the smaller brick designs , anchor bolt spacing can begin as tight as eight inches on center and progress to sixteen or thirty - two inches on center , if desired . for larger block designs , spacing can begin at twelve inches on center and progress to twenty - four or forty - eight inches on center . the hardware system further ensures unit alignment front to back while tying the wall from end to end at a predetermined height ( e . g ., every two feet in height ) as the wall units are stacked . this method permanently secures the units at reasonable intervals for ease of construction . a differential spacing schedule for vertical anchor bolts can be seen in fig1 , which shows the kind of grid - like scaffolding that the anchor bolts 200 , bond straps 130 , and bolt plates 140 / 146 provide when erected atop a poured - in - place concrete footing 202 . the means for securing anchor j - bolts in a concrete wall footing is well known in the art and need not be described herein . upper courses of bolts are simply inserted straight end first through the bolt hole of a lower bond strap and then through the bolt hole in the bond strap immediately above and secured with a nut until the bend in the anchor engages the lower bond strap . construction method : what follows is a more detailed explanation of the method steps in constructing a wall using the novel blocks shown in the instant application . footing : as may be surmised from the foregoing description of the system units and hardware , the inventive masonry wall system preferably rests upon a poured - in - place concrete footing . the width and depth of this footing will vary with the height and function of the wall . free standing landscape fencing will require a lesser footing than a retaining wall of the same height , but in either case the inventive dry stack system is not intended to exceed more than six feet in height . however , standard engineering of the footing design may be provided for given wall heights with site - specific engineering provided by a qualified structural engineer . wall layout , footing size and elevations are determined in advance of excavation . once below grade footing excavations have been completed , long reinforcing steel with stirrups , if required , should be laid in the bottom of the footing on wire chairs , such as simpson strong tie wrc3 . the inventive dry stack system preferably sits on an eight inch wide curb . anchor bolt layout may be provided pursuant to engineering specifications . the brick design may have anchor bolts as close as eight inches on center , and this close schedule may be required for some retaining wall . in every instance , the anchor bolts are placed according to the available spacing of the pre - punched holes in the bond strap . preferably the concrete footing has a curb height at finish grade and requires only that the top of the curb be struck off level for finishing . anchor bolts are held plumb and to the correct height , viz ., one inch minimum above the first prescribed bond strap height . anchor bolts are embedded at a depth of at least the bottom reinforcing steel . first course : after the concrete footing has cured and any form work removed , the first course can be laid out . surface irregularities or debris , such as pebbles . on the top of the curb are removed . beginning at one end or corner , the terminal unit is placed followed by wall units alternating front to back until the opposite end is reached . the first course of wall units is laid with the top side down , thus presenting a generally planar surface on which the second course will be laid . with the recessed areas down these units will face fewer irregularities . wall units mate to interlock around the anchor bolts with the rounded corner of one block inserted into the female concavity of an adjoining block such that a space 210 is defined between the back sides of adjoining blocks , and it is through these spaces that the vertically disposed anchors bolts extend . see fig1 b and 12b . when the opposite end or corner of the wall is reached , the end or corner unit is placed with the top either up or down so that it mates with the last wall unit . a dry line is pulled from end to end and the original layout marks the height of the block above the curb . wall alignment is checked using the dry line from end to end and from front to back with a good hand level . adjustments are made as needed and two to four courses are stacked at each end tapering down , as if building the wall from the ends toward the center . in the event the wall cannot be adjusted to level properly from front to back , triangular shims of twenty four gauge galvanized sheet metal can be used on the low side . these one and one half right angle shims can be placed adjacent the anchor bolt where the bearing area provides the greatest cross sectional overlap . voids larger than a few thicknesses are preferably filled with mortar . fig1 a - 12b show how corner units 20 are abutted to adjoining wall units 16 , and how the inventive hardware elements are installed , including the bond strap 130 and bolt plates 140 / 146 , as well as how the bolt strap tabs 134 are inserted into both corner slots 84 and wall end unit slots 122 . as will be appreciated , the male wing portion of the wall unit that abuts corner unit 20 must be shaved down slightly so as to make that portion substantially coplanar with the upper surface of projection 78 , and thereby to accommodate a split corner plate half 134 installed at the end of the perpendicular bond straps 130 . in some applications , the first course may need to be set in mortar . when this is necessary , the highest point in the curb is identified and the mortar is laid slightly higher . a dry line is used to establish alignment and to make certain the units are level from front to back . dry stacking is continued up to four courses at each end tapering down toward the center . once alignment of the first course is confirmed , added courses are removed at each end . end tie straps or triangular corner ties ( preferably sixteen gauge galvanized ) are installed with the tabs bent up or down as needed for insertion into a slot in the end or corner block . the recessed slot is then preferably filled with masonry adhesive , which is typically provided in tubes which can be applied in small controlled amounts , squeezed from a hand held gun . the adhesive is not used to glue the courses together but to fill the void in the recessed slot and to lock the unit &# 39 ; s position relative to the sheet metal tab once the adhesive is cured . two more courses are then stacked at each end or corner as before and the required ties are installed . installation of the triangular corner plate ( fig7 c - 7d ) or the alternative corner plate design ( fig7 h ) requires the top of the adjacent wall unit be cut for a recess . this is the only location where any units need to be cut and it is done for the sole purpose of creating a physical tie between the first anchor bolt in each direction of the wall . second course to bond strap : when ready to install a second course , first the vertical alignment of the units is checked in each direction and at each end with a hand level . once this is confirmed , a mason &# 39 ; s block is used to hold the dry line and re - establish the line from end to end or corner to corner at the top edge of the second course . the second course is laid while checking alignment along the length of the wall . a hand level is used to check level from front to back as needed . wall alignment with the dry line is checked to ensure that front - to - back level is satisfactory . the third course is laid after raising the dry line to the top edge of the third course . shimming is employed only as required to maintain alignment with the dry line or to maintain plumb . if a mortar bed was required for the first course , it may be best to allow the mortar to set over night . dropping in a select few bolt plates and hand threading nuts over the anchor bolts will secure the low wall overnight . three eight inch high courses bring the wall to bond strap height if 24 inch anchor bolts are employed , while three inch high brick units may have several courses to go before the bond strap would bolt the assembly down . bond strap to bond strap : as noted previously , generic engineering can provide bond strap intervals at prescribed heights for given wall applications and conditions . this is true also for any change or reduction in the bolting pattern requirements . bolting the wall at each prescribed bond tie accomplishes three important functions . first , it applies the greatest structural strength where it is most needed — namely , the lower portion of the wall . secondly , the hardware secures the wall in its proper position while under construction . and thirdly , it obviates the need for bolting higher in the wall . site specific conditions or special engineering may require the lower courses to be fully grouted for seismic codes or greater structural integrity . this can be achieved by pouring grout into the voids prior to installing bond straps . after setting over night , if needed , the vertical plumb of each end or corner in each direction is checked . the dry line is reestablished and the wall alignment checked end to end . units are leveled front to back using shims only as needed . the next course is built up at each end as before and end and corner ties are installed and embedded in masonry adhesive . the dry line is raised to the next course and the next course is then laid . alignment is again checked . this sequence is repeated until the course level is within one course of the first bond strap . the end of anchor bolts must be at least one inch above the top of the next course . the correction of one or more anchor bolts may be achieved with a coupling nut , such as the simpson cnw⅝ . if a more radical correction is necessary , lowering the bond strap by one course is always possible . at bond strap height , bolt plates are dropped in over the anchor bolts using the holes punched in the bolt plates . bolt plates fit into the recess on the back edges of the male wing elements on the units . the bond straps can be provided in any length , though standard 113 ″ lengths are preferable . as described above , each end is slotted to create and provide tabs that can be bent up and down to fit into the recessed slots of the block units . starting at one end , the bond strap is laid into the recess at the top of wall and end units . the hole pattern provided matches the bolt pattern and locks in the alignment of units front to back . the bond strap when placed rests atop the bolt plates . alignment of the wall is regularly checked against the dry line as additional straps are laid down the length of the wall . each bond strap should overlay the previous strap by at least one anchor bolt . at the opposite end the bond strap may be cut to length with a slot added to allow for bent tabs . with the bond straps laid in place from end to end , hole alignment is checked and confirmed for the threaded holes in the bolt plate ( if the threaded hole embodiment is used ) in relation to the holes in the bond strap . each end is also checked for vertical alignment or plumb . wall alignment with the dry line and also checked and nuts are threaded onto all anchor bolts when ready . nuts are tightened to a predetermined torque setting , and threaded extension rods are installed in the threaded hole at the specified spacing using properly secured bolt plates . wall end vertical alignment and alignment down the length of the wall are rechecked and stacking of the next course is started . since end units alternate with the recessed top to the bottom to mate with the ends of wall units , it is possible that the final block is set top down , which prevents the bond strap from connecting to the end of the course . in such a case , the end anchor bolt can be secured at the lower course with bolt plate and end tie strap , then torque tightened to a specified setting . a threaded extension rod is then added at this level and the same condition will be repeated at the next bond strap . this will secure the end of the wall . a similar situation may arise at a corner , and a similar solution is provided . however , corners do not require bolt plates but use coupler nuts and may require the anchor bolt or extension rod to be cut to the correct length . cap course : once the number of courses is laid to bring the wall to its designed height and the last bond strap is in place , the top course is set with the top down . this constitutes the cap course , and it is secured , sealed , and protected from the elements by filling the anchor bolt cell with grout . the end units may have the slotted recess filled with masonry adhesive to secure them to the bent tabs of the bond strap as well , but once the grout has cured it will lock the ends and corners into position . if desired , several flat wall caps can be added to provide a decorative finish . these caps can be secured with masonry adhesive in a manner well known in the art . square columns : referring next to fig7 e - 7f , it will be seen that by using the intact square corner plate of fig7 a - 7b , a square free standing column can be erected . this assembly requires four corner units 20 assembled in a square and joined by an undivided corner plate 160 with the corners slotted 172 for bent tabs . the anchor bolt 200 is located and secured at the center of the column . the tabs on the bolt plate are bent up and down in the same fashion as wall corners , inserted into slots 84 in the corner units , and installed with masonry adhesive to fill the voids left after inserting the tabs into the slots . again , the adhesive is only provided as a means to permanently lock the unit position , not to glue it down . additional structural integrity may be gained by fully grouting the interior cell prior to bolting the assembly to the specified torque setting . the above disclosure is sufficient to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to practice the invention , and provides the best mode of practicing the invention presently contemplated by the inventor . while there is provided herein a full and complete disclosure of the preferred embodiments of this invention , it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction , dimensional relationships , and operation shown and described . various modifications , alternative constructions , changes and equivalents will readily occur to those skilled in the art and may be employed , as suitable , without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention . such changes might involve alternative materials , components , structural arrangements , sizes , shapes , forms , functions , operational features or the like . therefore , the above description and illustrations should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention , which is defined by the appended claims .	4
fig2 shows discharge voltage waveforms and distributions of non - discharge times after voltages of such waveforms have been applied and before discharges are started , the waveforms being experimentally obtained and illustrative of the principles of detection according to the present invention . since the discharge starting points are determined by detecting the times when the voltages fall , signals are also generated when the pulses are shifted from an on condition to an off condition . the relationship between the time distributions and interelectrode conditions has resulted in the following observations : ( a ) a discharge is highly likely to start within 5 microseconds after a voltage has been applied except when the interelectrode gap is open , that is , when the electrode and the workpiece are completely spaced from each other and no machining takes place . ( b ) the percentage of discharges starting within the above 5 microseconds exceeds 70 % in the stepped leader of an arc . ( c ) when the servo system has poor stability and hunting occurs , non - discharge and short - circuiting are alternately repeated , and no discharge distribution is present upon elapse of the 5 microseconds . ( d ) during a normal discharge , the distribution is about 30 % within the 5 microseconds after the voltage has been imposed , and thereafter the distribution is gradually reduced . ( e ) under an arc condition , the distributions ( a ) and ( b ) are alternately repeated in the period of a few seconds . this appears to result from the fact that a discharge occurs between bodies of carbon produced by an abnormal arc discharge , and the discharge mode is different from that in which a general electrode and workpiece combination is used in discharge machining . ( f ) when the interelectrode gap is extremely narrow , the distribution becomes analogous to that in the stepped leader of the arc referred to in ( b ) above . however , the distribution is present at 10 % or more during a time interval from 5 to 30 microseconds . ( g ) when the servo system is actuated to open the interelectrode gap , a discharge takes place within the 5 microseconds at a percentage ranging from 10 to 20 %, and the distribution gradually decreases thereafter . it follows from the above observations that the interelectrode gap can be assumed as being normal when under the following conditions : ( 1 ) a pulse for starting a discharge occurs in the time interval from 5 to 30 microseconds , at a percentage of 10 % or more . ( 2 ) the percentage of pulses causing a discharge within 5 microseconds does not exceed 50 %. ( 3 ) the percentage at which no discharge takes place even at τ p does not exceed 50 %. fig3 is a circuit diagram , partly in block form , of a circuit arrangement including an embodiment of the present invention . in fig3 a switching transistor 18b for applying a voltage across an interelectrode gap to pass a discharge current therethrough is driven by a switching amplifier 18e supplied with a pulse quiescent signal which is generated by a pulse quiescent signal generator 18f . the pulse quiescent signal generator 18f is supplied with clock pulses produced by a clock pulse generator 18g . the clock pulses should have a frequency of 1 mhz or higher since they are also used for sampling a time period before a discharge is caused by the voltage applied across the interelectrode gap . the falling edge of the voltage across the interelectrode gap is detected by a circuit 50 in which a signal that is voltage - divided by resistors r 1 , r 2 is compared by a comparator 50a with a reference voltage v r , and a signal from the comparator 50a when the voltage - divided signal is lower than the reference voltage v r is processed by a falling - edge differentiator composed of resistors r 3 , r 4 and a capacitor c1 , thereby producing a signal s 2 . a discharge condition discriminator 51 will be described with reference to fig4 and 5 . when a voltage is applied across the interelectrode gap , a ring counter 52 is energized to open or gates 53 , 54 and 55 in each time interval . for example , the or gate 53 produces an output signal of &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; during a time interval from 0 to 5 microseconds . if a voltage falling signal s 2 is applied due to a discharge caused during this time , then counters 59 , 60 and 61 count pulses dependent on discharge distributions in respective zones in a prescribed period through and gates 56 , 57 and 58 . the prescribed period preferably ranges from 10 to 30 milliseconds in view of the rate at which the condition of the interelectrode gap varies and also of experimental results . the contents of the counters 59 , 60 and 61 are discriminated by digital comparators 62 , 63 and 64 which determine how many pulses , more or less than a certain number , have caused discharges in the prescribed period at what distribution of times of non - load voltage application . the distributions are classified into abnormal and normal distributions , as described above . when any distribution is determined as abnormal , the pulses are further counted by a counter 67 . when any distribution is determined as normal , the counter 67 is reset . therefore , when any distribution is judged as abnormal , that is , when the percentage of discharges within the 5 microseconds after the voltage has been imposed is 50 % or higher , or the percentage of no discharges even when the pulses are stopped is 50 % or higher , the counter 67 is incremented . when there are pulses causing discharges in the interval from 5 to 30 microseconds at 10 % or more , the counter 67 is immediately reset . as a consequence , the counter 67 is set to zero whenever the distribution is normal , and is incremented whenever the distribution is abnormal . by converting the count from the counter 67 into an analog voltage v 0 with an digital - to - analog converter 40 and monitoring the analog voltage v 0 , the condition of the interelectrode gap can be determined . by way of example , when the analog voltage v 0 is high , the condition approaches an abnormal discharge , and various deficiencies can easily be detected such as a deposit of sludge in the interelectrode gap due to machined chips accumulated therein , a mass of carbon produced by thermal decomposition of the machining solution 16 due to an abnormal arc , or broken pieces of the electrode present in the interelectrode gap . the condition of the interelectrode gap always however varies in a short period of time , and cannot necessarily be judged as poor even if a high analog voltage v 0 is detected in such a short period of