Split (3)

train · 25k rows

text stringlengths 1.55k 332k	label int64 0 8
referring particularly to fig7 the upper portion of a railway car body 10 is disclosed in section . a roof structure 11 includes outer corregated sheathing 12 fixedly secured to longitudinally extending support members or stringers 13 positioned in laterally spaced relation . the lower ends of the stringers 13 are connected to vertical body side walls generally designated at 14 . as shown in fig1 - 4 , the outer sheathing 15 is suitably connected to vertical post 17 of generally channel - shaped construction which are longitudinally spaced along the length of the railway car body portion 10 . an interior wall structure is generally designated by the reference character 16 . the vertical posts have connected thereto and co - extensive with the body a skin or inner wall sheathing designated at 18 . as best shown in fig3 & amp ; 4 , the vertical post 17 include flanges 19 . the sheathing 15 is connected to the other flanges . referring now particularly to fig7 the roof structure 11 may include electrical conduit and electrical equipment , etc ., designated generally at 20 . this equipment is , of course , recessed within the roof structure so as to be hidden from view when the interior of the car is finished . a central light panel 21 is suitably supported by a vertical support 22 , in turn connected to a downwardly extending angle bracket 23 . the vertical support 22 supports a plug 24 which in turn may be connected to the electrical equipment generally designated at 20 . a flexible extrusion or support member 25 is provided with grooves 26 which open downwardly outwardly and which include lighting elements 27 . the extrusion 25 also includes an upwardly extending flange 28 which is secured to the vertical support bracket 22 . the interior of the car is finished by the utilization of decorative panel members 29 consisting of relatively thin sheet plate 30 which is formed to conform to the contour of the car , i . e ., the roof structure and the side wall structure constituting the interior finish . the thin plate member 30 has bonded thereto decorative carpeting 31 which may also consist of other types of decorative material . as best shown in fig7 the panel 29 is supported at the left end within the recess 27 &# 39 ; provided in the extrusion 25 . the other end of the panel 29 disclosed in fig7 is supported , as best shown in fig9 by means of a flexible extrusion generally designated at 32 . the extrusion 32 comprises a base 33 having outwardly projecting extensions 34 suitably provided with openings through which self - threading screws 35 extend and are threaded into the inner skin or wall sheathing 18 provided in the roof structure . rigid extrusions 43 comprise base plates 38 to which the bulbous projections 40 are connected . the flexible extrusion 32 includes sockets or recesses 36 within which are secured bulbous projections 40 , having the same captured therein by means of inwardly projecting mechanism 37 located at the outer edges of the apertures or recesses 36 . as best shown in fig7 & amp ; 9 , the panel 29 is provided with a diagonally extending plate portion 41 and a peripheral edge or flange 42 . the carpeting and the flange 42 are retained by means of the extrusions 39 and 32 . another of the panels 29 of arcuate shape extends downwardly and is suitably connected to a flexible extrusion 43 provided with a recess 44 as best shown in fig8 . the extrusion 43 is suitably connected to a portion of one of the stringers 13 . a rivet type fastener 13 &# 39 ; suitably connects the extrusion 43 to the latter mentioned stringer . it is noted that the lower end of the panel 29 is retained in firm , fixed relation with respect to the recess 44 , in effect this providing for a snap action assembly . referring now particularly to fig8 the upper end of a decorative panel 29 is supported on another of the stringers 13 . a flexible extrusion 47 is supported on the stringer 13 and has connected thereto a rigid extrusion 43 &# 39 ;. the extrusion 43 &# 39 ; has a lower portion engaging the peripheral edge 42 of one of the panels 29 and for clamping the same into engagement with the stringer 13 . the rigid extrusion 43 &# 39 ; also is provided with a recess 44 &# 39 ; which may be utilized to either support other interior equipment or to act as a guide . the upper end of the rigid extrusion 43 &# 39 ; is provided with a recess 48 that engages the upper portion of a flexible extrusion 47 and is thereupon supported . an extruded bracket structure 49 is generally designated . the bracket structure 49 includes a rigid extrusion 50 which is securely connected by means of bolt and nut fasteners 51 to a vertical plate 52 suitably supported on the stringer structure . the bolt and nut fasteners 51 also extend through the rigid extrusion 43 &# 39 ; and flexible extrusion 47 supporting the same on a said stringer and also connecting with the vertical plate 52 . a light assembly 53 includes a hook bracket portion 54 which is engaged within a socket 55 on the rigid extrusion 50 for supporting the assembly 53 thereon . referring now particularly to fig1 - 4 a railway car body includes a floor 56 having suitable carpeting 57 thereon . an angle 58 connected to the floor 56 is in turn connected to a metal panel 59 which extends upwardly and outwardly . the lower end of panel 59 is provided with a curved portion 60 which is seated upon an end of the carpeting 57 . the metal panel 59 extends upwardly and is suitably connected to a channel - shaped longitudinally extending panel support 61 which is in turn connected to the inner flanges 19 of one or more of the vertical posts 17 . another panel support 62 is the downwardly extending flange of one of the longitudinally extending stringers 13 as best shown in fig1 - 4 . the panel support 62 includes a flexible extrusion 63 which is connected to the panel support 62 by means of a thread - cutting screw 64 . a flange 65 of a cap 66 is positioned atop of the upper end of the flexible extrusion 63 . the diagonally extending cap 66 is suitably connected to an angle 67 supported on the longitudinally extending stringer 13 . another thread - cutting screw 68 secures the flange 65 through the extrusion 63 to the panel support 62 of the stringer 13 . as shown in fig6 the extrusion 63 also includes a downwardly extending flexible flange 70 which engages the peripheral edge 42 of one of the panels 29 . the rigid extrusion 71 , as best shown in fig6 includes an enlarged or bulbous portion 72 which is in locking engagement with the recess 69 of the flexible extrusion 63 . snap - fit relation is provided by means of the restricted neck 73 on the extrusion 63 in the area of the recess 69 . the rigid extrusion 71 is also provided with a lower extension 71 &# 39 ; which clamps the peripheral edge 42 of the panel 29 into engagement with the flange 70 . as best shown in fig6 the extrusion 71 is also provided with a head portion 74 containing a horizontally extending recess 75 . the recess 75 is provided for the application of auxiliary equipment or pertinences provided in the interior of the railway passenger car . as best shown in fig1 - 4 and 5 , the lower end of the panel 29 is supported and connected to a flexible extrusion 76 which is connected to the panel support 61 by means of a thread - cutting screw 77 . the extrusion 76 also includes a recess 78 which may be utilized as a seat slide or may accommodate and support other pertinences and equipment within the interior of the car . the upper end of the extrusion 76 is provided with a recess 79 within which the peripheral edge 42 of one of the decorative panels 39 is retained as best shown in fig5 . the various structures of securing the panels in position with relation to the extrusions is clear from the drawings . during assembly of the panels the carpeting is bonded to each of the panels prior to its installation within the car . the various flexible extrusions are placed in the positions indicated , the same being attached to the structural interior members of the car by self - threading screws after drilling suitable holes . as best shown in fig1 - 4 , the side panels with the carpeting are positioned with their lower edges in engagement with the flexible extrusion 76 whereupon the same is then placed into the position shown in fig3 against the flange 70 . it is then a simple matter to merely attach the cap 66 onto the flexible extrusion 63 in the manner shown in fig3 whereupon the self - threading screws 68 are inserted into the panel support 62 of the stringer thus also effectively supporting the extrusion 63 in position . the assembler then merely assembles the rigid extrusion 71 by forcing the enlarged head portion 72 in the recess 69 provided to effectuate a snap - fit interengagement . thus the assembly is now complete and the panels are in position . in each instance the rigid extrusions also may be utilized for other purposes such as retention of brackets and supporting of interior equipment . in the connection of the roof panels fig7 and 9 disclose the assembled position wherein the ends of the panels are firmly supported in the flexible extrusions , which include the rigid extrusions 38 having their bulbous projections 37 in snap - fit engagement with the flexible extrusion 32 . fig8 discloses the attachment of the arcuate panels 29 at their lower ends which includes the interengagement of the peripheral edges 42 of the panels 29 with the recesses 44 of the flexible extrusion 43 . also , the bracket connections of the bracket structure 49 supports the lower extrusion 43 &# 39 ; and flexible extrusion 47 . thus , a novel construction of the interior of the car including decorative panels has been disclosed and that a unique method of assembling the decorative panels with the interior car construction is afforded .	1
all of the different fence constructions of the invention can be constructed employing the following elements , which will be described below in more detail : ( a ) a post / rail element which when used as a post is given the reference 10 , and when used as a rail is given the reference 12 ; ( c ) an l - shaped connecting bracket 16 for connecting posts 10 and rails 12 ; ( f ) a clip 22 used for fastening a panel element to a rail ; ( g ) an unslotted side closure element 24 for closing the gap in one side wall of the post elements 10 ; ( h ) a slotted closure element 26 for closing the gap in the lower side wall of an upper fence rail and for holding the upper end of a panel element ; ( i ) a slotted closure element 28 for closing the gap in the upper side wall of a lower fence rail and for holding the lower end of a panel element , and ( j ) various conventional fasteners that will be referred to as necessary . referring now especially to fig1 a fundamental part of any fence construction is of course the fence post , and in the constructions of this invention this is provided by an element 10 , which is used singly at the end of the fence , and in combination with another like post element at locations within the run of the fence . each such post is of hollow part - octahedral transverse cross - section consisting of a flat elongated base wall 30 , two flat elongated outwardly inclined intermediate walls 32 , each joined with a 45 ° junction to a respective edge of the base wall , two flat elongated side walls 34 , each joined with a 45 ° junction to a respective edge of the adjacent intermediate wall so that the side walls are parallel to one another , two flat elongated flange walls 36 each joined with a right angle junction to a respective edge of the side walls so that they are coplanar with one another , and two flat elongated spaced parallel returned walls 38 , each joined with a right angle junction to a respective edge of the adjacent flange wall . the spacing between the two returned walls is slightly greater than the width of the base wall 30 , but can be equal or slightly smaller . fig9 a illustrates the manner in which two of these elements are fastened together by bolt fasteners 40 through the two abutting base walls 30 to form a post interconnecting two straight runs of fencing . fig9 b shows a post providing a right angle junction with the fastener passing through two abutting intermediate walls 32 , while fig9 c and 9d show two different 45 ° junctions that are possible with one base wall 30 abutting an intermediate wall 32 . to form a rail - type boundary fence , such as that illustrated by fig7 at least two vertically - spaced transverse rails 12 are fastened at each end to the respective post element via the l - shaped brackets 16 , which are fastened to the post elements by bolts 42 , or by bolts 40 if available , and to the rails 12 by bolts and speed - nuts 44 . the relative positions of the fastening holes of the post elements and the brackets are made such that the upper bracket positioned as illustrated in fig1 the rail is below the tops of the posts , as in the structures of fig4 and 5 , while when positioned as illustrated in fig8 the rail is at the top of the post , as in the structures of fig6 and 7 . the top ends of the post elements are closed by the caps 14 which overlie the sheared metal edges and prevent entry of rain , etc . these caps are retained by the resilience of the post material which must be compressed slightly for the cap to be pushed thereon . referring now specifically to fig2 , 4 and 5 , the last two figures show a type of perimeter fence in which a plurality of panel elements 18 are fastened to top and bottom horizontal rails 12 . each panel element consists of a centrally - disposed flat elongated base wall 46 which abuts against the respective wall 34 of the rail and receives a metal tapping screw 48 , by which the panel is fastened to a plastic clip 22 . it will be seen that the clip has a hook portion 22a that engages over the ledge formed by the walls 36 and 38 of the rail , the dimensions being such that the panel is held tightly against the rail . the remainder of the panel is symmetrical about the base wall and consists of two narrow elongated first stiffening walls 50 having respective 90 ° elongated edge junctions with the base wall , two wider elongated outwardly - inclined intermediate walls 52 having respective approximately 90 ° elongated edge junctions with the first stiffening walls , two narrow elongated second stiffening walls 54 having respective approximately 90 ° elongated edge junctions with the walls 52 , two wider elongated coplanar intermediate walls 56 having respective 90 ° elongated edge junctions with the stiffening walls 54 , and two elongated inwardly - inclined end walls 58 having respective elongated edge junctions with the coplanar walls 56 . the four spaced parallel stiffening walls 50 and 54 disposed adjacent the centre provide additional strength at the locations at which this is required to prevent buckling when the panel is under extreme load . the free edges of the walls 58 are returned to provide additional strength and rigidity , to hide the exposed edges and avoid possible damage to the public . the panel is shaped so that before installation these returned edges lie beyond the plane of the base wall 46 , so that their engagement with the surface of the rail member as the screw 48 is tightened stresses the panel member against the rail to prevent rattling . the top end of each panel is in this fence construction provided with a snap - on end cap 20 to prevent damage to the panel end and also to the public . each panel cap has on its interior surface two spigots 60 which snap into corresponding recesses 62 in the panel end . the open faces of the posts may be closed by the plastic closure member 24 , which has parallel side walls 64 adapted to fit closely between the parallel returned walls 38 , and an end wall 66 that rests against the outside surface of the two post flange walls 36 . the two side walls are provided with respective longitudinal ridges 68 which can engage behind the free edges of walls 38 to retain the closure member securely in place . in the fence construction of fig4 the vertical panels are relatively widely spaced , while in the construction of fig5 the spaces between adjacent panels on one side of the rails are closed by respective panels on the other side of the rails . in the privacy fence construction of fig6 the rails are mounted at their maximum distance apart permitted by the positioning of the brackets 16 , and the ends of the panels 18 are engaged in the slot in the respective rail . this requires an upper rail closure member 26 and a lower rail closure member 28 , which are seen in fig8 . it will be seen that the closure member 26 is essentially similar to the closure member 24 , except that the wall 66 is provided with a punched - out slot corresponding to the profile of the panel 18 , so that the panel end is held firmly . similar parts of the bottom rail closure member 26 are given the same reference number , and it will be seen that it includes at the inside surfaces of the side walls 64 two inwardly extending coplanar flanges 70 on which the respective panel bottom edge rests to space it from the inside surface of the rail wall 30 . preferably each portion of closure 26 or 28 receives only a single panel , so that they can be employed to space and locate the panels along the length of the fence construction . moreover the panels can easily be reversed so that alternate panels face in opposite directions if desired . it will be seen that the top closure member only spaces the respective panel and retains it horizontally while the bottom closure member retains it both vertically and horizontally . since the bottom edge of the panel rests on a plastic ledge water entrapment along the rail is prevented and any that enters the rail can drain to the ends and out . the closure members 26 and 28 can also be used in the posts to hold panels 18 horizontally , as illustrated by the fence construction of fig7 . it will be seen that both the post / rail members and the panel members can readily be produced by continuous roll - forming from sheet metal to which protective and / or decorative coatings have previously been applied , the continuous strips thus formed then being cut to the required lengths and provided with the punched - out apertures , etc . that are required . the gate construction of fig1 employs two upright posts 10 and two horizontal rails 12 of the required length , connected together by means of a rigid integral rectangular frame 72 fitting closely against the inside surfaces of the respective base walls 30 ; the posts being connected thereto by bolts 74 and the rails by bolts 76 . the rectangular gate space between the rails and posts is closed by the required number of vertically - disposed panels 18 . two other vertical posts 10 respectively carry the hinges 78 and latch 80 for the gate .	4
the present invention is explained in detail in the following by showing the definition and the like of the symbols , terms and the like used in the present specification . the present invention comprises a step of adding reaction mixture 1 comprising compound 2 , an organic base and a solvent to reaction mixture 2 comprising a phosphorylating agent and a solvent ( step a ), and a step of mixing a solution of a mixture of reaction mixture 1 and reaction mixture 2 and an inorganic base ( step b ). in step a , reaction mixture 1 comprising compound 2 , an organic base and a solvent is added to reaction mixture 2 comprising a phosphorylating agent and a solvent . a solvent to be used for the reaction mixture 1 is not particularly limited as long as it dissolves compound 2 and an organic base , and does not inhibit the reactions to be performed thereafter . examples of such solvent include tetrahydrofuran , dimethoxyethane , t - butyl methyl ether , 2 - methyltetrahydrofuran , toluene , heptane , and ethyl acetate , preferably , tetrahydrofuran . the amount of the solvent to be used for reaction mixture 1 is 5 - 20 ml , preferably 8 - 12 ml , per mass 1 g of compound 2 . the water content of reaction mixture 1 is preferably less than 0 . 5 %, more preferably less than 0 . 1 %. the water content of reaction mixture 1 can be measured , for example , by the karl fischer method . when the water content of reaction mixture 1 is within the above - mentioned range , compound 1 can be obtained at a higher yield . when the water content of reaction mixture 1 is higher than the above - mentioned range , the water content can be lowered by repeating an azeotropic distillation operation with toluene , tetrahydrofuran and the like . preferred is tetrahydrofuran since it can dissolve reagents used in step a . the organic base to be used for reaction mixture 1 is not particularly limited as long as it is an organic base generally used in the field of organic chemistry . as such organic base , preferred is trialkylamine and particularly preferred is triethylamine . the number of moles of the organic base to be used for step a is not less than 1 equivalent , preferably 1 - 8 equivalents , more preferably 1 . 5 - 5 equivalents , based on the number of moles of compound 2 as 1 equivalent . the temperature of reaction mixture 1 is preferably 10 - 40 ° c ., more preferably 20 - 30 ° c . a solvent to be used for the reaction mixture 2 is not particularly limited as long as it dissolves phosphorylating agents , and does not inhibit the reactions to be performed thereafter . examples of such solvent include tetrahydrofuran , dimethoxyethane , t - butyl methyl ether , 2 - methyltetrahydrofuran , toluene , heptane , and ethyl acetate , preferably , tetrahydrofuran . the phosphorylating agent is not particularly limited as long as it phosphorylates compound 2 to give compound 1 . examples of such phosphorylating agent include phosphoric acid halides such as phosphoric acid chloride , phosphoric acid bromide and the like ; bis ( dimethylamino ) phosphoryl chloride , and bis ( diethylamino ) phosphoryl chloride . the phosphorylating agent is preferably phosphoric acid chloride , more preferably phosphoryl chloride . the number of moles of the phosphorylating agent to be used for step a is not less than 1 equivalent , preferably 1 - 8 equivalents , more preferably 1 . 5 - 5 equivalents , based on the number of moles of compound 2 as 1 equivalent . the temperature of reaction mixture 2 in use is preferably not more than 0 ° c ., more preferably − 15 to − 10 ° c . in such temperature range , generation of impurity tends to be suppressed more , which is preferable from the aspects of the control of reaction temperature and economic efficiency . step a is performed by adding reaction mixture 1 to reaction mixture 2 . for the addition of reaction mixture 1 , an apparatus for adding small amounts such as a syringe pump , a dropping funnel and the like is used , whereby a desired reaction with less generation of impurity such as dimer and the like can be achieved . the reaction time is preferably 5 min - 5 hr , more preferably 15 min - 1 hr , after completion of the addition of reaction mixture 1 to reaction mixture 2 . step b comprises a step of mixing a solution of a mixture of reaction mixture 1 and reaction mixture 2 and an inorganic base ( step b1 ), a step of washing the solution obtained in step b1 ( mixture 1 ) with an organic solvent ( step b2 ), and a step of adding an acid to mixture 2 obtained after the above - mentioned washing to precipitate compound 1 ( step b3 ). in step b1 , a solution of a mixture of reaction mixture 1 and reaction mixture 2 is mixed with an inorganic base . the inorganic base to be used in step b1 is not particularly limited as long as it decomposes the phosphorylating agent remained in step a . examples of such inorganic base include sodium hydroxide , potassium hydroxide , sodium hydrogen carbonate , and sodium carbonate , preferably sodium hydroxide . when the inorganic base is sodium hydroxide , foaming during decomposition of the phosphorylating agent can be suppressed . the inorganic base to be used in step b1 is preferably used in the form of reaction mixture 3 comprising the inorganic base and water . using the inorganic base in the form of reaction mixture 3 , heat generation associated with the decomposition of the phosphorylating agent can be suppressed , uniform mixing can be performed , and the remainig phosphorylating agent can be decomposed more efficiently . moreover , the method of adding mixture 1 to reaction mixture 3 can further suppress generation of impurities such as dimer and the like , and compound 1 can be obtained at higher purity and yield . the temperature of mixture 1 when mixture 1 is mixed with an inorganic base is preferably not more than 15 ° c ., more preferably 5 - 10 ° c . the amount of an inorganic base to be used in step b1 is not particularly limited as long as it can decompose the phosphorylating agent remained in the reaction mixture in step a . the amount of such inorganic base is preferably 1 - 20 equivalents , more preferably 1 - 10 equivalents , based on the number of moles of the phosphorylating agent as 1 equivalent . in step b2 , mixture 1 is washed with an organic solvent . the organic solvent used for washing in step b2 is not particularly limited as long as it is an organic solvent that does not react with compound 1 . such organic solvent is preferably ethyl acetate . dimers can be removed more efficiently by washing with ethyl acetate . in step b3 , an acid is added to mixture 2 , obtained after step b2 , to precipitate compound 1 . mixture 2 may be diluted with an organic solvent before addition of an acid to mixture 2 . as such organic solvent , ethanol can be mentioned . the amount of such organic solvent can be appropriately adjusted to prevent a decrease in the precipitation rate of compound 1 . an acid to be added to mixture 2 is not particularly limited as long as it releases proton . examples of such acid include hydrochloric acid and sulfuric acid , preferably hydrochloric acid . in step b3 , mixture 2 is preferably agitated during addition of an acid to mixture 2 . by agitating mixture 2 , the acid can be diffused more uniformly , and precipitation of compound 1 in a bulky state can be suppressed . compound 1 can be obtained in step b3 by collecting the precipitate by filtration and drying same . compound 1 may be dried by heating under reduced pressure or with a hot air . one embodiment of the present invention may include a step of reacting n - benzyloxycarbonyl - l - alanine , carbonyl diimidazole with n - methoxy - n - methylamine hydrochloride ( step c ), a step of reacting ( s )- benzyl 1 -( methoxy ( methyl ) amino )- 1 - oxopropan - 2 - ylcarbamate with sodium bis ( 2 - methoxyethoxy ) aluminum hydride ( step d ), a step of reacting ( s )- benzyl 1 - oxopropan - 2 - ylcarbamate with triethyl orthoformate ( step e ), or a step of obtaining 2 -( 2 -( benzylcarbamoyl )- 1 - methylhydrazinyl ) acetic acid by a one - pot reaction using ethyl bromoacetate , monomethylhydrazine and benzyl isocyanate as starting materials ( step f ). when steps c - f are included , a decrease in the optical purity tends to be suppressed , the amounts of reagents and solvents to be used can be reduced as the number of steps decreases , and an economically advantageous method can be afforded . steps c - f are explained below . in step c , n - benzyloxycarbonyl - l - alanine , carbonyl diimidazole and n - methoxy - n - methylamine hydrochloride are reacted . according to step c , ( s )- benzyl 1 -( methoxy ( methyl ) amino )- 1 - oxopropan - 2 - ylcarbamate can be obtained at a high yield by using an industrially practical reagent , carbonyl diimidazole . step c can be performed in a solvent or without solvent , wherein organic solvents are not particularly limited as long as they do not influence the reaction . examples of such solvent include acetonitrile , tetrahydrofuran , dimethoxyethane , t - butyl methyl ether , 2 - methyltetrahydrofuran , toluene , heptane , and ethyl acetate , preferably acetonitrile . the reaction temperature in step c is preferably 0 - 30 ° c ., more preferably 20 - 25 ° c . in step d , ( s )- benzyl 1 -( methoxy ( methyl ) amino )- 1 - oxopropan - 2 - ylcarbamate is reacted with sodium bis ( 2 - methoxyethoxy ) aluminum hydride . according to step d , ( s )- benzyl 1 - oxopropan - 2 - ylcarbamate can be obtained using an industrially practical reagent , sodium bis ( 2 - methoxyethoxy ) aluminum hydride , and a decrease in the optical purity can be suppressed further . the solvents to be used in step d are not particularly limited as long as they are organic solvents that do not influence the reaction . examples of such solvent include diisopropyl ether , and tetrahydrofuran , preferably tetrahydrofuran . the reaction temperature in step d is preferably − 40 to 0 ° c ., more preferably − 25 to − 10 ° c . according to step e , ( s )- benzyl 1 , 1 - diethoxypropan - 2 - ylcarbamate can be obtained at a high yield , and a decrease in the optical purity of ( s )- benzyl 1 , 1 - diethoxypropan - 2 - ylcarbamate obtained in step e can be suppressed further . in step e , an acid catalyst is preferably added . such acid catalyst is preferably an acid having a proton , more preferably an acid addition salt such as tertiary amine , pyridine and the like . examples of the acid addition salt of tertiary amine , pyridine and the like include pyridinium p - toluenesulfonate . when the acid catalyst is an acid addition salt of tertiary amine , pyridine and the like , a decrease in the optical purity of ( s )- benzyl 1 , 1 - diethoxypropan - 2 - ylcarbamate obtained in step e can be further suppressed . the amount of the acid catalyst to be used in step e is 0 . 3 - 0 . 01 equivalent , preferably 0 . 1 - 0 . 03 equivalent , based on the number of moles of ( s )- benzyl 1 - oxopropan - 2 - ylcarbamate as 1 equivalent . the reaction temperature in step e is preferably 0 - 30 ° c ., more preferably 15 - 25 ° c . in such temperature range , a decrease in the optical purity of ( s )- benzyl 1 , 1 - diethoxypropan - 2 - ylcarbamate obtained in step e tends to be further suppressed . in step f , 2 -( 2 -( benzylcarbamoyl )- 1 - methylhydrazinyl ) acetic acid is obtained by a one - pot reaction using ethyl bromoacetate , monomethylhydrazine and benzyl isocyanate as starting materials . according to step f , ethyl bromoacetate is reacted with methylhydrazine . after that benzyl isocyanate is added to the obtained reaction mixture , and the mixture is further hydrolyzed to give 2 -( 2 -( benzylcarbamoyl )- 1 - methylhydrazinyl ) acetic acid at a high yield without purification in middle of a step . production by one - pot reaction can reduce the necessary amount of a solvent to be used for each reaction and purification . therefore , step f is preferable from the aspects of the reduction of environmental burden and cost . when production by one - pot reaction is possible , particularly , reagents , solvents and the like necessary for purification in each step of a conventional method are no longer necessary , and 2 -( 2 -( benzylcarbamoyl )- 1 - methylhydrazinyl ) acetic acid can be efficiently produced in a shorter time . while the examples of the present invention are described in detail in the following , the examples are not limitative . in addition , “ eq ” appearing in the examples shows the number of moles ( mol ) used per 1 mol of component indicated as “ 1 eq ”, and “ vol ” shows the volume ( ml ) used per 1 g of component indicated as “ 1 eq ”. the optical purity is indicated as enantiomeric excess (% ee ). anhydride of compound 2 ( 10 . 2 g , 1 eq .) described in wo 2009 / 148192 was placed in a eggplant - shaped flask 1 , tetrahydrofuran ( 70 ml , 7 vol ) and triethylamine ( 9 . 6 ml , 4 . 0 eq ) were added at room temperature , and the obtained mixture was stirred ( hereinafter to be referred to as reaction mixture 1 ). after stirring , the water content of reaction mixture 1 was measured by the karl fischer method to confirm that the water content was less than 500 ppm . tetrahydrofuran ( 80 ml , 8 vol ) was placed in a different eggplant - shaped flask 2 , cooled to − 15 ° c ., and phosphoryl chloride ( 3 . 2 ml , 2 . 0 eq ) was added to give a mixture ( hereinafter to be referred to as reaction mixture 2 ). using a syringe pump , reaction mixture 1 was added dropwise to the eggplant - shaped flask containing reaction mixture 2 over 70 min while maintaining the inside temperature at − 17 . 1 to − 16 . 3 ° c . the eggplant - shaped flask containing reaction mixture 1 was washed with tetrahydrofuran ( 5 ml , 0 . 5 vol ), and the washing was added to eggplant - shaped flask 2 . after stirring for 35 min , cease of the reaction was confirmed by hplc . 5n aqueous sodium hydroxide solution ( 25 . 4 ml , 7 . 35 eq ) and water ( 224 . 6 ml , 22 . 5 vol ) were placed in eggplant - shaped flask 3 , and cooled with ice water ( hereinafter to be referred to as reaction mixture 3 ). a mixture of reaction mixture 1 and reaction mixture 2 in eggplant - shaped flask 2 was added dropwise to reaction mixture 3 by using a teflon cannula over 5 min while maintaining the inside temperature at 3 . 6 - 12 . 2 ° c . after completion of the dropwise addition , the mixture was stirred at outer temperature 6 ° c . for 65 hr , and the reaction mixture was warmed to room temperature . water ( 27 . 5 ml , 2 . 75 vol ) was added to completely dissolve an inorganic salt ( ph = 9 . 7 , liquid amount 435 ml , 43 . 5 vol ). ethyl acetate ( 100 ml , 10 vol ) was added to the obtained solution ( about 20 % of the solution was used in reference example 8 to prepare crystal of compound 1 hydrate ( seed crystal ), and the rest of the solution was used ) and the mixture was shaken in a separtion funnel , stood and the top layer was discarded . this operation was repeated 4 times to give aqueous solution containing compound 1 ( liquid amount 274 ml , 27 . 4 vol ). ethanol ( 65 ml , 6 . 84 vol ) was added to an aqueous solution containing compound 1 ( 260 ml , corresponding to 9 . 5 g of compound 2 ) ( ph = 8 . 0 ). 37 mass % hydrochloric acid ( total amount 3 . 14 ml , 0 . 33 vol ) was slowly added dropwise to the obtained solution while cooling with a coolant at 20 ° c ., then hydrate of compound 1 ( 111 . 35 mg ) obtained in the below - mentioned reference example 8 was added thereto . after confirming an increase in the precipitate , the mixture was further stirred for about 20 min . thereafter , the mixture was further acidified ( ph = 4 . 0 ) with 37 mass % hydrochloric acid ( 0 . 29 ml , 0 . 03 vol ), gradually cooled to an inside temperature of − 15 ° c . over 5 hr , and the mixture was stirred for 11 hr . the mother liquor was heated to around 20 ° c ., 37 mass % hydrochloric acid ( 2 . 28 ml , 0 . 24 vol ) was added ( ph = 2 . 3 ), and the mixture was gradually cooled to an inside temperature of − 10 ° c . over for 4 hr , and stirred for about 15 hr . the matured mother liquor was suction filtered , and the obtained precipitate was washed with cold water — ethanol ( volume ratio 8 : 2 , 28 . 5 ml , 3 vol ), cold water ( 47 . 5 ml , 5 vol ), cold water — ethanol ( volume ratio 8 : 2 , 28 . 5 ml , 3 vol ) in this order . thereafter , the precipitate was dried under reduced pressure at 45 ° c . for about 8 hr to give hydrate of compound 1 ( yield 9 . 4 g , 87 %, converted to yield of compound 1 ). 1 h - nmr ( 600 mhz , methanol - d 4 ) δ ( ppm ): 1 . 15 ( d , j = 6 hz , 3h ), 2 . 65 ( s , 3h ), 3 . 12 ( d , j = 18 hz , 1h ), 3 . 35 ( d , j = 7 hz , 2h ), 3 . 48 ( d , j = 18 hz , 1h ), 4 . 15 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 32 ( d , j = 15 hz , 1h ), 4 . 40 ( d , j = 15 hz , 1h ), 5 . 33 ( d , j = 16 hz , 1h ), 5 . 41 ( d , j = 16 hz , 1h ), 5 . 44 ( d , j = 7 hz , 1h ), 5 . 64 ( d , j = 10 hz , 1h ), 7 . 07 ( dd , j = 9 , 1 hz , 2h ), 7 . 15 ( d , j = 9 hz , 2h ), 7 . 24 ( t , j = 7 hz , 1h ), 7 . 27 ( d , j = 7 hz , 2h ), 7 . 34 ( t , j = 8 hz , 2h ), 7 . 55 ( dd , j = 8 , 4 hz , 1h ), 7 . 60 ( brd , j = 6 hz , 1h ), 7 . 62 ( dd , j = 8 , 7 hz , 1h ), 7 . 88 ( dd , j = 8 , 1 hz , 1h ), 8 . 38 ( dd , j = 8 , 2 hz , 1h ), 8 . 90 ( dd , j = 4 , 2 hz , 1h ). according to the production method of example 1 , generation of impurity could be suppressed , and the yield was 87 % which was higher than the yield ( 60 %) described in example 1 - 7 of patent document 1 . in addition , the production method of example 1 can produce compound 1 in a larger amount than by the production method described in patent document 1 . n - benzyloxycarbonyl - l - alanine ( 9 . 8 g , 43 . 9 mmol ), n - methoxy - n - methylamine hydrochloride ( 1 . 1 eq ), 1 - ethyl - 3 -( 3 - dimethylaminopropyl ) carbodiimide hydrochloride ( 10 g , 1 . 2 eq ) and n , n - dimethyl - 4 - aminopyridine ( 0 . 53 g , 0 . 1 eq ) were dissolved in n , n - dimethylformamide ( 100 ml , 10 vol ), and n , n - diisopropylethylamine ( 23 ml , 3 eq ) was added dropwise at room temperature over 30 min . after stirring for 5 hr , 2n hydrochloric acid ( 200 ml ) was added to the reaction mixture , and the mixture was extracted with ethyl acetate ( 200 ml ). the extract was washed with 1n aqueous sodium hydroxide solution ( 200 ml ) to remove unreacted starting materials . the obtained organic layer was washed with saturated brine , and dried over anhydrous magnesium sulfate . the solvent was evaporated under reduced pressure , and the obtained oil was crystallized from methyl t - butyl ether ( 20 ml ) and n - heptane ( 100 ml ). the obtained crystals were collected by filtration , washed with n - heptane ( 20 ml ), dried under reduced pressure to give the title compound as a white solid ( yield 4 . 74 g , 41 %). n - benzyloxycarbonyl - l - alanine ( 5 . 0 g , 22 . 4 mmol , 1 eq ) was dissolved in acetonitrile ( 50 ml , 10 vol ), and carbonyl diimidazole ( 2 . 4 g , 1 . 1 eq ) in a powder form was added over several min while stirring the mixture at room temperature . after stirring for 30 min , n - methoxy - n - methylamine hydrochloride ( 1 . 1 eq ) in a powder form was added over several min . after 1 . 5 hr , 1n hydrochloric acid ( 50 ml ) was added to the reaction mixture , and the mixture was extracted with ethyl acetate ( 50 ml ). the organic layer was washed with aqueous sodium hydrogen carbonate solution - brine ( 50 ml ), and dried over anhydrous magnesium sulfate . the solvent was evaporated under reduced pressure , ethyl acetate ( 10 ml ) was added to the obtained solid and dissolved at 60 ° c . and crystallized from n - heptane ( 50 ml ) at room temperature . the obtained crystals were collected by filtration , washed with n - heptane ( 20 ml ), dried under reduced pressure to give the title compound as a white solid ( yield 5 . 22 g , 88 %). to a solution of n - benzyloxycarbonyl - l - alanine ( 100 g , 1 eq ) in acetonitrile ( 3 vol ) was added dropwise at 15 ° c . a suspension of carbonyl diimidazole ( 80 g , 1 . 1 eq ) in acetonitrile ( 7 vol ) over 15 min . ( foaming was observed , and the reaction temperature rose by about 4 ° c . insoluble material was precipitated at 10 min after dropwise addition .) after stirring for 15 min , n - methoxy - n - methylamine hydrochloride ( 48 g , 1 . 1 eq ) in a powder form was added over 5 min ( heat generation was somewhat observed immediately after addition ). after stirring at room temperature for 30 min , disappearance of starting materials was confirmed by tlc . in hydrochloric acid ( 1000 ml ) was added to the reaction mixture , and the mixture was extracted with ethyl acetate ( once with 500 ml , once with 300 ml ). the extracted layer was washed with sodium hydrogen carbonate - brine ( 300 ml ) and water ( 300 ml ), the obtained organic layer was concentrated under reduced pressure and azeotropically distilled with dehydrating with ethanol to give the object crude product ( 150 g ). the obtained crude product was dissolved in ethyl acetate ( 150 ml ) at 60 ° c ., crystallized from n - heptane ( 600 ml ) with stirring , and the precipitated solid was collected by filtration to give the title compound ( yield 94 . 6 g , 80 %) as primary crystals . the title compound ( yield 18 . 7 g , 15 . 7 %) was obtained as secondary crystals from the mother liquor . the purity and optical purity of the primary crystals and secondary crystals were measured by hplc to find the purity of & gt ; 99 . 5 % for the both and the optical purity of almost 100 % ee for the both . the total yield of the primary crystals and the secondary crystals was 113 . 3 g , 95 . 2 %. synthesis of ( s )- benzyl 1 , 1 - diethoxypropan - 2 - ylcarbamate ( s )- benzyl 1 -( methoxy ( methyl ) amino )- 1 - oxopropan - 2 - ylcarbamate ( 5 . 0 g , 18 . 8 mmol ) was dissolved in tetrahydrofuran ( 50 ml , 10 vol ), and sodium bis ( 2 - methoxyethoxy ) aluminum hydride 70 % toluene solution ( 6 . 8 ml , 1 . 6 eq ) was added dropwise at − 10 ° c . with stirring over 30 min . after stirring for 30 min , 2n hydrochloric acid ( 100 ml ) was added dropwise over 15 min , and the mixture was stirred at room temperature for 30 min . the reaction mixture was extracted with ethyl acetate ( 50 ml ), and the organic layer was washed with 5 % aqueous sodium hydrogen carbonate solution ( 50 ml )- water ( 50 ml ). the solvent was evaporated under reduced pressure to give ( s )- benzyl 1 - oxopropan - 2 - ylcarbamate ( 3 . 82 g ) as a crude product . ethanol ( 25 ml ), triethyl orthoformate ( 2 eq ), and pyridinium p - toluenesulfonate ( 0 . 1 eq ) were added to the residue and the mixture was stirred at room temperature for 18 hr . to the reaction mixture was added 5 % aqueous sodium hydrogen carbonate solution ( 50 ml ) and the mixture was extracted with n - heptane ( 50 ml , twice ). the combined organic layer was washed with water , and the solvent was evaporated under reduced pressure ( water was azeotropically distilled with toluene ) to give the title compound as a colorless oil ( yield 4 . 42 g , 84 %, optical purity 99 . 6 % ee ). ( s )- benzyl 1 -( methoxy ( methyl ) amino )- 1 - oxopropan - 2 - ylcarbamate ( 90 g , 0 . 338 mol ) was dissolved in tetrahydrofuran ( 5 . 5 vol ), and sodium bis ( 2 - methoxyethoxy ) aluminum hydride ( 127 g , 1 . 3 eq ) was added dropwise at - 20 ° c . over 30 min while maintaining the inside temperature at not more than − 5 ° c . after dropwise addition , the mixture was stirred at − 20 ° c . for 30 min and disappearance of starting materials was confirmed by tlc . 5n hydrochloric acid ( 500 ml ) was stirred at − 20 ° c . and the reaction mixture was added dropwise thereto over 40 min . the reaction mixture was partitioned , and the aqueous layer was extracted with ethyl acetate ( 5 . 5 vol ) and combined with the organic layer . the mixture was washed with 5 % aqueous sodium hydrogen carbonate solution ( 4 vol ) and water ( 4 vol ) and the solvent was evaporated under reduced pressure . water was azeotropically distilled with ethanol to give ( s )- benzyl 1 - oxopropan - 2 - ylcarbamate ( 76 g ) as a crude product . ethanol ( 5 vol ), triethyl orthoformate ( 112 ml , 2 eq ), and pyridinium p - toluenesulfonate ( 4 . 2 g , 0 . 05 eq ) were added to the residue and the mixture was stirred for 2 days for acetalization . the reaction mixture was partitioned by adding n - heptane ( 5 vol ) and 5 % aqueous sodium hydrogen carbonate solution ( 5 vol ) and the aqueous layer was extracted with n - heptane ( 5 vol , twice ). the combined organic layer was washed with water ( 5 vol ) and the solvent was evaporated under reduced pressure ( water and excess triethyl orthoformate were azeotropically distilled with toluene ) to give the title compound ( yield 84 g , 88 %, optical purity 99 . 8 % ee ). ( s )- benzyl 1 , 1 - diethoxypropan - 2 - ylcarbamate ( 65 g , 0 . 231 mol ) was dissolved in ethanol ( 130 ml , 2 vol ), 10 % pd / c ( 6 . 5 g , 50 % wet ) was added , and catalytic reduction was performed for 12 hr under 0 . 35 mpa hydrogen . the catalyst was filtered , and the filtrate was distilled using vigreux rectifying column under the following conditions . nmr and gc of the compound obtained as the main distillate ( yield 28 . 1 g , 83 %) were measured to confirm that it was the title compound . middle distillate : 60 ° c ./ 15 mmhg ( heating temperature : 85 ° c .) 1 . 84 g main distillate : 60 ° c ./ 15 mmhg ( heating temperature : 85 ° c .) 28 . 1 g ethyl bromoacetate ( 32 . 7 g , 0 . 9 eq ) was dissolved in tetrahydrofuran ( 180 ml ), and a solution of monomethylhydrazine ( 10 g , 1 eq ) and triethylamine ( 20 . 9 g , 0 . 95 eq ) in water ( 25 ml )- ethanol ( 50 ml ) was added dropwise at − 20 ° c . with stirring over 35 min while maintaining the inside temperature at not more than − 4 . 6 ° c . after stirring for 90 min , the disappearance of monomethylhydrazine was confirmed , and benzylisocyanate ( 27 . 4 g , 0 . 95 eq ) was added dropwise over 40 min while maintaining the inside temperature at not more than − 1 . 8 ° c . the mixture was stirred for 90 min , and production of ethyl 2 -( 2 -( benzylcarbamoyl )- 1 - methylhydrazinyl ) acetate was confirmed . successively , 5n aqueous sodium hydroxide solution ( 130 ml ) was added dropwise to the reaction mixture . after completion of the dropwise addition , the mixture was stirred at 20 ° c . for 14 hr , and disappearance of ethyl 2 -( 2 -( benzylcarbamoyl )- 1 - methylhydrazinyl ) acetate was confirmed . the reaction mixture was washed with isopropyl acetate ( 250 ml , 4 times ) and methyl t - butyl ether ( 250 ml ). the aqueous layer was acidified ( ph = 2 . 5 ) with 5n hydrochloric acid ( 84 ml ), and a seed crystal ( 100 mg ) was added . after stirring at 5 ° c . for 23 hr , the mixture was filtered , washed with cold ethanol ( 25 ml )- water ( 75 ml ), and dried under reduced pressure at 50 ° c . for 4 hr to give the title compound as a white solid ( 31 . 7 g ) ( yield with monomethylhydrazine as standard : 61 . 6 %, yield with ethyl bromoacetate as standard : 68 . 5 %). to compound 1 ( 149 . 72 mg ) described in wo 2009 / 148192 was added 4 . 0 ml of ethanol / water mixed solution ( volume ratio 1 : 1 ) and the mixture was stirred with heating and completely dissolved at about 93 ° c . the mixture was allowed to slowly cool to room temperature , and precipitation of a solid was confirmed . the precipitate was collected by filtration through a glass filter , washed with heptane , and air dried at 60 ° c . to give the title compound ( yield 111 . 35 mg ) as a white solid .	2
fig1 includes , in a triaxial reference system x , y , z , a biosensor 1 . the biosensor 1 comprises a first structural layer 2 of photosensitive hydrogel ; a second structural layer 4 , of photosensitive hydrogel , which extends over the first structural layer 2 ; and a sensing region 6 , including a matrix of photosensitive hydrogel dispersed in which are bio - recognition elements , in particular enzymes such as gox ( glucose oxidase ) and lox ( lactate oxidase ). the second structural layer 4 has a through opening 8 in the sensing region 6 such that the sensing region 6 is , at least partially , exposed towards the outer environment through the through opening 8 . a working electrical terminal 10 is arranged in electrical contact with the sensing region 6 . whereas a counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 is arranged on the first layer 2 ( or , in part , in the first layer 2 ), alongside the sensing region 6 , and not in direct electrical contact with the sensing region 6 . a reference electrical terminal 14 extends over the first layer 2 ( or , in part , in the first layer 2 ), alongside the sensing region 6 , and not in direct electrical contact with the sensing region 6 . in particular , the sensing region 6 extends , in top plan view in the plane xy , between the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 and the reference electrical terminal 14 . the working electrical terminal 10 , the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 and the reference electrical terminal 14 are made of conductive material , such as , for example , an inert metal chosen from gold , silver , platinum , conductive polymers , and carbon . the reference electrode 14 may likewise be made of silver chloride , agcl . the biosensor 1 provides , in practice , an electrochemical cell with three electrodes . hydrogels , which are typical in the state of the art , are particularly attractive for manufacture of biochemical sensors since they are constituted by polymeric chains of hydrophilic molecules that form an excellent matrix for encapsulating functional enzymes , cells , and other biological material . in particular , the environmental conditions within the hydrogel are ideal for minimizing denaturation of the biological elements dispersed therein , favoring functionality thereof . the photosensitive hydrogel used for forming the first structural layer 2 , the second structural layer 4 , and the sensing region 6 includes hydrophilic polymers that comprise polymeric chains cross - linked with one another with both covalent bonds and non - covalent bonds . their monomers or pre - polymers are soluble in water , whereas the polymers are insoluble in water at physiological temperature , ph , and ionic force . the water content (% h 2 o ) is defined as % h 2 o = 100 . ( swollen - polymer weight / dry - polymer weight )/( swollen - polymer weight ). the polymers may have a molecular weight in the range of 500 - 200000 dalton , and their properties including viscosity , softening point , and degradation temperature are optimized according to the specific application . the first structural layer 2 , the second structural layer 4 , and the sensing region 6 may comprise : monomers , oligomers , or pre - polymers ( the molecular weight of pre - polymers controls the mechanical properties and viscosity ), or binders that regulate the mechanical properties of the mixture ( adhesion , etc . ); one or more solvents that further control the mechanical properties , such as for example the viscosity of the mixture ; and photo - active compounds ( pacs ) or photo - inhibitors ( phis ). according to one embodiment of the present disclosure , the hydrogel of the first structural layer 2 , of the second structural layer 4 , and of the sensing region 6 functions like a negative photoresist used in photolithographic processes , so that controlled ultraviolet ( uv ) irradiation of a portion of the second structural layer 4 and of the sensing region 6 causes polymerization of just the irradiated regions , enabling removal of the non - irradiated regions by development in water . in this case , thus , the hydrogel contains monomers or oligomers or precursor pre - polymers , and by exposure to incident uv radiation , for example , undergoes a reaction of photo - polymerization and / or photo - cross - linking . photo - cross - linking of the layers involved determines an increase of their molecular weight , which causes an advantageous reduction of the solubility of the layers in water . examples of hydrogels made up of simple monomers or mixtures of different monomers , which may be used according to the present disclosure , are : in the rest of the description , reference will be made to peg - da without this implying any loss of generality . fig2 - 11 show , in lateral view in the plane xz , successive steps of manufacture the biosensor 1 of fig1 , according to one aspect of the present disclosure . a substrate 20 is first prepared ( fig2 ), for example of glass , or silicon , or plastic material ( e . g ., polyethylene terephthalate , polyethylene terephthalate ( pet ), polyethylene naphthalate , polyethylene naphthalate ( pen ), polyether ether ketone , polyether ether ketone ( peek )). then ( fig3 ), a first photo - definible hydrogel layer 22 is formed on the substrate 20 , as described in what follows . a pre - polymeric mixture is prepared by adding a peg - da photo - initiator , in a percentage of 2 - 3 % v / v . any photo - initiator , with the capacity of absorbing uv radiation and undergoing photoreaction , producing reactive species , radicals that polymerize , and constituents of the pre - polymeric mixture is suited for the purpose . in particular , 2 - hydroxy - 2 - methyl - 1 - phenylpropan - 1 - one , also commercially known as darocur ™ is used as photo - initiator . the pre - polymeric solution thus formed is deposited , using the spin - coating technique , on the substrate 20 ( at 700 - 1000 rpm , for 8 - 15 s , in particular 800 rpm for 10 s ). the first photo - definible hydrogel layer 22 has a thickness comprised between 100 nm and 1000 nm , for example 200 nm . the deposition parameters may be adjusted according to the viscosity of the hydrogel - based solution used for obtaining a layer 22 having the desired thickness . the next step ( fig4 ) is the arrangement of ( commercially available ) conductive filaments that form the working electrical terminal 10 , the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 , and the reference electrical terminal 14 . the aforesaid filaments have , for example , a diameter between 50 nm and 200 nm and are made of a material chosen from gold , silver , platinum , conductive polymers , and carbon . the filaments are arranged on the layer 22 prior to the cross - linking step . the filaments penetrate only partially into the layer 22 . in this way , they ( and in particular the working electrical terminal 10 ) are electrically accessible from above . then ( fig5 ), a cross - linking step is carried out , using a uv lamp 23 that generates uv radiation 25 , on selective portions of the first photo - definible hydrogel layer 22 . in particular , in order to obtain selective polymerization of the first photo - definible hydrogel layer 22 , a mask 24 is used provided with opaque regions 24 a , which are designed to block the incident uv radiation 25 , and transparent regions 24 b , which are transparent to the incident uv radiation 25 . in this way , only the portions of the first photo - definible hydrogel layer 22 that extend in the transparent regions 24 b undergo a process of cross - linking since the hydrogel behaves like a negative photoresist . according to one aspect of the present disclosure , the filaments , which form the working electrical terminal 10 , the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 , and the reference electrical terminal 14 , extend partially inside the regions of the first photo - definible hydrogel layer 22 that are polymerized and partially outside so that , as illustrated in fig6 , after the polymerization step , the filaments will be electrically accessible from outside the first structural layer 2 formed . the polymerization step is carried out using the following exposure parameters : wavelength of uv radiation chosen according to the photo - initiator used , for example ( in the case of use of darocur ™), 365 nm ; exposure power comprised in the range between 12 mw / cm 2 and 20 mw / cm 2 , in particular 18 mw / cm 2 ; exposure time comprised between 5 s and 20 s , in particular 7 s . a subsequent step of bathing in deionized water enables removal in a few minutes of the portions of the first non - polymerized photo - definible hydrogel layer 22 , to form the first structural layer 2 , as illustrated in fig6 . then ( fig7 ), a second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 ( provided with bio - recognition elements , for example enzymes ) is formed on the substrate 20 and the first structural layer 2 . the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 forms the sensing region 6 in subsequent manufacturing steps . in detail , the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 is formed starting from a pre - polymeric solution of hydrogel ( e . g ., peg - da ), a photo - initiator ( e . g ., darocur ™) at 3 % v / v , and an reduction - oxidation ( redox ) mediator at 1 % v / v . the redox mediator is a molecule able to mediate a reduction - oxidation reaction or , in other words , able to facilitate the flow of electrons , generated by the reduction - oxidation reaction , through the hydrogel matrix . the redox mediator is , for example , a derivative of ferrocene , such as vinylferrocene . an enzymatic solution is prepared by dissolving appropriate enzymes in a phosphate buffer ( pbs ), with ph ranging between 6 and 6 . 5 , and glutaraldehyde as agent for improving retention of the enzyme in the matrix . the enzymes are chosen , according to one embodiment , from between glucose oxidase ( gox ) and lactate oxidase ( lox ). the concentration of the enzymes in pbs is , for example , 20 mg / ml . the pre - polymeric solution and the enzymatic solution thus prepared are mixed together for a time comprised between 4 h and 5 h at a temperature comprised between 4 ° c . and 5 ° c . ( e . g ., 4 ° c .). the ratio between the pre - polymeric solution and the enzymatic solution is 10 : 1 v / v but may be varied according to the need . the mixture thus obtained ( known as “ sensing matrix ”) forms the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 , which is deposited on the substrate 20 and on the first structural layer 2 using the spin - coating technique , in a way similar to what has already been described with reference to the first photo - definible hydrogel layer 22 . the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 has a thickness comprised between 100 nm and 1000 nm , for example 200 nm . also in this case , the deposition parameters may be adjusted according to the viscosity of the solution used for the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 for obtaining a layer 26 ( and thus the sensing region 6 ) having the desired thickness . then ( fig8 ), a step of exposure to uv radiation is carried out to favor cross - linking of selective portions of the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 , using an appropriate mask 28 . exposure is obtained , for example , using the same uv lamp 23 used previously , which generates uv radiation 25 . in order to obtain selective polymerization of the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 , the mask 28 is used provided with opaque regions 28 a , which are designed to block the incident uv radiation 25 , and transparent regions 28 b , which are transparent to the incident uv radiation 25 . in this way , only the portions of the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 that extend in the transparent regions 28 b are subjected to a cross - linking process . according to one aspect of the present disclosure , the metal filament that forms the working electrical terminal 10 extends partially inside the regions of the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 , which is polymerized , and partially outside so that , after the polymerization step , the filament will be electrically accessible from outside the sensing region 6 thus formed . the polymerization step is carried out using the following exposure parameters : wavelength of the uv radiation chosen according to the photo - initiator used , for example , ( in the case of use of darocur ™) 365 nm ; exposure power comprised in the range between 12 mw / cm 2 and 20 mw / cm 2 , in particular 18 mw / cm 2 ; exposure time comprised between 5 s and 20s , in particular 7 s . next ( fig9 ), a step of bathing in deionized water is carried out , which enables removal in a few minutes of the portions of the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 that has not been polymerized , to form the sensing region 6 in an area corresponding to the working electrode 10 and in electrical contact therewith . next ( fig1 ), the second structural layer 4 is formed . for this purpose , a third photo - definible hydrogel layer 34 is formed on the substrate 20 , on the first structural layer 2 , and on the sensing region 6 . for this purpose , a pre - polymeric mixture is prepared by adding to polyethylene glycol diacrylate ( in what follows , peg - da ) a photo - initiator , in a percentage of 2 - 3 % v / v , as described with reference to the first photo - definible hydrogel layer 22 . in particular , 2 - hydroxy - 2 - methyl - 1 - phenylpropan - 1 - one , also known commercially as darocur ™, is used as photo - initiator . the pre - polymeric solution thus formed is deposited , using the spin - coating technique , on the substrate 20 , on the first structural layer 2 , and on the sensing region 6 . spin - coating is carried out between 700 rpm and 1000 rpm , for 8 - 15 s , in particular 800 rpm for 10 s . the third photo - definible hydrogel layer 34 thus formed has a thickness comprised between 100 nm and 1000 nm , for example 200 nm . the deposition parameters may be adjusted according to the viscosity of the hydrogel - based solution used for obtaining a layer 34 having the desired thickness . once again with reference to fig1 , a step of exposure to uv radiation is carried out to favor cross - linking of selective portions of the third photo - definible hydrogel layer 34 , using an appropriate mask 36 . exposure is obtained , for example , using the same uv lamp 23 used previously , which generates uv radiation 25 . in order to obtain selective polymerization of the third photo - definible hydrogel layer 34 , the mask 36 is provided with opaque regions 36 a , designed to block the incident uv radiation 25 , and transparent regions 36 b , transparent to the incident uv radiation 25 . in this way , only the portions of the third photo - definible hydrogel layer 34 that extend in the transparent regions 36 b are subjected to a cross - linking process . the step of polymerization of the third photo - definible hydrogel layer 34 is carried out using the following exposure parameters : wavelength of uv radiation chosen according to the photo - initiator used , for example , ( in the case of use of darocur ™) 365 nm ; exposure power comprised in the range between 12 mw / cm 2 and 20 mw / cm 2 , in particular 18mw / cm 2 ; exposure time comprised between 5 s and 20 s , in particular 7 s . a subsequent step of development in deionized water enables removal of the portions of the third non - polymerized photo - definible hydrogel layer 34 , to form the second structural layer 4 , as illustrated in fig1 . according to the present disclosure , the mask 36 is provided with an opaque region that covers , in use ( i . e ., when the mask 36 is arranged aligned to the third photo - definible hydrogel layer 34 ), the portion of the third photo - definible hydrogel layer 34 that extends over the sensing region 6 . in this way , the portion of the third photo - definible hydrogel layer 34 on the sensing region 6 does not undergo the cross - linking process and is removed during the step of development in deionized water . the through opening 8 is thus formed , through which the sensing region 6 is exposed , at least in part . the biosensor 1 of fig1 is thus formed . finally , by a peeling step , the substrate 20 is removed to obtain the biosensor 1 of fig1 . the step of peeling of the substrate 20 is optional . fig1 - 19 show steps for manufacturing a biosensor 1 ′ according to a further embodiment . with reference to fig1 , a substrate 40 is first prepared , for example , glass , or silicon , or plastic material ( e . g ., pet , pen , peek ). then , a first photo - definible hydrogel layer 42 is formed on the substrate 40 in a way similar to what has been described with reference to the layer 22 of fig3 , and not described any further herein . next ( fig1 ), a cross - linking step is carried out , using a uv lamp 23 which generates uv radiation 25 , on selective portions of the first photo - definible hydrogel layer 42 . in particular , in order to obtain selective polymerization of the first photo - definible hydrogel layer 42 , a mask 44 is used provided with opaque regions 44 a , which are designed to block the incident uv radiation 25 , and transparent regions 44 b , which are transparent to the incident uv radiation 25 . in this way , only the portions of the first photo - definible hydrogel layer 42 that extend in the transparent regions 44 b , undergo a cross - linking process . in particular , the first photo - definible hydrogel layer 42 is not irradiated in a region thereof that extends over a portion 40 ′ of the substrate 40 that , in subsequent manufacturing steps , will house the working electrical terminal 10 ′, the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 ′, and the reference electrical terminal 14 ′. the portion 40 ′ of the substrate 40 may be chosen freely according to the geometrical shape that it is desired to bestow on the first structural layer 2 ( after the polymerization step ); for example , the portion 40 ′ of the substrate 40 extends along the periphery of the substrate 40 . next ( fig1 ), a bath in deionized water is carried out , which enables removal in a few minutes of the portions of the first non - polymerized photo - definible hydrogel layer 42 to form a first structural layer 2 ′. this is followed ( fig1 a ) by a step of deposition , by sputtering , of metal material , such as for example gold deposition by sputtering is assisted by a mask ( not illustrated ) designed to enable deposition of the metal material in specific regions of the substrate 40 and of the first structural layer 2 ′. metal strips are thus formed that extend from the surface of the first structural layer 2 ′ towards the portion 40 ′ of the substrate 40 . fig1 b shows , in top plan view in the plane xy , the substrate 40 provided with the first structural layer 2 ′ and with the working electrical terminal 10 ′, the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 ′, and the reference electrical terminal 14 ′ thus formed . they may be made also of metals such as silver , platinum , or of conductive polymers , or carbon . then ( fig1 ), a sensing region 6 ′ is obtained , similar to the sensing region 6 of the biosensor 1 . for this purpose , a second photo - definible hydrogel layer 46 is formed ( provided with bio - recognition elements , e . g . enzymes ) on the substrate 40 , the first structural layer 2 ′, and the working electrical terminal 10 ′, of the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 ′, and the reference electrical terminal 14 ′. the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 46 forms , in subsequent manufacturing steps , the sensing region 6 ′. the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 46 is formed as described previously with reference to the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 , starting from a pre - polymeric solution of hydrogel ( e . g ., peg - da ), a photo - initiator ( e . g ., 2 - hydroxy - 2 - methyl - 1 - phenylpropan - 1 - one ) at 3 % v / v , and a redox mediator ( e . g ., a derivative of ferrocene , such as vinylferrocene ) at 1 % v / v . an enzymatic solution is prepared by dissolving appropriate enzymes in a pbs phosphate buffer with ph levels ranging between 6 and 6 . 5 and glutaraldehyde as agent for improving retention of the enzyme in the matrix . the enzymes are chosen , according to one embodiment , between glucose oxidase ( gox ) and lactate oxidase ( lox ). the concentration of the enzymes in pbs is , for example , 20 mg / ml . the pre - polymeric solution and the enzymatic solution thus prepared are mixed together for a time comprised between 4 h and 5 h at a temperature comprised between 4 ° c . and 5 ° c . ( e . g ., 4 ° c .). the ratio between the pre - polymeric solution and the enzymatic solution is 10 : 1 v / v , but may be varied according to the need . the mixture thus obtained ( known as “ sensing matrix ”) is deposited using the spin - coating technique and forms the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 46 , in a way similar to what has already been described with reference to the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 . the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 46 has a thickness comprised between 100 nm and 1000 nm , for example 200 nm . also in this case , the deposition parameters may be adjusted according to the viscosity of the solution used for the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 46 for obtaining a layer 46 ( and thus the sensing region 6 ′) having the desired thickness . next ( fig1 , a step of exposure to uv radiation is carried out to favor cross - linking of selective portions of the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 46 , using an appropriate mask ( not illustrated ). exposure is obtained , for example , used the same uv lamp 23 previously used , which generates uv radiation 25 . in order to obtain selective polymerization of the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 46 , a mask is used provided with opaque regions , designed to block the incident uv radiation 25 , and regions transparent to the incident uv radiation 25 . in this way , only the portions of the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 46 aligned , along z , to the transparent regions are subjected to a cross - linking process since the hydrogel behaves like a negative photoresist . the polymerization step is carried out using the exposure parameters already previously indicated for polymerization of the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 26 . a subsequent step of bathing in deionized water enables removal in a few minutes of the portions of the second photo - definible hydrogel layer 46 that has not been polymerized , to form the sensing region 6 ′, as illustrated in fig1 . after the step of removal of the hydrogel that has not been polymerized , only the metal path that forms the working electrical terminal 10 ′ extends in direct contact with the sensing region 6 ′. the metal paths that form the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 ′ and reference electrical terminal 14 ′ are not in direct contact with the sensing region 6 ′, but extend alongside it . next ( fig1 ), a second structural layer 4 ′ is formed , similar to the second structural layer 4 of the biosensor 1 . the steps for producing the second structural layer 4 ′ are similar to those described previously for the second structural layer 4 ( see the description of fig1 and 11 ) and are not referred to any further herein . in particular , the process for producing the second structural layer 4 ′ evisions formation of a through opening 8 ′ in the sensing region 6 ′. the sensing region 6 ′ is exposed , at least in part , through the through opening 8 ′. fig1 shows , in perspective view , the biosensor 1 ′ produced according to the steps of fig1 - 18 . as may be noted from fig1 , in this embodiment the substrate 40 is not removed , in so far as it functions as support for the working electrical terminal 10 ′, the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 ′, and the reference electrical terminal 14 ′. to favor adherence of the substrate 40 to the first structural layer 2 ′, it is possible to insert an adhesive layer , for example an organosilane - based adhesive layer , between the substrate 40 and the first structural layer 2 ′, prior to the step of deposition of the first hydrogel layer 42 of fig1 . functionalization of the substrate 40 with silane molecules is obtained according to a procedure , for example described in u . s . pat . no . 9 , 244 , 067 to di matteo et al . in particular , the substrate is treated by an oxygen - plasma treatment ( a common plasma - etching system is used for this purpose ). a silane solution ( 2 % v / v ) is likewise prepared with 3 -( trimethoxysilyl ) propyl methacrylate in isopropyl alcohol , correcting the ph with acetic acid , to bring it to a value of 4 . 5 - 5 . the solution then undergoes gentle stirring , and then it is necessary to wait a few minutes ( i . e ., at least 30 minutes ) before using it . this enables hydrolysis of the siloxane groups . the substrate 40 is then dipped in the silane solution , washed in isopropyl alcohol and then heated to 120 ° c . for 60 minutes . the substrate 40 is thus functionalized with silane molecules that expose methacrylic groups , to which the hydrogel 42 will subsequently bind during its polymerization , to form the state 2 ′. the silanes are chosen according to the type of hydrogel that is deposited on the substrate . in the case of peg - da - based hydrogel , the silanes may be chosen in the family of acrylate or methacrylate silanes , cyclic azosilanes , silanes with amine terminations , dipodal silanes , and carboxylate silanes . the biosensor 1 , 1 ′ may be used by laying it directly on the skin of the patient to be monitored , so that the sensing region 6 , 6 ′ faces the skin through the through opening 8 , 8 ′. the through opening 8 , 8 ′ formed through the second structural hydrogel layer 4 , 4 ′ provides , in use , a closed chamber that does not prevent natural transpiration of the skin , but considerably limits exchange of air with the external environment , causing a rapid increase of the local temperature of the skin up to values of approximately 35 - 40 ° c . the vapor that is generated within the through opening 8 , 8 ′ saturates the environment and favors formation of sweat , which , coming into contact with the sensing region 6 , 6 ′, enables the biological analysis to be carried out . from the sweat produced glucose or lactate may in fact be monitored , thanks to the enzymes gox or lox present in the sensing matrix . monitoring the current present between the working electrical terminal 10 , 10 ′ and the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 , 12 ′ enables information to be obtained , in typical manner , on the analyte concentration monitored . the present applicant has found that the hydrogel matrix used according to the present disclosure to create the sensing region 6 , 6 ′ provides a linear response in the range of concentrations of 10 μm to 4 mm for glucose , and 1 μm to 4 mm for lactate , i . e ., in ranges compatible with the concentrations typically present in human sweat . in use , the biosensor 1 functions as amperometric sensor . as is known , an amperometric sensor is based upon the measurement of the current between the working electrical terminal 10 and the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 , a current that is induced by the redox reaction between the analyte and the enzyme that is obtained on the working electrical terminal 10 . the current is proportional to the concentration of the analyte to be monitored . for this purpose , a constant potential ( determined by the redox potential of the mediator , previously evaluated via cyclic voltammetric measurements ) is applied to the electrochemical cell , and the response of the current is monitored . this potential enables operation in optimal conditions for monitoring of the current . in particular , the working electrode 10 is fixed at a potential , for example of 0 . 25 v , with respect to the reference electrical terminal 14 . the value of 0 . 25 v is the peak anode potential , measured by the present applicant , of the mediator in vinylferrocene immobilized in the hydrogel matrix . the counter - electrode terminal is an auxiliary electrode and functions as drain of the current generated during the redox reaction on the working electrical terminal 10 ( the counter - electrode 12 “ collects ” the electrons generated by the enzyme - analyte reaction ). the three - electrode configuration may provide the presence of a stable potential between the working electrical terminal 10 and the reference electrical terminal 14 . however , other configurations , in particular a configuration with two electrodes ( in which the reference electrode coincides with the counter - electrode ) may likewise be used according to a further aspect of the present disclosure . a potentiostat ( not illustrated in the figures ) may be operatively coupled to the working electrical terminal 10 , to the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 , and to the reference electrical terminal 14 , and is configured to control the voltage through the working terminal / counter - electrode terminal pair and to adjust it to maintain the difference of potential imposed between the working terminal 10 and the reference terminal 14 . the reference electrical terminal measures and controls the potential of the working electrical terminal 10 , while the counter - electrode electrical terminal 12 allows passage of all the other for balancing the current that is still observed on the working electrical terminal 10 . with this arrangement , the current generated by the redox reaction is made to pass between the working terminal 10 and the counter - electrode terminal 12 . this current , which may be measured , indicates a concentration of electroactive species present in the analyte . the biosensor 1 ′ functions in a way similar to the biosensor 1 , according to what has been described above . the advantages that may be obtained with the invention described are evident from the foregoing description . in particular , the first structural layer 2 and the second structural layer 4 operate as a capsule that supports , protects , and contains the sensing region 6 and , at the same time , function as insulating layer between the electrodes . thus , further supporting and containment layers are not necessary , rendering the biosensor 1 simple and inexpensive to produce . the manufacturing process evisions use of devices and technologies widely employed in the field of microfabrication of micro - electromechanical devices , and in particular the shape of the layers 2 , 2 ′, 4 , 4 ′ is defined through simple photolithographic steps . the biosensor 1 , 1 ′ may thus be integrated within more complex electronic devices or mems , exploiting the same manufacturing technology . use of the hydrogel enables a biosensor to be obtained that does not cause discomfort during use ( being of flexible material ) and that has the appearance , for example , of a small plaster . it is thus simple to use , self - contained , and aesthetically discreet . the biosensor in question further works at low potentials . it may further be integrated in a discreet way in medical devices or in other wearable devices , such as a bracelet . since the analysis is conducted on the basis of the patient &# 39 ; s sweat , use of the biosensor 1 , 1 ′ does not cause any pain . finally , it is clear that numerous modifications and variations may be made to what has been described and illustrated herein , all of which fall within the scope of the inventive idea , as defined in the annexed claims . for example , the electrical terminals 10 , 10 ′, 12 , 12 ′, 14 , 14 ′ may be obtained using other technologies , for example by ink - jet deposition . furthermore , the bio - recognition elements trapped in the bioactive region 6 may be different from the enzymes gox and lox ; for example , they may be chosen from enzymes of another type , or else from : antibodies , nucleic acids , and cell receptors .	0
embodiments of the present invention will be described hereunder . fig1 shows one embodiment in which a direct - contact - type image sensor of the present invention is incorporated in a image sensor assembly . fig2 and 3 show essential parts of the image sensor assembly . referring to fig1 the image sensor assembly includes a sensor substrate 1 , a plurality of sensor elements 1a , a mounting base 2 , an ic cover 3 , a sensor driving ic 4 , a light source 5 , an electroconductive transparent film 6 , and a platen roller 8 . reference numeral 7 denotes an original with information to be read . the light source 5 comprises an led ( light emitting diode ), and illumination light 11 can be generated therefrom . reference numeral 12 denotes a connector . the light source 5 is accommodated in the mounting base 2 on which is disposed the sensor substrate 1 . a portion of the sensor substrate 1 is light - transmissive , and this light - transmissive portion is on the optical path of light from the light source 5 . the sensor elements 1a are also disposed on this optical path , and are covered by the electroconductive film 6 . the film 6 extends to the ic cover 3 within which the sensor driving ic 4 is disposed . in this example , the sensor elements 1a are arranged in correspondence with b4 paper , with 2048 sensor elements being arranged in one line , and they are adapted to operate at the speed of 1 μs per element , and 5 ms per line . an example of the wiring relationship between the ic 4 and the elements 1a is shown in fig3 . the direct - contact - type image sensor of this embodiment operates in the following manner . when illumination light is generated by the light source 5 from the reverse side of the sensor substrate 1 , the illumination light transmits through the light - transmissive portion of the sensor substrate 1 and the electroconductive transparent film 6 to illuminate the original 7 . rays of the illumination light are reflected by the original 7 at intensities corresponding to the degree of brightness and darkness on the pertinent surface of the original 7 , and then become incident on the sensor elements 1a which perform photoelectric transfer . by this action , photoelectric current proportional to the quantity of light flows through the sensor elements 1a . the resultant signal is detected to enable reading of the original 7 . the sensor elements 1a usually comprise a multiplicity of sensor elements arranged in a line . the elements are sequentially and alternatively driven by the sensor driving ic 4 to read one line . when the reading of one line has been completed , the pattern roller 8 is rotated to advance the original 7 , so that the next line will be read . at this time , because the original 7 rubs against the electroconductive transparent film 6 , static electricity is generated . if no electroconductive transparent film were provided , static electricity and peripheral electric waves might induce noise in the sensor elements 1a and the circuit wirings , making the output signal unstable . in contrast , with electroconductive transparent film 6 provided , the sensor elements 1a and the like are shielded by the film 6 from such induction , thereby providing the effect of ensuring stable outputs . since the electroconductive transparent film 6 can be easily deformed when it is subjected to external force , it does not become broken easily . this facilitates its assembly and increases the level of reliability . in order to form the electroconductive transparent film 6 , light - transmissive materials such as polyester , nylon , and acrylic materials may be used . the electroconductivity can be easily imparted by using transparent electroconductive materials such as ito ( indium - tin oxide ) and tin oxides , or by coating a metallic thin film . the sheet resistivity should preferably be less than 100 kω /□. electroconductive transparent films used in other embodiments , described later , may be formed of similar materials . fig3 shows the internal arrangement of the ic 4 . reference numeral 41 denotes a shift resister which is turned on where the data is 1 to extract an output signal . in this manner , the sensor elements 1a are sequentially and alternately driven by the sensor driving ic 4 to read information on one line . fig4 shows another embodiment in which a direct - contact - type image sensor has the same arrangement as that shown in fig2 except that the electroconductive transparent film 6 is substituted by an electroconductive transparent film 6a which has been subjected to pear - skin - like matted surface forming and which is thus provided with a pear - skin - like surface 10 . by virtue of this arrangement , this embodiment provides , in addition to those provided by the embodiment shows in fig1 the effect in which abnormalities in the output resulting from the reflection of rays by the film surface are prevented , thereby making it possible to obtain stable output signals . more specifically , in the case where the surface of the electroconductive transparent film that is closer to the sensor substrate 1 is smooth , when the original 7 is pressed against the sensor to be brought into close contact therewith , the film is deformed . the surface of the deformed film may reflect part of the rays of the illumination light in such a manner as to make it easy for the part of the rays to become incident on the sensor elements . if such is the case , the sensor elements will receive extra rays in addition to rays reflected by the original surface , and the resultant output signal will be abnormal . in contrast , in the case where the relevant surface of the film is formed as a pear - skin - like surface as in this embodiment , because the pear - skin - like surface reflects part of the rays of the illumination light in such a manner as to scatter them , it is possible to obtain stable output signals . another advantage of this embodiment is that the pear - skin - like matted electroconductivity transparent film 6a can be replaced easily when its surface is soiled , and thus can facilitate maintenance . a further embodiment is shown in fig5 . the structure of this embodiment is the same as that shown in fig4 except that the pear - skin - like matted electroconductivity transparent film 6a is substituted by an electroconductivity transparent film 6 and a pear - skin - like matted film 6b . in this structure , the electroconductive transparent film 6 provides the same effect as those provided in the first embodiment , while the pear - skin - like matted film 6b provides the same effects as those provided by the pear - skin - like surface 10 . according to this embodiment , the adoption of two separate films makes it possible to use commonly - used films , thereby enabling production at low cost . a still further embodiment will be described with reference to fig6 . the structure of this embodiment is distinguished from others by an arrangement where an electroconductive transparent film 6 , which is the same as the film 6 shown in fig2 is bonded to the sensor substrate 1 through an adhesive layer 9 . this embodiment provides , in addition to the effects provided by the first embodiment , the effect in which abnormalities in the output resulting from the reflection of rays by the surface of the electroconductive transparent film 6 that is closer to the sensor substrate 1 is prevented . specifically , the provision of the adhesive layer 9 makes it possible to restrain the deformation of the electroconductive transparent film 6 . in addition , since the difference in refractive index between the electroconductive transparent film 6 and the adhesive layer 9 can be usually small , the reflectivity at the interface of the film 6 and the layer 9 is small . these effects combined serve to prevent part of the illumination light from becoming incident on the sensor elements 1a and , hence , from causing abnormalities in the output . in a further embodiment , consideration is given to the point of preventing part of illumination light reflected by the surface of the electroconductive transparent film from becoming incident on the sensor elements . in this further embodiment , an electroconductive transparent film 6 is disposed on the sensor substrate 1 as shown in fig2 and , in addition , provided is a means to prevent rays reflected by the surface of the electroconductive transparent film 6 that faces the sensor substrate 1 from becoming incident on the sensor elements 1a . by virtue of this arrangement , rays reflected by the original 7 are mainly incident on the sensor elements 1a , thereby enabling stable reading . the use of an electroconductive transparent film provides the same effects as those described concerning the first embodiments . although the adhesive layer 9 is interposed in the embodiment shown in fig6 an alternative arrangement may be adopted in which the electroconductive transparent film 6 is directly attached to the substrate 1 without using such an adhesive layer . if an adhesive is to be used , a transparent adhesive should be used at least at certain portions so that the optical path would not be obstructed . fig7 shows the concave mirror effect . in the case illustrated , the reverse surface of the film 6 provides the concave mirror effect whereby rays 11 are concentrated as they are reflected , to become incident on the elements 1a . if the reverse surface of the film 6 is pear - skin - like matted , rays 11 can be scattered , thereby reducing the quantity of light that are reflected and become incident on the elements 1a .	7