time . as a consequence , it is necessary to determine the condition of the interelectrode gap by detecting when the output voltage v 0 of the digital - to - analog converter 40 remains higher than a predetermined value for a certain period of time . fig6 shows a voltage comparator 148 for determining whether the output voltage v 0 from the digital - to - analog converter 40 is higher than a predetermined value v 11 . when v 0 & gt ; v 11 , the output from the voltage comparator 148 goes negative , turning off a switching transistor 152 through a base resistor 150 . therefore , a time measuring capacitor 154 is charged through a resistor 156 . the voltage v 31 across the capacitor 154 can be expressed by the following equation : where r21 is the resistance value of the resistor 156 , c is the capacitance of the capacitor 154 , and t is time . the voltage v 31 across the capacitor 154 is compared with a reference voltage v 21 by a voltage comparator 158 . during an interval in which v 31 & lt ; v 21 , the output from the voltage comparator 158 does not go negative , and hence a light - emitting diode 160 remains de - energized . when v 31 & gt ; v 21 as a result of the condition v 0 & gt ; v 11 having continued for the time period , the output from the voltage comparator 158 goes negative , thus energizing the light - emitting diode 160 through a resistor 162 to indicate an abnormal condition of the interelectrode gap . a switch 164 serves to switch between a mode in which the interelectrode gap condition is determined solely as a function of time and another mode in which the interelectrode gap condition is determined as a function of the product of the magnitude of the output v 0 from the digital - to - analog converter 40 and time . more specifically , when a machining process is effected in which it is difficult to determine the condition of the interelectrode gap , e . g ., when such a machining process is carried out in which hard metal is momentarily cracked by an arc or a mass of tungsten is broken off by an arc , the switch 164 is shifted to a contact 164a as illustrated to determine any abnormal condition of the interelectrode gap as a function of the output v 0 from the digital - to - analog converter 40 and time . this is because if the output voltage v 0 is high , the charging current through the capacitor 154 is increased , and the voltage v 31 across the capacitor 154 immediately reaches the reference voltage v 21 . if the output voltage v 0 is monitored directly by a voltmeter , the voltmeter can be used as a monitor for the condition of the interelectrode gap . while in the foregoing embodiment the distributions of discharge starting times are measured by the counters , they may be combined with a processor capable of arithmetic operations so that the distributions can be displayed on a cathode - ray tube . such an alternative can display how the present distribution differs from a normal distribution and which mode the discharge is in . by varying the rate of change dv / dt of the voltage across the interelectrode gap based on the output generated by the foregoing detector circuit , the machining efficiency can be improved . more specifically , when the gap condition is poor , the voltage applied thereacross is increased gradually to reduce the ease with which a discharge occurs for thereby preventing a discharge concentration , and when the gap condition is good , the voltage is quickly raised to make it easier for a discharge to take place across the gap . a circuit arrangement for implementing the above operation is illustrated in fig7 . fig8 is a timing chart illustrative of operation of the circuit shown in fig7 . an inverting amplifier 100 serves to invert the analog voltage v 0 dependent on the digital output from the counter 67 and apply the inverted voltage to the base of a pnp transistor 101 . the voltage v g applied across the interelectrode gap is a value given by : where i c is the collector current of the transistor 101 , t is the time elapsed after the pulse voltage has been applied , and c is the capacitance of a capacitor 102 . the collector current i c is substantially equal to , or about 99 % of , a current flowing through an emitter - follower load resistor 103 for the transistor 101 . if the resistor 103 has a resistance value r e , the collector current i c is expressed by : where v e is the emitter voltage of the transistor 101 and v b is the base voltage thereof . from the equations ( 1 ) and ( 2 ), the voltage applied across the interelectrode gap is given as follows : assuming that r e = 5 ohms , c = 0 . 01 microfarads , and v b = 0 to 10 v , the voltage gradient dv / dt varies in the range of from 0 to 200 v / microsecond . the inverting amplifier 100 is designed such that it produces an output voltage 10 v when the input voltage thereto is 0 v and produces an output voltage 0 v when the input voltage is 10 v , so that the greater the analog voltage v 0 or the poorer the condition of the interelectrode gap , the smaller the voltage gradient dv / dt . a resistor 104 serves to prevent charge stored in the capacitor 102 from adversely affecting machining operations when the capacitor 102 is discharged . a diode 105 prevents current from a switching transistor 18b from flowing back into the capacitor 102 . the transistor 18b remains turned on for a prescribed interval of time after a discharge has taken place across the interelectrode gap . the inverting amplifier 100 has an internal gate controlled also by a control signal s3 from a pulse quiescent duration control circuit 18d to prevent a voltage from being applied across the interelectrode gap during quiescent times . the timing chart of fig8 shows operations of the circuit arrangement of fig7 and illustrates , by way of logic levels of 0 and 1 , the relationship between the detected voltage v 0 and the capacitor charging current i c , and the conditions of energization and de - energization of the transistors . with the above embodiment , in the event of a discharge concentration or a stepped leader of an arc , the count in the counter 67 in the detector circuit is incremented , and the output from the inverting amplifier is reduced to reduce the gradient of the applied voltage . therefore , a discharge is less likely to be initiated , and no discharge concentration occurs , resulting in the restoration of the desired conditions of the interelectrode gap . while in the above embodiment the gradient of the applied voltage is continuously controlled dependent on the count in the counter 67 in the detector circuit , the voltage gradient need not necessarily be controlled continuously , but may be varied in a pattern similar to a polygonal line , in a few steps , or in a stepwise manner . as described above , according to the embodiment of fig7 and 8 , any abnormal condition of the interelectrode gap is determined by the process mentioned earlier , and for restoring the condition of the interelectrode gap based on the result of the determination , the gradient of the voltage applied across the interelectrode gap is varied to control the ease with which a discharge can occur , thus preventing a discharge from concentrating in one point or preventing a high voltage from being continuously applied while the gap is not being deionized . fig9 illustrates another embodiment in which the voltage applied across the interelectrode gap is varied on the basis of the output signal from the digital - to - analog converter . by lowering the voltage at which a discharge can start , the discharge is less liable to start , and any discharge concentration in the interelectrode gap can be prevented . when there is no discharge concentration , the voltage applied across the interelectrode gap is raised to increase the ease with which a discharge takes place across the interelectrode gap . an inverting amplifier 200 shown in fig9 serves to invert the analog voltage v 0 dependent on the output from the counter and apply the inverted voltage to the base of a pnp transistor 251 . the voltage v g applied across the interelectrode gap has a value expressed by : the current i c is substantially equal to , or about 99 % of , a current flowing through an emitter - follower load resistor r 2 for the transistor 251 . the collector current i c is expressed by : from the equations ( 4 ) and ( 5 ), the voltage v g is given as follows : assuming that r 1 = 30 kiloohms , r 2 = 1 kiloohm , and e = 300 v , the voltage v b varies in the range of from 0 to 300 v due to a variation from 0 to 10 v . when a discharge concentration occurs and the counter 67 is incremented , the output from the inverting amplifier 200 is reduced and the interelectrode voltage v g is also lowered for thereby eliminating the discharge concentration . while in the above embodiment of fig9 the voltage applied across the interelectrode gap is varied dependent on the count in the counter 67 which detects a discharge concentration , the count in the counter and the applied voltage need not necessarily be in proportion to each other , but the applied voltage may more advantageously be varied at a ratio similar to the pattern of a series for the prevention of transition to an arc discharge . according to the embodiment of fig9 as described above , a discharge concentration and a poor condition of the interelectrode gap are discriminated by a distribution of times after a voltage has been applied and before a discharge takes place , and the voltage applied across the gap is controlled for discharge dispersion . the time period in which the switching element 18b is turned off can be increased on the basis of the output from the detector circuit referred to above for extending the time interval between discharges to achieve a deionization effect . this can eliminate a cause of a discharge concentration . an embodiment for carrying out such an operation will be described with reference to fig1 . when an output q of an rs flip - flop 318 is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, the switching element 18b is energized by an amplifier 319 during an on time . when q = 0 , the switching element 18b is turned off during an off time . when q = 1 , an and gate 320 produces an output of &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; until an on - time setting output τ p from an on - time / off - time setting counter 321 becomes &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;. when the output τ p is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, the flip - flop 318 is reset , and the output q becomes &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, entering the off time . at the same time , the output from the and gate 320 resets an oscillator osc and the time setting counter 321 through an or gate 322 . the counting is then started over . when q = 0 and no output &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; is issued until the output of an and gate 323 , that is , the output of an or gate 324 becomes &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;. the or gate 324 and and gates 325 , 326 control the setting of two off times . when the signal sa is &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, τ 1 is set and when the signal sa is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, τ 2 is set . with this embodiment , therefore , the workpiece is machined with the off time τ 1 during a normal discharge , and with the off time τ 2 during an abnormal discharge . when any discharge is judged as an abnormal discharge , the quiescent time is abruptly extended to provide a deionization effect for thereby preventing an unwanted discharge concentration and the generation of an abnormal arc . for such abnormality detection , the condition of the interelectrode gap is determined from the distribution of times after the voltage has been applied and before a discharge takes place . although in the above embodiment there are two off times τ 1 and τ 2 , the off time may be continuously established dependent on the count in the counter 59 ( fig4 ) which counts the number of occurrences of discharge concentration . by controlling the interelectrode gap or varying the reference value v r of the interelectrode servo control signal based on the output from the previous detector circuit , the reference voltage can be increased when an abnormal discharge is detected to thereby increase the average interelectrode voltage , with the result that the interelectrode gap is widened and any discharge is less likely to occur , thus preventing a concentrated discharge . fig1 illustrates a circuit arrangement for carrying out such a mode of operation . when the detected signal sa is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; or an abnormal discharge takes place , the output from an inverter 400 is &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, an analog switch 401 is turned on and an analog switch 402 is turned off . therefore , an input voltage e i to an integrator circuit composed of an operational amplifier 403 , a resistor r 10 , and a capacitor c 10 is equal to - e , and the reference voltage v r is expressed as follows : therefore , as long as the signal sa is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, the reference voltage v r continuously increases and the voltage v s is also negatively increased , resulting in the widening of the interelectrode gap . when the signal sa is &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, that is , there is no discharge concentration or no abnormal condition in the interelectrode gap , the input voltage e i is 0 , and the voltage stored in the integrator capacitor c 10 is discharged . as a result , the reference voltage v r is lowered to control the interelectrode gap to be narrowed . then , the frequency of discharge is increased and the speed of machining the workpiece is also increased . the resistor r 10 and the capacitor c 10 which determine the time constant of the integrator circuit have values such that the time constant is on the order of a few decades of seconds . if the reference voltage v r were varied in too a short period of time , the length of the interelectrode gap would vary abruptly , resulting in undesirable hunting and electrode vibration . the control range is limited in that the reference voltage v r is controlled by a zener diode zd to range between a zener voltage in a positive direction and zero in a negative direction . a power supply v e and a variable resistor r b serve to allow manual setting . the interelectrode gap control is effected automatically around the manual setting value . an operational amplifier 404 and resistors r 3 and r 4 serve as an inverter and an attenuator for adding the average voltage v s across the interelectrode gap and the reference voltage v r . while in the foregoing embodiment the reference voltage v r is varied by integrating the detected signal sa , the count in the counter 67 may be converted from a digital value into an analog value which may be passed through a circuit having a time lag of first order with a large time constant for finer control . with the embodiment of fig1 , as mentioned above , abnormal and normal discharges are discriminated from each other by detecting a distribution of times after a voltage has been applied and a discharge is generated , and , when an abnormal discharge occurs , the interelectrode gap is widened to lower the frequency of discharge for normalizing the discharging condition by varying the reference value for the servo control of the interelectrode gap , thereby restoring the desired interelectrode condition . the amount of the machining solution injected into the interelectrode gap can be varied dependent on the count in the counter 67 for restoring the interelectrode condition . such an arrangement will be described with reference to fig1 . an output passage from a machining solution supply pump 516 is connected through variable - flow valves v 1 , v 2 , v 3 and v 4 and a pipe 517 to an injection path 518 defined in the electrode 10 . the amount of the machining solution supplied is varied by opening and closing the valves v 1 , v 2 , v 3 and v 4 which are controlled by output signals 2 6 - 2 9 from the reversible counter 47 . in the illustrated embodiment , the valves v 1 , v 2 , v 3 and v 4 are designed to pass the fluid at flow rates of 100 cc / min ., 200 cc / min ., 400 cc / min ., 800 cc / min ., respectively , so that an amount of the machining solution matching the condition of the interelectrode gap can be supplied into the gap . for example , when the count in the counter 67 is &# 34 ; 64 &# 34 ; or more , the output 2 6 is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, and hence the valve v 1 is opened to allow the solution to flow at the rate of 100 cc / min . when the count in the counter 67 is &# 34 ; 192 &# 34 ;, the outputs 2 6 and 2 7 are &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, and the valves v 1 and v 2 are opened to supply the machining solution at the rate of 300 cc / min . when the count is quite large , for example , 1024 or above , a forced - injection valve v 5 is opened through an or gate 519 to supply the solution at the rate of a few thousands cc / min . conversely , when the count is small , a small amount of solution which is used for normal machining is fed through a manually controlled valve v 0 into the interelectrode gap . with the embodiment of fig1 , as discussed above , the amount of flow of the machining solution is controlled dependent on the interelectrode conditions to efficiently discharge sludge produced in the interelectrode gap for thereby increasing the discharging efficiency . more specifically , when there is a deposit of sludge in the interelectrode gap , a discharge arc is produced in the path from the electrode to the sludge to the workpiece , and a considerable amount of energy is consumed in the mass of sludge , resulting in a reduced degree of machining efficiency . the arrangement of fig1 can prevent such a reduced machining efficiency . since the flow rate of the solution is reduced when the interelectrode gap is narrow , the interelectrode impedance does not become higher than required , and a discharge tends to be generated with greater ease , so that machining will be rendered stable and the machining speed will be increased . the interelectrode condition can be restored by varying the pressure under which the machining solution is injected into the interelectrode gap dependent on the presence or absence of the detected signal sa . as shown in fig1 , a machining solution pumped by a supply pump 600 from a solution tank 699 is fed through a pipe 603 via a solenoid - operated valve 601 and a manually operated valve 602 , the pipe 603 being connected to an injection path 604 defined in the electrode 10 . the pressure of the machining solution is measured by a pressure meter relay 605 which issues a feedback signal sb to a controller 606 of the solenoid - operated valve 601 when the solution pressure exceeds a prescribed pressure , thereby maintaining the solution pressure at an appropriate level . the manually operated valve 602 serves to keep a minimum pressure in the event that the solenoid - operated valve 601 fails to operate . when the machining condition becomes poor and machined chips are deposited in the interelectrode gap , the detected signal sa is issued to the valve controller 606 to open the solenoid - operated valve 601 continuously until a signal is fed back from the pressure meter relay 605 . the deposited machined chips are then expelled out of the gap under the high injection pressure to restore the interelectrode condition . when the interelectrode condition has been restored , the detected signal sa is no longer generated , and the solenoid - operated valve 601 is closed and the solution pressure returns back to the pressure established solely by the manually operated valve 602 . the reason for the two solution pressures is as follows : in general , the interelectrode impedance is most appropriate ( a discharge can easily take place and machining stability is good when the interelectrode gap is smeared to a certain degree ), and the electrode 10 is consumed to a small extent when the solution pressure is 0 . 05 kg / cm 2 . if the pressure were 0 . 5 kg / cm 2 or higher , the surface temperature of the electrode 10 would be lowered , and no protective film of pyrographite would be expected to be formed on the surface of the electrode 10 . the electrode 10 would then be consumed to a larger extent , or the impedance of the interelectrode gap would become too high and the gap length for discharges would be too small , resulting in a greater tendency of short - circuiting and unstable machining . in normal conditions , the workpiece should preferably be machined under the solution pressure of 0 . 05 kg / cm 2 or lower . the higher - pressure solution flow is required only when the interelectrode gap is too smeared or sludge due to machining is deposited in the gap . experiments have indicated that the low and high solution pressures of 0 . 05 kg / cm 2 and 1 kg / cm 2 are effective for the combination of a copper electrode and an iron workpiece , and the low and high solution pressures of 0 . 