current methods for producing ultra - pure water for use in semiconductor fabrication include distillation and deionization . these methods , while effective , are slow and cumbersome , representing high costs . moreover , the water produced by these methods tend to contain residual dissolved oxygen . another manner of providing pure water is through catalytic conversion of hydrogen gas ( h 2 ) and oxygen gas ( o 2 ) which is traditionally conducted with an excess of h 2 or o 2 to prevent explosion . [ 0025 ] fig1 shows one combustion - pipe - type apparatus 100 that can be used to produce water for use in semiconductor fabrication . h 2 enters a quartz furnace 102 via a hydrogen gas nozzle 104 . o 2 enters the quartz furnace 102 via an oxygen gas nozzle 106 . the vicinity near a tip end of the hydrogen gas nozzle 104 inside the quartz furnace 102 attains a high temperature ( e . g ., 1 , 800 ° c . to 2 , 000 ° c .) due to flames of combustion from a heater ( not illustrated ) that heats this area . water vapor produced by the combustion exits the quartz furnace 102 via an outlet 108 . [ 0026 ] fig2 through 4 illustrate catalyst - reaction - type apparatuses that can be used to produce water via h 2 and o 2 for use in semiconductor fabrication . in fig2 a water - producing apparatus 200 includes a plurality of pipes 202 made of material that serves as a catalyst to encourage hydrogen or oxygen reactivity . a mixture of h 2 , and o 2 is introduced into the water - producing apparatus 200 via an inlet 204 . water produced by catalysis exits the water - producing apparatus 200 via an outlet 206 . in fig3 a water - producing apparatus 300 includes a plurality of supported plates 302 made of catalytic material . a mixture of h 2 and o 2 is introduced into water - producing apparatus 300 via an inlet 304 and contacts the plates 302 . water produced by catalysis exits the water - producing apparatus 300 via an outlet 306 . in fig4 a water - producing apparatus 400 includes a plurality of particulate elements 402 made of catalytic material . a mixture of h 2 and o 2 is introduced into water - producing apparatus 400 via an inlet 404 and contacts the particulate elements 402 . water produced by catalysis exits the water - producing apparatus 400 via an outlet 406 . the water - producing apparatus 400 in fig4 is illustrated as a fixed bed reactor , but it may be a fluidized bed reactor . however , one problem with the known methods illustrated in fig1 through 4 is that the use of hydrogen and hydrogen / oxygen mixture gases presents a high risk of explosion , endangering the safety of technicians , the in - process semiconductor product and the tool itself . uses of diluting gases , such as argon , to decrease the risk of dangerous hydrogen explosions lowers the overall rate of water producing reaction , extending processing times and increasing the size of the water - producing apparatus , ultimately increasing the cost of producing the pure water . moreover , even if hydrogen and oxygen are provided in ratios to completely react , the product gas is a mixture gas of water and argon , rather than pure water . another problem is that any excess hydrogen causes increased boron diffusion during thermal processing phases in excess of 650 ° c ., which are common in semiconductor fabrication . because of the disadvantages posed by the use of hydrogen in the production of water with respect to semiconductor fabrication , the hydrogen reactant is typically arranged to be completely oxidized . as a result , these methods do not allow for precise control of the concentration of excess , unreacted oxygen . precise control of excess oxygen is important in a number of semiconductor fabrication processes , including selective oxidation of silicon in the presence low oxidation - resistant metal gate electrodes , such as tungsten ( w ), cobalt ( co ), molybdenum ( mo ), titanium ( ti ) and platinum ( pt ). the oxidation of exposed , oxidizable metal gate electrodes form oxides that are insulating and thus detract from electrode conductivity , rendering a slower and less responsive device . some metals , such as tungsten are so readily oxidized that overall resistance is increased beyond tolerable levels , rendering them impractical for use as gate electrode metals . accordingly , a need exists for processes for producing water for use in semiconductor fabrication , which minimizes the risk of oxidizing metal gates while reducing the risk of hydrogen explosions and excessive boron diffusion . [ 0032 ] fig5 is a block diagram showing a system for producing water in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention . ammonia gas ( nh 3 ) is supplied to a mixing section 500 via an ammonia gas line 502 . an oxidant is supplied to the mixing section 500 via a gas line 504 . the mixing section 500 may simply be a regular in - pipe gas mixing system or a gas mixing mechanism designed to discharge ammonia gas into the oxidant gas in a swirling stream to uniformly mix the reactant gases . the molar ratio of ammonia to oxidant gas can be set and altered using mass flow controllers 506 a and 506 b and valves 508 a and 508 b . the ammonia gas and oxidant gas mixture is preferably supplied via a common inlet line 510 into a water - producing apparatus 512 . the water - producing apparatus 512 of various embodiments is depicted in greater detail in fig9 through 11 . in the illustrated embodiment , the oxidant gas comprises oxygen ( o 2 ) gas . an ammonia and oxygen gas mixture is catalytically converted into reaction products comprising nitrogen gas n 2 , water vapor h 2 o , any excess oxygen gas or ammonia gas , and nitrogen - based oxides , according to the following equation : 4nh 3 + 3o 2 → 6h 2 o + 2n 2 + a n x o y ( 1 ) a preferred mole ratio of ammonia to oxygen ranges from about 1 : 9 to about 9 : 1 . the resultant reaction products can include water , nitrogen , any excess unreacted ammonia and oxidant , and nitrogen - based oxides . more preferably , excess ammonia is supplied to the water - producing apparatus 512 , i . e ., greater than a 4 : 3 ammonia to oxygen mole ratio , so as to render the quantity of unreacted excess oxygen in the reaction products negligible . an ammonia to oxygen mole ratio of between about 5 : 3 and 14 : 3 is most preferable . accordingly , excess oxygen is avoided , thereby minimizing the risk of oxidizing metal elements exposed to the process to which the water is fed . in particular , metal layers in transistor gate stacks , particularly tungsten , are not subjected to excess oxygen gas . desirably , the ratio of water to byproducts such as nitrogen and nitric oxide is also kept low . in particular , the ratio of water to nitrogen is preferably about 6 : 2 ( in accordance with the above equation ( 1 )), while the ratio of water to nitric oxide is preferably less than about 1 : 1 . performing the reaction shown in equation ( 1 ), rendering the amount of post - reaction , unreacted oxygen species to a negligible quantity , advantageously lowers the risk of undesired oxidation of oxidation - susceptible metal gate electrodes during subsequent wet fabrication processes , such as wet thermal oxidation of silicon substrates . however , excess unreacted ammonia does not pose as high a danger as excess unreacted hydrogen of explosion or excessive boron diffusion during thermal treatments at greater than about 650 ° c . such as during source / drain anneals . the catalytic material used to carry out the oxidation of ammonia shown in equation ( 1 ) preferably activates the ammonia by strong adsorption over the catalyst and lowers the activation energy needed to produce water from ammonia and oxygen . more preferably , the catalytic material comprises one or a combination of metallic materials , such as palladium , ( pd ), copper ( cu ), platinum ( pt ), vanadium oxide ( v 2 o 5 ), tungsten oxide ( wo 3 ), ion - exchanged zeolites ( e . g ., hzsm - 5 ), titanium dioxide ( tio 2 ), and silicon dioxide ( sio 2 ). most preferably , the catalytic material comprises platinum or a platinum / palladium alloy . materials suitable for catalytic oxidation of ammonia are further discussed in a . c . m . van den broek , j . van grondelle and r . a . van santen , water - promoted ammonia oxidation by a platinum amine complex in zeolite hzsm - 5 catalyst , catalysis letters 55 : 79 - 82 ( 1998 ) and m . ueshima , k . sano , m . ikeda , k . yoshino and j . okamura , new technology for selective catalytic oxidation of ammonia to nitrogen , res . chem . intermed . 24 : 133 - 141 ( 1998 ), the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference . a heater 514 placed around the water - producing apparatus 512 preferably maintains a reaction temperature from about 25 ° c . to about the explosive temperature of the ammonia and oxidant gas mixture , taking into account their respective concentrations and pressure . a more preferred reaction temperature is from about 350 ° c . to about 410 ° c . when the reaction temperature is lower than about 180 ° c ., the reaction speed is undesirably low , and as a result , in order to obtain a sufficient decomposition ratio of ammonia gas , a space velocity of the ammonia / oxidant mixture gas in a catalytic reaction zone has to be lowered , making the water production process less economical . when the reaction temperature exceeds about 600 ° c ., nitrogen oxides in the outlet 516 are undesirably high and can effect consumption of the catalyst . a preferred gas pressure for the water - producing apparatus 512 is selected from about 10 − 8 torr to a pressure not exceeding one that would transition the produced water into the liquid phase for a particular process condition . a more preferred gas pressure at the inlet 510 ranges from about 350 torr to about 1 , 000 torr , i . e ., roughly in the atmospheric order of magnitude . in the illustrated embodiment , the mixture of ammonia and oxidant are supplied to the water - producing apparatus 512 in a gaseous form , but it will be understood that , in other arrangements , liquified ammonia and liquified oxidant could also be supplied . furthermore , while in the illustrated embodiment the ammonia gas and oxygen gas are premixed at the mixing section 500 then supplied to the water - producing apparatus 512 , the skilled artisan will readily appreciate that it is also possible to supply ammonia gas and oxygen gas independently to the water - producing apparatus 512 , and to mix them in the water - producing apparatus 512 . optionally , a preheating section 518 can be provided along the inlet line 510 to the water - producing apparatus 512 , and the mixture gas can be preheated therein . by providing the mixture gas preheating section 518 along the inlet line 510 , even under conditions in which there is not a sufficient temperature or flow rate , it is made possible to effectively prevent production of unreacted gas . the reaction products exit the water - producing apparatus 512 via an outlet line 516 and preferably enter a process equipment 520 which enables the water vapor to be conveyed to and used in semiconductor fabrication processes . for example , process equipment 520 can include selective catalytic reduction ( scr ) equipment whereby the nitrogen - based oxides are removed from the outline line 516 or condensing equipment whereby produced water vapor is condensed to liquid water to be used in rinsing of semiconductor devices . in an alternative embodiment , process equipment 520 can itself be semiconductor fabrication process equipment , the nature of which is described in further detail with respect to fig6 . [ 0043 ] fig6 is a flow chart showing a method of producing water and supplying the water to a semiconductor fabrication process in accordance with the present invention . in block 600 , ammonium and an oxidant is fed into a catalytic converter . preferred embodiments of the catalytic converter comprise a catalytic tube reactor , a fixed bed reactor , or a fluidized bed reactor . in block 602 , water produced from the catalyzed reaction between the ammonia and the oxidant exits the catalytic converter . in block 604 , the water enters a semiconductor fabrication process . the semiconductor fabrication process is preferably a process of wet oxidation ( such as wet thermal oxidation of silicon substrates , source / drain reoxidation and reoxidation of high dielectric materials ), wet formation of silicon oxides , nitrides , or oxynitrides , wet bench processing of semiconductor substrates , wet etching , cleaning ( such as for furnace , lpcvd , pecvd , and hdp processing chambers and etch chambers ), removing organic material , or combinations or these . in the most preferred embodiment , the reaction products are fed directly to an oxidation furnace or rtp tool , in which source / drain reoxidation of semiconductor layers is performed . source / drain reoxidation serves to repair plasma etch damage to a gate dielectric at the corners of the gate dielectric in order to reduce hot carrier injection into the gate dielectric . fig7 illustrates a closer view of a gate electrode 700 , which has been grown out of a single - crystal silicon substrate 702 , and physical damage ( thinning ) resulting from gate oxide 704 exposure to the plasma etch . generally , the gate electrode 700 comprises a patterned gate polysilicon layer 706 , silicide layer 708 , and metal straps 710 , as shown . damage to the gate oxide 704 caused by plasma etching may induce punchthrough or tunneling current leakage , particularly at or near edges 712 of the gate electrode 700 . in turn , junction leakage results in increased threshold voltage and unreliable circuit operation . it should be understood that damage to the chemical integrity of the gate oxide 704 also takes place as a result of photon - assisted and other damage during the ion bombardment generally required for anisotropic etching . etch damage may also extend to the underlying silicon substrate . aside from the illustrated physical thinning , plasma etching tends to damage oxide bonds , creating charge trap sites . such structural damage extends laterally under the gate edges 712 as well as over source / drain regions . typically , the source / drain reoxidation step involves wet oxidation at temperatures above 800 ° c . for a relatively long period ( more than 30 minutes ). fig8 illustrates the gate electrode 700 after source / drain reoxidation , showing a reoxidized gate oxide 800 with a slight bird &# 39 ; s beak 802 under the gate corner 712 . the thickened bird &# 39 ; s beak 802 serves to round the gate corners 712 and reduce lateral electric field strength in active areas adjacent the gate , thereby reducing hot electron injection to the gate oxide 800 during transistor operation . unfortunately , the presence of an oxidant , such as oxygen , during source / drain reoxidation contributes to oxidation of exposed gate materials , as shown in fig8 . thus , for the illustrated example , a layer of tungsten oxide 804 forms around the tungsten metal strap 710 . similarly , an oxide layer 806 comprised substantially of tungsten oxide ( wo 2 ) and silicon oxide ( sio 2 ) form around the silicide strap 708 , while a thin layer of silicon oxide 808 grows out of the gate polysilicon 706 . the oxides formed in consumption of the metal are insulating and so unable to contribute to word line conductivity . thus , overall resistance may be radically increased by excess oxygen during source / drain reoxidation . some metals , such as titanium or titanium nitride are so readily oxidized that overall resistance is increased beyond tolerable levels , rendering such metals for use in gate materials . by using ammonia , the present invention can produce water for use in source / drain reoxidation under lean oxidant conditions , most preferably such that the oxidant is completely reacted . as a result , the risk of undesired oxidation of low oxidation - resistant metal gate electrodes is advantageously lowered . the preferred embodiments of the water - producing apparatus of fig5 are shown in fig9 through 11 . [ 0050 ] fig9 is a partial , cross - sectional view of a catalytic tube reactor 900 , illustrating a first embodiment of the present invention . the illustrated reactor 900 preferably comprises a heat - resistant , corrosion - resistant alloy housing 902 , such as hastelloy ™, that houses a plurality of pipes 904 made of the preferred catalytic material . the pipes 904 desirably activate the ammonia reactivity . preferably , both inner and outer surfaces of the catalytic pipes 904 serve as catalysts . the catalytic pipes 904 preferably have an end diameter between about 1 cm and about 2 cm and a length between about 20 cm and about 30 cm . the skilled artisan will appreciate , however , that these surfaces can be optimized depending upon the desired production rates . an inlet stream 906 , comprising a mixture of ammonia gas and oxygen gas , enters the reactor 900 and reacts upon the surfaces of the catalytic pipe 904 to form an effluent stream 908 . the effluent stream 908 can include water vapor , nitrogen gas , nitrogen - based oxides , and any unreacted ammonia , all of which exit the reactor 900 . a preferred gas pressure for the reactor 900 is selected from about 10 − 8 torr to a pressure not exceeding one that would transition the produced water into the liquid phase for a particular process condition . a more preferred gas pressure at the inlet 906 ranges from about 350 torr to about 1 , 000 torr . [ 0053 ] fig1 is a partial , cross - sectional view of a packed bed reactor 1000 , illustrating a second embodiment in accordance with the present invention . the packed bed reactor 1000 preferably comprises a heat - resistant , corrosion - resistant alloy housing 1002 , such as hastelloy ™, that houses a bed 1004 of particles 1006 . the particles 1006 are preferably made of the preferred catalytic material . the particles 1006 preferably range in diameter from about 5 mm to about 10 mm . an inlet stream 1008 , comprising a mixture of ammonia and an oxidant , enters the reactor 1000 and reacts with the catalytic particles 1006 to form an effluent stream 1010 . the effluent stream 1010 can include water vapor , nitrogen gas , nitrogen - based oxides , and any unreacted ammonia , all of which exit the reactor 1000 . a preferred gas pressure for the reactor 1000 is selected from about 10 − 8 torr to a pressure not exceeding one that would transition the produced water into the liquid phase for a particular process condition . a more preferred gas pressure at the inlet 708 ranges from about 500 torr to about 1 , 150 torr . the skilled artisan will recognize other methods of increasing catalytic surface area of the particles 1006 . for example , the particle 1006 may comprise a granule , sintered material , thin sheet laminate , honeycomb body , mesh body , sponge body , or fin - shape body whose surfaces are covered with the preferred catalytic material . moreover , while in the illustrated embodiment reactor 1000 is shown as a packed bed , column reactor , the skilled artisan will readily appreciate that reactor 1000 could also be a continuous , fixed bed tubular reactor ( not illustrated ). [ 0057 ] fig1 is a partial , cross - sectional view of a fluidized bed reactor 1100 , illustrating a third embodiment in accordance with the present invention . the fluidized bed reactor 1100 preferably comprises a heat - resistant , corrosion - resistant alloy housing 1102 , such as hastelloy ™, that houses a bed 1104 of particles 1106 . the particles 1106 are preferably made of the preferred catalytic material . the particles 1106 preferably have a diameter from about 3 mm to about 5 mm . an inlet stream 1108 , comprising a mixture of ammonia and an oxidant enters the reactor 1100 and reacts with the catalytic particles 1106 to form an effluent stream 1110 . the effluent stream 1110 can include water vapor , nitrogen gas , nitrogen - based oxides , and any unreacted ammonia , all of which exit the reactor 1100 . a preferred gas pressure for the reactor 1100 is selected from about 10 − 8 torr to a pressure not exceeding one that would transition the produced water into the liquid phase for a particular process condition . a more preferred gas pressure at the inlet 1108 ranges from about 700 torr to about 1 , 350 torr . using ammonia , rather than hydrogen , as a reactant species to produce water for use in semiconductor fabrication processes advantageously allows the water - production process to be performed under lean oxidant conditions , most preferably such that the oxidant is completely reacted . the risk of undesired oxidation of low oxidation - resistant metal gate electrodes during subsequent wet fabrication processes , such as source / drain reoxidation , is advantageously lowered . however , excess unreacted ammonia , which is a product of limiting the quantity of excess unreacted oxidant , does not pose as high a danger of explosion or boron diffusion , as compared to excess unreacted hydrogen . the invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics . with reference to the information above , a myriad of alternative embodiments which are within the scope of the invention will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art , such as the simple re - arrangement of the blocks shown in fig5 . for example , in the illustrated embodiment the mixing section 500 precedes the preheating section 518 . however , a skilled artisan will recognize that the preheating section 518 may be incorporated into the mixing section 500 or even precede the mixing section 500 . the described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive and the scope of the invention is , therefore , indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description . all changes which come with the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope .	1
fig1 shows a plasma arc system for the generation of energy by the fast pyrolysis of organic materials and the conversion of hazardous and / or problem waste materials into simple elements by molecular disassociation . the system configuration shown in fig1 is preferred when a market for recovered carbon dioxide and hydrogen are readily available . such a system configuration requires the installation of a high temperature hydrogen membrane filtering system , such as that currently licensed for manufacture through the technology transfer program as oakridge laboratories to coor &# 39 ; s ceramic filter corp . and its joint venture partner - pall advanced separation systems , inc . the system also requires the installation of fuel cell stacks , but since the synthesis gas is being split into pure hydrogen and pure carbon monoxide , it is permissible to employ phosphoric acid and other types of fuel cells , which can not tolerate the presence of carbon monoxide . in this configuration carbon monoxide is diverted to a separate gas fired boiler where is can be used to generate steam . when carbon monoxide is combusted in a gas boiler the composition of the boilers exhaust will be composed of at least twenty - five percent carbon dioxide . the carbon dioxide content of the exhaust of a gas turbine fueled by pure synthesis gas , is at less than 4 percent . therefore carbon dioxide can not be readily or at least cost effectively recovered . this preferred embodiment of the invention differs significantly from the prior art described in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 847 , 353 . a tipping floor 1 is provided of at least 3500 sq . feet is provided in which to dump and handle municipal solid waste . the loose waste stream 2 is directed to a conveyor belt leading to a non - ferrous metal separation system that includes separator 3 . this is important because the alloying of large percentages of ferrous and non - ferrous metal within the plasma arc furnace can so degrade the value of the metals recovered from the furnace that it may actually be necessary to pay for the disposal of this metal as opposed to recovering potential value . there is no provision within this system for the separation of mixed molten metals ; however the actual patent application to be filed in the continuation of the patent process may be so equipped . eddy current magnetic separator 3 is provided for the recovery of non - ferrous metals after they are separated from ferrous metals . a compactor / extruder system 4 is provided in order to prepare and deliver municipal solid waste for delivery into the plasma arc furnace . the system can alternatively be equipped with a briquetting and auguring material delivery system and the components listed below . a vacuum pump 5 or other device is provided for extracting air from the waste stream , or alternatively compactor / extruder system 4 can be fitted with an air displacement chamber utilizing synthesis gas scavenged from the furnace . removal of air from the waste stream is of critical importance since the introduction of even small amounts of oxygen could allow the synthesis gas to ignite causing an explosion . additionally the presence of air will cause the formation of light hydrocarbons in the plasma furnace leading to the formation of unwanted , harmful emissions . the exclusion of air is also critical to maintaining peak efficiency in the operation of the equipment since nitrogen can act as a heat sink within the furnace carrying away valuable heat energy . the prepared waste stream 6 which has had non - ferrous metals separated from it , air evacuated and has been properly sized , continues on into the plasma furnace . alternatively , an inert gas such as nitrogen , or synthesis gas produced by the pyrolytic operation of the furnace as described in detail hereinafter , may be applied to the waste material under pressure to displace any air in the waste stream . inside the plasma arc furnace a high temperature plasma 7 is used to provided temperatures in excess of 4 , 000 ° centigrade so that upon entry of the prepared waste stream 6 , disassociation of the molecules composing the prepared waste stream will occur . one or more submersible graphite , solid or hollow electrodes 8 a and 8 b are connected individually to separate ten plus megawatt direct current power supplies equipped with the controls to vary current flow which create the high temperature plasma arc 7 . there is a problem in changing arc electrodes in the plasma arc furnace that is solved by the use of graphite electrodes fitted with externally threaded male and internally threaded female couplings at their ends which facilitate replacement without the withdrawal of the electrodes from the molten pools . this greatly enhances the operation of the plasma arc furnace since it is not necessary to withdraw the electrodes from the furnace in order to replace them . the operator merely threads new electrode sections onto the existing units , turns the power back on and continues with the normal operation of the furnace . in addition , the electrodes are hollow and are used to inject the prepared waste material into the furnace within a molten silica bath over a molten metal pool in the furnace . the molten metal comes from metal in the waste matter that is inserted into the furnace , and the silica bath comes mainly from materials , such as calcium carbonate , that are deliberately injected into the furnace to create the bath and to neutralize predetermined substances detected in the furnace that are harmful to people , the environment and to the system . these substances are described in greater detail further in this detailed description . by injecting the prepared waste matter directly into the silica bath through the hollow electrodes , the waste matter is immediately subject to very high temperatures that completely disassociates the matter and minimizes having to recycle material back into the furnace , or into a second furnace , to finish the disassociation of the matter into its elemental components . this assures complete ionization and disassociation of the waste matter , and entraps hazardous or otherwise problem waste materials so that they do not inadvertently escape ionization and disassociation in the furnace . such problem waste materials are entrapped within a silica / ceramic material in the molten silica bath that is tapped off the furnace to produce geologically stable , leach proof media capable of being recycled into high value construction or building materials and components , or of being safely disposed of in a landfill . the plasma arc furnace has an exit port 9 a at an advantageous position for a molten pool of metal that forms in the bottom of the plasma arc furnace to be drawn off . port 9 b is provided an advantageous position for a molten pool of silica that forms above the molten metal to be drawn off . an automatic feed system 10 is provided to add calcium carbonate to the molten silica pool inside the plasma arc furnace to remove certain gasses from the synthesis gas . a computer receiving data on the chlorine content of the synthesis gas controls the injection of calcium carbonate into the furnace by automatic feed system 10 . the synthesis gas produced is monitored by process gas spectrometer 17 . when process gas spectrometer 17 detects the presence of a multitude of chemical compounds and the presence of vaporized metals , including furans or dioxins , and signals a computer control unit which causes a control valve 18 to re - route the flow of synthesis gas contaminated with hazardous materials back into the plasma arc furnace via a return line 19 for further processing . calcium carbonate is automatically added in sufficient quantities to absorb any molecules of chlorine , which might be present within the furnace . when process gas spectrometer 17 no longer detects the presence of furans or dioxins , control valve 18 reverts back to its normal position and the synthesis gas can then flow through the system normally . this sub - system is critical to preventing the release of furans or dioxins into the atmosphere . process gas spectrometer 17 is similar to the abb / extrel questor iv ™ and a computer controlled metering system designed to automatically add properly proportioned amounts of calcium carbonate to the molten silica pool . this system is critical to the safe operation of any plasma arc furnace being used to process municipal solid waste or other waste materials which might contain chlorine or other potentially hazardous components . the device monitors the synthesis gas stream , after it is formed and leaves the plasma arc furnace via the vent pipe . in order to prevent the release of furans or dioxins it is necessary to add the proper amount of calcium chloride to the molten silica pool within the furnace to absorb any chlorine molecules that may enter the furnace via the waste stream to be processed . sampling of the waste stream prior to its entering the furnace is not practical when dealing with the quantities of material this invention is intended to process . the only practical alternative therefore is to monitor the synthesis gas stream emanating from the furnace . when chlorine , furans , dioxins , other unwanted hazardous chemical compounds including acids or metals such as arsenic , beryllium , cadmium , lead or mercury are detected , the process gas analyzer signals the control valve , to close any access to the remainder of the system and redirect the gas flow back into the furnace . a automatic metering system is then signaled by the software driven computer analyzer operating in conjunction with the process gas spectrometer , to add the appropriate amount of calcium chloride to the molten silica pool necessary to absorb the chlorine molecules responsible for the production of the furans or dioxins detected . in the case of other hazardous chemical compounds or metals , the contaminated synthesis gas continues to be recycled through the furnace until such time as the hazardous materials have been removed . a vent pipe 11 is provided to recover the synthesis gas . the synthesis gas is composed of two parts hydrogen and one part carbon monoxide , formed within the plasma arc furnace through the combining of excess carbon molecules and oxygen . this process can be expedited and encouraged to produce even greater amounts of synthesis gas through the addition of water vapor causing a chemical reaction c + h 2 o ═ co + h 2 . a cyclone filter 12 is provided to remove entrapped particles of silica and other materials from the synthesis gas stream exiting through vent pipe 11 . a return line 13 is provided to return entrapped particles of silica and other materials from cyclone filter 12 back into the molten silica pool in side the plasma arc furnace . a primary heat exchanger 14 is provided to cool the synthesis gas , which is exiting cyclone filter 12 , from temperatures of approximately 1 , 400 ° centigrade down to 538 ° centigrade . otherwise the high temperature of the synthesis gas would melt other components in the system . steam produced by the cooling process can be directed into the plasma arc furnace to encourage the production of additional synthesis gas , and / or substantial amounts of steam can be directed to a steam turbine and generator for electrical power generation . feed water line 15 provides water to heat exchanger 14 to cool the synthesis gas . the water is converted to steam and steam line 16 is provided from the heat exchanger to transport the high pressure steam to a steam turbine or generator . uncooled but cleansed synthesis gas is input to a high temperature hydrogen membrane filtering system 20 , such as that developed at los alamos laboratories , and currently licensed for manufacture to coor &# 39 ; s ceramic filter corp . and its joint venture partner , pall advanced separation system , inc . this membrane filtering system 20 is used to split the synthesis gas produced in the plasma arc furnace operating under fast pyrolysis conditions into two distinct gas streams . one composed of pure hydrogen and the other of pure carbon monoxide ( co ). carbon monoxide can either be combusted in a gas fired boiler 32 to facilitate the recovery of carbon dioxide ( co 2 ) and the conversion of its potential energy in steam , or it can be transported to a compressor and bottled . the hydrogen ( h 2 ) can either be converted into energy in fuel cells or it can be transported to a compressor and then fed into containers holding either / or a graphite nano - fiber storage medium or an anhydrous aluminum storage medium , so that the h 2 can be for safely stored or transport . a hydrogen feed line 21 is provided from the high temperature hydrogen membrane filtering system 20 , to the fuel cell stacks 22 a through 22 e as a fuel supply to them . fuel cell stacks 22 a through 22 e are of the molten carbonate type that cannot tolerate the introduction of carbon monoxide that has previously been separated from the synthesis gas , and they convert the hydrogen fuel gas into electrical energy , heat up to 1500 ° farenheit which can be recovered to produce steam , carbon dioxide and water . power lines 30 are provided to transport the electrical energy generated by fuel cell stacks 22 a through 22 e . fuel cell exhaust line 23 is provided to direct high temperature carbon dioxide and steam through a primary heat exchanger 24 a to extract the heat energy contained therein for reuse . a secondary heat exchanger 24 b is also provided to extract heat energy from fuel cell stacks 22 a through 22 e in the form of steam and to aid in converting the steam , entrained with the carbon dioxide , into cool h 2 o . exhaust line 25 from secondary heat exchanger 24 b is used to deliver cooled h 2 o and co 2 to a recycling unit where they are separated , purified and recycled for reuse . a water recycling unit 26 is provided to remove carbonates and de - ionize h 2 o recovered from the exhaust of fuel cells 22 a through 22 e . a feed water line 27 is also provided to deliver cooling water to secondary heat exchanger 24 . as this water is heated and turned into steam , the steam produced passes through high pressure steam line 28 to a steam turbine . an exhaust line 29 is also provided from the fuel cells to transport small amounts of no x , co and unburned hydrocarbons . a carbon monoxide line 31 is provided to direct carbon monoxide from the high temperature hydrogen membrane filtering system 20 to a conventional gas - fired boiler 32 . gas fired boiler 32 combusts the co so that co2 may be recovered more cost effectively and the potential energy value of the co manufactured under the fast pyrolysis conditions within the plasma arc furnace may be converted into heat energy . a exhaust port 33 is also provided on the gas fired boiler 32 from which combustion gasses comprised of 25 % co 2 can be piped off to a membrane filtering system to recover pure co 2 ( not shown ). high pressure steam line 35 is provided to transport steam from gas fired boiler 32 to a steam turbine 36 . ball check valves 34 a - 34 c are strategically placed as shown in fig1 to prevent blow back from occurring into critical devices . steam turbine 36 is provided to convert the potential energy of the steam produced by the primary heat exchanger 24 a , the gas fired boiler 32 , and the secondary heat exchanger 24 b on the fuel cell exhaust line 23 , into mechanical force . exhaust line 37 is provided to direct steam exhaust from the steam turbine to a condenser 38 . condenser 38 is provided to cool steam exiting the steam turbine in order to facilitate recycling of water . condenser 38 can be sea water cooled in a barge installation or cooled by an electrically operated chiller , in land based installations when there is a shortage of available water from external sources . an exhaust line 40 from condenser 38 is provided in order to recover the cooled h 2 o . feed and return lines 39 are provided to supply the condenser with cooling water and extract it for transport to a water make - up unit which is not shown , but which is known in the art . a generator 41 is provided to convert the mechanical force produced by the steam turbine into electricity . power lines 42 from generator 41 are used to remove electrical energy from the generator . fig2 shows a plasma arc system that allows for the use of molten carbonate fuel cells , together with the production of co 2 and h 2 o with greatly reduced emissions of oxides of nitrogen , carbon monoxide or unburned hydrocarbons . fig2 is almost identical to fig1 so most of the elements are not described again . the difference is that in fig2 there is no high temperature hydrogen membrane filtering system 20 , no carbon monoxide line 31 , no exhaust port 33 , no gas fired boiler 32 , and no ball check valve 34 a . thus , there is no gas fired boiler making use of the carbon monoxide . the carbon monoxide is fed along with hydrogen to fuel cells 22 a - 22 e . these fuel cells may be molten carbonate or other types of fuel cells which are intolerant to the carbon monoxide in the synthesis gas . fig3 illustrates a configuration of the system which allows the use of gas turbines to generate electricity without damage to critical internal components from the high combustion temperature of synthesis gas and greatly reduced emissions of oxides of nitrogen . the major difference between fig3 and fig1 and 2 is that instead of there being fuel cells 22 a - e being driven with the hydrogen from the synthesis gas in fig1 and with straight synthesis gas ( hydrogen and carbon monoxide ) in fig2 a hydrogen gas driven gas turbine 72 and generator 63 replace the fuel cells 22 to produce electricity . the carbon monoxide still drives a gas fired boiler 32 in the manner shown in fig1 . the hydrogen from high temperature hydrogen membrane 20 in fig3 is input to a fogger water injection system 58 where de - ionized water is added before the combination is burned in gas turbine 72 ( or alternatively an internal combustion engine ) to convert the energy to mechanical force and drive generator 63 which provides electricity at output 64 . the water limits the internal temperatures and thereby prevents heat damage to critical internal components . in addition , the fogger water injection system makes it possible to operate this invention in locations and / or at times when such alternative fuels may not be readily available in quantity . in addition , the use of the irrigation fogger markedly lowers nitrous oxide emissions caused by the high temperatures of the combustion of synthesis gas and / or alternative fuel mixes . there is also a gas turbine exhaust line 59 to transport the steam laden exhaust from gas turbine 72 to a condenser 60 in order to facilitate the recovery and recycling of the water in a manner . water output from condenser 60 is taken via exhaust line 61 to a holding tank from where it can be re - used . in addition there are feed and return lines 62 to condenser 60 to supply cooling water to the condenser . gas fired boiler 32 is the same as shown in fig1 but there is a difference in that an exhaust line 66 to transport the gas boiler exhaust to a membrane filter 67 that is used to separate and purify the carbon dioxide created by the combustion of carbon monoxide within boiler 32 . one output from membrane filter 67 is an exhaust line that transports noxious gases including nitrous oxides , carbon monoxide , and unburned hydrocarbons to a scrubber 69 to be captured . the scrubbed gasses are then released to the atmosphere via exhaust line 70 . the carbon dioxide separated by membrane filter 67 travels via exhaust line 71 to a gas liquefaction system ( not shown ). fig4 is a representation of how molten matter in the plasma arc furnace is stirred using an externally applied magnetic field in the molten matter . the density or darkness of the arrows in fig4 indicates the velocity at which the melt is being steered . fewer arrows near the outside perimeter indicate a slower rotational stirring speed , and a greater concentration of arrows near the center indicates a greater rotational stirring speed . this stirring action assures complete conversion of all waste matter 6 injected into the plasma arc furnace . alternatively the plasma arc furnace may be equipped with a plurality of electromagnetic coils capable of imparting a stirring action to the molten metal contained within the furnace so that the use of an energy intensive secondary source of heat , such as direct resistance heating electrodes or the ac powered jewel heating system described in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 847 , 353 which reduces the overall efficiency of the conversion of waste into energy , can be avoided . these electromagnetic coils are strategically placed around the bottom of the plasma arc furnace shell and impart a stirring motion to the molten metal bath contained within the plasma arc furnace . limited stirring motion is also induced by frictional forces exerted by the molten metal bath upon the molten silica bath that floats above it . additional stirring forces are imparted by the flow of electrons which are traveling from the graphite electrodes through the molten silica , the molten metal bath and finally to the ground plate in the bottom of the furnace , from the electrodes . with the systems described herein rapid conversion of large quantities of hazardous , bulky or otherwise problem waste materials including , but not limited to , organic and inorganic materials , industrial or household waste chemicals , chemical weapons , medical waste , infectious or otherwise biologically hazardous materials , human or animal sewerage , soils or marine sediments excavated or dredges from contaminated sites , recovered waste material excavated from landfills , used tires , or used oil filters can be carried out into simple elements including but not limited to carbon , oxygen , hydrogen and to a lesser extent sulfur , potassium and chlorine .	8
a melt blown line is illustrated in fig1 as comprising an extruder 10 , melt blowing die 11 and a rotating collector drum or screen 15 . extruder 10 delivers molten resin to the die 11 which extrudes side - by - side fibers into converging hot air streams . the air streams attenuate and draw the fibers down forming air / fiber stream 12 . the fibers are collected on screen 15 and are withdrawn as a web 16 . the typical melt blowing line will also include an air source connected to the die 11 through valved lines 17 and heating elements 18 . as shown in fig3 the die 11 includes body 20 , an elongate die tip 22 secured to the die body 20 , and air plates 23 and 24 . for purposes of this invention , the die body 20 is constructed in die halves 27 and 28 ( including parts 27a and 28a ) which , when assembled , form the die body 20 . details of the die body assemblage are not illustrated . however , the assemblage of these parts may be by bolts as disclosed in copending application ussn no . 130 , 359 . as best seen in fig2 the die tip 22 includes outwardly extending nose piece 29 of triangular cross section and flanking flanges 25 and 26 . the nose piece 29 terminates in apex region 30 . the included angle of the taper of the nose piece 29 generally ranges from 45 to 90 degrees . a central elongate channel 31 is formed in the die tip 22 . a plurality of side - by - side orifices 32 are drilled in the apex region 30 and are in fluid communication with channel 31 . the apex region 30 of the nosepiece 29 is the tip portion which contains the orifices 32 . the orifices are distributed along knife edge apex 30a of the nosepiece 29 , with from 10 to 40 orifices per inch being generally provided . the orifices 32 are generally 0 . 010 to 0 . 025 inches in diameter . the interior side of the die tip 22 includes flat surface 35 and longitudinal notches 36 and 37 ( see fig2 ) flanking surface 35 . for purposes of defining the spacial relationship of die tip parts to the die body , the term &# 34 ; interior &# 34 ; refers to die tip parts adjacent the die body . a longitudinal groove 38 is formed in a central portion of die body surface 35 and at the inlet of channel 31 . as shown in fig3 generally flat flow distribution member 39 ( referred to as a breaker plate ) is mounted in groove 38 . the internal part of the breaker plate 39 is perforated to permit passage of molten resin when mounted in groove 38 . the breaker plate 39 protrudes slightly beyond surface 35 and is provided with flat surface 41 . the longitudinal outer edge portions of surface 41 of the breaker plate 39 engage the die body and as described below forms a fluid seal therewith . for purposes of this invention , the breaker plate 39 is considered to be a part of the die tip 22 . in some die constructions , however , it may not be necessary to provide a breaker plate 39 . in such constructions , the groove 38 would not be needed and embossed strips ( illustrated in fig4 ) flanking the channel 31 and protruding outwardly from surface 35 could serve as the seal surface on the body 20 . the die body 20 , which is generally fabricated from high quality steel in symmetrical halves and bolted together , has formed therein a groove defined by sidewalls 42 and 43 and bottom surface 44 . also formed at longitudinal edge portions of the surface 44 are parallel shoulders 46 and 47 which are sized to mate with parallel notches 36 and 37 of the die tip 22 . shoulders 46 and 47 provide the mounting support means for the die tip 22 . note that the shoulders 46 and 47 , in addition to supporting edge portions of the die tip , in the direction of bolt force ( described below ), also prevent lateral expansion or movement of the die tip base . a coat hanger flow passage 33 terminates in cavity 34 in a central portion of surface 44 . cavity 34 extends substantially the full length of the die and serves to distribute molten polymer therealong and deliver polymer to channel 31 through breaker plate 39 . the die body 20 also includes air conduits 48 and 49 for delivering air to opposite sides of the die tip 22 . the air plates 23 and 24 in combination with the die tip 22 define converging air flow passages 51 and 52 . converging air streams discharge at the knife edge 30 a of the nosepiece 29 and contact fibers of molten resin extruded from orifices 32 . the air streams attenuate and draw the fibers down forming air / fiber streams illustrated by reference numeral 12 in fig1 and 3 . as best seen in fig2 the die tip flanges 25 and 26 are each provided with a set of aligned bolt holes 53 and 54 . bolt holes 53 and 54 are , respectively , aligned on opposite sides of nose piece 29 and the outer ends of each are counterbored at 53a and 54a . returning to fig3 the die tip 22 fits in die body 20 with the shoulders 46 and 47 receiving the complementary shaped die notches 36 and 37 . the die body 20 has formed therein two sets of aligned threaded bolt holes 56 and 57 which open to and are spaced along surface 44 . the bolt holes 56 and 57 are aligned , respectively , with die tip holes 53 and 54 . bolts 58 and 59 extend through holes 53 and 54 of die tip 22 and are threaded to holes 56 and 57 thereby securing the die tip 22 to body 20 . the bolt heads 58a and 59a fit in counterbores 53a and 54a . with the breaker plate 39 mounted in groove 38 , die tip 22 is positioned on shoulders 46 and 47 of the die body 20 . the bottom surface 41 of breaker plate 39 confronts a portion of surface 44 surrounding cavity 34 . with the die tip 22 positioned on the shoulders 46 and 47 , but not bolted , the die tip surface 35 is spaced from die body surface 44 and breaker plate surface 41 is spaced from die body surface 44 . the unstressed spacing ( s 1 ) between surfaces 35 and 44 is greater than the unstressed spacing ( s 2 ) between surfaces 41 and 44 . in order to provide the fluid seal for polymer flowing from cavity 34 to channel 31 , s 2 is 0 in the bolted position of die tip 22 . the following are the preferred spacing s 1 and s 2 : ______________________________________die tip positioned die tipbut not bolted bolted______________________________________s . sub . 1 from 0 . 005 to 0 . 030 mils from 0 . 004 to 0 . 029 mls ( avg . ) s . sub . 2 from 0 . 001 to 0 . 010 mils 0s . sub . 1 & gt ; s . sub . 2______________________________________ from the above , it is apparent that s 2 ( not bolted ) equals s 1 ( not bolted ) minus s 1 ( bolted ). it should be noted that the spacing between surfaces 41 and 44 are measured with the breaker plate 39 fully mounted in groove 38 . in practice , the plate 39 may engage surface 41 leaving the space between the inner surface of plate 39 and the bottom of groove 38 . as will be appreciated from the following description , the spacing may be at either location . upon tightening of bolts 58 and 59 , opposite bending moments are imparted on the die tip 22 about shoulders 46 and 47 , which act as fulcrums . bolts 58 create a bending moment in the clockwise direction as viewed in fig3 and bolts 59 create a counterclockwise bending moment . these bending forces , being in opposite directions , concentrate in the apex region 30 of the die tip 29 . continued torquing of bolts 58 and 59 causes the surface 41 to sealingly contact surface 44 providing a fluid seal for polymer flow from cavity 34 to channel 31 . note that the bolting force causes plate 39 to fully seat in groove 38 ( regardless of its starting position ) and form a seal therewith . the force diagram of fig4 depicts the mounting forces imposed on the die tip 22 . the bending moments created by bolt forces f , f &# 39 ; about fulcrums a , a &# 39 ; create opposite and equal forces b , b &# 39 ; in the apex region 30 and forces c , c &# 39 ; in the fluid seal regions . at least a portion of the forces b , b &# 39 ; are created prior to creation of forces c , c &# 39 ;. the opposite and equal forces b and b &# 39 ; create compressive forces which are maintained with the die tip 22 bolted to body 20 . these compressive forces counteract fluid pressure forces within channel 31 . although the forces b and b &# 39 ; may vary within wide ranges , depending on several factors , they should be sufficient to create compressive stress of at least 1 , 000 psi , preferably at least 10 , 000 psi , and most preferably at least 20 , 000 psi in the apex region 30 ( i . e . the area of metal in a plane passing through the axes of the orifices 32 ). the greater s 2 , the greater the compressive stress . s 2 of 0 . 002 to 0 . 005 are preferred . an important feature of the die constructed according to the present invention is the means for mounting the die tip 22 on the die body which creates compressive forces in the apex region 30 . this is achieved by supporting edge portions of the die tip 22 on the die body so that opposite and equal bending moments are imposed on the nose piece 29 . when the bolts 58 and 59 are fully torqued a residual compressive stress is created in the apex region 30 and a compressive seal force is created at the junction of surfaces 41 and 44 . other structures for creating the bending moments are possible . for example edge projections in the die tip ( in place of the notches 36 and 37 ) could engage surface 44 ( without shoulders 46 and 47 ) thereby providing s 1 & gt ; s 2 . in other constructions , it is possible to create the residual compressive forces in the apex region where s 1 = s 2 ( unstressed ). with the die tip 22 bolted to the die body , molten polymer flows through passages 33 , 34 , plate 39 , channel 31 , and orifices 32 , while hot air flows through air passage 48 , 51 , and passage 49 and 52 , discharging as sheets on opposite sides of the nosepiece apex 30a . as described above , the internal pressure in the apex region 30 is counteracted in part by the compressive forces imparted by the opposite bending moments concentrated on that region . although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiment , it will be appreciated that variations are possible without departing from the inventive concept described and claimed herein .	3
referring to fig1 and 2 of the drawings , a schematically illustrated mold 10 according to this invention is disposed between a schematically illustrated upper plate 12 and a schematically illustrated lower plate 14 . the plates 12 and 14 are representative elements of a press or like machine which moves the plates toward and away from each other and which exerts , through the plates , a compressive force on a body captured therebetween . the mold 10 includes and upper or first mold section 16 and a lower or second mold section 18 . the upper mold section 16 is fabricated from an epoxy or thermoset plastic material and has an upper surface 20 juxtaposed the upper plate 12 and a planar lower or parting surface 22 . a suitable epoxy is marketed under the name thermoset 200 by thermoset plastics , inc ., 5101 e . 56th street , p 0 . box 20902 , indianapolis , ind . 46220 - 0902 . a cavity 24 which opens through the parting surface 22 is formed in the first mold section and duplicates the outer surface of substantially the upper half of the wax pattern to be produced by the mold 10 . a groove 26 , fig1 in the parting surface 22 extends from the cavity 24 to an outside wall of the first mold section 16 . the first mold section 16 is connected to the upper plate 12 through conventional means , not shown , which carry the mold section up and down with the plate 12 . as seen best in fig1 and 6a , the first mold section 16 further includes a plurality of first force transfer elements 28 in the form of cylindrical metal , preferably aluminum , posts embedded in and / or mechanically locked to the epoxy of the first mold section . each post 28 has a cylindrical outer surface 30 with spaced grooves 32 therein , a planar inner end face 34 and a planar outer end face 36 . the inner end faces 34 of the posts 28 are disposed in the plane of the parting surface 22 and the outer end faces 36 are disposed at least slightly outside of the upper surface 20 of the mold section so that the plate 12 bears directly on the posts 28 but not on the epoxy therebetween . each post has an axial bore 38 extending therethrough between the inner and outer end faces 34 and 36 . the bores 38 are internally threaded with right hand screw threads . the second or lower mold section 18 is also fabricated from epoxy and has a planar upper or parting surface 40 facing the parting surface 22 on the upper mold section and a lower surface 42 juxtaposed the plate 14 . a cavity 44 which opens through the parting surface 40 is formed in the second mold section and duplicates the outer surface of substantially the lower half of the wax pattern to be produced by the mold 10 . a groove 46 in the parting surface 40 extends from the cavity 44 to an outside wall of the second mold section 14 . the second mold section 18 is connected to the lower plate 14 through conventional means , not shown , like the means connecting the first mold section 16 to the upper plate 12 . as seen best in fig1 and 2 , the second mold section 18 further includes a plurality of posts 48 embedded in and / or mechanically locked to the epoxy of the second mold section . the posts 48 are similar to the posts 28 in the first mold section 16 . each post 48 has a cylindrical outer surface 50 with spaced grooves therein , a planar inner end face 52 and a planar outer end face 54 . the inner end faces 52 of the posts 48 are disposed in the plane of the parting surface 40 and the outer end faces 54 are disposed at least slightly outside of the lower surface 42 of the mold section so the plate 14 bears directly on the posts 48 but not on the epoxy therebetween . each post has an axial bore 56 extending therethrough between the inner and outer end faces 52 and 54 . the bores 56 are internally threaded with left hand screw threads . the posts 28 in the first mold section 16 are aligned with respective ones of the posts 48 in the second mold section 18 . likewise , the cavity 24 and the groove 26 in the parting surface of the first mold section 16 are aligned with the cavity 44 and the groove 46 in the parting surface of the second mold section 18 . in a closed position of the mold 10 , fig1 the first and second mold sections 16 and 18 meet at the parting surfaces 22 and 40 , respectively , whereby the cavities 24 and 44 define a closed pattern chamber 58 accessible only through the passage defined by the grooves 26 and 46 . in operation , the plates 12 and 14 have first or open positions , fig2 relative to each other wherein the first and second mold sections are separated by a distance sufficient to permit withdrawal of the wax patterns formed in the mold 10 . after a pattern is removed from the mold , the press is actuated to move the plates 12 and 14 toward each other . of course , only one of the plates needs to move for relative closing to occur . the plates move toward each other until the inner end faces 34 of the posts 28 in the first mold section 16 engage the inner end faces 52 of corresponding ones of the posts 48 in the second mold section 18 . at that instant the closed position of the mold 10 is defined . further relative closing of the plates beyond the closed position is foreclosed by the posts 28 and 48 which transfer compressive forces directly between the plates 12 and 14 independently of the epoxy in which they are embedded . because the inner end faces of the posts 28 and 48 are in the planes of the parting surfaces 22 and 40 , respectively , the closed position of the mold 10 is also characterized by surface to surface contact between the parting surfaces . accordingly , in the closed position of the mold , the pattern chamber 58 defined by the cavities is closed and accessible only through the passage defined by the aligned grooves 26 and 46 . with the mold 10 in the closed position , hot wax is introduced into the pattern chamber 58 through the passage defined by the grooves 26 and 46 . the wax exerts forces on the first and second mold sections 16 and 18 tending to separate them at the parting surfaces 22 and 40 . however , because the posts 28 and 48 are embedded in the epoxy of the mold sections and because the outer end faces of the posts abut the plates 12 and 14 , the mold remains closed . when the wax solidifies , the press is actuated to move the plates in relative opening directions until the open position is achieved . thereafter , the wax pattern is removed and the cycle is repeated . it is , of course , essential that the inner end faces 34 and 52 of the posts 28 and 48 , respectively , be located substantially precisely in the planes of the respective parting surfaces 22 and 40 . otherwise , compressive forces will be transferred to the epoxy material of the mold sections . the method according to this invention of fabricating the mold 10 achieves the requisite location of the inner end faces and represents an important feature of this invention . referring to fig3 in a first step in the method of fabricating the mold 10 , a first pouring chamber 60 is defined within the confines of a first closure member 62 and above a plate 64 . the . chamber 60 can be cylindrical , square or any other convenient shape . the surface of the plate 64 facing the chamber 60 defines a planar bottom of the latter and may have an aperture 66 therein which closely receives a solid plug 68 representing the shape of the wax pattern to be produced by the mold 10 . generally the upper half of the plug 68 projects above the plane of the bottom of the pouring chamber . the blocks 70 and 72 , fig7 represent the steps of forming the chamber 60 and locating the plug 68 therein . after the plug 68 is located in the bottom of the pouring chamber , several posts 28 are positioned in the pouring chamber around the plug . the posts 28 have their respective inner end faces 34 directly engaging the plate 64 so that the inner end faces are substantially exactly in the plane of the bottom of the pouring chamber . since the outer end faces of the posts 28 are accessible throughout the fabrication of the mold sections , mechanical gripping devices , not shown , may be used to maintain the positions of the posts within the pouring chamber 60 . the block 74 , fig7 represents the step of positioning the posts in the pouring chamber 60 . in the next step , uncured epoxy is poured into the pouring chamber 60 to a depth represented schematically by phantom line 76 , fig3 . the epoxy is then allowed to cure or harden . the adhesion between the epoxy and the outer surfaces of the posts , plus the mechanical connection therebetween defined at the grooves 32 , unitize the cured epoxy and the posts . a suitable metal for the posts 28 is aluminum and a suitable epoxy is the aforesaid thermoset 200 epoxy casting resin marketed by thermoset plastics , inc ., 5101 e . 56th street , p . 0 . box 20902 , indianapolis , ind . 46220 - 09022 . the block 78 , fig7 represents the step of filling the pouring chamber 60 with epoxy . after the epoxy cures , the first mold section thus formed is removed from the pouring chamber 60 and inverted . the upwardly facing parting surface 22 of the mold section 16 is the surface which was exposed to the planar bottom of the pouring chamber and is substantially coplanar with the inner end faces 34 of the posts 28 since the inner end faces abutted the bottom of the pouring chamber 60 when the epoxy was poured . in the next step in the method according to this invention , a right hand screw threaded end 80 of a connecting stud 82 , fig6 b , is threaded into each of right hand threaded bores 38 in the posts 28 through the inner end faces 34 . a left hand screw threaded end 84 of each of the studs 82 projects above the parting surface 22 and thereafter threadedly receives the left hand screw threaded bore of one of the posts 48 . the posts 48 are threaded onto the studs 82 until the inner end faces 52 thereof abut the inner end faces 34 of the corresponding posts 28 to define rigidly coupled pairs of posts . the block 86 , fig7 represents the step of connecting the posts 28 and 48 through connecting studs 82 to form rigid pairs abutting at their inner end faces . as seen best in fig5 a second closure member 88 is positioned around the inverted first mold section 16 to define therewithin a second pouring chamber 90 . the bottom of the second pouring chamber 90 is defined by the parting surface 22 of the inverted first mold section 16 . substantially the lower half of the plug 68 projects above the parting surface 22 into the second pouring chamber . the block 92 , fig7 represents the step of forming the second pouring chamber 90 adjacent the parting surface 22 . the same uncured epoxy used to form the first mold section 16 is poured into the second pouring chamber 90 to a depth schematically represented by phantom line 94 , fig5 . the epoxy is then allowed to cure . the adhesion between the epoxy and the several posts 48 , plus the mechanical bonds therebetween defined at the grooves , unitize the epoxy and the posts . the block 96 , fig7 represents the step of pouring the epoxy into the second pouring chamber 90 . the second closure member 88 is removed to expose the second mold section 18 thus formed . at this stage the second mold section is rigidly coupled to the first mold section 16 by the connecting studs 82 . the mold sections are conveniently separated in turnbuckle fashion by screw drivers or like implements inserted into the threaded bores of the posts 28 or 48 . for example , screw drivers , not shown , are inserted into the bores 56 through the outer end faces 54 until the blades thereof engage a slot 98 , fig6 b , in the end of the corresponding connecting stud 82 . when the screw drivers are thereafter turned in an appropriate direction , the connecting studs operate in turnbuckle fashion to relatively separate the first mold section from the second mold section until the mold sections are separated by a distance sufficient to remove the studs from between the parting surfaces 22 and 40 . the block 100 , fig7 represents the step of separating the mold sections 16 and 18 and removing the studs . since the parting surface 22 of the first mold section 16 defines the bottom of the second pouring chamber 90 , the parting surface 40 of the second mold section precisely matches the parting surface 22 of the first mold section 16 . in addition , the inner end faces 52 of the posts 48 are substantially exactly positioned in the planar parting surface 40 because of their abutment against the inner end faces 34 of the posts 28 when the epoxy was poured into the second pouring chamber . accordingly , each time the mold sections are brought together , the parting surfaces 22 and 40 meet with sufficient closeness to seal the pattern cavity against wax escape while the metal posts prevent further compression of the first mold section against the second mold section .	8
referring now to the drawings , and particularly to fig1 a system embodying the features of the present invention is illustrated in block diagram at 10 . the system 10 is illustrated in the context of a commercial refrigeration system and includes a refrigerant compressor 15 in closed circuit with a condenser 16 and an evaporator 17 , all of which are connected by a pipe assembly 18 . the compressor 15 and the condenser 16 are connected by a pipe segment 20 ; the condenser and evaporator are connected by a pipe segment 21 ; and the evaporator and compressor are connected by a pipe segment 22 . these components are of known construction and arrangement and are commercially available . the pipe segment 21 includes an expansion valve 25 . upstream , next to the expansion valve 25 , a solenoid operated control valve 26 is mounted in the pipe segment 21 . during hot gas defrost , the control valve 26 closes communication between the condenser 16 and the evaporator 17 . the pipe segment 22 includes a pressure regulator valve 27 , which is located downstream of the evaporator 17 and upstream of the compressor 15 . the pressure regulator valve 27 regulates the flow of gaseous refrigerant to the compressor from the evaporator . the system 10 also includes a hot gas defrost pipe segment 30 . one end of the pipe segment 30 is connected to the pipe segment 20 upstream of the condenser 16 . the other end of the pipe segment 30 is connected to the pipe segment 21 downstream of the expansion valve 25 and upstream of the evaporator 17 . a solenoid operated defrost valve 31 is disposed in the hot gas defrost pipe segment 30 . a first slug surge suppressor device 50 embodying the features of the present invention is located directly downstream of the solenoid valve 31 . a second suppressor device 50 , essentially identical to the first , is located directly downstream of the pressure regulator valve 27 . in the normal operation of the system 10 as a refrigeration system , the evaporator 17 converts cooled liquid refrigerant to a gas , thereby removing heat from the surrounding environment . the compressor 15 receives the gas from the evaporator 17 through the pressure regulator valve 27 . the gas is then compressed by the compressor 15 , after which it passes downstream through the pipe 20 into the condenser 16 . the condenser 16 liquifies the pressurized gas by removing heat from the gas . the liquified refrigerant leaves the condenser 16 through the pipe segment 21 and travels ( via valve 26 ) to the expansion valve 25 . the expansion valve 25 reduces the pressure of the liquified refrigerant and returns it downstream to the evaporator 17 . during a refrigeration operation of the aforedescribed nature , it is not unusual for the evaporator coils to accumulate frost as the system operates . this frost builds - up is especially rapid where the system operates in a high humidity environment . as the frost builds up , the refrigeration efficiency of the evaporator coils is reduced . normally the hot gas defrost pipe segment 30 is closed by the hot gas defrost valve 31 ; the pipe segment 21 remains open through valve 26 ; and the pipe segment 22 remains open through the pressure regulator valve 27 . when a defrost cycle is called for , the valve 26 is closed and the hot gas defrost valve 31 is opened . the pressure regulator valve 27 is then de - energized and regulates the pressure in the evaporator 17 . when the valve 26 is closed and the hot gas defrost valve 31 is opened , high pressure refrigerant gas is delivered to the evaporator 17 . while this high - pressure gas is being supplied to the evaporator 17 , the outlet from the evaporator 17 is restricted by the pressure regulator valve 27 . as a result , sufficient pressure is maintained in the evaporator coils to provide a saturation temperature that is high enough to melt the frost . during defrost , the evaporator coils essentially function as a condenser . during hot gas defrost , the pipe segment 30 can contain liquid in addition to the hot gas from the compressor 15 . as a result , a slug , comprising either liquid or a liquid - gas mixture , rapidly passes through the valve 31 and strikes downstream system components , including the evaporator . when the hot gas defrost process is finished , the pressure regulator valve 27 is energized and the main passage of the valve 27 opens rapidly . the pressure that built up in the evaporator 17 during defrost is much higher than the suction pressure , thus creating a pressure differential that can move the liquid - gas slug in the evaporator 17 rapidly downstream . as the slug &# 34 ; surges &# 34 ; into downstream components , serious damage can result . in order to prevent the rapid passage of slugs through the system , the slug surge suppressors 50a - 50c of the present invention have been developed . the slug surge suppressors 50 , as seen in fig1 are positioned downstream of the hot gas defrost valve 31 in the pipe segment 30 , and downstream of the pressure regulatory valve 27 in the pipe segment 22 . referring now to fig2 a first embodiment of the slug surge suppressor is illustrated in detail at 50a . the slug surge suppressor 50a generally comprises a cylindrical body 52 having pipe fitting elements 54 and 56 , each located at opposite ends of the cylindrical body 52 . the pipe fitting elements 54 , 56 are preferably welded in place to an inside wall 53 of the cylindrical body 52 . a dome - shaped perforated screen 58 is attached around its edge to a first ring - shaped holder 62 . the ring - shaped holder 62 fits inside a circular groove formed by a shoulder element 66 and the inner wall 53 of the cylindrical body 52 . a cone - shaped perforated screen 60 is attached around its edge to a second ring - shaped holder 64 , which fits movably against the inner wall 53 of the cylindrical body 52 . the cone - shaped screen 60 and second holder 64 are located upstream from the dome - shaped screen 58 and first holder 62 . a plurality of beads are located between the screens 58 , 60 . the beads 68 form capillary passages in the area between the screens 58 , 60 . a coil spring 70 is between the cone - shaped screen 60 and pipe fitting element 56 . the spring 70 is biased at one end against the second holder 64 and at its other end against pipe fitting element 56 . thereby , the second holder 64 and the cone - shaped screen 60 are movably positioned against the beads 68 . in operation , a slug ( not shown ), comprised of either liquid or a liquid - gas mixture , rapidly advances through the pipe segment 30 into the inlet port 72 . the slug strikes against and passes through the cone - shaped screen 60 . the non - planar shapes of the screens 58 , 60 place less stress on them and make them stronger . thus , the screens 58 , 60 resist breakage upon impact with the slug . also , the movable screen 60 and the spring 70 provide additional ability to absorb some of the impact of the rapidly moving slug . the liquid - gas slug then passes through the beads 68 . the spaces between the beads 68 form capillary passages , which resist the flow of liquid . at the same time , these passages present little resistance to gas flow and no significant gas pressure drop . the beads , resistance to liquid flow also lowers the liquid pressure , thereby flashing ( i . e ., vaporizing ) most of liquid . the vaporized liquid then passes easily through the beads 68 in the same manner described above for the gaseous component of the slug . the remaining unvaporized liquid is slowed down significantly as it passes through the beads 68 and the dome - shaped screen 58 to the outlet port 74 . thereby , slug surge is prevented . referring now to fig3 a second embodiment of the slug surge suppressor is illustrated in detail at 50b . the slug surge suppressor shown at 50b is identical to the device shown at 50a in fig2 except for the addition of a second dome - shaped screen 59 and an alarm system for detecting breakage of the first dome - shaped screen 58 . if the dome - shaped screen 58 breaks , the beads 68 pass through the outlet port 74 and cause damage to downstream system components . to prevent this , the second dome - shaped screen 59 is provided as shown in fig3 . the two screens 58 and 59 are electrically insulated from each other . an alarm 76 is connected in series with the second dome - shaped screen 59 and one terminal of a battery 78 . a second terminal of the battery 78 is connected in series with the cylindrical body 52 , the beads 68 , and the first dome - shaped screen 58 . thus , there is a short between the screens 58 and 59 . if the first dome - shaped screen 58 breaks , the beads 68 will move into the space between the screens and complete the circuit from the battery 78 to the alarm 76 ( in this regard , the beads 68 , screens 59 and 58 , and the cylindrical body 52 should all be made from electrically conductive material ). thus , the alarm sounds , notifying the user that the first screen has broken . although the alarm 76 warns the user that one screen has broken , the unit is still completely functional since the second dome - shaped screen 59 confines the beads 68 and prevents them from traveling downstream . the screens typically last many years before breakage , and thus , a battery indicator 80 is included to signal the user whenever the battery 78 is dead . referring now to fig4 a third embodiment of the slug surge suppressor is illustrated in detail at 50c . like the device shown at 50a , the slug surge suppressor 50c generally comprises a cylindrical body 152 having pipe fitting elements 154 and 156 , each located at opposite ends of the cylindrical body 152 . the pipe fitting elements 154 , 156 are preferably welded in place to an inside wall 153 of the cylindrical 152 . a dome - shaped perforated screen 158 is attached around its edge to a first ring - shaped holder 162 . however , unlike the embodiment shown at 50a , the first holder 162 fits movably against the inner wall 153 of the cylindrical body 152 . a cone - shaped perforated screen 160 is attached around its edge to a second ring - shaped holder 164 . the cone - shaped screen 160 and second holder 164 are located upstream from the dome - shaped screen 158 and first holder 162 . a plurality of beads are located between the screens 158 , 160 . the beads 168 form capillary passages in the area between the screens 158 , 160 . a coil spring 170 is located between the dome - shaped screen 158 and pipe fitting element 154 . the spring 170 is biased at one end against the second holder 162 and at its other end against the pipe fitting element 154 . thereby , the second holder 162 and the dome - shaped screen 158 are movably positioned against the beads 168 . in operation , a slug ( not shown ), comprised of either liquid or a liquid - gas mixture , rapidly advances through the pipe segment 30 into the inlet port 72 . the slug strikes against and passes through the cone - shaped screen 160 . the non - planar shapes of the screens 158 , 160 place less stress on the screens and make them stronger . thus , the screens 58 , 60 resist breakage upon impact with the slug . the liquid gas slug then passes through the beads 168 . the spaces between the beads 168 form capillary passages , which resist the flow of liquid . at the same time , these passages present little resistance to gas flow and no significant gas pressure drop . the beads , resistance to liquid flow also lowers the liquid pressure , thereby flashing ( i . e . vaporizing ) most of the liquid . the vaporized liquid then passes easily through the beads 168 in the same manner described above for the gaseous component of the slug . the remaining unvaporized liquid is slowed down significantly as it passes through the beads 168 and the dome - shaped screen 158 to the outlet port 74 . thereby , slug surge is prevented . the downstream position of the dome - shaped screen 168 and the coil spring 170 , further increases the ability of the screen 168 to absorb the impact of a rapidly moving slug . thus , the slug surge suppressor device 50c shown in fig4 is particularly suited to absorbing the shock of a rapidly moving slug . fig5 illustrates a fourth embodiment of the slug surge suppressor at 50d . the fourth embodiment 50d takes the same alarm system described in the second embodiment 50b and applies this system to the surge suppressor 50c of the third embodiment . if the dome - shaped screen 158 breaks , the beads 168 pass through the outlet port 174 , and cause damage to downstream system components . to prevent this , a second dome - shaped screen 159 is provided as shown in fig5 . the two screens 158 and 159 are electrically insulated from each other . an alarm 176 is connected in series with the second dome - shaped screen 159 and one terminal of a battery 178 . the second terminal of the battery 178 is connected in series with the cylindrical body 152 , the beads 68 , and the first dome - shaped screen 158 . thus , there is a short between the screens 158 and 159 . if the first dome - shaped screen breaks , the beads 168 move into the space between the screens and complete the circuit from the battery 178 to and the alarm 176 ( in this regard , the beads 168 , screens 159 and 158 , and the cylindrical 152 should all be made from electrically conducted material ). thus , the alarm sounds notifying the user that the first screen has broken . as with the embodiment shown at 50b , a battery indicator 180 is included to signal the user whenever the battery 178 is dead . because the screens 158 and 159 are movable against a bias 170 , the electrical connection between the alarm 176 and the second dome - shaped 159 should be arranged to maintain the connection throughout the various positions of the screens 158 and 159 . the particular details of the electrical connection are well within the capability of the ordinary practitioner , and thus , will not be described in detail here . in the embodiments shown in fig3 and 5 , there is a close proximity between the electrical connections and the refrigerant . thus , it is preferable to operate the devices shown at 50b and 50d in a system 10 that utilizes a substantially nonflammable refrigerant , such as freon . otherwise , a spark from the alarm system may ignite the refrigerant . although proper insulation is desirable in any electric system , if a flammable refrigerant ( such as ammonia ) is used , the electrical connections for the devices 50b and 50d may include additional insulation to reduce the risk of sparks contacting the refrigerant . while preferred embodiments of the invention have been described , it should be understood that the invention is not limited to them and modifications may be made without departing from the invention . for example , the slug surge suppressor of the present invention is not restricted to use in hot gas defrost systems , but may be used in any refrigeration system in which slug surge may be present . the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims , and all devices that come within the meaning of the claims , either literally or by equivalents , are intended to be embraced therein .	5
referring now to fig1 there is shown a water circulator 10 constructed in accordance with the present invention . water circulator 10 includes a housing 20 having a pair of shaped internal chambers 36 , 37 , a main water inlet 21 , a return inlet 22 , a cold water outlet 23 , and a heater supply outlet 24 . internal chamber 36 serves as a cold water chambers while internal chamber 37 serves as a hot water chamber . a check valve 33 is integrally associated with return inlet 22 . housing 20 is configured to provide isolation of water flowing through return inlet 22 from water flowing through cold water outlet 23 . water circulator 10 is preferably fabricated from a commercially available material such as cpvc that has a low coefficient of thermal conductivity to minimize heat conduction to cold water chamber 36 . it is important that water circulator 10 , be installed with the hot water chamber 37 above cold water chamber 36 in order to take advantage of local convective forces within water circulator 10 , especially during periods of no water usage within the building . the cross section of housing 20 between cold water chamber 36 and hot water chamber 37 is reduced to minimize the structural and water conductive paths between the two chambers and to restrict any cross flow of water between them due to turbulence . return inlet 22 houses a fast acting check valve 33 that allows water to flow into the return inlet 22 , but that will close to prevent water from flowing out . the check valve 33 employs a poppet 34 that has a specific gravity at or near 1 . 0 to minimize gravity effects on its operation . the poppet 34 is constrained from moving into the warm water chamber 37 by barrier lugs 54 that will nevertheless allow water to flow through unimpeded . a front portion 56 of poppet 34 is shaped to matingly engage a valve seat situated in a return inlet fitting 35 to thereby effect closure against back flow through return inlet 22 . the cold water outlet 23 is situated down stream of the main water inlet 21 and upstream of the return inlet 22 and the heater supply outlet 24 , such that cold water flowing from the main inlet 21 to the cold water outlet 23 does not mix with warm water flowing from the return inlet 22 and out the heater supply outlet 24 . the relative positioning and attitude of the cold water outlet 23 to the return inlet 22 is crucial to avoid mixing of warm return line water with cold water flowing out the cold water outlet 23 . physical separation of the cold water from the warm return line water , along with the configuration and orientation of the chambers serve to minimize any local conductive and convective heat transfer between hot and cold water , yet allow water to flow from the main inlet 21 to each outlet unimpeded referring now to fig2 the water circulator 10 of the present invention may be installed in a typical residential water distribution system having a return line 25 coupled between the return inlet 22 of water circulator 10 and the conventional hot water line 26 serving a remote hot water faucet 28 by means of a tee fitting in the hot water line 26 serving remote hot water faucet 28 . as illustrated , the tee fitting is positioned in close proximity to remote hot water faucet 28 . the main water inlet 21 of water circulator 10 is connected to a cold water supply line 29 that serves the building to provide cold water to a plurality of cold water taps 30 and to a conventional water heater 27 . the cold water outlet 23 of water circulator 10 is connected to a cold water pipe 32 that serves a plurality of cold water taps 32 within the building the heater supply outlet 24 of water circulator 10 is connected to the cold water inlet of water heater 27 . when installed as described above , water circulator 10 prevents contamination of cold water supplied to the cold water taps 30 by warm water flowing into water circulator 10 from the return line 25 . operation of a residential water system in which water circulator 10 is installed may be understood by again referring to fig2 . convective flow in the circulation loop is due to the fact that the hot water in hot water pipe 26 has a lower density than water in the return line 25 that has cooled slightly the water in the hot water pipe 26 rises , thereby forcing the cooler water in the return line 25 to descend toward the lowest point in the loop . as water flows down the return line 25 , it is replaced by additional hot water from the heater 27 , flowing through the hot water pipe 26 and the tee 31 , thereby establishing a continuous low volume circulating flow . as further cooling takes place in the return line 25 , the density difference between the water in the hot water pipe 26 and water in the return line 25 becomes larger , increasing the circulation flow rate . the water circulation loop is from the heater 27 , through the hot water pipe 26 and the return line 25 , into the water circulator 10 , through the check valve 33 , up and out through the supply outlet 24 , and then back to the heater 27 . insulation placed on the hot water pipe 26 between the heater 27 and the remote hot water faucet 28 will enhance this convective flow . water flow through the water circulator 10 will follow three different paths in response to four different operating conditions . when no water is being used in the building , convective flow will occur in the system , with water entering the water circulator 10 through the return inlet 22 and exiting through the heater supply outlet 24 . normal convection will cause the hot water entering the hot water chamber 37 from the return inlet 22 to rise toward the heater supply outlet 24 and will not allow it to circulate downward into the cold water chamber 36 and cold water outlet 23 . hence , there will be no heating of the cold water pipes . likewise , the cold water entering the cold water chamber 36 from the cold water inlet 21 will drop downward toward the cold water outlet 23 due to its higher density . tests conducted on water circulator 10 in an actual residential environment have shown that the upper internal chamber 37 is heated by the return line flow , while the lower internal chamber 36 remains cool or cold . convective flow for the unit is excellent , keeping the water temperature at the remote hot water faucet 28 above 40 degrees c . at all times . in addition to not heating the cold water pipe 29 , the warm water from the return line 25 is sent directly to the inlet of water heater 27 , thus conserving thermal energy by minimizing the need for the burner of water heater 27 to cycle on . under the second conditions in which a cold water faucet 30 is opened , a lower pressure condition will exist at the cold water outlet 23 of water circulator 10 and water will flow from the main water inlet 21 directly to the cold water outlet 23 . no cold water will flow into the hot water chamber 37 or out of the heater supply outlet 24 . hot water from the heater 27 will not backflow down into the cold water outlet 23 and no heating of the cold water pipes will occur . convective circulation flow as in the previously discussed condition will continue since the forces implementing it have not changed . under the third condition s in which a hot water tap , other than hot water tap 28 served by water circulator 10 , is opened , a situation similar to the second condition exists , except that the water flow will enter from the main inlet and proceed directly to the heater supply outlet 24 . normal convective flow from the return line 25 will continue through the heater supply outlet 24 into the inlet of water heater 27 . when the hot water faucet 28 is opened , water will enter from the main inlet 21 and proceed to the heater supply outlet 24 as described above . however , the pressure in the return line 25 and at the return inlet 22 will be reduced , thereby causing the check valve 33 to close to prevent reverse flow . convective flow will cease as long as hot water faucet 28 remains open ; however , the water at faucet 28 will remain hot due to heated water flowing from the water heater 27 through the hot water pipe 26 . under the fourth condition in which hot and cold faucets in the building are opened simultaneously , water will flow from the main inlet 21 to the cold water outlet 23 and t o the heater supply outlet 24 . convective flow will continue normally , except that if the hot water faucet 28 is open the check valve 33 will close to prevent reverse flow . from the above description of the present invention , it will be appreciated that when installed in a typical residential water distribution system , water circulator 10 will efficiently maintain hot water at remote hot water faucets , will not heat the cold water supplying cold water faucets , and will prevent reverse flow in the return line . water circulator 10 requires no electrical power or gas , and will perform reliably and without noise . it eliminates the need to waste water while waiting for cold water to flush the warmed water from the cold water pipe when a cold water faucet is opened . hot water will always be instantly available at hot water faucets , while cold water will be available at cold water faucets . since water circulator 10 provides the convenience of instant hot water and can be priced inexpensively to the consumer , it has the potential for significant water conservation .	8
fig1 illustrates a pecvd system embodiment of the present invention , and is referred to herein by the general reference numeral 100 . pecvd system 100 comprises a low - pressure chamber 102 in which a substrate workpiece 104 is transport perpendicular to the axis of roll - vortex plasma 110 . a hydrogen atmosphere is introduced into the low - pressure chamber 102 . a pair of radio frequency ( rf ) electrodes 106 and 108 are electrically driven to spawn a plasma 110 . such plasma 110 is rolled into a coaxial vortex by introducing high - velocity silane gas ( sih 4 ) at near 100 % purity just off center from a longitudinal manifold 112 . an exhaust manifold 113 assists in rolling the plasma 110 when it draws off excess hydrogen ( h 2 ). the silane concentration ( sc ) in the roll - vortex plasma 110 is maintained at about 6 - 7 % silane - to - hydrogen by observing the relative amplitudes of fluorescence of the constituent gases with a monitor 114 . more silane is jetted in by a pump 116 in order to maintain a setpoint silane concentration . the pressure inside the chamber 102 is measured by a pressure gauge 118 . any excess pressure above a setpoint pressure is relieved by an evacuation pump 120 . the particulate level is measured by scattered light from a laser beam . the particulate level information is passed to the process controller 122 . in operation , a process controller 122 varies the excitation frequency and rf power amplitudes applied to the electrodes 106 and 108 through two cable feeds , 124 and 126 . the rf power , plasma temperature , excitation frequency , silane ( sih 4 ) feed fraction , total gas pressure , and electrode configuration all have some influence on the film crystallinity and growth rate . the silane and hydrogen pump 116 and exhaust pump 120 are controlled according to process setpoints dialed - in by a user , and also by the silane concentration observed by monitor 114 , the particulate monitor , and the chamber - pressure reported by pressure gauge 118 . the objective in generating the roll - vortex plasma 110 is to re - use the silane gas by keeping it resident . but if it is resident and active in the ongoing deposition of silicon , the sc of the plasma 110 cannot be allowed to drop below 6 %. a palladium filter 128 is used in front of the exhaust pump 120 to screen through only hydrogen gas . for example , to further reduce silane waste to less than 1 %. but without such a screen , estimates are that the system 100 will have a silane utilization of about 85 %. such estimates are yet to be verified by experiments and tests . the illustration of system 100 in fig1 is a bit out of perspective in order to show the various parts here . it is preferable that the chamber 102 be very wide and long , yet thin , in order to maximize the ratio of the exposed areas of substrate workpieces 104 to those of the internal walls of the chamber . the substrate workpieces 104 are intended to be thin flat sheets of glass or metal that are used as substrate bases for large , inexpensive photovoltaic devices . fig2 is a lateral cross section of a pecvd system embodiment of the present invention that longitudinally induces four roll - vortex plasmas with strategically placed high velocity injections of 100 % silane and hydrogen exhausts . such pecvd system is referred to herein by the general reference numeral 200 . a set of four roll - vortex plasmas 201 - 204 are developed within a hydrogen atmosphere in a chamber 206 by corresponding sets of injectors 208 - 211 . such jets consist of pairs of jets to introduce independently controlled pure silane and to exhaust the silane and hydrogen gas mixture . they are controlled to maintain about a 7 % concentration of silane in each of the mostly - hydrogen roll - vortex plasmas 201 - 204 . each plasma is generated by an rf field induced between electrode plates 212 and 214 . the object of the system is to deposit high quality thin films of silicon on upper and lower substrates 216 and 218 . the strategic placement of two opposite exhausts 220 and 224 further contributes to the generation of the roll - vortex plasmas 201 - 204 . fig3 is the lateral cross section of a lateral magnetic - influenced pecvd system embodiment of the present invention with roll - vortex plasmas similar to that of fig1 and 2 . such pecvd system is referred to herein by the general reference numeral 300 . a set of four roll - vortex plasmas 301 - 304 are swirled in a chamber 306 by corresponding sets of injectors 308 - 311 . such jets introduce pure silane and are controlled to maintain about a 7 % concentration of silane in each mostly - hydrogen roll - vortex plasma 301 - 304 . the plasmas are generated by an rf field induced between electrode plates 312 and 314 . the object of the system is to deposit high quality thin films of silicon on upper and lower substrates 316 and 318 . the placement of two opposite exhausts 320 and 324 further contributes to the generation of the roll - vortex plasmas 301 - 304 . a pair of magnets 326 and 328 are used to limit the movement of electrons and ions in the roll - vortex plasmas 301 - 304 so they move toward or away from the adjacent surfaces of the substrates 316 and 318 . fig4 is a lateral cross section of a longitudinal magnetic - influenced pecvd system embodiment of the present invention with roll - vortex plasmas similar to that of fig1 and 2 . the magnetic and rf electrodes confine the plasma for a more intense excitation . such pecvd system is referred to herein by the general reference numeral 400 . a set of four roll - vortex plasmas 401 - 404 are developed within a hydrogen atmosphere in a chamber 406 by corresponding sets of injectors 408 - 411 . such jets introduce pure silane and are controlled to maintain about a 7 % concentration of silane in each mostly - hydrogen roll - vortex plasma 401 - 404 . the plasmas are generated by an rf field induced between electrode plates 412 and 414 . the object of the system is to deposit high quality thin films of silicon on upper and lower substrates 416 and 418 . the placement of two opposite exhausts 420 and 424 further contributes to the generation of the roll - vortex plasmas 401 - 404 . alternating sets of magnets 426 and 428 are used , similar to fig3 , to limit the movement of ions and electrons in the roll - vortex plasmas 401 - 404 so they move toward or away from the adjacent surfaces of the substrates 416 and 418 . fig5 is a lateral cross section of a pecvd system embodiment of the present invention with roll - vortex plasmas similar to that of fig1 and 2 , wherein the plasmas are induced with high power radio frequency signals applied between elements of a longitudinal electrode grille . such pecvd system is referred to herein by the general reference numeral 500 . a set of four roll - vortex plasmas 501 - 504 are swirled in a hydrogen atmosphere in a chamber 506 by corresponding sets of injectors 508 - 511 . such jets introduce pure silane and are controlled to maintain about a 7 % concentration of silane in each mostly - hydrogen roll - vortex plasma 501 - 404 . a pair of heating plates 512 and 514 are associated with upper and lower substrates 516 and 518 . the object of the system is to deposit high quality thin films of silicon on the inner surfaces of substrates 516 and 518 . the placement of two opposite exhausts 520 and 524 further contribute to the generation of the roll - vortex plasmas 501 - 504 . the plasmas are generated by an rf electrical field induced between electrode rods 528 - 532 arranged in a parallel grille . in order to lower the manufacturing costs of photovoltaic devices , technologies common to other industries can be advantageously adapted to fabricate many of the necessary layers . soda - lime glass , stainless steel , and various polymers have all been used as substrates for both evaporated and sputtered thin - films , and their respective costs are appropriately low . the glass industry has developed very low cost techniques including sputtering and evaporation to deposit thin - films of insulators , transparent conductors and metals onto glass . similarly , the capacitor , flex circuit , window film and food packaging industries have developed very low cost techniques for sputtering and evaporation of thin films of insulators and metals onto a variety of flexible , polymer - based substrates . conventional manufacturing techniques are not well developed for mass producing large pin photodiode structures . such structures comprise silicon , or copper indium selenide , or cadmium telluride and are then finished with environmental encapsulation coatings , and mounting systems for installation . a method embodiment of the present invention includes a low cost manufacturing technique for fabricating pin photodiode structures with thin - film silicon . semiconductor materials other than silicon can be used in specialized applications to optimize the recombination rate , trapping , and mobility characteristics necessary for efficient photovoltaic devices . apart from the pin photodiode uses of embodiments of the present invention , a wide variety of thin - film , silicon devices that require good mobility , low trapping and low recombination rates can benefit from the fabrication methods disclosed here . doping for the pin layers can be done with a gas admixture of phosphine ( ph 3 ) for the deposition of n - type layers , and trimethylboron ( b ( ch 3 ) 3 ) for the p - type layers . the crystalline volume content of the films can be adjusted by changing the deposition conditions , e . g ., by varying the silane concentration in the source as mixture . additional control of critical parameter can be obtained by introducing methane gas to add carbon to the silicon or germane gas to add germanium . the applied plasma power and plasma excitation frequency will also effect the point at which high crystalline volume fraction is maintained as silane concentrations are increased in the 6 - 10 % range . see , o . vetterl , et al ., “ intrinsic microcrystalline asilicon : a new material for photovoltaics ,” solar energy materials & amp ; solar cells 62 ( 2000 ) 97 - 108 . one embodiment of the present invention include a low - cost deposition system that re - circulates the deposition gas mixture , adding inputs gas as it is used , and extracting the reaction products as they are created . by re - circulating the gas mixture , embodiments of the present invention have good gas mixture uniformity in the deposition chamber and very high input material utilization efficiencies . the simplicity , low deposition system costs , and the high input material utilization efficiency results in a breakthrough in the cost of producing silicon , thin - film , pin - diode structures with adequate efficiency for converting sunlight into electricity . many embodiments of the present invention resemble conventional pecvd deposition systems . silane ( at 5 - 10 %), and very small amounts of either diborane or phosphine for the p - type or n - type layers , are mixed in hydrogen as a source gas for the deposition system . an rf field is used to spawn a plasma in the source gas mixture . typical deposition rates for silicon are very slow , e . g ., 0 . 5 nanometers per second . embodiments of the present invention re - circulate the deposition chamber gas mixture , e . g ., silane and small amounts of diborane or phosphine for the p - type or n - type layers . additions to reaction gasses are matched to the rate at which they are consumed by the process . the gasses created by the deposition reaction are removed at the same rate they are produced . so , material utilization can ideally approach 100 %. of course , some silane will be lost in the exhaust because it cannot be fully blocked from escaping , and some other silane will be consumed in unwanted byproducts that must be removed to avoid contamination . within the chamber , a circulating gas flow plus the effects of gaseous diffusion maintain a low variation in the concentration of reaction gasses . the gas concentration and the pressure of the gas mixture within the deposition chamber are both monitored continuously by sensors . feedback is used to adjust the rate of adding input and extracting output gasses to maintain a steady pressure and a steady concentration of the reaction gasses . the decomposition of silane to produce and deposit silicon proceeds according to the following reaction : sih 4 ( in the hydrogen plasma )−→ si ( with a small % of trapped hydrogen )+ 2h 2 . the reaction consumes input silane plus the small amounts of diborane or phosphine for the p - type and n - type layers , and generates hydrogen as an output gas . therefore , to maintain a steady pressure and steady concentration of the gas mixture within the chamber , the input silane + gas should be replaced at the deposition rate and hydrogen extracted at approximately twice the deposition rate . the input silane + gas has 100 % concentration . the output gas , hydrogen , is extracted through a filter that preferentially passes hydrogen and blocks other gases , e . g ., to prevent dumping of the silane . the gases that not pass through the filter stay in the chamber and are re - circulated . the filter to remove the output gas , hydrogen , does not have to pass only 100 % pure hydrogen . the gas mixture in the chamber is typically about 6 - 7 % silane + and 94 - 93 % hydrogen . if the filter is able to concentrate the hydrogen to 99 %, then given that the deposition reaction produces two molecules of hydrogen for every molecule of silane consumed , approximately 2 % of silane would then be pumped out of the deposition chamber along with the hydrogen output gas . such very slight ‘ waste ’ would still allow for very high utilization of the input gasses — as high as 98 %. it has the additional advantage , that slight amounts of unwanted gas could also be removed from the system along with the hydrogen output gas . the filter is a thin sheet of palladium metal which is well known for its ability to pass hydrogen while resisting other gasses . alternately , since hydrogen is much lighter than any of the other gasses , a filter based on its lower viscosity and higher diffusion rate can be used . alternatively , exhaust gas is removed from the re - cycled mixture within the chamber without using such a filter . removing gas at approximately two - times the rate at which input is introduced would keep the re - cycled mixture in steady state . without any filter , the removed output gas is approximately 6 - 7 % silane +. thus , about 12 - 14 % of the input silane gas is wasted and pulled out in the output gas mixture . the pressure and concentration of the re - cycled gas mixture within the deposition chamber is precisely controlled by continuous monitoring and by a feedback control system that would adjust the input and output gas flow rates . in this case , the utilization efficiency of the input gases is 86 - 88 %, which is still much , much better than is typical in the industry . removing gas without any filter has two significant advantages . first , it provides faster removal of unwanted gas , e . g ., vacuum leaks and plasma reaction “ junk ”. second , it allows measurement of the gas concentrations outside of the chamber rather than inside . such could simplify the design and lower the cost of the concentration sensor . further improvement of the utilization efficiency by which silane + produces deposited silicon on the substrate results from the construction of the deposition chamber . substrates are positioned on both sides of a chamber that is thin between the substrates , when compared with the other two dimensions . the gas mixture is introduced between the substrates and the rf field that produces the plasma is applied from behind each substrate . the plasma and gas mixtures will deposit silicon in both directions . since substrates are on both sides , most of the deposited silicon will be on one of the substrates , rather than the walls of the chambers . by geometric design , the area of the top , bottom and two sides is much , much smaller than the surface area of the two substrates . only at the walls at the top , bottom and two sides of the chamber will be exposed to the plasma and possibly accumulate deposited silicon from the plasma . the amount of silicon that is deposited onto the top , bottom and sides of the chamber can be further minimized by restricting the area of the rf plates , which are located behind each of the substrates , or the grille of rods in the center to less than the full length or height of the chamber . the top , bottom and sides can be coated with a material , e . g ., teflon , that resists the deposition of silicon and for which the atomic and ionized hydrogen from the plasma remove silicon as fast as it is deposited . the use of magnetic fields to direct and comprise the plasma is illustrated in fig3 and 4 . the amount of silicon that is deposited onto the top , bottom and sides of the chamber can be minimized through the use of magnetic fields that influence the rf plasma . the effect of the magnetic field is to cause ions in the plasma to travel perpendicular to the substrates . so a minimum of material is deposited . the efficient utilization of silane + can be greatly enhanced by arranging two substrates with a very small space between them for the plasma and gas mixture . however , making this dimension too small works against keeping a uniform concentration of silane + in the chamber , and against being able to re - circulate the gas mixture as new gas is added and output gas is removed . fig1 - 6 show the input gas being introduced at high velocity by jets . two strings of input gas jets can be arranged on each side , four strings of jets in all , as in fig2 - 6 . the geometry of the inputs and outputs , and the velocity of the input gas , creates four re - circulating currents in the gas mixture within the deposition chamber . such currents cause the gas to re - circulate at a flow rate such that only a small % of the silane + is consumed in each round trip through the chamber . turbulent flow can be avoided at the low flow rates , and the low gas pressure required , e . g ., 300 mtorr . a rapid diffusion of the silane + occurs because the gas mixture is mostly hydrogen . the concentration gradients between the substrates are minimal . longitudinal concentration variations can be controlled by the gas re - circulation velocity within the chamber . the input and output gasses are introduced and extracted uniformly from top to bottom to avoid variations . the slight variations from side to side in the long direction will affect the deposition rate , but not the silicon quality . the substrates are moved in the long direction . in the moving across the deposition chamber , every location on the substrate will experience and average over any side - to - side non - uniformity in the deposition rate . thus , the side - to - side variations only need to be controlled to be within the range allowed for obtaining good properties for the deposited silicon . in fig2 - 6 , two exhaust pipes are used remove output gasses , e . g ., one on opposites sides of the chamber along the middle mid - way between the substrates . if used , a filter for concentrating the % of hydrogen in the output gas would be placed between the gas mixture and the openings of the output pipes . exit gas velocities assist in supporting the current flow that re - circulates the gas mixture within the deposition chamber . a gas mixture of 5 - 10 % silane + in hydrogen that is continuously re - circulated through an rf plasma may start to create chains of silicon and hydrogen and might even start to create polymers by cross - linking chains . fortunately , there is a great abundance of hydrogen in the gas mixture and the plasma region . the reactive mono - atomic hydrogen and hydrogen ions formed in the plasma can reach the walls on the top , bottom and sides of the chamber and scavenge chains or polymers to convert such back into silane +. if necessary , a catalyst such as pt , pd or ni , can be introduced to further encourage hydrogenation . when crystalline structure depositions are not needed , a variety of techniques are available to artisans to deposit oxides and metals . to further minimize the overall cost of depositing all of the layers of a complete photovoltaic structure , the elimination of load - locks is required . load - locks slow production down because substrate loading and unloading is needed between subsequent stages . the total cost can be significantly reduced by eliminating several load - locks , and the associated vacuum pumping and substrate handling . the system is modified for depositing metals or metal oxides with a pecvd system and a mostly hydrogen atmosphere . rods of the metal component of the deposition are placed through the center of the deposition with the two substrates on either side . for the silicon deposition , the rf field is applied from behind the substrates and through the center of the deposition chamber . or , the rf field is applied between the metal rods that traverse the center of the deposition chamber . every other rod has an applied rf that is out of phase so that a plasma is generated in the gaps between all rods . the geometry is controlled such that there is a strong hydrogen plasma between the rods that diminishes significantly moving from the center of the deposition chamber towards the surface of each substrate . the difference in intensity of the plasma at the metal rods compared with at the substrate will encourage removal of material from the rods and deposition onto the substrates . also , the rods may be heated or allowed to run hot to increase the deposition rate . the gas mixture may also include a gas that reacts with the metal to form gaseous products ( e . g . hcl ). such gas would not be consumed by the deposition process , but would facilitate the transport of the metal from the rods to the substrate . for deposition of oxides , h 2 o is the input gas . hydrogen is the output gas , as before . deposition rates are similar to those for silicon , 0 . 5 nanometers per second , which is very low . but , the deposition is very simple and low cost . in addition , since all depositions are done in a mostly hydrogen atmosphere at the same pressure and temperature , the chambers can be concatenated with only baffles and / or regions of no deposition buffer zones between them . therefore , load - locks would not be required between areas of different material depositions . in one embodiment of embodiment of the present invention , individual deposition chambers are linked together to form a continuous deposition system . substrates are either sheets or rolls of thin material , e . g ., few mils in thickness . for either the sheet or the roll design , substrate materials are glass , stainless steel , nickel - iron or various plastics . separating adjacent chambers is a baffle with close spacing to each the substrates . the close spacing between the edge of the baffle and the surface of the substrate minimizes the gas flow between chambers . in addition , the pressure in adjacent chambers is carefully controlled by the feedback system mentioned in the section above to minimize the pressure gradient between the two chambers and further minimize gas flow between the chambers . at the beginning of the set of linked deposition chambers is a load lock for the loading of substrates and pumping out room gasses . at the end is another load lock for the removal of the substrates with the deposited layers , and for their return to room air without introducing room air into the deposition chambers . the movement of gas from one deposition chamber to the next through the baffle can be further reduced with a three - chamber baffle . the middle chamber of the baffle is filled with hydrogen at a pressure greater than the pressure in the deposition chambers on either side of the baffle . the outer two chambers of the baffle are pumped to remove the hydrogen flowing in from the middle baffle chamber . the output pump rate in the two outer baffle chambers is controlled by feedback so that the pressure in both of the outer chambers is equal to the pressure in the neighboring deposition chamber . as a result , the gas flow at the edge of the baffles next to the substrates is from the center baffle chamber towards the outer baffle chambers . gas that leaks from a deposition chamber into either of the outer baffle chambers will tend to be pumped out of the system . the flow rate of hydrogen into the middle baffle chamber and out of the two outer baffle chambers can be adjusted to obtain the desired reduction in any gas leaking from one of the deposition chambers into the baffle . for very sensitive transitions , such as from deposition of the p - type layer to deposition of the intrinsic layer ( i - silicon ), a chamber can be inserted in which the input and output gasses were only hydrogen and for which no rf field was applied . such would allow escape time for the gas molecules that were adhered to the surface of the substrate . also , it would further isolate the gas mixture for the p - type silicon from the mixture for the i - silicon . for deposition of intrinsic silicon , any dopant gases that leak from adjacent chambers can be compensated by introducing an equal amount of the opposite dopant gas . the concentration of dopant gas is measured . then , feedback is used to adjust the amount of compensating dopant gas that is added . the result is equal effective concentrations of the p - type and n - type dopants so that the deposited material will be intrinsic silicon . rf power may be applied to metal plates located immediately behind each substrate . such creates an rf field perpendicular to the surface of the substrates , and in the gas mixture that is in the area between the substrates . depending on the frequency of the rf and the size of the plates , more than one attachment from the rf generator to each plate may be required to avoid non - uniformities in the power density of the plasma . a multi - layer structure with a series of depositions in a single in - line system , without load - locks between depositions , could use a pe cvd hydrogen plasma approach for all depositions . high material utilization can be obtained by re - circulating the gas mixture within the deposition chamber for both high material utilization and tight concentration control . this is done by sensing the pressure and concentration of the gases in the gas mixture and then maintaining a uniform steady - state gas mixture with feedback control . a cloud of re - circulating gases within the chamber is generated with a high velocity jet of input gases . the high velocity jets of input gas supply almost pure reactant gases at roughly the deposition usage rate . the exhaust gas removes reaction products at roughly the rate that they are produced by the deposition . since the gas mixture is held at 93 % hydrogen , even with no filtering the exhaust is removing mostly hydrogen . the output gas can be filtered through to concentrate hydrogen to improve the reactant gas utilization even further . depositing on two substrates at once minimizes the exposed wall area . a long , wide and thin plasma region is constructed so the substrates can be arrayed on both sides . various magnetic fields can be used to directionalize the deposition and avoid depositing on the walls . the plasma geometry is designed to scavenge silicon , silicon chains or silicon polymers off the walls . catalyzing the decomposition of silicon chains or polymers can be helpful in the process . a variety of materials can be used on the inside walls to discourage silicon deposition . a low - cost deposition system embodiment of the present invention uses baffles , rather than load locks to minimize the gap between deposition chambers and limit the flow of gas mixture from one chamber to the next . multi - chamber baffles with hydrogen supplied in the center and pumped from outside chambers are used to remove gas from a deposition chamber leaking into the baffle . deposits are made on two substrates at once . hydrogen plasma depositions are used for all material depositions so that the deposition chambers can be run at the same pressure and baffles between them provide sufficient isolation of one gas mixture from the next . hydrogen plasmas are used for all depositions in the plasma chambers to eliminate load locks between deposition chambers . any dopants that leak into a chamber designated for intrinsic silicon deposition are measured , and opposite dopants are added to compensate so the effective net concentration of dopants is nearly zero . a continuous deposition for steady state conditions is used for gas mixtures and to minimize the vacuum pumping required by re - circulating most of the gas mixture to minimize vacuum pumping . fig6 illustrates a prototype of a pecvd system embodiment of the present invention , and is referred to herein by the general reference numeral 600 . such was used to prove various principles of operation . the pecvd system 600 comprises a low - pressure chamber constructed of a right aluminum side plate 602 , a left aluminum side plate 604 , a front aluminum plate 606 , a rear polycarbonate cover 608 , a top polycarbonate cover 610 , and a bottom polycarbonate cover 612 . an exhaust pipe 614 draws out spent gases from a right internal exhaust manifold 616 . such gases are evacuated out , e . g ., on the right side , from the chamber &# 39 ; s internal volume through a series of slots 618 - 621 . a similar series exists for the left side , but the perspective of fig6 does not allow their illustration . the positioning and shape of these slots 618 - 621 contribute to a particular swirl that is deliberately imparted to a silane - plasma cloud generated inside . e . g ., as illustrated more schematically in fig5 with four separate swirling roll - vortex plasma clouds . a series of injector nozzles 622 - 625 , and 626 - 627 , further assist in the silane - plasma cloud swirl . more such injector nozzles exist in system 600 , but the perspective of fig6 does not allow their illustration . a left side exhaust pipe 630 connects internally to a left side exhaust manifold . the pecvd system 600 further comprises a series of electrodes 632 - 637 that are driven hard electronically to generate a plasma from the hydrogen gas that surrounds them in the chamber . a series of left side injector connections 640 - 647 are matched by others on the right side that are out of view in the perspective of fig6 . since pecvd system 600 is a proof of concept prototype , there is no mechanism provided here to introduce and process substrates for thin - film deposition . although the present invention has been described in terms of the presently preferred embodiments , it is to be understood that the disclosure is not to be interpreted as limiting . various alterations and modifications will no doubt become apparent to those skilled in the art after having read the above disclosure . accordingly , it is intended that the appended claims be interpreted as covering all alterations and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention .	7
referring now specifically to fig1 of the accompanying drawings , there is illustrated a blank 1 from which the carton of the present invention is assembled . the blank , which may be stamped out of the laminated corrugated material previously discussed is comprised of 12 panels and an end flap . specifically , a main rectangular structure consists of panels 2 , 4 , 6 and 8 with scores or fold lines tamped in at the same time as the blank is cut . flap 10 is sealed to an end region of panel 2 to form a basic rectangular structure as viewed in fig2 . panels 12 and 14 extend from the top and bottom , as viewed in fig1 of panel 2 with panel 14 having a plurality of holes 15 ( 8 ) and forming the &# 34 ; inner &# 34 ; bottom of the carton when assembled . the panel 12 has an opening 16 for aeration and space to thread a security tie , four holes 17 and a slit 18 to cause panel 12 to mate with a slit 20 in a substantially identical panel 22 extending from the top , as viewed in fig1 of panel 6 . panel 22 also has a security tie hole serving also an aeration opening 24 and holes 19 corresponding to those in panel 12 . the openings 16 and 24 are located higher in fig1 than blank panels 26 and 28 extending upwardly from panels 4 and 8 because they serve an additional purpose , that is to provide a place to thread through the self - locking closure device or tie , as discussed more thoroughly below . the panels 26 and 28 have a pattern of holes 21 and 23 , respectively , corresponding to the location of holes in panels 12 and 22 , respectively , so that when the carton is assembled the holes in the respective panels are aligned . a panel 30 has holes 31 that align with the eight holes 15 of panel 14 when the carton is assembled . the panel 30 extends downwardly from panel 6 and has panels 32 and 34 extending to the left and right , respectively . panels 12 , 26 , 22 and 28 are separated from one another as panels 32 and 34 are separated respectively from panels 4 and 8 . panels 2 and 6 have a pair of spaced vertical slits 36 and 38 and holes 40 for aeration . panel 6 has corresponding vertical slits 42 and 44 and holes 46 . panels 4 and 8 have hand holes 48 and 50 , respectively with holes 52 and 54 in panel 4 and holes 56 and 58 in panel 8 . when assembled panel 32 lies inwardly of panel 4 with a hand hole 60 aligned with hand hole 48 and holes 62 and 64 aligned with holes 52 and 54 . correspondingly panel 34 has a hand hole 66 that aligns with hand hole 50 of panel 8 while holes 68 and 70 align with holes 56 and 58 . the pattern of holes illustrated has proven by tests that the performance of the carton during vacuum freeze drying illustrated is substantially the same as that of a milk crate . additional drainage , important when the box contents are dripping , is provided by draining slots 3 and 7 associated with panels 2 and 6 . referring to fig2 the carton is illustrated partially assembled with each of the panels bent at fold lines 72 , 74 and 76 into a rectangle with flap 10 glued or fused or welded to the reverse side of panel 2 as illustrated in fig1 . in fig3 the flap 14 is folded along fold line 78 to a position lying between the bottom edges of panels 2 , 4 , 6 and 8 . the panels 32 and 34 are folded at right angles to panel 30 and the panel 30 is partially rotated with respect to panel 6 . when rotated fully 90 ° the panel 32 lies against and inwardly of panel 4 with the hand holes and aeration holes aligned . correspondingly panel 34 lies against and inwardly of panel 8 with the various openings aligned . outer lamination of the corrugated board may be coated with a non - skid surface to prevent slippage if the cartons are stacked . referring to fig4 the panels 26 and 28 are folded at 90 ° , respectively , to panels 4 and 6 to give strength and to form a partial top for the carton . the panels 12 and 22 are then folded over the top with the slits 18 and 20 interlocked to provide a latching arrangement for the panels to complete the carton . note that the openings 16 and 24 lie away from panels 26 and 28 so that openings are available at the top of the carton . as emphasized herein , the placement and size of the various slits and holes are quite important since in the freezing and vacuum freeze drying processes , complete access to all regions of the carton is required . also it is important that the openings be located so that they do not materially reduce the strength of the carton while as indicated immediately above providing ample access to the interior of the carton to permit the freezing temperatures to proceed through the carton and later permit the moisture to be extracted . the carton is stored in the collapsed condition with the panels 12 , 22 , 26 , 28 , 14 , 32 , 30 and 34 positioned as illustrated in fig1 . the flap 10 remains glued or welded to the back of panel 2 so that panels 6 and 8 overlie panels 4 and 2 , respectively . to disassemble the carton for storage the panels 12 , 22 , 26 and 28 are realigned with panels 2 , 6 , 4 and 8 , respectively . the outer bottom member 30 is pulled down taking with it panels 32 and 34 and the panel 14 is pulled down so that the rectangle may be flattened . various materials may be employed for the carton , laminated corrugated plastic polyethylene material of the type mentioned above being readily available and highly suitable because of its impact strength at low temperatures ( unlike polypropylene ). the size of a box for salvaging wet materials is important . for efficiency , the number of boxes packed and handled during a disaster should be kept to a minimum . in addition , boxes must be large enough to handle most library books . however , if boxes are too large , the contents may freeze slowly and non - uniformly . furthermore , the boxes should not be too large , because wet books and documents are very heavy . boxes must be manageable , to minimize the likelihood of being dropped ( causing more damage to the wet contents ) by salvage team workers , who may be volunteers unaccustomed to packing , loading and lifting boxes for hours on end during a disaster . when filled with about one cubic foot of wet material , the prototype box , which is 15 - 1 / 2 &# 34 ;× 12 &# 34 ; by 10 &# 34 ; in height , will weight about 50 pounds , a weight that can be carried by most adults . the size of the box prototype is within one inch of the size of a standard records center box ( 15 &# 34 ;× 12 &# 34 ;× 10 &# 34 ;) that can hold letter size folders in one direction and legal size in the other direction , so that it too can be used for archives and business files . in addition , by making the box about an inch longer than a standard records box it is possible for this box to accommodate the assorted products that can be packed inside the box when it is used for another of its functions : to hold a disaster preparation kit , that includes a pail and a mop . the increased length of the box is still within the profile of the standard records center boxes if one includes the dimensions of the standard boxes &# 39 ; overlapping top lids . so , if placed side by side on standard archival shelving , these rescue boxes will not protrude any farther into the aisle than the standard boxes . the concept , however , is not limited to the size of the prototype , because various boxes of this type should be made available to accommodate different dimensions of materials needing restoration after a disaster , including maps , prints , drawings and oversized volumes , keeping in mind human factors and materials attributes . another design feature of the box , is that it can be locked , using a 15 &# 34 ; nylon tie threaded through the top slots , numbered 16 and 24 in the diagram . these nylon ties are adjustable , and self - locking and are used extensively in the electrical industry for fastening low voltage wiring and cables neatly . law enforcement officers even use a variation of this idea for handcuffs . once the tie is in place , it cannot be disconnected except by cutting . while the ties are readily available in the marketplace , they are not so common that most ordinary citizens would have a supply on hand , and that provides security against removal and replacement . thus , libraries , archives and records centers that are using outside personnel to transport valuable books and papers away from the custodial site would have the added security of knowing whether the boxes had been tampered with . likewise , the nylon tie would secure the kit of disaster preparation supplies and equipment , such as flashlights and other easily pilfered items . a cut nylon tie provides a clear signal that the box had been opened , and will alert librarians and records center personnel that the integrity of the box contents may have been jeopardized . many variations and modifications of the above - described embodiments are within the ordinary skill of the skilled artisan in this art , without departing from the scope of the invention . accordingly those modifications and embodiments are intended to fall within the scope of the invention as defined by the following claims .	5
turning now to fig1 , a detailed description concerning basic components of a conventional internal combustion engine as well as the components for modifying the internal combustion engine to facilitate conversion into an electrical driven engine will now be provided . as can be seen in fig1 the internal combustion engine comprises an engine block 65 , which has a desired number of cylinder bores 26 , formed therein , e . g . in this fig1 there are four cylinder bores . each cylinder bore 26 , has an inwardly facing surface , which is sized to have a close sliding fit with a mating outwardly facing surface of mating piston 31 . each piston 31 , typically has two spring biased lower oil rings 38 , and two spring biased compression rings 37 , which are positioned between the outwardly facing surface of the engine pistons 31 and the inwardly facing surface of the cylinder bore 26 . the oil rings 38 slide against the inwardly facing surfaces of the cylinder bores 26 , as the pistons 31 , move back and forth within the cylinder bores 26 , during the operation of the engine and separate the oil in the engine from the top of the cylinder bores 26 . a lower portion of each piston 31 is pivotally connected to a central crankshaft 34 , by a connecting rod 23 , at the crankshaft lobe 24 , in a conventional manner , as is well known in the art . the central crankshaft 34 supplies output driving power for the engine to drive a shaft ( not shown ). in a conventional manner each one of the four pistons 31 is similarly connected with the crankshaft 34 ( partially shown ), at a desired spacing along the crankshaft 34 , by an associated connecting rod 23 . the crankshaft 34 is coupled to a flywheel 40 , and the crankshaft pulley 36 in a conventional manner . the conventional internal combustion engine 65 is also provided with an internal oil pump ( not shown ), which provides lubricating oil , located in the bottom portion of the oil pan ( not shown ). the oil pump supplies oil to the moving components of the internal combustion engine to keep those components sufficiently lubricated during the operation of the engine , as is conventially done in the art . as such teaching is well known in the art , a further detailed discussion concerning the same is not provided . now that the basic components of the internal combustion engine have been briefly described , a detailed description concerning modification of the engine 65 according to the teaching for the present invention , will now be provided . to convert a piston driven engine to operate on electricity we must first find the length of stroke , los , of the engine piston . remove the head of the engine . measure the los of the engine piston 31 , that is the distance the engine piston 31 , travels in the engine cylinder 26 , from top dead center , tdc , where the top of the engine piston 31 , is near the top of the engine cylinder 26 , and is as far away from the centerline of the engine crankshaft 34 as it can be , until it travels down the engine cylinder 26 , to bottom dead center , bdc , where the top of the engine piston 31 , is as close to the center line of the engine crankshaft 34 as it can be . then the engine piston 31 is identified as being at bdc . the los determines the length of three of the main components of the conversion of the piston engine 31 to operate on electricity . the los will be the same for all pistons 31 , in the same engine 65 . the length of the solenoid tube is approximately the los multiplied by 2 . a double length solenoid tube , dlst 13 has flanges 33 , fastened approximately at each end and in the middle of the dlst 13 , these flanges 33 are large enough to cover the engine cylinder 26 with at least one flange 33 , having holes drilled in it to align and fasten it over the engine cylinder 26 , to the engine block 65 , head bolt holes . the length of any of the dlst 13 is approximately the los multiplied by 2 , each dlst 13 has 2 separate coils of suitable wire 14 , wound from opposite end flanges 33 , to the middle flange 33 in layers . the top magnetic coils 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 are farthest away from the top of the engine block 65 as they can be . the bottom magnetic coils 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 are as close to the top of the engine block 65 as they can be . the main source of electricity can be alternating current , ac , or direct current , dc , in this example , a battery 60 , which provides electrical flow through the ignition switch apparatus 61 , through the pedal voltage - amperage controller 62 , through the main electrical source supply wire 63 , through the voltage amplifiers 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , here the voltage can be increased as it is distributed to the supply wires . the voltage amplifiers , electronic devices , which can also work in conjunction with a computer 64 or micro processor 64 so that the speed of the engine , revolutions per minute , rpm , and the amperage draw ( electrical flow ), and other factors , can be used to determine the advancement or retardation of the timing position of the adjustable pickups 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 . the adjustable pickups can be positioned through the empty starter motor hole 78 , providing access to the flywheel 40 , since there is no need for the starter motor in this conversion . a vacuum can be taken from the oil - air intake tube 50 to operate a mechanical advance similar to that used on the distributor of some conventional engines . fig3 depicts a perspective view which portrays the approximate placement of the adjustable pickups 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 through the starter motor hole 78 . fig4 depicts an exploded view of the main parts of a conversion unit . the threaded nuts 22 and rod 21 , use standard threads . there are many fastening systems that can be used . the threaded system here by no means excludes other systems . the long all thread rods 25 and nuts 22 , are a means , not claimed , i used to insure accuracy of placement while soldering or welding . fig5 and fig6 depict the switching parts of the electrical system . fig5 depicts a flywheel 40 , with teeth , with flywheel switches 75 n , 74 n , 73 n , 73 f , and 72 f fastened on one side and flywheel switches 52 n , 53 n , 54 f , and 55 f fastened on the side where they are depicted in fig5 , directly opposite the adjustable pickups 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 . when the flywheel turns past the adjustable pickups , the flywheel switches send an appropriate electrical impulse to the adjustable pickups 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 which in turn send an appropriate electrical impulse to the voltage amplifiers 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 which control the voltage and amperage from the main electrical source . a bar , which can be temporarily magnetized , is approximately the los and fits loosely into the dslt 13 , the top end of each bar is fitted to accommodate an oil air ring 20 or rings 20 , the other end of the bar , the bottom end is fitted to accommodate a rod which is connected at the other end to the top of the engine piston 31 , the bar , which for identification purposes is named a power magnet , pm , or pm 16 , pm 17 , pm 18 , pm 19 . each pm is connected to an engine piston 31 , by a rod , which cannot be magnetized , and for identification purposes is named a power rod , pr 21 , is approximately the los of the engine piston 31 , and is as strong as the engine piston connecting rod 23 . fig1 , fig2 , and fig3 depict a lubrication system for the upper half of the dlst 13 and the ring 20 or rings 20 on the pms &# 39 ;. the system comprises a one way oil - air exhaust valve 8 , an oil - air exhaust tube 51 , which is connected to the crankcase 35 , a one - way oil air intake valve 7 , an oil - air intake tube 50 placed near an oil supply tube 70 , which is connected to conventional engine oil system , an oil - air mist adjusting screw 27 and its &# 39 ; seat 71 , as a means to let drops of oil into the oil - air intake tube 50 , to mix with air to create an oil - air mist which can be pulled into the top part of the dlst 13 . each pm has an oil - air ring 20 or rings 20 , which seal the top of the pm &# 39 ; s to provide a means to create a compression or vacuum in the top half of the dlst 13 , when the pm &# 39 ; s slide back and forth in the dlst 13 , as a means to pull in an oil - air mist mixture for lubrication to the top of the dlst 13 . cooling the magnetic coils 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 in fig1 small flexible tubes 28 , in coils marked with vertical slash marks , are wound with suitable wire 14 , or in layers with each of the magnetic coils 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 these tubes are connected to the radiator system of the engine block 65 . any engine coolant can be pumped thru the small flexible tubes 28 , to cool the magnetic coils 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , or a refrigerant can be pumped thru the tubing to provide cooling for the magnetic coils . fig2 depicts tubes , with holes , in the sides , are placed around the outside of the magnetic coils , the tubes are the same length as the dlst &# 39 ; s 13 and connected to the interior of the engine cylinders 26 by intake one - way intake valves 9 , and one way exhaust valves 10 . when the engine piston 31 moves down the engine cylinder 26 , air is pulled into the cylinder 26 , the one - way intake valve 9 is open , and the one - way exhaust valve 10 is closed . when the engine piston 31 moves up in the cylinder 26 , the one - way intake valve 9 , is closed and the one - way exhaust valve 10 is open , the air in the cylinder 26 is pushed through the exhaust valve 10 , through the holes of the exhaust cooling tubes 30 , onto the magnetic coils , to cool them . the main part of this method of converting a piston driven engine is in making the solenoid tube approximately twice the length of the stroke of the engine piston , making a double length solenoid tube , dlst . each dlst is wound with suitable wire to make two separate magnetic coils , with a main electrical source , in this example , a battery 60 which provides electrical flow through the ignition switch apparatus 61 , through the pedal voltage - amperage controller 62 , through the main electrical source supply wire 63 , through the voltage amplifiers 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , here the voltage can be conjunction with a computer 64 or micro processor 64 so that the speed of the engine , revolutions per minute , rpm , and the amperage draw ( electrical flow ), and other factors , can be used to determine the advancement or retardation of the timing position of the adjustable pickups 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 . fig1 and fig2 depict a four cylinder piston driven engine with conversion units over each cylinder , the double length solenoid tubes , dlst 13 , are shown with separate representative coils of wire wound on each dlst 13 , a power magnet , pm 16 , pm 17 , pm 18 , pm 19 , is located inside each dlst 13 , and a power rod , pr 21 , connects each pm to an engine piston 31 , there are 2 separate coils wound around each dlst 13 , since they are energized at different times they are numbered separately for identification and function , they are 80 top magnetic coil , 81 top magnetic coil , 82 top magnetic coil , 83 top magnetic coil , 85 bottom magnetic coil , 86 bottom magnetic coil , 87 bottom magnetic coil , 88 bottom magnetic coil . the top magnetic coils 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , pull their respective pm &# 39 ; s up . the bottom magnetic coils , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , when energized , pull their respective pm &# 39 ; s down . energizing of the coils in this example , but not limited to , occurs when the flywheel with its 2 sets , of 4 each flywheel switches 72 f , 73 f , 74 n , 75 n and 52 n , 53 n , 54 f , 55 f , fastened to it turns past the adjustable pickups 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , sending an electrical impulses through them to their corresponding voltage amplifiers 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 . fig5 depicts flywheel 40 , with teeth , with flywheel switches 52 n , 53 n , 54 f , and 55 f , opposite adjustable pickups 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 . the flywheel switches , fs , with the n identifier , always turn the designated coils on , the flywheel switches with f identifier , always turn their designated coils off . in fig5 the flywheel switch , fs 52 n , sends an on electrical impulse to the adjustable pickup 46 , which in turn sends an electrical impulse to voltage amplifier 42 , an electronic device which can increase the voltage and decrease the amperage to energize coils 87 and 85 , pulling down on pm 16 and 18 , since this pair is in the same mode . one fs 52 n , one adjustable pickup 46 , and one voltage amplifier 42 , can operate two coils . in fig5 , the fs 53 n sends an electrical impulse to the adjustable pickup 47 , which in turn sends an on electrical impulse to the voltage amplifier 43 , an electronic device , which can increase the source voltage to a higher electrical voltage , and lower the amperage , through the supply wire 77 , through the fuse 41 , to coil 83 , and coil 81 , pulling the pm 17 and pm 19 up . at the same time fs 55 f and fs 54 f have turned off the electrical supply to adjustable pickup 48 and 49 , turning off the electricity to voltage amplifier 44 , turning off coils 80 and 82 , turning off coils 86 and 88 , and all four pistons are turning the crankshaft the first 180 degrees . in fig6 , after the flywheel 40 , makes a half turn , the flywheel switches 72 f , 73 f , 74 n and 75 n are opposite the adjustable pickups 46 , 47 , 48 and 49 . the flywheel switch 72 f turns off the electrical impulse to adjustable pickup 46 , turning off the voltage amplifier 42 , turning off coils 85 and 87 , then flywheel switch 73 f , turns off adjustable amplifier 47 , turning off coils 81 and 83 , the fs 74 n turns on the electrical impulse to adjustable pickup 48 , turning on the voltage to voltage amplifier 44 , an electronic device , which can increase the voltage and decrease the amperage , and sends the increased voltage to its &# 39 ; supply wire 77 , through the fuse 41 , and energizes coil 82 and coil 80 , pulling the pair of pm &# 39 ; s 16 and 18 up . since the coils 82 and 86 are a pair , the one fs 74 can turn on both coils . the fs 75 n sends an electrical impulse to adjustable pickup 49 , turning on voltage amplifier 45 , an electrical device , which can increase the voltage and decrease the amperage from the voltage source 60 , sending the increased voltage to a voltage supply wire 77 , through the fuse 41 and energizing coils 88 and 86 pulling the pair of pm &# 39 ; s 17 and 19 down . since the coils 88 and 86 are a pair in the same mode , the one fs 75 n can energize both coils . all four - engine pistons 31 are turning the crankshaft 34 , from 180 degrees to 360 degrees , completing the cycle . fig1 . fig2 , fig3 , and fig4 depict an oil - air tube flange 12 , which is connected to the top of the dlst 13 . the oil - air tube flange 12 , is the base for an oil - air exhaust tube 51 , and an oil - air intake tube 50 . fig1 , and fig2 , depicts a one - way oil - air intake valve 7 , and a one - way oil - air exhaust valve 8 . when the pm &# 39 ; s move down the dlst 13 they pull clean air by virtue of the encasement of the air shroud 67 , the air filters 68 , and the blowing of the flywheel 66 , through the oil - air intake tube 50 , past the regulated valve seat 71 , in the oil supply tube 70 , the seat is regulated by the oil - air adjusting screw 27 . the slight vacuum at this seat causes oil droplets to enter the oil - air intake tube 50 , making an oil - air mist , which passes through the one - way oil - air intake valve 7 into the dlst 13 , coating the top part of the dlst 13 , and the ring 20 or rings 20 with oil and cooling air . when the pm &# 39 ; s reach bdc and start back up , the one - way oil - air intake valves 7 , close and the one - way oil - air exhaust valves 8 open , the sealed pm &# 39 ; s push the remaining oil - air mist out the oil - air exhaust tubes 51 , and back into the crankcase 35 . lubricating the ring 20 or rings 20 and the top of the interior of the dlst 13 . cooling the magnetic coils 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 in fig1 small flexible tubes 28 , in coils marked with vertical slash marks , are wound with suitable wire 14 , or in layers with each of the magnetic coils 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 these tubes are connected to the radiator system of the engine block 65 . any engine coolant can be pumped thru the small flexible tubes 28 , to cool the magnetic coils 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , or a refrigerant can be pumped thru the tubing to provide cooling for the magnetic coils . fig2 depicts tubes , with holes , in the sides , are placed around the outside of the magnetic coils , the tubes are the same length as the dlst &# 39 ; s 13 and connected to the interior of the engine cylinders 26 by intake one - way intake valves 9 , and one way exhaust valves 10 . when the engine piston 31 moves down the engine cylinder 26 , air is pulled into the cylinder 26 , the one - way intake valve 9 is open , and the one - way exhaust valve 10 is closed . when the engine piston 31 moves up in the cylinder 26 , the one - way intake valve 9 , is closed and the one - way exhaust valve 10 is open , the air in the cylinder 26 is pushed through the exhaust valve 10 , through the holes of the exhaust cooling tubes 30 , onto the magnetic coils , to cool them . providing a means to cool the coils on an air - cooled engine .	7
reference will now be made in detail to embodiments , examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings . while the embodiments will be described in conjunction with the drawings , it will be understood that they are not intended to limit the embodiments . on the contrary , the embodiments are intended to cover alternatives , modifications and equivalents . furthermore , in the following detailed description , numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding . however , it will be recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments may be practiced without these specific details . in other instances , well - known methods , procedures , components , and circuits have not been described in detail as not to unnecessarily obscure aspects of the embodiments . for expository purposes , the terms “ axially ” or “ axial direction ” refer to a direction along a centerline axis length of a shaft and “ radially ” or “ radial direction ” refer to a direction perpendicular to the centerline axis . the term “ horizontal ” as used herein refers to a plane parallel to the plane or surface of an object , regardless of its orientation . the term “ vertical ” refers to a direction perpendicular to the horizontal as just defined . terms such as “ above ,” “ below ,” “ bottom ,” “ top ,” “ side ,” “ higher ,” “ lower ,” “ upper ,” “ over ,” and “ under ” are referred to with respect to the horizontal plane . in general , increasing the speed at which the disks rotate or performing the same operations on more disks simultaneously require more energy , which in turn increases the noise and vibration in the disks &# 39 ; environment . the interferences caused by rapid disk rotation and other interferences may cause random radial displacement or eccentricity of the rotating disk , resulting in non - repetitive run - out . as a result , in combination with the increasingly small size and proximate positions of the magnetic elements , the non - repetitive run - out may interfere with the accurate writing and reading of information stored on the disks , during their various manufacturing phases . in order to improve performance , amplitude of error motions , e . g ., non - repetitive run - out , should be reduced . rotating spindles may have a number of different resonance modes , e . g ., 8 modes . a resonance mode may be defined as a response of a rotating object , e . g ., spindle motor , characterized as a shape of a motion , e . g ., pivoting side ways , up / down motions , precession motion , etc ., at a given frequency . resonance is the tendency of a system to oscillate at a greater amplitude at some frequencies than at others . these are known as the system &# 39 ; s resonant frequencies . at these frequencies , even small periodic driving forces can produce large amplitude oscillations , because the system stores vibrational energy . however , various physical conditions may change the number and the characteristics of the resonance modes . for example , adding a disk stack may add at least two additional modes . in order to improve performance , the biggest modes ( e . g ., the dominant modes ), that store the majority of vibrational energy of the system that contribute to non - repetitive run - out , e . g ., the spectrum of the path traveled by the cantilevered end of the spin axis , may be attenuated by increasing the dampening force . damper burns the energy from motion and applies the force at the right moment in order to compensate for displacement , thereby reducing the vibrational energy stored in the system over time . moreover , increasing dampening attenuates the amplitude and widens the phase change of the response as opposed to an active bearing element . in various embodiments , non - repetitive run - out may have two dominant modes . it is appreciated that suppressing the two dominant modes , as described by embodiments herein , is exemplary and not intended to limit the scope of the present invention . for example , one , three , four , five , or more dominant modes may be suppressed , if desired . where the first term is related to the force related to mass , the second term is related to the dampening force , and the third term is related to the bearing force . thus , in various embodiments , the performance of a system may be improved by altering various terms of the force equation ( 1 ) above . however , in some embodiments described herein , system performance may be improved by removing vibrational energy from the system by increasing the dampening force ( e . g ., { umlaut over ( w )}. c in equation ( 1 )). the two biggest modes contributing to non - repetitive run - out in x and y direction with or without angular motion may be expressed as : angular motion may be defined in an analogous way as rotation about the x and / or y axis . in order to determine the dampening force , the velocity at which displacement occurs is determined , e . g ., { umlaut over ( w )}. accordingly , reducing or minimizing the area defined by eqn . ( 2 ) attenuates the two biggest modes contained in that area , in x and y direction , that contribute to non - repetitive run - outs . in order to identify where the two biggest modes occur , one may identify the frequencies at which they occur , e . g ., two frequencies corresponding to the two biggest modes . once the frequencies are identified , the area as defined by eqn . ( 2 ) may be reduced to attenuate the biggest modes contributing to non - repetitive run - outs . taking a fourier transform of eqn . ( 2 ) may be expressed as : fourier ( x ( t )+ jy ( t ))→ w ( f ) eqn . ( 3 ) and frequencies of w ( f ) that the two biggest mode occur as defined by eqn . ( 3 ) may be determined . referring now to fig1 , an apparatus for adjusting displacement motion of a rotating object in accordance with one embodiment is shown . according to one embodiment , the rotating object is a spindle , however various embodiments may include any rotating object . the apparatus 100 may include a sensor board 110 , a converter 120 , a filter 130 , and an actuator 140 . it is appreciated that the description of a spindle in the embodiments herein is merely exemplary and not intended to limit the scope of the present invention . for example , the embodiments described herein are equally applicable to other rotating objects such as a rotor , motor , gyroscope , etc . in one embodiment , the sensor board 110 detects displacement of the spindle . for example , the sensor board 110 may detect displacement of the spindle in the x - y direction when the spindle is in motion . the sensor board 110 outputs this information as bit stream . the sensor board 110 may also determine the position of the spin axis of the spindle . it is appreciated that the sensor board 110 may utilize pressure and flow such as a microphone , it may utilize a magnetic field for sensing such as a hall sensor , it may utilize an electric field such as charge coupling , or it may utilize optics such as optonics or laser , to name a few . however , in the described embodiments , a rotating electrical field is used to determine the position of the spin axis of the spindle . the converter 120 may receive the information associated with the displacement of the spindle and the rotational position of the electrical field , as determined by the sensor board 110 . furthermore , the converter 120 may receive information regarding the spindle , e . g ., rotational position of the spindle . accordingly , the converter 120 generates a feedback signal that contains information regarding the shape of the electrical field and the shape of the spindle , which is stationary . as a result , the sensor board 110 may utilize the feedback signal to filter out stationary information , thereby outputting a bit stream containing only the changing portion of the signal . the bit stream generated contains the displacement of the spindle . the operation of the sensor board 110 and the converter 120 is described in greater detail in fig2 . the filter 130 may receive information associated with the displacement and the position of the rotating electrical field . the filter 130 may determine the instantaneous velocity of a non - repetitive run - out of the spindle . the filter 130 may transmit information related to the instantaneous velocity . for example , the filter 130 may send a force pulse code modulation signal . the force pulse code modulation may include information regarding the location where a force is to be applied to the spindle , the magnitude of the force , which winding coils of the actuator 140 to activate , whether an even or odd winding is to be used by the actuator , etc . alternatively , the force pulse code modulation may include information regarding the location where a force is applied to the spindle that generates the two dominant modes , the magnitude of the force , etc . the actuator 140 generates a force in accordance with the force pulse code modulation and further based on the winding information , e . g ., whether odd or even windings are to be used , in order to increase dampening force and reduce the system vibration . as such , the actuator 140 applies a force at a particular position of the actuator 140 to the spindle in order to compensate for the displacement of the spindle , thereby applying the appropriate dampening force . in this embodiment , the actuator 140 utilizes a magnetic field such as electromagnetic force . however , in other embodiments , the actuator 140 may utilize pressure and flow such as air jets , or it may utilize an electric field such as piezo element , to name a few . fig2 is a schematic diagram of a circuit 200 that may be used to determine the displacement of a rotating disk based on information provided by displacement sensors , according to an embodiment of the present invention . circuit 200 includes electrical ground nodes 204 and switches 201 , 202 , and 203 . circuit 200 further includes electrodes 205 - 207 , capacitors 208 and 210 , a sigma delta converter 214 , integrator 212 , a controller 211 and a 1 / rev block 216 . when a clock signal , e . g ., φ 1 , φ 2 , φ 3 , or φ 4 , goes high , the switch corresponding to that clock signal may close , i . e ., thereby shorting the connection . conversely , when a clock signal goes low , the switch corresponding to that clock signal may open . electrodes 205 may include biasing electrodes 205 and electrodes 206 may include sampling electrodes 206 . the sampling electrodes 206 may correspond to or may be coupled with a first sensing ring and a second sensing ring ( not shown ). electrodes 207 may include floating electrodes 207 that may correspond to or may be coupled with a floating ring ( not shown ). accordingly , the capacitor 209 may correspond to the capacitor assembly formed between the first sensing ring , the second sensing ring , the biasing electrodes 205 , and the floating electrodes 207 . additional capacitive components between each of the first sensing ring , the second sensing ring , the biasing electrodes 205 , and the floating electrodes 207 are not shown for clarify of the figure . switches 203 open when the signal φ 3 goes low . as a result , biasing electrodes 205 are caused to float . approximately at the same time , signal φ 4 goes low in preparation for its next rising edge . once signal φ 2 goes low , the switches 202 may open . consequently , the capacitors 208 and 210 are caused to float , allowing the capacitors 208 and 210 to sample the next electric field charge created by the biasing electrodes 205 and altered by the displacement of an object within the electric field . the controller 211 may control the rotational position of the electrical field associated with control electrodes used to sample an electrical charge , and the 1 / rev block 216 generates a stationary signal associated with electrical field reflecting the shape of the spindle , and a controller 211 . once signal φ 1 goes high , switches 201 may close . as a result , biasing electrodes 205 and sensing electrodes 206 are shorted to the ground nodes 204 . at the same time , the bias is set , which results in a charge transfer across the floating capacitors 209 , which is sampled by the capacitors 208 and 210 . once signal φ 4 goes high , a sigma - delta converter 214 may acquire the sign of the resulting charge on an integrator 212 for further processing . in various embodiments , the integrator 212 may be an operational transconductance amplifier with input and output terminals linked by capacitors 208 and 210 . the integrator 212 may integrate a previously stored value in the sigma - delta converter 214 with a currently measured value and store the integrated value in the sigma - delta converter 214 . signal φ 2 may go high and cause the switches 202 to close . accordingly , the charge levels on the sample and hold capacitors 208 and 210 are reset as a result of the short . once signal φ 1 goes low the switches 201 may open , and once the signal φ 3 goes high the switches 203 may close . as a result , the biasing potentials on the biasing electrodes 205 and sensing electrodes 206 are set . at this time , the biasing electrodes 205 may be biased to rotate the electric field to the next electric field rotation . the controller 211 may control the rotational position of the electrical field associated with biasing electrodes 205 , and the 1 / rev block 216 generates a stationary signal associated with electrical field reflecting the shape of the spindle , which is fed back with sensing electrodes 206 . when signal φ 3 goes low once again , the switches 203 are caused to open . accordingly , the biasing electrodes 205 float once again , which ends the previous clock cycle 230 and initiates the next clock cycle . in another embodiment , when signal φ 2 goes low , the switches 202 may open . consequently , the capacitors 208 and 210 are caused to float , allowing the capacitors 208 and 210 to sample the next electric field charge created by the biasing electrodes 205 and altered by the displacement of an object within the electric field . once signal φ 3 goes low , switches 203 may open . as a result , biasing electrodes 205 and sensing electrodes 206 are caused to float . approximately at the same time , signal φ 4 goes low in preparation for its next rising edge . according to one embodiment , once signal φ 1 goes high , switches 201 may close . as a result , biasing electrodes 205 and sensing electrodes 206 are shorted to the ground nodes 204 . this shorting to ground changes the potential of the biasing electrodes 205 and sensing electrodes 206 , which results in a charge transfer across the floating capacitors 209 , which is sampled by the capacitors 208 and 210 . in one embodiment , when signal φ 4 goes high , a sigma - delta converter 214 may acquire the sign of the resulting charge on an integrator 212 for further processing . in various embodiments , the integrator 212 may be an operational transconductance amplifier with input and output terminals linked by capacitors 208 and 210 . the integrator 212 may integrate a previously stored value in the sigma - delta converter 214 with a currently measured value and store the integrated value in the sigma - delta converter 214 . once signal φ 2 goes high , the switches 202 may close . accordingly , the charge levels on the sample and hold capacitors 208 and 210 are reset as a result of the short . it is appreciated that once signal φ 1 goes low , the switches 201 may open , and once signal φ 3 goes high , switches 203 may close . as a result , the biasing potentials on the biasing electrodes 205 and sensing electrodes 206 are set . at this time , the biasing electrodes 205 may be biased to rotate the electric field to the next electric field rotation . when signal φ 2 goes low once again in the next clock cycle , the switches 202 are caused to open . accordingly , the capacitors 208 and 210 are caused to float once again , ending the previous clock cycle and initiating the next clock cycle . it is appreciated that 32 biasing electrodes 205 may be used to create 32 electric field positions . for each electric field position , the circuit may complete one clock cycle . as a result , an electric field may be created for each of the 32 positions and the electric field may be sampled for each of the 32 positions . in some embodiments , the sigma - delta converter 214 may include multiple registers to store a value corresponding to each position of the electric field . for example , if there are 32 electric field positions , the sigma - delta converter 214 may include 32 registers to store an electric field strength value that corresponds to each position . in various embodiments , when the electric field has completed one full revolution and begins a next revolution , the values in the sigma - delta converter may be overwritten by the average value of the previously stored measurement and the current measurement . as a result , the measurements of each position of an object may be oversampled . accordingly , the sensors along with the converter may determine whether displacement of spindle has occurred . moreover , the sensors and the converter may determine the position of the displacements and their magnitude . the determined information may be transmitted to the filter , e . g ., filter 130 . according to one embodiment , the filter 130 may be a code modulator as described with respect to fig3 . referring now to fig3 , an exemplary code modulator in accordance with one embodiment is shown . according to one embodiment , a decimation filter 302 of the code modulator 300 receives a bit stream associated with the amount of displacement and it further receives a position of the electrical field associated with the position of the displacement . the decimation filter 302 reduces the number of samples and filters out the noise . the instantaneous velocities in x and y directions are calculated using the cosine and sine respectively . the code modulator 300 outputs two signals in this instance , e . g ., signal f 1 and signal f 2 , each associated with a dominant mode . accordingly , it is appreciated that if one desires to remove three dominant modes , the code modulator 300 outputs three signals . in various embodiments , the code modulator 300 may output any number of signals corresponding to any number of desired modes . in further embodiments , the desired modes may include modes other than dominant modes , e . g ., minor modes . the output of the code modulator 300 is transmitted to the actuator 140 . referring now to fig4 , an actuator 400 in accordance with one embodiment is shown . the actuator 400 may include a plurality of stator teeth 406 . the gap between the teeth 406 and the rotor may range between 0 . 1 mm to 1 . 0 mm , according to one embodiment . windings 402 and 404 may be wrapped around each tooth to form a respective coil each . it is appreciated that in this embodiment , coil 402 is even and coil 404 is odd . even and odd are referred to as the direction of the magnetic field or magnetic flux created by a current flowing in the winding of each respective coil . other coils associated with other teeth may also be either odd or even and the number of windings for each may be equal to either coil 402 or 404 respectively . however , it is appreciated that it is not necessary for all even coils to have the same number of windings and it is further appreciated that it is not necessary for all odd coils to have the same number of windings . for example , one even coil may have 10 windings whereas another even coil may have 12 windings . as such , the number of even or odd coils , and the number of windings for each as described herein are exemplary and not intended to limit the scope of the present invention . in this embodiment , the actuator 400 is a 2 × 5 phase coils where 2 indicates odd / even coils . in this embodiment , the even coils are wound clockwise whereas the odd coils are wound counterclockwise . it is appreciated that the direction of winding described herein is exemplary and not intended to limit the scope of the present invention . signals f 1 and f 2 depict the two signal forces applied by the actuator to the spindle in order to compensate and adjust the measured displacement and to dampen the force . it is appreciated that signal force f 1 and f 2 are snapshots in time and that they change over time as displacement changes and as the spindle spins . for example , possible future signals f 1 and f 2 are depicted as dashed arrows . it is appreciated that the signals f 1 and f 2 shown are exemplary and depending on the measured displacement , etc ., the position and magnitude of the signals f 1 and f 2 may change . it is appreciated that signals f 1 and f 2 may be pulse width modulation signals . referring now to fig5 , a more detailed actuator 500 in accordance with one embodiment is shown . the actuator 500 may include a plurality of teeth , two of which are shown 510 and 512 . each tooth may have a corresponding coil winding associated with it , e . g ., winding 506 associated with tooth 512 and winding 508 associated with tooth 510 . it is appreciated that the windings shown may be odd or even . however , for illustration purposes it is presumed that coil winding 506 is even and wound in clockwise direction and coil winding 508 is odd and wound in a counterclockwise direction . one side of each coil winding may be coupled to a switch . for example , coil winding 506 may be coupled to switch 502 and coil winding 508 may be coupled to switch 504 . the other side of the coil winding may be coupled to a voltage signal source , e . g ., v m . it is appreciated that even though the same voltage signal source is shown being coupled to these coil windings , different voltage signal source may be coupled , e . g ., v m for one and − v m for another one . it is also appreciated that the winding , e . g ., clockwise or counterclockwise direction and odd or even coil windings , are merely exemplary and not intended to limit the scope of the present invention . it is appreciated that the gate of each switch , e . g ., gate of switches 502 and 504 , may be coupled to the signal , e . g ., signal f 1 and signal f 2 , received from the modulator . it is appreciated that the received signals may be pulse width modulation signals and as such the coils of the actuator perform coil to coil pulse width modulation micro stepping . in response to receiving the signals f 1 and f 2 exceeding a given threshold , switches 502 and 504 close causing v m to be coupled , thereby causing the current to flow through the coil windings . flow of current causes an electrical field and therefore a force that is applied to the spindle . the applied force compensates and adjusts for the measured displacements and dampens , which reduces non - repetitive run - outs . referring now to fig6 , an exemplary top view diagram of the displacement force and the adjustment force in accordance with one embodiment is shown . in this example , two dominant forces contributing to non - repetitive run - outs are shown as nrro 1 610 and nrro 2 620 . in one embodiment , the forces 630 and 640 to be applied to the spindle in order to compensate and adjust for displacements and non - repetitive run - outs are perpendicular to the nrro 1 and nrro 2 . however , it is appreciated that in various embodiments the forces 630 and 640 may not necessarily be perpendicular to the non - repetitive run - outs ( as shown ). the cancellation forces 630 and 640 may be used to dampen the two dominant modes , in this instance . it is appreciated that the number of cancelation forces varies if the number of dominant modes to be dampened is varied . for example , if three dominant modes are to be dampened then the number of forces applied may be also be three . referring now to fig7 , a system 700 in accordance with one embodiment is shown . system 700 includes a motor and resolver 710 , journal bearing 720 , thrust bearing 730 , sensor board 740 , optional sensor boards 750 - 760 , and an actuator assembly 770 . according to one embodiment , rotor / payload disk - stack may be coupled to the spindle . the motor and resolver 710 rotates , thereby rotating the spindle . as a result , the payload or the disk stack may experience windage excitation . the journal bearing 720 and the thrust bearing 730 may be used to reduce windage excitation and non - repetitive run - outs . the sensor board 740 is similar to the sensor board 110 , 200 described above . the sensor board 740 may include the sigma delta component , as described above . system 700 may include a filter board ( not shown ). the filter board may be integrated within the sensor board 740 in one embodiment or it may be integrated within the actuator assembly 770 in another embodiment . according to one embodiment , the filter board is a separate board and not integrated within either of the sensor board 740 or the actuator assembly 770 . the filter board operates similar to that of the filter 130 or the code modulator 300 . the actuator assembly 770 operates similar to that of actuator 140 , 400 , or 500 , as described above . the actuator assembly 770 uses the information from the sensor board 740 and the filter board and applies an appropriate force at an appropriate position to compensate for the measured displacements . as such , non - repetitive run - outs are reduced and dampening is increased . it is appreciated that in this exemplary embodiment , additional sensor boards 750 and 760 may also be used to measure displacements , etc ., for various sections of the rotating body and for more accurate measurement . however , it is appreciated that the use of the additional sensor boards 750 and 760 is optional . the additional sensor boards 750 and 760 may operate similar to that of sensor board 740 . referring now to fig8 , an exemplary flow diagram 800 in accordance with one embodiment is shown . at step 810 , displacements of a rotating object , e . g ., spindle , is determined . for example , a sensor board as described above may be used . at step 820 , position at which the detected displacements occur is determined . according to one embodiment , a sigma delta circuitry may be used . at step 830 , the instantaneous velocity associated with the position of the displacements is determined . according to one embodiment , a filter board or a code modulator , as described above , may be used . at step 840 , a signal based on the instantaneous velocity may be generated . the signal may be generated by the filter board or a code modulator , as described above . the signal may be a pulse width modulation signal . at step 850 , an actuator device receives the generated signal . the generated signal is used to turn on / off the switches associated with the actuator device . turning the switches on / off causes the current to flow through the appropriate tooth ( s ) of the actuator , e . g ., appropriate winding coil . at step 860 , the current that flows through the appropriate tooth of the actuator generates an electrical field and a force resulting thereof . the generated force is applied to the rotating object , e . g ., spindle , thereby compensating for the measured displacements and dampening the system . the foregoing description , for purpose of explanation , has been described with reference to specific embodiments . however , the illustrative discussions above are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed . many modifications and variations are possible in view of the above teachings .	6