2 kg / cm 2 and 4 kg / cm 2 are effective for the combination of a copper - tungsten electrode and a tungsten - carbide workpiece . according to the arrangement of fig1 , the pressure at which the machining solution is ejected is controlled dependent on the condition of the interelectrode gap to effectively discharge machined chips produced in the gap for increasing the machining efficiency . since a discharge spark is produced in the path from the electrode to the machined chips to the workpiece in the event that the machined chips are present in the interelectrode gap , a considerable proportion of discharging energy would be consumed for thermal decomposition of the machined chips and the machining solution , resulting in a reduced machining speed . however , the arrangement shown in fig1 can prevent such an unwanted phenomenon , or an arc discharge due to the machined chips or carbon produced by thermal decomposition of the solution . briefly summarized , any abnormal discharge is determined by the process as described previously and the interelectrode gap condition is restored on the basis of the detected result , and the interelectrode gap is restored to a good condition by removing the machined chips and carbon out of the gap under a varied solution pressure . although the solution is injected into the interelectrode gap , it may be drawn under suction while the workpiece is being machined . by varying the gain or sensitivity of the means for controlling the interelectrode gap based on the output produced by the detector circuit , the gap can be restored from short - circuiting , opened conditions , or stepped leader of an arc . when the interelectrode gap is in a poor condition , the gain of the servo system is increased to increase the speed at which the gap is narrowed and widened , for thereby releasing the gap from the mechanically adverse condition or restoring the gap . an embodiment for effecting such a mode will be described with reference to fig1 . a multiplication - type digital - to - analog converter 700 is responsive to an output from the counter 67 for issuing a multiplied value of an input analog signal v r - v s , and may be a type ad 7520 manufactured by analog devices corp . the digital - to - analog converter 700 may be considered as having the function of varying the input signal as a function of the digital output value from the detector circuit . with this embodiment , the servo system gain is increased by the multiplication - type digital - to - analog converter 700 as the interelectrode gap condition becomes worse , and the output from the converter 700 is supplied to the servo valve 26 through an amplifier 24 composed of resistors 702 and 703 and an operational amplifier 704 for increasing the speed of operation of the servo actuator . although in the present embodiment the servo system gain is increased in substantially linear proportion to the adverse condition of the interelectrode gap , it may not necessarily be linearly proportional to the gap condition , but may be varied in the pattern of a quadratic function or a polygonal line . the embodiment can be reduced to practice with ease and at a reduced cost by employing the detected signal sa and two step control . experiments have shown that when the interelectrode condition becomes poor , the discharge is turned into an arc discharge unless the speed of at least 20 mm / min . is ensured , and when a large quantity of machined chips is deposited in the gap , a speed on the order of 200 mm / min . is required . it has also been confirmed that for stable machining , the machining efficiency is high at a speed ranging from 5 to 10 mm / min . for finishing machining for a surface roughness of 15 r max or lower . it is considered that the speed setting is required in these ranges . with the embodiment of fig1 , as described above , any abnormal interelectrode condition is determined by the previously described detecting process , and to restore the interelectrode gap condition based on the result of such determination , the sensitivity of the servo for varying the interelectrode gap is varied to control the speed of operation of the servo actuator , so that the interelectrode gap can be narrowed or widened quickly . fig1 illustrates another embodiment of the present invention , in which the output from the interelectrode abnormality detector , as described above , and the binary values of the outputs 2 0 - 2 n from the counter 67 are fed to an interelectrode gap control device jmp which controls the interelectrode gap for forcibly widening the interelectrode gap with these signals to effect automatic control of the extent to which the gap is widened . fig1 shows the interelectrode gap control device jmp . in the illustrated embodiment , the above signals supplied control the time in which a signal for forcibly widening the gap continues , thereby controlling the extent to which the gap is widened , and the ratio of a machining time to a time required for widening the gap . in fig1 , a multiple - bit - position coincidence circuit or a digital comparator 828 determines when the count in the counter 67 is equal to the count in a gap widening time setting counter 819 . when the counts coincide , the digital comparator 828 resets an rs flip - flop 820 . a time set by the counter 819 is equal to the product of the period of clock pulses generated by a reference clock pulse generator 821 and the count in the counter 67 with which the count in the counter 819 coincides . the rs flip - flop 821 produces an output q for actuating an analog switch 822 to forcibly cause the servo system circuits 24 and 26 to produce an electrode raising signal sm . during a time corresponding to a positional difference , the output q of the rs flip - flop 820 is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, during which time the electrode is forcibly raised . the rs flip - flop 820 is temporarily reset by the output from the digital comparator 828 , whereupon the output q is &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; and an inverted output is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;. a clock pulse input gate 824 for a machining time setting counter 823 is then opened to cause the output q of the rs flip - flop 820 to be &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; during the time in which a machining time presetting switch 825 is set . therefore , the analog switch 822 for generating the electrode raising signal sm is opened to effect normal servoed control of the interelectrode gap based on the difference between the interelectrode signal v s and the reference voltage vr . the switching operation of the analog switch 822 is continued during the time when the signal sa is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;. a resistor r serves to protect the circuit for generating the voltages v s and v r when the electrode raising signal v m is produced . the foregoing operation is not always effected , but is carried out when the interelectrode abnormality signal sa is &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, that is , when the interelectrode gap is in an abnormal condition . the signal sa is discriminated by an and gate 826 and an or gate 827 . when the signal sa is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, the or gate 827 produces an output signal of &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, and the rs flip - flop 820 remains set . no electrode raising signal sm is then issued , and normal servo control is effected of the interelectrode gap . according to the embodiment shown in fig1 , when the interelectrode abnormality signal sa becomes &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, the interelectrode gap is automatically set dependent on the discharging condition and the interelectrode gap condition at that time . the larger the difference , the greater the time for widening the gap and the extent to which the gap is widened , thus improving the gap condition . when the signal sa is &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, the electrode is not forcibly lifted , but normal servo interelectrode gap control is carried out . while in the above embodiment the electrode raising time is controlled , in the present embodiment the control of the gap between the electrode and the workpiece to improve the interelectrode gap condition is carried out based on the abnormality condition signal . it is not technically difficult to do this and can appropriately be effected to control the machining time , the speed of lifting movement of the electrode , the period of the lifting movement and machining operation , the reference voltage for servo control , and other parameters as well as the electrode raising time , with the abnormality condition signal . according to the arrangement of the above embodiment , any abnormal condition of the interelectrode gap is determined by the detecting process previously described , and the interelectrode gap condition can be restored on the basis of the result of determination . although certain preferred embodiments have been shown and described , it should be understood that many changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the scope of the appended claims .	1
the following disclosure describes systems and / or methods for dual mode displayport ( dp ) and high definition multimedia interface ( hdmi ) transmission . a dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter can be included as an integrated circuit on a graphics processing chip . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter can be configured to transmit in a dp mode or an hdmi mode depending on the type of interface in a display of a personal computer . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter is configured by applying a mode signal to the transmitter , and the mode signal is saved on a register in a chipset . once the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter is configured to transmit in the dp mode or the hdmi mode , a dp component or hdmi component can be coupled to the transmitter depending on the configuration . the configured dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter and the appropriate coupled component are included in a computing device , which transmits an audio / visual signal according to the selected mode to a display . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter eliminates the need for the external level shifter discussed above , and thus , the required hardware space in a computing device may be reduced . additionally , because an external level shifter is not needed , expenses associated with the level shifter can be saved . fig4 is a circuit diagram of an embodiment of a dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 in the embodiment illustrated in fig4 includes a driver circuit 419 and a control circuit 418 . the driver circuit 419 includes switching elements sn 41 , sn 42 , which are controlled by a data signal d 1 and a complementary data signal d 1 bar , respectively . the data signal d 1 and the complementary data signal d 1 bar are in a differential form and are audio / visual signals . the control circuit 418 includes resistors r 1 , r 2 coupled to switching elements sp 41 , sp 42 , respectively , which are coupled to a 2v bias . in the embodiment , the substrate of switching elements sp 41 , sp 42 is coupled to switching elements sn 43 , sn 44 , and switching elements sn 43 , sn 44 each receive the mode signal m as input . switching elements sn 43 , sn 44 are coupled to the 2v bias . switching elements sp 41 and sp 42 are each controlled by the output of a nand gate n 1 , which has the mode signal m and a resistance calibration signal a for inputs . in the embodiment , the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 illustrated in fig4 is an integrated circuit included on a graphics processing chip . as mentioned above , the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 is configurable by the application of a mode signal m . when the mode signal m has a logical value of “ 1 ,” which in this nonlimiting example indicates the mode for transmission is the dp mode , the resistors r 1 , r 2 are coupled to 2v because current flows through the switching elements sn 43 , sn 44 , sp 41 , sp 42 . therefore , in dp mode , i s0 = i 10 + i 20 and vswing = ir / 2 . as a result , the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 is configured to transmit in the dp mode . when the mode signal m has a logical value of “ 0 ,” which in this nonlimiting example indicates the mode for transmission is the hdmi mode , the resistors r 1 , r 2 are decoupled from 2v because current cannot flow through the switching elements sn 43 , sn 44 , sp 41 , sp 42 . therefore , in hdmi mode , i s0 = i 10 =˜ 10 ma ; i 20 = 0 ma ; and vswing = ir . as a result , the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 is configured to transmit in the hdmi mode . in some embodiments , the resistors r 1 , r 2 in the control circuit 418 are poly resistors . in addition , the switching elements sp 41 , sp 42 are metal - oxide - semiconductor field - effect - transistor ( mosfet ) resistors , and in particular , pmos resistors . in some embodiments , there may be a plurality of pmos resistors in series . further , in some embodiments , there may be a plurality of poly resistors in series . the current flow through switching elements sp 41 , sp 42 is calibrated by the output of the nand gate n 1 , which receives the resistance calibration signal a as an input . in this way , the effective resistance of a circuit path including a mosfet resistor and a poly resistor is calibrated to 50 ohms . at the connection for the component , the pmos parasitic capacitance is mitigated , and therefore , the overall rc time constant is reduced . in other words , the combination of the mosfet resistors and poly resistors reduce parasitic capacitances and , thus , enable high frequencies of operation . fig5 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a method 500 for configuring a dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 . the method 500 includes blocks 520 , 530 , 532 , 534 , and 536 . referring to fig4 and 5 , in block 520 , a mode signal m is received at a dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 . in the embodiment , the mode signal m is stored in a register in a chipset . the chipset includes a graphic processing chip , and the graphics processing chip includes the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 . in block 530 , a determination whether to configure the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 for transmitting in a dp mode or an hdmi mode is made . the determination is made using the control circuit 418 based on the received mode signal m . specifically , the output of the nand gate n 1 , which receives the mode signal m , controls switching elements sp 41 , sp 42 , and the switching elements sn 43 , sn 44 are controlled by the mode signal m . in block 532 , the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter is configured in accordance with the determination . for example , responsive to the determination being to configure the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 to transmit in a dp mode , an active load is coupled to a source . in the embodiment , the active load is 50 ohms . referring to fig4 , the resistors r 1 , r 2 are coupled to the 2v bias because the switching elements sp 41 , sp 42 , sn 43 , sn 44 are conducting current based on the determination discussed with respect to block 530 . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 that results from block 532 is configured to transmit in the dp mode . in block 534 , the active load is calibrated according to a calibration signal a . the current flow through switching elements sp 41 , sp 42 is calibrated by the output of nand gate n 1 , which receives the resistance calibration signal a as an input . in this way , the effective resistance of each circuit path including a mosfet resistor and a poly resistor can be calibrated to 50 ohms . at the connection for the component , the pmos parasitic capacitance is mitigated , and therefore , the overall rc time constant is reduced . in other words , the combination of the mosfet resistors and poly resistors reduce parasitic capacitances and , thus , enable high frequencies of operation . block 532 and block 534 may be performed at the same time when the mode signal is set to dp mode . in block 536 , the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter is configured in accordance with the determination . for example , responsive to the determination being to configure the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 to transmit in a hdmi mode , an active load is decoupled from a source . referring to fig4 , the resistors r 1 , r 2 and switching elements sp 41 , sp 42 , sn 43 , sn 44 are decoupled from the 2v bias because the switching elements sp 41 , sp 42 , sn 43 , sn 44 are not conducting current based on the determination discussed with respect to block 530 . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 that results from block 536 is configured to transmit in the hdmi mode . fig6 is a block diagram illustrating a first embodiment of a personal computer 600 . the personal computer 600 includes a computing device 610 , a display 620 , and a cable 632 coupling the computing device 610 to a receiver 621 included in the display 620 . the display 620 has a dp interface . the computing device 610 includes a graphics processing chip 611 , which is an integrated circuit including the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 a . in the embodiment , the graphics processing chip 611 is included in a chipset . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 described in fig4 is configured to be a dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 a configured to transmit in dp mode according to a mode signal m . the chipset includes the mode signal m stored in a register . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 a is coupled to a dp component 618 , which is also included in the computing device 610 . both the graphics processing chip 611 and the dp component 618 may be coupled to a system board in the computing device 610 . a dp data signal may be transmitted from the computing device 610 to the display 620 via the cable 632 when the personal computer is in operation . fig7 is a circuit diagram illustrating the first embodiment of the personal computer 600 depicted in fig6 . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 a is configured to transmit in dp mode ( m = 1 ), and as discussed above with respect to fig4 , the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 a includes a driver circuit 419 controlled by a data signal d 1 and a complementary data signal d 1 bar in differential form . further , the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 a also includes a control circuit 418 coupled to the driver circuit 419 . because the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 a is configured to transmit in a dp mode , the active load has been coupled to the source . specifically , the resistors r 1 , r 2 are coupled to the 2v bias because the switching elements sp 41 , sp 42 , sn 43 , sn 44 are conducting current . therefore , in dp mode , i s0 = i 10 + i 20 and vswing = ir / 2 . also included in the computing device 610 is a dp component 618 coupled to the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 a configured to transmit in dp mode . the dp component 618 includes two capacitors in parallel and two resistors in series as shown in fig7 . the biased voltage between the two resistors is 0 . 7v , and the two resistors are each 50 ohm resistors . the capacitors of the dp component 618 are coupled to the connections between the driver circuit 419 and the control circuit 418 as illustrated . the output of the dp component 618 is communicated over cable 632 to the receiver 621 . the dp component 618 may be added by the customer . the output of the dp component 618 is coupled via a cable 632 to the receiver 621 of the display 620 , which includes dp interface . according to the first embodiment of a personal computer illustrated in fig6 and 7 , the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 a configured to transmit in a dp mode includes a driver circuit 419 controlled by a data signal d 1 and a complementary data signal d 1 bar in differential form . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 a configured to transmit in a dp mode provides the appropriate biasing and resistance for dp mode by the control circuit 418 in combination with the dp component 618 . specifically , the control circuit 418 provides biasing of 2v and an effective resistance of 50 ohms . as would be understood by a person having ordinary skill in the art , a dp data signal is then communicated as an output of the dp component 618 to the display 620 . fig8 is a block diagram illustrating a second embodiment of a personal computer 800 . the personal computer 800 includes a computing device 810 , a display 820 , and a cable 834 coupling the computing device 810 to a receiver 821 , which is included in the display 820 . the display 820 has an hdmi interface . the computing device 810 includes a graphics processing chip 811 , which is an integrated circuit including the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 b . in the embodiment , the graphics processing chip 811 is included in a chipset . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 described in fig4 is configured to be a dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 b configured to transmit in hdmi mode according to a mode signal m . the chipset includes the mode signal m stored in a register . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 b is coupled to an hdmi component 818 , which is also included in the computing device 810 . both the graphics processing chip 811 and the hdmi component 818 may be coupled to a system board in the computing device 810 . an hdmi data signal may be transmitted from the computing device 810 to the display 820 via the cable 834 when the personal computer is in operation . fig9 is a circuit diagram illustrating the second embodiment of the personal computer 800 depicted in fig8 . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 b is configured to transmit in hdmi mode ( m = 0 ). the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 b includes a driver circuit 419 controlled by a data signal d 1 and a complementary data signal d 1 bar in a differential form . further , the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 b also includes a control circuit 418 coupled to the driver circuit 419 . because the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 b is configured to transmit in a hdmi mode , the active load has been decoupled from the source . specifically , the resistors r 1 , r 2 are decoupled from the 2v bias because the switching elements sp 41 , sp 42 , sn 43 , sn 44 are not conducting current . therefore , in hdmi mode , there is an open circuit between the 2v bias and each of the resistors r 1 , r 2 . hence in hdmi mode , i s0 = i 10 =˜ 10 ma ; i 20 = 0 ma ; and vswing = ir . also included in the computing device 810 is a hdmi component 818 coupled to the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 b configured to transmit in hdmi mode . the hdmi component 818 includes two resistors biased at 3 . 3v as shown in fig9 , and the two resistors are each 50 ohm resistors . the output of the hdmi component 818 is communicated over cable 834 to the receiver 821 in the display 820 , which includes an hdmi interface . according to the second embodiment illustrated in fig8 and 9 , dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 b configured to transmit in a hdmi mode receives a data signal d 1 and a complementary data signal d 1 bar in differential form at the driver circuit 419 . the dual mode dp and hdmi transmitter 417 b configured to transmit in a hdmi mode then provides the appropriate biasing and resistance for hdmi mode in combination with the hdmi component 818 . specifically , there is an open circuit between the 2v bias and each of the resistors r 1 , r 2 . as would be understood by a person having ordinary skill in the art , an hdmi data signal is then communicated as an output of the hdmi component 818 to the display 820 . in some embodiments , each of the switching elements comprise a solid state switch such as a transistor , etc . specifically , mosfet transistors or other types of transistors are employed . alternatively , other types of switching elements may be employed such as switches or other elements may be used . the switching elements are operatively coupled to and are manipulated by one or more control inputs . it should be emphasized that the above - described embodiments of the present disclosure are merely possible examples of implementations , merely set forth for a clear understanding of the principles of the disclosure . many variations and modifications may be made to the above - described embodiment ( s ) of the disclosure without departing substantially from the spirit and principles of the disclosure . all such modifications and variations are intended to be included herein within the scope of this disclosure and the present disclosure and protected by the following claims .	6
hereinafter , an embodiment of a maximum likelihood decoding method and a maximum likelihood decoder according to the present invention will be described . in the embodiment , a first metric is generated based on an original partial response and a second metric is generated based on a differential response of the original partial response . then , the two metrics are combined at a predetermined ratio so as to perform maximum likelihood decoding . that is , high - frequency media noise is attenuated by the original partial response . on the other hand , low - frequency media noise is attenuated by the time - differential partial response . accordingly , by combining the two partial responses , maximum likelihood decoding can be realized while effectively attenuating high - frequency media noise and low - frequency media noise . in the embodiment , maximum likelihood decoding is realized by using a synthetic metric generated by combining the first metric obtained from the original partial response and the second metric obtained from the time - differential partial response at a predetermined ratio . therefore , data decoding can be performed more effectively than in the known art , while solving a problem of noise in a recording / reproducing system , the noise having a temporal correlation and a frequency characteristic . fig1 is a block diagram showing the overview of a recorded - information reproducing apparatus to which the maximum likelihood decoding method according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied . the recorded - information reproducing apparatus includes a recording medium 1 a containing information ; a pickup 1 b for reading a signal recorded in the recording medium 1 a so as to obtain a reproduced signal ; an ad converter 1 c which ad - converts the reproduced signal read by the pickup 1 b so as to sample the signal ; and a maximum likelihood decoder 1 d for decoding sample sequences of the reproduced signal obtained from the ad converter 1 c so as to obtain data sequences . fig2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the above - described maximum likelihood decoder 1 d . as shown in fig2 , the maximum likelihood decoder 1 d includes a waveform equalizer 2 a ; a first - metric generator 2 b ; a second - metric generator 2 c ; a metric synthesizer 2 d ; and a viterbi decoder 2 e . the reproduced signal input to the maximum likelihood decoder 1 d is first input to the waveform equalizer 2 a . the waveform equalizer 2 a outputs an equalized signal u n which has been equalized to a predetermined target partial response pr ( a b b a ), and the equalized signal u n is input to the first - metric generator 2 b and the second - metric generator 2 c . the first - metric generator 2 b generates a first metric based on a first partial response and outputs the first metric . the second - metric generator 2 c generates a second metric based on a second partial response and outputs the second metric . the metric synthesizer 2 d receives the first metric output from the first - metric generator 2 b and the second metric output from the second - metric generator 2 c and combines the metrics at a predetermined ratio , so that a synthetic metric is output therefrom . the synthetic metric output from the metric synthesizer 2 d is input to the viterbi decoder 2 e , which decodes the synthetic metric by a viterbi algorithm so as to output decoded bit data . fig3 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the waveform equalizer 2 a . the waveform equalizer 2 a serves as a filter including amplifiers 3 a to 3 d ; flip - flops 3 e to 3 h ; and an adder 31 . the reproduced signal input to the waveform equalizer 2 a is delayed by 1 channel - clock by the flip - flop 3 e , is further delayed by 1 clock by the flip - flop 3 f , is further delayed by 1 clock by the flip - flop 3 g , and is further delayed by 1 clock by the flip - flop 3 h . further , the reproduced signal output from the flip - flop 3 e is amplified to − k times by the amplifier 3 a , the reproduced signal output from the flip - flop 3 f is amplified to 1 + k times by the amplifier 3 b , the reproduced signal output from the flip - flop 3 g is amplified to 1 + k times by the amplifier 3 c , and the reproduced signal output from the flip - flop 3 h is amplified to − k times by the amplifier 3 d . the four reproduced signals are output from the amplifiers 3 a to 3 d , respectively , and are added by the adder 31 . further , the output from the adder 31 is output from the waveform equalizer 2 a as an equalized signal . herein , k , which determines the coefficient of each of the amplifiers 3 a to 3 d , is adjusted so as to minimize the noise of the equalized signal . fig4 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the first - metric generator 2 b . the first - metric generator 2 b includes predicted sample value ( reference value ) registers 4 a to 4 j ; metric registers 4 a to 4 j ; and a flip - flop 4 l . the equalized signal u n input to the first - metric generator 2 b is input to the flip - flop 4 l , which delays the equalized signal u n by 1 channel clock so as to output an equalized signal u n − 1 . also , the register 4 a stores a reference value r 0000 corresponding to a data sequence 0000 . the register 4 b stores a reference value r 0001 corresponding to a data sequence 0001 . the register 4 c stores a reference value r 1000 corresponding to a data sequence 1000 . the register 4 d stores a reference value r 1001 corresponding to a data sequence 1001 . the register 4 e stores a reference value r 0011 corresponding to a data sequence 0011 . the register 4 f stores a reference value r 1100 corresponding to a data sequence 1100 . the register 4 g stores a reference value r 0110 corresponding to a data sequence 0110 . the register 4 h stores a reference value r 0111 corresponding to a data sequence 0111 . the register 4 i stores a reference value r 1110 corresponding to a data sequence 1110 . the register 4 j stores a reference value r 1111 corresponding to a data sequence 1111 . further , a metric ms 0000 between the equalized signal u n − 1 and the reference value r 0000 is stored in the register 4 a . a metric ms 0001 between the equalized signal u n − 1 and the reference value r 0001 is stored in the register 4 b . a metric ms 1000 between the equalized signal u n − 1 and the reference value r 1000 is stored in the register 4 c . a metric ms 1001 between the equalized signal u n − 1 and the reference value r 1001 is stored in the register 4 d . a metric ms 0011 between the equalized signal u n − 1 and the reference value r 0011 is stored in the register 4 e . a metric ms 1100 between the equalized signal u n − 1 and the reference value r 1100 is stored in the register 4 f . a metric ms 0110 between the equalized signal u n − 1 and the reference value r 0110 is stored in the register 4 g . a metric ms 0111 between the equalized signal u n − 1 and the reference value r 0111 is stored in the register 4 h . a metric ms 1110 between the equalized signal u n − 1 and the reference value r 1110 is stored in the register 4 i . a metric ms 1111 between the equalized signal u n − 1 and the reference value r 1111 is stored in the register 4 j . adders 41 and multipliers 42 are provided between the registers 4 a and 4 a , the registers 4 b and 4 b , the registers 4 c and 4 c , the registers 4 d and 4 d , the registers 4 e and 4 e , the registers 4 f and 4 f , the registers 4 g and 4 g , the registers 4 h and 4 h , the registers 4 i and 4 i , and the registers 4 j and 4 j , respectively . the adders 41 receive the equalized signal u n − 1 and the reference signals r 0000 , r 0001 , r 1000 , r 1001 , r 0011 , r 1100 , r 0110 , r 0111 , r 1110 , and r 1111 obtained from the registers 4 a to 4 j , respectively , and output error signals thereof . also , the multipliers 42 square the error signals output from the respective adders 41 , so as to output the generated signals . absolute - value calculators may be used instead of the multipliers 42 . in this way , the values in the registers 4 a to 4 j are output at every channel bit clock . fig5 to 7 are block diagrams showing an example of the configuration of the second - metric generator 2 c . the second - metric generator 2 c includes a differential - signal generator 5 shown in fig5 ; a differential - reference - value generator 6 shown in fig6 ; and a differential - metric generator 7 shown in fig7 . the differential - signal generator 5 shown in fig5 includes a flip - flop 5 a and an adder 5 b . the equalized signal u n input to the differential - signal generator 5 is input to the flip - flop 5 a . the flip - flop 5 a delays the equalized signal u n by a channel bit clock and outputs an equalized signal u n − 1 . the equalized signal u n input to the differential - signal generator 5 and the delayed equalized signal u n − 1 are input to the adder 5 b . the adder 5 b outputs a differential signal v n = u n − u n − 1 . in this way , the reproduced signal is equalized to the partial response pr ( a b − a 0 a − b − a ). the differential - reference - value generator 6 shown in fig6 includes registers 6 a to 6 j and registers 6 a to 6 p . the register 6 a stores the reference value r 0000 , equal to the value in the register 4 a . the register 6 b stores the reference value r 0001 , equal to the value in the register 4 b . the register 6 c stores the reference value r 1000 , equal to the value in the register 4 c . the register 6 d stores the reference value r 1001 , equal to the value in the register 4 d . the register 6 e stores the reference value r 0011 , equal to the value in the register 4 e . the register 6 f stores the reference value r 1100 , equal to the value in the register 4 f . the register 6 g stores the reference value r 0110 , equal to the value in the register 4 g . the register 6 h stores the reference value r 0111 , equal to the value in the register 4 h . the register 6 i stores the reference value r 1110 , equal to the value in the register 4 i . the register 6 j stores the reference value r 1111 , equal to the value in the register 4 j . also , adders 61 for obtaining differential reference values are provided between the registers 6 a to 6 j and the registers 6 a to 6 p . the register 6 a stores a differential reference value d 00000 = r 0000 − r 0000 . the register 6 b stores a differential reference value d 00001 = r 0000 − r 0001 . the register 6 c stores a differential reference value d 00011 = r 0001 − r 0011 . the register 6 d stores a differential reference value d 10000 = r 1000 − r 0000 . the register 6 e stores a differential reference value d 10001 = r 1000 − r 0001 . the register 6 f stores a differential reference value d 10011 = r 1001 − r 0011 . the register 6 g stores a differential reference value d 00110 = r 0011 − r 0110 . the register 6 h stores a differential reference value d 00111 = r 0011 − r 0111 . the register 6 i stores a differential reference value d 11000 = r 1100 − r 1000 . the register 6 j stores a differential reference value d 11001 = r 1100 − r 1001 . the register 6 k stores a differential reference value d 01100 = r 0110 − r 1100 . the register 6 l stores a differential reference value d 01110 = r 0111 − r 1110 . the register 6 m stores a differential reference value d 01111 = r 0111 − r 1111 . the register 6 n stores a differential reference value d 11100 = r 1110 − r 1100 . the register 6 o stores a differential reference value d 11110 = r 1111 − r 1110 . the register 6 p stores a differential reference value d 11111 = r 1111 − r 1111 . in this way , reference levels of the partial response pr ( a b − a 0 a − b − a ) are generated . the differential metric generator 7 shown in fig7 includes reference - value registers 7 a to 7 p and differential metric registers 7 a to 7 p . the register 7 a stores the differential reference value d 00000 of the register 6 a . the register 7 b stores the differential reference value d 00001 of the register 6 b . the register 7 c stores the differential reference value d 00011 of the register 6 c . the register 7 d stores the differential reference value d 10000 of the register 6 d . the register 7 e stores the differential reference value d 10001 of the register 6 e . the register 7 f stores the differential reference value d 10011 of the register 6 f . the register 7 g stores the differential reference value d 00110 of the register 6 g . the register 7 h stores the differential reference value d 00111 of the register 6 h . the register 7 i stores the differential reference value d 11000 of the register 6 i . the register 7 j stores the differential reference value d 11001 of the register 6 j . the register 7 k stores the differential reference value d 01100 of the register 6 k . the register 7 l stores the differential reference value d 01110 of the register 6 l . the register 7 m stores the differential reference value d 01111 of the register 6 m . the register 7 n stores the differential reference value d 11100 of the register 6 n . the register 7 o stores the differential reference value d 11110 of the register 6 o . the register 7 p stores the differential reference value d 11111 of the register 6 p . also , the register 7 a stores a metric mb 00000 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 00000 . the register 7 b stores a metric mb 00001 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 00001 . the register 7 c stores a metric mb 00011 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 00011 . the register 7 d stores a metric mb 10000 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 10000 . the register 7 e stores a metric mb 10001 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 10001 . the register 7 f stores a metric mb 10011 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 10011 . the register 7 g stores a metric mb 00110 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 00110 . the register 7 h stores a metric mb 00111 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 00111 . the register 7 i stores a metric mb 11000 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 11000 . the register 7 j stores a metric mb 11001 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 11001 . the register 7 k stores a metric mb 01100 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 01100 . the register 7 l stores a metric mb 01110 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 01110 . the register 7 m stores a metric mb 01111 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 01111 . the register 7 n stores a metric mb 11100 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 11100 . the register 7 o stores a metric mb 11110 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 11110 . the register 7 p stores a metric mb 11111 between the differential signal v n and the differential reference value d 11111 . adders 71 and multipliers 72 are provided between the registers 7 a and 7 a , the registers 7 b and 7 b , the registers 7 c and 7 c , the registers 7 d and 7 d , the registers 7 e and 7 e , the registers 7 f and 7 f , the registers 7 g and 7 g , the registers 7 h and 7 h , the registers 7 i and 7 i , the registers 7 j and 7 j , the registers 7 k and 7 k , the registers 7 l and 7 l , the registers 7 m and 7 m , the registers 7 n and 7 n , the registers 7 o and 7 o , and the registers 7 p and 7 p , respectively . the adders 71 receive the differential signal v n and the reference values d 00000 , d 00001 , d 00011 , d 10000 , d 10001 , d 10011 , d 00110 , d 00111 , d 11000 , d 11001 , d 01100 , d 01110 , d 01111 , d 11100 , d 11110 , and d 11111 in the registers 7 a to 7 p , respectively , and output error signals thereof . also , the multipliers 72 square the error signals output from the respective adders 71 and output the generated signals . absolute - value calculators may be used instead of the multipliers 72 . in this way , the values in the registers 7 a to 7 p are output at every channel bit clock . fig8 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the metric synthesizer 2 d . the metric synthesizer 2 d receives 10 metrics ( ms ) output from the registers 4 a to 4 j of the first - metric generator 2 b and 16 metrics ( mb ) output from the registers 7 a to 7 p of the second - metric generator 2 c , and outputs 16 metrics ( mp ) obtained from registers 8 a to 8 p . the first metric ms 0000 and the second metric mb 00000 are input to the register 8 a , which generates a synthetic metric mp 00000 = ms 0000 + k * mb 00000 by using a predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 0000 and the second metric mb 00001 are input to the register 8 b , which generates a synthetic metric mp 00001 = ms 0000 + k * mb 00001 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 0001 and the second metric mb 00011 are input to the register 8 c , which generates a synthetic metric mp 00011 = ms 0001 + k * mb 00011 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 1000 and the second metric mb 10000 are input to the register 8 d , which generates a synthetic metric mp 10000 = ms 1000 + k * mb 10000 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 1000 and the second metric mb 10001 are input to the register 8 e , which generates a synthetic metric mp 10001 = ms 1000 + k * mb 10001 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 1001 and the second metric mb 10011 are input to the register 8 f , which generates a synthetic metric mp 10011 = ms 1001 + k * mb 10011 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 0011 and the second metric mb 00110 are input to the register 8 g , which generates a synthetic metric mp 00110 = ms 0011 + k * mb 00110 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 0011 and the second metric mb 00111 are input to the register 8 h , which generates a synthetic metric mp 00111 = ms 0011 + k * mb 00111 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 1100 and the second metric mb 11000 are input to the register 8 i , which generates a synthetic metric mp 11000 = ms 1100 + k * mb 11000 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 1100 and the second metric mb 11001 are input to the register 8 j , which generates a synthetic metric mp 11001 = ms 1100 + k * mb 11001 