referring now to fig1 the dental articulator is illustrated as an instrument having a lower frame member 10 and upper frame member 11 . the instrument is of the arcon type , having posterior condylar spherical elements 12 which are distally carried by a lower lateral cross member 14 . the lower frame member has substantially vertical standards 16 at opposite sides thereof which extend into supporting engagement with the lateral cross member 14 . the base 18 of the lower frame member extends anteriorly to an incisal pin support member 20 that is removably secured thereto by thumb screw 22 . the base 18 of the lower frame member 10 also has a pair of posterior legs 24 and a pair of anterior legs 26 , elevating base 18 above a work table or support , to provide vertical clearance to accommodate thumb screws 22 and 28 , the latter extending through the base and having a threaded shank 30 for the removable attachment of dental cast support members , not illustrated . the base also bears one or more of pins 32 which , with shank 30 of thumb screw 28 , index dental casts to the instrument . the upper frame member 11 includes an upper lateral cross member 34 which , as the lower lateral cross member 14 , extends coextensively with the condylar axis of the articulator . the condylar axis of the articulator extends through the centers of the spaced - apart , distally carried condylar spherical elements 12 . the longitudinal member 36 of the upper frame member 11 extends anteriorly to support the incisal pin member , generally indicated at 38 . this incisal pin member is carried at the anterior of the upper frame member 11 by thumb screw 40 which extends through a slot , not shown , in the leading edge of member 36 and into threaded engagement with a fore end bracket 42 . bracket 42 bears a flange 44 for abutment against the leading edge of member 36 and an integral , vertical bracket 46 having an arcuate face 48 which is engaged by a mating arcuate face of the head 50 of the incisal pin member 52 . head 50 has a vertical slot which receives the shank of thumb wheel 54 , the latter extending through the slot and into threaded engagement with a bore in vertical bracket 46 , whereby the vertical position of the incisal assembly can be fixedly adjusted on the anterior of the instrument , thereby providing for fixed adjustability of the spaced - apart positions of the upper and lower frame members in their closed position . in the preferred embodiment , the incisal pin assembly can be provided with the fixedly adjustable shoe 56 having a key 57 that is slidably mounted in a groove of the mounting block 58 at the base of pin 52 . the shoe 56 rests on an abutment surface , button 60 , carried on the upper surface of the aforementioned incisal table 20 . the latch mechanism of the invention includes a pin member 62 centrally carried on the upper lateral cross member 34 . this pin member , which is shown in greater detail in fig7 comprises a bracket member 64 dependent from the undersurface of the upper lateral cross member and laterally , outwardly projecting pin shafts 66 . the other member of the hinge assembly of the invention comprises a latch hook arm generally indicated at 68 which is pivotally mounted on a pivot axle 70 which is secured to the lower lateral cross member 14 by bracket 72 . the latter bracket is slidably mounted to the lower lateral cross member 14 by screw fasteners 74 which project through vertically elongated apertures 76 of bracket 72 . bracket 72 bears a posteriorly projecting flange 78 that extends beneath the lower lateral cross member 14 . preferably , the lower lateral cross member 14 has a central bore 80 that receives compression spring 82 which is biased between the flange 78 and the cross member 14 whereby bracket 72 is resiliently biased downwardly , away from the hinge pins 66 . the hook arm latch member 68 has a posteriorly directed arm 84 and a pin detenting notch 86 for resiliently restraining pin 66 when the hook arm member is rotated in the direction of arrow 88 . hook arm member 68 also bears a posteriorly projecting lever arm 90 which projects subjacent of the undersurface of the upper lateral cross member 34 so that rotational opening of the articulator by moving of the upper member along the arc shown by arrow 92 causes the posterior lower edge of the lateral cross member 34 to engage lever arm 90 , deflecting this lever arm and pivoting the hook arm member 68 in the direction indicated by line 88 , engaging the latch mechanism and interlocking the upper and lower frame members . referring now to fig2 the articulator is illustrated in a rear elevational view . as there illustrated , upper frame member 34 bears distal fossa guide members 92 and 94 which have , on their undersurface , slots 96 which are elongated in the anterior - posterior direction , i . e ., longitudinal axis , of the instrument . slots 96 receive the condylar , spherical elements 12 which are distally mounted on the lower lateral cross member 14 . elements 12 project on shafts 98 which are received within bores in the lower lateral cross member 14 and interlocked thereto by set screws 100 . the lower frame member of the articulator has a base member 18 with posterior legs 24 and distal and upwardly projecting standards 16 that support opposite ends of the lower lateral cross member 14 . the view of fig2 also shows that the flange 78 of bracket member 72 which projects beneath the center of lateral cross member 13 and is resiliently biased downwardly by compression spring 82 . the upper end of bracket 72 is received between opposite side flanges 102 of the hook arm member 68 and bears the pivot axle 70 for the mounting of the hook arm member . the upper end of bracket 72 is grooved to receive a torsion spring 104 which has its opposite ends resiliently biased between the bracket 72 and the undersurface of the lever arm 90 whereby the hook arm member 68 is resiliently biased away from the pin member 62 , assuming the position shown in fig1 and 2 . as previously mentioned , the hook arm member of the hinge assembly can be moved into a pin detenting position whereby the pin 66 is resiliently received within notch 86 of the hook arm member . fig3 illustrates this view with the articulator in a closed position . the posteriorly projecting arms 84 of the hook arm member have been rotated past the point of engagement with pins 66 and for a sufficient distance that pins 66 are received within detenting notches 86 of the hook arm member . the hook arm member is restrained in this position , against the bias of torsion spring 104 by the downward force exerted by compression spring 82 which restrains the hook arm member and prevents its rotation to the unlocked position of fig1 and 2 . the hook arm member can be released from its locking position by the application of a slight upward pressure on the undersurface of bracket 72 , sufficient to overcome the resilient bias of compression spring 82 and permit upward translation of bracket 72 and hook arm member 68 , whereby the posteriorly projecting arms 84 will clear pins 66 , and permit rotation of the hook arm member to the open position shown in fig1 and 2 . the articulator as thus described can be supplied with alternate constructional features such as the alternate incisal pin member generally indicated at 110 . this incisal pin member is similar in construction to the pin member 38 previously described in that it also has longitudinal rib 112 that is received in a slot in the leading edge of upper frame member 36 , a flange 44 which serves as an abutment and forward stop for the frame member 36 and bracket 42 which has a threaded bore to receive the end of thumb wheel 40 . the vertical bracket 46 dependent from bracket 42 is shaped similarly to that previously described , with an arcuate forward face 48 that is in contact with a mating arcuate face of the head 50 of the incisal pin . the incisal pin 114 projects downwardly from the head 50 and bears a rounded lower end which is received in a concavity 116 of incisal table 118 which is carried on the lower frame member . fig5 illustrates the mounting means for the spherical condylar elements 12 . as previously mentioned , these elements are carried at the upper end of shafts 98 which are received within bores 120 located at opposite ends of the lower lateral cross member 14 . the shafts 98 are fixedly secured to lateral cross member 14 by set screws 100 which are engaged in threaded transverse bores 122 of the lower lateral cross member 13 . each shaft 98 bears a flat 124 for engagement by the set screw 100 . shaft 98 also has a rounded lower end 126 which projects into bore 120 to the position shown by broken line 128 . in this position , the lower end of this shaft is engaged by the pointed , inboard end of set screw 130 whereby the advance of set screw 130 can provide a vertically adjustable abutment or stop for the shaft 98 , and the spherical elements 12 can thereby be fixedly adjusted in a vertical direction by advance or retraction of set screw 130 . once the correct elevation is reached and the instrument thereby calibrated to an exact centric relationship of the upper and lower frame members , the shafts 98 are fixedly secured to the upper cross member 14 by set screws 100 . fig6 is a perspective view of the lower lateral cross member 14 and associated structure as viewed from the rear of the instrument . as there illustrated , the lateral cross member 14 bears end portions 132 which are attached to the upper ends of standards 16 and locked thereto by screws 134 which engage threaded bores in standards 16 . screws 134 extend through bores 133 which are counterbored at 135 to receive the heads of the screws . bores 133 are slightly oversized to permit horizontal alignment adjustment of the lateral cross member 14 . the distally mounted spherically mounted condylar elements 12 are shown as supported by shafts 98 . the flange 78 of bracket 72 projects beneath the undersurface of the lateral cross member 14 . the hook arm member 68 of the hinge assembly is illustrated with its opposite side flanges 102 which receive , therebetween , the upper end of bracket 72 . the bracket 72 is mounted in an upright , transverse groove 136 in the forward face of the lateral cross member 14 . the upper end of hook arm member 68 bears a pair of rearwardly projecting arms 84 with a central slot 138 to thereby define a clevis structure for receiving the pin bracket 64 of the pin member 62 of the latch assembly . each of the opposite arms 68 bears a pin detenting notch 86 , previously described . referring now to fig7 the undersurface of the upper lateral cross member 34 is shown . as there illustrated , the forward edge of lateral cross member 34 is fixedly secured to the forwardly projecting frame member 36 by a groove ( not shown ) along the upper surface of the lateral cross frame member and by screws 140 . the undersurface of lateral cross member 34 bears a central recess 142 in which is mounted the pin bracket 64 of the pin member 62 . this bracket has a flat flange portion 144 which is bored to receive mounting screws 146 that secure the pin member 62 to the undersurface of lateral cross member 34 . the bracket 64 bears laterally , outwardly projecting pins 66 which are engaged by the previously described hook arm member 68 . the lateral cross member 34 also distally carries opposite fossa guide blocks 150 which have the previously described , elongated slots 96 for receiving the spherical condylar elements 12 . as previously mentioned , the articulator also includes semi - adjustment capability whereby the instrument can be set to duplicate the most clinically significant mendibular movements . fig8 - 10 illustrate an embodiment of the invention having such capability . as there illustrated , the upper lateral cross member 35 bears distal clamp blocks 151 which have an arcuate surface and which have a central aperture 152 that is intersected by radial slot 154 . screw 155 ( see fig1 ) extends through slot 154 into a threaded bore whereby the block 151 can be compressed about shaft 156 to fixedly secure the latter . aperture 152 receives trunion 156 that carries a semi - adjustable fossa guide assembly generally indicated at 158 . the guide assembly 158 has an arcuate flange 160 which butts against the outer lateral face of block 151 and which bears indicia such as scale 162 ( shown in fig1 ) which cooperates with an index mark 163 on the posterior edge of block 151 whereby the angular orientation to the superior plate 164 of the guide assembly 158 can be observed . the superior plate 164 has a posterior wall 166 which has a surface 168 with a curvilinear contour corresponding to average anatomical border movement of the mandibular for the rotating condular path . this rotating path is preset to an average anatomical inclination , out and back of approximately 25 degrees , which is the angle of inclination of the surface area indicated at 170 . the undersurface of superior plate 164 preferably is grooved longitudinally at 183 to provide a guideway for an opposed condylar spherical element 12 , useful in duplicating a protrusive mandibular movement . groove 183 can be from 2 to about 5 millimeters in depth . in the preferred embodiment , the medial wall bracket 180 is laterally adjustable on the fossa guide assembly 158 . to this end , the forward face of the superior guide plate 164 bears groove 184 which receives rib 186 of the forward plate 188 of the medial wall bracket 180 . the lateral position of the medial wall bracket 180 on the fossa guide assembly 158 is fixedly secured by a set screw 190 ( see fig9 ) which projects through a threaded bore in the top surface of superior guide plate 164 into groove 184 , bearing against rib 186 and restraining the medial guide bracket 180 . indicia in the form of a scale 185 are provided on the top edge of medial guide bracket 180 to cooperate with an indicia in the form of scale 187 carried on superior plate 164 whereby the degree of lateral transaction of the medial wall bracket can be observed in a vernier manner and recorded . the semi - adjustable fossa assembly 158 can also bear an adjustable , medial wall guide member . this guide member can be a small plate 172 pivotally carried on the undersurface of the lower edge 178 of medial wall bracket 180 by screw 174 which extends through arcuate slot 176 of plate 172 . the lower edge 178 of bracket 180 can bear an arcuate groove 182 to provide for recessed mounting of the medial wall guide member . the articulator as thus described has a number of significant features . the latch mechanism whereby the upper and lower frame members of the articulator can be interlocked in both the open and closed articulator positions constitutes a substantial advance in arcon type articulators . this latch mechanism can be employed with substantially all arcon type articulators since these commonly employ upper and lower lateral cross members that are coextensive with the condylar axis of the instrument . because the upper and lower frame members of the articulators can be interlocked , the articulator can be inverted in an upside - down position for mounting of casts without use of a plastering stand . the latch mechanism serves as an accurate locator of centric position of the frame members . the latch hook arm centers on the pin member , receiving the pin bracket member between its opposite arms . the downward force exerted on the upper frame member by the latch hook arm seats the condyles in their respective centric detents , thereby providing a centering action on the outboard fossa members that cooperates with the centering action of the latch hook arm and pin member . the articulator having the limited or semi - adjustment capability is a useful tool for diagnosis and fabrication of restorations which can be made without the complexity of a pantograph and fully adjustable articulator . the semi - adjustment capability of the condylar fossa guide elements illustrated and described with regard to fig7 - 9 achieves duplication of the clinically significant movements of the mandible without encumbering the construction with less used , adjustment capabilities which characterize more recent advances in arcon type articulators . the invention has been described with reference to the illustrated and presently preferred embodiments thereof . it is not intended that the invention be unduly limited by this illustration and description of the presently preferred embodiment . instead , it is intended that the invention be defined by the means , and their obvious equivalents , set forth in the following claims .	0
the present tool provides an ergonomical and user friendly semi - automatic cable tie application tool capable of applying 18 to 120 lb . ties of any length . referring now to the drawings , a semi - automatic cable tie application tool 10 in accordance with the present invention is shown in fig1 - 4 . tool 10 includes a pistol - shaped housing 12 ( a portion of which has been removed for clarity ). in turn , housing 12 includes a barrel portion 50 and a grip portion 52 . as shown , tool 10 includes a pneumatic cylinder 14 located within the grip portion 52 of the tool . cylinder 14 may be secured within the grip portion via a mounting block 16 , or in any other convenient fashion . as mentioned , the location of the cylinder within the grip portion of the tool creates a more balanced weight distribution , thereby improving the handling ease and ergonomics of the tool . a source of compressed air ( not shown ) is connected to cylinder 14 and is operated via a trigger - actuated valve ( not shown ). in this manner , actuation of trigger 54 by an operator causes compressed air ( a typical pressure is 85 psi ) to be directed to cylinder 16 ( which may be a single acting , spring extended type design ). as shown , the piston rod , i . e ., piston rod 18 , extending from the cylinder is directed upwards towards the barrel of the tool along an axis p . as a result , piston rod 18 is angularly oriented with respect to actuating rod 20 ( best shown in fig4 ). because the actuating rod must be actuated in a horizontal direction ( in a direction extending along the length of the barrel defined by axis t ), a pulley / cable system is employed to couple piston rod 18 to actuating rod 20 . more particularly , this cable system includes a cable 22 having a threaded connecting cap 24 secured at one end . cap 24 is sized to be threaded onto the end of piston rod 18 . of course , other means of connecting cap 24 to piston rod 18 are contemplated herein . a second connecting cap 26 is located at the other end of cable 22 . connecting cap 26 is preferably connected to actuating rod 20 via a pin 56 which extends through an aperture 28 formed in cap 26 and through a corresponding aperture formed in actuating rod 20 . again , cap 26 can be coupled to rod 20 in other manners . the cable / pulley assembly further includes a pair of pulleys 30 , 32 which serve to redirect the movement of piston rod 18 ( along axis p ) into movement in - line with actuating rod 20 ( along axis t ). particularly , pulley 30 is located directly in front of piston rod 18 to maintain alignment of the cable with the piston rod , while pulley 32 is located directly in - line with actuating rod 20 . it is contemplated herein that the present tool will utilize a polymer in frame construction ( as opposed to prior art tools utilizing a 380 - t6 aluminum construction ). this polymer in frame construction can produce a weight saving of approximately 0 . 24 lbs . for a total weight of 0 . 96 lbs . ( as compared to a comparable prior art tool formed of 380 - t6 aluminum and weighing 1 . 2 lbs ). the tensioning / cutoff mechanism of tool 10 is described in detail in commonly owned u . s . pat . no . 5 , 915 , 425 , the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference . in this regard , tool 10 preferably includes a nose portion 58 which provides angular adjustability to facilitate installation of cable ties in a variety of orientations with respect to the installer &# 39 ; s workstation . tool 10 also preferably includes an adjustable tensioning mechanism 60 which provides rapid adjustability of the tension setting level , allows the installer to readily view the tension setting level and provides an adjustable tension setting mechanism which resists damage due to impact / jarring of the tool and exposure to dirt and other environmental conditions . finally , the tensioning / cutoff mechanism of tool 10 preferably reduces and / or eliminates recoil shock / vibration during severing of the cable tie tail from the installed cable tie . it will be appreciated that the present invention has been described herein with reference to certain preferred or exemplary embodiments . the preferred or exemplary embodiments described herein may be modified , changed , added to or deviated from without departing from the intent , spirit and scope of the present invention , and it is intended that all such additions , modifications , amendments and / or deviations be included within the scope of the following claims .	1
referring now to fig1 store system 10 includes computer 12 , price - lookup ( plu ) file 14 , electronic shelf label ( esl ) system 16 , and tag overlay printing system 17 . computer 12 analyzes price change information for plu file items 22 and produces a sorted list 26 . list 26 may include plu file items 22 in order of price change , or companies having plu file items 22 , or categories of plu file items 22 , or any other grouping of plu file items 22 . computer 12 assigns esls 18 under the method of the present invention and passes esl and esl tag information to tag printing system 17 . group 21 represents an assignment of one esl to one plu file item . computer 12 may be a host computer in a store network . computer 12 also identifies multiple occurrences of the same plu file item . group 19 represents a single plu file item which is located at two different places within the store and which requires multiple esls having the same tag at each location . computer 12 also identifies plu file items requiring multiple esls , each having a different tag 28 , from map 15 within storage medium 20 . plu file 14 contains price information about store file items 22 . the price information for one file item may change at a frequency different than any other file item . plu file 14 is stored within a storage medium 20 associated with computer 12 . esl system 16 includes a plurality of esls 18 assigned to plu file items 22 . under one embodiment of the present invention , only those file items 22 that evidence a price change frequency greater than a predetermined minimum are assigned esls 18 . alternatively , for a given number of esls 18 , only the file items 22 which evidence the highest price change frequency are assigned esls 18 . under either method , the possibility exists that an item 25 may be assigned a single esl 18 , that an item 24 may not be assigned one of esls 18 , or that an item 23 may be assigned multiple esls 18 . each of esls 18 includes a printed tag or overlay 28 for displaying information about plu file items 22 . tag printing system 17 prints tags 28 after esls 18 are assigned to plu file items 22 . printing system may be located at the point of manufacture of esls 18 or at some other location outside of the store . thus , turning now to fig2 a first embodiment of the method of the present invention begins with start 30 . in step 32 , computer 12 monitors the number of price changes per plu item during a predetermined period of time . in step 34 , computer 12 accumulates and stores the number of price changes from step 32 in storage medium 20 . in step 36 , computer 12 sorts the accumulated price changes from least number of price changes to most number of price changes at the end of the predetermined time period . in step 38 , computer 12 produces list 26 of plu file items 22 in order of price change frequency and stores list 26 in storage medium 20 . in step 40 , computer 12 identifies multiple occurrences of a single plu file item within the store . such plu file items would each require one of esls 18 , if that plu file item evidenced a high enough price change frequency . computer 12 employs map 15 of plu file items 22 within the store to determine the multiple occurrences . map 15 may be a standard store scan file or a standard planogram file . in step 42 , computer 12 identifies plu file items having multiple tags from map 15 . during creation of map 15 , a plu file item requiring multiple esls must be scanned as many times as the number of paper shelf tags to be replaced by the esls . in step 44 , computer 12 determines how esls 18 should be assigned to plu file items 14 on the list . the first embodiment of the present invention envisions at least two methods for determining how to assign esls 18 . a first method assumes a given number of esls 18 and determines that plu file items 22 should be assigned esls 18 , in order starting from the plu file item having the highest price change frequency , until esls 18 are exhausted . a second method assumes that plu file items will be assigned esls only if their price change frequencies exceed a predetermined minimum price change frequency . if all of the plu file items have price change frequencies , then all plu file items will be assigned esls . this method assumes that a predetermined percentage of price change coverage is desirable . in each case , an arbitrarily chosen plu file item may be entered into computer 12 if there is a tie between plu file items . the choice may be based on a predetermined preference for one manufacturer over another , or one category over another . in step 46 , computer 12 assigns esls 18 to plu file items 22 in accordance with the determination of step 44 . in step 48 , computer 12 sends the map of esl and overlay tag printing data to overlay tag printing system 17 and the method ends at end 50 . turning now to fig3 a second embodiment of the present invention begins with start 60 . in step 62 , computer 12 monitors the number of price changes per plu item during a predetermined period of time . in step 64 , computer 12 accumulates and stores the number of price changes from step 62 in storage medium 20 . in step 65 , computer 12 sorts the accumulated numbers of price changes for plu file items into identified groups . a group may be a manufacturer , a category of products ( e . g ., perfumes ), or any other classification of plu file items 22 . a sorting by manufacturer is the simplest method of grouping , since the first five digits in a universal product code ( upc ) identify the manufacturer . a sort by some other category requires that the category information be made available to computer 12 . category information may be manually added to plu file 14 . step 65 may sort all of the numbers of price changes into groups or only some of the numbers of price changes into groups , depending on the number of identified groups . for example , computer 12 may sort the numbers of price changes for plu file items identified with a predetermined manufacturer into a group associated with that manufacturer , leaving the numbers of price changes for remaining plu file items unsorted by group . the effect of the sort into groups presupposes that all of the plu file items within the identified groups will be assigned esls . the groups may be identified primarily from historical price change frequency information , reflecting groups of plu file items exhibiting high price change frequencies . this sort also presupposes there are plenty of esls to assign to all of the plu file items within all of the identified groups . in cases where all of the plu file items have been grouped , but there are not enough esls to assign , the same method for ranking individual plu file items may be used to rank groups of plu file items . that is , one way to rank groups would be to determine the average of price change frequency of each group and assign esls starting with the group having the highest average . in step 66 , computer 12 sorts the accumulated price changes a second time , except that the price changes for plu file items sorted within groups are not counted . in step 68 , computer 12 produces list 26 of plu file items not associated with a group and stores list 26 in storage medium 20 . in step 70 , computer 12 identifies multiple occurrences of a single plu file item within the store , whether that plu file item is in an identified group or not . such plu file items would each require one of esls 18 , if that plu file item evidenced a high enough price change frequency . computer 12 employs map 15 of plu file items 22 within the store to determine the multiple occurrences . map 15 may be a standard store scan file or a standard planogram file . in step 72 , computer 12 identifies plu file items having multiple tags from map 15 , whether those plu file items are in identified groups or not . during creation of map 15 , a plu file item having multiple tags must be scanned as many times as there are tags for that plu file item . in step 74 , computer 12 determines how esls 18 should be assigned to plu file items 14 on list 26 . the first embodiment of the present invention envisions two methods for determining how to assign esls 18 , which are similar to the methods of the first embodiment . a first method assumes a given number of esls 18 and determines that the plu file items 22 should be assigned esls 18 , in order starting within the highest price change frequency . a second method assumes that plu file items will be assigned esls only if the price change frequencies of the plu file items each exceed a predetermined minimum price change frequency . in each case , an arbitrarily chosen plu file item may be entered into computer 12 if there is a tie between plu file items . the choice may be based on a predetermined preference for one manufacturer over another , or one category over another . in step 76 , computer 12 assigns esls 18 to plu file items 22 in accordance with the determination of step 74 . in step 78 , computer 12 sends the map of esl and tag printing data to tag printing system 17 and the method ends at end 80 . both embodiments of fig2 and 3 may be implemented indefinitely to optimize esl assignments in a dynamic store environment . although the present invention has been described with particular reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof , variations and modifications of the present invention can be effected within the spirit and scope of the following claims .	6
various aspects are now described with reference to the drawings . in the following description , for purposes of explanation , numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the absorption heat pump system and its specific embodiment , structure , feature and functions . with reference to fig2 , a flow chart of the absorption heat pump circulation system according to the first embodiment of the present invention is illustrated , the absorptive heat pump circulation system , mainly comprises : a generator 11 , an evaporator 13 , an absorber 14 and water source 200 , and absorption solution utilizing aqua - lithium bromide working medium pair . the generator 11 is configured to concentrate absorption solution , which is provided with a heat exchanger 110 therein , feed the heat circulation working medium from the heat exchanger 140 in the absorber 14 with the heat exchanger 110 , to heat the lithium bromide as the absorption solution to evaporate the water therein , so that the concentration of the absorption solution is increased , and the high temperature steam generated thereby is outputted through the steam passage 19 , as so as to be further utilized by the users . the absorption solution in the outlet of the absorber 11 enters into the generator 14 through the absorption solution pipeline 20 , and the absorption solution in the outlet of the generator 14 enters into the generator 11 through the absorption solution pipeline 30 . the absorption solution is circulated between the generator 11 and the absorber 14 through the absorption solution pipelines 20 and 30 . the heat pump evaporator 13 is provided with a heat exchanger 130 , feed the driving heat source with the heat exchanger 130 to convert the water from the water source into steam , the generated steam is led into the absorber 14 via the steam passage 18 . the absorber 14 is provided with a heat exchanger 140 , and in the absorber 14 , the absorption solution of high concentration from the generator 11 absorbs the steam from the evaporator 13 and generates the absorption heat , so that the temperature of the heat circulation working medium in the heat exchanger 140 is increased . the heat exchanger 140 and the heat exchanger 110 in the generator 11 are connected by heat circulation working medium pipeline 60 to form a heat cycling loop , so as to provide the absorption heat generated by the absorber 14 to the generator 11 as the driving heat of the generator . in the present embodiment , the heat cycling loop is a heat pipe cycling loop , at the moment , the installation position of the generator 11 is higher than that of the absorber 14 . regarding the heat pipe cycling , the working medium in the heat pipe can form convection by the process of condensing - evaporating without external driving force , so as to circulate between the absorber and the generator and transfer heat . the heat cycling loop is provided with a heating device 160 with external heat source , for compensating the insufficient part of the heat of the generator caused by radiation loss . according to the first embodiment of the present invention , the absorptive heat pump system is further provided with an absorbent solution heat exchanger 150 , absorbent crystallizer 141 and mixer 142 between the absorber 14 and the generator 11 . the absorbent crystallizer 141 has an input for absorption solution , an output for absorption solution after crystallization and an output for absorbent crystals . the input for absorption solution of the absorbent crystallizer connects to the outlet for absorption solution of the absorber 14 through the absorption self heat exchanger 150 , the crystallization outlet for the absorption solution in the absorbent crystallizer connects to the inlet for the absorption solution of the generator 11 , and the crystallization outlet for the absorption solution connects to the inlet for the absorption solution of the generator through the mixer 142 in the case that the mixer 142 exists . the outlet for the absorption solution of the generator 11 enters into the absorber 14 through the absorption solution pipeline 20 via the mixer 142 , and outlet for the absorption solution of the absorber 14 enters into the absorbent crystallizer 141 through the absorption solution pipeline 30 via absorption solution self heat exchanger 150 . in the absorbent crystallizer 141 , the low temperature cooling capacity is utilized to cool and crystallize the absorption solution , because crystals generate if aqueous solution of lithium bromide reaches or approaches crystallization point , the lower the crystallization temperature is , the lower the equilibrium concentration of liquid - phase lithium bromide is , therefore , through cooling and crystallizing , however high the concentration of the lithium bromide the absorption solution before cooling and crystallizing , and after crystallization the concentration of the lithium bromide can reach or approach to the equilibrium concentration of liquid - phase lithium bromide at the cooling temperature . after crystallization and solid - liquid separation , the absorption solution after the crystallization in absorbent crystallizer 141 , i . e ., dilute solution of lithium bromide , is transferred to the generator 11 through the absorption solution pipeline 30 via the absorption solution heat exchanger 150 . the cool source employed by the absorbent crystallizer 141 described above can be cooling water of 0 - 32 ° c . the water source 200 can be domestic water or industrial water , or the condensation water formed after the high temperature steam output by the generator 11 is utilized ; if other working medium is employed as the working medium of the absorption solution , then the water source 200 can also provide corresponding liquid - phase working medium . the absorptive heating device of the present embodiment only needs driving heat source provided in the evaporator 13 , i . e ., high temperature steam can be obtained in the steam pipeline 19 of the generator 11 . the absorption solution in the absorbent crystallizer 141 can form absorbent crystals and absorption solution after crystallization . the absorbent crystal mentioned in the present embodiment and the following embodiments are not only limited to adopt absorbent crystals particles , but also absorption solution containing absorbent crystals particles . there are other relationships among absorber 14 , generator 11 , absorption solution self heat exchanger 150 and absorbent crystallizer 141 as described hereinafter . with reference to fig3 , a flow chart of the second embodiment according to the present invention is illustrated . the absorption solution self heat exchanger 150 is configured to exchange heat between the absorption solution from the absorber 14 and the absorbent crystals ( the absorption solution containing the absorbent crystals ) outputted from the absorbent crystallizer 141 . the outlet for the absorption solution pipeline 20 of the generator 11 connects with the inlet for the absorption solution pipeline of the absorber , so that the absorption solution outputted from the generator 11 is mixed with the absorbent crystals after heat exchanging and then inputted into the absorber together . the absorption solution after crystallization from the absorbent crystallizer 141 is outputted to the generator 11 via the inlet for the absorption solution pipeline 30 . after heat exchanging , the absorption solution from the absorber 14 is delivered into the absorbent crystallizer 141 to carry on cooling , crystallizing and liquid - solid separating ; after heat exchanging , the absorbent crystal from the absorbent crystallizer 141 is delivered into the absorber 14 via the inlet for the absorption solution pipeline . because the temperature of the absorption solution from the absorber 14 is much higher than that of the absorbent crystal outputted from the absorbent crystallizer 141 , after heat exchanging , the temperature of the absorption solution entering into the absorbent crystallizer 141 significantly decreases , so as to decrease the cooling capacity for cooling the absorption solution . meanwhile , the temperature of the absorbent crystals from the absorbent crystallizer after heat exchanging is greatly increased , and the absorbent crystals from the absorbent crystallizer is transferred to the absorber to absorb the working medium steam of the same quantity , and release absorption heat in higher operation temperature , so as to increase the temperature that the absorber outputs outward , improve the heat grade and enhance power utilization efficiency . with reference to fig4 , a flow chart of the third embodiment according to the present invention is illustrated . after crystallization , the solution outputted from the absorbent crystallizer 141 also pass through absorption solution self heat exchanger 150 , and the solution from the absorber 14 exchanges heat with the absorbent crystals outputted from the absorbent crystallizer 141 ( or the absorption solution containing the absorbent crystals ) as well as the absorption solution after crystallization concurrently . after heat exchanging , the absorption solution after crystallization is delivered to the generator 11 via absorption solution input pipeline 30 . the absorption solution output pipeline 20 of the generator 11 is connected with the absorption solution input pipeline of the absorber , so as to mix the absorption solution outputted from the generator 11 and the absorbent crystals after heat exchanging and deliver the mixture into the absorber together . the absorption solution after crystallization from the absorbent crystallizer 141 is delivered to the generator 11 via the absorption solution input pipeline 30 . after heat exchanging , the absorption solution from the absorber 14 is delivered into the absorbent crystallizer 141 to carry on cooling , crystallizing and liquid - solid separating ; after heat exchanging , the absorbent crystals from the absorbent crystallizer 141 is delivered into the absorber 14 via absorption solution input pipeline . because the temperature of the absorption solution from the absorber 14 is far higher than the temperature of the absorbent crystals outputted from the absorbent crystallizer 141 as well as the absorption solution after crystallization , after heat exchanging , the temperature of the absorption solution entering into the absorbent crystallizer 141 is significantly decreased , so as to decrease the cooling capacity for cooling the absorption solution . meanwhile , after heat exchanging , the temperature of the absorbent crystals from the absorbent crystallizer is greatly increased , and the absorbent crystals from the absorbent crystallizer is transferred to the absorber to absorb the working medium steam of the same quantity , and release absorption heat in higher operation temperature , so as to increase the temperature that the absorber outputs outward and improve the heat grade . after heat exchanging , the temperature of the solution after the crystallization from the absorbent crystallizer is significantly increased , and the solution after the crystallization from the absorbent crystallizer is transferred to the generator , to evaporate the same working medium steam , and in the present embodiment the heat consumed by the generator can be reduced , so as to enhance power utilization efficiency . with reference to fig5 , a flow chart of the fourth embodiment of the present invention is illustrated . the absorption solution output pipeline 20 of the generator 11 is connected with the absorption solution output pipeline 30 of the absorber 14 , and the joint is located before the absorption solution self heat exchanger 150 . the absorption solution from the generator 11 and the absorption solution from the absorber 14 are mixed and then the mixture enters into the absorption solution self heat exchanger 150 , to concurrently exchange heat with the absorbent crystals and the absorption solution after crystallization outputted from the absorption crystallizer 141 . after heat exchanging , the absorption solution after crystallization is transferred to the generator 11 via the absorption solution input pipeline . after heat exchanging , the absorbent crystals is transferred to absorber 14 via the absorption solution input pipeline . compared with the previous method , the method that the absorption solution from the generator 11 and the absorption solution from the absorber 14 are mixed and then carry on cooling and crystallizing increases the quantity of the absorption solution being cooled and crystallized , so as to obtain more absorption solution crystallized , so that the utilization efficiency of the absorbent crystallizer is enhanced . with reference to fig6 , a flow chart of the fifth embodiment according to the present embodiment . the absorptive heat pump circulation is essentially the same as the previous embodiment , and the difference lies in that , it further comprises a compression refrigeration circulation subsystem , for providing cooling capacity at a low temperature for the absorbent crystallizer 141 . the compression refrigeration circulation subsystem comprises : absorbent crystallizer - evaporator 200 , compressor 210 , absorption solution heat exchanger - condenser 220 , throttle valve 230 and compression refrigeration working medium pipeline 240 . after compression refrigeration working medium is condensed in the heat exchanger - condenser 220 , it is evaporated in the absorbent crystallizer - evaporator 200 through throttle valve 230 , so as to provide cooling capacity at a low temperature for the absorbent crystallizer 141 . the steam of the compression refrigeration working medium in the outlet of the absorbent crystallizer - evaporator 200 is compressed by the compressor 210 and then enters into the absorption solution heat exchanger - condenser 220 , so as to accomplish the compression refrigeration circulation . the absorbent crystallizer - evaporator 200 can be a component of the absorbent crystallizer 141 . since part of the crystals in the absorbent ( lithium bromide ) extracts , the concentration of the absorbent solution crystallized after liquid - solid separation in the absorbent crystallizer 141 is decreased . after the crystallization , the absorbent solution , i . e . lithium bromide dilute solution , is inducted to the generator 11 via the absorption solution crystallization pipeline 50 and thereafter the absorption solution heat exchanger - condenser 220 and the absorption solution self heat exchanger 150 . on the other hand , the absorbent crystals and the absorption solution containing absorbent crystals after liquid - solid separation in the absorbent crystallizer 141 is inducted to the mixer 142 via pipeline 40 containing crystallization solution and thereafter the absorption solution self heat exchanger - condenser 220 and the absorption solution self heat exchanger 150 . the function of the absorption solution self heat exchanger 150 lies on heat exchanging for the absorption solution at a high temperature from the absorber 14 and the absorption solution after crystallization and the absorbent crystals or the absorption solution containing the absorbent crystals at a low temperature from the absorbent crystallizer , so as to increase the solution temperature provided to the generator 11 and the mixer 142 , and meanwhile decrease the temperature of the absorption solution provided to the absorbent crystallizer . the function of the absorption solution heat exchanger - condenser 220 lies on heat exchanging for the compression refrigeration working medium steam at a high temperature from the compressor 210 of the compression refrigeration circulation subsystem and the absorption solution after crystallization and the absorbent crystals or the absorption solution containing the absorbent crystals at a low temperature from the absorbent crystallizer 141 , so as to condense the refrigeration working medium steam , and meanwhile completely or partially melt the absorbent crystals and increase the temperature of the absorption solution . through the condense in the generator 11 , the absorption solution in the outlet for the generator 11 with increased concentration of absorbent is inducted into the mixer 142 to mix with the absorbent crystals ( or the absorption solution containing absorbent crystals ) through the absorption solution pipeline 20 , and then the mixture is inducted into the absorber 14 together . the present invention can set and optimize the absorbent operation concentration of the absorption solution in the absorber 14 and generator 11 separately . that is to say , the present invention can realize an extremely advantageous technological condition for absorption refrigeration circulation , i . e ., while the absorber is operating under the condition of high absorbent concentration , the generator is operating under the condition of the absorbent concentration lower than that of the absorber , which is difficult for the traditional absorptive heat pump circulation . since the absorbent crystallizer 141 is provided , and the heat generated by the absorber 14 is provided for the generator 11 directly through thermal cycling loop , so as to basically save the external driving heat source for providing heat for the generator 11 in the current absorptive heat pump circulation , and realize the absorptive heating process with self - contained driving heat source . the sixth embodiment of the present invention provides absorptive heating method , which employs the absorptive heat pump circulation system of the embodiments described above , the refrigeration method comprises the following steps : ( 1 ) condensing the absorption solution in the generator and meanwhile generating steam , and then delivering the steam to the users , and the concentrated absorption solution being outputted ; ( 2 ) employing driving heat source to heat the absorption solution in the evaporator , and introducing the generated steam into an absorber ; ( 3 ) in the absorber , the absorption solution from the generator absorbing the steam from the evaporator and generating absorption heat , and meanwhile the concentration of the absorption solution being decreased and delivering to an absorbent crystallizer ; ( 4 ) in the absorbent crystallizer , carrying on cooling , crystallizing and liquid - solid separating for the absorption solution , forming absorbent crystals and absorption solution after crystallization , the absorption solution after crystallization being transferred to the generator , and the absorbent crystals and the absorption solution containing absorbent crystals being transferred to the absorber ; ( 5 ) carrying on heat exchanging between the absorber and the generator , i . e . the absorption heat generated when the absorption solution absorbs the steam in the absorber is transferred to the generator . in particular , the heat exchanger in the absorber and the heat exchanger in the generator are connected to form a thermal cycling loop , and the working medium ( commonly water ) in the thermal cycling loop absorbs the absorption heat in the absorber and transfers it into the generator , releases the heat in the generator and then returns to the absorber . the water in the evaporator can be from independent water source or condensation water formed after the steam outputted by the generator is utilized . preferably , before the absorption solution crystallized being outputted to the generator and the absorption solution outputted by the absorber being cooled , the absorption solution after crystallization and the absorption solution outputted by the absorber exchange heat . preferably , before the absorbent crystal being output to the absorber and the absorption solution output by the absorber being cooled , the absorbent crystal and the absorption solution output by the absorber are heat exchanging . preferably , before the absorption solution crystallized being outputted to the generator , the absorbent crystals being outputted to the absorber and the absorption solution outputted by the absorber being cooled , the absorption solution outputted by the absorber and the absorbent crystals as well as the absorption solution after crystallization are heat exchanging . preferably , before the absorption solution crystallized being outputted to the generator , the absorbent crystals being outputted to the absorber and the absorption solution outputted by the absorber being cooled , the absorption solution outputted by the generator and the absorption solution outputted by the absorber are mixed to form a mixed absorption solution , the mixed absorption solution and the absorbent crystals as well as the absorption solution after crystallization exchange heat . through cooling and crystallizing for the absorbent , the absorption from the generator and / or the absorber and the absorption solution after crystallization and / or the absorbent crystals outputted from the absorbent crystallize exchanges heat , one of whose effects lies in that , only minor external cooling capacity and heating capacity are utilized to maintain the absorbent operation concentration of the absorption solution in the generator relatively low , and meanwhile significantly increase the absorbent operation concentration of the absorption solution in the absorber , so that the absorption heat at a higher temperature is obtained in the absorber , and the absorption heat can be utilized as driving heat source of the generator . since an absorbent crystallization process is involved in the method described above , in the case of maintaining the absorbent operation concentration of the absorption solution in the generator relatively low , the absorbent operation concentration of the absorption solution in the absorber is significantly increases meanwhile , so that the absorption heat at a higher temperature is obtained in the absorber , and the absorption heat can be utilized as driving heat source of the generator and raise the operation temperature of the generator , i . e ., produce working medium steam with a higher temperature . preferably , heat compensation is provided for the thermal cycling process described above , i . e . an external heat source heating device is set to compensate thermal deficiency of the generator heating capacity caused by the dissipation loss , so as to ensure the heating process to keep operating . the steps in the present embodiment are carrying concurrently without specific sequence in the operation , and all the steps constitute the absorptive heating method together . the seventh embodiment according to the present invention provides another absorptive heating method , and the absorptive heating method is essentially the same as the previous embodiment , and the difference lies in that , the low temperature cooling capacity required by the cooling and crystallizing of the absorption solution in the absorbent crystallizer comes from compression refrigeration circulation process . the steam of the compression refrigeration working medium in the outlet for the absorbent crystallizer - evaporator 200 enters into the absorption solution heat exchanger - condenser 220 to be condensed after being compressed by the compressor 210 , and the compression refrigeration working medium is evaporated in the absorbent crystallizer - evaporator 200 after passing through the throttle valve 230 , so as to accomplish the compression refrigeration circulation . since according to the present invention , when the compression refrigeration working medium is condensed in the absorption solution heat exchanger - condenser 220 , the cooling capacity comes from the cooling capacity of the solution in the outlet for the lithium bromide crystallizer 141 , therefore the evaporation temperature and the condensation temperature of the present circulation are relatively close , so as to reach higher refrigeration performance coefficient . in another words , the power consumption of the compression refrigeration circulation according to the present invention is relatively low . the technical solution of the embodiment described above has no specific constrain over the absorption solution types utilized , and all takes working medium of aqua - lithium bromide as the absorption solution for sample explanation , in the other embodiments , the working medium can be one of or a mixture of several ones of water , methanol and ethanol ; absorbent can be one of or a mixture of libr , licl , lino 3 , nabr , kbr , cacl 2 , mgbr 2 and zncl 2 . the applicability of the embodiments described above is demonstrated by the following embodiments with specific parameters . employing the method of the sixth embodiment described , the present embodiment utilizes hot water of 100 ° c . as the driving heat source of the evaporator , and applies saturated steam of 195 ° c . as the external heat source to heat the working medium in the thermal cycling loop , so as to compensate the thermal deficiency part of the heating capacity for the driving heat source of the generator caused by dissipation loss , utilizes dimethyl silicon oil as thermal cycling working medium , and utilizes cooling water of 20 ° c . to cool the absorbent crystallizer 141 . in the present embodiment , the temperature outputted outward is 182 ° c ., the pressure of the superheated vapor is 170 kpa , and coefficient of performance ( cop ) is 10 . 0 . the cop of the present embodiment is calculated according to the following function : employing the method of the sixth embodiment described , the present embodiment utilizes hot water of 100 ° c . as the driving heat source of the evaporator , and applies saturated steam of 195 ° c . as the external heat source to heat the working medium in the thermal cycling loop , so as to compensate the thermal deficiency part of the heating capacity for the driving heat source of the generator caused by dissipation loss , utilizes dimethyl silicon oil as thermal cycling working medium , and utilizes cooling water of 60 ° c . to cool the absorbent crystallizer 141 . in the present embodiment , the temperature outputted outward is 182 ° c ., the pressure of the superheated vapor is 170 kpa , and coefficient of performance ( cop ) is 10 . 0 . the cop of the present embodiment is calculated according to the following function : employing the method of the seventh embodiment described , the present embodiment utilizes hot water of 80 ° c . as the driving heat source of the evaporator , and applies saturated steam of 160 ° c . as the external heat source to heat the working medium in the thermal cycling loop , so as to compensate the thermal deficiency part of the heating capacity for the driving heat source of the generator caused by dissipation loss , applies dimethyl silicon oil as thermal cycling working medium , and utilizes cooling water of − 18 ° c . to cool absorbent crystallizer 141 . in the present embodiment , the temperature outputted outward is 148 ° c ., the pressure of the superheated vapor is 95 kpa , and coefficient of performance ( cop ) is 5 . 5 . the cop of the present embodiment is calculated according to the following function : wherein , the primary energy generating efficiency of the grid user end for powering the compressor is taken as 33 . 3 %. employing the method of the fourth embodiment described , the present embodiment utilizes hot water of 7 ° c . as the driving heat source of the evaporator , and utilizes hot water of 50 ° c . as the external heat source to heat the working medium in the thermal cycling loop , so as to compensate the thermal deficiency part of the heating capacity for the driving heat source of the generator caused by dissipation loss , utilizes non - freezing solution as thermal cycling working medium , and utilizes cooling water of − 18 ° c . to cool absorbent crystallizer 141 . in the present embodiment , the temperature outputted outward is 37 ° c ., the pressure of the superheated vapor is 0 . 8 kpa , and coefficient of performance ( cop ) is 5 . 0 . it can be seen from the present embodiment that the heat energy at a high temperature is provided outward via the generator . meanwhile the cool capacity at a low temperature is provided outward via the evaporator . the cop of the present embodiment is calculated according to the following function : wherein , the primary energy generating efficiency of the grid user end for powering the compressor is taken as 33 . 3 %. the following table 1 illustrates the operation parameters and performance of the embodiments described above . while the foregoing disclosure discusses illustrative aspects and / or aspects , it should be noted that various changes and modifications could be made herein without departing from the scope of the described aspects and / or aspects as defined by the appended claims . furthermore , although elements of the described aspects and / or aspects may be described or claimed in the singular , the plural is contemplated unless limitation to the singular is explicitly stated . additionally , all or a portion of any aspect and / or aspect may be utilized with all or a portion of any other aspect and / or aspect , unless stated otherwise . because the absorption heat pump circulation systems and heating methods according to the present invention possesses an absorbent crystallizer , and the heat generated by the absorber is directly provided to the generator through thermal cycling , so as to basically save an external driving heat source required by the generator of the traditional absorptive heating circulation and realize absorption heating , to significantly increase coefficient of performance ( cop ) and significantly decrease the required temperature of the driving heat source , i . e . the temperature of the excess heat at a low temperature that can be utilized , so that it will be more applicable . besides , since it is not necessary to provide condenser for the absorptive heat pump system according to the present invention , therefore different from the traditional absorptive heat pump circulation , in the present invention cooling water is not utilized to cool the condenser , so that the operation load of cooling tower is significantly relieved and water source is saved meanwhile .	8
fig1 shows an misr circuit having shift registers 100 through 105 and antivalence , i . e ., xor , gate points 106 through 111 . a modular type corresponding to the feedback is illustrated here . input 0 , input 1 , input 2 , input 3 , input 4 , and input n - 1 , which correspond to the respective bit positions of the data words applied are inserted into the shift registers and input and shifted through in a predefined cycle . in the shift registers this then results in states x 0 , x 1 , x 2 , x 3 , x 4 , and xn − 1 , where n is a natural number greater than zero , in this concrete example at least 6 . fig2 also shows an misr circuit having shift registers 100 through 105 and antivalence , i . e ., xor , gates 106 through 111 . furthermore , two additional xor gates 111 and 113 are shown which in this example are located downstream from shift register 100 and shift register 102 . this is therefore a standard type of an misr ; the insertion points , i . e ., antivalence gates 112 and 113 , as well as their number , may be freely selected in the misr . also in this case , inputs 0 through n − 1 are shown , as well as the states of shift registers x 0 through xn − 1 where nεn . fig3 shows three data words dw 1 , dw 2 , and dw 3 , which are to be applied to inputs 0 through n − 1 in this order . the individual bit positions are labeled bs 0 through bsn − 1 . if there is an error f in data word dw 1 , for example , intended for input 1 at point in time t and also in data word dw 2 , i . e ., at input 2 at a later point in time t + 1 , these errors are compensated after shifting by one cycle in the misr . the same applies to other error configurations resulting in compensation due to their time of insertion or position in the data word and the corresponding input . in fig4 , the misr is now extended by an i bit code generator 407 . here i , also as a natural number greater than zero , stands for the number of bits inserted into the misr by the code generator according to the code used or the ecc code in the code generator . a number of shift registers ( flip - flops ), labeled 408 here , corresponding to this number i of the bit positions output by the code generator , is also provided in addition to the misr . in the simplest case , a parity bit is formed here , so that only one additional shift register and one additional input − 1 is then provided . the position in the misr where the at least one additional shift register or the at least one additional insertion point , i . e ., antivalence or equivalence point , is inserted is freely selectable and is shown here as an example only . this means that here also in fig4 the usual shift registers 100 through 105 are shown , at least one additional shift register 408 being provided . the inputs of the device according to the present invention , input 04 , input 14 , input 24 , input 34 , input 44 , and input ( n − 1 ) 4 , are connected here not only to the antivalence points , i . e ., the xor gates , but also to the i bit code generator . thus , in the predefined cycle , additional information , dependent on the code used ( ecc in particular ), is generated from each incoming data word and input into an appropriate number of shift registers . in this example , elements 400 through 406 are provided as xor gates , in our example the usual states x 0 , x 1 , x 2 , x 3 , and xn − 1 of the shift registers resulting in addition to input − i and state x - i of shift register 408 . the additional arrows as the output of i bit code generator 407 indicate that in another embodiment even more than just one additional bit position are written into the misr , depending on the code used . thus , for example , if a hamming code is used with ecc for single - error correction and 4 bits of useful data , a 3 - bit correction code results . for ecc single - error correction and 8 bits of useful data , 4 - bit correction codes result . for 16 bits of useful data , 5 - bit correction codes , and for 32 bits of useful data 6 - bit correction codes result . this means that , in general , 2 k & gt ;= m + k + 1 , where m is equivalent to the number of useful bits as a natural number greater than zero , and k is equivalent to the number of code bits or correction bits , i . e ., the correction code also as a natural number . if double - error detection is also to be performed , one additional bit is to be provided for the correction code . for example , if a berger code is used , 3 code bits and 5 states are to be provided for 4 bits of useful data ; for 8 bits of useful data and 9 states , 4 additional code bits are to be provided . for 16 bits of useful data , 5 additional code bits for 17 states , and for 32 bits of useful data 6 additional code bits for 33 states are to be provided . here , in general , 2 k & gt ;= m + 1 or k & gt ;= id ( m + 1 ), where m is the number of useful bits of the data and k is the number of code bits , i . e ., the correction code . further codes such as the bose - lin code may also be used , in which case the number of coding bits is the same as in the berger code , but the check bits used are either only modulo 4 or modulo 8 . the number of code generator outputs , i . e ., additional inputs − i where i = 1 through kεn , and the number of shift registers and gates provided also corresponds to the number of these coding bits k . the misr is thus extended by at least one position by obtaining at least one parity or other code from the original data input 0 through input n − 1 , and is also included in the signature , shown in this example of fig4 for the modular type ( fig1 ). of course , the same applies to the standard type ( fig2 ). the code generator may thus be a parity generator where i = 1 , in this case one additional flip - flop being required . in the event where an error occurs , for example , at input 3 , a modified value is additionally supplied at input − 1 , i . e ., the parity input . to mask this value in the event of an error , an error is required both at input 4 and at input 0 specifically in the next cycle . this means that there is a higher hamming distance here and the likelihood of masking is considerably reduced due to the required precise timing in the event of error masking via double error . the hamming distance may be further increased as desired using more code bits as mentioned above . if , instead of antivalence , an equivalence gate is used for insertion , still a considerably lower error masking probability , although a slightly lower redundancy , is achieved than in the related art . as another option , code generator 407 may also use assignment by table , i . e ., a code generator table causes a predefined number of code bits to be inserted into a corresponding number of shift registers as a function of the incoming bit combination of the data word . any desired assignment of incoming data bits to output coding bits is possible by using such a code generator table . in the serial alternative , a switching means s which interrupts the feedback line and allows the registers to be serially read is provided for reading the signature formed from the misr . another option is , as indicated by the letter p and the dashed line , to output the shift registers in parallel and thus to output the signature from the misr all at once to compare it with a corresponding expected signature . this means that the present invention represents a considerably higher safety factor than a conventional misr , while using less resources than a constantly required inversion of the data words for compensating an error masking . therefore , the present invention is usable in all applications critical with regard to safety , in particular in the automobile industry such as in brake controls ( abs , asr , esp , etc . ), steer - by - wire , brake - by - wire , i . e ., in general x - by - wire , airbag , engine control , transmission control , etc . the present invention may also be used in microcontrollers or other semiconductor structures in testing , as well as in all bist ( built - in self - test ) structures and for optimizing production testing .	6
the present invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings . referring now to fig2 there is shown a block diagram of the present invention , wherein 5 designates a display unit including a crt tube of the type installed in an instrument panel ( not shown ) between the driver &# 39 ; s seat and the passenger seat , which is the same installation as the prior art system for the right - hand steering - wheel vehicles as described in the above , 6 designates a driving circuit for the display unit 5 , and 7 is a position detecting unit ( which will be described with reference to fig3 hereinafter ) installed at the periphery of the display unit 5 in a similar manner to the prior art for detecting the spatial location of a user &# 39 ; s finger . in addition , 8 and 9 are a radio and an air conditioner , respectively , and 10 denotes a microcomputer including a cpu 10a , ram 10c , an input circuit 10d , and an output circuit 10e for the control of the driving circuit 6 , the position detecting unit 7 , the radio 8 and the air conditioner 9 . fig3 shows an enlarged diagram for illustrating the position detecting unit 7 , in which 5a denotes a display of the display unit 5 . the display 5a is divided into 12 regions z11 - z43 provided by 3 regions in longitudinal and 4 regions in lateral directions , as shown by dotted lines in the drawing . by assigning x1 through x4 for lateral coordinates and y1 though y3 for longitudinal coordinates , for ease of understanding , a position on the display will be specified by coordinates ( xi , yj ) ( where i = 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , and j = 1 , 2 , 3 ) as shown in the drawing . d1 through d4 are light emitting elements consisting of infrared light emitting diodes mounted on the lower side of the display unit 5 . they emit infrared light upwards respectively along light paths designated by p1 through p4 . t1 through t4 are photo - detecting elements in the form of photo - transistors mounted on the upper side of the display unit 5 for receiving the light from the light emitting elements d1 through d4 and for generating a block signal if any one of the light paths p1 through p4 is blocked by a finger . d11 , d21 and d31 constitute a first array of light emitting elements consisting of infrared light emitting diodes which are mounted on the right side ( driver &# 39 ; s seat side ) of the display unit 5 for providing light paths p11 , p21 and p31 by transmitting light towards the left side of the display 5a . t11 , t21 and t31 constitute a first array of photo - detecting elements consisting of photo - transistors which mounted at the left side ( passenger seat side ) of the display 5a for receiving the light from the first array of light emitting elements and generating a first block signal when either of the light paths p11 , p21 and p31 is blocked by a finger . d12 , d22 and d32 constitute a second array of light emitting elements consisting of infrared light emitting diodes for providing light paths p12 , p22 and p32 by transmitting the light towards the right side of the display 5a . t12 , t22 and t32 constitute a second array of photo - detecting elements in the form of photo - transistors which are mounted on the right side of the display 5a for receiving the light from the second light emitting elements d12 , d22 and d32 and generating a second block signal when either of the light paths p12 , p22 and p32 is blocked by a finger . the light path p1 passes through the regions z11 , z22 and z23 , while the light path p2 passes through the regions z21 , z22 and z23 , the light path p3 through the regions z31 , z32 and z33 , and the light path p4 through the regions z41 , z42 and z43 . on the other hand , the light paths p11 and p12 pass through the regions z11 , z21 , z31 and z41 simultaneously in the opposite directions , similarly , the light paths p21 and p22 through the regions z12 , z22 , z32 and z42 , and the light paths p31 an p32 through the regions z13 , z23 , z33 and z43 respectively . further , every light emitting element ( d1 and others ) is driven by the microcomputer 10 through an amplifier 11 and every photo - detector ( t1 and others ) is connected to the microcomputer through an amplifier 12 for the transmission of each block signal as shown in fig2 . in accordance with the embodiment illustrated in the above , the regions z11 - z43 in the display 5a of the display unit 5 are assigned to display specific patterns ( not shown ) such as channel selection buttons , volume control buttons and the like for the operation of the radio 8 . with this arrangement , if a user &# 39 ; s finger is placed on a pattern which indicates a desired operation , for instance the region z11 , the longitudinal light path p1 and the lateral light paths p11 and p12 will be blocked entirely by the finger and the photo - detector elements t1 , t11 and t12 will produce block signals that correspond to the required operation . the microcomputer 10 discriminates , by receiving the derived block signals , the region z11 where the longitudinal light path p1 and the lateral light paths p11 and p12 are blocked at the same time and then controls the radio 8 , for instance , based on the operating functions assigned to the region z11 . the microcomputer 10 is capable of discriminating the regions z11 , z21 , z31 and z41 where the lateral light paths p11 and p12 pass through even if one of the lateral light paths p11 and p12 is not blocked with a finger and only one block signal from either the first or second photo - detecting elements t11 or t12 is produced . with this capability , even when strong ambient light falls on the display 5a from the left to the right side thereof , the first photo - detecting element t11 can produce the first block signal whilst the second photo - detecting element t12 is not capable of producing a second block signal . accordingly , the second photo - detecting element t12 can produce the second block signal without fail when strong ambient light falls on the display 5a from the right to the left side thereof . as it is described above , in the installation of the photo - electric switching device to a vehicle , since strong ambient light such as sunlight falls generally on the display 5a from the upper side to the lower side thereof , no problems result from installing the photo - detecting elements t1 through t4 only at the upper side of the display 5a . referring now to fig4 a and 4b , there are shown flowcharts implemented by the microcomputer 10 of fig1 . in the main flowchart of fig4 a , the microcomputer performs a first step s101 of initialization upon initiation of the apparatus . a display process for delivering a signal of displaying a predetermined pattern on the display unit 5 to the drive circuit 6 is performed at step s102 . the control of the position detecting unit 7 is performed at step s103 and whereby carrying out the position detecting process for discriminating a region of the display 5a touched by a finger . the detailed steps of the step s103 are shown in fig4 b , an initial setting of parameters &# 34 ; i &# 34 ; and &# 34 ; j &# 34 ; to &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; is performed respectively at step s201 after starting the flow . next , step s202 outputs a signal for exciting a light emitting element di . an output signal ( which indicates the existence of a block signal ) of a photo - detecting element ti is accepted at step s203 and the status of a photo - detecting element ti is memorized on a memory xi at step s204 whereby , &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; is memorized if there is an output from the photo - detecting element ti and &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; if there is not . step s205 increments a parameter &# 34 ; i &# 34 ; to &# 34 ; i + 1 &# 34 ; and the program returns from s206 to s202 until the parameter becomes 4 by the repeating of steps s202 - s205 . with this arrangement , the status of blocking in any of the four light paths p1 - p4 along the longitudinal direction of the display 5a is memorized adequately . a first light emitting element dj1 is excited to emit light at step s207 . an output ( which indicates the existence of the first block signal ) of a first photo - detecting element tij is accepted at step s208 and the status of the first photo - detecting element tij is memorized on a memory yj1 at step s209 whereby , &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; is memorized if there is an output from the first photo - detecting element tj1 and &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; if there is not . in a similar manner , a second light emitting element dj2 is excited to emit light at s210 , an output ( which indicates the existence of a second block signal ) of a photo - detecting element tj2 is accepted at step s211 and the status of the second photo - detecting element tj2 is memorized on a memory yj2 at step s212 whereby , &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; is memorized if there is an output from the second photo - detecting element tj2 and &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; if there is not . step s213 performs disjunction of memories yj1 and yj2 and the resultant is memorized on a memory yj . step s214 increments a parameter &# 34 ; j &# 34 ; to &# 34 ; j + 1 &# 34 ; and the program returns from s215 to step s207 until the parameter j becomes 3 by repeating the steps of s207 - s215 . the discrimination of the region touched by the finger is performed at step s216 based on the contents of the memories xi and yj , that is , if the contents of the memories xi and yj are both &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; at the same time , then , the region zij is determined to be the region touched by the finger and the program returns to the main flowchart of fig4 a again for carrying out the sucessive steps . s104 performs the control of the radio 8 , for instance , increasing the volume thereof , if the pattern corresponding to the region being discriminated at step s216 indicated such an operation . step s105 performs the control of the air conditioner 9 , for instance , increasing a setting temperature , if the pattern denotes an operational instruction for the air conditioner 9 . in this way , the steps s102 - s105 are performed repeatedly . as described above , according to the embodiment , it is required to detect blockage of one light path p1 in the longitudinal direction of the display 5a for discriminating the region z11 touched by the finger . however an object detected signal ( the content of the memory yj at step s213 corresponds to this signal in fig4 b ) which indicates the presence of the finger in the lateral direction of the display 5a is also required provided that either one of the first block signal or the second block signal is derived from the respective photo - detectors after detecting either one of the two lateral light paths p11 and p12 being blocked . in other words , since the first and the second photo - detectors t11 and t12 being related to the light paths p11 and p12 are so aligned at a predetermined angle to each other ( 180 degrees for this embodiment ), the partial position 2 of the finger on the display 5a can be reliably determined by performing the disjunction of the first and the second block signals even if there is a strong incidence of ambient light which results in an inadvertent operation of either one of the associated photo - detectors . this is because at least the other photo - detector operates normally since there is no incidence of ambient light thereon . it should be appreciated from the foregoing description that the present invention provides an improved switching device for detecting a partial position of finger on the display , whereby the light receiving surfaces of second photo - detecting elements are aligned in a different angle from those of the first photo - detecting elements for deriving an object detect signal from a control means if there is either one of the first and the second block signals . therefore , this invention has a specific feature of detecting the object even if there is an inadvertent operation in either of the first and the second photo - detecting elements due to a strong incidence of ambient light . although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the preferred embodiment , it should be understood by those of ordinary skilled in the art that various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of this invention , for example , it is obvious that this invention may be applied to an automatic door the opening or closing of which is performed by detecting a human body with such an arrangement that at least one light emitting element is mounted for each first and second light emitting elements and at least one associated photo - detector is mounted for each first and second photo - detectors whereby detecting the human body when two light paths have blocked simultaneously . in addition to this , the light receiving surfaces of the first and the second photo - detectors are not really necessary to oppose face to face each other but it is enough if there is a definite angle therebetween . accordingly , this invention is not to be limited except as by the appended claims .	6
the n - graphene according to the present invention can be obtained by reacting an organic material having amino groups and functional groups such as carboxylic acid group with graphite to prepare organic material - grafted graphene , and heat treating the organic material - grafted graphene . accordingly , a method of preparing organic material - grafted graphene is first described , a method of preparing n - graphene by heat treating the organic material - grafted graphene is described , and then n - graphene prepared by the preparing method is described . the method of preparing organic material - grafted graphene according to the present invention comprises reacting an organic material having one or more amino groups and one or more functional groups selected from the group consisting of carboxylic acid group , amide group , sulfonic acid group , carbonylchloride group and carbonylbromide group with graphite in a reaction medium containing polyphosphoric acid and phosphorus pentoxide . the functional groups of the organic material are grafted to the graphite and at the same time , the graphite is exfoliated to prepare organic material - grafted graphene . the polyphosphoric acid is a weak acid having a ph of 1 to 4 , preferably 2 to 3 . such polyphosphoric acid has an advantage that it does not particularly affect the inherent structure of graphite while acting as a weak acid so that it does not attenuate inherent characteristics of graphite . further , the polyphosphoric acid is a polymeric acid having viscosity and thus provides a strong shear force upon mechanically stirring . further , such polyphosphoric acid has an advantage to be conveniently removed since it is well dissolved in water . the phosphorus pentoxide is a dehydrating agent and removes water produced by reaction between organic material and graphite . since phosphorus pentoxide reacts on water to be changed into a polyphosphoric acid , it does not have other effect on the reaction except for the acceleration of the reaction between graphite and organic material and also has an advantage that it is conveniently removed because it is well dissolved in water . the polyphoric acid is contained in an amount of 65 wt % to 85 wt %, preferably 74 wt % to 83 wt %, based on the total weight of reaction medium in the reaction medium , and the phosphorus pentoxide is contained in an amount of 15 wt % to 35 wt %, preferably 17 wt % to 26 wt %, in the reaction medium . in the reaction medium containing of polyphosphoric acid and phosphorus pentoxide according to the present invention , oxidation of graphite does not occur , and only selective functionalization in the edge of graphite , that is , a reaction that organic material is grafted to the edge of graphite occurs . the functional group of organic material is selected from the group consisting of carboxylic acid group , amide group , sulfonic acid group , carbonylchloride and carbonylbromide group . preferably , the functional group of organic material is selected from the group consisting of — cooh , — conh 2 , — conr ′ h , — conr ′ r ″, — so 3 h , — cocl and — cobr , wherein r ′ and r ″ are each independently an alkyl group having 1 to 5 carbon atoms , an aryl group having 6 to 10 carbon atoms , or an aralkyl group having 6 to 10 carbon atoms , wherein the alkyl group , the aryl group , and the aralkyl group are unsubstituted or substituted with a substituent selected from the group consisting of halo , nitro , amino , cyano , mercapto , hydroxy , alkyl having 1 to 4 carbon atoms , alkoxy having 1 to 4 carbon atoms , formyl , alkylcarbonyl having 1 to 4 carbon atoms , phenyl , benzoyl , phenoxy and the combination thereof . the organic material is alkane having 1 to 13 , preferably 5 to 13 carbon atoms , alkene having 2 to 13 , preferably 5 to 13 carbon atoms , alkyne having 2 to 13 , preferably 5 to 13 carbon atoms , cycloalkane having 3 to 13 , preferably 5 to 13 carbon atoms , arene having 7 to 19 , preferably 11 to 19 carbon atoms or arylalkane having 7 to 19 , preferably 11 to 19 carbon atoms , which have amino groups and the above functional groups . the alkane , alkene , alkyne , cycloalkane , arene and arylalkane are unsubstituted or substituted with a substituent selected from the group consisting of halo , nitro , amino , cyano , mercapto , hydroxy , alkyl having 1 to 4 carbon atoms , alkoxy having 1 to 4 carbon atoms , formyl , alkylcarbonyl having 1 to 4 carbon atoms , phenyl , benzoyl , phenoxy and the combination thereof . more preferably , the organic material may be aminobenzoic acid , diaminobenzoic acid , aminobenzoamide , or diaminobenzoamide , which are unsubstituted or substituted with a substituent selected from the group consisting of halo , nitro , amino , cyano , mercapto , hydroxy , alkyl having 1 to 4 carbon atoms , alkoxy having 1 to 4 carbon atoms , formyl , alkylcarbonyl having 1 to 4 carbon atoms , phenyl , benzoyl , phenoxy and the combination thereof . most preferably , the organic material may be a compound selected from the group consisting of 3 - aminobenzoic acid , 4 - aminobenzoic acid , 3 -( 4 - aminophenyl ) benzoic acid , 3 -( 3 - aminophenyl ) benzoic acid , 4 -( 4 - aminophenyl ) benzoic acid , 4 -( 3 - aminophenyl ) benzoic acid , 5 - aminoisophthalic acid , 3 -( 4 - aminophenoxy ) benzoic acid , 3 -( 3 - aminophenoxy ) benzoic acid , 4 -( 4 - aminophenoxy ) benzoic acid , 4 -( 3 - aminophenoxy ) benzoic acid , 3 , 4 - diaminobenzoic acid , 3 , 5 - diaminobenzoic acid , 3 - aminobenzoamide and 4 - aminobenzoamide . the organic material is reacted with graphite in a weight ratio of 4 : 1 to 1 : 8 , preferably 1 : 1 to 1 : 4 , in a reaction medium containing polyphosphoric acid and phosphorus pentoxide . at this time , the reaction temperature is in the range of 100 to 160 ° c ., preferably 120 to 140 ° c . when the reaction temperature is less than 100 ° c ., there is a problem that the reaction does not occur . when the reaction temperature is higher than 160 ° c ., there is a problem that side reactions much occur . the reaction time is in a range of 12 to 120 hours , preferably , 60 to 84 hours . when the reaction time is less than 12 hours , the reaction is not completed and when the reaction time is higher than 120 hours , the further reaction does not proceed . the reaction is carried out after 0 . 01 to 40 parts by weight of graphite is put into 100 parts by weight of the reaction medium . the organic material acts as a wedge , being grafted to graphite through an electrophilic substitution reaction of the organic material with graphite , specifically friedel - crafts acylation , resulting in the exfoliation of graphite , to prepare egde - functionalized graphene , i . e . organic material - grafted graphene . that is , graphite is reacted with organic material in a medium containing polyphosphoric acid and phosphorus pentoxide so that edge - located bonds between graphenes which are each layer constituting graphite are substituted with covalent bonds between the functinalized groups of organic material and graphene - edge carbons . the organic material also acts as a wedge resulting in the exfoliation of the graphite to prepare organic material - grafted graphene . amino groups in the organic material act as a nitrogen source upon later heat treating organic material - grafted graphene to prepare n - graphene according to the present invention . as such , when organic material is reacted with graphite in a reaction medium containing polyphosphoric acid and phosphorus pentoxide , organic material - grafted graphene is produced as described above , however , in the reaction product , in addition , unreacted graphite and organic material as well as polyphosphoric acid and phosphorus pentoxide coexist . in order to remove polyphosphoric acid and phosphorus pentoxide and unreacted organic material from the reaction product in which various compounds exist as such , the reaction product is washed using water and then washed using alcohol such as methanol . thereafter , the resultant washed material may be dried using a method such as drying under reduced pressure and lyophilizing . upon lyophilizing , since the lyophilizing is carried out maintaining space between the produced organic material - grafted graphenes as it is , when the lyophilized material obtained through such lyophilizing is again dissolved in a solvent , the solvent can penetrate the space better between organic material - grafted graphenes . as a result , organic material - grafted graphenes are better dissolved , allowing for the process to more conveniently proceed thereafter . since the unreacted graphite and organic material - grafted graphene are mixed in the washed material before drying the washed material by a method such as drying under reduced pressure and lyophilizing , such washed material may be dissolved in a solvent and centrifuged so that only organic material - grafted graphene may be isolated . however , in preparing n - graphene according to the present invention , the washed material in which unreacted graphite and organic material - grafted graphene are mixed may be used as it is . the solvent is dependent on the kind of bound organic material in the organic material - grafted graphene . the solvent may be selected from , but is not limited to , the group consisting of water , methanol , ethanol , isopropyl alcohol , toluene , benzene , hexane , heptane , m - cresol , ethyl acetate , carbon disulfide , dimethyl sulfoxide , dichloromethane , dichlorobenzene , chloroform , carbon tetrachloride , aceton , tetrahydrofuran , dimethylacetamide , n - methylpyrrolidone , dimethylformamide , acetic acid and the combination thereof . the centrifugation is carried out at a speed of 1 , 000 to 15 , 000 rpm , preferably 7 , 000 to 12 , 000 rpm for 30 seconds to 20 minutes , preferably 2 minutes to 15 minutes , to isolate organic material - grafted graphene . when the centrifugation speed is less than 1 , 000 rpm or the centrifugation time is less than 30 seconds , the isolation is not well achieved . when the centrifugation speed is higher than 15 , 000 rpm or the centrifugation time is more than 20 minutes , there is a danger that the centrifugal tube may be broken . the method of preparing n - graphene according to the present invention comprises heat treating the organic material - grafted graphene prepared by a method of preparing organic material - grafted graphene of the present invention using a general electric furnace at a temperature of 300 to 1 , 200 ° c ., preferably 500 to 1 , 100 ° c ., more preferably 800 to 1 , 000 ° c ., for a time period of 10 minutes to 12 hours , preferably 30 minutes to 6 hours , more preferably 1 to 4 hours . for the heat - treatment , a portion of organic material covalently bonded to the edge of graphene acts as in - situ n - doping and c - welding feedstock to prepare nitrogen - introduced graphene . when heat treating at a temperature of less than 300 ° c ., there is a problem that nitrogen doping on graphene is not well achieved , and when heat treating at a temperature of higher than 1 , 200 ° c ., there is a problem that graphene is lost . in addition , when the heat - treatment is conducted for a time period of less than 10 minutes , there is a problem that nitrogen doping on the graphene is not well achieved , and when the heat - treatment is conducted for a time period of more than 12 hours , further doping is not achieved . in addition , the heat - treatment is conducted under the atmosphere of gas selected from the group consisting of methane , hydrogen , nitrogen , helium , neon , argon and the combination thereof . when the heat - treatment is conducted in the presence of gas such as oxygen , there are problems that not only nitrogen doping is not achieved , but also graphene is burned . therefore , it is preferable that the heat - treatment is conducted in the presence of inert gas . the n - graphene according to present invention is prepared by a method of preparing the n - graphene and comprises 0 . 01 to 5 wt % of nitrogen . hereinafter , the present invention will be described in more detail by examples . these examples are provided for clear understanding of the present invention and are not intended to restrict the scope of the present invention . the present invention will be determined by the appended claims . 0 . 5 g of graphite and 0 . 5 g of 4 - amino benzoic acid were put into 25 g of reaction medium containing 20 g of polyphosphoric acid ( ppa ), polyphosphoric acid ( 115 % h 3 po 4 basis ) purchased from sigma aldrich and 5 g of phosphorus pentoxide ( p 2 o 5 ) and stirred under dry nitrogen purge at 130 ° c . for 72 hours to react the graphite with 4 - aminobenzoic acid . the initially black mixture became lighter and viscous . at the end of the reaction , the color of the mixture turned tanned brown . after the termination of reaction , the resultant product was treated with water for three days , and then with methanol for three days using soxhlet to remove polyphosphoric acid , phosphorus pentoxide and unreacted reactants such as unreacted 4 - aminobenzoic acid . thereafter , the resultant remainder was lyophilized under reduced pressure to obtain 0 . 74 g ( 79 % yield ) of tanned brown powder . fig1 a and 1 b show a reaction of preparing organic material - grafted graphene wherein graphite ( p - graphite ) is reacted with 4 - aminobenzoic acid in reaction medium containing polyphosphoric acid / phosphorus pentoxide to prepare organic material - grafted graphene ( efg ). fig1 d is a magnified image of p - graphite used in such reaction using the field emission scanning electron microscope ( fe - sem , leo 1530fe and fei nanosem 200 ). fig1 e is a magnified image of organic material - grafted graphene ( efg ) prepared by such reaction using the field emission scanning electron microscope ( scale bar is 1 μm ). the organic material - grafted graphene ( efg ) obtained in the example 1 - 1 was heat treated using an electric furnace under nitrogen atmosphere at 900 ° c . for 2 hours to obtain n - graphene fig1 b and 1 c show a preparation reaction of such n - graphene wherein by heat treating organic material - grafted graphene ( efg ), unnecessary organic material portions are removed and nitrogen is introduced into the structure of grapheme . fig1 f is a magnified image of n - graphene prepared by such reaction using the field emission scanning electron microscopy ( scale bar is 1 μm ). for graphite used in the example 1 - 1 , the organic material - grafted graphene obtained in the example 1 - 1 and n - graphene obtained in the example 1 - 2 , elemental analysis was conducted with thermo scientific flash 2000 and x - ray photoelectron spectroscopy ( xps ) was conducted on thermo fisher k - alpha . the results are shown in the following table 1 and fig2 . as shown in table 1 , xps measurement values show surface composition of carbon , oxygen and nitrogen and clearly represent the presence of nitrogen in n - graphene obtained by the heat treatment under nitrogen atmosphere at 900 ° c . for 2 hours . the elemental analysis represents the same result . fig2 is xps spectra in which 2 a is the whole spectra and 2 b is a magnified spectra of a n 1s portion which is a part of the whole spectra . particularly , upon reviewing n - graphene in fig2 b , they show peaks at 398 ev and 401 ev , which are peaks corresponding to pyridine - like nitrogen and pyrrolic - like nitrogen , respectively . from these peaks , it can be confirmed that nitrogen is doped on graphene . a small amount of organic material - grafted graphene ( efg ) obtained in the example 1 - 1 was dispersed in n - methyl - 2 - pyrrolidone ( nmp ) to obtain organic material - grafted graphene dispersion solution . pure carbon - coated grid was dipped in the dispersion solution . then , an image of the field emission scanning electron microscopy ( fei tecnai g2 f30 s - twin , operating voltage : 200 kv ) obtained therefrom is shown in fig3 . from fig3 a to 3 c , the presence of wrinkled graphene - like sheets can be confirmed . fig3 d is a high magnified image of a basal plane , from which a high crystalline graphene structure can be confirmed . this means that the basal plane is not functionalized by functionalization using the organic material and also not damaged . fig3 e is an image obtained by magnifying the edge of organic material - grafted graphene at high magnification , which shows single layer graphene sheets including a high crystalline interior plane and an organic material portion exclusively located at the edge . the electron diffraction patterns clearly represent that organic material - grafted graphene consists of individual graphene and graphene - like sheets . raman spectrum analysis for graphite used in the example 1 - 1 and n - graphene obtained in example 1 - 2 was conducted using bruker fourier - transform spectroform spectrophotometer ifs - 66 / fra106s , 46 mw argon - ion laser ( 1064 nm ) being used as an excitation source . the resultant spectra is shown in fig4 . the ratio of i d / i g in graphite ( p - graphite ) and nitrogen - doped graphene ( n - graphene ) was identified to be 0 . 06 and 0 . 14 , respectively . this means that defect ratio is slightly increased due to nitrogen doping in n - graphene . a small amount of organic material - grafted graphene ( efg ) obtained in the example 1 - 1 was dispersed in thf to obtain organic material - grafted graphene dispersed solution . a drop of the solution was placed on a silicon wafer which was then dried in air . an atomic force microscope ( veeco multimode v ) image thereof and topographic height profiles corresponding thereto are shown in fig5 . from fig5 , the presence of the graphene - like structure with the layer height of 1 or less nm could be verified . as expected , the height at the edge of the graphene sheet is higher than that of the inner layer because the functionalization took place mostly at the edge of the graphite . the results of thermogravimetric analysis ( ta hi - res tga 2950 thermogravimeter , heating rate : 10 ° c ./ minute , in air ) for the graphite ( p - graphite ) used in the example 1 - 1 and the organic material - grafted graphene ( efg ) obtained in the example 1 - 1 are shown in fig6 . according to fig6 , the functionalization degree can be presumed from the weight loss near 800 ° c . in addition , it can be verified that thermal stability of organic material - grafted graphene ( efg ) is higher than that of graphite at a temperature of 850 ° c . or more . this means that the organic material portion on organic material - grafted graphene ( efg ) thermally recover damage on the carbon frame during the heat - treatment . in addition , according to the fig6 , it can be verified that during the heat - treatment , the organic material portion at the edge of organic material - grafted graphene ( efg ) acts as feedstock for in - situ n - doping and c - welding and thus can convert organic material - grafted graphene ( efg ) to n - graphene . the n - graphene obtained as a result of the heat - treatment can be usefully used as an electrocatalytic catalyst for oxygen reduction reaction . cyclic voltammogram of as - cast efg film casted on glassy carbon ( gc ) electrode in 0 . 1 m aqueous potassium hydroxide ( koh ) solution saturated with n 2 or o 2 with a scan rate of 0 . 1 v / s . is shown in fig7 a . it can be verified that epg in aqueous potassium hydroxide solution saturated with n 2 shows featureless voltammetric currents within a potential range of − 1 . 0 to 0 . 2 v . in contrast , with reference to fig7 c described below , it can be verified that when the electrolyte solution is saturated with o 2 , the reduction of o 2 occurs at the potential of − 0 . 15 v . cyclic voltammogram of n - grasphene film on a glassy carbon ( gc ) electrode in 0 . 1 m aqueous potassium hydroxide ( koh ) solution saturated with n 2 or o 2 with a scan rate of 0 . 1 v / s . is shown in fig7 b . the similar oxygen reduction activity as in fig7 a can be verified for n - graphene . fig7 c shows rotating disk electrode voltammograms of the epg film and n - graphene film formed on glassy carbon in 0 . 1 m aqueous potassium hydroxide solution saturated with o 2 at a rotation rate of 900 rpm and at a scan rate of 0 . 01 v / s . it can be verified that oxygen reduction activity of n - graphene is more pronounced than that of efg . fig7 d shows rotating disk electrode voltammogram of n - graphene film formed on glassy carbon in 0 . 1 m aqueous potassium hydroxide solution saturated with o 2 at different rotation rates of 100 , 400 and 900 rpm and at a scan rate of 0 . 01 v / s . it can be verified that oxygen reduction activity of n - graphene is further superior at the higher rotation rate . the present inventors investigated the electrochemical stability under oxygen reduction reaction conditions of the n - graphene in o 2 - saturated koh for 1 day using sequential cyclic voltammetry . fig8 a shows that there was not any obvious change in the onset potential or in the kinetic current after continuous oxygen reduction reaction for 1 day , indicating that the catalytic sites of the graphene are rather stable in the base medium . as can be seen from fig8 b , the open - circuit potential and steady - state output potential , along with the current output for n - graphene / gc electrode do not show any obvious change in an o 2 saturated 0 . 1m aqueous solution of koh even after adding 2 wt % of methanol , which suggests that the corresponding effect of methanol crossover on the electrode is almost negligible . the present invention includes a method of preparing organic material - grafted graphene comprising reacting an organic material having one or more amino groups and one or more functional groups selected from the group consisting of carboxylic acid group , amide group , sulfonic acid group , carbonylchloride group and carbonylbromide group with graphite in a reaction medium containing polyphosphoric acid / phosphorus pentoxide . this method may be the simplest , but most efficient one that is capable of large - scale exfoliation of three - dimensional graphite into two - dimensional graphene - like sheets without introducing any oxygen - containing functional groups on the basal plane of the graphene . in addition , the oxygen - free n - graphene / gc electrode can be prepared by heat treating the organic material - grafted graphene , and the resultant n - graphene / gc electrode can carry out very excellent oxygen reduction reaction . hereinbefore , the present invention was described in reference to illustrated examples , however , they are only illustrative . it is to be appreciated that those skilled in the art can change or modify the embodiments without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention .	2
hereafter , the method for manufacturing a toner supplying roller will be explained . for example , the following method is exemplified . a cored bar is set in a die , a composition containing a rubber raw material is foamed and formed in the die to thereby form a sponge layer being concentric with the cored bar on the circumferential part of the cored bar . in this case , molding conditions for forming the sponge layer such as molding pressure and molding temperature ( die temperature ) may be suitably determined in accordance with the type of components used such as rubber raw material and foam material and the composition of the rubber raw material composition and foam materials . in another method to manufacture the toner supplying roller , a foam block having a hole in which the a cored bar has been inserted and fixed with , for example , an adhesive is shaped into a roller in cutting - work . when making the toner supplying roller a multi - layered so as to have two or more layers , a method in which the surface of the roller prepared as described above is covered around with a foam sheet used as a second - tier layer and the foam sheet is fixed with an adhesive ; and a method in which the surface of the roller is coated with a foam material and the foam is hardened , are exemplified . mechanical frothing as well as chemical foaming are commonly known for forming a polyurethane foam . in mechanical frothing , a polyurethane foam is formed by generating air bubbles without using any foaming agent but by sending a gas to materials being kneaded or mixed , and heating and curing the resulting material with air bubbles . in chemical foaming , a polyurethane foam is formed by adding a foaming agent such as water , which reacts with isocyanate and generates air bubbles , to various materials , while balancing out a curing reaction of used resins . by mixing a predetermined amount of water as a chemically foaming agent with a composition of raw materials produced by mechanical froth method and by using an amine compound and an organic acid salt as catalysts , it is possible for the polyurethane foam according to the present invention to have characteristics of those formed by mechanical frothing method as well as characteristics of those formed by chemical foaming method . with this configuration , the cell diameter is controllable within a range of 180 μm to 500 μm . examples of elastomeric foam include ester polyurethane foams ; ether polyurethane foams ; and rubber foam materials such as nitrile rubber , ethylene propylene rubber , ethylene propylene diene rubber , styrene butadiene rubber , butadiene rubber , isoprene rubber , natural rubber , silicone rubber , acrylic rubber , chloroprene rubber , butyl rubber , and epichlorhydrin rubber . of those materials , ester polyurethane foams and ether polyurethane foams are preferable . each of these may be used alone or in combination with two or more . in addition , silicone oil may be mixed into the above - mentioned foam material ( s ) or applied over the surface of the resulting foam in order to adjust the friction drag coefficient of the foam at a suitable level . the elastomeric foam can be formed by pouring a mixture composed of adequate amount of polyol ( a ), isocyanate ( b ), a catalyst ( c ) and a foaming agent ( d ) into a die which is preliminarily fixed at a predetermined position and keeping it under room temperature for 24 hours to harden the mixture . polyol ( a ) for the elastomeric foam can be selected from those that are generally used for forming urethane foams . such polyol ( a ) is suitably selected for use so as to provide at lo least a glass transition temperature in each of the ranges , − 70 ° c . to − 20 ° c . and 0 ° c . to 60 ° c ., in the obtained urethane foam . polyol ( a ) is preferably at least one selected from among poly oxyalkylene polyols , vinyl polymer containing - poly oxyalkylene polyols , and polyester polyols . examples of the poly oxyalkylene polyols include initiators including water , alcohols , amines and ammonias to which alkylene oxide is added . examples of the alcohols as the initiators include monovalent or higher alcohols including monovalent alcohols such as methanol and ethanol ; bivalent alcohols such as ethylene glycol and propylene glycol ; trivalent alcohols such as glycerin and trimethylolpropane ; quadrivalent alcohols such as pentaerythritol ; hexavalent alcohols such as sorbitol ; and octavalent alcohols such as sucrose . examples of the amines as the initiators include monovalent or higher amines including monovalent amines such as dimethylamine and diethylamine ; bivalent amines such methylamine as and ethylamine ; trivalent amines such as monoethanolamine , diethanolamine , and triethanolamine ; quadrivalent amines such as ethylenediamine ; and pentavalent amines such as diethylenetriamine . of those initiators , monovalent to hexavalent alcohols and monovalent to pentavalent amines are preferable . as alkylene oxide , for example , ethylene oxide , propylene oxide , or 1 , 2 -, 1 , 3 -, 1 , 4 -, or 2 , 3 - butylene oxide can be used . each of these can be used alone or in combination . among them , the propyleneoxide and / or ethylene oxide are preferable . when used in combination , they can be added in block - or random - reaction ; in such a case , block addition reaction is preferable . examples of the vinyl polymer containing - polyoxy alkylene polyol include vinyl monomers , such as acrylonitrile and styrene , polymerized and dispersed in the above - mentioned polyoxy alkylene polyol under the existence of radical . the content of the vinyl polymer in the polyoxy alkylene polyol is generally in the range of from 15 % by mass to 45 % by mass . examples of the polyester polyol include those obtained by polycondensation of one or more compounds ( a ) and one or more compounds ( b ) and those obtained by open - ring polymerization such as ε - caprolactone , where compounds ( a ) are those having two or more hydroxyl groups such as ethylene glycol , diethylene glycol , triethylene glycol , 1 , 2 - propylene glycol , trimethylene glycol , 1 , 3 or 1 , 4 - butylene glycol , hexamethylene glycol , decamethyleneglycol , glycerol , trimethylolpropane , pentaerythritol and sorbitol and compounds ( b ) are those having two or more carboxyl groups such as adipic acid , succinic acid , malonic acid , maleic acid , tartaric acid , pimelic acid , sebacic acid , phthalic acid , terephthalic acid , isophthalic acid and trimellitic acid polyol ( a ) preferably contains polyol a - 1 and polyol a - 2 , where polyol a - 1 has : an average number of functional groups of 1 . 5 to 4 . 5 ; and , a hydroxyl value of 20 mgkoh / g to 70 mgkoh / g ( where it is preferably in the range of 30 mgkoh / g to 60 mgkoh / g ), and polyol a - 2 has : an average number of functional groups of 1 . 5 to 4 . 5 ; a hydroxyl value of 140 mgkoh / g to 300 mgkoh / g ( where it is further preferably in the range of 200 mgkoh / g to 270 mgkoh / g ). when the average number of functional groups is less than 1 . 5 , the resulting urethane foam may be weak against dryness and heat , and thus permanent deformations of the foam may be easily caused . and when that is larger than 4 . 5 , the extensibility of the resulting urethane foam is lowered while the hardness thereof is increased , and thus physical properties such as tensile strength is lowered . by using both polyol a - 1 and a - 2 each having a different hydroxyl value , i . e , a polyol ( a - 1 ) having a hydroxyl value of 20 mgkoh / g to 70 mgkoh / g and a polyol ( a - 2 ) having a hydroxyl value of 140 mgkoh / g to 300 mgkoh / g , it is possible to easily form an urethane foam having at least a glass transition temperature in each of the ranges , − 70 ° c . to − 20 ° c . and 0 ° c . to 60 ° c . isocyanate ( b ) can be selected from known polyisocyanates that are generally used for urethane foams . examples of such polyisocyanates include aromatic polyisocyanates such as 2 , 4 - or 2 , 6 - tolylene diisocyanate ( toluene diisocyanate ; tdi ), diphenylmethane diisocyanate ( mdi ), phenylene diisocyanate ( pdi ), and naphthalene diisocyanate ( ndi ); aromatic - aliphatic polyisocyanates such as 1 , 3 - or 1 , 4 - xylylene diisocyanate ( xdi ); aliphatic polyisocyanates such as hexamethylene diisocyanate ( hdi ); alicyclic polyisocyanates such as 3 - isocyanate methyl - 3 , 5 , 5 - trimethyl cyclohexylisocyanate ( ipdi ), 4 , 4 ′- methylenebis ( cyclohexylisocyanate ) ( h12mdi ), and 1 , 3 - or 1 , 4 - bis ( isocyanate methyl ) cyclohexane ( h6xdi ); carbodiimide modified polyisocyanates ; biuret modified polyisocyanates ; allophanate modified polyisocyanates ; dimers ; trimers ; and , polymethylene polyphenyl polyisocyanate ( cured mdi or polymeric mdi ). these may be used alone or in combination . among those , the aromatic polyisocyanates are preferable . and tdi is further preferable . catalyst ( c ) can be selected from known ones that are generally used for urethane foams . examples of such catalysts include tertiary amines such as triethylamine , triethylenediamine , and n - methyl morpholine ; quarternary ammonium salts such as tetrethyl hydroxyl ammonium ; amine catalysts such as imidazole and 2 - ethyl - 4 - methylimidazole ; and organic metal catalysts such as organic tin compounds ( such as tin acetate , octylacid tin , dibutyltin dilaurate , and dibutyltin chloride ), organic lead compounds ( such as lead octylate and lead naphthenate ), and organic nickel compounds ( such as nickel naphthenate ). of these catalysts , it is preferred that an amine catalyst and an organic metal catalyst be used in combination ; using a tertiary amine and an organic tin compound in combination is particularly preferable . larger amount of amine catalysts contained increases air bubbles generated in the foam . larger amount of organic tin compounds contained increases the hardness of the resin . foaming agent ( d ) can be selected from known ones that are generally used for urethane foams . examples of such foaming agents include foaming agents based on water and / or halogenation substitutes of aliphatic hydrocarbon . examples of such foaming agents based on the substitutes include trichlorofluoromethane , dichlorodifluoromethane , trichloroethane , trichloroethylene , tetrachloroethylene , methylene chloride , trichlorotrifluoroethane , dibromotetrafluoroethane , and carbon tetrachloride . those may be used alone or in combination ; in the present invention , using water alone is preferable . the elastomeric foam used in the present invention may be electrically conductive . such conductive elastomeric foam can be formed of a conductive foaming material into which an adequate conductive agent is added . for a conductive agent to be added when imparting conductivity to the elastomeric foam , an ion conductive agent and an electron conductive agent can be used . examples of the ion conductive agent include perchlorates such as tetraethylammonium , tetrabutyl ammonium , dodecyl trimethyl ammoniums ( such as lauryl trimethyl ammonium ), hexadecyl trimethyl ammonium , octadecyltrimethyl ammnoniums ( such as stearyl trimethyl ammonium ), and fatty acid modified dimethyl ethyl ammonium ; ammonium salts such as chlorates , hydrochloride , bromate , iodate , fluoroboric acid salt , sulfate , ethyl - sulfuric - acid salt , carboxylates , and sulfonates ; alkali metals such as lithium , sodium , potassium , calcium , magnesium ; perchlorates , chlorates , hydrochlorides , bromate , iodate , fluoroboric acid salt , trifluoromethylsulfuric acid salt , or sulfonates of or alkaline earth metal . examples of the electron conductive agent include conductive carbons such as ketjenblack and acetylene black ; carbons such as isaf , haf , fef , gpf , srf and ft used in rubber ; carbons used in inks , thermally decomposed carbons , natural graphite , artificial graphite which are subjected to an oxidization treatment ; oxidized conductive metals such as nickel , tin oxide , titanium oxide , and zinc oxide ; and metals such as copper , silver , and germanium . those conductive agents may be used alone or in combination . the added amount of the conductive agent is not particularly limited ; the added amount of the ion conductive agent is generally in the range of 0 . 01 parts by mass to 5 . 0 parts by mass , and preferably in the range of 0 . 05 parts by mass to 2 parts by mass to 100 parts by mass of the elastomeric foam . the added amount of the electron conductive agent is generally in the range of 1 part by mass to 50 parts by mass , and preferably in the range of 5 parts by mass to 40 parts by mass to 100 parts by mass of the elastomeric foam . in addition to the above - stated conductive agent , other suitable additives selected from , for example , known filler ( s ) and / or cross - linking agent ( s ) to be used for rubber may be added to the conductive elastomeric foam in accordance with the necessity . in addition , appropriate amount of other suitable additives such as resistance - adjusting agent ( s ), foam stabilizer ( s ), and flame retardant ( s ) may be added in the urethane foam in the present invention . the image forming apparatus of the present invention will be described hereafter . fig1 schematically shows an embodiment of the image forming apparatus of the present invention . the surface of an image bearing member 1 ( or photoconductor 1 ) is charged on a charging unit 2 . on the thus charged surface , a latent image is formed with an exposure device 3 . bias is applied on the surfaces of a developing roller 40 and the image bearing member 1 so that the latent image is formed into a visible image with a developer 44 supplied from the developing roller 40 . the developer 44 is supplied on the surface of the developing roller 40 from a toner supplying roller 41 at which the two rollers contact each other . the developer 44 is thinned and uniformly spread over the surface of the developing roller 40 with a controlling blade 42 . the visible image is once transferred onto an intermediate transferring member 8 , and then transferred onto a recording medium 9 such as paper . the image on the recording medium 9 is thermally fixed with a fixing roller . the developer 44 remains on the latent image after the transferring of the latent image to the intermediate transferring medium 8 in a short period of time . the remaining developer is removed and collected with a cleaning member 7 . fig2 is a schematic view showing an example of the developing apparatus ( process cartridge ) of the present invention . a developer ( toner ) 44 is contained in a toner supplying unit in a container ( not shown ). the developer 44 is stirred by a toner supplying roller 41 and carried on a nip portion of a developing roller 40 . a controlling blade 43 is provided to control the amount of toner on the surface of the developing roller 40 to form a toner thin layer thereon . thus , toner particles passed where the controlling blade 43 makes contact with the developing roller 40 form a thin layer . the toner on the surface of the developing roller 40 is given friction when passing through the nip portion between the toner supplying roller 41 and the developing roller 40 and a gap between the controlling blade 43 and the developing roller 40 so that the charged amount of toner is adjusted at an adequate level . particularly in a system where a cleaning unit is not provided , it is essential that sufficient amount of remaining toner particles that are collected from the surface of an image bearing member by the developing roller 40 can be removed from the surface of the developing roller 40 by the toner supplying roller 41 . this is because in such a system , the difference between the actual charged amount of the toner and the adequate level tends to be large , and so a toner collected by a developing roller must be removed by a toner supplying roller . fig3 is an illustration showing that the relation between the average cell diameter of the foam in a toner supplying roller and the toner particle diameter affects the supplied amount of the toner and the toner removability . the measurement method of particle size distribution of the toner particles will be explained . examples of the measuring equipment for particle size distribution of the toner particles by coulter counter method include coulter counter ta - ii and coulter multisizer ii ( both of which are manufactured by beckman coulter , inc .). the measurement method will be described below . first , 0 . 1 ml to 5 ml of a surfactant as the dispersing agent ( preferably alkylbenzene sulfonate salt ) is added to 100 ml to 150 ml of an electrolytic aqueous solution . here , the electrolytic solution is an aqueous solution of about 1 % nacl prepared using a primary sodium chloride , and by the means of , for example , isoton - ii ( supplied from coulter ). then , 2 mg to 20 mg in solid content of a sample to be measured is further added thereto . the electrolytic aqueous solution in which the sample has been suspended is subjected to a dispersion treatment for about 1 to 3 minutes using an ultrasonic dispersing machine , and the toner particles or the volume of the toner , and the number of the toner particles are measured using an aperture of 100 m in diameter as the aperture through the use of the aforementioned measurement apparatus to thereby calculate the volume distribution and the number distribution based on the values measured as above . the volume average particle diameter ( dv ) and number average particle diameter ( dp ) can be obtained from the obtained distributions . as used channels , 13 channels of 2 . 00 μm to less than 2 . 52 μm , 2 . 52 μm to less than 3 . 17 μm , 3 . 17 μm to less than 4 . 00 μm , 4 . 00 μm to less than 5 . 04 μm , 5 . 04 μm to less than 6 . 35 μm , 6 . 35 μm to less than 8 . 00 μm , 8 . 00 m to less than 10 . 08 μm , 10 . 08μm to less than 12 . 70μm , 12 . 70 μm to less than 16 . 00 μm , 16 . 00 μm to less than 20 . 20 μm , 20 . 20 μm to less than 25 . 40 μm , 25 . 40 μm to less than 32 . 00 μm and 32 . 00 μm to less than 40 . 30 μm are used , and the particles having a particle diameter ranging from 2 . 00 μm to less than 40 . 30 μm are intended to use . in a suitable method of measuring the shapes of toner particles , a ccd camera is used to optically detect and analyze particles contained in the suspension liquid containing toner particles by passing the suspension liquid through an optical detection band on a plate . the average degree of circularity is obtained by dividing the circumferential length of a circle having an area equivalent to the resulting projected area by the real circumferential length of a particle . the average circularity can be measured with fpia - 2000 , a flow particle image analyzer . in the specific measurement method , 0 . 1 ml to 0 . 5 ml of a surfactant as a dispersing agent , preferably an alkylbenzene sulfonate salt , is added to 100 ml to 150 ml of water ( from which impurities have been previously removed ) in a vessel , and 0 . 1 g to 0 . 5 g of a sample to be measured is further added to the resulting solution . a suspension liquid in which the sample has been dispersed is subjected to a dispersion treatment using an ultrasonic dispersing machine for about 1 to 3 minutes to thereby control the concentration of the dispersion ranging from 3 , 000 / μl to 10 , 000 / μl , and the average degree of circularity of the toner particles are measured using the above - stated apparatus . the average cell diameter and repulsion force of the toner supplying roller were measured as described below . ( measurement of average cell diameter ): the surface of the toner supplying roller was visually observed with an optical microscope having a magnification of 50 times to determine the number of cells on a 30 mm straight line . the average cell diameter was calculated by dividing the resulting number by the length of the straight line . ( repulsion force ): an aluminum disk having a diameter of 50 mm was pressed against the surface of the toner supplying roller to determine the required magnitude of repulsion force for 1 mm deformation at the surface . by controlling the characteristics of a toner supplying roller , the cell diameter of the toner supplying roller and a toner particle diameter in appropriate levels , it is possible to prevent occurrence of nonuniformity of image density and image streaks when forming images . the fixing performance in an oil - less fixing process utilizing application of heat can be improved the plasticity of resins used in a toner . the technique can be suitably used in a variety of electrophotographic systems and processes . hereinafter , with referring to examples and comparative examples , the present invention will be further explained in detail ; however , these examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of this invention . the term “ part ” or “ parts ” in examples and comparative examples refers to “ part by mass ” or “ parts by mass ”. ( 1 ) 100 parts of ed - 37b of ppg - diol series ( polyether polyol having a number average molecular weight of 3 , 000 , manufactured by mitsui takeda chemical inc .) as polyol ( 2 ) 33 parts of mdi ( millionate mtl - s , manufactured by nippon polyurethane industry co ., ltd .) as isocyanate ( 3 ) 0 . 3 parts of kaolizer no . 23 np ( manufactured by kao corporation ) as an amine catalyst ( 4 ) 4 parts of ep 73660a ( manufactured by pan technology inc .) as an organic acid salt catalyst ( 6 ) 8 parts of niaxsilicone l5614 ( straight chain dimethyl polysiloxane , manufactured by ge silicones inc .) as a foam stabilizer all of the above - stated components except for isocyanate were mixed and kneaded together . then , isocyanate was added to and mixed with the resulting mixture . the thus obtained mixture was poured into a die , foamed , and hardened . thereby a polyurethane foam was formed . the resulting polyurethane foam was formed into a specified shape . thus a toner supplying roller r 1 was obtained . the average cell diameter ( μm ) and hardness ( g / mm ) at the surface of the toner supplying roller r 1 was measured . the results are shown in table 1 . a toner supplying roller r 2 was obtained in the same manner as in production example 1 except that the amount of isocyanate was reduced to 24 parts , the amount of the amine catalyst was reduced to 0 . 25 parts , and the amount of the ion exchange water was reduced to 0 . 5 parts . a toner supplying roller r 3 was obtained in the same manner as in production example 1 except that the amount of isocyanate was increased to 38 parts , the amount of the amine catalyst was increased to 0 . 4 parts , and the amount of the ion exchange water was increased to 1 . 5 parts . a toner supplying roller r 4 was obtained in the same manner as in production example 1 except that the amount of isocyanate was reduced to 20 parts , the amount of the amine catalyst was reduced to 0 . 1 parts , and the amount of the ion exchange water was reduced to 0 . 3 parts . ( 1 ) 100 parts of voranol3022 ( polyol having a weight - average molecular weight of 3 , 000 , manufactured by dow chemical japan ) ( 2 ) 48 parts of sumidur 44v10 nc 31 % ( isocyanate manufactured by sumitomo bayer urethane ) ( 4 ) 0 . 1 parts of kaolizer no . 31 ( manufactured by kao corporation ) as a catalyst ( 5 ) 0 . 01 parts of neostan u - 100 ( dibutyl tin dilaureate ) as a catalyst ( 7 ) 8 parts of l520 ( a silicone foam stabilizer manufactured by nippon unicar company limited ) as a foam stabilizer a mixture of the above - stated components was mixed and kneaded with dried air ( where the volume of dried air was 170 ml per 100 g of the mixture ). subsequently , the resulting mixture was poured into a die , foamed , and hardened . thereby polyurethane foam was formed . the resulting polyurethane foam was formed into a specified shape . thus a toner supplying roller r 5 was obtained . ( 3 ) 12 parts of azodicarbonamide , or adca , as a foaming agent a mixture of the above - stated components was mixed and kneaded . subsequently , the resulting mixture was poured into a die , foamed , and hardened . thereby polyurethane foam was formed . the resulting polyurethane foam was formed into a specified shape . thus a toner supplying roller r 6 was obtained . in a reaction vessel equipped with a condenser tube , a stirrer and a nitrogen inlet tube , a mixture of the following compounds was placed : 553 parts of bisphenol a ethylene oxide dimolar adduct ; 196 parts of bisphenol a propylene oxide dimolar adduct ; 220 parts of terephthalic acid ; 45 parts of adipic acid ; and , 2 parts of dibutyl tin oxide . the components were reacted at 230 ° c . under atmospheric pressure for 8 hours , and further reacted under a reduced pressure of 10 mmhg to 15 mmhg for 5 hours . subsequently , 26 parts of trimellitic anhydride was placed in the vessel . the resulting mixture was reacted at 180 ° c . under atmospheric pressure for 2 hours . thus polyester resin 1 was obtained . the thus obtained polyester resin 1 had a number - average molecular weight of 2 , 200 , a weight - average molecular weight of 5 , 600 , a glass transition temperature ( tg ) at 43 ° c ., and an acid value of 13 mgkoh / g . in a reaction vessel equipped with a condenser tube , a stirrer and a nitrogen inlet tube , a mixture of 1 . 6 parts of dodecyl sodium sulfate and 492 parts of ion exchange water was placed . the mixture was heated to 80 ° c . subsequently , a solution obtained by dissolving 2 . 5 parts of potassium persulfate ( or kps ) into 100 parts of ion exchange water was placed in the vessel . into the vessel , 15 minutes after the placing of the solution , a mixture solution composed of the following compounds was added dropwisely in 90 minutes : 140 parts of styrene ( st ); 30 parts of butyl acrylate ( ba ); 30 parts of methacrylic acid ( ma ); and , 7 . 6 parts of n - octyl mercaptan ( nom ) as a molecular weight adjusting agent . then , the resulting mixture was kept at 80 ° c . for 60 minutes . it was cooled down , and thereby dispersed solution of particles s - 1 containing vinyl copolymer was obtained . the average diameter of the particles s - 1 was 87 nm . a small amount of the dispersed solution was taken and placed on a petri dish , and the dispersion media contained therein was evaporated to observe a solid product . the solid product had a mass average molecular weight ( mw ) of 8 , 300 , and a glass transition temperature ( tg ) at 69 ° c . in a reaction vessel equipped with a condenser tube , a stirrer and a nitrogen inlet tube , a mixture of the following compounds was placed : 682 parts of bisphenol a ethylene oxide dimolar adduct ; 81 parts of bisphenol a propylene oxide dimolar adduct ; 283 parts of terephthalic acid ; 22 parts of trimellitic anhydride ; and , 2 parts of dibutyl tin oxide . the components were reacted at 230 ° c . under atmospheric pressure for 8 hours , and further reacted under a reduced pressure of 10 mmhg to 15 mmhg for 5 hours . thus intermediate polyester resin 1 was obtained . the intermediate polyester resin 1 had a number average molecular weight of 2 , 100 , weight average molecular weight of 9 , 500 , glass transition temperature at 55 ° c ., acid value of 0 . 5 mgkoh / g , and hydroxyl value of 49 mgkoh / g . subsequently , in a reaction vessel equipped with a condenser tube , a stirrer and a nitrogen introducing tube , a mixture of the following compounds was placed ; 411 parts of the intermediate polyester resin 1 ; 89 parts of isophorone diisocyanate ; and , 500 parts of ethyl acetate . the components were reacted at 100 ° c . under atmospheric pressure for 5 hours . thereby prepolymer 1 was obtained . the content of free isocyanate groups in prepolymer 1 was 1 . 53 % by mass . the following components were mixed with a henschel mixer : 40 parts of special black regal 400r ( a carbon black manufactured by cabot corp . ); 60 parts of rs - 801 ( a polyester resin having an acid value of 10 mgkoh / g , a weight - average molecular weight of 20 , 000 and glass transition temperature at 64 ° c ., manufactured by sanyo chemical industries , ltd . ); and , 30 parts of water . the thus obtained mixture was kneaded using a two - roller kneading machine ( where the surface temperature of the rollers was set at 130 ° c .) for 45 minutes . then , the thus obtained kneaded - article was pulverized into 1 mm particles using a pulverizer . thereby masterbatch 1k was obtained . in a container equipped with a stirrer and thermometer , the following components were placed : 543 . 5 parts of polyester resin 1 ; 181 parts of carnauba wax ; and 1 , 450 parts of ethyl acetate . they were heated to 80 ° c . while stirred , and kept at that temperature for 5 hours . subsequently , they were cooled down to 30 ° c . in 1 hour . then , 500 parts of masterbatch 1k and 100 parts of ethyl acetate were placed in the container . the resulting mixture was stirred hour 1 hour . thereby material dissolved solution 1 was obtained . in a container , 1 , 500 parts of material dissolved solution 1 was placed . then , using ultra visco mill ( a bead mill manufactured by imex corporation ) filled with 80 % by volume of 0 . 5 mm zirconia beads and 3 times of dispersing treatments , the carbon black and the releasing agent were dispersed under the following conditions : feeding rate of 1 kg / hour ; and , disc circumferential speed of 6 m / second . then , 655 parts of ethyl acetate solution of 65 % by mass of polyester resin 1 was added to the dispersed product . the resulting mixture was dispersed once with the bead mill under the same condition as stated above at 130 ° c . for 30 minutes . ethyl acetate was added to the mixture such that the solid content concentration of the mixture was adjusted to 50 % by mass . thereby dispersed solution 1 of pigment and releasing agent was obtained . the following components were mixed and kneaded , and thereby water phase 1 in milky white color was obtained : 968 parts of ion exchange water ; 40 parts of hydrophilic dispersed solution of 25 % by mass of a copolymer ( the copolymer of styrene - methacrylic acid - acrylic acid butyl - sodium salt of methacrylic acid sulfuric ester of ethyleneoxide adduct ) as a dispersion stabilizer ; 150 parts of eleminole mon - 7 ( an aqueous solution of 48 . 5 % by mass of dodecy diphenylether sodium disulfonate ); and 98 parts by mass of ethyl acetate . using a tk homomixer ( a mixer manufactured by primix corporation ), 976 parts of dispersed solution 1 of pigment and releasing agent and 2 . 6 parts of isophorone diamine as an amine were mixed at 5 , 000 rpm for 1 minute . then , 88 parts of prepolymer 1 was added to the mixture , and they were further mixed with the tk homomixer at 5 , 000 rpm for 1 minute . subsequently , 1 , 200 parts of water phase 1 was added to the mixture , and they were mixed with tk homomixer at the number of rotations adequately adjusted in the range of from 8 , 000 rpm to 13 , 000 rpm for 20 minutes . thereby emulsified slurry 1 was obtained . the obtained emulsified slurry 1 was placed in a container equipped with a stirrer and thermometer , and was desolventized at 30 ° c . for 8 hours . thereby dispersed slurry 1 - 1 was obtained . to dispersed slurry 1 - 1 , 20 % by mass of the dispersed solution of particles s - 1 was added based on the total solid content of dispersed slurry 1 - 1 . the resulting solution was heated to 73 ° c . in 30 minutes . the solution was kept at 73 ° c . while kept at that temperature , solution obtained by dissolving 100 parts of magnesia chloride 6 - hydrate into 100 parts by mass of ion exchange water was added little by little to the solution . four hours later , the ph of the solution was adjusted to 5 by adding an adequate amount of a hydrochloride solution , and then the resulting solution was heated to 80 ° c . and kept at the temperature for 2 hours . subsequently , the solution was cooled down , and thereby dispersed slurry 1 - 2 was obtained . to obtain filtered cake 1k , 100 parts of dispersed slurry 1 - 2 was subjected to vacuum - pressure filtering to obtain a filtered cake , and the following processes were performed to the filtered cake : ( 1 ) 100 parts of ion exchange water was added to the filtered cake . the resulting mixture was mixed using tk homomixer at 12 , 000 rpm for 10 minutes , and then it was subjected to vacuum pressure filtering . ( 2 ) 900 parts of ion exchange water was added to the filtered cake treated in ( 1 ). the resulting mixture was given ultrasonic vibration while mixed with tk homomixer at 12 , 000 rpm for 30 minutes to obtain slurry solution . the slurry solution was then subjected to vacuum pressure filtering . the slurry solution was repeatedly subjected to vacuum pressure filtering until its electrical conductance reached 10 μc / cm or lower . ( 3 ) 10 % by mass of hydrochloride was added to the slurry solution obtained in ( 2 ) in order to adjust the ph thereof at 4 . the resulting solution was mixed with three - one motor for 30 minutes and was subjected to filtering to obtain a filtered cake . ( 4 ) 100 parts of ion exchange water was added to the filtered cake obtained in ( 3 ). the resulting mixture was mixed with a tk homomixer at 12 , 000 rpm for 10 minutes to obtain slurry solution . the slurry solution was then subjected to vacuum pressure filtering . the slurry solution was repeatedly subjected to the process ( 4 ) until its electrical conductance reached 10 ∞ c / cm or lower . thereby filtered cake 1 was obtained . the thus obtained filtered cake 1 was dried at 45 ° c . for 48 hours in a shield type dryer , and the thus obtained articles were sieved with a mesh having openings of 75 μm . thereby coloring particles 1k were obtained . coloring particles 1k had a volume average particle diameter ( dv ) of 5 . 7 μm . with fm20c / i ( a henschel mixer manufactured by mitsui mining corporation ), the following toner components were mixed for 5 hours to obtain toner : 100 parts of coloring particles 1k ; 0 . 5 parts of a hydrophobitic silica having a bet specific surface area of 200 m 2 / g ; and , 0 . 5 parts of another hydrophobitic silica having a bet specific surface area of 50 m 2 / g . an upper blade a0 and a lower blade st were used in fm20c / i , where the circumferential velocity at the tip of the lower blade was set at 40 m / s . a toner of production example 2 was obtained in the same manner as in production example 1 for toner except that the amount of added isophorone diamine was adjusted so that the volume average particle diameter ( dv ) of the toner was 8 . 5 μm . for the respective thus obtained toners ( of production examples 1 and 2 ), the following evaluations were performed . the results are shown in table 1 - b . using an image forming apparatus that had been remodeled from ipsio cx2500 manufactured by ricoh company ltd ., 2 , 000 sheets of a given print pattern with a print ratio of 6 % were continuously printed under room temperature ( 23 ° c . )/ normal humidity ( 45 % rh ). the ipsio cx2500 was remodeled such that the touching area of development and toner supplying rollers were changeable . further , 2 , 000 sheets of an image of solid part with a print ratio of 100 % were printed under the same environment as used in the above . then , the printed images were evaluated based on the following criteria . b : although nonuniformity in image density was somewhat recognized , the result was acceptable in practice . c : nonuniformity in image density was recognized in at least one of respectively printed sheets , and the result was unacceptable in practice . in the same manner as in the evaluation of nonuniformity in image density , 2 , 000 sheets of a print pattern with a print ratio of 6 % were continuously printed . thereafter , 2 , 000 sheets of an image of solid part with a print ratio of 100 % were printed under the same environment as used in the above . the evaluation of occurrence of streaks on the images carried out based on the following criteria . b : although the generation of streaks on image was somewhat recognized , it was acceptable in practice . c : the generation of streaks was recognized on at least one of respectively printed sheets , and the result was unacceptable in practice . in the same manner as in the evaluation of nonuniformity in image density , 2 , 000 sheets of a print pattern with a print ratio of 6 % were continuously printed . thereafter , 2 , 000 sheets of an image of solid part with a print ratio of 100 % were printed under the same environment as used in the above . the evaluation of occurrence of background smear on the images was carried out based on the following criteria . b : although the occurrence of background smear was somewhat recognized , it was acceptable in practice . c : occurrence of background smear was recognized in at least one of respectively printed sheets , and the result was unacceptable in practice . the above - stated evaluations were also performed for examples 2 to 7 and comparative examples 1 to 5 . the results are shown in table 1 - b .	6
an aspect of the present invention will be described in more detail referring to the drawings in the following embodiments , but is not limited to these embodiments . a liquid crystal display device produced using a liquid crystal composition in an aspect of the present invention , a liquid crystal display device in an aspect of the present invention , and a liquid crystal display device produced by the production method in an aspect of the present invention exhibit excellent display properties while being used for display devices , for example , a television , a personal computer , a mobile phone , an information display , etc . hereinafter , one example of a liquid crystal display device of embodiment 1 will be described . fig1 and fig2 are schematic cross sectional views of a liquid crystal display device of embodiment 1 and fig1 illustrates the view before a psa polymerization step and fig2 illustrates the view after the psa polymerization step . as illustrated in fig1 and fig2 , the liquid crystal display device of embodiment 1 has an array substrate 110 , a color filter substrate 120 , and a liquid crystal layer 105 sandwiched between a pair of the substrates , that is , the array substrate 110 and the color filter substrate 120 . the array substrate 110 has an insulating transparent substrate made of a material such as glass or the like , various kinds of wiring formed on the transparent substrate , a pixel electrode , and a tft ( thin film transistor ). the color filter substrate 120 has an insulating transparent substrate made of a material such as glass or the like , a color filter formed on the transparent substrate , a black matrix , and a common electrode . the array substrate 110 and the color filter substrate 120 are respectively provided with an alignment film 108 on the surfaces in the liquid crystal layer 105 side . as illustrated in fig1 , before the psa polymerization step , the liquid crystal layer 105 contains a liquid crystal material and a radical polymerizable monomer 104 . the radical polymerizable monomer 104 is a compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 1 ) and more practically a compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 2 ) and furthermore practically a compound represented by one of the above - mentioned formulas ( 5 - 1 ) to ( 5 - 18 ). the radical polymerizable monomer 104 produces a radical by irradiating the liquid crystal layer 105 with light and using the radical as active species , the radical polymerizable group of the radical polymerizable monomer 104 successively starts and promotes chain polymerization to be polymerized . the polymer formed by the polymerization is deposited in form of a polymer layer ( psa layer ) 107 on the alignment film 108 formed on the substrates 110 and 120 as illustrated in fig2 . as described above , it is supposed that stains and display unevenness generated in high temperature and high humidity environments are caused by penetration of the liquid crystal layer with water , an impurity , or the like . if the liquid crystal layer is penetrated with water , an impurity , or the like , the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) is lowered and direct current offset voltage ( hereinafter , also referred to as remaining dc voltage ) tends to be generated easily in the inside of the liquid crystal layer . since having an amide group , the radical polymerizable monomer 104 can form a hydrogen bond with water , a water - soluble impurity , or the like . because of that , the remaining amount of water , an impurity , or the like in the liquid crystal layer can be lessened by forming the polymer layer 107 by using the radical polymerizable monomer 104 and thus decrease of the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) and generation of the remaining dc voltage can be suppressed . as a result , it is made possible to obtain a liquid crystal display device which can keep high display quality even in high temperature and high humidity environments . in a conventional psa technique , a polymerization initiator is usually used but in the case where a polymerization initiator ( e . g . irgacure 651 or the like ) is used , products formed by cleavage resulted from ultraviolet irradiation float as impurities in a liquid crystal and consequently lower the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ). in embodiment 1 , since the radical polymerizable monomer 104 produce a radical by itself , such a polymerization initiator is not required and thus impurities derived from the polymerization initiator are not produced . as a result , high voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) can be maintained . further , since having two polymerizable groups , the radical polymerizable monomer 104 is easy to be taken in a polymer layer 107 when the polymer layer 107 is formed and hardly remains as an impurity in the liquid crystal layer and consequently does not lower the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ). as illustrated in fig2 , in embodiment 1 , the polymer layer 107 is formed on the surface of the alignment film 108 formed on the array substrate 110 and the color filter substrate 120 . between the array substrate 110 and the color filter substrate 120 , a sealing material 103 is stuck to the alignment film 108 along the outer rim of these substrates 110 and 120 and the liquid crystal layer 105 is enclosed between the array substrate 110 and the color filter substrate 120 by the sealing material 103 . irradiation of the liquid crystal layer 105 with light is carried out after sealing the liquid crystal layer 105 by the sealing material 103 so that the polymer layer 107 is formed in the region surrounded with the sealing material 103 . in embodiment 1 , at the time of carrying out the psa polymerization step , a polymer is formed following the liquid crystal molecules aligned in the state that voltage not lower than the threshold value is applied to the liquid crystal layer 105 by irradiating the liquid crystal layer 105 with light in the state that voltage not lower than the threshold value is applied . in this case , the polymer layer to be formed is to have a structure for defining the pre - tilt angle to the liquid crystal molecules even in the state that no voltage is applied thereafter . further , in the case where one or more kind radical polymerizable monomers in embodiment 1 are used , a polymer layer can be produced and liquid crystal molecules can be aligned in a specified direction on the substrate face without applying voltage not lower than the threshold value to the liquid crystal layer 105 at the time of the psa polymerization step by carrying out an alignment treatment for the alignment film 108 . other constituent elements of a liquid crystal display device of embodiment 1 will be described in detail . in the liquid crystal display device of embodiment 1 , the array substrate 110 , the liquid crystal layer 105 and the color filter substrate 120 are layered in this order from the back side of the liquid crystal display device to the observation side . polarizing plates are installed in the back side of the array substrate 110 and in the observation side of the color filter substrate 120 . a retardation film may be arranged for these polarizing plates and the polarizing plates may be circular polarization plates . the liquid crystal display device of embodiment 1 may be a transmission type , a reflection type , and a transmission / reflection combined type . in the case of a transmission type or a transmission / reflection combined type , the liquid crystal display device of embodiment 1 is further equipped with a back light unit . the back light unit is arranged further in the back side of the array substrate 110 and arranged in a manner that light is transmitted through the array substrate 110 , the liquid crystal layer 105 , and the color filter substrate 120 in this order . in the case of a reflection type or a transmission / reflection combined type , the array substrate 110 is equipped with a reflector for reflecting light from outside . further , in a region in which at least the reflected light is used for display , the polarizing plate of the color filter substrate 120 is required to have a circular polarization plate equipped with so - called λ / 4 retardation film . the liquid crystal layer 105 is filled with a liquid crystal material having a property of aligning in a specified direction by applying a certain voltage . the alignment property of the liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer 105 is controlled based on application of voltage not lower than the threshold value . the liquid crystal material may be one having positive anisotropy of dielectric constant and one having negative anisotropy of dielectric constant . the above - mentioned alignment film 108 may be either a vertical alignment film or a horizontal alignment film . a vertical alignment film means an alignment film by which liquid crystal molecules are aligned vertically to the substrate face at the time of no voltage application and may be subjected to an alignment treatment . vertical alignment means that an average initial tilt angle of liquid crystal molecules to the substrate face is 60 ° to 90 ° and preferably 80 ° to 90 °. a horizontal alignment film means an alignment film by which liquid crystal molecules are aligned horizontally to the substrate face at the time of no voltage application and may be subjected to an alignment treatment . horizontal alignment means that an average initial tilt angle of liquid crystal molecules to the substrate face is 0 ° to 30 ° and preferably 0 ° to 10 °. “ tilt angle ” is an angle between the major axis of liquid crystal molecules and the substrate face and is defined in a range of 0 ° to 90 ° and “ average tilt angle ” is sometimes referred to as “ tilt angle ”. the average tilt angle of liquid crystal molecules to each substrate at the time of no voltage application is called as “ average initial tilt angle ” and hereinafter , simply referred to also as “ pre - tilt angle ”. an alignment treatment method may be a rubbing method , a photo - alignment method , etc . the array substrate 110 and the color filter substrate 120 may be stuck by using a sealing material and those which are hardened by heat , those which are hardened by ultraviolet irradiation , and those which are hardened by both heat and ultraviolet irradiation may be used as the sealing material . regarding the liquid crystal display device of embodiment 1 , the liquid crystal display device ( e . g . a mobile phone , a monitor , a liquid crystal tv ( television ), and information display ) is disassembled and the monomer components existing in the polymer layer are analyzed by carrying out chemical analysis using nmr ( nuclear magnetic resonance ), ft - ir ( fourier transform infrared spectroscopy ), ms ( mass spectrometry ), etc . and thus the types of the monomer components can be determined . embodiment 2 is the same as embodiment 1 , except that another monomer having a structure for producing a radical by light irradiation is used in addition to the radical polymerizable monomer used in embodiment 1 . hereinafter , one example of a liquid crystal display device of embodiment 2 will be described . fig3 and fig4 are schematic views of a cross section of a liquid crystal display device of embodiment 2 . fig3 illustrates a view before the psa polymerization step and fig4 illustrates a view after the psa polymerization step . as illustrated in fig3 and fig4 , the liquid crystal display device of embodiment 2 has an array substrate 210 , a color filter substrate 220 , and a liquid crystal layer 205 sandwiched between a pair of the substrates , that is , the array substrate 210 and the color filter substrate 220 . the array substrate 210 has an insulating transparent substrate made of a material such as glass or the like , various kinds of wiring formed on the transparent substrate , a pixel electrode , a tft , etc . the color filter substrate 220 has an insulating transparent substrate made of a material such as glass or the like , a color filter formed on the transparent substrate , a black matrix , and a common electrode . the array substrate 210 and the color filter substrate 220 are respectively provided with an alignment film 208 on the surfaces in the liquid crystal layer 205 side . as illustrated in fig3 , before the psa polymerization step , the liquid crystal layer 205 contains a liquid crystal material , a first radical polymerizable monomer 204 , and a second radical polymerizable monomer 206 . the first radical polymerizable monomer 204 is a compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 1 ) and more practically a compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 2 ) and furthermore practically a compound represented by one of the above - mentioned formula ( 5 - 1 ) to ( 5 - 18 ). the second radical polymerizable monomer 206 is a monomer having a structure for producing a radical by light irradiation and may be a compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 3 ) or ( 6 - 1 ) to ( 6 - 8 ) and having a structure for producing a radical by hydrogen abstraction reaction by light irradiation and a compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 4 ) or ( 7 ) and having a structure for producing a radical by self - cleavage reaction by light irradiation . use of a monomer having a structure for producing a radical by light irradiation in combination can promote polymerization reaction with no need of newly adding a polymerization initiator and prevent decrease of voltage holding ratio ( vhr ). both of the first radical polymerizable monomer 204 and the second radical polymerizable monomer 206 independently produce a radical by irradiating the liquid crystal layer 205 with light and using the radical as active species , the radical polymerizable groups of the first radical polymerizable monomer 204 and the second radical polymerizable monomer 206 successively start and promote chain polymerization to be polymerized . the polymer formed by the polymerization is deposited in the form of a polymer layer ( psa layer ) 207 on the alignment film 208 formed on the substrates 210 and 220 as illustrated in fig4 . as illustrated in fig4 , in embodiment 2 , the polymer layer 207 is formed on the surface of the alignment film 208 formed on the array substrate 210 and the color filter substrate 220 . between the array substrate 210 and the color filter substrate 220 , a sealing material 203 is stuck to the alignment film 208 along the outer rim of these substrates 210 and 220 and the liquid crystal layer 205 is enclosed between the array substrate 210 and the color filter substrate 220 by the sealing material 203 . irradiation of the liquid crystal layer 205 with light is carried out after sealing the liquid crystal layer 205 by the sealing material 203 so that the polymer layer 207 is formed in the region surrounded with the sealing material 203 . in the same manner as in embodiment 1 , in embodiment 2 , it is also made possible to obtain a liquid crystal display device which can keep high display quality even in high temperature and high humidity environments . use of a monomer having a structure for producing a radical by light irradiation in combination makes it possible to form the polymer layer within a short irradiation time and thus improve the throughput . hereinafter , described is a synthesis example for synthesizing 1 - methacrylamino - 5 - methacryloxynaphthalene as a practical example of a radical polymerizable monomer represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 1 ). as illustrated in the following chemical reaction formula ( 8 ), 2 . 0 g of 1 - amino - 5 - hydroxynaphthalene made available in markets was dissolved in 14 g of tetrahydrofuran ( thf ) and 3 . 18 g of triethylamine ( tea ) and 0 . 15 g of 4 - dimethylaminopyridine ( dmap ) were added to the obtained solution and stirred and cooled until the solution temperature became 15 ° c . a solution obtained by dissolving 4 . 84 g of methacrylic anhydride in 5 ml of thf was dropwise added to the above - mentioned resulting solution in 10 minutes . on completion of the dropwise addition , the solution mixture was stirred for 2 hours and mixed with 30 g of an aqueous 1 % hcl solution and stirred further for 10 minutes . thereafter , extraction was carried out with 55 g of methyl isobutyl ketone and the extract was washed with pure water 4 times . thereafter , the residue obtained by removing the solvent was refined by column chromatography using an ethyl acetate / hexane ( 10 / 90 ) solution as an eluent to obtain the following compound at 22 % yield . the analysis result of the obtained compound by 1 h - nmr ( 400 mhz ) is as follows . 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 , ppm ): δ = 2 . 16 ( s , 3h , methyl group ), 2 . 17 ( s , 3h , methyl group ), 5 . 57 ( s , 1h , vinyl group ), 5 . 88 ( s , 1h , vinyl group ), 5 . 96 ( s , 1h , vinyl group ), 6 . 53 ( s , 1h , vinyl group ), 7 . 25 ( d , 2h , benzene ring ), 7 . 53 ( t , 1h , benzene ring ), 7 . 75 ( m , 2h , benzene ring ), 7 . 91 ( s , 1h , amino group ), 8 . 06 ( d , 1h , benzene ring ) according to the above - mentioned analysis result , the obtained compound was proved to be the aimed compound , 1 - methacrylamino - 5 - methacryloxynaphthalene . hereinafter , a liquid crystal cell of example 1 practically produced according to embodiment 1 will be described . at first , a pair of substrates respectively having a transparent electrode on the surface were prepared and after the substrates were washed , an alignment film material was applied to both substrates to form a vertical alignment film of a polyimide . after the alignment film formation , the alignment film was pre - baked at 80 ° c . for 5 minutes and successively post - baked at 200 ° c . for 60 minutes . thereafter , a sealing material was applied to one substrate and while ultraviolet rays being radiated at 5 j / cm 2 , a liquid crystal composition containing a liquid crystal material having negative anisotropy of dielectric constant and a radical polymerizable monomer was dropped . the sealing material was temporarily hardened by dropping the liquid crystal composition while irradiating with ultraviolet rays . thereafter , beads were dispersed as a spacer to the counter substrate and the substrates were stuck to each other and the sealing material was actually hardened by heating at 100 ° c . in example 1 , a naphthalene compound represented by the following formula ( 9 ) was added as a radical polymerizable monomer in an amount of 0 . 25 weight % based on the entire liquid crystal composition . the compound represented by the following formula ( 9 ) was 1 - methacrylamino - 5 - methacryloxynaphthalene obtained by the above - mentioned synthesis example . as comparative objects to example 1 , comparative examples 1 and 2 were produced . in comparative example 1 , a compound represented by the following formula ( 10 ) was added as a radical polymerizable monomer in an amount of 0 . 25 weight % based on the entire liquid crystal composition . in comparative example 2 , no radical polymerizable monomer was added . in the state that 10 v voltage was applied between transparent electrodes included in the upper and lower substrates , example 1 and comparative examples 1 and 2 were irradiated with 2 . 57 mw / cm 2 of non - polarized ultraviolet rays from a normal direction for 20 minutes to polymerize the radical polymerizable monomers and to complete liquid crystal cells . a black light fhf - 32blb ( wavelength region : 300 to 370 nm ) manufactured by toshiba lighting & amp ; technology corporation was used as a light source for the non - polarized ultraviolet rays . regarding the completed respective liquid crystal cells , initial voltage holding ratio ( vhr ), voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after an aging test , and remaining dc voltage after the aging test were measured for the respective liquid crystal cells . the aging test was carried out by leaving the cells in the environments of 45 ° c . and 90 % humidity for 1000 hours . the aging test was carried out in high temperature and high humidity environments and the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) and the remaining dc voltage after the aging test were measured to evaluate the degree of occurrence of the above - mentioned stains and display unevenness . in the case where the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) is high and the remaining dc voltage is low after the aging test , it can be said that such a liquid crystal display device can keep high display quality even in high temperature and high humidity environments . the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) was measured by using a 6254 model liquid crystal physical property measurement system manufactured by toyo corporation . at first , pulsed voltage was applied to between electrodes included in both substrates of each liquid crystal cell to electrically charge between electrodes . thereafter , potential between electrodes was measured for 16 . 6 ms open period ( period for applying no voltage ) and the ratio of the electric charge retained was measured . the remaining dc voltage was measured by applying 1v dc offset voltage to each liquid crystal cell for 10 hours and employing a flicker elimination method . the following table 1 represents the measurement results of the initial voltage holding ratio ( initial vhr ), voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test , and remaining dc voltage after the aging test for example 1 and comparative examples 1 and 2 . in example 1 , the initial voltage holding ratio ( initial vhr ) was as high as 99 % or higher and voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was not so much decreased and higher than that of comparative examples 1 and 2 . the remaining dc voltage after the aging test for example 1 represented a significantly - low value as compared with that for comparative examples 1 and 2 . on the other hand , in comparative examples 1 and 2 , the initial voltage holding ratio ( initial vhr ) was high but the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was lowered to 93 % level for both . the remaining dc voltage was 130 mv for comparative example 1 and 170 mv for comparative example 2 and so high for both . according to the above - mentioned results , it is supposed that since having an amide group , the polymer layer ( psa layer ) formed from the compound represented by the formula ( 9 ) of example 1 formed hydrogen bonds with water , impurities , etc ., penetrating the liquid crystal layer and accordingly , the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was high and the remaining dc voltage was low . on the other hand , it is supposed that although forming a polymer layer , the compound represented by the formula ( 10 ) used in comparative example 1 had no amide group and therefore failed to sufficiently form hydrogen bonds with water , impurities , etc ., penetrating the liquid crystal layer and accordingly , the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was lowered and high remaining dc voltage was generated . in comparative example 2 , it is supposed that since water , impurities , etc ., penetrate the liquid crystal layer , the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was lowered and high remaining dc voltage was generated . as described above , use of a monomer having an amide group and represented by the formula ( 9 ) makes it possible to obtain a liquid crystal display device capable of keeping high display quality even in high temperature and high humidity environments . hereinafter , liquid crystal cells of examples 2 to 4 practically produced according to embodiment 2 will be described . the production method for a liquid crystal cell employed in evaluation test 2 was the same as that in evaluation test 1 , except that a monomer having a structure for producing a radical by hydrogen abstraction reaction by light irradiation or by self - cleavage reaction by light irradiation was added to a liquid crystal composition and that the light irradiation time for polymerizing the radical polymerizable monomer was changed to 10 minutes . the liquid crystal cells produced in evaluation test 2 were obtained from the following examples 2 to 4 . in examples 2 to 4 , naphthalene compounds represented by the following formula ( 9 ) were added as a radical polymerizable monomer in an amount of 0 . 25 weight % based on the entire liquid crystal compositions , respectively . in examples 2 to 4 , monomers having a structure for producing a radical by hydrogen abstraction reaction or self - cleavage reaction by light irradiation were added . in example 2 , a benzophenone compound represented by the following formula ( 11 ) was added in an amount of 0 . 05 weight %: in example 3 , a benzyl compound represented by the following formula ( 12 ) was added in an amount of 0 . 05 weight %: and in example 4 , a benzylketal compound represented by the following formula ( 13 ) was added in an amount of 0 . 05 weight % based on the entire liquid crystal compositions , respectively . the compounds represented by the following formulas ( 11 ) and ( 12 ) are monomers having a structure for producing a radical by hydrogen abstraction reaction by light irradiation and the compound represented by the following formula ( 13 ) is a monomer having a structure for producing a radical by self - cleavage reaction by light irradiation . regarding the completed respective liquid crystal cells , initial voltage holding ratio ( vhr ), voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after an aging test , and remaining dc voltage after the aging test were measured for the respective liquid crystal cells . the measurement method for voltage holding ratio ( vhr ), the measurement method for remaining dc voltage , and the method for aging test were the same as those in evaluation test 1 . the following table 2 represents the measurement results of the initial voltage holding ratio ( initial vhr ), voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test , and remaining dc voltage after the aging test for examples 2 to 4 . in all of examples 2 and 4 , the initial voltage holding ratio ( initial vhr ) was as high as 99 % or higher and the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was also a high value . in all of examples 2 and 4 , the remaining dc voltage was a low value . from the above - mentioned results , a polymer layer can be formed by light irradiation within a short time by using a radical polymerizable monomer having an amide group represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 9 ) in combination with a monomer represented by the above - mentioned formulas ( 11 ) and ( 12 ) and having a structure for producing a radical by hydrogen abstraction reaction by light irradiation or a monomer represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 13 ) and having a structure for producing a radical by self - cleavage reaction by light irradiation . it is supposed that since having an amide group , the formed polymer layer formed hydrogen bonds with water , impurities , etc ., penetrating the liquid crystal layer and accordingly , the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was high and the remaining dc voltage was low . as described above , a liquid crystal display device capable of keeping high display quality even in high temperature and high humidity environments was obtained by using a monomer having an amide group as represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 9 ) in combination with a monomer having a structure for producing a radical by hydrogen abstraction reaction by light irradiation or a monomer having a structure for producing a radical by self - cleavage reaction by light irradiation . hereinafter , a liquid crystal cell of example 5 practically produced according to embodiment 1 will be described . the production method for a liquid crystal cell employed in evaluation test 3 is the same as that employed in evaluation test 1 , except that a polyimide horizontal alignment film with low imidation ratio was formed on the substrates and that a liquid crystal material with positive anisotropy of dielectric constant was used . in example 5 , a naphthalene compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 9 ) was added as a radical polymerizable monomer in an amount of 0 . 25 weight % based on the entire liquid crystal composition . as comparative objects to examples , comparative examples 3 and 4 were produced . in comparative example 3 , a compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 10 ) was added as a radical polymerizable monomer in an amount of 0 . 25 weight % based on the entire liquid crystal composition . in comparative example 4 , no radical polymerizable monomer was added . regarding the completed respective liquid crystal cells , initial voltage holding ratio ( vhr ), voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after an aging test , and remaining dc voltage after the aging test were measured for the respective liquid crystal cells . the measurement method for voltage holding ratio ( vhr ), the measurement method for remaining dc voltage , and the method for aging test were the same as those in evaluation test 1 . the following table 3 represents the measurement results of the initial voltage holding ratio ( initial vhr ), voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test , and remaining dc voltage after the aging test for example 5 and comparative examples 3 and 4 . in example 5 , the initial voltage holding ratio ( initial vhr ) was as high as 98 % or higher , and voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was not so much decreased and higher than that of comparative examples 3 and 4 . the remaining dc voltage after the aging test for example 5 represented a significantly - low value as compared with that for comparative examples 3 and 4 . on the other hand , in comparative examples 3 and 4 , the initial voltage holding ratio ( initial vhr ) was high but the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was lowered to 92 % level for comparative example 3 and to 90 % level for comparative example 4 . the remaining dc voltage was 120 mv for comparative example 3 and 170 mv for comparative example 4 and so high for both . according to the above - mentioned results , it is supposed that since having an amide group , the polymer layer ( psa layer ) formed from the compound represented by the formula ( 9 ) of example 5 formed hydrogen bonds with water , impurities , etc ., penetrating the liquid crystal layer and accordingly , the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test is high and the remaining dc voltage is low . on the other hand , it is supposed that although forming a polymer layer , the compound represented by the formula ( 10 ) used in comparative example 3 had no amide group and therefore failed to sufficiently form hydrogen bonds with water , impurities , etc ., penetrating the liquid crystal layer and accordingly , the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was lowered and high remaining dc voltage was generated . in comparative example 4 , it is supposed that since water , impurities , etc ., penetrated the liquid crystal layer , the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was lowered and high remaining dc voltage was generated . as described above , even in the case where a polyamic acid alignment film , that is , a polyimide horizontal alignment film with low imidation ratio , is used , use of a monomer having an amide group and represented by the formula ( 9 ) makes it possible to obtain a liquid crystal display device capable of keeping high display quality even in high temperature and high humidity environments . hereinafter , liquid crystal cells of examples 6 to 8 practically produced according to embodiment 2 will be described . the production method for a liquid crystal cell employed in evaluation test 4 was the same as that in evaluation test 3 , except that a monomer having a structure for producing a radical by hydrogen abstraction reaction by light irradiation or by self - cleavage reaction by light irradiation was added to a liquid crystal composition and that the light irradiation time for polymerizing the radical polymerizable monomer was changed to 10 minutes . the liquid crystal cells produced in evaluation test 4 were obtained from the following examples 6 to 8 . in examples 6 to 8 , naphthalene compounds represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 9 ) were added as a radical polymerizable monomer in an amount of 0 . 25 weight % based on the entire liquid crystal compositions , respectively . in examples 6 to 8 , monomers having a structure for producing a radical by hydrogen abstraction reaction or self - cleavage reaction by light irradiation were added . in example 6 , a benzophenone compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 11 ) was added in an amount of 0 . 05 weight %: in example 7 , a benzyl compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 12 ) was added in an amount of 0 . 05 weight %: and in example 8 , a benzylketal compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 13 ) was added in an amount of 0 . 05 weight % based on the entire liquid crystal compositions , respectively . the compounds represented by the above - mentioned formulas ( 11 ) and ( 12 ) are monomers having a structure for producing a radical by hydrogen abstraction reaction by light irradiation and the compound represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 13 ) is a monomer having a structure for producing a radical by self - cleavage reaction by light irradiation . regarding the completed respective liquid crystal cells , initial voltage holding ratio ( vhr ), voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after an aging test , and remaining dc voltage after the aging test were measured for the respective liquid crystal cells . the measurement method for voltage holding ratio ( vhr ), the measurement method for remaining dc voltage , and the method for aging test were the same as those in evaluation test 1 . the following table 4 represents the measurement results of the initial voltage holding ratio ( initial vhr ), voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test , and remaining dc voltage after the aging test for examples 6 to 8 . in all of examples 6 to 8 , the initial voltage holding ratio ( initial vhr ) was as high as 98 % or higher and the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was not so much lowered . in all of examples 6 and 8 , the remaining dc voltage was a low value . from the above - mentioned results , a polymer layer can be formed by light irradiation within a short time by using a radical polymerizable monomer having an amide group represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 9 ) in combination with a monomer represented by the above - mentioned chemical formulas ( 11 ) and ( 12 ) and having a structure for producing a radical by hydrogen abstraction reaction by light irradiation or a monomer represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 13 ) and having a structure for producing a radical by self - cleavage reaction by light irradiation . it is supposed that since having an amide group , the formed polymer layer formed hydrogen bonds with water , impurities , etc ., penetrating the liquid crystal layer and accordingly , the voltage holding ratio ( vhr ) after the aging test was high and the remaining dc voltage was low . as described above , a liquid crystal display device capable of keeping high display quality even in high temperature and high humidity environments was obtained by using a monomer having an amide group as represented by the above - mentioned formula ( 9 ) in combination with a monomer having a structure for producing a radical by hydrogen abstraction reaction by light irradiation or a monomer having a structure for producing a radical by self - cleavage reaction by light irradiation . according to the results of evaluation tests 1 to 4 , a liquid crystal display device capable of keeping high display quality even in high temperature and high humidity environments can be obtained by using either a vertical alignment film or a horizontal alignment film . further , a liquid crystal display device capable of keeping high display quality even in high temperature and high humidity environments can be obtained by using a liquid crystal material with positive anisotropy of dielectric constant and a liquid crystal material with negative anisotropy of dielectric constant .	6
as stated above , the present invention provides a multiple - pivot apparatus that can lift , excavate , secure , split and / or crush tree stumps , as well as other materials , particularly other wooden materials . referring now to fig1 and 5 , a tree stump lifting and crushing apparatus 10 of the present invention is shown . the apparatus generally comprises three main components , an arm - like supporting structure 11 , an engaging unit 12 , and a cutting device 13 . in a preferred embodiment , these components are made of mild and high carbon steel , e . g ., t 1 , or other suitable metal material . such materials are commercially available from a variety of steel suppliers . the supporting structure 11 has a curved l - shape and is movably attached at its upper end 11 ′ to a suitable power source , e . g ., a hydraulically powered , manipulatable boom such as a bucket arm of a digging machine 27 ( as shown in fig5 ). as shown in fig4 a - 4 b , the supporting structure 11 comprises two reinforcing side plates or sticks 15 and 15 ′, with a stick backplate 16 disposed therebetween . in a preferred embodiment of the present invention , sticks 15 and 15 ′ have a wider diameter at their lower end , to which a similarly shaped reinforcing plate , referred to as supporting plate 17 and 17 ′ is welded or otherwise mountably attached . this design provides additional reinforcement to the supporting structure during the cutting process and avoids destructive engagement of the engaging and cutting device . in a particularly preferred embodiment of the present invention , the lower surfaces of supporting plates 17 and 17 ′ are serated as denoted by reference numeral 30 in fig4 b and 7 . the serated edges absorb force and further reduce the opportunity for slippage of the tree stump or other work material during the crushing and excavating operation . the thickness of the sticks 15 and 15 ′ is preferably about 1 to ½ inches , more preferably about ½ to 1 inch , most preferably about 3 inch . the thickness of the supporting structure backplate 16 is preferably about ¼ to ½ inches , more preferably about ½ to 1 inch , most preferably about ¾ inch . as shown in fig1 and 7 , the engaging unit 12 and cutting device 13 are each pivotably and opposedly connected to the lower portion 11 ′ of the supporting structure 11 by means of two pivot pin assemblies 14 and 14 ′, respectively . referring to fig7 the pivot pin assemblies are shown in partially assembled detail . the multiple pivots of an apparatus of the invention may be suitably spaced apart by a relatively wide range of dimensions . preferred distances to space the multiple pivots may depend in part on the targeted use of the particular apparatus . more specifically , referring to fig1 pivots 14 and 14 ′ may be suitably spaced ( i . e . distance x in fig1 ) from about 10 inches to 6 feet , more typically distance x being from about 1 foot to about 4 feet . a distance x between pivots 14 and 14 ′ of about 3 feet may be particularly preferred . it also is generally preferable that the length of the engaging unit and cutting or grappling devices be essentially unilateral with respect to the distance between the pivots . again , referring to fig1 respective distances y and z are preferably substantially equivalent to distance x . in preferred embodiments of the present invention , the configuration of distances x , y and z provide an opening at maximum power of about 6 to about 15 feet , more preferably of about 7 to about 12 feet . referring to fig2 and 7 , the engaging unit 12 comprises two side plates 18 and 18 ′, with each side plate having a spear - like extension , 19 and 19 ′ respectively , extending from its leading edge , and a backplate 20 securely disposed therebetween . in a preferred embodiment , extensions 19 and 19 ′ comprise replaceable teeth with a cap pinned to a shank unit which are welded to side plates 18 and 18 ′. the backplate 20 provides significant support and reinforcement to the engaging unit 12 during the lifting , excavating , splitting and crushing process . the planar design of the backplate 20 does not invite any clogging or debris from the stumps being crushed . therefore , opportunity for damage to the apparatus associated with clogging or debris and the downtime associated therewith are substantially eliminated . the thickness of side plates 18 and 18 ′ of the engaging unit 12 is preferably about 1 to 2 inches , more preferably about 1½ inches . the thickness of the engaging unit &# 39 ; s backplate 20 is preferably about 1 to 2 inches , more preferably about 1½ inches . referring with particularity to fig2 d , an alternate preferred embodiment of the engaging unit is shown to include a rake attachment 29 . using such a configuration , the engaging unit can perform an additional function without disrupting the excavating and cutting operation . for example , the rake attachment 29 can be used as a tool for clearing debris , dirt and the like from the work area during the operation . such an attachment is typically welded to the engaging unit &# 39 ; s back plate 20 or to a tool bar in proximity thereto . a variety of other attachments also may suitably be used to facilitate various functions , e . g ., a blade attachment for specialized excavation . referring to fig3 the cutting device generally comprises a curved , sharpened outer surface , termed a knife blade 21 . in a preferred embodiment , a similarly curved , elongated knife tooth 22 is mountably attached to the knife blade . the knife tooth provides a penetration point for initiating the splitting process . preferably , the two sides of the knife tooth 22 and 22 ′ extend across about the lower ⅔ section of the knife blade 21 . the knife tooth is preferably made from ar 400 steel ( an abrasive resistant form of t - 1 ). a knife tooth plate 23 is disposed between the two sides of the knife tooth and provides reinforcement and strength to the cutting device structure during the tree stump splitting and crushing process . the knife tooth plate 23 also increases the wear - resistance and longevity of the device . the knife tooth and knife tooth plate may be removed , sharpened and replaced as necessary . in an alternate embodiment of the present invention , the apparatus 10 comprises a grappling unit 28 . referring to fig6 grappling units 28 and 28 ′ extend from either side of pin assembly 14 ′ and connect to the respective sides of knife tooth 22 and 22 ′. the grappling unit may be used in addition to the cutting device components described above , or it may be manufactured as a stand - alone unit . as should be understood from fig6 with grappling unit 28 , apparatus 10 can be employed to haul or otherwise transport any of a variety of materials , including tree stumps or other loads that may be present at an excavation site . additionally , by employing the multiple spaced pivots for engaging and grappling units , greater volumes of materials can be lifted and transported with an apparatus of the invention , relative to prior grappling systems . as in the case of the knife tooth , the other components of the cutting device are preferably made from ar 400 steel ( an abrasive resistant form of t - 1 ). the thickness of the sides of the knife tooth 22 and 22 ′ and the knife tooth plate 23 are preferably ¼ to 1 inch , more preferably about 2½ inch . the thickness of the knife blade 21 is preferably about 2 to 4 inches , more preferably about 2½ inches . referring to fig1 a and 5 , a plurality of anchor hooks 24 protrude from each of the outer surfaces of sticks 15 and 15 ′ in one preferred embodiment of the present invention . the anchor hooks 24 , preferably welded to the sticks 15 and 15 ′, provide a means of securing a first and second reinforcing member 25 and 25 ′ ( shown in fig5 ) on either side of the sticks 15 and 15 ′. typically , one end of the reinforcing member 25 is mounted to one or more of the anchor hooks 24 ; the other end is secured to , e . g ., connected and / or in communication with , the pivot point assemblies 14 and 14 ′. this novel aspect of the present invention provides additional support and durability to the apparatus during the tree lifting and crushing operation . further , this design provides significant ease of operation in terms of mounting and dismounting attachments relative to an excavator . in an alternate preferred embodiment of the present invention , the first and second reinforcing members 25 and 25 ′ are secured to the supporting structure by a plurality of clamps 31 and case hardened steel pins 32 ( shown in fig7 ). such a configuration eliminates the need for welding anchor hooks or a similar structure on the sticks of the apparatus , thus eliminating the possibility of damage to the boom , e . g ., cracks and the like , which may result as a consequence of welding . referring with particularity to fig5 movement and communication of the engaging unit 12 and cutting device 13 are facilitated by auxiliary hydraulic circuits , designated herein as hydraulic cylinders 26 and 26 ′. on one side of the supporting structure , a first hydraulic cylinder 26 is attached at one end to an aperture 28 on reinforcing member 25 . referring also to fig7 the other end of the hydraulic cylinder is attached to a rear portion 33 of engaging unit 12 . on the other side of the supporting structure , a second hydraulic cylinder 26 ′ connects reinforcing member 25 ′ to a rear portion , e . g ., aperture 34 , of cutting device 13 . in a preferred embodiment , case hardened steel pins 32 are used to facilitate these attachments . the two hydraulic cylinders 26 and 26 ′ can be manually retracted and extended using hydraulics controlled from the cab of the digging machine . this operation facilitates movement and communication of the engaging unit 12 and cutting device 13 during the tree stump lifting and crushing process . further , the novel configuration of the present invention provides a crushing device which offers maximum power ( force ) when the engaging unit and cutting or grappling devices are in an open position , e . g ., positioned at a 90 ° angle with respect to the arm - like supporting structure . referring again to fig5 the tree stump lifting and crushing operation can be illustrated as follows . using hydraulics controlled from the cab of the digging machine , the operator of the digging machine can move the bucket arm of the digging machine 27 to deploy the arm - like supporting structure 11 to the desired location in proximity of the targeted tree stump . the engaging unit 12 and cutting device 13 are then drawn back and apart utilizing their respective hydraulic cylinders 26 and 26 ′ and pivot point assemblies 14 and 14 ′. the tree stump then can be grasped , lifted and positioned securely against engaging unit 12 . while the stump is securely held by engaging unit 12 , splitting and crushing of the stump is effected by retracting and releasing the cutting device 13 utilizing hydraulic cylinder 26 ′ and the hydraulic controls associated therewith . depending upon the length and size of the stump , this movement can be repeated as necessary to effect the desired degree of crushing of the stump . the terms and expressions which have been employed herein are used as terms of description and not of limitation . there is no intent , in the use of such terms and expressions , of excluding any of the equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof , but it is recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention claimed .	0