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 0110 and the second metric mb 01100 are input to the register 8 k , which generates a synthetic metric mp 01100 = ms 0110 + k * mb 01100 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 0111 and the second metric mb 01110 are input to the register 8 l , which generates a synthetic metric mp 0110 = ms 0111 + k * mb 01110 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 0111 and the second metric mb 01111 are input to the register 8 m , which generates a synthetic metric mp 01111 = ms 0111 + k * mb 01111 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 1110 and the second metric mb 11100 are input to the register 8 n , which generates a synthetic metric mp 11100 = ms 1110 + k * mb 11100 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 1111 and the second metric mb 11110 are input to the register 8 o , which generates a synthetic metric mp 11110 = ms 1111 + k * mb 11110 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . the first metric ms 1111 and the second metric mb 11111 are input to the register 8 p , which generates a synthetic metric mp 11111 = ms 1111 + k * mb 11111 by using the predetermined constant k as coefficient and stores the synthetic metric . in this way , the metric values in the registers 8 a to 8 p are output at every channel bit clock . fig9 and 10 are block diagrams showing an example of the configuration of the viterbi decoder 2 e . the viterbi decoder 2 e includes a path metric updating device 9 shown in fig9 and a path memory updating device 10 shown in fig1 . as shown in fig9 , the path metric updating device 9 includes path metric registers 9 a to 9 j and 9 a ′ to 9 j ′ and flip - flops 9 a to 9 j . the register 9 a stores a path metric pm 0000 of a survival path in a state s 0000 . in the register 9 a ′, the smaller value is selected from among path metrics pm 00000 = pm 0000 + mp 00000 and pm 10000 = pm 1000 + mp 10000 of the paths to the state s 0000 . herein , the metrics mp 00000 and mp 10000 used for calculating the path metrics are input from the metric synthesizer 2 d . the value of the register 9 a ′ is latched by the flip - flop 9 a and is stored as the value of the register 9 a . the register 9 b stores a path metric pm 0001 of a survival path in a state s 0001 . in the register 9 b ′, the smaller value is selected from among path metrics pm 00001 = pm 0000 + mp 00001 and pm 10001 = pm 1000 + mp 10001 of the paths to the state s 0001 . herein , the metrics mp 00001 and mp 10001 used for calculating the path metrics are input from the metric synthesizer 2 d . the value of the register 9 b ′ is latched by the flip - flop 9 b and is stored as the value of the register 9 b . the register 9 c stores a path metric pm 1000 of a survival path in a state s 1000 . the register 9 c ′ stores a path metric pm 11000 = pm 1100 + mp 11000 of the path to the state s 1000 . the metric mp 11000 used for calculating the path metric is input from the metric synthesizer 2 d . the value of the register 9 c ′ is latched by the flip - flop 9 c and is stored as the value of the register 9 c . the register 9 d stores a path metric pm 1001 of a survival path in a state s 1001 . the register 9 d ′ stores a path metric pm 11001 = pm 1100 + mp 11001 of the path to the state s 1001 . the metric mp 11001 used for calculating the path metric is input from the metric synthesizer 2 d . the value of the register 9 d ′ is latched by the flip - flop 9 d and is stored as the value of the register 9 d . the register 9 e stores a path metric pm 0011 of a survival path in a state s 0011 . in the register 9 e ′, the smaller value is selected from among path metrics pm 00011 = pm 0001 + mp 00011 and pm 10011 = pm 1001 + mp 10011 of the paths to the state s 0011 . herein , the metrics mp 00011 and mp 10011 used for calculating the path metrics are input from the metric synthesizer 2 d . the value of the register 9 e ′ is latched by the flip - flop 9 e and is stored as the value of the register 9 e . the register 9 f stores a path metric pm 1100 of a survival path in a state s 1100 . in the register 9 f ′, the smaller value is selected from among path metrics pm 01100 = pm 0110 + mp 01100 and pm 11100 = pm 1110 + mp 11100 of the paths to the state s 1100 . herein , the metrics mp 01100 and mp 11100 used for calculating the path metrics are input from the metric synthesizer 2 d . the value of the register 9 f ′ is latched by the flip - flop 9 f and is stored as the value of the register 9 f . the register 9 g stores a path metric pm 0110 of a survival path in a state s 0110 . the register 9 g ′ stores a path metric pm 00110 = pm 0011 + mp 00110 of the path to the state s 0110 . the metric mp 00110 used for calculating the path metric is input from the metric synthesizer 2 d . the value of the register 9 g ′ is latched by the flip - flop 9 g and is stored as the value of the register 9 g . the register 9 h stores a path metric pm 0111 of a survival path in a state s 0111 . the register 9 h ′ stores a path metric pm 00111 = pm 0011 + mp 00111 of the path to the state s 0111 . the metric mp 00111 used for calculating the path metric is input from the metric synthesizer 2 d . the value of the register 9 h ′ is latched by the flip - flop 9 h and is stored as the value of the register 9 h . the register 9 i stores a path metric pm 1110 of a survival path in a state s 1110 . in the register 9 i ′, the smaller value is selected from among path metrics pm 01110 = pm 0111 + mp 01110 and pm 11110 = pm 1111 + mp 11110 of the paths to the state s 1110 . herein , the metrics mp 01110 and mp 11110 used for calculating the path metrics are input from the metric synthesizer 2 d . the value of the register 9 i ′ is latched by the flip - flop 9 i and is stored as the value of the register 9 i . the register 9 j stores a path metric pm 1111 of a survival path in a state s 1111 . in the register 9 j ′, the smaller value is selected from among path metrics pm 01111 = pm 0111 + mp 01111 and pm 11111 = pm 1111 + mp 11111 of the paths to the state s 1111 . herein , the metrics mp 01111 and mp 11111 used for calculating the path metrics are input from the metric synthesizer 2 d . the value of the register 9 j ′ is latched by the flip - flop 9 j and is stored as the value of the register 9 j . as shown in fig1 , the path memory updating device 10 includes path memory registers 10 a to 10 j and 10 a ′ to 10 j ′ and flip - flops 10 a to 10 j . the register 10 a stores a path memory m 0000 of the survival path in the state s 0000 . in the register 10 a ′, a path memory of the path having a smaller path metric is selected from among pass memories m 0000 and m 1000 of the two paths to the state s 0000 . the selected memory value is doubled and 0 is added thereto . the value of the register 10 a ′ is latched by the flip - flop 10 a and is stored as the value of the register 10 a . the register 10 b stores a path memory m 0001 of the survival path in the state s 0001 . in the register 10 b ′, a path memory of the path having a smaller path metric is selected from among pass memories m 0000 and m 1000 of the two paths to the state s 0001 . the selected memory value is doubled and 0 is added thereto . the value of the register 10 b ′ is latched by the flip - flop 10 b and is stored as the value of the register 10 b . the register 10 c stores a path memory m 1000 of the survival path in the state s 1000 . in the register 10 c ′, a path memory m 1100 of the path to the state s 1000 is doubled and 0 is added thereto . the value of the register 10 c ′ is latched by the flip - flop 10 c and is stored as the value of the register 10 c . the register 10 d stores a path memory m 1001 of the survival path in the state s 1001 . in the register 10 d ′, a path memory m 1100 of the path to the state s 1001 is doubled and 1 is added thereto . the value of the register 10 d ′ is latched by the flip - flop 10 d and is stored as the value of the register 10 d . the register 10 e stores a path memory m 0011 of the survival path in the state s 0011 . in the register 10 e ′, a path memory of the path having a smaller path metric is selected from among pass memories m 0001 and m 1001 of the two paths to the state s 0011 . the selected memory value is doubled and 1 is added thereto . the value of the register 10 e ′ is latched by the flip - flop 10 e and is stored as the value of the register 10 e . the register 10 f stores a path memory m 1100 of the survival path in the state s 1100 . in the register 10 f ′, a path memory of the path having a smaller path metric is selected from among pass memories m 0110 and m 1110 of the two paths to the state s 1100 . the selected memory value is doubled and 0 is added thereto . the value of the register 10 f ′ is latched by the flip - flop 10 f and is stored as the value of the register 10 f . the register 10 g stores a path memory m 0110 of the survival path in the state s 0110 . in the register 10 g ′, a path memory m 0011 of the path to the state s 0110 is doubled and 0 is added thereto . the value of the register 10 g ′ is latched by the flip - flop 10 g and is stored as the value of the register 10 g . the register 10 h stores a path memory m 0111 of the survival path in the state s 0111 . in the register 10 h ′, a path memory m 0011 of the path to the state s 0111 is doubled and 1 is added thereto . the value of the register 10 h ′ is latched by the flip - flop 10 h and is stored as the value of the register 10 h . the register 10 i stores a path memory m 1110 of the survival path in the state s 1110 . in the register 10 i ′, a path memory of the path having a smaller path metric is selected from among pass memories m 0111 and m 1111 of the two paths to the state s 1110 . the selected memory value is doubled and 0 is added thereto . the value of the register 10 i ′ is latched by the flip - flop 10 i and is stored as the value of the register 10 i . the register 10 j stores a path memory m 1111 of the survival path in the state s 1111 . in the register 10 j ′, a path memory of the path having a smaller path metric is selected from among pass memories m 0111 and m 1111 of the two paths to the state s 1111 . the selected memory value is doubled and 1 is added thereto . the value of the register 10 j ′ is latched by the flip - flop 10 j and is stored as the value of the register 10 j . the most significant bit ( msb ) of any of the path memory registers 10 a ′ to 10 j ′ of the path memory updating device 10 is externally output as decoded data . as a result , decoded bit information is output from the viterbi decoder 2 e . in the above - described embodiment , a reference value includes a 4 - bit partial response . however , the reference value may include a partial response of less than 4 bits . alternatively , the reference value may include a partial response of more than 4 bits . further , the reference values in the embodiment may be applied by a learning type table , in which a sampling level is adaptively fed back in accordance with decoded data . fig1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the maximum likelihood decoder 1 d in which the adaptive table is used . in the decoder 1 d shown in fig1 , the waveform equalizer 2 a , the first - metric generator 2 b , the second - metric generator 2 c , the metric synthesizer 2 d , and the viterbi decoder 2 e are common with the configuration shown in fig2 . in fig1 , however , decoded data output from the viterbi decoder 2 e is input to adaptive level feedback units 11 a and 11 b , reference values according to the decoded data are found by the internal tables of the adaptive level feedback units 11 a and 11 b , and the reference values are fed back to the first - metric generator 2 b and the second - metric generator 2 c , respectively , so that the reference values are reflected to generation of metrics . in the above - described embodiment , the present invention is applied to a reproducing system for optical - disk - type recording media . however , the present invention can be widely applied to various systems correlated with noise , such as a system for reproducing magnetic disks and a system to which similar reproduced signals are input through a network or the like . as described above , according to the maximum likelihood decoding method and the maximum likelihood decoder of the present invention , a metric between a reproduced signal generated based on a first partial response and a reference value generated based on the first partial response is generated . also , a metric between a reproduced signal generated based on a second partial response and a reference value generated based on the second partial response is generated . by using a synthetic metric generated by combining these two metrics at a predetermined ratio , maximum likelihood decoding can be realized while effectively controlling various types of noise having different characteristics .	6
compared with other channel materials , one - dimensional nanoscale materials such as semiconductor nanowires ( nws ) and single - walled carbon nanotubes ( swnts ) have advantages in terms of mobility , transparency , flexibility , and low temperature processing . amoled displays using nws as the active channel materials . the device uniformity , reliability , and processing scalability can be improved by using pre - separated semiconducting nanotubes produced by density - gradient ultracentrifuge separation methods to yield transistors that exhibit highly uniform electrical performance . the use of high purity semiconducting nanotubes ( referred to herein as “ separated nanotubes ,” “ separated carbon nanotubes ,” “ separated semiconducting nanotubes ,” and the like ) allows a high on / off ratio (& gt ; 10 5 ), as well as excellent on - current density (˜ 1 μa / μm ), which makes such separated carbon nanotube thin - film transistors ( sn - tfts ) very attractive for amoled display applications . amoled displays driven by sn - tfts demonstrate high light efficiency , flexibility , lightweight , and low - temperature processing . the high mobility , high percentage of semiconducting nanotubes , and room - temperature processing compatibility of these sn - tfts allow large - scale high - yield fabrication of devices with superior performance , carbon nanotube film density optimization , bilayer gate dielectric for improved substrate adhesion to the deposited nanotube film , and monolithically integrated amoled display elements with 500 pixels driven by 1 , 000 sn - tfts . amoled displays described herein can be used in nanotube - based thin - film display electronics . a monolithically integrated amoled display with sn - tft based control circuit is described , and carbon nanotube film density is optimized with respect to transistor electrical performance . in addition , the single pixel control circuits including two sn - tfts and one capacitor are made , and their oled control capability is demonstrated . amoled display elements with 20 × 25 pixels driven by 1 , 000 sn - tfts are fabricated and tested . compared with conventional platforms , the sn - tft platform shows advantages such as low temperature processing compatibility , scalability , reproducibility and device performance , and provides a practical and realistic approach for carbon nanotube based amoled display applications . fig1 a depicts a schematic diagram of amoled circuit 100 with pixels 102 . each pixel 102 contains one switching transistor ( ts ) 104 , one driving transistor ( td ) 106 , one charge storage capacitor ( cs ) 108 , and one oled 110 . the switching transistor 104 , controlled by a signal from a scan line 112 , is employed to select one specific row of pixels in an amoled display element by passing the signal from a data line 114 through the channel of the switching transistor 104 to the gate of the driving transistor 106 . the driving transistor 106 further controls the output light intensity of the oled pixel 110 by modulating the current flowing through oled . the capacitor cs 108 is used to store and stabilize the voltage obtained from the data line 114 during one scanning period for line - by - line scanning technique typically used for dynamic displays . based on the circuit diagram , the corresponding layout of one pixel is shown in fig1 b ( top view ) and fig1 c ( cross - sectional view ). the single pixel layout has a total area of 500 × 500 μm 2 with oled area of 200 × 200 μm 2 , and is designed to be fabricated on glass substrate 120 with patterned ti / au ( 5 å / 40 nm ) gate electrode 122 , al 2 o 3 ( 40 nm ) gate dielectric 124 , separated nanotube thin - film for the active channel 126 , ti / pd ( 5 å / 50 nm ) source contacts and drain contacts 128 , integrated green oled 130 , and a 200 nm sio 2 passivation layer 132 . the total fabrication consists of 7 photo masks and 15 fabrication steps . to control the oled intensity , the transistors in the control circuits have high current on / off ratio and excellent current drive capability . shorter channel length and higher nanotube channel network density are understood to lead to high on - current density , which is needed for oled display applications . however , it will also create more metallic nanotube pass in the channel , which may negatively affect the transistor current on / off ratio . therefore , optimized device geometry and channel nanotube network density is understood to be a factor in oled control . 98 % semiconducting carbon nanotube solution ( from nanointegris , inc . batch no . s08 - 665 ) is used , and uniform separated nanotube thin - film is achieved on a si / sio 2 surface by a solution - based aminopropyltriethoxy silane ( aptes )- assisted separated nanotube deposition technique known in the art . the nanotube network density can be controlled by tuning the concentration of aptes in isopropanol alcohol ( ipa ) used for sio 2 surface treatment before nanotube deposition . three different conditions are studied ( aptes : ipa = 1 : 1 , 1 : 10 , 1 : 100 ), and the fe - sem images of the resulting nanotube thin - film are shown in fig2 a - 2c , respectively . from the images , the nanotube density is found to vary when different volume ratios of aptes and ipa are used . from fig2 d , the sample with an aptes : ipa ratio of 1 : 1 has low nanotube network density ( 4 tubes / μm 2 ) and the uniformity of the thin - film is poor . for the sample with an aptes : ipa ratio of 1 : 10 , a highly uniform film is obtained with a density of 45 tubes / μm 2 . if the solution is further diluted to aptes : ipa = 1 : 100 , the resulting film density decreases to 36 tubes / μm 2 . the relationship between nanotube film density and aptes : ipa ratio can be understood as follows : the effect of aptes is to functionalize the sio 2 surface and form an amine - terminated monolayer , which can attract the nanotubes in solution to the substrate and form a uniform thin - film . when the aptes concentration is very high , instead of a uniform monolayer , multiple layers of aptes molecules are stacked onto the sio 2 surface , leading to an uneven , low density nanotube film . as the aptes concentration in ipa is diluted , uniform monolayer aptes molecules are formed , which yields a highly uniform nanotube film with excellent density . however , when the aptes solution is diluted even further , the aptes monolayer may have defects and vacancies , so the nanotube film density may decrease again . overall , by tuning the concentration of aptes in ipa , separated nanotube thin - film with different densities can be achieved . subsequently , electrical performance of the nanotube network with different density was investigated . 100 transistors with different channel geometry were fabricated on each sample with different nanotube density , and the channel length dependence of device on / off ratio and normalized on - current are shown in fig2 e and 2f , respectively . from these two plots , it is seen that , with the benefit of high purity semiconducting nanotubes , all the devices with channel lengths larger than 20 μm have on / off ratios higher than 10 4 , and transistors made with nanotube film deposited using an aptes : ipa volume ratio of 1 : 10 , which gives the highest nanotube density , also offer good current driving capability ( 0 . 5 μa / μm for 20 μm channel length devices ). based on the electrical performance , aptes : ipa volume ratio of 1 : 10 and device geometry of l = 20 μm , w = 100 μm are chosen as optimized conditions for transistors used in amoled control circuits . fig3 a - 3h show structure and electrical characteristics of the nanotube transistors used in the amoled . for the sake of a two transistor control circuit , individual back - gated device structure 300 is chosen as illustrated in fig3 a . 5 å ti and 40 nm au are patterned on substrate 302 as the back gate 304 , and 40 nm al 2 o 3 is deposited by atomic layer deposition ( ald ) as the gate dielectric 306 . in some examples , due at least in part to poor adhesion between al 2 o 3 and aptes molecules , the deposited nanotube thin - film on al 2 o 3 surface can peel off during the ensuing fabrication steps . to improve the adhesion , a thin layer of sio 2 ( 5 nm ) 308 can be deposited on top of the al 2 o 3 layer 306 using an electron beam evaporator to form a bilayer gate dielectric . with the help of the sio 2 buffer layer , a uniform nanotube thin film 310 is achieved , as shown in fig3 b . after the separated nanotube thin - film deposition , ti / pd ( 5 å / 50 nm ) is applied on top of the channel network to form ohmic source and drain contacts 312 and 314 . subsequently , the nanotubes outside the channel region can be etched away by photolithography and oxygen plasma . fig3 c and 3e show sem images of the separated nanotube thin - films deposited on al 2 o 3 and al 2 o 3 / sio 2 surfaces , respectively . fig3 d and 3f show sem images corresponding to the samples shown in fig3 c and 3e , respectively , after one step of photolithography . fig3 d shows that nanotubes on the al 2 o 3 sample peeled off while , while fig3 f show that nanotubes on the al 2 o 3 / sio 2 bilayer dielectric still stick to the surface . electrical properties of a typical transistor are plotted in fig3 g , which contains transfer ( i d - v g ) characteristics ( plot 320 for linear scale and plot 322 for log scale ) and g m - v g characteristics ( plot 324 ) measured with v d = 1 v . the on - current at v d = 1 v and v g =− 5 v is 82 . 