a549 — human neoplastic cells of the lung cancer ; the continuous line obtained from the institute of the immunology and the experimental therapy of polish academy of science in wroclaw . ht - 29 — human neoplastic cells of the large intestine cancer ; the continuous line obtained from the institute of the immunology and the experimental therapy of polish academy of science in wroclaw . c6 — the rat neoplastic cells of the brain cancer ( glioma ); the continuous line obtained from the department of neonatology , humboldt university , berlin , germany . cells of the a549 line were cultured on the basis dmem : f - 12 ham ( 2 : 1 ), ht - 29 and c6 cells on the basis dmem . to the culture basis , 10 % foetal beast serum ( fbs ), penicillin 100 i . u ./ ml and streptomycin 100 . mu . g / ml were added . the basis dmem : f - 12 ham , dmem was produced by sigma company ( sigma , st . louis , mo ., u . s . a .). the foetal beast serum ( fbs ) was produced by life technologies company ( life technologies , karlsruhe , germany ). remaining reagents were produced by sigma company . cells stored in liquid nitrogen in a tissue bank were unfrozen at a temperature of 37 . degree . c ., then poured into the plastic bottles containing the proper basis . they were cultured in a temperature of 37 . degree . c . in the incubator with 5 % co . sub . 2 flow . after the cells &# 39 ; reproduction liquid was poured out , the cells were washed with pbs ( without the calcium and magnesium ions ) and processed with 0 . 25 % trypsin solution + edta to receive the suspension of cells necessary in the experience . prepared earlier , in the culture basis , a suspension of cells with a density 1 . times . 10 . sup . 4 cells / ml ( a549 ), 4 . times . 10 . sup . 4 cells / ml ( ht - 29 ) and 0 . 5 . times . 10 . sup . 4 cells / ml ( c6 ) was poured into the 96 - pits microplate with the flat bottom ( nunc company , roskilde , denmark ) in the volume 100 . mu . 1 / pit . after sticking of cells ( 24 hours ) the liquid was carefully pulled down and then different concentrations of akg and examined cytostatics ( cyclophosphamide , iphosphamid , thiotepa ) in liquid with 10 % fbs ( 100 . parallel . 1 / pit ) were added . the cultures on plates were left for 96 hours incubation at a temperature of 37 . degree . c ., in the atmosphere 95 % air and 5 % co . sub . 2 . the antiproliferative activity of examined substances was assessed with the method mtt . the method mtt ( according to kit “ cell proliferation kit iii ”, boehringer manheim ) this method was worked out to determine the proliferation and vitality of cells in studies on the cytotoxic and antiproliferative substances . in metabolically active cells tetrazolic yellow salt mtt is reduced to formazane blue with the mitochondrial dehydrases . formazane crystals , insoluble in water , accumulate in cells and for their dissolutions the use of organic detergent , breaking the membrane and simultaneously solvent the dye , is necessary . for this purpose the buffer sds - hc1 with ph 7 . 4 is used . the concentration of released dye is evaluated quantitatively in the reader for 96 - pits plates at the wavelength 570 nm . the colour intensity is directly proportional to the quantity of alive cells . mtt solution in pbs condition in concentration 5 mg / ml was added into each pit on a plastic plate in a dose of 15 . mu . 1 / pit . plates were incubated for 3 hours at a temperature of 37 . degree . c . thereafter , buffer sds - hc1 in a does 100 . mu . 1 / pit was added and the plates were left at a temperature of 37 . degree . c . all night . the results were evaluated next day with the use of e - max reader ( molecular devices corporation , menlo park , calif ., u . s . a .). this method is for the estimation of the activity of substances affecting the mobility of cells in vitro . it is used in research on wounds healing , angiogenesis and neoplastic metastases . c6 cells ( 1 . times . 10 . sup . 6 ) suspended in the culture basis with the addition of 10 % serum ( fbs ) were poured onto the culture plates ( nunc , roskilde , denmark ) with 4 cm diameter . next day in the equal layer of cells the flaw ( wound ) was done with the ending of automatic pipette and unstuck cells were removed by twice - rinsing the plates with a pbs solution . then , akg ( 10 and 20 mm ) dissolved in the culture basis was added to the prepared culture . plates were incubated for 24 hours in a temperature of 37 . degree . c . and in a humid atmosphere 95 % air and 5 % co . sub . 2 . thereafter the cultures were coloured with the may - grunwald - giemza method . then the microscopic analysis was performed with the microscope olympus bx51 ( olympus optical co ., ltd , tokyo , japan ) with the use of the software analysis . rtm . ( soft imaging system gmbh , munster , germany ). the degree of cells migration was assessed in cytometry as the number of cells which populated the wound done earlier in the layer of cells . at least 50 chosen fields on 8 photographs were assessed . antiproliferative activity of akg in the cultures was estimated in differen kinds of neoplastic cells : the lung cancer cells ( a549 ), the large intestine cancer cells ( ht - 29 ) and glioma cells ( c6 ). cells were processed with akg in concentrations 0 . 5 , 1 , 2 . 5 , 5 , 10 and 20 mm , for 96 hours . the examined substance has had antiproliferative activity with relation to all neoplastic cells types ( see the diagram — fig1 fig2 fig3 ). statistically significant ( 4 . 5 %) inhibition of cells &# 39 ; growth was observed at akg concentration 2 . 5 mm in a549 cell line in the comparison to the control group . that effect was correlated with a dose of akg and was 7 . 8 %, 12 . 4 %, 17 . 5 % with doses 5 mm , 10 mm and 20 mm respectively ( see the diagram on fig1 ). the growth inhibition in glioma cells ( c6 ) was 12 . 6 % with akg dose 2 . 5 mm , 7 . 9 %— 5 mm , 16 %— 10 mm and 19 . 8 %— 20 mm , respectively . the growth inhibition of large intestine cancer cells ( ht - 29 ) hadn &# 39 ; t had the lineal character with akg concentrations between 1 and 10 mm . the dose 1 mm inhibited the cells growth by 11 . 8 %. the similar effect was obtained with a dose 5 mm ( 11 . 8 %) and 10 mm ( 11 . 5 %). only a dose 20 mm caused the significant ( 25 %) inhibition of these cells &# 39 ; growth ( the diagram — fig3 ). the research on the interaction between akg and popular cytostatics used in cancer chemotherapy was performed in the culture of lung cancer cells ( a549 ). for that purpose cells were treated with the following cytostatics : cyclophosphamide ( 1 . 5 mm ), iphosphamid ( 1 . 5 mm ) and thiotepa ( 5 . mu . m ), alone and in combination with akg ( 5 , 10 and 20 mm ). the additive effect of akg on cytostatic activity of used chemotherapeutics was observed ( results are presented on fig4 fig5 and fig6 ). cyclophosphamide in a concentration 1 . 5 mm inhibited the growth of a549 cells by 21 . 4 %. the addition of akg increased its cytostatic activity by 6 . 4 %, 9 . 8 % and 14 . 4 % respectively ( the diagram — fig4 ). iphosphamid ( 1 . 5 mm ) inhibited the cells growth by 7 . 3 %. after akg addition ( 5 , 10 and 20 mm ) that effect increased by 5 %, 5 . 3 % and 8 . 8 % respectively ( the diagram — fig5 ). akg intensified also cytostatic activity of thiotepa ( 5 . mu . m — 25 . 9 %) by 4 . 2 % ( 5 mm ), 8 % ( 10 mm ) and 11 . 2 % ( 20 mm ) ( results are presented on fig6 ). the research on the mobility of neoplastic cells was passed in the “ wound assay ” model . at the photograph 1 the wound in the layer of c6 cells ( a ), the wound population with cells after 24 hours of incubation without akg ( b ) and significant inhibition of cells migration in the presence of akg 20 mm ( c ) are presented . on the diagram — fig7 the average number of cells migrating to one field of flaw done in the uniform layer of cells is presented . statistically significant inhibition of cells migration in the presence of 10 mm and 20 mm akg was shown . the statistical analysis was performed with the use of t - student test . * p & lt ; 0 . 05 , p & lt ; 0 . 01 , * p & lt ; 0 . 001 .	0
there will be detailed below preferred embodiments of the present invention , with reference to the accompanying drawings . fig8 shows the cmc6aome , i . e . 5 , 11 , 17 , 28 , 29 , 35 - hexachloromethyl - 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 - hexamethoxycalix 6 ! arene . fig4 is a flow chart of steps taken in our experiments according to the invention . to synthesize the substance in concern , there was selected commercially available calix 6 ! arene ( janssen chimica make : hereafter &# 34 ; c6a &# 34 ;) as an original material at a step s1 of the experiments . at a step 32 , the original calixarene c6a was etherified in accordance with a method proposed by c . d . gutsche and l - g . lin ( tetrahedron , vol . 42 , pp . 1633 - 1640 , 1989 ). for the etherification , a measured quantity of calixarene c6a was dissolved together with a large - excessive quantity of methyl iodide (˜ 40 - fold mol to c6a ) and a large - excessive quantity of sodium hydride (˜ 20 - fold mol to c6a ), in a solvent of 10 parts of tetrahydrofuran to 1 part of dimethylformamide . the solvent was removed by evaporation from the refluxed solution , leaving an amount of residue . a necessary quantity of water was added to the residue to have a precipitated substance , which was collected and recrystallized by a methanol - chloroform system , in a form of colorless needles as a quantity of resultant hexamethoxycalix 6 ! arene ( hereafter &# 34 ; c6aome &# 34 ;) with certain impurities . the resultant c6aome had a melting point of 326 ° c ., as having been reported by c . d . gutsche and l - g . lin . at a step s3 , this c6aome was repeatedly recrystallized to remove the impurities , obtaining a quantity of refined c6aome with a slightly decreased melting point . in this respect , in general , an impurity removal results in an increased melting point . in the experiment , however , it was concluded that the slight decrease of melting point was attributable to a removal of high - melting - point impurities of which hydroxyl groups had not been all substituted by methoxy groups . moreover , the refined c6aome included the chloroform employed for the recrystallization , which would have no adverse effects to a subsequent step s4 . at the step s4 , a measured quantity of refined c6aome was subjected to a chloromethylation with a large - excessive quantity of chrolomethyl - n - octyl ether (˜ 69 - fold mol to c6aome ) and a large - excessive quantity of tin tetrachloride (˜ 25 - fold mol to c6aome ), for one hour , obtaining a quantity of resultant cmc6aome . then , at a step s5 , the resultant cmc6aome was recrystallized by a methanol - chloroform system , as a refined cmc6aome . i . e ., as a mixture of white powdery compounds of pure chlomethylcalix 6 ! arene methyl ether . the refined cmc6aome was identified by employing elemental analyses , infrared spectroscopy , nmr spectroscopy and mass spectra . this product is an amorphous or pseudo - amorphous system of cmc6aome , and showed a melting point range in a vicinity of 273 ° c ., contrary to typical crystalline calixarene that has a sharp melting point . the system of cmc6aome was disclosed for the first time in a paper from the fifth international symposium on inclusion phenomena and molecular recognition , 1988 , as reported by a . arduini et al . in the fifth international symposium on inclusion phenomena and molecular recognition , orange beach , ala ., sep . 18 - 23 , 1988 , abstract book , h13 . the synthesis of cmc6aome is described into details by mario almi et al . in tetrahedron , vol . 45 , pp . 2177 - 2181 , 1989 . the refined cmc6aome was employed in the following test and experiments . at a step s6 , a measured quantity of cmc6aome was dissolved in a quantity of dichlorobenzene to make a 2 . 5 wt % solution , which was filtered by a teflon mesh of a 0 . 2 - μm mesh size to obtain a resist solution . then , the resist solution was spin - coated at a speed of 3 , 000 rpm for a period of 30 sec to have a 50 - nm thick flat resist layer prepared over an entire region of a top surface area of a respective one of a multiplicity of si wafers of a 300 μm thickness . then , the wafers with their resist layers were pre - baked for a baking period of 30 min in a nitrogen - gas - flow oven at a baking temperature of 170 ° c ., to have a negative resist film tight - formed on the respective wafer . at a step s7 , a radiation sensitivity of such the resist film was measured . more specifically , at a step s71 , a number of resist films having their absolute baked thicknesses measured were uniformly irradiated from right thereabove for a predetermined time to form therein a latent image of a predetermined resolution , by using a focused flux of electron rays emitted from an electron - beam writing system of a model jbx - 5a - fe of jeol , of which an electron dose ( mc ) per unit area was concurrently recorded . then , at a step s72 , each wafer of which resist film had been irradiated was dipped in xylene , before it was dried to measure depths of latent images actually formed in the resist film , as they were developed . representative ones of the measured depths were statistically averaged to be normalized in terms of percentage relative to the baked thickness . such normalized values of the respective irradiated resist films were averaged to determine a normalized thickness (%) plotted by a single solid circle in a normalized thickness vs . electron dose graph of fig5 a . for each solid circle of fig5 a , like measurements were repeated . then , coordinates of respective plot points were analyzed to determine a characteristic curve stochastically connecting them for an absolute film thickness of 50 nm . further , in the step s7 , like measurements were made to determine similar characteristic curves for various absolute film thicknesses such as of 30 nm . 40 nm and 60 nm , which curves overlapped the curve of fig5 a in a practical sense so that , as shown in fig5 b , a substantially single radiation sensitivity curve cv was obtained . in the graph of fig5 b , a segment cv1 of this curve cv lying in a thickness region th in a vicinity of a 100 % thickness had a minimal value min , when mapped on a dose axis , representing a nominal sensitivity of the resist material in concern . i . e . cmc6aome . as will be seen from fig5 b , it was thus proven that a dose of 600 μc / cm 2 (= 0 . 6 mc / cm 2 ) is sufficient for a resist film of cmc6aome to be patterned to a competent degree . this sensitivity is about ten times higher than that of mc6aoac . incidentally , it is well - known that electron resists are basically x - ray resists . at a step s8 , a number of cmc6aome resist films formed in the step s6 were each irradiated by using a fine - focused beam of electrons emitted from an exposure system of a model s 5000 of hitachi at an acceleration voltage of 30 kv , to delineate a latent image with a line dose of 2 nc / cm . at a step s9 , the latent image was developed by using xylene so that an ultrafine defined resist pattern of cmc6aome was formed with a 10 - nm linewidth , without a significant roughness . at a step s10 , an aluminum layer 20 - nm thick was vapor - deposited on an si wafer 300 - μm thick , and a resist film of cmc6aome 50 - nm thick was formed on the aluminum layer in a similar manner to the step s6 . at a step s11 , this resist film was irradiated to delineate a latent image with a line dose of 2 nc / cm in a similar manner to the step s8 . at a step s12 , this latent image was developed by xylene in a similar manner to the step s9 so that a defined line pattern of cmc6aome was left on the aluminium layer , as a resist with a 10 - nm linewidth . at a dry etching step s13 , the aluminum layer with the resist pattern formed thereon was subjected for one minute to a milling from thereabove by a plasmic beam of ionized argon particles emitted at an acceleration voltage of 500 v with a 20 ma , so that an exposed region of the aluminum layer was etched off as well as an upper portion of the resist pattern under which the aluminum layer was unexposed to the argon beam . at a step s14 , a remaining portion of the resist pattern was removed by xylene so that an aluminum conductor of a 10 - nm linewidth appeared , with a patterned shape defined by an unexposed region of the aluminum layer . at a step s15 , a germanium layer 20 - nm thick was vapor - deposited on an si wafer 300 - μm thick , and a resist film of cmc6aome 50 - nm thick was formed on the germanium layer in a similar manner to the step s6 . at a step s16 , this resist film was irradiated to delineate a combination of very fine latent images in a similar manner to the step s11 . at a step s17 , these latent images were developed by xylene in a similar manner to the step s9 so that a corresponding combination of very fine linear convexes of cmc6aome was left on the germanium layer , defining a line pattern as a resist with a 7 - nm linewidth . at a step s18 , the germanium layer with the resist pattern formed thereon was subjected for one minute to a dry etching from thereabove by an etching atmosphere of cf 4 gas in an etching system of a model dem 451 of anelva at a 300 v with a 50 w , so that exposed regions of the germanium layer were etched off as well as upper portions of the resist pattern . at a step s19 , remaining portions of the resist pattern were removed by xylene so that a combination of very fine germanium lines of a quantum - level 7 - nm width appeared as a pattern defined by unexposed regions of the germanium layer . at a step s20 , a resist film of cmc6aome 50 - nm thick was formed on an si wafer 300 - μm thick in a similar manner to the step s6 . at a step s21 , this resist film was spot - irradiated by using the exposure system of experiment - 2 to have a number of latent images spotted with a dose of approx . 1 pc / spots . at a step s22 , these latent images were developed by xylene in a similar manner to the step s9 to have a corresponding number of projections pillar - shaped with a diameter of approx . 15 nm , cooperatively constituting an ultrafine defined dot pattern of cmc6aome on the si wafer . at a step s23 , the si wafer with the resist pattern formed thereon was subjected for four minutes to a dry etching from thereabove by a plasmic atmosphere of cf 4 gas in the etching system employed in experiment - 4 , so that an exposed region of the si wafer was etched down and the resist pattern was etched off . as a result , there were observed a corresponding number of si spots projecting over an etched - down si surface , like pillar - shaped contacts with a quantum - level diameter of 15 nm . fig6 a to 6f illustrate six steps of experiment - 6 for forming a dot array pattern . at a step s24 ( fig6 a ), an si wafer 60 of a 300 - μm thickness was cut out from a bar - like single crystal of silicon in a well - known manner . at a step s25 ( fig6 b ), a resist film 61 of cmc6aome 50 nm thick was formed on a top surface of the si wafer 60 in a similar manner to the step s6 . at a step s26 ( fig6 c ), an 8 - μm square region 61a of the resist film 61 was irradiated by using the exposure system jbx - 5a - fe of jeol , as it was set for a nominal electron beam diameter of 5 nm at an acceleration voltage of 50 kv , to have a matrix array of about 26 , 000 latent images 62 of a 20 - rim diameter dotted at a 50 - rim pitch with a dose of 33 fc / dot . at a step s27 ( fig6 d ), the latent images 62 were developed by xylene in a similar manner to the step s9 to have a corresponding number of projections 63 pillar - shaped with a diameter of 20 nm , cooperatively constituting an ultrafine defined dot array pattern on a square region 60a of the si wafer 60 . at a step s28 ( fig6 e ), the si wafer 60 with the resist pattern formed thereon was subjected for about 200 sec to a dry etching from thereabove by a plasmic atmosphere of cf 4 gas in the etching system dem 451 of anelva , so that an exposed region 60b of the si wafer 60 was etched down by about 300 nm to a surface 60c and about 45 - nm upper portions 63a of the resist projections 63 were etched off . as a result , respective lower portions 63b of the resist projections 63 were left at tops of pillar - shaped si projections 60d standing on the etched - down surface 60c . at a step s29 ( fig6 f ), the lower portions 63b of the resist projections 63 were removed by xylene so that the pillar - shaped si projections 60d were left , as they were standing on the surface 60c , with smooth configurations . besides the experiments described , for various cmc6aome resist patterns , their etching durabilities to cf 4 plasma were tested by using the dew 451 system of anelva . the durability was varied in dependence on a set - up condition of the system and associated etching conditions such as a gas pressure , plasma stream pattern and bias state . typical results of the durability test are shown by solid circles in fig7 as they were obtained under a combination of typical test conditions in which a cf 4 gas had a pressure of 5 pa and incident microwave power was set to a 500 w with a 200 vdc bias . further , for mc6aoac , pmma , si , ge and a zep , like tests were performed under the typical test conditions . their results also are shown in fig7 . the zep is a positive resist material commercially available from nippon zeon for use to an electron beam . a desirable etching rate of cmc6aome resist was estimated to be about 10 nm / see or a little higher , which is substantially comparable to that of si and about one fourth of that of pmma and will permit an increased fabrication rate of products to be achieved with a defined nanometric pattern such as on or of a semiconductor or metal , for such the pattern may well be scaled down in thickness as well as in width . as will be understood from the foregoing description of test and experiments as embodiments of the invention , the cmc6aome ( 5 , 11 , 17 , 23 , 29 , 35 - hexachloromethyl - 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 - hexamethoxycalix 6 ! arene ) is a resist material that is highly sensitive , amorphous , resistant to an etching and adaptive for a nanometric patterning and etching . a negative resist of cmc6aome will effectively permit an ultrafine resist pattern including dots and lines of a quantum level to be processed and transferred , with inexpensive modifications of existing submicron process lines . at such a level of resolution , the limit of criterion in terms of miniaturization may depend on a performance of an associated exposure system of which an electron beam should thus have a focused diameter smaller than a critical size . in other words , the cmc6aome , a sensitive molecular cluster of a 1 nm size , may bridge the current state of miniaturization directly to a state after the next , where a resolution may directly reflect a dispersion of beam diameter . while the present invention has been described with reference to the particular illustrative embodiments , it is not to be restricted by those embodiments but only by the appended claims . it is to be appreciated that those skilled in the art can change or modify the embodiments without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention .	2
referring now to the drawings wherein like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding parts throughout the several views . it is to be understood that the drawings are diagrammatic and schematic representations of various embodiments of the invention , and are not to be construed as limiting the invention in any way . the use of words and phrases herein with reference to specific embodiments is not intended to limit the meanings of such words and phrases to those specific embodiments . words and phrases herein are intended to have their ordinary meanings , unless a specific definition is set forth at length herein . referring particularly to the drawings , there is illustrated generally at 20 in fig1 an exploded view including a crimpable and sealable contact assembly generally in alignment with an electrically insulated wire 38 . the contact assembly includes an electrical contact member 20 and a barrel portion 24 that are generally aligned along a common axis between a distal end 26 and a proximal end 28 . a tubular sleeve member 40 is illustrated in an unassembled configuration generally axially aligned with but separated from barrel portion 24 . tubular sleeve member 40 as shown , for example , fig1 and 6 is slidably and axially received over the insulation adjacent to a bare tip 34 of a core 36 . the barrel portion 24 extends from the proximal end 28 toward a contactor portion 22 . the contactor portion 22 extends from the distal end 26 toward the barrel portion 24 . in the embodiment chosen for illustration in , for example , fig1 , 6 , and 18 , a shoulder member 25 is located generally at the junction between the barrel and electrical contact portions . the barrel portion 24 comprises a tubular member 30 , which extends generally axially from the proximal end 28 toward the contactor portion 22 . the contactor portion may be either a male pin or a female socket such as that illustrated at 88 in fig2 . turning now to fig6 , which depicts a partial cross - section of the exploded assembly depicted in fig1 , the tubular member 30 has an open end 32 at approximately the proximal end 28 , and is adapted to axially receive a bare tip 34 of a core of a wire 36 inserted axially therein from the open end 32 . in the embodiment chosen for purposes of illustration , the barrel portion is hollow from the proximal end to approximately the electrical contact portion , and the core 36 is a solid core . the core 36 of wire 38 is electrically conductive and has a covering of electrical insulation thereon . the covering of electrical insulation is generally cut so that cut surface 39 will mate with proximal end 28 when the bare tip 34 is fully inserted into tubular member 30 . the cut surface 39 is typically perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the wire and forms the end of a right cylindrical covering of insulation on the core 36 . the tubular member 30 is adapted to being crimpably deformed into electrical continuity with the bare tip 34 . in certain embodiments the characteristics of the barrel and the core allow for the use of a lightweight , manually held crimping tool for forming the electrical continuity crimp between the barrel and the core . as illustrated , for example , in fig7 through 10 , the crimp seal assembly process includes the steps of inserting the end 45 of bare tip 34 fully into tubular member 30 ( fig7 ). next , tubular member 30 is crimped as indicated at 31 , for example , by the application of mechanical or electromagnetic force , into electrical continuity with bare tip 34 ( fig8 ). tubular sleeve member 40 is then slipped axially into a configuration where it surrounds both insulation covered length 33 of the wire and the barrel portion 24 including the region where hole 54 is located . in this configuration the detent and detent engaging elements are interengaged to hold tubular sleeve member 40 in position for the sealing operation to be performed ( fig9 ). tubular sleeve member 40 is then sealingly deformed into hermetic sealing engagement with the adjacent exterior surfaces of contact member 20 and the insulated wire . the core 36 is thus hermetically sealed ( fig1 ). tubular sleeve member 40 , which is generally hollow and open at both ends , is adapted to generally axially and simultaneously receive therein an insulation covered length of wire 33 adjacent bare tip 34 , and at least an axially extending region of the barrel portion 24 . the cross - section of the sleeve member can take on numerous shapes as may be required to accommodate the barrel portion and the insulation covering on the wire , including a circular cross - section resulting in a cylindrical sleeve member . when tubular sleeve member 40 has been deformed into sealing engagement with insulation covered length 33 , a section 43 ( fig1 ) of tubular sleeve member 40 is drawn down into hermetically sealing engagement with the exterior surface of the electrical insulation . a barrel sealing portion 41 of tubular sleeve member 40 is drawn down into a hermetic seal with an exterior surface of barrel portion 24 . the axially inner end portion 58 of tubular sleeve member 40 is deformed down into groove 56 as illustrated at 59 in fig1 . one of tubular sleeve member 40 and barrel portion 24 includes a detent element , for example , 46 , and the other of the sleeve member 40 and barrel portion 24 includes a detent engaging element , for example , 48 . for example , referring to fig1 , the detent element 46 may comprise one or more dimples formed in the sleeve prior to commencement of the assembly process , and the detent engagement element 48 may comprise a generally circumferential groove 56 formed in the barrel portion prior to commencement of the assembly process . the detent element 46 is adapted to engage the generally circumferential groove 56 portion of detent engaging element 48 when the insulation covered length 33 and the axially extending section of the barrel portion 24 are received in the tubular sleeve member 40 . further , the detent element and detent engaging element may be positioned at one or more of various locations along the barrel portion 24 . for example , fig1 and fig1 are close - up views of the detent element and detent engaging element for the embodiments of fig9 and fig1 , respectively , wherein the detent element and detent engagement element are located along the barrel portion and approximately adjacent to the contactor portion . fig1 and fig1 , for example , depict an alternate location for the detent element and detent engagement element , wherein these elements are located along the barrel portion approximately adjacent proximal end 28 . the tubular sleeve member 40 is further adapted to being deformable to hermetically seal the core 36 as depicted , for example , in fig5 , fig1 and fig1 . to facilitate such deformation , the sleeve member can be made of one of several materials which may be crimpable or heat - shrinkable . moreover , the sleeve may be comprised of an electrically conductive metallic material . tubular sleeve member materials comprise , for example , copper or a heat - shrinkable organic or inorganic polymer , because they can generally be crimped or shrunk , respectively , using lightweight , portable tools . additionally , as illustrated , for example , in fig1 through fig1 , the tubular member 30 may have a hole 54 generally radially thererthrough adjacent the closed end of tubular member 30 . the sleeve member may be made of a substantially transparent heat - shrinkable polymer , allowing for viewing through hole 54 even after the sleeve has been deformed to form the hermetic seal . as illustrated , for example , in fig1 , hole 54 is adapted to being inspectingly associated with a spot 35 on bare tip 34 when bare tip 34 is substantially fully inserted into the tubular member 30 . end 45 of bare tip 34 is at about the closed end of tubular member 30 when spot 35 becomes visible through hole 54 . some embodiments of the present invention may also include a shoulder member 25 which is located axially along contact member 20 medial of the proximal and distal ends . as shown , for example , in fig6 , the shoulder member 25 may be positioned at the junction of the electrical contactor portion 22 and barrel portion 24 . further , as depicted , for example , in fig1 and fig1 , the shoulder member 25 may form part of the detent engaging element 48 , where the shoulder member prevents or helps prevent the sleeve member 40 from sliding toward the distal end 26 beyond the shoulder member &# 39 ; s location prior to deformation of the sleeve member to form the hermetic seal . certain embodiments do not include a shoulder . see , for example , fig1 . as depicted , for example , in fig1 , in some embodiments of the present invention the tubular member 30 may include a crimp cushioning region 52 , which is adapted to being crimpably deformed into electrical continuity with the bare tip 34 of the core of a wire . this crimp cushioning region provides cushioning for more brittle wire material such as aluminum during the crimping of the tubular member 30 into electrical continuity with a brittle core . the crimp cushioning region 52 may comprise a soft metal liner in tubular member 30 . the liner does not obscure the hole 54 . with particular reference to fig1 through 13 , and 16 , an embodiment is illustrated in which tubular sleeve member 47 is substantially transparent . this transparent member includes a detent element 49 in the form of a ridge element molded into the inner generally cylindrical surface of member 47 . this ridge element engages the detent engaging element on the contact member to hold the assembly in the proper configuration while the crimp sealing operation is being performed . the spot 35 on bare tip 34 is visible through hole 54 even after the assembly operation has been completed as indicated at 51 . this permits quick and reliable inspection of the completed assembly . in the embodiment of fig1 and 17 , the detent elements are adjacent the proximal end of the contact member . tubular sleeve member 53 includes nipple elements , of which 55 is typical , projecting radially inwardly from the inner circumference of tubular sleeve member 53 . adjacent the proximal end of the contact member is a circumferential groove element 59 . elements 55 and 59 together provide the detent and detent engaging elements to hold tubular sleeve member 53 in the proper configuration for crimp sealing . embodiments of contact assemblies according to the present invention are well suited for use with both aluminum and copper cored wire . this dual capability greatly simplifies inventory control and reduces the risk of errors on large installations , such as transport aircraft , where both copper and aluminum core wire are being installed . these contact assemblies are also useful in installations where other types of stranded or solid core wire are being installed . accordingly , the present invention should not be construed as limited solely to any particular core composition or configuration . it will be appreciated that embodiments of the present invention may be profitably employed in the context of a wide variety of insulated stranded and solid core wires , and in original , retrofit and maintenance operations . aluminum cores typically require hermetic sealing . copper and other metal cores need to be protected from corrosion in some marine and other corrosive environments such as on ships , aircraft , and shore installations . any material or combination of materials , compatible with the functions and operation of the present invention is contemplated as being within the scope of the present invention . some manufacturing operations involve operations that are performed in corrosive environments . for maintenance and retrofit operations it is often impossible or impractical to remove the wiring harness and take it to a bench to work on . original installations must sometimes be completed at the site of use where a bench is not available . it will be appreciated that the required deforming operations may be accomplished by a variety of devices and structures other than manually operated deforming tools . powered hand crimping tools , and powered bench mounted tools can be employed , if desired . what have been described are embodiments in which modifications and changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the accompanying claims . 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 and shown .	7
referring now to the drawings , wherein like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding parts throughout the several views , embodiments of the present invention are shown in schematic detail . the matters defined in the description such as a detailed construction and elements are nothing but the ones provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of the invention . accordingly , those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention . also , well - known functions or constructions are omitted for clarity and conciseness . exemplary embodiments of the present invention are described below in the context of a classroom application . such exemplary implementations are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention , which is defined in the appended claims . according to exemplary embodiment of the present invention , a system and method are provided where a classroom lighting control solution includes the following components , as illustrated in the example of fig1 : row on / off switch stations ( rows 1 - 4 ) 104 a , 104 b , 104 c and 104 d , respectively occupancy sensors ( one or more ) 116 a , 116 b , 116 c in an exemplary implementation , a classroom control module 100 contains all of the switching and dimming components necessary for the control of an entire classroom lighting system 10 . the classroom control module can be designed to control up to four individual rows of recessed or pendant mounted lighting fixtures 120 a , 120 b , 120 c , 120 d ( with alternate switching of a / v and general lighting modes and individual row control ) and one whiteboard lighting circuit 122 with on / off control . control of 1 to 4 rows of recessed or pendant mounted fixtures 120 a , 120 b , 120 c , 120 d each with general and a / v lighting circuits 4 - 0 - 10 vdc dimming output gen daylight harvesting 124 a , 124 b , 124 c , 124 d ( 1 - output may be sufficient . 4 - outputs would allow more flexible functionality ) on / off daylight harvesting via row switching with selectable row control ( rows 1 - 4 ) in an exemplary implementation , the classroom control module 100 can be provided with a user interface 200 including , for example , a display 202 ( such as a 2 line by 16 - character display ) with , for example push buttons 204 a , 204 b for screen navigation , and buttons 206 a and 206 b for selection of menu items . other user interfaces , such as touch screens to facilitate ease of operation , can be implemented and are within the scope of the present invention . the classroom control module 100 can also include an interface for connection to other lighting control systems to provide for programming and scheduling accordingly . in an exemplary implementation , the classroom control module 100 can be provided with a maintained dry contact input to cause the classroom control module to go to a demand response mode . in the demand response mode , the classroom control module 100 limits the output of general and av lighting modes to the demand response level as set at the classroom control module 100 . demand response levels can be set by means of the user interface 200 of the classroom control modules 100 , as later described in further detail in the context of certain exemplary implementations . a classroom control module 100 can be designed to allow classroom lighting to be in either the general or a / v modes and ensure that both modes may never be on at the same time . selection of current mode can be provided by means of momentary low voltage inputs . a classroom control module 100 can allow for individual or master on / off control of 1 to 4 rows of general — a / v lighting . control can be provided by means of momentary low voltage inputs . a classroom control module 100 can provide a 0 - 10 vdc output for a / v dimming control . control can be provided by means of momentary low voltage inputs . a classroom control module 100 can provide for on / off control of a single whiteboard 122 circuit . control can be provided by means of momentary low voltage inputs . a classroom control module 100 can provide for a quiet time override . the quiet time override can inhibit the occupancy off command for a period of 60 minutes . at the end of the quiet time duration the control module can return control to the occupancy sensor and turn lighting off if no occupancy is present in the classroom . a classroom control module 100 can allow for the connection of one or more occupancy sensor ( s ), for example 3 occupancy sensors 116 a , 116 b , 116 c . the control module 100 can provide power and receive inputs from the occupancy sensors 116 a , 116 b , 116 c in order to determine the current state of occupancy of the classroom — either occupied or unoccupied . upon a change from unoccupied to occupied states the classroom control module 100 can switch the classroom lighting to the general mode , turn all rows on and engage automatic daylight harvesting if present . upon a change from occupied to unoccupied states , the classroom control module 100 can switch all lighting off . a classroom control module 100 can receive current daylight level information from an indoor photo sensor 118 . according to an exemplary implementation , a function of a daylight harvesting sensor , such as indoor photo sensor 118 , is to monitor incoming daylight , calculate the appropriate levels that the general artificial lighting may be dimmed to save energy while maintaining desires foot - candle levels at task and send a 0 to 10 vdc signal to the general lighting to dim it to the appropriate level . to accomplish this a classroom control module can be implemented to receive and process information and operate as follows : this information can be received from an indoor photo sensor 118 as a linear signal from 0 to 10 vdc in 4 possible ranges 0 . 3 to 30 fc , 3 to 300 fc , 30 to 3000 fc and 60 to 6000 fc as shown in the graph of fig1 . software can be designed to have the sensor set to the 30 to 3000 fc range . current daylight contribution readings for zones 1 - 4 as read at task during the mid portion of the day with the artificial lighting turned off . daylight readings taken can be entered into a classroom control module 100 by means of a user interface 200 . daylight lighting levels should be entered for each daylight harvesting zone being controlled . if a daylight harvesting zone will not be used there is no need to enter a level for it . c . designed or measured artificial lighting level ( designed levels or actual artificial lighting levels as read at task ): artificial lighting design or measured levels for zones 1 - 4 can be entered into the classroom control module 100 by means of the user interface 200 . as in the case of daylight , artificial lighting levels should to be entered for each daylight harvesting zone being controlled . if a daylight harvesting zone will not be used there is no need to enter a level for it . d . operation : in order to set the classroom control module &# 39 ; s daylight harvesting settings a user can perform the following steps . 1 . turn off the artificial lighting . 2 . take readings during the mid portion of the day of the actual daylight fc level at task with a light meter . 3 . input the measured daylight fc level into classroom control module 100 via user interface 200 . 4 . input design fc level into the classroom control module 100 via user interface 200 . this may be accomplished by inputting designed levels or by taking measurements of actual artificial lighting levels with no daylight present . once the above steps are completed , the classroom control module 100 can calculate the daylight conversion factor and begin outputting the appropriate dimmed level ( 0 to 10 vdc ) to the general lighting . an example of such calculations is illustrated in a table of fig1 . the controller 100 can be designed to respond quickly to decreases in natural daylight and more slowly to increases in natural daylight . the exact rate of these changes can be adjusted during testing , once determined these values can be entered into the controller 100 as default values . these values can also be adjustable by via user interface 200 . in order to keep sudden temporary changes in daylight from causing output the sensor 118 to needlessly change the dimmed level of its controlled fixtures , the sensor 118 can have built - in delays to numb the effects of sudden changes in daylight . for example , sensor 118 can have two built - in delays : one for reacting to decrease in daylight and one for reacting to an increase in daylight . the default delay for reacting to increases in daylight can be set to , for example , 10 seconds and the default delay for reacting to decreases in daylight can be set to , for example , 2 seconds . these values can also be adjustable via the user interface 200 . according to another exemplary implementation , a function of the daylight harvesting sensor 118 is to monitor incoming daylight , calculate the appropriate levels at which individual rows of the general artificial lighting may be switched off to save energy while maintaining desires foot - candle levels at task . to accomplish this , a classroom control module 100 can be implemented to receive and process information and operate as described above in the context of general lighting continuous dimming daylight harvesting control section , parts a through f . however , in this exemplary implementation operation step 4 of part d is replaced by the following step : 4 . input design fc level into the classroom control module . this may be accomplished by inputting designed levels or by taking measurements of actual artificial lighting levels with no daylight present . once the above steps are completed the classroom control module 100 calculates the daylight conversion factor and begins control of the artificial general lighting by switching on and off rows of artificial lighting as needed . an example of such calculations for a row # 1 of artificial lighting is illustrated in a table of fig1 . according to an exemplary implementation of certain embodiments of the present invention , a control module 100 can be generally configured as illustrated in fig4 a - 4c , 5 and 6 , where : 1 . enclosure 400 can be metal to allow for simple connection of field conduit or other wiring system to control module 100 . 2 . enclosure 400 size can be as small as functionally possible . 3 . enclosure 400 can be nema 1 enclosure designed and rated for plenum installation . 4 . enclosure 400 can be finished in a color so as to uniquely identify it from other such enclosures that may be mounted in the classrooms plenum . 5 . enclosure 400 can be designed to easily mount to , for example , plywood backing 6 . removable screw 404 can be used to secure cover 402 of enclosure 400 , which may also be hinged and / or configure to lock , and includes openings 406 for wiring . 7 . the design can allow the installing contractor adequate access to mount the enclosure 400 and access all required terminals , e . g ., 410 and 420 for installation and connection of field wiring . 8 . line voltage electrical connections can be made to appropriately labeled terminal blocks 420 designed to accept standard field wiring . 9 . enclosure 400 can be provided with , for example color coded , rj45 and rj 11 connectors 410 for the connection of switch stations and low voltage connection to lighting fixtures . 10 . enclosure 400 can have individually labeled rj45 connectors 410 for each switch station type for simple plug and play connection of remote switch stations . 11 . enclosure 400 can be provided with , for example 4 , rj 11 connectors 410 appropriately labeled for general lighting daylight harvesting . 12 . enclosure 400 can be provided with , for example 1 , rj11 connector appropriately labeled for a / v lighting dimming control . 13 . enclosure 400 can be configured to receive 120 / 347 vac 50 / 60 hz — universal input voltage via access opening 408 . 14 . line voltage electrical connection can be made to terminal blocks 420 via openings 406 designed for use with 16 to 10 gauge wire . 15 . class 2 electrical connection can be made via plug - in connectors 410 , such as type rj45 or rj11 connectors . as further illustrated in the exemplary implementations of fig4 a - 4c and 5 , enclosure 400 includes a low voltage ( class 2 ) section 412 and a high voltage section 414 separated by high voltage i class 2 barrier 416 . a transformer 418 provided in section 414 supplies power to low voltage components of section 414 . user interface 430 , such as a user interface 200 of fig2 , including display 432 and controls ( e . g ., menu navigation keys ) 434 , is configured in section 412 . on the other hand , switching relays 422 and terminal blocks 420 are configured in high voltage section 414 . as further illustrated in the exemplary implementations of fig6 , a plurality of bus lines , each having a specific function , such as switching 602 , detecting 604 , or diming control 606 , connect to controller 100 . controller 100 receives live voltage input 610 and supplies it to light fixtures via wiring 608 connected to terminal blocks 420 . according to an exemplary embodiment , the nodes being controlled get their intelligence from the system and are coupled to a particular sensor , such as an indoor photo sensor 620 and occupancy sensor 622 , or a switch , such as gen - a / v switch 630 and dimming switch 632 ; each is attached to proper node and can be color coded to prevent mixing during installation . in the example of dimming control , dimming signals pass through the control module 100 for added intelligence , such as timing of light level , before being sent to light fixtures 640 , 642 by means of low voltage dimming control 606 . according to exemplary embodiment , low voltage switch stations , such as 102 , 104 a - d , 106 , 108 , 110 , 112 and 114 of fig1 , can be implemented as generally illustrated in fig3 , where the switching station is , for example , designed to fit into a single gang electrical box and can be used with a standard plate cover , and multiple switch stations may be installed into a single multi gang junction box with a multi gang cover plate . exemplary operations and functionality provided by such switch stations are as follows : gen - a / v switch station allows a user to select between general and a / v lighting modes and can be implemented as a single gang switch station with 2 momentary push buttons gen and av 300 connected to controller 100 via , for example , plug - in class 2 electrical connector such as rj45 , where in operation : 1 . when the gen switch is momentarily depressed the controller 100 turns the a / v lighting off and turns the general lighting on . 2 . when the a / v switch is momentarily depressed the controller 100 switches the general lighting off and turns on the a / v lighting . 3 . controller 100 can be configured such that at no time the controller 100 allows for both general and a / v lighting to be in the on state . 4 . when a / v dimming is in use , a / v lighting is configured to switch on and off at current dimmed levels . ( last level ). 5 . when general lighting daylight harvesting is in use general lighting can be configured to switch on and off at levels determined by daylight harvesting . master on / off switch station allows a user to turn all lighting rows on and off and can be implemented as a single gang switch station 302 with 1 momentary push button on / off connected to controller 100 via , for example , plug - in class 2 electrical connector such as rj45 . during operation , when the on / off switch is momentarily depressed the controller alternately switches all rows on and off . row on / off switch station allows a user to turn all lighting rows on and off and can be implemented as a single gang switch station 302 with 1 momentary push button on / off connected to controller 100 via , for example , plug - in class 2 electrical connector such as rj45 . during operation , when the on / off switch is momentarily depressed the controller alternately switches the controlled row 1 - 4 on and off . raise / lower switch station allows the system user to raise and lower a / v lighting levels and can be implemented as a single gang switch station with 2 momentary push buttons raise and lower 304 connected to controller 100 via , for example , plug - in class 2 electrical connector such as rj45 , where in operation : 1 . when the raise switch is momentarily depressed the controller raises the current a / v lighting level 1 step . 2 . when the lower switch is momentarily depressed the controller lowers the a / v lighting level 1 step . 3 . if the raise or lower push button is depressed for more than 1 second the classroom control module 100 raises or lowers the a / v lighting level 1 step every 500 ms until the maximum or minimum level is reached . 4 . a / v dimming for 0 to 100 % can be provided in 10 even steps . 5 . once the controller has reached it maximum or minimum level , repeated presses of the raise or lower push button can be configured to have no effect on a / v lighting levels . whiteboard switch station allows a system user to turn on or off the whiteboard lighting and can be implemented as a single gang switch station 302 with 1 momentary push button whiteboard 306 connected to controller 100 via , for example , plug - in class 2 electrical connector such as rj45 . during operation , when the whiteboard switch is momentarily depressed the controller alternately switches the whiteboard lighting on and off . quit time switch station allows a system user to temporarily override the occupancy sensors off command and can be implemented as a single gang switch station 302 with 1 momentary push button quite time 308 connected to controller 100 via , for example , plug - in class 2 electrical connector such as rj45 , where in operation : 1 . when the quiet time switch is momentarily depressed the controller 100 overrides / inhibits the occupancy sensors off command for a period of 60 minutes . 2 . if the quiet time switch is momentarily depressed during the quiet time the quiet time is reset to 60 minutes . 3 . if the quiet time switch is pressed and held for a period of 10 seconds the quiet time override period is ended and the occupancy sensor off inhibit is removed allowing the occupancy sensor to turn lighting off when occupancy is no longer detected . auto switch station allows a system user to command the system go into the general lighting daylight harvesting mode , and can be implemented as a single gang switch station 302 with 1 momentary push button auto 310 connected to controller 100 via , for example , plug - in class 2 electrical connector such as rj45 . during operation , when the auto switch is momentarily depressed the controller goes into the general lighting daylight harvesting mode and dims the general lighting as commanded by the controller 100 . a system may include any number of gen - a / v , on / off , raise / lower , whiteboard , quite time , or auto switch stations . exemplary implementations of lighting systems according to embodiments of the present invention are illustrated in fig7 a - 7c . for example , fig7 a illustrates a system deployed in a classroom setting 700 , where the system provides on / off control for white board 702 by controlling light output of fixture 704 , as well as control of general and a / v lighting by controlling light output of fixtures 706 . for such systems , switch stations may include : an on / off control station 708 , which can be disposed near classroom entrance ; and / or a teacher control station 710 , which can be disposed near the white board . commands from stations 708 and 710 are communicated to a control module 100 via low voltage cables , and control module 100 supplies power from a main feed to fixtures 704 and 706 , accordingly , via line voltage connections . occupancy sensors 712 connected to control module 100 via low voltage cables provide additional lighting control , such as automatic light shut off after no occupancy has been detected for a period of time . in the example of fig7 b , the system further provides for dimming control , such that control module 100 provides dimming control to fixtures 706 as a low voltage dimming signal on line 714 . for example , teacher station 710 may include a dimming switch which provides dimming control information to module 100 , which in turn generates a dimming signal on line 714 accordingly . on the other hand , dimming control may be automatic , based on for example occupancy presence or absence , or a time out period . in the example of fig7 c , the system further provides for general lighting daylight harvesting where an indoor photo sensor 718 provides control information via a dedicated low voltage cable to control module 100 accordingly . also dimming control is further enhanced by proving dimming signals on line 714 and 716 to rows of fixtures 706 . automatic and manual dimming control , as well as general lighting with a / v dimming and general lighting daylight harvesting have been described above , and are applicable in the implementation of the system illustrated in fig7 c . fig8 a through 10 provide detailed circuit diagrams illustrating exemplary implementations of the various components of systems according to exemplary embodiments of the present invention . for example , fig8 a - 8e illustrate components of a relay board comprising a plurality of electromechanical relays for use in control module 100 , as illustrated , for example in fig5 . fig9 a generally illustrates a microprocessor for use in a logic control board of controller 100 described above . fig9 b - 9j include circuit diagrams of various components of the circuit board including : user interface ( see fig9 c ); usb slave and sd card circuits ( see fig9 d ); power supply and regulation circuits ( see fig9 e ); various input circuits ( see fig9 f and 9g ); dimming control circuits ( see fig9 h ); and sensor circuits ( see fig9 i ). fig1 provides an example of a switch control circuit according to an embodiment of the present invention . in an advantageous exemplary implementation of certain embodiments of the present invention , a removable sd card can be configured with the controller 100 . the sd card enables , for example : in another advantageous exemplary implementation of certain embodiments of the present invention , when switching among various lighting configurations within a fixture a configuration is provided to ensure the affected area is never completely without light . for example , rather than switching off the current configuration , then switch on the new configuration , which leaves a period of time ( e . g ., a few seconds with fluorescent lights ) when the area is not lit at all , a configuration according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention facilitates switching on the new configuration before switching off the old one . numerous additional 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 present invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein .	7
the present disclosure relates to devices and methods for facilitating the assembly and enhancing the reliability of wellbore perforating tools . the present invention is susceptible to embodiments of different forms . there are shown in the drawings , and herein will be described in detail , specific embodiments of the present invention with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered an exemplification of the principles of the invention , and is not intended to limit the invention to that illustrated and described herein . referring now to fig1 , there is shown one embodiment of a retention member 100 that energetically couples a detonating cord 20 to a detonator 102 . merely for convenience , the retention member 100 will be hereafter referred to as a “ clip .” however , it should be understood that no particular shape , dimension or other characteristic is implied by the term “ clip .” the clip 100 presses a detonating cord 20 against the detonator 102 to energetically couple the detonating cord 20 to the detonator 102 . it should be noted that , in this embodiment , the contact between the detonator 102 and the detonating cord 20 is only along an outer circumferential surface of the detonating cord 20 . it should be further noted that , in this embodiment , the detonator 102 does not surround , cover , or otherwise partially or completely enclose an end ( not shown ) of the detonating cord 20 . the detonator 102 may be any device that generates a high - order detonation in response to an applied signal ( e . g ., electrical signal ). the detonator 102 may be formed of one or more energetic materials ( e . g ., rdx , hmx , etc .). by energetically coupled , it is meant that there is sufficient contact between the detonator 102 and the detonating cord 100 to allow the energy released by the detonator 102 to detonate the detonating cord 100 . the clip 100 provides ease of attachment to a detonating cord , which may have a circular cross - section . the clip 100 has a spring action in that the clip 100 opens up and then closes to shut around the detonating cord 20 . the resulting tight connection reduces the risk that the detonator 102 will separate from the detonating cord 20 under vibration and / or high temperatures . moreover , removal is only possible by a user that intentionally pulls the clip 100 off the detonating cord 20 . referring now to fig1 and 2 , in one embodiment , the clip 100 is a thin sheet - like “ u - shaped ” member that includes a base portion 110 , a central opening 112 , and converging prongs 114 . the base portion 110 may be planar and wider than the detonator 102 . the opening 112 is formed in the base portion 110 and has a diameter sized to fit substantially around the detonator 102 . while the opening 112 is shown as closely conforming to the cross - sectional profile of the detonator 102 , such a shape is not necessary . in embodiments , a fastening element 115 may be used to fix the clip 100 to the detonator 102 . for example , the fastening element 115 may be a ring , flange , or other annular member that captures the base portion 110 against a ledge or shoulder ( not shown ) formed on the detonator 102 . the prongs 114 are flexible members that project from an edge of or juncture with the base portion 110 and terminate at gripping ends 116 . the prongs 114 may be formed of a resilient material that can generate a spring force when flexed or otherwise deformed . the gripping ends 116 can separate from one another to form a gap that allows the detonating cord 20 to pass through . the gripping ends 116 can also press the detonating cord 20 against a contact face 118 of the detonator 102 . as shown , the prongs 114 are not parallel as in a conventional “ u - shape .” rather , the prongs 114 more resemble a triangular shape . that is , the junctures of the prong ends and the base portion 110 are separated by a greater distance than the distance separating the gripping ends 116 . referring now to fig3 , there is shown an exemplary perforating device section 140 that includes the detonating cord 20 . the section 140 may include a window 142 for accessing an inner bore 144 in which the detonating cord 20 is disposed . the section 140 has a longitudinal axis 146 to which the detonating cord 20 is parallel . in embodiments , the clip 100 may be used to attach the detonator 102 to the detonating cord 20 . it should be noted that the clip 100 orients the detonating cord 20 substantially parallel with the longitudinal axis 146 and orients the detonator 102 transverse to the detonating cord 20 . by “ substantially ,” it is mean less than a forty - five degree angular offset . referring now to fig4 , there is shown an installation tool 160 that may be used to connect the clip 100 ( fig1 ) and detonator 102 ( fig1 ) to the detonating cord 20 ( fig1 ). the installation tool 160 includes a handle 162 and pincers 164 that are biased to a closed position . a plunger assembly 166 may be used to expand the pincer ends 166 when needed . for example , the plunger assembly 166 may include a spring actuated detent that pushes the pincer ends 164 apart . referring to fig5 , there is shown the clip 100 and the detonator 102 captured between the pincer ends 164 . in some embodiments , the pincer ends 164 may have curvature or profile that is complementary to the clip base 104 . referring now to fig1 and 5 , the clip 100 is first fixed to the detonator 102 with the fastening element 115 . next , the installation tool 160 is expanded and then allowed to close around the clip 100 . thereafter , the installation tool 160 may be used to insert the clip 100 and detonator 102 laterally through the window 142 . by lateral , it is meant a direction generally orthogonal to the longitudinal axis 146 . once the clip 100 and detonator 102 is positioned next to the detonating cord 20 , the clip 100 is pressed until the prong ends expand to allow passage of the detonating cord 20 . the force needed to expand the prong ends 166 may be in the range of 10 - 20 lbs . thereafter , the prong ends 166 snap back to the closed position and compress the detonating cord 20 against the face 108 of the detonator 102 . after the detonator 102 is secured to the detonating cord 20 , the plunger assembly 164 ( fig3 ) is depressed to open the pincer ends 164 to release the clip 100 . now , the installation tool 160 may be extracted from the perforating gun section 140 . before or after the installation tool 160 is disconnected from the clip 100 , the detonator 102 may be electrically connected to wiring used to activate the detonator 102 . once the internal components are assembled , a cover or lid ( not shown ) may be used to cover and seal the window 144 . in some embodiments , the interior of the sub 140 may be fluid tight and pressurized . in embodiments , the detonator 102 is connected to only the clip 100 and the wiring ( not shown ) used to activate the detonator 102 . that is , the detonator 102 “ floats ” inside the section 140 , i . e ., the section 140 does not have surfaces positioned to support or secure the detonator 102 . it is contemplated that suitable materials for the described embodiments include hardened spring steel and other metallic and non - metallic flexible materials . however , the present invention is not limited to any particular material . that is , any material that is sufficiently elastic and provides the spring force needed to secure the detonating cord 20 to the detonator 102 may be used . referring now to fig6 and 7 , there is shown a perforating tool and perforating gun system , respectively , that may utilize the teachings of the present disclosure . referring to fig6 , there is shown a conventional perforating tool or gun 10 . the gun 10 includes a charge strip or tube 12 , concentrically positioned in a carrier tube 14 . fixed within the charge tube 12 are shaped charges 16 . typically , the charge tube 12 is oriented in the carrier tube 14 such that the shaped charges 16 on each charge strip ( not shown ) align with weakened portions or scallops 18 formed in the carrier tube 14 . a detonating cord 20 runs through a bore 22 in the perforating gun 10 . the perforating gun 100 further includes a sub 30 in which the detonator 102 ( fig1 ) is positioned and connected to the detonating cord 20 ( fig1 ) with the clip 100 ( fig1 ). generally speaking , the carrier tube 14 and the sub 30 may be tubular or cylindrical enclosures that function as housings for various components . while shown as separate structures , the sub 30 may be integral with the carrier tube 14 . the perforating gun 10 is assembled at the surface and conveyed into a wellbore via the system shown in fig7 . in fig7 , there is shown a well construction and / or hydrocarbon production facility 200 positioned over a subterranean formation of interest 202 . the facility 200 can include known equipment and structures such as a platform 206 at the earth &# 39 ; s surface 208 , a rig 210 , a wellhead 212 , and cased or uncased pipe / tubing 214 . a work string 216 is suspended within the well bore 205 from the derrick 210 . the work string 216 can include drill pipe , coiled tubing , wire line , slick line , or any other known conveyance means . the work string 216 can include telemetry lines or other signal / power transmission mediums that establish one - way or two - way telemetric communication from the surface to the downhole tool 204 connected to an end of the work string 216 . in one arrangement , a telemetry system having a surface controller ( e . g ., a power source ) 218 may be used to transmit electrical signals via a cable or signal transmission line 220 in the work string 216 to a perforating tool 10 . after the perforating gun 10 is positioned at a desired target depth in the wellbore 205 , a control signal may be sent via the signal transmission line 220 to activate the detonator 102 . alternatively , the hydraulic pressure may be increased in the wellbore 205 or a percussion - type drop tool may be used to impulsively impact the detonator 102 . once activated , the detonator 102 emits a high order detonation that detonates the detonating cord 20 . thereafter , the detonating cord 20 detonates the shaped charges 16 . the foregoing description is directed to particular embodiments of the present invention for the purpose of illustration and explanation . it will be apparent , however , to one skilled in the art that many modifications and changes to the embodiment set forth above are possible without departing from the scope of the invention . it is intended that the following claims be interpreted to embrace all such modifications and changes .	5
referring to fig1 the general outline of a conventional - style dispenser cabinet or housing is illustrated . the dispenser housing comprises a five - sided cover member 1 pivotably mounted at pivot point 3 to a shallow tray - like base member 5 . base member 5 has a back wall 6 provided with appropriate openings ( not shown ) to accommodate fasteners for attachment of the dispenser to a wall . a reserve roll r of flexible sheet material , such as paper toweling , may be suitably supported between a pair of cantilever mounted wing members 7 extending from the inside of back wall 6 . each wing member 7 carries a cup 9 at its free end , which enters into the opposite ends of the core of reserve roll r . this mounting of reserve roll r within a dispenser housing is fairly conventional , and thus no further discussion of such structure is required . additional generally well known features of the dispenser include a pair of side plates 8 ( see , e . g ., fig3 and 12 ) extending along the opposite sides of the dispenser in the lower part thereof . side plates 8 serve to provide rotatable mounting locations for the feed rollers and other operative components of the dispenser , to be described . the feed rollers include a main feed roller 11 , and upper and lower pinch rolls 13 and 15 . an opening 17 at the lower front portion of dispenser housing 1 provides a dispenser exit , i . e ., towel access slot . as shown , the web being dispensed is provided by a stub roll 16 held loosely in a compartment formed by cover 1 below reserve roll r . extending along and in close proximity to the towel access slot is a reserve roll web ( leading end ) retaining mechanism 18 . although not shown nor absolutely required , typically the inventive web transfer mechanism will be implemented in a dispenser including a mechanism for providing motorized or manual web feed control , e . g ., a motor or manual crank for driving the feed rollers , and a web cutting mechanism . such mechanisms are well known in the art . fig2 shows more clearly various operative parts of web retaining mechanism 18 positioned at the front side of main feed roller 11 . a shield 19 extending across the full width of the feed roller is secured by screws ( e . g ., 20 ), adhesive or the like , to the rectangular base of a generally conventional stripper bar 22 . stripper bar 22 has arms 27 serving to strip web from main feed roll 11 upon emerging from the nip formed between main feed roller 11 and lower pinch roll 15 . as shown , the leading end portion 23 of the web from roll r ( see fig1 ) fits into a space between shield 19 and each of a plurality of upstanding web retainer plates 21 . a narrow flat spring 25 is fastened to each of a plurality ( e . g ., a pair ) of stripper bar arms 27 extending into grooves 38 ( see fig1 ) in main feed roller 11 . springs 25 project through respective openings 29 in shield 19 , to hold the web leading end 23 in place for a subsequent transfer of web end 23 into the nip formed between main feed roller 11 and upper pinch roller 13 . together , retainer plate 21 and spring 25 constitute a web retainer clip . as seen in fig3 shield 19 has a pair of flanges 31 at each of its lateral ends , on which a gravity - controlled pivotable transfer arm 33 ( see fig4 , 11 and 12 ) may be hingedly mounted , at a position below and on a front side of main feed roller 11 . transfer arm 33 , formed primarily as a flat tray - like structure with inwardly directed strength imparting end , bottom and top flanges 34 ( see fig1 and 12 ), carries a plurality ( e . g ., three ) transfer fingers 35 ( two seen in fig1 ) located at , and on either side of , a centerline of arm 33 , in alignment with corresponding feed roller grooves 37 ( two seen in fig1 ). for strength , transfer fingers 35 may be formed as integral extensions of flat - sided vertical ribs 36 protruding from an inside face of transfer arm 33 . the flange 34 located between transfer fingers 35 extends inwardly to a greater extent than the other flanges , in order to provide additional stiffening of the fingers . as best seen in fig1 , main feed roller 11 has circumferential friction ( e . g ., rubber ) surface elements 12 to grip and move the web , and deep grooves at spaced intervals along its length . three grooves 37 ( placed at and on either side of a center line of roller 11 ) accommodate transfer fingers 35 at the front side of the feed roller . each groove 37 off - set from centerline groove 37 further accommodates , at the rear side of roller 11 , web sensing fingers , as will be described . a pair of grooves 38 ( one shown ), adjacent the off - set grooves 37 , are aligned with a corresponding one of web retainer plates 21 on the front side , and receives a stripper bar arm 27 at a lower front side , as best seen in fig2 . at the rear side of main feed roller 11 , grooves 38 accommodate an additional web sensing finger ( to be described ). preferably , edges 60 ( see fig1 ) of grooves 37 are serrated or notched to facilitate gripping of web material during a transfer operation . a series of relatively small and shallow diagonally oriented triangular cuts can be provided on opposing groove sidewalls , as shown in fig1 . alternatively , edges 60 ′ comprising a series of cuts ( e . g ., ten cuts spaced in 36 ° angular intervals ) extending perpendicular to the rotational axis of the main feed roller and at a slight angle below lines tangent to the roller , as shown in fig1 , can provide a greater groove surface area extending generally parallel to the entry direction of the leading end portion of web at the time of transfer . this permits greater contact with the leading web portion , and gripping of the same with increased strength , upon actuation of a transfer operation . as best seen in fig5 on one end of transfer arm 33 ( right end as shown ), beyond the width of a dispensed towel web and a slightly shortened upper pinch roller 13 , an upwardly directed transfer arm extension 39 includes a stop finger 41 extending inwardly of the dispenser , and a coil spring 43 projecting outwardly . spring 43 is , when the dispenser cover is fully closed , contacted by an inside surface or projection of the cover . by virtue of the resulting spring bias , spring 43 supplies a slight force serving to pivot transfer fingers 35 forward into main feed roller grooves 37 , but only upon a release of the transfer arm ( to be described ), in order to transfer retained leading web edge 23 into the feed nip , to thereby initiate dispensing from reserve roll r . obviously , spring 43 could be appropriately mounted on the inside of the pivotable dispenser cover , instead of on transfer arm extension 39 . transfer arm extension 39 can be located at either end of transfer arm 33 , but must be arranged in alignment with a swinging stop arm ( to be described ). referring now to fig4 in conjunction with fig6 - 10 , a web sensor arm 45 extends across the full width of the dispenser , at the rear of main feed roller 11 , and is pivotally mounted between dispenser side plates 8 , on pivot axis 46 located above and slightly rearwardly of main feed roller 11 . stub shafts ( not shown ) may be provided at each end of arm 45 , to ride in bearings in dispenser side plates 8 . a plurality of sensor fingers 47 ( four shown in fig7 ) are located along the length of arm 45 to fit into corresponding grooves 37 , 38 ( see fig1 ) of main feed roller 11 . additional strength is imparted to fingers 47 by a rib 48 extending centrally along the arcuate outer surface of each finger 47 . as seen in fig4 an arcuate back plate 49 having slots ( not shown ) to accommodate fingers 47 also extends about a rear side of main feed roller 11 , in order to define a path leading the web material around roller 11 and into the second nip formed between main feed roller 11 and lower pinch roller 15 ( see fig2 ). web sensor arm 45 is lightly loaded , preferably by a balance arm 51 , or alternatively by a spring , so that sensor fingers 47 will ride lightly on the surface of a web present at the back side of feed roller 11 , and pivot into the associated feed roller grooves when no web is present . the use of a balance arm is preferred since the biasing force can be maintained constant over time . the ideal balancing torque can be empirically determined for the particular dispenser application . on the right end of sensor arm 45 is a cup - like sensor arm extension 53 ( see fig4 ), in alignment with transfer arm extension 39 located on the opposite side of main feed roller 11 . extension 53 serves to pivotably mount a swinging stop arm 55 , and to predetermine the positions of arm 55 at the limits of its range of its pivotal movement . as best seen in fig4 the pivot axis of stop arm 55 preferably coincides with pivot axis 46 of web sensor arm 45 . stop arm 55 has a convex end surface arranged to contact an arcuate end surface 44 of stop finger 41 of transfer arm extension 39 , when sheet material webbing is present at the back side of main feed roller 11 . the convex end surface of arm 55 should have a radius of curvature no larger than the radius of the pivot arc of arm 55 . the mating end surfaces of stop arm 55 and stop finger 44 are preferably polished or otherwise made highly smooth . the smooth and arcuate nature of the mating end surfaces reduces friction and thereby facilitates a release - action to be described . cup - like sensor arm extension 53 has a lower inner surface 57 that positively lifts stop arm 55 for effecting a transfer of web feed . extension 53 has a sloping upper inner surface 59 that limits upward movement of stop arm 55 , but allows stop arm 55 to pivot sufficiently within the cup to rest , in one stage of the operation ( to be described ), on top of transfer arm extension finger 41 . this occurs when transfer arm 33 is in a forward , transfer positioned when sensor fingers 47 are located outside of the feed roller grooves , in a web present position . the components of the inventive web transfer mechanism may be manufactured using known materials and manufacturing techniques . for example , durable thermoplastic plastic material , e . g ., delrin or equivalent , and injection molding , can be used to form stripper bar 22 ( and integral arms 27 ), shield 19 , web retainer plates 21 , web transfer arm 33 ( and integral extension 39 ), web sensor arm 45 ( including integral cup - like extension 53 and fingers 47 ), and swinging stop arm 55 . the feed rollers may comprise molded plastic hubs on circular steel shafts , and separately applied rubber facing surfaces . various other suitable materials and manufacturing methods will be apparent to those skilled in the art . sequential operation stages of the above - described inventive web transfer system are now explained . without web material present at its backside , main feed roller 11 has allowed pivoted web sensor arm 45 , loaded by balance arm 51 at the rear , to pivot sensor fingers 47 into corresponding grooves 37 , 38 provided in main feed roller 11 ( see fig1 ). this causes swinging stop arm 55 to be lifted upwardly , as seen in fig4 releasing transfer arm extension 39 , at the front side of main feed roller 11 , to pivot inwardly of the dispenser under the bias of spring 43 contacted by pressure of the closed cover 1 . this causes transfer fingers 35 to pivot into exposed feed roller grooves 37 at the front side of main feed roller 11 . as dispenser cover 1 is pivoted downwardly about pivot point 3 to an open position , the spring pressure on transfer arm extension 39 is relieved , allowing transfer arm 33 to drop by gravity to the position shown by the phantom lines in fig1 , leaving a clear area in front of main feed roller 11 . the custodian loads a towel roll into reserve roll wing members 7 ( see fig1 ), then leads web end 23 down in front of feed roller shield 19 , and into the retainer clips formed by retainer plates 21 and flat springs 25 . as cover 1 is closed , it pivots transfer arm 33 upwardly , allowing transfer arm extension arm finger 41 to pass under raised stop arm 55 . by pressure from cover 1 contacting spring 43 , transfer arm 33 is actuated to move transfer fingers 35 into pressing contact with portions of the towel web adjacent retained edge 23 , to thus force the web portions at least partially into feed roller grooves 37 , where serrated edges 60 ( or 60 ′) of the grooves ( see fig1 and 15 ) assist with gripping of the web material on rotation of feed roller 11 . subsequent power or manual operation of feed roller 11 pulls the towel web out of the retainers , folds leading end portion 23 over , and carries the folded end portion around to the rear of main feed roller 11 . at this point , the web contacts the ends of sensor fingers 47 and lifts the fingers out of the feed roller grooves 37 to ride on the surface of the web . simultaneously , cup - like sensor arm extension 53 is pivoted downwardly . swinging stop arm 55 remains on top of transfer arm extension finger 41 , as stop arm 55 pivots freely in the ample clearance provided by the cup - like structure . on the front side of main feed roller 11 , transfer fingers 35 remain in open feed roller grooves 37 ; at the rear , sensor fingers 47 ride on the surface of the towel web , as the sheet material ( e . g ., towels ) is being dispensed . 4 . indicator ( or transparent window ) on cover alerts custodian that initial towel roll has reduced to stub - roll size . cover opened . as dispenser cover 1 is pivoted open , transfer arm 33 drops once again , by gravity , to the open position shown in fig1 , pivoting transfer arm extension finger 41 out from under swinging stop arm 55 . this permits stop arm 55 to drop to its lowermost , horizontal stop position . a custodian removes the remains of roll r ( now a stub roll 16 ) from its support wings 7 and drops it into the bottom compartment ( see fig1 ). the web of stub roll 16 remains threaded through the mechanism , as seen in fig1 . the custodian loads a fresh reserve roll r into wing members 7 , threads the leading end portion of the web down in front of main feed roller 11 , and slides the leading web edge into the spring clips formed by retainer plates 21 and flat springs 25 . ( the steps of loading a reserve roll are the same as loading the initial roll in previous stage 2 .) closing of cover 1 , following loading of reserve roll r , pivots transfer arm 33 upwardly , but the end of transfer arm extension finger 41 hits the free end surface of swinging stop arm 55 , which is placed in its lower stop position , as seen in fig4 . this prevents transfer fingers 35 from pivoting into feed roller grooves 37 , to transfer the reserve web . dispensing continues until stub roll 16 in the lower compartment runs empty . as the trailing end of the stub roll web passes over the rear side of main feed roller 11 , sensor fingers 47 pivot into feed roller grooves 37 , simultaneously raising cup - like sensor arm extension 53 , and the pivoted stop arm 55 . this releases transfer arm extension 39 , allowing the spring - loaded transfer arm 33 to pivot transfer fingers 35 into feed roller grooves 37 , under the bias of spring 43 , to thus transfer feed to the reserve web upon rotation of feed roller 11 ( in the manner described in previous stage 3 ). as the reserve roll web moves around and down the back side of feed roller 11 , it contacts sensor fingers 47 , pivoting them back to once again ride on the surface of the web , simultaneously moving sensor arm extension 53 down , to once again let swinging stop arm 55 rest on top of the transfer arm extension finger 41 . the empty core in the lower compartment rests on the cover bottom . thus , when the custodian later opens the cover to load a fresh reserve roll , the empty core will roll forwardly in the cover bottom where it can be easily removed . the present invention has been described in terms of preferred and exemplary embodiments thereof numerous other embodiments , modifications and variations within the scope and spirit of the appended claims will occur to persons of ordinary skill in the art from a review of this disclosure .	1
the following embodiment is presented to enable those skilled in the art to more clearly understand and practice the present invention . however , this embodiment should not be considered as a limitation upon the scope of the present invention , but merely as being illustrative and representative thereof . in order to eliminate the degradation mentioned above , sync bytes can be transmitted only when the interruption will not degrade the reconstruction process . in accordance with the present invention , the samples are monitored at the transmitting end to determine the proper conditions to insert sync information , and the previous sample is held as the receiver &# 39 ; s output whenever sync information is detected at the receiving end . the condition for sending sync information must allow the use of one sample to simulate a second sample . this is accomplished by checking for two consecutive equal data samples and sending sync information ( sync byte ) in place of the second equivalent sample . by requiring a sync byte to replace only equivalent data bytes , holding the previous sample value if sync is detected will simulate the recovery of the real time data at the receiver . degradation will not be detected when the recovered data is used to reconstruct the samples . the present invention is illustrated in the exemplary circuits and operational waveforms of fig1 - 4 . as used herein , equivalence between two byte samples refers to identical bit patterns . the analog signal from a representative information source , such as an audio / video system , is sampled and encoded into byte sequences . these byte sequences are coupled into the transmitter of fig1 on the parallel data in bus , and are clocked into a first storage register 10 at the rate of the clock signal . a second storage register 11 is serially cascaded to register 10 . as shown , the clock input of register 11 is also connected to the clock signal so that register 11 is loaded with the contents of register 10 simultaneously with the loading of a byte signal into register 10 from the data in bus . accordingly , for the purpose of explanation , the synchronous response of registers 10 and 11 to the clock signal results in a current sample being stored in register 11 and a next sample being stored in register 10 . an encoder 12 receives the parallel data from register 11 on a data out bus , and outputs data in a serial bit stream on a serial out bus . thus , encoder 12 serializes the parallel samples and encodes them for transmission . the encoder is responsive to an appropriate strobe signal from a byte comparison module for inserting a synchronization pattern sync in the serial transmission appearing on the serial out bus . the encoding should preferably provide facilities that recognition of special bit sequences can be done with relative certainty . in a specific embodiment of the present invention , a block coding of 4b / 5b is used in which special sequences of bits are guaranteed not to occur in the mapping of the data . the byte comparison module is comprised of an identity detector 13 , a multiplexer ( mux ) 14 , and an inverter ( inv ) 15 . elements 10 , 13 , 14 , and 15 are implemented with an ep610 programmable array logic ( pal ) chip , and elements 11 and 12 implemented with an am7968 taxi chip . the detector monitors the outputs of storage registers 10 and 11 to determine whether the next sample byte to be loaded into register 11 ( from register 10 ) is equivalent to the current byte in register 11 ( which is being coupled at the data out bus to the encoder 12 for transmission ). the detector 13 outputs a match signal when a match condition is satisfied , indicating the occurrence of two consecutive identical data bytes . the multiplexer 14 is responsive to a control signal from detector 13 for selectively coupling either the inverted clock ( from the inverter 15 ) or input 0 to the mux output . when the match condition is not satisfied , the inverted clock signal appears as a strobe signal from the mux . however , when a match is detected by the detector 13 , the multiplexer selects the 0 input , thereby blocking the inverted clock signal from appearing as the strobe signal . thus , the strobe is inhibited whenever the next byte ( from register 10 ) to be transmitted is identical to the byte ( from register 11 ) currently being transmitted . the serial encoder 12 is responsive to the presence of a data strobe signal from the multiplexer 14 for serially transmitting the current and next sample bytes . however , when the encoder 12 detects the absence of a data strobe at its control input , the encoder transmits the current byte and substitutes a sync bit pattern in the serial transmission stream for the next byte sample . thus , the encoder maintains bit continuity by transmitting sync sequences whenever there is a missing data strobe pulse . fig2 shows a series of exemplary waveforms for illustrating the operation of the circuitry in fig1 . the clock rate is chosen to be compatible with the operating specifications of storage registers 10 and 11 , and the data rate of the information on the data in bus . the information on the data in bus represents a portion of the encoded signals , and is shown as a series of byte samples byt 0 - byt 9 . for purposes of illustration , byt 3 is identical to byt 4 , and byt 6 is identical to byt 7 . as detailed above with respect to the storage of adjacent byte samples in register 10 and 11 , byt 4 is loaded into register 10 during the same clock period as byt 3 is being loaded into register 11 . during the next clock period , byt 3 is coupled to the encoder 12 on the data out bus and byt 4 is loaded into register 11 . the detector 13 , being coupled to both the data out bus and an inter - register bus , detects the occurrence of a match condition and outputs a match signal to the multiplexer . as explained above , the multiplexer 14 responds to the match signal and inhibits the generation of the data strobe during the clock period associated with the presence of byt 4 on the data out bus . the encoder detects the absence of the data strobe , and substitutes the sync pattern for byt 4 in the serially transmitted bit stream on the serial out bus . the circuitry operates similarly when byt 6 is identical to byt 7 . fig3 is a schematic illustration of the circuitry for receiving the bit stream from the serial out bus of fig1 , and converting the serial information back into data bytes for reconstructing the original samples . the serial out bus from fig1 is connected through a suitable communication medium to the serial in bus of the receiver in fig3 . the communication medium may include a recording medium , but the present invention is particularly advantageous in a real - time transmission environment . as explained above , the signal from the transmitter contains a sync bit sequence interspersed in an information bit stream . the function of the receiver is to reconstruct the original samples from the serial input stream , using the sync pattern to indicate byte boundaries . accordingly , the receiver circuitry must be able to detect the sync pattern and insert the data byte which was replaced by the sync pattern during transmission . the serial in bus is coupled into a serial decoder 31 which converts the serial input stream into parallel bytes appearing on a data in bus . a register 32 outputs the parallel byte on the data in bus in response to an appropriate strobe signal from multiplexer ( mux ) 34 . the mux selects either the clock signal from decoder 31 or a low state signal to be the strobe signal . since the receiver circuitry initially is not aware of the byte boundaries , the strobe ( clock signal ) into register 32 does not necessarily align with the byte boundaries . however , once the sync detector 33 detects the presence of a sync pattern in the input bit stream on the serial in bus , the sync detector outputs an inhibiting signal . as shown , this sync detection is not simultaneous with the presence of a sync signal , but occurs partially into the sync byte . the mux responds to the inhibiting signal and prevents the received clock signal from strobing register 32 . thus , when the sync detector 32 indicates a match , the strobe pulse ( i . e ., the clock signal ) is blocked from reaching register 32 , causing register 32 to hold the data out at the prior value . the operation of the circuitry in fig3 is readily understood with the exemplary set of waveforms shown in fig4 . during the bytes following the sync byte , the strobe signal is issued with precise timing to latch bytes , on the data in bus , into register 32 . from this point on the information on the data out bus is in synchronism with the received clock labelled data clock . it is clear that even when the strobe signal is missing during a sync detection , the data clock still appears . therefore , the contents of register 32 is read twice , once prior to the sync byte and then during the sync byte . the action of reading the contents of register 32 twice recreates the original byt 4 and byt 7 that were replaced by sync insertion during transmission . it must be noted here that after a byte sync is established , subsequent sync detections do not impose any data impairment or reduce system throughput . an am7969 chip , implementing elements 31 and 33 , is used to receive the sample stream from the transmitter of fig1 , and generate the clock strobe signal . elements 34 and 32 are implemented with an ep310 pal . the method and system described herein provide a solution to the problem of synchronizing byte boundaries of real time data without disrupting access to that data at the receiver . the invention is not restricted to video and audio data as described in the illustrative example above , but can be used in many systems where sync information can be transmitted on a conditional basis . the video / audio example facilitates an illustration of the advantages of the present invention . while there has been shown and described what are at present considered the preferred embodiments of the invention , it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims . for example , although fig1 - 4 concern the serial transmission of sample and synchronization information , the invention is also applicable to systems which transmit ordered samples in other suitable formats so long as the samples can be compared and the sequential ordering can be ascertained at the receiver . furthermore , a variety of encoding schemes and clock and data rates are possible . the individual components in fig1 and 3 perform functions which may also be executed by equivalent circuitry known to those skilled in the art .	7
a gamma ray collimator assembly constructed in accordance with the invention is shown generally at 10 in fig1 . the collimator assembly 10 includes a housing 12 , typically constructed of aluminum . coupled to the housing 12 is a side shielding 14 which is normally constructed of lead when the collimator assembly 10 is used for collimation of gamma rays . disposed within the housing 12 and coupled to the side shielding 14 are collimator elements 16 constructed of collimator walls 18 ( best seen in fig2 - 4 ). in a preferred embodiment the collimator walls 18 are constructed of a layered material with a base material structure 20 and a thin layer 22 disposed thereon ( see fig2 and 3 ). the radiation used in a conventional radiographic embodiment is high energy x - rays or gamma rays , and in a preferred embodiment the base material structure 20 is lead and the thin layer 22 is tin . for example , as shown in fig3 in a preferred geometry the collimator walls 18 are square cross section tubing with lead being the base material structure 20 ( hereinafter &# 34 ; lead structure 20 &# 34 ;) and tin being the thin layer 22 . the tin can be readily coupled to the lead structure 20 by conventional methods such as electroplating , evaporation , ion deposition and mechanical lamination . operation of the collimator assembly 10 is best illustrated in fig2 . in this example , the radiation is gamma radiation , and gamma rays 26 originate from a conventional radionuclide source , such as cobalt , thallium or technitium , which is passed through a specimen 28 ( depicted schematically ). as the radioactive radionuclide source decays it emits characteristic gamma rays which are emitted from or pass through the specimen 28 and form an image , such as , for example , in conventional &# 34 ; first pass &# 34 ; angiography . for example , see copending patent application ser . no . 07 / 409 , 249 , filed sep . 19 , 1989 , now u . s . pat . no . 5 , 103 , 823 , assigned to the instant assignee and is incorporated by reference herein . other radiations can also be used in combination with the collimator assembly 10 such as , ions , neutrons , positrons , x - rays , electrons and the like . a desired gamma ray portion 30 of the gamma rays 26 travel along a substantially parallel line 32 or within a very narrow angular range within which the gamma ray portion 30 does not strike the collimator assembly 10 . the desired gamma ray portion 30 thus passes undisturbed through the collimator assembly 10 . this desired gamma ray portion 30 is sensed by a conventional detector 34 , such as , a gamma ray counter of a conventional anger camera or a sensor of a first pass cardiac inspection system , such as the angiographic system of scinticor incorporated of milwaukee , wis . in addition to the desired gamma ray portion 32 , having a substantially unchanged primary energy e 0 after emission from the radiation source , there is a substantial fraction of divergent gamma rays 31 from the specimen 28 . these divergent gamma rays 31 interact with the collimator walls 18 and result in diminished resolution of spatial features of the specimen 28 . the desirability of removing such divergent gamma rays 31 is well known . for example , in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 096 , 389 ( which is incorporated by reference herein ) the benefits of effective collimation , generally , are described for x - ray and gamma ray radiographic imaging technology . such advantages also are apparent for other conventional radiographic systems , such as in emission tomography systems and anger camera geometries ( see , for example , u . s . pat . nos . 4 , 295 , 047 ; 4 , 682 , 033 ; 4 , 852 , 142 ; 4 , 672 , 648 ; and 4 , 277 , 684 , which are incorporated by reference herein ). the divergent gamma rays 31 interact with the collimator walls 18 and the divergent gamma rays 31 lose energy , creating inelastic scattered radiation 36 having energies less than e 0 of the initial gamma rays 26 . in order to achieve optimum resolution , the divergent gamma rays 31 ( and the inelastic scattered byproduct radiation ) should be substantially removed by the collimator assembly 10 . removal of the inelastic scattered radiation 36 would allow sensing and analysis of only the desired gamma ray portion 30 which is substantially parallel to line 32 in fig2 and includes undisturbed gamma rays 30 from the specimen 28 . this desired gamma ray portion 30 is then sensed by detector 34 . this enables achieving the desired level of resolution for the features of the specimen 28 . as mentioned hereinbefore , the divergent gamma rays 31 before interaction with the collimator walls 18 have an energy of e 0 , and after wall interaction the inelastic scattered radiation 36 includes a range of electromagnetic wave energies , from e 0 at a maximum to lesser values . in the case of an inelastic interaction , the divergent gamma rays 31 interact with the lead structure 20 of the collimator assembly 10 . when the gamma rays 31 ( such as , cobalt radionuclide gamma rays having an energy of roughly 140 kev ) enter the lead structure 20 , energy can be lost by a variety of processes . for example , energy can be lost by excitation of electrons from the ground state in each of the lead atoms . these excited electrons return to their ground state energy level and simultaneously emit a characteristic x - ray , such as pb k - alpha radiation having an energy of about 74 kev . numerous ocher electron excitations and decays to ground state occur , giving rise to lower energy x - rays and other electromagnetic wave species which are preferentially absorbed within the lead structure 20 . these events normally occur without reemitting any x - rays into the collimator free space outside the lead structure 20 , and thus the lower energy radiation is not normally detected by the detector 34 . therefore , as stated above , when the divergent gamma rays 31 enter the lead structure 20 , a 74 kev x - ray can escape into free space as a consequence of inelastic scattering of the 140 kev cobalt gamma ray . this emitted 74 kev inelastic scattered x - ray 36 travels along line 42 ( see fig2 ) and is sensed by the detector 24 . conventional energy discriminators in an electronic detection system 37 ( shown schematically ), which is coupled to the detector 34 , can remove the unwanted signal arising from the inelastic scattered x - ray 36 . however , such a sensed event can cause substantial loss of resolution which is detrimental to spatial ( or angular ) resolution . this loss of resolution can result because the event is still counted by the counter 34 and prevents detection of the desired undeviated gamma ray portion 32 . conventional counter electronics in the detection system 37 can only count at a given finite rate , such as , for example , 100 , 000 to 1 , 000 , 000 counts per second , and detection of unwanted energetic photons ( or particles ) prevents accumulating a desired event . the need to maximize useful signal ( coupled with the limits on the ability of the electronics to count all incoming events ) makes it imperative to remove the emitted , or inelastically scattered , x - rays 36 in order to use the full capacity of the counter 34 to sense the desired gamma ray portion 30 . in fig2 and 3 is shown the layered wall structure of the collimator assembly 10 . this layered wall structure enables detection of substantially only the gamma rays 30 and by removal of the unwanted inelastic scattered x - rays 36 so such a component is not sensed by the detector 34 . as shown in the preferred embodiment , the thin layer 22 is tin but can be any material which exhibits a large absorption coefficient for the energetic inelastic scattered x - rays 36 emitted from the underlying lead structure 20 . the tin layer 22 can be quite thin ( for example , about 1 / 4 mm ) and still be quite effective in absorbing the inelastic scattered lead k - alpha x - rays 36 . as can be understood from conventional x - ray optics ( and other appropriate spectroscopic sciences , such as ion optics ) the only portion of energetic photons which might be sensed by the detector 34 is emitted primarily at relatively small angles with respect to the line 32 . the geometry of tile collimator assembly 10 , including the length &# 34 ; l &# 34 ; in fig . 2 and the other dimensions ( see fig3 ) result in the reemitted inelastic scatterd x - rays 36 traveling over a substantial path length within the tin layer 22 . as a consequence of the large path length travelled at such small angles relative to direction 32 , and the well known exponential absorption attenuation , the tin layer 22 is very effective in removing the unwanted inelastic scattered x - rays 36 . the ratio of transmitted intensity to initial intensity is exp (- μ · t ), where μ is the well known linear absorption coefficient of tin ( about 28 . 1 cm - 1 at 75 kev ), and &# 34 ; t &# 34 ; is the path length travelled by the inelastic scattered x - rays 36 in the tin layer . the effect of the collimator assembly 10 on reducing the x - rays 36 is demonstrated dramatically by comparing fig5 a and 5b . fig5 a shows the radiation sensed by the detector 34 in a scinticor angiographic system for a collimator system having only a lead base structure . as can be seen in fig5 a , there are two prominent peaks sensed , one peak at about 75 kev associated with the lead k - alpha inelastically scattered x - rays 36 and the second cobalt gamma ray peak at about 140 kev . the nearly equal prominence of the intensity of the two peaks points out the significance of removing the inelastic scattered x - rays 36 . in fig5 b is shown the energy spectrum detected employing the collimator assembly 10 with substantially identical collimator dimensions . as demonstrated by the data of fig5 the collimator assembly 10 is highly effective in the removal of the lead k - alpha inelastic scattered x - rays 36 , thus enabling the detector 34 to sense only the desired gamma ray portion 30 . consequently , the efficiency of detection for a given radionuclide source intensity in the specimen 28 can be substantially enhanced . as determined by actual experiment in scinticor angiographic systems this is about 50 percent for the illustrated embodiment wherein the number of 140 kev events detected increases , for example , from about 400 , 000 to 600 , 000 counts per second . such an improvement in efficiency also results in enhanced signal which manifests itself as improved image resolution of the specimen cardiac system . for example , as shown by the angiographic image data of fig6 a cardiologist is now able to resolve critical features previously unresolvable . the use of the collimator assembly 10 has , however , substantially improved resolution such that high quality first pass angiography can now be performed routinely . as shown in fig6 the resulting images are of high quality , enabling a cardiologist to more effectively perform diagonses previously made without the benefit of such detailed medical information . preferably , the tin layer 22 does not have too high an atomic number , or the thin layer 22 can itself reemit a high energy x - ray which could be transmitted through the thin layer 22 and be sensed by the detector 34 . knowing the composition of the base structure 20 , one can apply conventional radiation absorption knowledge and methods to determine the appropriate materials and their layer thicknesses necessary to absorb a substantial fraction of any inelastic scattered radiation , particularly emitted k alpha and l alpha x - rays from the base collimator structure 20 . this basic concept of layered wall collimators can be applied to any radiation collimator , such as for x - rays , ions , infrared laser light , positrons , electrons , neutrons and microwave or other photon energies . associated with each of these radiations is a known , developed knowledge of absorption and inelastic scattering events . in those instances in which inelastic scattered radiation can be produced , such unwanted data can be preferentially removed in the manner described . the efficiency of the gamma ray collimator assembly 10 can be assessed with reasonable accuracy for the square cross section collimator geometry illustrated in fig3 . the efficiency is expressed in terms of the spatial dimensions : thus , one can select a desired efficiency by adjusting the various geometries of the collimator assembly 10 . in another aspect of the invention the collimator assembly 10 can be constructed of any desired height and longitudinal length l , along the collimator assembly 10 . the user can then assemble a final collimator assembly 10 of any desired length of longitudinal passageway by stacking two or more different height collimator assemblies . while preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described , it will be clear to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the invention in its broader aspects as set forth in the claims provided hereinafter .	6
fig1 shows , in a cross - sectional view , an 8 - mm movie camera incorporating a mark indicating device of the present invention , in which there are shown an object point 1 ; a picture - taking front lens group 2 ; a half - mirror 3 ; a picture - taking rear lens group 4 ; a photographic film plane 5 ; an imaging lens 6 ; a mirror 7 ; a focus plate 8 having a special focused relief image hologram provided with a display pattern therein ; a white light source 9 for illuminating said hologram ; finder relay lenses 10 , 11 ; a secondary focus plane 12 ; and an eyepiece 13 . the light beam from the object point 1 is focused on the focus plate 8 to form an image of the object thereon through said image - taking front lens group 2 , half - mirror 3 and imaging lens 6 . also the special relief focused image hologram on the focus plate illuminated by the white light source 9 reconstruct an information mark in the vicinity of the focusing plate , whereby said object and the information mark can be viewed with a substantially same diopter through the relay lenses and the eyepiece . the special relief focused image hologram to be employed in the present embodiment has a cross - sectional structure as shown in fig2 which is basically same as that of the beam - splitter disclosed in the japanese patent application sho55 - 10190 of the present applicant , corresponding to the u . s . patent application ser . no . 114 , 201 , now abandoned , from which u . s . patent application ser . no . 285 , 921 , still pending , is a continuation . a dielectric reflective layer 17 of a certain design reflectivity is deposited by evaporation onto a relief diffraction lattice formed on a focusing plate 15 having split - image range - finder elements 16 , and the structure of said relief diffraction lattice is embedded in a transparent cement 18 of a refractive index substantially same as that of the material constituting the focusing plate . a transparent covering member 19 is provided thereon . the information pattern recording in the present information is achieved by depositing the reflective layer 17 corresponding to a pattern &# 34 ; ok &# 34 ; on the relief diffraction lattice 20 as shown in fig3 . such deposition can be obtained by placing an appropriate mask , having apertures corresponding to the pattern &# 34 ; ok &# 34 ; on said diffraction lattice during the evaporation of the reflective layer . the structure shown in fig2 allows to substantially eliminate the undesirable effect of the relief diffraction lattice to the light beam in the finder as described in the aforementioned japanese patent application sho54 - 10190 . more specifically the light beam passing through the relief diffraction lattice not provided with the reflective layer is scarcely affected by the relief structure if the refractive index of the transparent cement 18 is well matched with that of the focusing plate 15 , thus providing a clear image in the finder . on the other hand , the light beam passing through the patterned area having the reflective layer of the hologram is decreased corresponding to the reflectivity thereof , thus providing a darker image in said patterned area , but such light loss is practically negligible if the reflectivity is maintained for example as low as ca . 4 %. on the other hand the illuminating light beam 21 from a reconstructing light source shown in fig4 is reflected and diffracted by the pattern provided with the reflective layer 22 to generate diffracted light 23 to reconstruct the information mark . 24 indicates the o - th order diffracted light . by so designing the relief diffraction lattice that the n - th order diffraction light ( n ≧ 2 ) is principally directed to the optical system of the finder , it is rendered possible to utilize a lattice of a pitch n - times larger than the case of utilizing the first - order diffracted light , thus facilitating the manufacture . particularly preferred is a diffraction lattice blazed to n - th order in consideration of the efficiency of light utilization . in consideration of a fact that the n - th order diffraction efficiency η r ( n ) can be approximately represented by : as shown by the equations ( 4 ) and ( 5 ) in the japanese patent application sho54 - 10190 , the condition for n - th order blazing of the relief diffraction lattice can be represented by : in which n stands for the refractive index of the material constituting the relief diffraction lattice , and δ stands for the height of the relief structure . also for achieving reflective diffraction of the n - th order diffracted light into the direction of the optical axis , the diffraction angle θ in the material of a refractive index n has to satisfy the following condition : thus , from the foregoing conditions ( 1 ), ( 2 ) and ( 3 ) there can be obtained a condition : ## equ1 ## wherein θ is the incident angle of the illuminating light in the relief member . consequently a relief diffraction lattice having a face of such inclination is desirable for the hologram for use in the device of the present invention . fig5 shows a second embodiment of the present invention , in which , in contrast to the embodiment shown in fig3 the hologram is present only in the area 25 of relief diffraction lattice corresponding to the pattern information to be reconstructed , and the transparent plate constituting the focusing plate 26 is provided with the reflective layer on the entire face having the relief diffraction lattice . the cross - sectional structure of other components in this embodiment is similar to that shown in fig2 . also in the present embodiment the information pattern is reconstructed by the reconstructing light source from the relief diffraction lattice in the similar manner as shown in fig4 . however the effect on the transmitted light is somewhat different from that in the first embodiment . as the reflective coating in this case is provided on the entire internal face of the focusing plate 26 , the area of information pattern alone does not appear darker though the entire viewing field becomes slightly darker . in the foregoing embodiments the reconstructing light source is positioned closer to the eye than the relief diffraction lattice , or , stated otherwise , the illuminating light source and the observer are positioned at the same side , but it is often desirable to employ the transmission type arrangement in which the illuminating light source is positioned at the opposite side of the observer as shown in fig1 in consideration of the spatial limitation in the assembly into the camera finder or of the efficiency of light utilization . fig6 shows , in a cross - sectional view , an 8 - mm movie camera utilizing a transmission type indicating device , of which the arrangement is same as that shown in fig1 except the internal structure of the focusing plate 28 having a relief hologram and the position of the light source 27 . fig7 shows , in a partial cross - sectional view , an example of the hologram applicable in the present embodiment , which requires a relief structure with sharp peaks in order to direct the n - th order diffracted light 30 to the direction of optical axis . also fig8 shows an example of the hologram applicable in the transmission type device as explained above and still not requiring a relief structure with sharp peaks . the relief diffraction lattice employed in said hologram is composed of unit lattice structures each having two faces 37 , 38 inclined to the lattice surface substantially coinciding with the focal plane , wherein a dielectric reflective layer of a determined reflectivity is deposited on the face 38 angled more steeply to the lattice surface , and the above - mentioned lattice structure is embedded in a transparent cement 18 of a refractive index same as that of the material constituting the focusing plate . on said cement there is provided a transparent covering member 19 . the information pattern recording in the present embodiment is achieved , in a similar manner as shown in fig3 by depositing the reflective layer on the more steeply inclined one of two faces constituting the unit lattice structure , corresponding to a pattern &# 34 ; ok &# 34 ;. such deposition can be achieved by placing an appropriate mask having apertures corresponding to said pattern &# 34 ; ok &# 34 ; on the relief diffraction lattice and conducting evaporation process toward said face of the lattice structure through said apertures . as shown in fig9 the light beam 35 from the reconstructing light source is diffracted by said hologram to reconstruct the information mark by the diffracted light 33 . the o - th diffracted light is indicated by 34 . said diffraction is shown in further detail in fig1 . as shown in fig1 , the illuminating light 35 passes through the face 37 less steeply inclined to the lattice surface and reflected by the face 38 more steeply inclined and provided with the reflective layer , thus causing diffraction and forwarding the n - th order diffracted light 34 toward the observer . in the present embodiment the pitch p of the relief diffraction lattice is defined by : wherein λ is the wave length of the light in the material constituting the diffraction lattice , and θ is the incident angle of the incident light as shown in fig9 and 10 . also the efficiency of light utilization can be improved to obtain brighter display , by so arranging the face with reflective layer of the relief diffraction lattice that the reflected light therefrom in the sense of geometrical optics is principally directed to the finder optical system . this requirement is represented by the following condition : wherein φ is the angle of the face 38 with reflective layer to a line perpendicular to the lattice surface , as shown in fig1 . the height h of the lattice structure and the reflectivity of the deposited reflective layer can be approximately determined in the following manner , although more accurately the reflectivity should be determined from the product of the diffraction pattern of unit diffraction structure and the δ - function showing the direction of diffracted light caused by the repeating diffraction structures . now , let r eff be the effective reflectivity , or the ratio of the amount of light required for the display of the information mark in the incident light beam , and r . sub . φ be the reflectivity of the deposited reflective layer for the illuminating light with an incident angle θ or an incident angle π / 2 - θ to the reflecting face , then : ## equ2 ## wherein ω is the width of incident light beam reaching the reflective face as shown in fig1 and is represented by : ## equ3 ## from ( 6 ) and ( 7 ) there can be obtained : for example , for the following conditions : ## equ4 ## there can be obtained from the equations ( 5 ) to ( 8 ): ## equ5 ## consequently the reflectivity of the deposited reflective face and the height of the lattice structure can be determined so as to satisfy the condition ( 11 ). the foregoing calculation employs the condition of the blazed diffraction lattice and assumes that all the diffracted light is included in the 12th - order diffracted light , but in practice the value of r eff should be calculated in consideration of the leak of light into the diffracted light of other orders . although the relief diffraction lattice in the foregoing embodiment is provided with the reflective layer only on one of two faces constituting the unit relief structure , said layer may also be deposited on both faces in order to facilitate the evaporation process . such structure naturally results in a loss of light , but is practically acceptable as long as the reflectivity of the reflective layer is maintained sufficiently low . the device utilizing the hologram shown in fig8 and 10 , being designed to utilize the n - th order diffracted light for the reconstruction of the information mark as shown in the equation ( 4 ), allows the use of a large lattice pitch and has a certain freedom in the inclination of the other face constituting the lattice structure and in the height thereof as long as the condition ( 5 ) is satisfied , so that is it extremely advantageous in the preparation of the diffraction lattice . fig1 shows still another embodiment , in which the light source 40 is positioned facing to a lateral edge of a transparent body 41 incorporating the relief hologram , and the light guided in said body by total reflection is diffracted by the reflective layer provided on the relief diffraction lattice to display the information pattern . a light shield member 42 is provided to intercept unnecessary light . the pattern of the relief diffraction lattice of the hologram employed in the foregoing embodiments can be prepared , in a similar manner as in the preparation of ordinary fresnel lenses or of diffraction lattices for spectrometry , by forming grooves on a metal with a diamond blade according to the required lattice pitch , and by mass producing plastic replicas for example by compression process from thus prepared metal mold . also the relief or blazed diffraction structure can be obtained by recording interference patterns on a photoresist followed by image development according to the ordinary holographic process . plastic replicas can also be prepared in this case by evaporating a metal layer on said photoresist , preparing a nickel mold by electro - casting process , and molding a plastic material thereon . the large - pitched relief diffraction lattice employable in the present invention provides little color by dispersion in the reconstructed image . for this reason , in the reconstruction for example of an alarm mark , it may be desirable to employ a colored filter in combination with the light source or to employ a colored light source such as a light - emitting diode . although the foregoing description has been limited to the application of the present invention in the information pattern display device for use in the 8 - mm movie camera , the present invention is by no means limited to such application .	6
the high - quality dielectric forming method of the present invention is characterized by the use of atomic nitrogen ( n ) and nitric oxide ( no ). in the described embodiment , the atomic n and no are employed in a downstream plasma process permitting improved control of the nitrogen and oxygen reaction to form high - quality dielectric films or layers on a semiconductor containing device . the invention allows better control of the nitrogen and oxygen reaction in terms of amount and location of each of the respective elements deposited in a dielectric film formation . examples of using this method to form a high - quality capacitor dielectric on a semiconductor - containing substrate include the reoxidation of a silicon nitride ( si 3 n 4 ) dielectric layer and the formation or growth of an oxynitride dielectric layer on a silicon - containing substrate . accordingly , in an exemplary embodiment of the present invention , an improved method for forming a high - quality dielectric is described . it includes using atomic n and the controlled introduction of no into a gas flow containing the atomic n , prior to exposure to the target substrate for dielectric layer formation . atomic n reacts readily and very rapidly with no , in a bimolecular reaction . when atomic n reacts with nitric oxide , the same amount of oxygen is formed as the amount of no available . in contrast to the fast reaction of n with no , the reaction of n with o is very slow , occurring in a trimolecular reaction . the molecularity of a reaction refers to the number of molecules involved in forming the activated complex in a step of a chemical reaction . in the case of a bimolecular reaction , two molecules are involved and in the case of a trimolecular reaction , three molecules are involved . by controlling and adjusting the amount of no introduced and available to react with the atomic n as well as the timing of no injection or introduction , controlled atomic n and atomic o concentration is obtained at the target , and a high - quality dielectric can be formed . in the case of si 3 n 4 dielectric films , this method allows reoxidation of the si 3 n 4 layer and nitrogen incorporation at low temperatures , between approximately 200 ° to 750 ° c ., without compromising the film integrity . as explained previously , the si 3 n 4 layers are reoxidized after deposition to improve their dielectric qualities . for example , the reoxidation operates to reduce defects such as pinholes and leakage current . the reoxidation of the si 3 n 4 layers typically is accomplished by high - temperature treatment in steam or an oxygen ( o 2 ) ambient environment . with existing fabrication techniques the si 3 n 4 films cannot be reduced below approximately 65 å because a si 3 n 4 layer thinner than this cannot withstand the subsequent oxidation step used to improve the dielectric qualities of the si 3 n 4 layer . but , as discussed above , thinner layers are increasingly required to meet industry specification standards . due to this method &# 39 ; s accommodation of lower temperature reoxidation , this method permits si 3 n 4 films to be fabricated thinner than the previous minimum of approximately 65 å . the si 3 n 4 films have not been previously fabricated any thinner than approximately 65 å because , when made thinner , the si 3 n 4 layer could not tolerate the prior art higher temperature reoxidation methods , higher than approximately 750 ° c ., necessary to insure the integrity and quality of the dielectric layer . in the case of forming a high - quality dielectric on a silicon - containing substrate by direct growth or formation of an oxynitride layer using the present inventive method , the desired oxynitride layer can be obtained wherein the amount and location of nitrogen and oxygen incorporation in the layer can be tailored to specific needs . it is believed that this method harnesses and manipulates the competitive chemical reactions of the various constituents , thereby controlling the amount and timing of atomic nitrogen and oxygen available to react and form the desired dielectric layer . the method , as described in this illustrative embodiment , includes the steps necessary for understanding and explaining the invention . other typical fabrication processes that are necessary for the fabrication of a complete device and well known to one skilled in the art may take place sequentially before or after the present method . to avoid confusion , fabrication processes that are not essential to the present method yet might be included in the overall device fabrication , are not described herein . in the illustrative embodiment described here , atomic n is provided , preferably by dissociating molecular nitrogen ( n 2 ) through plasma treatment of molecular nitrogen . means for generating such a plasma are well known in the art and include , for example , a pair of oppositely placed electrodes , inductive coils , microwave sources , and other conductive and inductive power sources . the atomic n is then combined in a specified manner with the no to permit the controlled formation of a high - quality dielectric . a typical plasma system that can be used with this process to provide the atomic n is shown schematically in fig1 and is generally designated as 10 . a plasma system such as the one shown schematically in fig1 is often referred to commercially as a downstream plasma system . by downstream plasma system it is meant that a plasma is generated and used to treat a compound and create reactive constituents , in this case atomic n , in a particular location and then the reactive constituents are transported downstream to another location , before being used as desired , generally by acting on a target . downstream plasma system 10 , as shown in fig1 includes a plasma chamber 12 in flow communication by way of conduit 14 with a reaction chamber 22 . using plasma system 10 , the atomic n is created by dissociating the molecular nitrogen ( n 2 ) before the atomic n is introduced downstream into reaction chamber 22 . the atomic n is combined with the no in a predetermined manner to provide both atomic n and atomic o and is then transported downstream to reaction chamber 22 , to react with a target , here substrate 26 , to form a high - quality dielectric . the high - quality dielectric is formed either via formation of an oxynitride layer , or via the reoxidation of si 3 n 4 . plasma chamber 12 has an external energy source 28 to generate the plasma for dissociating molecular n 2 to the atomic n necessary for this inventive method . in the present example , external energy source 28 is in the form of a radio frequency ( rf ) power source inductively coupled to a plasma quartz tube . in this example , a plasma is the preferred means for creating the atomic n , but it can also be created using other suitable means , such as optical activation , thermal activation , ultrasonic activation and the like . inside reaction chamber 22 is pallet 24 which supports a plurality of target substrates 26 , which is in this example a plurality of semiconductor wafers appropriately prepared for dielectric layer formation . pallet 24 can be cooled or heated , as desired , to be compatible with the rest of the selected parameters . optionally , a bias may be applied in the known manner to substrate 26 in reaction chamber 22 . with this configuration , a plasma is created using approximately 3 kw of energy supplied by energy source 28 . power from energy source 28 typically is in the range of 50 watts to 5 kw . the frequency can range between 10 khz and 200 mhz with 13 . 56 mhz being the most common . in accordance with this example , the chemical sources for the molecular nitrogen used to provide the atomic n and the no are supplied as gases , such as can be commonly obtained from pressurized canisters , appropriately connected to system 10 . the molecular nitrogen source is connected to supply the gas to plasma chamber 12 and the no gas source is connected to enter into conduit 14 , preferably at the point of staging chamber 16 . as an example , with this arrangement , a plasma is generated in plasma chamber 12 which contains molecular nitrogen ( n 2 ). the molecular nitrogen is dissociated to atomic n by the plasma treatment , as shown in fig1 . the atomic n is then moved downstream through conduit 14 from plasma chamber 12 , preferably through staging chamber 16 , prior to being delivered into reaction chamber 22 . a selected quantity of no , is also introduced into staging chamber 16 at the same time as the atomic n is present in staging chamber 16 . the no can be injected continuously for a time interval equal to or different than that of the atomic n introduction into reaction chamber 22 , to control the amount of reactants present . the time intervals selected would depend on the specific characteristics desired . for example , both the atomic n and the no could be injected simultaneously for 30 minutes ; or to obtain different characteristics , the introduction of the no could be delayed relative to the atomic n injection and started 5 , 10 , 15 minutes , or any other desired amount of time , after the start of the atomic n injection . the atomic n , the no and their reactive products are then transported via conduit 14 to nozzle 20 and are introduced into reaction chamber 22 by way of dispersion nozzle 20 to form the desired high - quality dielectric layer on target substrate 26 . the molecular nitrogen is introduced with gas flow rates in the range of 5 to 5000 sccm &# 39 ; s ( standard cubic centimeters per minute ), preferably around 1000 sccm &# 39 ; s . in the present illustrative embodiment , using plasma system 10 , it is estimated that approximately 10 % of the molecular nitrogen is dissociated to atomic n . in this example , to have slightly less no present than atomic n , the no would be introduced with a preferred flow rate of approximately 10 sccm &# 39 ; s . the flow rate for the no in this example could range from 1 - 1000 sccm &# 39 ; s . in the present example , no is combined with the atomic n in staging chamber 16 . staging chamber 16 is in the form of a substantially “ t ”- shaped intersection in conduit 14 . however , the commingling or intermixing could equally take place in any manner and could comprise any location where the atomic n and no exist conjointly in a manner that allows them to react with each other to provide the desired reactive constituents of atomic n and atomic o in the presence of target substrate 26 , which in this example is located downstream in reaction chamber 22 . the combination of the atomic n and no in staging chamber 16 , in this downstream fashion , makes possible the formation of the desired nitrogen and oxygen containing dielectric layer , either as the oxidized si 3 n 4 layer or oxynitride layer , as shown in fig3 designated as dielectric layer 44 . one of the very advantageous aspects of this method is the flexibility to customize the fabricated dielectric . by controlling the quantity of reactable atomic nitrogen and atomic oxygen available , as well as the timing of their availability , the high - quality dielectric layer can be greatly customized , for example , 54 locating the bulk of the deposited n at the silicon - sio 2 interface or locating it more predominantly in the sio 2 layer . the downstream plasma approach used with this method , where the plasma is used to dissociate the molecular n 2 into atomic n at a first location and is then transported downstream to another location , permits the interaction of atomic n with the no in a more rapid and efficient reaction than if just molecular nitrogen and no were used . the use of no with molecular nitrogen results in an undesirably slow growth of the dielectric layer . this commingling of the highly reactive n and o atoms in this downstream manner helps to ensure formation of the desired reactive constituent atoms and complexes which are believed to be necessary to react to form the desired high - quality dielectric layers as part of this inventive process . a direct plasma approach , that is , treating both the molecular n and no with a plasma in the presence of target substrate 26 , would be undesirable . with a direct plasma treatment , the reactive constituents thus formed would not provide atomic n and atomic o in controllable proportions necessary for this method to insure the high - quality dielectric formation . although not wishing to be bound by any particular theory of the invention , it is believed that the atomic n and atomic o participate in competitive and predictable chemical reactions that can be advantageously manipulated by the present invention to improve nitrogen and oxygen reaction for the formation of high - quality dielectric layers . turning to the plasma created in plasma chamber 12 , the preferred plasma is a pure nitrogen plasma . optionally , the nitrogen plasma may include another gas that will not be reactive in the desired dielectric layer formation , such as argon or one of the other noble gases . the methods for forming a noble gas plasma are well known in the art and briefly described above and will not be described in further detail herein . the process of this invention allows the formation of high - quality capacitor dielectric layers with improved control over the atomic nitrogen and atomic oxygen concentration during the process . an important advantage of this method resides in its flexibility . because the atomic nitrogen and atomic oxygen amounts available for utilization can be manipulated with this method , the method can be applied to many different compositions of dielectric layers . for example , high - quality dielectric layer formation by reoxidation of si 3 n 4 can be performed on desirably ultrathin layers of si 3 n 4 without destroying the thinner layers as would other reoxidation methods . the controlled creation of nitrogen and oxygen reactive constituents also favor higher production throughputs that are prerequisite to the economic decrease in costs of fabrication of integrated circuits . accordingly , with the method described herein , products can be manufactured more economically by this process . such products include , for example , integrated circuits , multichip modules , electronic devices , and the like as can be seen in fig3 which includes semiconductor substrate 40 , first metal layer 42 , high - quality dielectric 44 and a second metal layer 46 . it will therefore be understood that modifications and variations are possible without departing from the scope of the invention as expressed in the following claims .	7
this invention reveals a method to provide rapid destruction of the cells of polystyrene foams by use of a combination of specific chemicals of the class of aliphatic dibasic esters , either alone or with other foam reduction agents and surfactants that are active and which readily attack , with no or little heat activation , polystyrene foam and allows easy recycling . the easy recycling is due to reduced bulk and ease of storage of the collapsed polystyrene foam in sludge foam , ease of processing , and economical transportation prior to recycling . the process involves the exposure of said foams to liquid sprays of specific esters , which have a relatively high boiling point and may be easily and safely transported . this invention solves the volume problem of polystyrene foam materials and allows the easy and inexpensive shipment of the foam materials after cost effective reduction in volume by use of liquid aliphatic dibasic esters . these materials such as dimethyl glutarate , dimethyl adipate and dimethyl succinate are all effective foam reduction agents . while they have activity individually , as mixtures the action is especially favorable . moreover , with the addition of small amounts of heat to the process the overall effectiveness is increased while having little effect on the cost of recycling . also , because of the reactants lower boiling points not much reactant is lost in the heating process . the lower boiling points and benign nature of the reactants makes the reactant process safer than know chemical reactants with highly boiling points . the use of active chemicals assists in making foamed polystyrene materials easier to incinerate or reprocess . the product of this process and method is solvatable and can be made pumpable and can then be filtered and reprocessed or injected into the furnaces where the high fuel value of the material offers energy savings . if filtered and recycled , high quality polystyrene raw material bead product can be made . heretofore it has been impossible to cost effectively recycle polystyrene high quality raw material . high quality recycling is important in polystyrene recycling where the recycled product is desirable to be used in the food packing industry . the food packing industry has strict requirements for parts per million of contaminant in the styrene used . the process disclosed herein is the only knows recycling that is cost effective and yields recycled material that would meet the requirements of the food packing industry . the process of volume reduction has been hampered by high loss due to evaporation . this invention helps cure this problem by discovery of agents with high boiling points , which effect foam reduction in the liquid state with little or no heat added . the materials used in this method of volume reduction are also recoverable by removal in the recycling process and the majority of compounds used can be easily separated from moisture and volatile organic by a combination of decanting , mutual solubility with other organic compounds and thermal stripping . the invention started with identification of the unexpected affinity of the vapors of certain solvents found in perfumes . identification of the active agent in the process became the key to the initial foam volume reduction process . this material identified was d - limonene . d - limonene vapors acted upon the foam and rapidly reduced the volume . the sorption process , when there was sufficient vapor present , was one that continued until the foam was reduced to a viscous liquid . this aggressive mutual solubility was relatively fast as long as there is a presence of the needed vapors . this invention furthers the concept of foam reduction by the discovery of a set of chemicals which are as effective as the vapor process noted with d - limonene but which work in a liquid state and thus avoids the need for a vapor saturated atmosphere around the collapsing foam . the process in this invention would still be a curiosity if the solvents used were some of the common materials such as acetones , methylene chlorides or other relatively toxic compounds . it was known that these strong solvents were effective in dissolving polystyrene foams . early work assumed key requirements were the relatively high vapor pressure of d - limonene since this chemical and the other known active solvents that were relatively toxic all had high vapor pressures . it was thus assumed at earlier points in the research , that the key conditions were the presence of an active vapor and polystyrene foams . the volatile oils which were the key solvents in earlier work all had relatively low boiling points and thus to make the process effective , restriction of the vapor must also be present . a result was relatively large loss to the atmosphere and the resulting lessening cost effectiveness of the chemical due to this evaporation and vapor loss . this invention discloses a new series of chemicals that have not previously been considered for this purpose since they are not easy to use in the vapor phase . these new dibasic ester uses eliminate much of the loss and further improves fire safety of the recycling or foam reduction process . the extra factor is the removal of the vapor requirement with discovery of liquid phase foam reduction agents . the formulas used for this invention consist of esters , specifically dibasic esters . these esters , especially the aliphatic dibasic esters such as dimethyl glutarate , dimethyl adipate , and dimethyl succinate ( cas ,# 119 - 40 - 0 ; 627 - 93 - 0 ; 106 - 65 - 0 ) have rapid reaction with polystyrene foams , again acting as a stress cracking agent to destroy the cell wall webs which are highly stressed , then destroying the inter cellular structure that remains . in addition , through the experimentation that is the subject of the invention disclosed herein it was learned that esters themselves were effectives reactants when small amounts of heat were added to the process . esters have been disclosed in a u . s . patent to shiino et al . u . s . pat . no . 5 , 629 , 352 . however , that disclosure did not teach or contemplate heating . the addition of small amounts of heat to the ester prior to use as a reactant greatly increases is reactant characteristics . the presence of ester without heat will reduce foam but in a time period that is not efficient for recycling purposes . the dibasic esters disclosed above are not like the vapor processes used previously for foam reduction , which attack foam by dissolving the foam in the vapors of natural organic compounds . the present chemicals act as liquids . they have boiling points of 196 to 225 degrees c . with a vapor pressure of only 0 . 2 mm hg at 20 degrees c . they have an evaporation rate one tenth that of butyl acetate , a common reference . the specific gravity is slightly greater that water and mutual solubility is limited , allowing easy separation from water mixes . the dibasic esters also have low solubility in water and very high solubility in many alcohols so that separation schemes for recovery of the dibasic mix is feasible . the use of the dibasic esters , especially as a mixture , eliminates the large loss due to evaporation of the d - limonene used as the reducing agent in previous reduction and recovery methods . the evaporation of active agents had previously made the process partly ineffective in many applications because of cost . the present invention is cost effective since this loss is very low . the active agents also have several key property needs . since they will be going into dumps and trash , they must be environmentally sound . ideally , they should not be within a range of boiling points and vapor pressures that will either immediately flash off or will over time evaporate to form a vapor layer within a landfill . looking at solvents , which attack polystyrene foams , nearly all are environmental problem chemicals . one class of chemicals broadly noted as isoprenoid and terpene compounds contain mostly environmentally safe naturally derived compounds , but most of these compounds are relatively volatile and would at least form a vapor layer in a dump situation . the dibasic esters of this invention are of sufficiently low volatility that they do not form an indump layer . this removes future problems of large vapor escape if the dump top impermeable layers are destroyed or damaged by man made or natural phenomena such as earthquakes . in patents on activation ( u . s . pat . 5 , 223 , 543 ) the emphasis was on d - limonene . this was selected for cost and volatility reasons since prior uses relied on rapid action due to application in exposed areas as activated liquid . the use of a variety of liquid volatilities as long as vapor is generated over an extended time ranging from several hours to several days is also covered . the present use of esters with small amounts of heat , dibasic esters , and d - limonene in combination with esters and dibasic esters , as foam reduction agents is also effective . the present invention is superior in creating a vast reduction in the vapor loss , in preventing vapor layers within disposal dumps , in reduction of loss in reprocessing operations , which are typically at temperatures of over 270 degrees c . also , the present invention limits reliance on d - limonene , which is can experience unstable pricing and is not easily reclaimed after recycling . finally , all of the contemplated reactants described herein may be optionally aided in their reactant effectiveness by including in the reactant process a pretreatment shredding of the polystyrene . the shredding can be effectively accomplished through the use of a hopper that shreds the polystyrene in the first stage of the process . the second stage of the process would have the shredded polystyrene being treaded with one of the disclosed reactants in a holding compartment of the hopper . the resultant foam sludge could then be pumped from the hopper to containers for transportation to waste or recycling locations . in the most preferred embodiment a mixture of a dibasic ester that is at least one of the group of dimethyl glutarate , dimethyl adipate and dimethyl succinate ; and , a surfactant , are sprayed onto pre shredded polystyrene foam waste . this foam waste would typically be from foam serving plates and containers in a fast food restaurant , the residues of packing for food or industrial objects . the foam waste would be shredded in a hopper . the shreds of polystyrene foam would be contained in a compartment of the hopper . the reactant would be sprayed onto the shredded foam waste . the spray and shredded foam combination will rapidly decrease in volume as the foam collapses and would result in the forming of foam sludge and volume of reducing agent . the sludge and reducing agent would be pumped from the hopper compartment into drum type containers and sent to dumps where it occupies a greatly reduced volume or sent to a reprocessor to recover the active agent dibasic esters and the polystyrene polymer . preferably the reducing agent is ninety eight percent dibasic ester and two percent surfactant . the process is preferably the same as described above with alternate reactant compositions . however , embodiments are not limited to the pre shredding of the foam waste , the use of a hopper , the pumping of the foam sludge and reactant or the use of drum like containers for transporting the foam sludge and reactant . in a second embodiment the reactant is at least one of the named dibasic esters is combined with d - limonlene ; and a surfactant , whereby the reactant in a liquid state contacts polystyrene foam causing the collapse of the polystyrene cell to form a compact polystyrene gel material that is shippable . preferably the reactant , or foam reduction agent , is eighty eight percent of the dibasic ester , ten percent d - limonene and two percent of the surfactant . in addition , it is preferred that the surfactant is at least one of an industry standard surfactant known as np5 and np9 . in a third embodiment , the reactant is a dibasic esters that is at least one of the group of dimethyl glutarate , dimethyl adipate and dimethyl succinate ; d - limonlene ; and , a vegetable oil are used as the reducing agent whereby the reactant in a liquid state contacts polystyrene foam causing the collapse of the polystyrene cell to form a compact polystyrene gel material that is shippable . preferably , the reactant , or foam reduction agent , is fifty five percent vegetable oil , thirty percent dibasic ester and fifteen percent d - limonene . it is also preferred that the vegetable oil is soy oil . all of the embodiments described above are sprayed onto polystyrene foam . the preferred process is to have the polystyrene foam placed into a hopper wherein the foam is converted to small pieces that can be combined with the reducing agent . the resulting material , sludge and reducing agent are pumped from the hopper to drums for transportation . the process involves the use of a novel mechanical device known as a polystyrene reactant hopper that is to be the subject of another application by the inventor herein . the resulting material removed from the hopper and placed into drums is a novel article of manufacture that has unique and inventive qualities for waterproofing . its preferred use is mixing the resulting polystyrene foam sludge with concrete to enhance the concrete &# 39 ; s waterproof qualities . in another preferred use of the article of manufacture , the sludge alone or in combination with a rubberizing material may be used as an application such as waterproofing the undercarriage of the car . the embodiments described herein are not a limitation to invention disclosed by this application but are shown to illustrate the best methods and uses of the invention . further uses would be obvious to those skilled in the art by a complete review the disclosure made herein .	2
as depicted in fig1 the striation zones 12 generate an undesirable visual effect to an end user . in addressing this problem , the inventors applied a null hypothesis to describe the striation phenomenon , and propose the physics behind striations can be modeled as a standing pressure wave 14 in an enclosed organ pipe 16 , such as shown in fig2 . the frequency of resonance for a closed pipe is given by : f n = n 4  l  c p c v  p 0 ρ 0 where l is length unit , n is harmonic , c p is molar capacity as constant volume , c v is molar capacity at constant pressure , p 0 is undisturbed gas pressure and d 0 is density of gas outside compression zone . using this hypothesis , it has been determined that striations in a lamp can be reduced or eliminated by operating a ballast having an inverter at other than a 50 % duty ratio . that is , in a two switch inverter , for example , one switch is configured to operate longer than the remaining switch . as long as this offset in the duty ratio is blocked , such as by capacitor , no dc current will flow through the lamp &# 39 ; s arc . rather , for example , the positive portion of the lamp current cycle will have a shorter duration but a higher amplitude than the succeeding negative portion of the cycle , or vice versa . consequently , a ballast circuit has been developed which provides an asymmetric input current to the lamp . by altering the symmetry of the current in this manner , the repetitive resonance frequencies which are believed to create the striations are interfered with thereby eliminating the visual appearance of striations . fig3 sets forth an exemplary lamp lighting system 20 which incorporates the concepts of the present invention . an input power source 22 supplies power to a ballast 24 . ballast 24 includes an ac - to - dc converter 26 which provides a dc voltage on dc bus 28 which , in turn , provides power to a lamp input current generating circuit 30 . the lamp input current generating circuit 30 is configured to generate an asymmetric alternating current on lamp input line 32 that provides power to gas discharge lamp 34 . in one embodiment , the lamp input current generating circuit 30 can be an inverter circuit or portions of the investor circuit , and will be described primarily with this focus . however , it is to be appreciated that other components and circuits capable of generating or supplying an a symmetric alternating current to lamp 34 may also be used . these additional circuits , which may be represented by block 30 of fig3 may or may not be part of the inverting circuit . for example , a sub - circuit subsequent to the inverting mechanism can be used to alter asymmetric generated signal into an asymmetric form . set forth in fig4 is one embodiment of inverter circuit 30 suitable for incorporating concepts of the present invention . inverting circuits of this type are well known in the industry and , therefore , the circuit will not be described in great detail except where concepts of the present invention are implemented . the circuit comprises complementary switches 40 and 42 , bipolar junction transistors in this exemplary embodiment . the emitters of switches 40 and 42 are connected in common to a series configured resonant circuit 44 including capacitor 46 and inductor 48 . a blocking capacitor 50 is connected to the remaining end of resonant circuit 44 and is series connected to lamp 34 at node 52 with the remaining end of lamp 34 connected to the junction of capacitor 46 and inductor 48 at node 54 . a feedback inductor 56 , a tap from inductor 48 , is connected to the common emitters of switches 40 and 42 at node 58 with the remaining end of inductor 56 series connected to driving inductor 60 which is connected , in turn to feedback capacitor 62 . the remaining end of feedback capacitor 62 is connected to the base terminals of switches 40 and 42 . a first resistor 64 is connected from the base terminals of switches 40 and 42 to the collector terminal of switch 40 which is also connected to the positive lead of dc bus 28 at node 66 . the collector terminal of switch 42 is connected to ground 68 which is connected to the negative lead of dc bus 28 at node 70 . driving inductor 60 is bridged by output clamping circuit 72 comprising back - to - back , series connected zener diodes 74 and 76 . capacitor 78 bridges resonant circuit , and resistor 80 is connected between node 58 and ground 68 . reverse - conducting diode 82 bridges the emitter and collector terminals of switch 40 , with the cathode of diode 82 connected to the collector terminal of switch 40 . reverse - conducting diode 84 bridges the emitter and collector terminals of switch 42 , with the anode of diode 84 connected to the collector terminal of switch 42 . a preferred method of producing asymmetry in the lamp input current for the circuit illustrated in fig4 is to configure switches 40 and 42 with mismatched h fe ( commonly called beta ). this causes the transistor with a lower h fe to conduct for a shorter period of time , thereby causing the on time of switches 40 and 42 to be asymmetrical . that is , one bjt will conduct for a shorter period of time than the other will . fig5 b shows an asymmetrical forcing function 86 of the present invention compared to a typical symmetrical forcing function 88 of fig5 a of prior art ballast inverters . the forcing function is a voltage as measured from node 58 with respect to node 52 in fig4 . the particular forcing function shown is configured to have a short positive duration and a long negative duration . the positive and negative durations can be reversed with equal efficacy . fig6 b illustrates the effect of asymmetrical forcing function 86 . asymmetrical load current 90 , measured as the current flowing from node 54 to node 52 , and can be compared to a symmetrical load current 92 shown in fig6 a . the positive portion of the asymmetrical current cycle is of shorter duration than the negative portion of the cycle , however , the positive portion is of a higher amplitude than the negative portion . symmetrical load current 92 , however , shows equal positive and negative durations , and equal positive and negative amplitudes . there is no dc component to asymmetrical load current 90 because dc current is blocked by blocking capacitor 50 . an alternate embodiment of the present invention is shown in fig7 incorporating mosfet switches 94 and 96 . with continuing reference to fig4 like numbered numerals in fig7 designate similar components . omitted in fig7 are reverse - conducting diodes 82 and 84 since mosfet switches 94 and 96 have intrinsic reverse - conducting diodes . added in fig7 are gate voltage limiting zener diodes 98 and 100 . the bjt switches of fig4 did not require voltage limiting diodes because the base - emitter junction of a bjt inherently limits the input voltage . in a prior art inverter incorporating complementary mosfet switches , voltage - limiting zeners 98 and 100 would be configured with equal component voltage ratings . however , in this alternate embodiment of the present invention , zener diodes 98 and 100 are configured with unequal voltage ratings . the unequal voltage ratings cause one of switches 94 and 96 to be in an on state longer than the opposite switch . the effect of unequal on times of switches 94 and 96 will be the same as illustrated in fig5 a - 5 b and 6 a - 6 b for bjt switches 40 and 42 . the beneficial aspect of the asymmetric input line current generated by asynchronous switching of inverter circuits begins to be noticed when even small on / off time imbalances are generated . it is to be noted however , that as the on / off times between , for example , the two switches in the described circuits are increased , a circuit &# 39 ; s crest factor will also increase , diminishing the circuit &# 39 ; s efficiencies . therefore , in practical applications users will determine the benefits versus tradeoffs obtainable to provide the most efficient circuit having striations eliminated . the embodiment shown in fig4 and the embodiment shown in fig7 are for exemplary purposes only . it is to be appreciated that other configurations can be imagined that fall within the scope of the present invention . as previously noted , while the present invention may be implemented in numerous forms . in the forgoing embodiments , component designations and / or values for the circuits of fig4 and 7 would include : it is to be appreciated that , while a variety of lamps may be used , for the values presented , the present lamps would operate on a power supply of line 120 / 277 vac at 60 hertz cycle where the lamps may be a gas discharge lamp such as rare gas filled t 8 linear fluorescent . the components listed as stm components are from stmicroelectronics of catania , italy . although the present invention is described primarily in connection with fluorescent lamps , the circuit herein described may be used to control any type of gas discharge lamp . since certain changes may be made in the above - described circuit without departing from the scope of the invention herein involved , it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted in an illustrative and not a limiting sense .	7
hereinafter , a scanning image display device and a video image taking apparatus according to embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described . embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to fig1 . fig1 is a schematic diagram showing a scanning image display device according to embodiment 1 . a reflection mirror 13 bends an optical path of a light beam 12 emitted from a light source 11 and the light beam 12 is incident on a reflection scanner 14 . the light beam 12 incident on the reflection scanner 14 is scanned in two - dimensional directions by the scanner 14 . gradation of the light beam 12 emitted from the light source 11 and an angle of the light beam 12 with which the scanning performed by the scanner 14 are controlled by a controller 113 electrically connected with the light source 11 and the scanner 14 ( which may be wired connection or wireless connection ). therefore , it is possible to draw a predetermined image . when a plurality of light sources having different wavelengths are used for the light source 11 , full color image display can be achieved . for example , a light source for generating laser light , such as a laser diode ( semiconductor laser ) can be used as the light source 11 . when an led or a light source for generating general scattering light is used , it is effective to provide an optical system for converting light from the led or the light source into a sufficiently slit beam . as described later , in fig1 , the scanner 14 can scan at least one of or both of an optical element composing an eyepiece optical system 15 and a back screen 18 having a diffusion plate characteristic through a predetermined optical system 111 . in the case where an object scanned with the light beam 12 by the scanner 14 is changed , when all the objects to be scanned are included in a region which can be scanned by the scanner 14 , by selecting the scanning region of the scanner 14 by the controller 113 , it is possible to scan a plurality of objects to be scanned . on the other hand , when a plurality of objects to be scanned are not included in the scanning region , the scanning region may be changed by a means for changing a mounted angle of the scanner 14 as described later . for example , when a position of the reflection mirror 13 is changed without changing the scanning angle and mounted angle of the scanner 14 , the object to be scanned can be changed by changing an incident angle of the light beam 12 incident on the scanners 14 . further , the object to be scanned can be also changeable by switching the optical path of the light flux exited from the scanner 14 to a different direction , such as by using a polarization beam splitter for transmitting or reflecting light according to a selected polarization state of the light , or by disposing a reflection mirror on an exit optical path of the light flux exited from the scanner 14 whose mounted angle is changeable . in this embodiment , the case where a plurality of objects to be scanned are scanned by selecting the scanning region of the scanner 14 by the controller 113 , in particular , when the plurality of objects to be scanned are included in the region which can be scanned by the scanner 14 will be described below . in fig1 , the scanning center of the scanner 14 is located at an angle θ 1 relative to the incident direction of the light beam 12 ( hereinafter referred to as state 1 ) and is on a first optical axis 19 which is the optical axis of the eyepiece optical system 15 . when the optical element composing the eyepiece optical system 15 is scanned with the light beam 12 by the scanner 14 , the light beam 12 is incident on the eyepiece optical system 15 . here , the region scanned with the light beam 12 depends on the scanning angle of the scanner 14 . by configuring the eyepiece optical system 15 such that a deflection original position of the scanner 14 is made conjugate with a pupil 16 of an observer , the scanned light beam 12 passes through at substantially one point of the pupil 16 of the observer , thereby drawing a desirable image on a retina 17 . thus , by two - dimensionally scanned with the light beam 12 by the scanner 14 , a two - dimensional image is formed on the retina 17 . on the other hand , the scanning center of the scanner 14 makes an angle θ 2 , which is different from the angle θ 1 in state 1 , with the incident direction of the light beam 12 ( hereinafter referred to as state 2 ) and is on a second optical axis 110 for scanning the back screen 18 which is the direct - view display element . in this case , the back screen 18 is scanned with the light beam 12 through the projection optical system 111 by the scanner 14 . by using a transmission type diffusion plate having a light diffusion characteristic as the back screen 18 , a two - dimensional image is formed on the back screen 18 scanned with the light beam 12 in the two dimensional directions by the scanner 14 . therefore , the observer 112 can observe the formed image . a function for determining a region of the back screen 18 scanned by the scanner 14 , a function correcting distortion caused by a positional relationship between the scanner 14 and the back screen 18 , and the like can be provided for the projection optical system 111 . in this embodiment , a deflection mirror device produced by a mems technique is used as an example of the scanner 14 . fig2 is a schematic view showing the deflection mirror device . a deflection mirror device 24 is a mirror having a scanning function , which is produced by processing a si substrate using the mems technique . a mirror 23 that reflects an incident light is held by two torsion bars 21 and 22 . the two torsion bars 21 and 22 are orthogonal to each other . a light beam which is incident on the scanner 14 is reflected on the mirror 23 . at this time , each of the two torsion bars 21 and 22 is twisted about a reflection surface of the mirror 23 by external force . therefore , it is possible to change the orientation of the reflection surface of the mirror 23 , thereby scanning with the light beam incident on the mirror in the two - dimensional directions . a mechanism for changing a stationary position of the scanner 14 will be described below as an example of a means for changing the object to be scanned of the scanner 14 . the scanning center can be switched between state 1 and state 2 by , for example , changing the stationary position of the mirror of the deflection mirror device which is an example of the scanner 14 . fig3 a and 3b schematically show the occurrence of vibration motion in the rotating direction of the mirror of the deflection mirror device and an example of a switching means for switching the stationary position ( scanning center ). as shown in fig3 a and 3b , electrodes 31 and 32 are disposed near the mirror 23 at opposite positions . note that fig3 a and 3b show the case where the mirror is observed from a direction parallel to the torsion bar 21 . similarly , even in the case where the mirror is observed from a direction parallel to the torsion bar 22 , electrodes 33 and 34 are disposed . a different voltage is applied to each of the electrodes 31 and 32 to generate electrostatic forces each having a different strength between the mirror 23 and the electrodes 31 and 32 . therefore , the mirror 23 can be rotated about the torsion bar 21 . in this time , an electric potential of the mirror 23 is kept constant . fig3 a shows a state of the deflection mirror device 24 in state 1 . the mirror 23 vibrates about a horizontal state as an origin in the rotating direction . in the state shown in fig3 a , respective voltages applied to the electrodes 31 and 32 are expressed by the following expressions . when the voltages whose amplitudes are equal to each other and polarities are opposed to each other are applied to the electrodes , the mirror 23 is rotated about the torsion bar 21 to perform scanning with the incident light beam . here , t denotes a time and a ( t ) denotes an applied voltage component periodically varied with the time t . in contrast to the state shown in fig3 a , fig3 b shows a state of the deflection mirror device 24 in state 2 . the mirror 23 vibrates about a position shifted from a horizontal state as an origin in the rotating direction . for example , when a bias voltage is applied to only the electrode 32 , electrostatic force is generated on only one side of the mirror 23 as shown in fig3 b , thereby vibrating the mirror 23 about a tilt state thereof as an origin . therefore , the state shown in fig3 b can be realized . in the state shown in fig3 b , respective voltages applied to the electrodes 31 and 32 are expressed by the following expressions . according to the above - mentioned voltage application , as shown in fig3 b , the mirror 23 vibrates about a state in which the mirror 23 is tilted as the scanning center . therefore , it is possible to scan the object to be scanned different from that in state 1 with the incident light beam . here , v 1 denotes a bias voltage applied to only the electrode 32 . not only in the case where the bias voltage is applied to one of the electrodes but also in the case where a voltage having a different amplitude is applied to each of the electrodes , the scanning center can be adjusted . only the motion about the torsion bar 21 is described . the motion about the torsion bar 22 is similarly produced . fig4 is a schematic graph showing scanning characteristics of the scanner 14 . fig4 shows , of the scanning characteristics of the scanner 14 , in particular , a scanning characteristic in a vertical direction in the case where a scanning direction used for switching the scanning center corresponds to a vertical direction of a reproduced image . a line 41 is an example of a scanning characteristic of the scanner 14 in a vertical scanning direction . in fig4 , the ordinate indicates swing angle and the abscissa indicates time . it is possible that the scanner 14 has , as the scanning characteristic in the vertical scanning direction , a saw - tooth scanning characteristic including a linear region as indicated by the line 41 . scanning in the horizontal direction corresponding to a position at each swing angle is performed in a part that slopes upward to the right , of each of regions drawn by the line 41 in fig4 as described below . in this time , the scanner 14 can has scanning amplitude 46 in the vertical direction , however , in practice , a single object to be scanned is not necessarily scanned with the scanning amplitude indicated by 46 . a range with the scanning amplitude 46 can be divided into two regions , that is , a region 47 and 48 having a scanning center 45 and 43 , respectively , different from the scanning center 45 to perform scanning having a small scanning amplitude 44 and 42 , respectively . for example , the region 47 is assigned to an optical path toward the eyepiece optical system 15 in fig1 and the region 48 is assigned to an optical path toward the direct - view display element 18 in fig1 . therefore , it is possible to switch between two display modes . according to the above - mentioned mechanism , for example , in order to reproduce svga ( 800 in width and 600 in height ) images on both screens of the view finder and the direct - view display element , which are disposed vertically adjacent to each other , by scanning using the scanner 14 through the optical path toward the eyepiece optical system 15 and the optical path toward the direct - view display element 18 , the scanner 14 requires the scanning amplitude 46 of at least 1200 lines corresponding to two times of 600 lines . when the image is displayed on the view finder , a signal is inputted from the controller 113 to the scanner 14 such that the mirror of the scanner 14 vibrates only with 600 lines corresponding to the region ( amplitude ) 47 , of the scanning amplitude 46 of 1200 lines , thereby performing scanning . scanning is not performed on the other region . when the image is displayed on the direct - view display element , a predetermined bias is added to the signal from the controller 113 such that the mirror vibrates only with 600 lines corresponding to the region ( amplitude ) 48 . thus , the image can be reproduced on the plurality of screens in the signal scanning display device . fig6 a and 6b show a scanning method of performing scanning with the light beam 12 using the scanner 14 . in the scanning image display device according to this embodiment , an image is produced by scanning with a single beam in the longitudinal and lateral directions by the scanner 14 . specifically , scanning is performed on a line in the horizontal direction and then scanning is performed on a line located below the line by one line . such scanning is repeated to scan the entire screen . with respect to the horizontal scanning direction in this case , as shown in fig6 b , it is effective for drawing to reverse the scanning direction every line in view of a drawing speed . this case is compared with the case where scanning is performed by a scanning method corresponding to a type of an image generally produced by an image pickup device or the like as shown in fig6 a . as a result , it should be noted that image signals on a line ( 64 ) drawing hatched pixels , corresponding to a return route are treated as image data in a reverse direction to a line direction ( 63 ) of data produced by the image pickup device . in this embodiment , the scanning characteristic in the vertical scanning direction , which is used for switching of the display means , is set to the saw - tooth drive characteristic including the linear region . the scanning characteristic may be set to a sinusoidal drive characteristic as shown in fig5 . in this case , the scanner has a scanning characteristic indicated by reference numeral 51 and scanning amplitude indicated by reference numeral 56 . in the case of state 1 , drawing can be performed by vertical direction scanning having a scanning characteristic 52 , a scanning center 54 , and scanning amplitude 57 . in the case of state 2 , drawing can be performed by vertical direction scanning having a scanning characteristic 53 , a scanning center 55 , and scanning amplitude 58 . in this embodiment , the example using the two - dimensional deflection mirror device capable of performing scanning in the two - dimensional directions by itself as the scanner is described . even when a two - dimensional scanning unit 73 in which a deflection mirror device 71 capable of performing scanning only in a one - dimensional direction is combined with a scanning mirror 72 for performing vertical direction scanning is used as shown in fig7 , the same effect can be obtained . fig8 is an explanatory diagram showing a scanning image display device according to embodiment 2 of the present invention . the scanning image display device according to embodiment 2 has substantially the same structure as in embodiment 1 . however , a switching means for the display means serving as the objects to be scanned by the scanner 14 in embodiment 2 is different from that in embodiment 1 . hereinafter , assume that members for which the same reference numerals as those used in embodiment 1 are provided have the same functions . therefore , the detail descriptions related to the members are omitted here . fig9 shows , of the scanning characteristics of the scanner 14 in embodiment 2 , in particular , a scanning characteristic in the vertical direction . in embodiment 1 , in order to switch the display means , the object to be scanned by the scanner 14 is changed by changing the rotation and vibration range of the mirror 23 included in the scanner 14 . in contrast to this , in embodiment 2 , as shown in fig9 , the scanner always performs reciprocation in a range 96 corresponding to the entire area which can be scanned in the vertical scanning direction . an optical path 97 for the viewfinder and an optical path 98 for the direct - view display element are arranged adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction within the range 96 subjected to the reciprocation . therefore , simultaneous display can be performed on both screens in the range ( optical path ) 97 corresponding to the near eye viewfinder and the range ( optical path ) 98 corresponding to the direct - view display element . for example , when the resolution of the view finder and a back panel each is a resolution of svga ( 800 × 600 ), the scanner 14 having the scanning amplitude equal to or larger than 1200 lines is prepared . here , it is possible that an image having 800 pixels × 600 lines is displayed on the view finder by 600 lines corresponding to the range 97 and simultaneously the image having 800 pixels × 600 lines is displayed on the direct - view display element by 600 lines corresponding to the range 98 . on the other hand , when either one of the displays is performed , the light beam 12 is emitted from the light source 11 to only an area corresponding to a specified display portion . therefore , it is possible to prevent drawing in an area other than the area corresponding to the specified display portion . even in this case , the lens of the scanner 14 vibrates with the entire scanning amplitude corresponding to the range 96 , so that the control becomes easier . switching between the display on the viewfinder and the display on the direct - view display element may be automatically performed using a sensor 81 provided below the finder system . the sensor 81 is composed of a light source for emitting infrared light and a detector for detecting reflection infrared light . when an observer looks through the viewfinder , the infrared light from the light source is reflected on the face of the observer and the reflected light is detected by the detector . when the reflected light is detected , it is determined that the observer looks through the viewfinder . therefore , an image is displayed on the electronic finder side . when the reflected light is not detected , it is determined that the observer does not look through the viewfinder . therefore , the display mode is automatically switched to the direct - view display element side . of course , the display mode may be manually switched . as described above , according to the structure in this embodiment , it is possible to simultaneously display the image on two display means , that is , the viewfinder and the direct - view display element or display the image on either one of the two display means . however , in practice , the possibility that both the viewfinder system and the back panel are simultaneously observed is low . in addition , the simultaneous display causes an increase in electric power consumption . therefore , it is desirable to display the image on either one of the two display means . for example , when the direct - view display element is intended to use while the viewfinder is used , it is desirable to perform display switching to eliminate the display on the viewfinder . of course , the image may be simultaneously outputted to the two display means . embodiment 3 will be described with reference to fig1 . in embodiment 3 , a manner of switching between two display methods by rotating the entire scanner 14 about the mirror deflection original point of the scanner will be described as a modified example of embodiment 1 . according to the mechanism , even when the scanner 14 having a small swing angle is used , scanning can be performed by switching between a plurality of objects to be scanned which are separated from one another in view of an angle . a structure other than a display method switching means is identical to that in embodiment 1 and therefore the detail description related to the structure other than the switching means is omitted here . fig1 is an explanatory view showing a mechanism for changing the object to be scanned by the scanner 14 in this embodiment . as shown in fig1 , the scanner 14 can be mechanically rotated about a rotating center 1005 of the deflection mirror 23 in the vertical scanning direction as an axis , that is , in a direction parallel to paper . according to the rotation of the scanner , the incident angle of the light beam 12 on the deflection mirror can be changed to switch the scanning range from a range 1004 a to a range 1004 b . fig1 is a graph showing a scanning characteristic in the vertical scanning direction in this embodiment . scanning in the vertical scanning direction has a saw - tooth scanning characteristic including a linear region as indicated by reference numeral 1101 . in state 1 in embodiment 1 , scanning is performed in a range 1004 a with a scanning center 1102 . when the display method is switched ( to state 2 in embodiment 1 ), the scanning center is shifted from an initial center 1102 to a position 1103 , thereby performing scanning in a range 1004 b . therefore , by rotating the entire scanner to shift the scanning center in each of states 1 and 2 , the display means can be switched . in embodiment 4 , a video image taking apparatus using the scanning image display device described above will be described . fig1 is a schematic diagram showing the video image taking apparatus according to the present invention . in fig1 , an image pickup optical system 101 forms images of a light beam from the outside on an image pickup element ( photoelectric transducer ) 102 . the image pickup element 102 converts the incident light beam into an electric signal and outputs the signal to a signal processing means 103 . the signal processing means 103 converts the input signal in a format suitable for a memory means 104 and a format suitable for the controller 113 of the scanning image display device . then , the converted signals are outputted to the memory means 104 and the controller 113 . that is , the controller 113 and the signal processing means 103 are electrically connected with each other , thereby electrically connecting the controller 113 with the image pickup element 102 . note that “ the electrical connection ” indicates that a state in which an electrical signal can be communicated between both regardless of wired connection or wireless connection . according to the mechanism as described above , the controller 113 makes at least one of the view finder and the direct - view display element to display an image taken by the video image taking apparatus . therefore , the image can be provided for the observer and the contents of the image can be checked . the memory means 104 records image by storing the signal from the signal processing means 103 in a magnetic tape or a memory composed of a semiconductor device . as described above , in the scanning image display device for scanning with a light beam in the two - dimensional directions to display an image , it is possible to display the image on a plurality of locations by the signal scanner by providing a plurality of objects to be scanned by the scanner . when the scanning image display device is applied to the video image taking apparatus , for example , displaying on the viewfinder display and displaying on the direct - view display element located on the rear surface can be realized by single scanner . when switching between the two kinds of display methods is performed by the single device , it becomes possible to simplify a system structure . this application claims priority from japanese patent application no . 2003 - 342959 filed on oct . 1 , 2003 , which is hereby incorporated by reference herein .	7