9 μa , corresponding to a current density of 0 . 829 μa / μm . the on / off ratio exceeds 10 4 and the peak transconductance is 25 . 5 μs . based at least in part on the transconductance , the device mobility is extracted to be 31 . 65 cm 2 v − 1 s − 1 . a parallel plate model is used to estimate the gate capacitance when calculating the device mobility due to the complexity of the bilayer gate dielectric structure . if the electrostatic coupling between nanotubes is taken into consideration , the gate capacitance will be smaller and therefore the real mobility can be larger than the value listed here . fig3 h shows the output ( i d - v d ) characteristics of the same device measured with v g varying from − 5 v to 5 v in 1 v steps , which indicates nice field - effect operation and ohmic contacts . following the single transistor analysis , the amoled pixel control circuits were fabricated and studied . fig4 a shows an optical microscope image of the fabricated single pixel circuit 400 before oled , which contains two sn - tfts as a switching transistor 402 and a driving transistor 404 , one capacitor 406 , and one indium - tin oxide ( ito ) electrode 408 for oled integration . to operate the driving transistor , − 5 v was applied to a scan line to turn on the switching transistor . transfer ( i d - v data ) characteristics and are plotted in fig4 b and 4c in linear scale and logarithm scale , respectively . the various curves in fig4 b correspond to various values of the supply voltage v dd ( 0 . 2 v to 1 v with 0 . 2 v steps ), which is connected to the source of the driving transistor as shown in the inset schematic diagram in fig4 c . from the transfer characteristics in logarithm scale , the two - transistor circuits are seen to exhibit an excellent on / off ratio ( higher than 10 6 ), which resulted at least part from the optimized channel geometry and film density as well as the high semiconducting nanotube purity . this on / off ratio is crucial in order to guarantee that the control circuits can fully turn off the oled pixels . besides the on / off ratio , the current - drive of the circuit is also important for amoled displays , which is examined by the output ( i d - v dd ) characteristics shown in fig4 d . to keep the v gs value of the driving transistor constant , the source of the driving transistor is grounded while the drain terminal (− v dd ) is swept from 0 v to − 7 v , and different curves are obtained with v data changing from − 5 v to 5 v with 1 v steps . from this figure , current flow through the driving transistor is seen to saturate under high v dd , and with the optimized semiconducting nanotube density , 50 μa is achieved when v dd = 3 v , v data =− 5 v , and v scan =− 5 v , which offers high enough current density to drive oled pixels with a designed area of 200 × 200 μm 2 . to further understand the behavior of the circuit controlled amoled , an oled was connected to and controlled by a single pixel control circuit using wire bonding . standard npd / alq 3 oled with multi - layered configuration was employed , with ito / 4 - 4 ′- bis [ n -( 1 - naphthyl )- n - phenyl - amino ] bi - phenyl ( npd ) [ 40 nm ]/ tris ( 8 - hydroxyquinoline ) aluminium ( alq 3 ) [ 40 nm ]/ lif [ 1 nm ]/ aluminum ( al ) [ 100 nm ], whose transfer characteristics are described herein with respect to fig5 . fig5 shows two terminal measurement of the oled showing the current through the oled ( i oled ) ( plot 500 ) and oled light intensity ( plot 502 ) versus the voltage applied across the oled ( v oled ). the schematic of the oled control circuit is shown in the inset of fig6 a , where the drain of the driving transistor is connected to an external oled and a negative voltage (− v dd ) is applied to the cathode of the oled . the current flow through the oled ( i oled ) is measured by sweeping the v dd while also changing input voltage v data as plotted in fig6 a . v scan is held at − 5 v to keep the switching transistor on , and the family of curves correspond to various values of v data from − 5 to 5 v in 1 v steps . fig6 a illustrates that if v data is sufficiently negative , the oled will be turned on when the supply voltage is higher than the threshold voltage of the oled ( about 3 v ), and the current flow through oled will increase as v data decreases . therefore , the light intensity of the oled can be modulated by v data , which is directly revealed in fig6 b where current and output light intensity versus v data characteristics ( plots 600 and 60 ) with a fixed v dd of 8 v as shown in the inset schematic . from fig6 b , it can be seen that when sweeping v data from − 5 v to 5 v , the current through oled changes from 71 μa to 3 . 7 na and the output light intensity also varies from 5 . 3 × 10 − 6 w / cm 2 to about 8 × 10 − 12 w / cm 2 , which exceeds 5 orders of magnitude difference . the significant change in the light intensity can be visually seen when the oled is under various v data voltages of − 5 , − 3 , − 1 , 1 , 3 , and 5 v , respectively , demonstrating that the external oled can be fully turned on and turned off by changing the voltage of v data . based on the discussion herein , a monolithically integrated amoled display element was fabricated . first , an array of amoled control circuit with 20 × 25 pixels driven by 1 , 000 sn - tfts was fabricated using the same layout design as discussed herein . after that , 200 nm sio 2 was deposited by electron beam evaporator as a passivation layer , leaving only the pre - patterned ito electrodes open for oled integration . finally , green oleds with the same multilayer structure and thickness ( ito / npd / alq 3 / lif / al ) as used for the single pixel circuit were deposited by thermal evaporator onto ito electrodes . an optical image of a completed amoled substrate , which contains 7 amoled elements ( 20 × 25 pixels each ) is shown in fig7 a . fig7 b is a photograph showing that all the pixels on one integrated amoled element are turned on when v data =− 5 v , v scan =− 5v , and v dd = 8 v are applied for all the pixels . in fig7 b , 348 out of 500 pixels are turned on , corresponding to a yield of 70 %, which is acceptable for the demonstration purpose in the present laboratory - scale experiments . in some cases , the failed pixels are due to the top sio 2 surface roughness , which can lead to short circuits during oled evaporation , and can be improved by using an alternative passivation technique . this amoled display is understood to be driven solely by sn - tft circuits . in summary , by tuning the concentration of aptes in ipa solution during surface functionalization step , an optimized separated nanotube thin - film density of 45 tubes / μm 2 is achieved when 1 : 10 volume ratio between aptes and ipa is used . based on the optimized nanotube density and device geometry , individual back - gated transistors with superior on / off ratio (& gt ; 10 4 ) and excellent current driving capability (˜ 0 . 8 μa / μm ) have been fabricated with 10 μm channel length and 100 μm channel width . in addition , the electrical properties and oled control capability of the single pixel amoled control circuit were examined and analyzed , and the modulation in the output light intensity was shown to exceed 10 5 . moreover , a monolithically integrated amoled display element with 500 oled pixels and 1 , 000 transistors was further demonstrated . further modifications and alternative embodiments of various aspects will be apparent to those skilled in the art in view of this description . accordingly , this description is to be construed as illustrative only . it is to be understood that the forms shown and described herein are to be taken as examples of embodiments . elements and materials may be substituted for those illustrated and described herein , parts and processes may be reversed , and certain features may be utilized independently , all as would be apparent to one skilled in the art after having the benefit of this description .	7
embodiments of the invention can provide a secure database for the storage of confidential information related to documents associated with a digital audio signal of speech to be transcribed . confidential information can be removed from the body of a medical records document . authorized users access the confidential information by listening to the audio associated with the document . confidential information is stored separately in textual form in a medical records database , and associated with a medical record document . confidential information is concealed from view in a text document being edited . the private information is accessible to authorized persons via a login or a password . other embodiments are within the scope of the disclosure . referring to fig1 , a system 10 for transcribing audio and editing transcribed audio includes a speaker / person 12 , a communications network 14 , a voice mailbox system 16 , an administrative console 18 , an editing device 20 , a communications network 22 , a database server 24 , a communications network 26 , and an automatic transcription device 30 . here , the network 14 is preferably a public switched telephone network ( pstn ) although other networks , including packet - switched networks could be used , e . g ., if the speaker 12 uses an internet phone for dictation . the network 22 is preferably a packet - switched network such as the global packet - switched network known as the internet . the network 26 is preferably a packet - switched , local area network ( lan ). other types of networks may be used , however , for the networks 14 , 22 , 26 , or any or all of the networks 14 , 22 , 26 may be eliminated , e . g ., if items shown in fig1 are combined or eliminated . preferably , the voice mailbox system 16 , the administrative console 18 , and the editing device 20 are situated “ off site ” from the database server 24 and the automatic transcription device 30 . these systems / devices 16 , 18 , 20 , however , could be located “ on site ,” and communications between them may take place , e . g ., over a local area network . similarly , it is possible to locate the automatic transcription device 30 off - site , and have the device 30 communicate with the database server 24 over the network 22 . the network 14 is configured to convey dictation from the speaker 12 to the voice mailbox system 16 . preferably , the speaker 12 dictates into an audio transducer such as a telephone , and the transduced audio is transmitted over the telephone network 14 into the voice mailbox system 16 , such as the intelliscript ™ product made by escription ™ of needham , mass . the speaker 12 may , however , use means other than a standard telephone for creating a digital audio file for each dictation . for example , the speaker 12 may dictate into a handheld pda device that includes its own digitization mechanism for storing the audio file . or , the speaker 12 may use a standard “ dictation station ,” such as those provided by many vendors . still other devices may be used by the speaker 12 for dictating , and possibly digitizing the dictation , and sending it to the voice mailbox system 16 . the voice mailbox system 16 is configured to digitize audio from the speaker 12 to produce a digital audio file of the dictation . for example , the system 16 may use the intelliscript ™ product made by escription . the voice mailbox system 16 is further configured to prompt the speaker 12 to enter an identification code and a worktype code . the speaker 12 can enter the codes , e . g ., by pressing buttons on a telephone to send dtmf tones , or by speaking the codes into the telephone . the system 16 may provide speech recognition to convert the spoken codes into a digital identification code and a digital worktype code . the mailbox system 16 is further configured to store the identifying code and the worktype code in association with the dictation . the system 16 preferably prompts the speaker 12 to provide the worktype code at least for each dictation related to the medical field . the worktype code designates a category of work to which the dictation pertains , e . g ., for medical applications this could include office note , consultation , operative note , discharge summary , radiology report , etc . the worktype code may be used to refine speed settings , such that settings may be specific not only to speaker - transcriptionist pairings , but further to worktype of dictations provided by the speaker , and / or to other parameters or indicia . the following discussion , however , focuses on using only speaker - transcriptionist pairings . the voice mailbox system 16 is further configured to transmit the digital audio file and speaker identification code over the network 22 to the database server 24 for storage . this transmission is accomplished by the system 16 product using standard network transmission protocols communicating with the database server 24 . the database server 24 is configured to store the incoming data from the voice mailbox system 16 , as well as from other sources . for example , information such as patient medical record number ( mrn ), date of dictation , date of encounter , account number , and other information can originate from the voice mailbox system 16 , from a hospital billing system , or from another source . the database server 24 may include the editscript server ™ database product from escription . software of the database server is configured to produce a database record for the dictation , including a file pointer to the digital audio data , and a field containing the identification code for the speaker 12 . if the audio and identifying data are stored on a pda , the pda may be connected to a computer running the handiscript ™ software product made by escription that will perform the data transfer and communication with the database server 24 to enable a database record to be produced for the dictation . preferably , all communication with the database server 24 is intermediated by a “ servlet ” application 32 that includes an in - memory cached representation of recent database entries . the servlet 32 is configured to service requests from the voice mailbox system 16 , the automatic transcription device 30 , the editing device 20 , and the administrative console 18 , reading from the database when the servlet &# 39 ; s cache does not contain the required information . the servlet 32 includes a separate software module that helps ensure that the servlet &# 39 ; s cache is synchronized with the contents of the database . this helps allow the database to be off - loaded of much of the real - time data - communication and to grow to be much larger than otherwise possible . for simplicity , however , the below discussion does not refer to the servlet , but all database access activities may be realized using the servlet application 32 as an intermediary . the automatic transcription device 30 may access the database 40 in the database server 24 over the data network 26 for transcribing the stored dictation . the automatic transcription device 30 uses an automatic speech recognition ( asr ) device ( e . g ., software ) to produce a draft transcription for the dictation . an example of asr technology is the autoscript ™ product made by escription that also uses the speaker and , optionally , worktype identifying information to access speaker and speaker - worktype dependent asr models with which to perform the transcription . the device 30 transmits the draft transcription over the data network 26 to the database server 24 for storage in the database and to be accessed , along with the digital audio file , by the editing device 20 . the device 30 is further configured to affect the presentation of the draft transcription . the device 30 , as part of speech recognition or as part of post - processing after speech recognition , can add or change items affecting document presentation such as formats , abbreviations , and other text features . the device 28 includes a speech recognizer and may also include a post - processor for performing operations in addition to the speech recognition , although the speech recognizer itself may perform some or all of these additional functions . automatic speech recognition ( asr ) models in the device 30 used to produce draft transcriptions include different types of grammars for recognizing the speaker &# 39 ; s dictation . the grammars can be , for example , generic , specific , or intermediate . generic grammars are designed to recognize speech from a random speaker . specific grammars are designed / adapted for a particular speaker , either being designed from scratch for the speaker 12 or having been adapted from a more general grammar in response to previous dictations and edited transcriptions . an example of an intermediate grammar is a grammar designed not for a particular speaker , but for speakers that are likely to follow a particular pattern . for example , doctors from a particular institution may be instructed to dictate patient records with a particular format , and the grammar can be designed to improve recognition based on knowledge of expected phrases and / or organization of the patient record . the automatic transcription device 30 is further configured to identify confidential portions of dictations , including particular data , header regions , and footer regions . confidential / private patient information includes , e . g ., patient name , medical record number , and / or other information from which a patient &# 39 ; s identity may be discerned , at least to reasonable ( or unacceptable ) degree of certainty . the asr models can be used to identify particular data , such as portions of the dictation that includes the provider name , patient name , patient names spelled out , date of encounter , worktype and / or medical record number ( mrn ). the device 30 also preferably is able to identify header and footer portions of a dictation as these introductory and closing portions often contain confidential information . the device 30 can analyze the text for the manner in which the speaker begins the dictation . for example , the device 30 may include a grammar such as , “ this is dr . & lt ; provider name & gt ; dictating an office note on & lt ; patient name & gt ;, medical record number & lt ; mrn & gt ;. date of visit is & lt ; date of encounter & gt ;”. the device 30 can additionally analyze the text for the manner in which a speaker 12 begins the body of a dictation , which indicates the completion of the header . for example , the device 30 may include a grammar such as , “ chief complaint : mr . & lt ; patient last name & gt ; comes in today complaining of chest pain .” the device 30 may also include a grammar related to the manner in which a speaker 12 dictates the end of a note , or footer . for example , the device 30 may include a grammar such as , “ this is & lt ; provider name & gt ;. please send a copy to & lt ; contact 1 & gt ; and & lt ; contact 2 & gt ;, as well as to my office .” preferably , the device 30 uses the grammars to identify the location of the header and footer in a dictation . these grammars provide trigger words or phrases that indicate the boundary from the header to the body of the dictation or from the body of the dictation to the footer . examples of additional end - of - header ( i . e . beginning - of - body ) trigger phrases include : “ the patient is a ”, followed by an age ; “ the patient comes in today complaining of . . . ”; “ history ”. examples of footer ( i . e . end - of - body ) trigger phrases include : “ that &# 39 ; s all ”; “ please send a copy of this to . . . ”. in many cases , these triggers by themselves will be sufficient to reliably identify the end of the header and beginning of the footer . these phrases may , however , be supplemented by a statistical trigger model to help identify the boundaries . the model is statistical in that it determines the likelihood of one or more locations being a header / body or body / footer transition , and uses the most likely location as the actual location of the transition . a statistical trigger model can be used alone , or can be combined with a duration model , such as a specified number of words , for the header , body , and footer in order to resolve ambiguities in determining whether particular grammar is a part of the header or the footer . for example , a statistical analysis may include that the phrase “ please send a copy to . . . ” has a 90 % probability of being a boundary phrase when it occurs within the final thirty words of a dictation . the statistical trigger model may be constrained by the structure of the document , for example , requiring that the footer follows the body , which follows the header . the header and footer region of the dictation can alternatively be identified by the transcription device 30 in one of the following ways . the header and footer may be identified by using an instance of a listened - to / transcribed header / footer to form the grammar which is used to remove the header / footer from subsequent dictations . a catalog of grammars from a database of providers may be employed to identify headers / footers . the grammars can be scored to determine likely instances of headers / footers in different grammars . a generalized search for words associated with tags in the token - alignment file , discussed below , can be conducted , and may be narrowed using the current date or medical record numbers . in the event that speech recognition errors occur , a ) known or common errors from speech recognition can be explicitly included ; b ) “ wild - cards ” that model words which are known to cause recognition errors can be utilized . for example , instead of “ the patient comes in today complaining of ”, the grammar might be “* patient comes * complaining *”, since the non - wildcarded words are known to be reliably recognized . the identified confidential information , including header and footer information , are stored separately and treated differently than non - confidential information for the editing process discussed below . portions of the dictation that include confidential information can be stored separately from non - confidential information in the database 40 . for example , the database 40 may include multiple databases , and the confidential information may be stored in a database separate from a database in which non - confidential information is stored . confidential information can be stored in the same database , but in a separate portion ( e . g ., a separate file ), as non - confidential information . the confidential information is stored separately in that access to the confidential information is inhibited / restricted such that a user that has access to non - confidential information in the database 40 does not necessarily have access to the confidential information . for example , access to the confidential information may require a password or other security measure . further , the confidential information that appears in the body of the dictation document is tagged , e . g ., to help inhibit access to the confidential information even if it is not contained in the header or footer . additional security can include encrypting the data before sending the data to the user terminal for the editing process , or encrypting the data while the data is en route to the user terminal . the transcription device 30 is further configured to produce a token - alignment file that synchronizes the audio with the corresponding text . this file comprises a set of token records , with each record preferably containing a token , a begin index , and an end index . the token comprises a character or a sequence of characters that are to appear on the screen during a word - processing session , or one or more sounds that may or may not appear as text on a screen . a begin index comprises an array reference into the audio file corresponding to the place in the audio file where the corresponding token begins . the end index comprises an array reference into the digital audio file corresponding to the point in the audio file where the corresponding token ends . as an alternative , the end index may not exist separately , with it being assumed that the starting point of the next token ( the next begin index ) is also the ending point of the previous token . the transcription device 30 can store the token - alignment file in the database 40 . the token - alignment file may contain further information , such as a display indicator and / or a playback indicator . the display indicator &# 39 ; s value indicates whether the corresponding token is to be displayed , e . g ., on a computer monitor , while the transcription is being edited . using non - displayed tokens can help facilitate editing of the transcription while maintaining synchronization between on - screen tokens and the digital audio file . for example , a speaker may use an alias , e . g ., for a heading , and standard heading ( e . g ., physical examination ) may be displayed while the words actually spoken by the speaker ( e . g ., “ on exam today ”) are audibly played but not displayed as text ( hidden ). the playback indicator &# 39 ; s value indicates whether the corresponding token has audio associated with the token . using the playback indicator can also help facilitate editing the transcription while maintaining synchronization between on - screen tokens and the digital audio file . the playback indicator &# 39 ; s value may be adjusted dynamically during audio playback , e . g ., by input from the transcriptionist . the adjustment may , e . g ., cause audio associated with corresponding tokens ( e . g ., hesitation words ) to be skipped partially or entirely , that may help increase the transcriptionist &# 39 ; s productivity . the tokens stored in the token - alignment file may or may not correspond to words . instead , a token may represent one or more characters that appear on a display during editing of the transcription , or sounds that occur in the audio file . thus , the written transcription may have a different form and / or format than the exact words that were spoken by the person 12 . for example , a token may represent conventional words such as “ the ,” “ patient ,” or “ esophagogastroduodenoscopy ,” multiple words , partial words , abbreviations or acronyms , numbers , dates , sounds ( e . g ., a cough , a yawn , a bell ), absence of sound ( silence ), etc . for example , the speaker 12 may say “ usa ” and the automatic transcription device 30 may interpret and expand this into “ united states of america .” in this example , the token is “ united states of america ” and the begin index would point to the beginning of the audio signal for “ usa ” and , if the token - alignment file uses end indexes , the end index would point to the end of the audio signal “ usa .” as another example , the speaker 12 might say “ april 2 of last year ,” and the text might appear on the display as “ 04 / 02 / 2003 .” the tokens , however , can synchronize the text “ 04 / 02 / 2003 ” with the audio of “ april 2 of last year .” as another example , the speaker 12 might say “ miles per hour ” while the text is displayed as “ mph .” using the tokens , the speech recognizer 30 , or a post - processor in or separate from the device 30 , may alter , expand , contract , and / or format the spoken words when converting to text without losing the audio synchronization . tokens preferably have variable lengths , with different tokens having different lengths . the token - alignment file provides an environment with many features . items may appear on a screen but not have any audio signal associated with them ( e . g ., implicit titles and headings ). items may have audio associated with them and may appear on the screen but may not appear as words ( e . g ., numeric tokens such as “ 120 / 88 ”). items may have audio associated with them , appear on the screen , and appear as words contained in the audio ( e . g ., “ the patient showed delayed recovery ”). multiple words may appear on the screen corresponding to audio that is an abbreviated form of what appears on the screen ( e . g ., “ united states of america ” may be displayed corresponding to audio of “ usa ”). items may have audio associated with them but not have corresponding symbols appear on the screen ( e . g ., a cough , an ending salutation such as “ that &# 39 ; s all ,” commands or instructions to the transcriptionist such as “ start a new paragraph ,” etc .). in addition , in the token - alignment file , xml tags , such as & lt ; header & gt ;, & lt ;/ header & gt ; and & lt ; footer & gt ;, & lt ;/ footer & gt ; are included as zero - duration , non - playable , non - displayable records . tags are also added around other data contained in the headers and footers . for example , tags can be added to identify & lt ; mrn & gt ;, & lt ; date of encounter & gt ;, and & lt ; contacts & gt ;. in the body of the dictation , tags are added around recognized information , including but not limited to & lt ; patient name & gt ;, & lt ; provider name & gt ;, and & lt ; contacts & gt ;. the tags allow identification of words in the dictation that contain specific information . the specified words can be manipulated due to the tag assigned to the words . for example , the words having specified tags associated with private / confidential information can be blocked from view in a transcribed document . at the time of editing , tagged words can be obfuscated . for example , & lt ; patient name & gt ; can be changed to “ the patient ” or to “ mr . ?? ?” for instances of its occurrence throughout the transcribed document to protect the identity of the patient . referring further to fig1 , the editing device 20 is configured to be used by a transcriptionist to access and edit the draft transcription stored in the database of the database server 24 . the editing device 20 includes a computer ( e . g ., display , keyboard , mouse , monitor , memory , and a processor , etc . ), an attached foot - pedal , and appropriate software such as the editscript ™ software product made by escription . the transcriptionist can log onto the database server 24 with a password . the transcriptionist can request a dictation job by , e . g ., clicking on an on - screen icon . the request is serviced by the database server 24 , which finds the dictation for the transcriptionist , and transmits the corresponding header , footer , and body audio files and the draft transcription text files . the transcriptionist edits the draft using the editing device 20 and sends the edited transcript back to the database server 24 . for example , to end the editing the transcriptionist can click on an on - screen icon button to instruct the editing device 20 to send the final edited document to the database server 24 via the network 22 , along with a unique identifier for the transcriptionist . with the data sent from the editing device 20 , the database in the server 24 contains , for each dictation : a speaker identifier , a transcriptionist identifier , a file pointer to the digital audio signal , and a file pointer to the edited text document . the edited text document can be transmitted directly to a customer &# 39 ; s medical record system or accessed over the data network 22 from the database by the administrative console 18 . the console 18 may include an administrative console software product such as emon ™ made by escription . referring to fig2 , components of the editing device 20 , e . g ., a computer , include a database interaction module 41 , a user interface 42 , non - confidential information storage 43 , confidential information storage 45 , a word processor module 44 , an audio playback module 46 , an audio file pointer 48 , a cursor module 50 , a monitor 52 , and an audio device 54 . a computer implementing portions of the editing device 20 includes a processor and memory that stores appropriate computer - readable , computer - executable software code instructions that can cause the processor to execute appropriate instructions for performing functions described . the monitor 52 and audio device 54 , e . g ., speakers , are physical components while the other components shown in fig2 are functional components that may be implemented with software , hardware , etc ., or combinations thereof . the audio playback device 46 , such as a soundblaster ® card , is attached to the audio output transducer 54 such as speakers or headphones . the transcriptionist can use the audio device 54 ( e . g ., headphones or a speaker ) to listen to audio and can view the monitor 52 to see the corresponding text . the transcriptionist can use the foot pedal 66 , the keyboard 62 , and / or the mouse 64 to control the audio playback . the database interaction , audio playback , and editing of the draft transcription is accomplished by means of the appropriate software such as the editscript client ™ software product made by escription . the body of dictation files 43 and the header / footer data files are sent to the user interface from the database . the editing software is loaded on the editing device computer 20 and configured appropriately for interaction with other components of the editing device 20 . the editing software can use a standard word processing software library , such as that provided with microsoft word ®, in order to load , edit and save documents corresponding to each dictation . the editing software includes the database interaction module 41 , the user interface module 42 , the word processing module 44 , the audio playback module 46 , the audio file pointer adjustment module 48 and the multi - cursor control module 50 . the interaction module 41 regulates communications between database server 24 and the editing device 20 via the network 22 . the control module 50 regulates the interaction between the interface module 42 and the word processors 44 , the audio playback modules 46 , and the audio file pointer 48 . the control module 50 regulates the flow of actions relating to processing of a transcription , including playing audio and providing cursors in the transcribed text . the user interface module 42 controls the activity of the other modules and includes keyboard detection 56 , mouse detection 58 , and foot pedal detection 60 sub - modules for processing input from a keyboard 62 , a mouse 64 , and a foot - pedal 66 . the foot pedal 66 is a standard transcription foot pedal and is connected to the editing device computer through the computer &# 39 ; s serial port . the foot pedal 66 preferably includes a “ fast forward ” portion and a “ rewind ” portion . the transcriptionist is permitted to access dictations downloaded to the user interface module 42 based on provider ( or groups of providers ) and patient identification . the transcriptionist logs onto the user interface module 42 with a logon name and a password so that dictations assigned to a particular transcriptionist are visible in a work queue . the transcriptionist can request a job from the database by selecting on - screen icon with the mouse 64 . the user interface module 42 interprets this mouse click and invokes the database interaction module 41 to request the next job from the database 40 . the database server 24 ( fig1 ) responds by transmitting the audio data files , the draft transcription files , and the token - alignment files to the user interaction module 42 . the audio for confidential information is preferably transmitted to the device 20 separately from the audio for the non - confidential information . likewise , the text for confidential information is preferably transmitted to the device 20 separately from the text for the non - confidential information . the confidential information is stored in the confidential information storage 43 separate from the non - confidential information storage 45 . the confidential information storage 43 can be access - restricted , e . g ., by a password and / or other security feature ( s ). also , portions of the confidential information can be restricted from access by a particular user , rather than all of the confidential information . with this downloaded information , the editing software can initialize a word - processing session by loading the draft text into the word processing module 44 . audio information is accessed through function calls of the editing program while the dictation is being edited . the audio playback module 46 is configured to play the audio file associated with the body of the dictation 43 and the audio associated with the header / footer 45 . the transcriptionist accesses the audio files 43 and 45 when prepared for editing . for initial playback , the module 46 plays the audio file sequentially . the playback module 46 can , however , jump to audio corresponding to an indicated portion of the transcription and begin playback from the indicated location . for example , the playback module 46 can request the header audio and begin playback of the header . the location may be indicated by a transcriptionist using appropriate portions of the editing device 20 such as the keyboard 62 , or the mouse 64 . for playback that starts at an indicated location , the playback module 46 uses the token - alignment file to determine the location in the audio file corresponding to the indicated transcription text . since many audio playback programs play audio in fixed - sized sections ( called “ frames ”), the audio playback module 46 may convert the indicated begin index to the nearest preceding frame for playback . for example , an audio device 54 may play only frames of 128 bytes in length . in this example , the audio playback module uses the token - alignment file to find the nearest prior starting frame that is a multiple of 128 bytes from the beginning of the audio file . thus , the starting point for audio playback may not correspond precisely to the selected text in the transcription . the transcriptionist can review and edit a document by appropriately controlling portions of the editing device 20 . the transcriptionist can regulate the playback using the foot pedal 66 , and listen to the audio corresponding to the text as played by the playback module 46 and converted to sound by the audio device 54 . further , the transcriptionist can move a cursor to a desired portion of the display of the monitor 52 using the keyboard 62 and / or mouse 64 , and can make edits at the location of the cursor using the keyboard 62 and / or mouse 64 . the user interface 42 downloads the text of the document to the word processor 44 according to the editing program , which provides restricted access and display of header / footer data and other confidential information . if the transcriptionist positions the cursor for playback of confidential information , then the transcriptionist can be prompted to enter a password , or otherwise fulfill a security measure ( e . g ., provide bioinformatic information such as a fingerprint ) in order to be provided with the text and / or audio corresponding to the confidential information . referring to fig3 - 5 , confidential information can be obscured / hidden from view absent authorization . as shown in fig3 , a header 70 and a footer data 72 appear as gray boxes on the monitor 52 . thus , the confidential data in the header 70 and the footer 72 is not apparent to the user , but is hidden from view . the gray box is preferably of a standard size . as shown in fig4 , confidential information contained in a body 74 of a document 76 is hidden with gray boxes 78 , 79 . the boxes 78 , 79 indicate data that have been tagged as confidential , and have been removed from appearing in the body of the text while the document is edited . the boxes 78 , 79 are preferably of a standard size to help prevent providing insight into confidential information ( e . g ., a length of a physician &# 39 ; s name ). in fig4 , the blocked access box 78 indicating a physician &# 39 ; s name has been blocked from view , although the name may be presented to the transcriptionist through the audio playback of the dictation . the blocked access boxes 78 , 79 allow presentation of the body of a document while concealing confidential information from a viewer . the blocked access boxes 78 , 79 may be interactive , allowing an authorized transcriptionist to edit data in or check data that appears in the blocked access block 78 during editing functions . data entered or reviewed in the boxes 78 , 79 may include patient name , provider name , mrn , contacts , etc . further , as shown in fig4 and fig5 , techniques other than gray boxes may be used for concealing confidential information , such as using a generic name 80 (“ patient x ”) in lieu of actual confidential information . other generic names include “ the patient ,” “ mr . ? ?,” etc . a second hot key sequence is used by the transcriptionist to reveal recognized words in the body of the document which have been obfuscated by internal tags . the transcriptionist may use the hot key sequence to call forth and edit the protected language . while the transcriptionist is editing the document , the user interface module 42 can service hardware interrupts from all three of its sub - modules 56 , 58 , 60 . the transcriptionist can use the foot pedal 66 to indicate that the audio should be “ rewound ,” or “ fast - forwarded ” to a different time point in the dictation . these foot - pedal presses are serviced as hardware interrupts by the user interaction module 42 . most standard key presses and on - document mouse - clicks are sent to the word processing module 44 to perform the document editing functions indicated and to update the monitor display . some user interaction , however , may be directed to the audio - playback oriented modules 46 , 48 , 50 , e . g ., cursor control , audio position control , and / or volume control . the transcriptionist may indicate that editing is complete by clicking another icon . in response to such an indication , the final text file is sent through the database interaction module 42 to the database server 24 . in operation , referring to fig6 , with further reference to fig1 - 2 , a process 100 for extracting information from a transcription of speech using the system 10 includes the stages shown . the process 100 , however , is exemplary only and not limiting . the process 100 may be altered , e . g ., by having stages added , removed , or rearranged . at stage 102 , the automatic transcription device 30 seeks to transcribe the audio file , and to extract the header and footer from a dictation audio file stored in the database 40 . the automatic transcription device 30 accesses and retrieves the audio file from the database through the lan 26 . the dictation is accompanied by the speaker name ( and variants ), the patient name ( and variants ), date information , mrn , as well as other available information . at stage 104 , a speech recognizer of the device 30 analyzes the audio file in accordance with asr models to produce a draft text document from the audio file . the asr model includes information on the manner in which physicians dictate to decode word sequence . at stage 106 , the device 30 identifies the header of the dictation using model grammars associated with header language . the identified header is removed from the dictation for separate storage in the database 40 . confidential terms in the header are separately tagged . at stage 108 , the device 30 identifies the footer of the dictation using model grammars associated with footer language . the identified footer is removed from the dictation for separate storage in the database 40 . confidential terms in the header are separately tagged . at stage 110 , the device 30 also produces a corresponding token - alignment file that includes the draft documents and associated portions of the audio file with the transcribed text of the documents . the token - alignment files include xml tags , such as & lt ; header & gt ; & lt ;/ header & gt ; and & lt ; footer & gt ; & lt ;/ footer & gt ; as meta information for the editing software , described below . the device 30 stores the token - alignment file in the database 40 via the lan 26 . at stage 112 , the header and the footer are stored in the database separate from other portions of the dictation . the header and footer are stored in a secure portion of memory in the server 24 . the remainder of the dictation is stored separately from the confidential information , e . g ., in a separate file . in operation , referring to fig7 , with further reference to fig1 - 6 , a process 200 for producing and editing a transcription of speech using the system 10 includes the stages shown . the process 200 , however , is exemplary only and not limiting . the process 200 may be altered , e . g ., by having stages added , removed , or rearranged . at stage 202 , the speaker 12 dictates desired speech to be converted to text . the speaker can use , e . g ., a hand - held device such as a personal digital assistant , to dictate audio that is transmitted over the network 14 to the voice mailbox 16 . the audio is stored in the voice mailbox 16 as at least one audio file . the audio file is transmitted over the network 22 to the database server 24 and is stored in the database 40 . at stage 204 , the automatic transcription device 30 seeks to transcribe the audio file according to the process 100 in fig6 . the automatic transcription device 30 accesses and retrieves the audio file from the database through the lan 26 . the dictation is accompanied by the speaker name ( and variants ), the patient name ( and variants ), date information , mrn , as well as other available information . at stage 206 , the transcriptionist reviews and edits the transcribed draft document as appropriate . the transcriptionist uses the editing device 20 to access the database 40 and retrieve the audio file and the token - alignment file that includes the draft text document . the editing of header and footer data is further described below with respect to fig8 . the transcriptionist plays the audio file and reviews the corresponding text as highlighted or otherwise indicated by an audio cursor and makes desired edits using , e . g ., a text cursor 72 . the word processor 44 produces and stores track - changes information in response to edits made by the transcriptionist . at stage 208 , the track - changes information is provided to the automatic transcription device 30 for use in improving the speech models used by the speech recognizer of the device 30 by analyzing the transcribed draft text and what revisions were made by the transcriptionist . the models can be adjusted so that the next time the speech recognizer analyzes speech that was edited by the transcriptionist , the recognizer will transcribe the same or similar audio to the edited text instead of the draft text previously provided . at stage 210 , the word processor provides a final , revised text document as edited by the transcriptionist . this final document can be stored in the database 40 and provided via the network 22 to interested parties , e . g ., the speaker that dictated the audio file . referring to fig8 , with further reference to fig1 - 7 , a process 300 for editing the header / footer data of the draft transcribed document , continued from stage 206 of fig7 , using the editing device 20 includes the stages shown . the process 300 , however , is exemplary only and not limiting . the process 300 may be altered , e . g ., by having stages added , removed , or rearranged . at stage 302 , the transcriptionist logs in with a user name and password , and dictations assigned to them are shown in the queue . when a dictation is chosen , the audio and document are downloaded , preferably separately , to the transcriptionist &# 39 ; s computer . the audio is preferably stored in a secure location . the audio may be separated into more than one file , such as a file for the header , a file for the footer , and a file for the body . information from the token alignment file is used to find the correct location in the audio file in order to accomplish the audio separation . in exemplary embodiments , audio separation is employed to additionally alter the audio file to remove patient identification information . for example , the audio might sound a tone in lieu of a spoken patient name is spoken . the audio exchanged for the confidential information may alternatively be an alias for the confidential term , such as a generic name , or other desired sound masking / concealing the actual spoken audio . when the document is being edited , particular audio files can be accessed . the file - read permissions on the audio files and the document can restrict access to anyone but the transcriptionist who has logged on . at stage 306 , the transcriptionist chooses an audio file associated with either the header , the footer , or the body . if the header or the footer are desired to be edited , the transcriptionist activates a hot key , at stage 312 , to call forth the grey boxes 78 , 79 so that the boxes appear on the monitor 52 . at stage 314 , the blocked access boxes 78 , 79 are displayed , and at stage 316 , the transcriptionist listens to audio associated with the header . a similar procedure would be used for editing other portions of a document containing confidential information . the transcriptionist may be required to enter a password or provide other security information before the grey boxes 78 , 79 appear on the monitor . at stage 318 , the header fields are reviewed and / or edited . data appearing in the grey boxes includes patient name and other confidential data that is reviewed for accuracy . upon completion of editing , at stage 320 , the grey boxes 78 , 79 are hidden from view once again . data entered into the boxes is no longer visible on the monitor 52 . other embodiments are within the scope and spirit of the appended claims . for example , due to the nature of software , functions described above can be implemented using software , hardware , firmware , hardwiring , or combinations of any of these . features implementing functions may also be physically located at various positions , including being distributed such that portions of functions are implemented at different physical locations . in exemplary embodiments of the invention , the header and footer data are identified and separately stored in a database . it is possible that only one of the header and the footer may be identified and separately stored , or both the header and the footer data can be stored , e . g ., in a common file separate from the remainder of the document . storage of the header and the footer may not be separate from the remainder of the document , but transmittal of the header and the footer may be separated from transmittal of the remainder of the document . in an alternative embodiment , the editing program can include a timeout portion which observes whether there has been a break in editing or audio playback for a given amount of time .	6
a series of batch dissolutions was performed to determine the effects of changing acid concentrations while holding fluoboric acid concentration stable at 0 . 05m hbf 4 . they were performed in a boiling water bath with dissolvent temperatures of approximately 91 °- 92 ° c . which is 10 °- 20 ° c . below the boiling temperature . as shown in fig1 over the range from 4 to 7m hno 3 with constant 0 . 05m hbf 4 , the aluminum dissolution rate is greater in higher concentrations of nitric acid indicated at curve 10 . this figure illustrates the amounts of aluminum dissolved in different concentrations of nitric acid containing the same initial level of fluoboric acid , i . e ., 0 . 05m . at all four levels tested , the dissolution rate tapers off at the upper end 12 as nitric acid is consumed and as the concentration of dissolved aluminum increases . these batch tests did not determine whether the fluoborate is consumed during the dissolution or significantly affected by the presence of fluoride - complexing aluminum ion or if the reaction slows because hno 3 is consumed . also shown in fig1 the graph of the dissolution of aluminum alloy in 6 and 7 m hno 3 without hbf 4 or hg catalyst , curves 14 and 16 appear to be slightly concave upward ; that is , the dissolution rate increases as nitric acid is consumed . apparently , as nitric acid is consumed , there is a less strongly oxidizing environment to produce the protective layer of al 2 o 3 on the surface of the dissolving aluminum alloy . the consumption of nitric acid during the aluminum alloy dissolution described above is shown in fig2 . these data correspond to those in fig1 showing that in 4 to 7m hno 3 containing 0 . 05m hbf 4 , the consumption of nitric acid is approximately 3 . 75 moles of hno 3 per mole of aluminum dissolved as predicted by the reaction described in equation ( 1 ). also , catalyzed nitric acid solutions can continue to dissolve aluminum beyond the point where all original nitric acid is consumed , as at 18 , yielding an acid deficient product . another series of tests at 91 °- 92 ° c . solution temperatures , shown in fig3 determined the effects of the concentration of hbf 4 in a fixed initial concentration of 7 . 0m hno 3 on aluminum batch dissolution rates . aluminum dissolution is clearly enhanced at each of the higher levels of hbf 4 ; however , the increase from 0 . 1 to 0 . 2m hbf 4 , curve 20 and 22 , did not yield as much net enhancement at 23 as did increasing the hbf 4 from 0 to 0 . 05m , curve 24 and 26 , at 28 , or from 0 . 05 to 0 . 10m at 29 . this indicates that only low levels of hbf 4 are needed in hno 3 to increase dissolution rates significantly . additional scoping tests were conducted with a small continuous process dissolver vessel 30 of fig4 . a mixture of nitric acid and fluoboric acid was prepared in a makeup vessel . aluminum alloy 6061 coupons ( plates ) 36 ranging from 10 to 30 grams ( g ) with thicknesses of & lt ; inch ( 250 mils ) or 5 / 8 inch ( 125 mils ) were placed in the pyrex dissolver vessel 30 . dissolvent was pumped in rapidly from the makeup vessel by a peristaltic pump ( not shown ), to fill the dissolver to the overflow level 38 of approximately 250 ml . the unit was heated to boiling on hot plate 32 and held for an hour or longer to reach the approximate desired steady - state aluminum concentration before beginning each continuous steady addition of dissolvent . the actual steady - state concentration of the dissolver solution for each of the ten tests was controlled by maintaining a constant dissolvent feed addition rate of influent . influent rates of 3 to 4 ml per minute yielded approximately 0 . 4 to 0 . 5m a1 effluent solutions , while addition rates of 0 . 5 ml per minute yielded up to 1 . 5 m a1 product collected at dissolved product effluent conduit 40 . for larger volume vessels , the effluent flow rates would be scaled proportionally . the dissolution reaction creates no , n 2 o , and n 2 gases and evaporated hno 3 and water vapor which pass up through tower 42 where the hno 3 and water vapor are condensed by the air - cooled condenser allowing the condensed hno 3 and water to fall back at 46 to dissolver 30 and pass the gases no , n 2 o , and n 2 at vent 48 . generally , at least 3 hours of constant , uninterrupted operation were required to attain stable , steady - state conditions for each of these ten tests . initial tests with mercury ( hg ) catalyzed nitric acid to obtain &# 34 ; baseline &# 34 ; dissolution rates for comparison were unsuccessful . although hg - catalyzed dissolution rates in 6 . 8m hno 3 at 91 °- 92 ° c . gave aluminum dissolution rates similar to those of 0 . 1 or 0 . 2m hbf 4 in 7 . 0m hno 3 at the same temperature , the results at the boil were drastically different . somewhere between 95 ° and 100 ° c ., the hg - catalyzed dissolution appears to pass a threshold , above which the reaction is rapid , highly exothermic , and generates large amounts of foam that rapidly exceed the capacity of the dissolver test vessel . further attempts to obtain comparative data for hg - catalyzed dissolutions were abandoned . the reaction is well known to yield dissolution rates that are immensely faster than required for practical fuel dissolution times . fig5 is a graph of some of the data ( from table 1 ) illustrating the effects of increased acid concentrations on the penetration of aluminum coupons at two different concentrations of fluoboric acid hbf 4 . the higher penetration rate tests using the apparatus as shown in fig4 and indicated at 50 , occurs when using the higher hbf 4 concentration , i . e ., 0 . 2m hbf 4 both concentrations of hbf 4 , curve 50 and 52 , enhance the process over the no catalyst datum at 54 . the above series of continuous , steady - state tests was conducted with 7 . 0m hno 3 containing from 0 to 0 . 20m hbf 4 to demonstrate the effectiveness of the dissolvent under steady - state conditions at the boil and to document aluminum alloy penetration rates . the results of this series of ten steady - state tests are presented in table i . table i__________________________________________________________________________al alloy penetration rates with hbf . sub . 4 - catalyzed 7m hno . sub . 3 average al time to nitric acid conc . in average acid dissolve consumption , run dissolvent during conc . during penetration 120 mils al fuel moles acid / moledissolvent number each test , -- m each test , n . sup . a temp . ° c . rate , mils / hr plate , hrs . al dissolved * __________________________________________________________________________7 -- m hno . sub . 3 , i 0 . 65 4 . 9 108 - 109 0 . 67 89 . 6 3 . 23no catalyst7 -- m hno . sub . 3 , ii - a 0 . 56 108 - 109 4 . 9 12 . 20 . 05 -- m hbf . sub . 4 ii - b 0 . 84 108 - 109 7 . 7 7 . 87 -- m hno . sub . 3 , iii - a 0 . 70 4 . 8 109 - 110 8 . 9 6 . 7 3 . 290 . 10 -- m hbf . sub . 4 iii - b 0 . 92 4 . 0 109 - 110 5 . 8 10 . 3 3 . 37 iii - c 1 . 36 2 . 6 110 - 112 4 . 3 14 . 0 3 . 317 -- m hno . sub . 3 , iv - a 0 . 77 107 11 . 5 5 . 20 . 20 -- m hbf . sub . 4 iv - b 0 . 99 4 . 1 107 11 . 8 5 . 1 3 . 13 iv - c 1 . 16 2 . 6 108 - 109 8 . 9 6 . 7 3 . 97 iv - d 1 . 51 1 . 8 109 - 110 6 . 0 9 . 8 3 . 58__________________________________________________________________________ * theoretically 3 . 75 moles of hno . sub . 3 are consumed for each mole of al dissolved without air sparging . these tests were not sparged . historically , the icpp has averaged 3 . 4 moles of hno . sub . 3 consumed per mole of al dissolved with the hgcatalyzed flowsheet and sparging with air the rates at which aluminum alloy is penetrated were determined over a range of dissolver solution concentrations using 0 , 0 . 05 , 0 . 10 , and 0 . 20m hbf 4 in 7 . 0m hno 3 as the feed dissolvents . the lengths of time required to dissolve a 120 - mil - thick aluminum plate were also calculated and recorded in table 1 , since 120 mils is the thickest plate identified in expected aluminum fuel . as shown in table i and fig5 penetration rates are consistently greater as the hbf 4 concentration increased from zero to 0 . 2m . these data along with the lower temperature batch tests presented in fig3 also indicate the additional enhancing effects of higher levels of hbf 4 decreases somewhat between 0 . 1 and 0 . 2m ; hence , concentrations above 0 . 2m hbf 4 were not tested . the dissolution times for the maximum expected thickness of aluminum fuel are comparable to the one - fuel - charge - per - shift schedule used in past aluminum fuel dissolution campaigns with the mercury - catalyzed flowsheet . this is based on a maximum fuel plate thickness of 120 mils and continuous acid penetration from both sides of the plate . a possible mechanism , not yet investigated , is that hydrofluoric acid , hf , at small concentrations in equilibrium with hbf 4 dissolves the thin aluminum oxide protective film that is continuously formed in nitric acid , allowing the hno 3 to attack the aluminum metal . the aluminum fluoride dissolution product from i - if reaction with alumina then reacts with relatively high concentrations of nitric acid to partially reform hf . the following reactions summarize this process : ## equ2 ## the hf may also react with aluminum metal and be consumed . however , at the small concentration in equilibrium with hbf 4 , it competes unfavorably with nitric acid in the metal dissolution . the hbf 4 may also provide a buffer source of hf for the oxide film dissolution . scoping corrosion rate tests were performed with 304l stainless steel and hastelloy c - 4 alloy to estimate the acceptability of these alloys in the existing stainless steel g - cell and hastelloy c - 4 fluorinel dissolvers , ( fluorinel is a local name for a process for dissolving zirconium - clad nuclear fuels .) the dissolver solution compositions were based on estimates from previous hg - catalyzed flowsheets instead of the compositions from the tests reported above . actual hbf 4 - catalyzed dissolver solutions should have somewhat higher levels of hno 3 than tested here . higher levels of no 3 would be expected to reduce stainless steel corrosion rates and increase hastelloy c - 4 corrosion rates . as shown in table ii , the unreacted dissolvents , i . e ., dissolvents containing no dissolved al ( no 3 ) 3 , are unacceptably corrosive to both alloys even at temperatures 5 ° to 15 ° c . lower than the boiling temperatures at which they effectively dissolve aluminum alloys . however , it appears that both the hastelloy c - 4 fluorinel dissolvers in cpp - 666 and the stainless steel dissolvers in g - cell could be satisfactory for steady - state operation with dissolvent containing aluminum concentrations of 1m or greater , which is comparable to existing g - cell flowsheets . a corrosion rate of 1 - 2 mils / month is considered an acceptable rate at icpp . for batch processes , initiating the reaction with a more diluted catalyst and / or nitric acid until acid concentration decreased and aluminum concentration increased sufficiently to allow increasing the acid / catalyst concentration ( s ) is a practical approach to controlling corrosion and achieving adequate dissolution times . alternatively , the process may be started with a heel of prior dissolver products to which the acids have been added at increased concentrations . table ii__________________________________________________________________________scoping corrosion tests with existing icpp dissolver alloys corrosion rate , alloy dissolvent temp , ° c . mils / month__________________________________________________________________________304 l stainless steel 6 . 8 -- m hno . sub . 3 -- 0 . 1 hbf . sub . 4 97 ° 18 . 1 , 15 . 4304 l stainless steel 0 . 8 -- m al ( no . sub . 3 ). sub . 3 -- 1 . 8 -- m hno . sub . 3 -- 0 . 2 -- m hbf . sub . 4 106 ° ( boil ) 1 . 9304 l stainless steel 1 . 2 -- m al ( no . sub . 3 ). sub . 3 -- 1 . 8 -- m hno . sub . 3 -- 0 . 2 -- m hbf . sub . 4 106 . 50 ° ( boil ) 0 . 5hastelloy c - 4 6 . 8 -- m hno . sub . 3 -- 0 . 1 -- m hbf . sub . 4 92 ° 18 . 9 , 18 . 9hastelloy c - 4 0 . 8 -- m al ( no . sub . 3 ). sub . 3 -- 3 . 0 -- m hno . sub . 3 -- 0 . 2 -- m hbf . sub . 4 106 ° ( boil ) 5 . 0hastelloy c - 4 1 . 2 -- m al ( no . sub . 3 ). sub . 3 -- 1 . 8 -- m hno . sub . 3 -- 0 . 2 -- m hbf . sub . 4 106 . 5 ° ( boil ) 1 . 8__________________________________________________________________________ these corrosion tests indicate that dilute nitric acid containing up to 0 . 2m hbf 4 is a viable , mercury - free dissolvent for aluminum alloy fuel reprocessing . the dissolver product would be compatible for flowsheets used with existing uranium extraction and waste processing facilities . while a preferred embodiment of the invention has been disclosed , various modes of carrying out the principles disclosed herein are contemplated as being within the scope of the following claims . therefore , it is understood that the scope of the invention is not to be limited except as otherwise set forth in the claims .	2

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