the disposable cleaning sheets of the present invention generally comprise a fibrous substrate and a plurality of protrusions , such as hooks , embedded within the fibrous substrate . the cleaning sheet could be used as a discrete sheet or with a backing , for example it could be removably attached to a cleaning implement and subsequently disposed of . embodiments of disposable cleaning sheets of the present invention are shown in fig5 and 6 . the protrusions used in the invention cleaning sheet are formed with protrusions provided on one or more backing elements that can be in the form of a netting or strand elements . these protrusion containing backing elements , for example in the form of discrete or connected strands or one or more nettings are then embedded within a fibrous web , forming a cleaning sheet . the protrusions are preferably on strand elements that are connected so as to form a netting and oriented at angles to each other in the net form . the strands , whether isolated or partially connected strand elements or more firmly connected into a net form , generally have a first outer face and a second outer face and two side faces . the strands , on at least one of the first or second outer faces , have a plurality of protrusions . the protrusion containing strands are embedded within a fibrous web , e . g ., a nonwoven web , preferably by hydroentangling the fibers of the nonwoven web around the strands , preferably without the use of auxiliary attachment means such as adhesives or point bonding ( e . g ., heat bonding , ultrasonic bonding or the like ). the nonwovens useful in the present cleaning sheets include a wide variety of different types of nonwovens made of synthetic , natural , or hybrid fibers . the nonwoven substrates can be made from a variety of processes including , but not limited to , hydroentangling , spunbonding , needlepunching , carding , and the like . preferred nonwoven substrates are selected from the group consisting of spunbonded substrates , meltblown substrates , hydroentangled substrates , needlepunched substrate , airlaid substrates , carded substrates , and combinations thereof . the fibrous substrates can also be laminates of two or more layers one of which is a suitable nonwoven substrate . fibrous materials suitable for forming the preferred nonwoven substrates of the present cleaning sheets include , for example , natural cellulosics as well as synthetics such as polyolefins ( e . g ., polyethylene and polypropylene ), polyesters , polyamides , synthetic cellulosics ( e . g ., rayon ®), and blends thereof . also useful are natural fibers , such as cotton or blends thereof and those derived from various cellulosic sources . preferred starting materials for making the substrates of the present cleaning sheets are synthetic materials , which may be in the form of carded , spunbonded , meltblown , airlaid , or other structures . particularly preferred are polyesters , especially carded polyester fibers , polypropylene fibers , and polyethylene fibers . the resistance to abrasion and tearing of the substrate as the cleaning sheet is rubbed across the surface , e . g . carpet , upholstery , or other fabric surface , can be an important factor in selecting the form of the substrate and the fiber composition . the degree of hydrophobicity or hydrophilicity of the fibers is further optimized depending upon the desired goal of the sheet , either in terms of type of soil to be removed , the type of additive that is provided , when an additive is present , biodegradability , availability , and combinations of such considerations . in general , the more biodegradable materials are hydrophilic , but the more effective materials tend to be hydrophobic . the fibrous substrates can be formed from a single fibrous layer or can be a laminate of two or more separate layers . preferably , the sheets are nonwovens made via a hydroentangling or needlepunching process . in this regard , prior to hydroentangling discrete layers of fibers , it may be desired to slightly entangle each of the layers prior to joining the layers by entanglement . the nonwoven substrate is preferably initially made to have sufficient free fibers to be entangled around the protrusion containing backing elements . the nonwoven could also , or in addition , be treated prior to the entangling to unbond fibers . for example , the nonwoven can be , e . g ., mechanically stretched and worked ( manipulated ), e . g ., by using grooved nips or protuberances , prior to entangling to unbond the fibers so as to provide the mobility to the fibers needed to entangle the hook containing strands . generally , nonlimiting examples of suitable nonwoven webs include dry laid webs , carded webs , spunbond webs , meltblown webs and combinations thereof . the webs can be elastic or inelastic . the nonwoven web would have a basis weight of from 10 to 500 g / m 2 , preferably 20 to 200 g / m 2 , or most preferably 30 to 100 g / m 2 . the fibers of the nonwoven webs need not be unbonded when passed into the entangling step . however , it is necessary that during entangling there are sufficient free fibers or fiber portions ( that is , the fibers or portions thereof are sufficiently mobile ) to provide the desired degree of entanglement and embedding of the protrusion containing backing element or elements within the nonwoven web . such fiber mobility can possibly be provided by the force of the jets during hydraulic entangling or needles with needlepunch type entangling or by the structure of the nonwoven web or by mechanically or otherwise disrupting the web to create free or mobile fibers . a hydraulic entangling technique generally involves treatment of a laminate of at least the nonwoven substrate and the protrusion containing backing element or elements , while supported on an apertured support , with streams of liquid from jet devices . the support can be a mesh screen or forming wires or an apertured plate . the support can also have a pattern so as to form a nonwoven material with such pattern , or can be provided such that the hydraulically entangled nonwoven protrusion containing substrate is non - patterned . the apparatus for hydraulic entanglement can be any conventional apparatus , such as described in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 485 , 706 , the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in its entirety . in such an apparatus , fiber entanglement is accomplished by jetting liquid ( e . g ., water ) supplied at pressures , for example , of at least about 200 psi ( gauge ), to form fine , essentially columnar , liquid streams toward the surface of the supported laminate . the supported laminate is traversed with the streams until the fibers of the nonwoven web are randomly entangled and intertwined with the hook containing backing elements . the laminate can be passed through the hydraulic entangling apparatus a number of times on one or both sides , with the liquid being supplied at pressures of from about 50 to 3000 psi ( gauge ). the orifices which produce the columnar liquid streams can have typical diameters known in the art , e . g ., 125 microns ( 0 . 005 inch ), and can be arranged in one or more rows with any number of orifices in each row . various techniques for hydraulic entangling are described in the aforementioned u . s . pat . no . 3 , 485 , 706 , and this patent can be referred to in connection with such techniques . other entangling techniques include mechanically entangling by needle punching . optionally , other functional layers could be incorporated into the laminate during the entangling operation . the other layers would be foraminous or otherwise entangleable and could include knitted webs , woven webs , other functional nettings or strands or fibrous nonwoven webs . this optional entangleable layer could be used to add strength , elasticity , aesthetics , graphics , softness , rigidity or other desired properties . after the laminate has been entangled to form a composite web or precursor cleaning sheet , it may , optionally , but not preferably , be treated at a bonding station ( not shown in fig1 ) to further enhance its strength . such a bonding station is disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 612 , 226 ., the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference . other optional secondary bonding treatments include thermal bonding , ultrasonic bonding , adhesive bonding , combinations of bonding treatments , etc . such secondary bonding treatments provide added strength , may also stiffen the resulting product ( that is , provide a product having decreased softness ) and decrease its loft , as such may not be preferred . in the preferred embodiments , all or substantially all secondary bonding is omitted or used at a level of less than 30 percent or preferably less than 15 percent and most preferably less than 5 percent of the surface area of the composite . after the composite has been entangled , it can be dried by drying cans ( or other drying means , such as an air through dryer , known in the art ), and wound on a winder . the formed invention composite comprises protrusion containing backing elements enmeshed or embedded within a fibrous substrate such that fibers of the fibrous substrate are present on both outer faces of the protrusion backing element ( s ) and preferably fibers on both outer faces of the hook element containing backing element ( s ) are entangled with each other . for example , a single given fiber could be found on both faces of a given strand and could also be entangled with other fibers on one or both faces of a given strand . the fibers with the embedded protrusion containing backing element are preferably not stratified as distinct layers , but a single integral web structure composite . this provides an integral protrusion composite without the need for secondary bonding treatments such as adhesive or thermal bonding of the backing elements or strands to the fibers . the protrusion containing backing elements and the fibrous substrate are preferably coextensive along a longitudinal direction of the composite cleaning sheet or wipe and preferably are in some embodiments coextensive across the entire composite structure . this provides a wipe composite that is dimensionally stable preferably at least in the longitudinal or transverse direction . when the protrusion backing elements comprise strands in a coherent net form the composite generally has dimensional stability ( as above ) in at least two directions . the fibrous substrate coupled with the protrusion containing backing elements or strands in an integral composite creates a cleaning sheet where the protrusions and the entangled fibrous substrate are coextensive . the formed cleaning sheet is preferably extremely flexible where the flexibility of the composite is substantially that of the protrusion element containing backing element , for example , having a gurley stiffness less than 400 gurley stiffness units , preferably less than 200 gurley stiffness units . as adhesive or thermal lamination is not necessary , the protrusions are not destroyed in the lamination process so that protrusions can be substantially uniformly and continuously distributed in a given longitudinal or transverse extent along a backing element either continuously or intermittently , which extents can be linear or nonlinear . the protrusions are preferably uniformly distributed in all extends of the composite cleaning sheet in a given direction containing the protrusion containing backing , and most preferably in both the longitudinal and transverse ( or multiple ) directions of the composite , for example , strands present in two or more directions . the lack of adhesive or thermal bonding allows the formation of a lofty composite cleaning sheet with fibers extending on one or both sides of the protrusion containing backing elements or strands and preferably covering both faces of the backing elements or strands to provide a lofty composite cleaning sheet . in one embodiment , the protrusion containing backing element can be longitudinally or transversely , or otherwise extending , discrete or loosely connected linear or nonlinear strand elements having protrusion elements on at least one face . longitudinally extended discrete strands could then be fed into the hydraulic entanglement process . with at least this embodiment , it is possible to form an elasticated cleaning sheet composite by use of elastic woven or nonwoven webs . the entangled composite could then stretch between the strands due to an attached elastic web . if the strands are connected , but stretchable due to a loose connection , or if the strands are stretchable due to being nonlinear , elasticity could also be created . some other types of backing elements , such as nettings , are stretchable or extensible in one or more directions , also permitting the creation of an elastic cleaning sheet laminate . elasticity can also be created in a composite containing an extensible backing element and also having an extensible nonelastic web or nonwoven incorporated into the composite . elasticity can also be created by elastic strands on a web or the like having elasticity extending at an angle to the direction of extensibility of the backing elements and any attached nonwoven created on the elastic composite . elasticity can also be created by using elastic strand elements embedded within an extensible nonwoven . individual discrete protrusion containing strands could be formed from a conventional protrusion containing film by longitudinal slitting , fibrillation or other separation processes . preferred are films having a molecularly oriented backing in the longitudinal direction of the film to assist in the splitting or slitting of the film . the film could be split for example by water jets , rotating blades , lasers , etc . a first method of forming a protrusion containing netting useful in the invention is disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 001 , 366 which describes forming hooks by extruding a backing and rib structures having the basic shape of the hook ( similar to the methods described in u . s . pat . nos . 4 , 894 , 060 and 4 , 056 , 593 ). a reticulated web or mesh structure is formed by intermittently slitting ( skip slitting ) the extruded ribs and bases and then pulling to expand the skip slit structure into a mesh or netting . the slit ribs form the hook elements . u . s . ser . no . 10 / 376 , 979 ( 3m case no . 58313us002 ) the substance of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety , discloses another method of making polymer hook containing netting by a novel adaptation of a known method of making hook fasteners as described , for example , in u . s . pat . nos . 3 , 266 , 113 ; 3 , 557 , 413 ; 4 , 001 , 366 ; 4 , 056 , 593 ; 4 , 189 , 809 and 4 , 894 , 060 or alternatively 6 , 209 , 177 . this profiled extrusion method generally includes extruding a thermoplastic resin through a die plate , which die plate is shaped to form at least a base film layer and at least a first set of spaced ridges or ribs projecting above a first surface of the base layer . the spaced ridges or ribs formed by the die are used to form the first set of strands of a reticulated mesh or netting . the second set of transverse strands are formed by transversely cutting the base layer at spaced locations along a length , at a transverse angle to the ridges or ribs , to form discrete cut portions . subsequently longitudinal stretching of the ridges ( in the direction of the ridges or the machine direction ) separates these cut portions of the backing , which cut portions then form the second set of spaced apart strands of the reticulated mesh or netting . the discrete protrusions are formed by providing at least a set of ribs or ridges having the basic profile of a protrusion and slitting these ribs in the transverse direction and orienting the ribs transverse to the cut direction . these protrusion containing ribs or ridges could be some or all of the first set of ribs or ridges or could be a second set of ribs or ridges on the second face of the base layer . the above film extrusion process creates protrusion containing strands where the protrusions are created by cutting the ribs or ridges and generally stretching the backing or base layer . the basic protrusion cross - section is formed on the ribs by the profiled film extrusion die . the die simultaneously extrudes the film backing and the rib structures . the individual protrusions are then preferably formed from the ribs by cutting the protrusion shaped ribs transversely , followed by stretching the extruded film at least in the longitudinal direction of the cut protrusion shaped ribs . an uncut portion of the backing or the uncut ribs on the backing elongates and as such get thinner or smaller . however , the cut backing and / or the rib sections , between the cut lines remain substantially unchanged . this causes the individual cut sections of the ribs to separate each from the other in the direction of elongation forming discrete protrusions . alternatively , using this same type extrusion process , sections of the rib structures can be milled out to form discrete protrusions . with this profile extrusion process , the basic protrusion cross section or profile is only limited by the die shape . these cut ribs can also form the individual protrusion by partial transverse cutting of the ribs , which partially cut portions preferably has the base shape of the desired protrusion elements as described above . all the ribs will have an uncut portion in a preselected plane . the uncut portions of the ribs will form strands , with discrete protrusions on them , when the film is stretched in the direction of the ribs . a second set of transverse strands can then be formed by transversely cutting through the base film layer at spaced locations along a length , at a transverse angle to the ribs , to form discrete cut portions . subsequently longitudinal stretching of the ribs ( in the direction of the ribs or the machine direction ) separates these cut portions of the backing , which cut portions then form the second set of spaced apart strands of the reticulated mesh or netting . the uncut portions of the ribs elongate and form strands at an angle to the strands formed by the cut backing . the stretching also orients the uncut portion of the hook shaped ribs increasing their strength and flexibility . the above method for forming a reticulated mesh or netting , such as that of fig3 ( a )- 3 ( b ) and 4 ( a )- 4 ( d ), is schematically illustrated in fig1 . generally , the method includes first extruding a strip 50 , such as the strip 1 , shown in fig2 , of thermoplastic resin from an extruder 51 through a die 52 having an opening cut , for example , by electron discharge machining , shaped to form the strip 50 with a base 3 , and elongate spaced ribs 2 projecting from at least one surface 5 of the base layer 3 that have a predetermined cross sectional shape of the desired protrusion . as shown in fig2 and 3 , the ribs 2 have a structure of a stem but could also have a hook type structure such as shown in fig4 and 6 . if desired , a second set of ridges or ribs 18 can be provided on the second surface 4 of the base layer 3 which second set of ribs or ridges can have any predetermined shape . the strip 50 is pulled around rollers 55 through a quench tank 56 filled with a cooling liquid ( e . g ., water ), after which at least the base layer 3 is transversely slit or cut at spaced locations 7 along its lengths by a cutter 58 to form discrete portions 6 of the base layer 3 . this would also require cutting of any ribs present on at least one face of the base layer . the distance between the cut lines 7 corresponds to about the desired width 11 of the strand portions 20 to be formed , as is shown in fig3 ( b ) and fig4 ( a )-( d ). the cuts 7 can be at any desired angle , generally from 90 ° to 30 ° from the lengthwise extension of the ribs 2 and / or 18 . optionally , the strip can be stretched prior to cutting to provide further molecular orientation to the polymers forming the base layer 3 or ribs 2 and / or 18 and reducing the size of the ridges or ribs 2 and / or 18 or base layer thickness 12 and also reducing the size of the strands 20 formed by slitting of the base layer 3 . the cutter 58 can cut using any conventional means such as reciprocating or rotating blades , lasers , or water jets , however preferably it cuts using blades oriented at an angle of about 60 to 90 degrees with respect to lengthwise extension of the ribs 2 . after cutting of the base layer 3 and the ridges or ribs 2 and / or ribs 18 , the strip 1 is stretched at a stretch ratio of at least 1 . 5 , and preferably at a stretch ratio of at least about 3 . 0 , preferably between a first pair of nip rollers 60 and 61 and a second pair of nip rollers 62 and 63 driven at different surface speeds . this forms the first set of oriented strands 8 from ribs 18 as shown in fig3 ( b ). optionally , the strip 1 can also be transversely stretched to provide orientation to the strands 20 in their lengthwise extension . this basic method of extrusion , cutting ( of at least the base layer ) and stretching would generally apply to all embodiments of the invention . roller 61 is preferably heated to heat the base 3 prior to stretching , and the roller 62 is preferably chilled to stabilize the stretched base 3 . stretching causes spaces 13 between the cut portions 6 of the base layer 3 , which cut portions of the base layer then become the second set of strands 20 for the completed netting 14 . the fibrous web or webs are then fed , for example , from a roll 67 , into the entanglement station 68 which embeds the netting within a fibrous web . a fibrous web could be applied to one or preferably both faces of the netting . referring to fig3 ( b ) and 4 ( a ), exemplary polymeric nettings which can be produced with a variation in the ribs forming stem - like protrusions 24 or hook shaped protrusions 21 generally designated by the reference numeral 14 is shown . the netting comprises strands 20 having generally parallel upper and lower major surfaces 23 and 22 , and a multiplicity of spaced protrusions 24 or 21 projecting from at least the upper surface 23 of the strand 20 . the strand 20 can have planar surfaces or other surface features as could be desired for modifying properties such as flexibility . the strands 20 are separated from each other by cuts and elongation of ribs 18 into strands 8 . in fig4 ( a ), the protrusions are in the shape of hook elements . fig4 ( b ) is a variation of the fig4 ( a ) embodiment where the hook elements are more widely spaced and are not directly adjacent each strand member 8 . the hook elements could also be created offset from strand members 8 and located between strands 8 , as shown in fig4 ( d ), on strands 20 . fig4 ( c ) is a further variation like fig4 ( b ). the absence of hook elements in certain - areas of a netting or mesh as shown in fig4 ( b ) and 4 ( c ) would provide areas without hooks for example to provide an area without protrusions for bonding to a further substrate , such as by thermal bonding or adhesives . the fig4 ( d ) embodiment could be used to form a cleaning sheet with discrete hook strands extending only in the transverse direction . the fibrous composite could be formed using the fig4 ( d ) material with the strands 8 stabilizing the strands 20 in the transverse direction while it is joined to the fibrous webs . the portions containing the strands 8 could then be trimmed away leaving only the strands 20 in the final cleaning sheet composite . this would be useful in certain applications where tensile strength is needed in only one direction . fig5 shows the final cleaning sheet composite where a netting , such as shown in fig4 ( a ), is embedded within nonwoven webs placed on both faces of the netting . the netting and nonwoven layers are not additionally bonded together by thermal bonding or adhesives . an extruded netting is schematically shown , within a cleaning sheet composite , in fig6 . in fig6 , the hook shaped ribs on one face are partially transversely slit at spaced locations along their lengths . the base layer on the second face is fully cut as per , e . g ., the fig4 and 5 embodiments . when the partially cut hook shaped ribs are longitudinally elongated or stretched , as per the fig4 and 5 embodiments , they form hook elements 72 and oriented strands 78 ( from the uncut portion of the ribs ). cleaning sheets , such as shown in fig5 and 6 , are highly breathable and dimensionally stable , in at least the direction of strands 8 , 20 , 70 or 78 . dimensional stability means that the cleaning sheet will have essentially the same dimensions when untensioned and when placed under moderate tension in the direction of linearly extending strands ( e . g ., 8 , 20 , 70 and 78 ). further , these cleaning sheets would also be dimensionally stable in more than one direction if there are intersecting linear strands at angles to each other . however , with intersecting linear strands , when stretched in a direction at an angle to both sets of linear strands , the netting and as such the composite will stretch , and in some cases will tend to elastically recover to its dimensionally stable form . the linear strands in both directions can be oriented to increase their mechanical strength and reduce their basis weight while increasing their flexibility and dimensional stability . the protrusions extend outward from the cleaning sheets to enhance the pick - up of particulate materials , especially animal hair or human hair , from surfaces , especially soft surfaces such as carpeting , upholstery , and the like . in a preferred embodiment , the protrusions are chosen such that they do not snag or get caught by the fibers of the surface . generally , the protrusions are from 0 . 10 to 6 mm , preferably 0 . 25 to 4 mm . the protrusions can be of a variety of shapes including , but not limited to , hooks , slanted fibers , bristles , and the like . the plurality of protrusions affixed to the substrate can be all of a uniform shape or can be a combination of different shapes . preferably in some embodiments at least some of the protrusions are hook - shaped protrusions . preferred hook - shaped protrusions include a variety of types , including , for example , “ j - type ” hooks , “ prong - type ” hooks , “ mushroom - type ” hooks , “ banana - type ” hooks , “ y - type ” hooks , “ multi - tipped ” hooks and the like . the protrusions and strands incorporated into the present invention cleaning sheets can be made of a variety of materials , for example , polymeric resins , and the like , preferably thermoplastic resins . the thermoplastic resins preferably comprise a thermoplastic polymer and could further comprise tackifying resins , plasticizers , and other optional ingredients such as diluents , stabilizers , antioxidants , colorants , and fillers . the preferred materials from which to form protrusions of the present cleaning sheets are thermoplastic resins . the thermoplastic resins herein will typically have a softening temperature of from about 45 ° c . to about 260 ° c ., more preferably from about 80 ° c . to about 200 ° c ., and even more preferably from about 90 ° c . to about 180 ° c . “ softening temperature ” of a thermoplastic resin can be measured according to a standard method , astm d1525 . preferred thermoplastic resins comprise thermoplastic polymers such as styrene copolymer blends , wherein the copolymer is selected from the group consisting of butadiene , acrylonitrile , divinylbenzene , maleic anhydride ; block copolymers containing polystyrene endblocks and polyisoprene , polybutadiene , and / or polyethylene - butylene midblocks ; polyolefins such as polyethylene , polypropylene , and polyethylene propylene ; ethylene - vinylacetate copolymers ; acrylonitrile - butadiene copolymers ; polyesters such as polyethylene terphthalate ; polyamides such as nylon 6 and nylon 11 ; polyvinyl chloride ; polyvinylidene chloride ; polyurethane ; and mixtures thereof . thermoplastic resins particularly preferred herein for forming protrusions of the present cleaning sheets include polyethylene ( which can be low density , high density and / or cross linked ), polypropylene , blends and copolymers thereof . preferred polymeric materials from which a netting can be made include thermoplastic resins comprising polyolefins , e . g . polypropylene and polyethylene , polyvinyl chloride , polystyrene , nylons , polyester such as polyethylene terephthalate and the like and copolymers and blends thereof . preferably the resin is a polypropylene , polyethylene , polypropylene - polyethylene copolymer or blends thereof . the preferred protrusions of the present cleaning sheets are formed of a material having a young &# 39 ; s modulus of from about 75 to about 1500 kn / m 2 (× 10 − 4 ), preferably from about 100 to about 1000 kn / m 2 (× 10 − 4 ), and more preferably from about 200 to about 500 kn / m 2 (× 10 4 ). young &# 39 ; s modulus can be measured using a standard method known as astm d797 . in general , the strands will be embedded within the fibrous substrate such that the strands and the protrusions are present from about 5 % to about 80 %, preferably from about 10 % to about 70 %, and more preferably from about 15 % to about 60 % of the surface area within the fibrous substrate . the protrusions can extend from only one outer surface of the substrate of the cleaning sheet but the protrusions can also be extend from both outer surfaces . the protrusions can be positioned such that the distance between two consecutive protrusions will be at least 0 . 15 mm , or from about 0 . 2 to about 10 mm , preferably from about 0 . 2 to about 5 mm , preferably from about 0 . 3 to about 5 mm , more preferably from about 0 . 6 to about 3 mm , even more preferably from about 0 . 8 to about 3 mm , and most preferably from about 0 . 9 to about 2 mm . the number of protrusions per square centimeter will typically be from about 1 to about 1000 , preferably from about 10 to about 100 , and more preferably from about 20 to about 50 . the present cleaning sheets comprise a plurality of protrusions , which can all be of the same shape or can be a combination of protrusions having two or more different shapes . it is also possible to have a plurality of protrusions which are all facing towards the same direction or which are pointing towards different directions . the shapes and resiliency of the protrusions are preferably selected based on the surface desired to be cleaned , especially soft surfaces such as carpet , upholstery , and the like , in order provide the best combination or debris removal and easy movement of the cleaning sheet across the surface . for example , the shape and resiliency of the protrusions can also be selected based on the type of carpet or upholstery being cleaned with more aggressive hooks ( e . g . less elasticity and / or more curl in the engagement end of the hook ) used on plush carpet , while less aggressive hooks ( e . g . more elasticity and / or less curl in the engagement end of the hook ) are preferred for loop - type carpet , such as berber carpet . typically , the thinner the protrusions and the greater the distance between individual protrusions , the less aggressive the resulting cleaning sheet will be . the protrusions of the present cleaning sheets are capable of dislodging debris from the surface to be cleaned so that the fibrous substrate can capture the debris within the cleaning sheet . since the debris is retained within the fibrous cleaning sheet , once the user is finished cleaning the surface , the user can simply dispose of the cleaning sheet , along with the debris retained by the cleaning sheet . the protrusions of the present cleaning sheets can be distributed in a random or non - random pattern on the substrates of the present cleaning sheet . the protrusions can be arranged in one or more discrete zones with respect to the substrate of the cleaning sheet , wherein each zone comprises a plurality of protrusions . in a preferred embodiment , the protrusions are arranged in a zone on the substrate of the cleaning sheet , such that when the cleaning sheet is attached to a mop head of a cleaning implement 46 , the protrusions are aligned with the bottom surface ( and / or sides ) of the mop head 44 so as to be contacted with the surface to be cleaned , as shown in fig8 . the areas of the substrate of the cleaning sheet 45 adjacent to the centered zone comprising a plurality of protrusions , are free of protrusions and can be used to attach the cleaning sheet to the mop head of the cleaning implement at attachment point 49 . in another embodiment , when a cleaning sheet of the present invention is attached to a mop head 44 of a cleaning implement 46 , a plurality of protrusions could be affixed to the substrate in a zone along the leading and / or trailing edge of the mop head , or around the vertical edges of the mop head . in yet another embodiment , a cleaning sheet can comprise any of the previously described protrusions , combination of protrusions , rows of protrusions and / or zoned application of protrusions , on both sides of the sheet . this embodiment offers the advantage of doubling the usage of a single sheet . a user can simply attach the sheet to a cleaning implement as later described and use it to clean a surface . when the sheet appears “ saturated ” with hair or particles , the user can simply remove the sheet from the implement , and re - attach or otherwise use the sheet such that the still clean side of the sheet can now be used to clean the surface . the present disposable cleaning sheets can optionally , but preferably , further comprise an additive material . the additive material can be affixed to the substrate of the present cleaning sheets in order to enhance the ability of the present cleaning sheets to better retain debris , especially small particulate matter , that has been removed from a surface being cleaned . a number of additive materials can be suitable for incorporation into the cleaning sheets of the present invention . preferred additives of the present invention that are particularly useful with the present cleaning sheets are polymeric additives , especially those with specific adhesive characteristics such as specific tack values , adhesive work values , cohesion / adhesion ratios , and / or stringiness values . the additive material is selected in order to improve the pick - up of fine particulate matter such as dust , lint , and hair , and especially larger particulate matter typically found on household floors and surfaces such as crumbs , dirt , sand , hair , crushed food , grass clippings and mulch . in addition , the type and amount of the additive material is carefully selected in order to improve particulate pick - up of the cleaning sheet , while maintaining the ability of the cleaning sheet to easily glide across the surface being cleaned . if the cleaning sheet is too tacky as a result of the additives incorporated therein , the cleaning sheet will not easily glide across the surface . preferred polymeric additives include , but are not limited to , those selected from the group consisting of pressure sensitive adhesives , tacky polymers , and mixtures thereof . the additive material can be affixed to the substrate itself , or can be affixed to the protrusions herein . the additive material can be applied uniformly to the substrate and / or protrusions , or can be applied in “ zones ”. when applying the additive material in zones , the additive material can be applied in a random or non - random pattern , such as a checkerboard pattern . in one embodiment , the additive material is distributed evenly across a wide central portion of the substrate . other suitable additive materials include wax , oil , powder , and mixtures thereof . preferred wax is paraffin wax and preferred oil is mineral oil . suitable powders for use herein include , but are not limited to , those selected from the group consisting of talc , starch , magnesium carbonate , and mixtures thereof . typically , the additive materials , such as polymeric additives , are impregnated onto the present cleaning sheets at a level of polymeric additive of no greater than about 10 . 0 g / m 2 , preferably no greater than about 6 . 0 g / m 2 , more preferably no greater than about 4 . 0 g / m 2 , and still more preferably no greater than about 2 . 0 g / m 2 . also , the additive materials , such as polymeric additives , are typically impregnated onto the present cleaning sheets at a level of polymeric additive of at least about 0 . 1 g / m 2 , preferably at least about 0 . 2 g / m 2 , more preferably at least about 0 . 4 g / m 2 , and still more preferably at least about 0 . 6 g / m 2 . the polymeric additive can be applied directly to the substrate by any conventional means such as spraying , slot coating , printing , or kiss coating . the disposable cleaning sheets of the present invention can be attached to a mop head of a cleaning implement as shown in fig8 . the cleaning implement can then be used to move the disposable cleaning sheet across the surface being cleaned , e . g . carpet . after the surface has been cleaned , the disposable cleaning sheet can be removed from the mop head of the cleaning implement and discarded . a cleaning sheet could be used as a simple sheet or could be attached to a hand of a user , for example , by elastic bands . the sheet could also have attachment means such as for example , an adhesive or hook and loop fastener for connecting one end to the other . in this embodiment , the ends of the sheet can be wrapped around the hand and secured to one another to form a snug fit . the sheets could also be used to form a disposable mitt 40 as shown in fig7 comprising at least a layer of substrate 41 having protrusions . the surface to be cleaned is preferably simply contacted by wiping the surface with the cleaning sheet with the cleaning sheet containing the debris disposed after use . surfaces which can be cleaned with the cleaning sheets , include carpet , upholstery , and fabrics , which can be found in the household , automobiles , and the like . the cleaning sheet can also be incorporated as part of a brush for brushing the hair of cats and other pets . a mesh hook netting was made using apparatus similar to that shown in fig1 . a polypropylene / polyethylene impact copolymer ( src7 - 644 , 1 . 5 mfi , dow chemical ) was extruded with a 6 . 35 cm single screw extruder ( 24 : 1 l / d ) using a barrel temperature profile of 175 ° c .- 230 ° c .- 230 ° c . and a die temperature of approximately 230 ° c . the extrudate was extruded vertically downward through a die having an opening cut by electron discharge machining to produce an extruded profiled web . the crossweb spacing of the upper ribs was 7 . 3 ribs per cm . after being shaped by the die , the extrudate was quenched in a water tank at a speed of 6 . 1 meter / min with the water being maintained at approximately 10 ° c . the web was then advanced through a cutting station where the upper ribs and the base layer ( but not the lower ribs ) were transversely cut at an angle of 23 degrees measured from the transverse direction of the web . the spacing of the cuts was 305 microns . after cutting the upper ribs and the base layer , the web was longitudinally stretched at a stretch ratio of approximately 3 to 1 between a first pair of nip rolls and a second pair of nip rolls to further separate the individual hook elements to approximately 8 . 5 hooks / cm to produce a hook mesh netting similar to that shown in fig4 a . the thickness of the base layer was 219 microns . the upper roll of the first pair of nip rolls was heated to 143 ° c . to soften the web prior to stretching . the second pair of nip rolls were cooled to approximately 10 ° c . the tensile strength of the hook netting was measured by cutting a 1 . 3 cm wide sample in the longitudinal , downweb direction of the web . there were 11 - 12 strands in the test samples . the break tensile strength was measured using an instron tensile tester . 5 replicates were run and averaged together . the break tensile strength of the web was 4 . 91 kg / cm and 0 . 55 kg / strand . the hook netting was then hydroentangled with two nonwoven webs by sandwiching the hook netting in between two 30 g / m 2 unbonded carded webs ; each web consisting of 70 % wellman t310 1 . 5 d polyester fibers , 25 % lyocell 1 . 5d rayon fibers and 5 % kosa t254 2d polyester bicomponent staple fibers . a conventional hydraulic entangling system consisting of 6 manifolds / jets ( 3 above and 3 below the web ) was used . the basic operating procedure is described in , for example , u . s . pat . no . 5 , 389 , 202 , issued feb . 14 , 1995 , to everhart et al ., the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference . each manifold had an orifice diameter of 120 microns . orifices were positioned in a single row at a spacing of about 16 orifices per linear centimeter of manifold . manifold water pressure was successively ramped up to 127 kg / cm 2 which generated high energy fine columnar jets . the hydraulic entangling surface was a single layer 100 stainless steel twill wire backing manufactured by albany international , portland , term . the netting and two carded webs were passed under the manifolds at a line speed of about 10 meters per minute where they were washed and consolidated by the pressurized jets of water . the resulting composite web was dried utilizing a conventional laboratory handsheet dryer . the composite web had a cloth - like feel and appearance , and was very flexible and conformable . a small piece of the composite web was used to lightly scrub a soiled carpet . the web was very efficient in removing hair from the carpet .	8
as shown in fig1 a high volume virtual impactor 10 , made according to the present invention , is mounted in a conventional plenum chamber 11 of a particle classifier of conventional design . the chamber 11 is defined by a lower wall 12 and an upper wall 13 that has a plurality of inlet openings 14 . the plenum chamber walls are hinged to the lower portion of the classifier , including a divider wall 17 so that the plenum chamber walls can be lifted up to provide access to the virtual impactor 10 . the walls include a flange 15 which can be gasketed to surround the virtual impactor housing . the virtual impactor housing is mounted in an opening forming an exhaust opening from the plenum chamber . the only exit from the plenum chamber 11 is through the virtual impactor apparatus 10 . the air is made to flow generally as indicated by the arrows 16 , through the openings 14 to the virtual impactor apparatus 10 . the plenum chamber is of sufficient size for the desired operation . preferrably the air entering the plenum chamber 11 through the openings 14 will be preclassified so only particles under 10 microns effective aerodynamic diameter are present . as shown , the virtual impactor apparatus includes a housing or frame 20 that supports the virtual impactor tubes and assemblies , and which is adapted to be mounted onto a base filter cassette 25 , which in turn is mounted onto the divider wall 17 of the classifier mounting the plenum chamber 11 . as can perhaps best be seen in fig2 and 3 , the housing 20 has outer side walls 30 and 31 , respectively , and partition walls 32 and 33 , respectively . the walls 30 - 33 are parallel . in addition , the housing 20 has walls 34 and 35 which extend laterally to walls 30 and 31 and together with walls 32 and 33 form chambers including a center chamber 36 , and outer side chambers 37 and 38 , respectively . chambers 36 , 37 and 38 are open at the bottoms thereof . as can be seen , the end walls 34 and 35 have mounting flanges 40 and 41 thereon . the mounting flanges have provided openings for receiving bolts 42 that in turn are coupled to the base filter cassette 25 and hold the base filter cassette 25 in position on the housing 20 . as can be seen , the base filter cassette 25 includes a main mounting flange 43 that surrounds the periphery of the base filter cassette . a small particle filter assembly 45 is mounted on the cassette and has a screen frame with bolts 45a extending therefrom . the small particle filter attaches with the bolts 45a to the lower side of the flange 43 . a gasket 44 is positioned between the small particle filter assembly 45 and the lower surface of flange 43 . the small particle filter assembly 45 includes a support screen 47 , which supports and retains a paper filter 46 on the top surface of the screen when the screen is clamped in place on flange 43 . other suitable support members can be used if desired . the bolts 45a are fixed to the frame for screen 47 and pass through provided openings in the flange 43 to permit securing the screen 47 in place on the cassette 25 through the flange 43 . as shown , a flange 15 on wall 12 overlies the flange 43 , and a gasket 50 is used for sealing the flange 15 relative to the flange 43 when the walls from the plenum chamber are held closed . the flange 15 surrounds the housing 20 to seal on cassette flange 43 . this means that the opening indicated at 52 defined through the wall 17 , and through which the major flow from the virtual impactor will pass , is sealed from the exterior , and is open to the plenum chamber 11 only through the opening indicated at 54 defined by the flange 43 . as can be seen , the flange 43 extends inwardly and has a rim 55 on its support side that fits within the periphery of flange 15 on the wall 12 of the plenum chamber . a separate chamber 56 is defined within the perimeter of rim 55 . the end walls of the chamber 56 are formed by rim 55 , and the side walls are formed by cross pieces 58 ( see fig2 ) which are directly under and aligned with walls 32 and 33 . the bottom of chamber 56 is closed with a plate 57 . chamber 56 is the large particle chamber and as shown in fig2 is positioned below the chamber 36 in the center of the housing 20 and is open to the chamber 36 . chamber 56 ( and thus chamber 36 ) is connected to a suitable blower 60 through a tube 61 . the blower 60 comprises an air pump that draws an airflow through the chamber 56 and thus from the chamber 36 through a large particle filter assembly indicated schematically at 63 . the large particle filter 63 has a support screen 63a , and includes a paper filter 64 supported on the top surface of the screen 63a . a gasket 65 overlies the rim 55 and has cross members that overlie cross members 58 . the gasket 65 thus overlies the edges of the filter assembly 63 to hold the filter assembly in place . as can be seen the gasket 65 provides an opening that leads from the central chamber 36 to the chamber 56 . the gasket 65 also defines openings that are in registry with side openings 67 and 68 , leading to the opening 54 of the filter cassette flange 43 from the respective chambers 37 and 38 in the housing 20 . a clamp plate 70 is formed to the shape of the gasket 65 with a peripheral rim and cross member in registry with cross members 58 . a second gasket 72 that is identical to gasket 65 overlies clamp plate 70 , so that there are through passageways to each of the chambers 36 , 37 and 38 in the housing 20 , leading to the respective filter assemblies , but the gaskets insure that there is a fluid seal separating chambers 36 and 56 from chamber 36 and 37 . the gaskets prevent air leaks at the interfaces between the housing 20 and the filter cassette . the opening 54 in the filter cassette 25 aligns with the opening 52 in wall 17 which leads to a chamber indicated schematically at 76 that is connected through a suitable conduit indicated schematically by the line 77 to a second blower or air pump 78 . the blower 78 forms an air pump for providing the major portion of the flow through the virtual impactor assembly 10 . the housing 20 and filter cassette 25 are made so that the only air inlets to the blowers 60 and 78 are through the virtual impactor housing 20 . as shown , the housing or frame 20 supports six virtual impactor assemblies 80 arranged for parallel flow . the virtual impactor assemblies 80 each include an inlet nozzle or tube 81 and an aligning receiver tube or receptor 82 . the inlet nozzles or tubes 81 are mounted in the side walls 30 and 31 , respectively , and as shown have the nozzle mounting flanges 83 , and have a generally conical inlet passageway portion 87 that tapers down ( constricts ) to a nozzle passageway 88 which defines an outlet providing a jet directed toward an aligning receiver tube 81 . the nozzle passageway 88 and conical inlet passageway 87 have a central axis 90 . the receiver tubes or receptors 82 for each of the virtual impactor assemblies 80 are mounted on the walls 32 and 33 , respectively , and each receiver tube 82 includes a mounting flange 92 , and a tube portion 93 having an inlet opening 94 that is spaced from the outlet or exhaust end of the nozzle opening 88 , as can be seen . the inlet end 94 of the receiver tubes has a tapered edge as shown for guiding the flow smoothly into the interior passageway of the receiver tube . the exhaust end or outlet of each receiving tube has an orifice member 96 defining a restricted orifice exhaust opening 95 that provides a pressure drop for controlling the flow , so that there is identical flows through each of the receiver tubes . each of the inlet nozzles or tubes 81 also reduces to form a restriction so flow is equalized between the nozzles . the exhaust or outlet openings 95 of each of the receiver tubes 82 opens into the chamber 36 . thus , all of the receiver tubes exhaust into the chamber 36 . as can be seen in fig2 and 3 , the virtual impactors 80 are arranged so that the exhaust outlet openings of each receiver tube is directly opposite and aligned along the axis 90 ( which also is the axis of the receiver tubes ) with the exhaust opening of a receiver tube of an opposed virtual impactor . in other words , there is a first pair of virtual impactors 80a and 80b , the individual units of which are directly opposed and coaxial , a second pair of virtual impactors 80c and 80d , again having the axes of the receiver tubes , and of the orifice defining the exhaust openings 95 coaxial , and a third pair of virtual impactor assemblies 80e and 80f . the receiver tubes 80e and 80f also has the exhaust openings of the receiver tubes coaxial and directly opposed across the width of the chamber 36 as can be seen in fig3 . as shown , the outlet opening 89 of each of the nozzle passageways 88 of the nozzles 81 is spaced as shown at 100 from the inlet opening 94 of its respective receiver tube . this space 100 provides a flow path into the respective chambers 37 and 38 , and thus flow that is created by blower 78 will be drawn through openings 100 , through the openings 67 and 68 and into the opening 54 of the filter cassette frame or flange 43 and then through the opening 52 into a chamber provided and then to the blower 78 powered by a motor 78a . an air flow is established by blower 60 ( powered by a motor 60a ) out of the receiver tubes , into chamber 36 and through the openings in the gaskets and plate 70 to the chamber 56 , and then through the filter assembly 63 including the paper filter 64 . the chamber 56 is separated or sealed from opening 54 and thus the flow from chamber 36 is separate from the flows from chambers 37 and 38 . as has been shown in the prior art , the flow exiting through the blower 78 drawn through the small particle filter is called the major flow , and the flow through the spaces 100 in chambers 37 and 38 is substantially larger than that through the receiver tubes 82 and out the exhaust orifice openings 95 . essentially , the flow through the receiver tubes 82 and out the exhaust openings 95 is approximately five percent of the flow through the space or openings 100 and through the small particle filter . thus , for example , if the virtual impactor device is designed for a flow of 40 cubic feet per minute , there will be 38 cubic feet a minute through the blower 70 , and two cubic feet per minute through the blower 60 . large particles of pollen , dirt , and other aerosols carried by the ambient air that comes in through the inlet openings 14 into the plenum chamber 11 are carried through the inlet openings 87 of the nozzles or inlet tubes 81 , and the flow through the nozzle passageways 88 is axially aligned with an directed toward the associated receiver tube . the major flow , however , is diverted out through the spaces or openings 100 and through chambers 37 and 38 . the major flow does not enter the receiver tubes . the larger particles , however , have sufficient inertia so that they are carried into the respective receiver tubes , and then the minor flow , supplied by the blower 60 , will be sufficient to carry these particles through the exhaust orifice openings 95 into the chamber 36 . because the flows through each of the openings 95 of each associated pair of receiver tubes are directly facing or opposed with the exhaust opening of the other receiver tube of the pair of virtual impactors , the minor flows interface or collide in the center portions of the chamber 36 , slowing the flow and dropping the large particles downwardly onto the filter assembly 63 without striking surfaces of the walls defining chamber 36 . the minor flow coming out through the tube 61 from chamber 56 will insure that the paper filter 64 will separate out the large particles that are carried into the chamber 36 . the total major flow passes out through both chambers 37 and 38 , and through openings 67 and 68 and through the small particle filter assembly 45 . the paper filter 46 of filter assembly 45 collects the small particles as the major flow is exhausted through the blower or pump 78 . the major flow carrying the small particles is classified as to particle size by the fact that the flow has to turn substantially 90 ° between the nozzles 88 and the associated receiver tube 82 . the inertial separation provides a sharp classification of particle sizes , because the large particles have enough inertia to penetrate into the receiver tube and pass out the receiver tube with the minor flow through the exhaust openings 95 . the smaller particles , having less inertia , will not penetrate into the receiving tubes as deeply and will be carried with the major flow even though they may enter into the inlet end of the receiving tube a short distance before being carried with the major flow . the virtual impactors have been found to work well where the division size between large particles and small particles is in the range of 2 . 5 microns equivalent aerodynamic diameter of the particles . usually the virtual impactor assembly 10 will be used after an initial separation step so that the particles in the plenum chamber 11 will be smaller than 10 microns for example , and thus the large particles passing through the receiver tubes 82 into the chamber 36 will be between 2 . 5 and 10 microns in size , and the particles passing with the major flow will be under 2 . 5 microns in equivalent aerodynamic diameter . the orifices 96 forming the exhaust openings 95 are selected in size so that they will provide for flow control to equalize the flows through each of the receiver tubes of the virtual impactor assemblies 80 . it is essential that the flows in the chambers 37 and 38 and the chamber 36 be controlled , and while this is done with two blowers in the present disclosed device , it can be done with flow control orifices using a single blower if desired . because the flow through each of the six nozzles is equal , the nozzle diameters and the pressure drops across the nozzles are also identical . by using a plurality of parallel flow virtual impactor stages a high flow rate can be obtained while the flow through any of the virtual impactors is held at a reasonable value , and because the virtual impactor receiver tubes are arranged in opposed pairs with the receiver tube outlets aimed directly at each other , the jets through the exhaust openings stop flow from the other jet of its pair and cause the particles to drop out without impacting against any wall surface . the filters for both the large and small particles are on the floor of the chambers and thus below the virtual impactors , so that the particles will drop down onto the filters to minimize large particle losses from the point where they are separated or classified to where they are collected on the filter . the unit is compact and will go onto existing equipment for high volume samplers easily . as shown , the filter cassette 25 is a separate assembly that carries both the large particle filter and the small particle filter , so that the filters can be loaded in a laboratory , transported to the field , and the housing 20 can be attached using bolts 42 . the housing filter assembly is placed into the plenum chamber 11 for a specified sampling period during which the blowers are operated . the filter cassette can then be removed and returned to the laboratory for changing the filters quite easily . also , it can be seen in fig2 in particular that the flanges 86 and 92 of each of the virtual impactor inlet tubes and receiver tubes are coaxial and mounted onto closely spaced parallel walls on a common frame , so that the mounting openings can be machined at the same time so that the inlet tubes or nozzles and the receiving tubes can be in near perfect alignment and perfectly coaxially . the flange 86 and mounting opening for the flanges in walls 30 and 31 are larger than the flange 92 and its mounting opening to aid in machining the openings in walls 32 and 33 . close alignment of the nozzles and the associated receiver tube is necessary for correct operation of a virtual impactor . thus the unit is easily made , highly efficient , and provides for high flow rates utilizing virtual impactors .	6
in the systems for transporting persons or goods from a to b , traction chains 10 are often utilized to drive the transport platform ( which has not been illustrated in closer detail herein ). the traction chain 10 is thereby stored in a device for storing said traction chain 10 . said device includes a drum 12 about which the traction chain 10 is wound in a plurality of turns 14 . the traction chain 10 , which is composed of a plurality of links 16 , is solidly fixed at its last link to the drum so that the traction chain 10 is prevented from becoming displaced on the drum 12 . the device for storing the traction chain 10 further includes a drive wheel that has not been illustrated in closer detail herein and that is rotatably carried on a shaft 18 , as well as two retaining rods 20 , 22 , a screw drive 24 and a restraint 26 that has been configured of two parts here . the drum 12 is carried on the screw drive 24 in such a manner that the drum 12 is movable pursuant to arrow 28 across the direction of movement of the traction chain 10 . the drum 12 further comprises a number of recesses 30 allowing for easy cleaning of the drum 12 . the fig3 and 4 show two adjacent links 16 ′ and 16 ″. said adjacent links 16 ′ and 16 ″ are articulated together by a bolt 32 . in the first link 16 ′ there is formed a right ridge 34 and a left ridge 36 in which the bolt 32 is retained , whereas a centrally disposed pin 38 through which the bolt 32 extends is integrally formed in the second link 16 ″. the left ridge 36 is thereby configured to be much wider than the right ridge 34 so that the pin 38 rests exactly against the left ridge 36 provided the adjacent links 16 ′ and 16 ″ are aligned as shown in fig4 . by contrast , the pin 38 rests against the narrower right ridge 34 provided the adjacent links 16 ′, 16 ″ are offset relative to each other as shown in fig3 . reviewing now fig2 , imagine that the traction chain 10 is being wound about the drum 12 ; it is evident that the discrete links 16 of the traction chain 10 become offset with respect to their respective adjacent link 16 while resting against a first guiding edge 40 . the links 16 become offset relative to each other in such a manner that when the chain is wound one complete turn , they become offset by slightly more than the width of the traction chain 10 so that a plurality of turns 14 can be wound next to each other about the drum 12 . when the traction chain 10 is unwound from the drum 12 , the links 16 are guided along a second guiding edge 42 and offset in such a manner that , when they leave the restraint 26 , they are again aligned in a manner analogous to winding . it has thereby been found advantageous to manufacture the restraint 26 , more specifically the guiding edges 40 , 42 , from pe in order to keep the frictional resistance low . fig5 illustrates an alternative restraint 44 that also comprises a first and a second guiding edge 46 , 48 and that is also disposed at such an incline that the discrete links 16 of the traction chain 10 become offset by exactly one width of the traction chain 10 as they are passed once through the restraint 44 . since a number of links 16 are wound into one turn 14 about the drum 12 , an offset of between 1 mm and 5 mm , preferably of 3 mm , is sufficient when the adjacent links 16 ′, 16 ″ have a width of about 30 mm . the restraint 44 is thereby designed in such a manner that the distance between the first guiding edge 46 and the second guiding edge 48 is chosen to allow a driver member 50 mounted to the link 16 to be positively guided . it has been found advantageous to manufacture both the driver member 50 and the restraint 26 , 44 from pe in order to achieve as little friction as possible there . it is understood that the exact dimensions of the discrete component parts are matched together . the offset between adjacent links 16 and , associated therewith , the restraint 26 , 44 , are for example designed in such a manner that in one turn 14 a complete offset by slightly more than the width of the traction chain occurs . also , the pitch of the screw drive 24 is chosen to allow correct winding and unwinding of the traction chain 10 onto and from the drum 12 to be achieved . in another embodiment that has not been illustrated herein , two devices for storing a traction chain of the type mentioned herein above are provided in one charging system , with the two drums being guided on the same screw drive .	5
fig1 illustrates one embodiment of a speed measuring device or unit 10 , according to principles of the present invention , secured to the barrel 12 of a rifle or other firearm 14 . the firearm 14 is illustrated immediately after having fired a bullet 16 from its barrel 12 . the path of the bullet 16 is illustrated by line 13 . the device 10 , so secured to the barrel 12 , is located within a few inches of the direct path 18 of movement of the bullet 16 being fired from the gun 14 . the device 10 , in the illustrated embodiment , has a two part plastic housing 15 that includes a forward facing housing 17 and a rearward facing housing 18 , as illustrated in fig2 . in the illustrated embodiment of the unit 10 , the two parts of the housing 17 , 18 are secured together to form a single enclosure that contains the electronics of the unit 10 . the forward facing housing 17 is secured by a fastening element or bracket 20 , for example , configured or configurable to attach to the barrel 12 of the gun 14 . the housing 15 encloses an antenna 21 ( fig2 and 3 ) with a radiation pattern having a main lobe that faces in the direction that the barrel 12 is pointing parallel to , or inclined slightly toward , the path 13 in the direction of the receding bullet 16 . the rearward facing housing 18 contains a speed output annunciator , for example , a visual display 22 such as an lcd having , for example , a digital readout of two to four digits . on the rearward facing housing 18 there is also provided one or more control buttons , such as , for example , a plurality of buttons 25 - 27 , and including particularly button 25 , which is a unit on / off switch . a second button 26 may be a mode switch that permits sequential selection of the units of the display 22 , for example , in miles per hour , kilometers per hour , feet per second or meters per second . a third button 27 may be a reset or start button that powers the transmitter for a predetermined amount of time , such as ten or fifteen seconds , after which the transmitter of the unit will turn off . alternatively , the function of the on / off button 25 and reset button 27 may be combined so that a momentary depression of the button 25 powers the entire unit , which turns off automatically after the predetermined amount of time . as further illustrated in fig2 , between the forward and rearward facing housings 17 and 18 is a circuit board 33 that contains the transmitting and receiving circuitry , and a signal processing circuit board 30 that contains the signal processing and logic of the unit 10 . the circuit board 30 includes a battery 31 that is replaceable through an access door 32 in the rearward facing housing 18 . the board 33 contains components and circuitry of a transmitter / oscillator circuit , which includes the strip transmission line resonator / antenna 21 . the circuit board 30 contains a signal filter and processor 34 that processes the detected doppler signal that is produced in the rf circuit by the moving object , an operational amplifier - based voltage regulator chip 35 that provides filtered regulated voltage to the signal processor chip 34 at about one - half the supply voltage of the battery 31 , a microprocessor 36 that digitizes output from the signal processor 34 and interprets the detected signal as a speed reading and communicates the interpreted signal to the display 22 , and clock and delay circuits 37 , 38 , respectively , that are used by the microprocessor 36 . an alternative embodiment of the unit 10 may be configured for attachment to the gun or implement 14 with at least the antenna 21 positioned adjacent the path 13 of the object whose speed is being measured , but with the control button 25 , display 22 and others of the components remote from the antenna . the electronics of the units 10 illustrated in fig3 can be fabricated utilizing readily available components . the doppler sensor circuit 33 is preferably a cw radar homodyne oscillator - detector 50 having an integral antenna circuit by which the moving object 16 is detected . the oscillator preferably operates at between 5725 and 5875 mhz , but may also operate at 2400 - 2425 mhz or at other frequencies , typically in the 2 , 000 to 25 , 000 mhz region . the oscillator 50 of the preferred embodiment draws about 0 . 6 milliamperes from a 2 . 5 vdc power source such as the battery 31 . partially because of the location and configuration of the units 10 , less than ten microwatts need be transmitted into free - space by the oscillator resonant elements . these elements are preferably of a strip transmission line configuration that includes two electrically equivalent quarter wave micro - strip lines that form radiating elements 21 a , 21 b of the antenna 21 . the elements 21 a , 21 b , along with a transistor q 1 and a coil 53 , form a negative resistance network which oscillates with a capacitor 21 c at the operating carrier frequency of , for example , 2 . 4 ghz , 5 . 8 ghz or 10 . 5 ghz . a transmission line 51 and capacitor 49 are provided to prevent parasitic oscillations in the bias network . capacitor 52 is a bypass capacitor which creates a low impedance to ground for the carrier frequency , partially filtering the carrier signal at an outlet 54 at which the received doppler signal can be extracted . typical objects the size of a baseball or softball within a distance of about two feet from the radar , produce a reflected doppler frequency signal having an amplitude in the 10 to 100 microvolt range . this signal modulates the oscillator signal at the doppler sensor output 54 of the sensor circuit 33 . a portion of the modulated oscillator signal that has been filtered within the oscillator circuit 33 and fed on the outlet 54 into the signal processor 34 consists of a commercially available ac or capacitively coupled high - gain differential amplifier 55 , several stages of filters 56 and a zcd 57 . the gain of the differential amplifier 55 is preferably set at a gain of about 1000 , or 60 db . the filters 56 produce a 400 - 2500 hz passband , or whatever other passband needed to cover the range of anticipated doppler frequency signals expected to be encountered given the speed range of the object and the transmission frequency being used . the filters 56 include , for example , standard twin - tee configuration operational amplifier based 60 hz and 120 hz notch filters 56 a , 56 b to suppress ac power circuit interference . the filters 56 also include two second - order , multiple feedback high - pass filters 56 d , 56 e each having a gain , for example , of 2 . 7 , and each having a 3 db cutoff frequency of 160 hz . next , the filters 56 include a single order passive low - pass filter 56 e having , for example , a 3 db cutoff frequency of 2500 hz . the passband can be tailored to fulfill specific needs by selection of the corresponding low and high pass filter component values which establish the corner frequencies . the amplified and filtered signal from the filtering stages 56 is fed to the zcd 57 , which is a standard schmitt trigger that uses a commercial comparator , with positive feedback to create hysteresis . the zcd produces a square - wave which is output and applied to the input of an eight - bit microprocessor 36 . the microprocessor 36 is connected to external clock circuit 37 which provides a time reference to the microprocessor 36 . the microprocessor 36 is programmed to verify the validity of the received signal , for example , by requiring at least four consecutive doppler frequency cycles , which causes it to recognize the received signal as a valid doppler signal reading . when a reading is determined to be a valid doppler signal reading , the microprocessor calculates the corresponding velocity . the microprocessor 36 has an output 61 that communicates a signal representative of the calculated doppler speed measurement through appropriate drivers ( not shown ) to the lcd 22 for display . the calculation is made by detecting successive negative edge zero - crossings following the depression of the reset button 27 , which triggers a microprocessor interrupt that samples the clock 37 to cause the times of each crossing to be stored and so the intervals between them can be calculated . the sampling is terminated after 26 successive negative transitions are stored , or there has been a dead time of at least ⅙ second since the last transition , indicating that the object or target is no longer moving . once the data has been captured , the differences between transition times are calculated , from which the doppler frequency is determined . in making the calculations , the microprocessor 36 enhances the speed reading validity by starting with the difference between the first two recorded time readings and then looking for a sequence of at least three consecutive periods that are within 25 % of each other . if none is found , the process is started over and additional readings are stored . when three consecutive readings within 25 % of each other are found , the data is scanned until three consecutive readings are not within 25 % of each other , whereupon the calculations are averaged . the averaged calculated doppler frequency value is then converted to the selected units and displayed . velocity can be displayed in miles per hour , kilometers per hour or meters per second in the preferred embodiment , selectable by the user by way of the mode switch 26 , which is a pushbutton switch which , when depressed , sequentially steps the display 22 through the various units , as is convenient for the user . the electronics are powered by a power supply formed of the battery 31 which is connected / disconnected by the on / off switch 25 , which controls signal power to the microprocessor 36 , the signal processor 34 and display 22 . however , the oscillator transmitter circuit power is controlled by the ready , or reset switch 27 through the microprocessor 36 when the battery power switch 25 is “ on ”. activation of the reset switch 27 causes the microprocessor 36 to close a transmitter power switch 60 which applies electrical power to the transmitter / doppler sensor circuit 33 for a prescribed time interval ( e . g . 10 - 15 seconds ) controlled by the time delay circuit 38 , or until an object velocity signal is calculated as controlled by the microprocessor 36 , whichever occurs first , after which the transmitter 33 and signal processor circuit 34 are deactivated as the microprocessor causes the switch 60 to turn “ off ”. activation of the reset switch 26 causes the microprocessor 36 to reset the lcd 22 , which is holding the previously calculated velocity value , and to re - apply power to the transmitter 33 and signal processor 34 for performing the next detection and velocity measurement . in this manner , the transmitter radiated output is limited to just the period of time of actual measurement usage , and battery power is also conserved . easily packaged in a volume of about 1 - 3 cubic inches are : a single transistor oscillator - detector - antenna circuit 33 , signal processor 34 with the doppler bandpass amplifier and the zero - cross detector , eight - bit microprocessor velocity calculator and transmitter controller 36 , liquid crystal display 22 , single - cell battery power supply 31 and on / off and reset switches 26 , 27 . for example , the specific embodiment described above can be packaged in a volume of less than two cubic inches using discrete circuit components , and , with appropriate utilization of a custom application - specific integrated circuit ( asic ) and at a frequency of about 5 . 8 ghz , the device can be packaged in a volume of approximately one - half cubic inch . at higher frequencies of 10 to 25 ghz , which can be used , the package size will be essentially the preferred size of the display or is otherwise determined by other components of the unit . more detailed embodiments of the speed measuring device described above are described in pending u . s . patent application ser . nos . 09 / 471 , 905 and 09 / 471 , 906 , referred to above . in fig4 , an embodiment of a speed measurement device 310 is illustrated mounted on a paint ball gun 300 to measure the speed of a paint ball marker 301 shot from the gun . the device 310 , so used , provides a way to calibrate the gun 300 so that the speed of the marker 301 approaches but does not exceed a maximum marker velocity limit of , for example , 300 feet per second . a self contained device 310 may be mounted on the barrel of the gun 300 as illustrated in fig4 , with the antenna directed in the direction in which the gun 300 is pointing , or a remote antenna element 321 may be mounted on the barrel close to the barrel centerline , with the remaining circuitry 33 a located rearwardly of the antenna element 121 and connected to the antenna 121 through the transmission line 120 . fig5 illustrates an arrow speed measuring embodiment 510 for use in archery , which operates in a manner similar to that of the paint ball marker speed measuring embodiment 310 of fig4 . in the embodiment 510 , an archery bow 500 is equipped with the speed measuring device 510 to measure the speed of an arrow 501 shot from the bow . the device 510 may be self - contained and mounted on the end of a counterweight or stabilizer 502 that might normally be employed , which extends from the front of the bow 500 immediately below and parallel to a line 503 that includes the intended path of the arrow 501 as it leaves the bow 500 . an alternative extension may be provided instead of the stabilizer 502 to hold the device 510 at a fixed position on the bow 501 . preferably , the speed measuring device 510 is supported on the bow 500 at a distance l about seven inches forward of the front of the bow 500 . the device 510 is vertically adjustably mounted on the counterweight 502 so that the antenna thereof can be positioned within about one - half inch of the line 503 defining the path of the arrow 501 . the antenna of the device 510 is directed in the direction toward which the arrow 501 is pointing . alternatively , a remote antenna element may be mounted on the bow 500 close to the arrow 501 with the remaining circuitry and / or display of the device 510 located elsewhere . where elements of the device 510 are located remote from the antenna , the antenna may be connected to the transmitter receiver of the device 510 through a transmission line and other elements may be further connected through cable or a wireless link to the transmitter or each other . as so positioned on the bow 500 , the speed measuring device 510 is located adjacent or just forward of the head 509 of the arrow 501 when the bow is drawn , as illustrated in fig5 a . the rifle , other firearms and other projectile launching or shooting implements may be assembled in the manner of those of fig1 , 4 and 5 described above according to principles of the present invention . with the various embodiments , the doppler frequencies passed by the filters and the timing of the samples should be set to best accommodate the anticipated speeds being measured . fig6 illustrates a batting tee 100 which incorporates an alternative embodiment of the speed measuring device 10 in the form of a bat speed measuring device 110 . the batting tee 100 includes a base 103 , which may be a home plate as illustrated , from which extends an upstanding post 105 . the post 105 has a flexible link 106 therein and a ball supporting free end 107 at the top thereof . in use , a batter places the baseball 16 on the free end 107 of the post 105 and swings at it with a bat 114 . the device 110 includes a fixed length antenna radiating element 121 which replaces the antenna radiating element 21 a of circuit board 33 of the embodiment of fig3 . the antenna radiating element 121 is contained inside of the post 105 at the top end 107 thereof and is directed toward the rear of the plate or base 103 in the direction from which the bat 114 will approach the ball 16 . the element 121 is located remote from the remaining circuitry 130 of the device 110 , which includes the doppler sensor circuit 50 of alternative circuit board 33 a , as illustrated in fig3 a , as well as the signal processor circuit 34 , the microprocessor 36 and other components similar to those of the circuitry of the device 10 illustrated in fig3 . the antenna element 121 has a fixed radiating length and is connected to the rf detector circuit 50 on the circuit board 33 a through a transmission line 120 , such as a coaxial cable or parallel plate or wire transmission line having minimal radiation of the rf energy transmitted to and from the antenna . the transmission line 120 has a shield conductor 124 that is preferably grounded at a ground connection 125 . the circuit 50 is tuned to the impedance of the line 120 to produce optimum operating efficiency in a conventional manner . the unit 110 may be mounted in the base 103 in such a way that the display 22 is visible to the batter . alternatively , the display 22 may be located remote from the device 110 or may be the display or memory of a remote computer terminal and connected to the circuitry of the device 110 in the base 103 by a cable or a wireless communications link . in fig6 a , the display 22 is contained in a remote housing 18 a , illustrated as connected through a wireless link 190 between the signal processor 34 , which is contained in the device 110 , and the housing 18 a . the housing 18 a may be located at a coach &# 39 ; s station and contain all of the operator interface components of the housing 18 of the embodiment of fig2 . the housing 18 a may be either stationary or hand held , for example , with batteries contained in a belt pack worn by a coach . a wireless communications link includes transmit / receive units , including unit 191 in the remote housing 18 a and unit 192 connected to the circuitry 130 in the device 110 . the link 190 preferably communicates the digital output from the microprocessor 31 or the output from the signal processor 34 from the device 110 to the remote housing 18 a . commands from the buttons 25 - 27 may also be communicated through the link 190 from the housing 18 a to the unit 110 . preferably , rather than providing a baseball 16 on the tee , a soft foam or fabric ball 16 a is permanently attached to the free end 107 of the post 105 to minimize interference of the motion of the ball 16 a with the bat speed measurement . an alternative method of measuring bat speed is illustrated in fig6 b , where the device 110 a is mounted along the expected trajectory of a ball hit by a bat , for example , at the end of a batting cage 109 . the unit 110 a , or at least the fixed length antenna radiating element 121 thereof , is mounted in the cage 109 at the approximate height of the tee 100 of fig6 and 6a . preferably , a standard batting tee 100 a is used with a soft sock or foam ball fixed to the end thereof at which a batter swings the bat of which the speed is being measured , so that the movement of an actual ball does not interfere with the measurement of bat speed . the unit 110 a may be mounted include the display 22 mounted in a way that is visible to the batter , but is preferably located remote from the device 110 a in remote housing 18 b carried by the batter or a batting coach , and connected through the wireless link 190 a between the signal processor 34 of the unit 110 a and the housing 18 b , similar to the unit 110 of fig6 a , or through a cable . fig7 illustrates a golf club head speed measuring embodiment 410 , which is in most respects similar to the bat speed measuring device 110 of fig4 and 4a described above . it utilizes a golf tee 405 which contains an antenna element 421 similar to the element 21 and is connected to the circuitry 430 in abase 403 . the tee 405 may support a soft radar invisible golf ball 16 b , similar to the ball 16 a of fig4 a . the circuitry 430 may connect to a display on the base 403 or through a cable or wireless communications link to a remote housing such as housing 18 a of fig4 a . similarly , the invention may be used to measure the speed of ball or other sports object striking and propelling implements in addition to ball bats or golf clubs . with such applications , particularly for taking bat speed and golf club head speed measurements , the antenna can be contained within a urethane or other simulated ball that is fixed to the post or tee . the speed of a golf club head 409 may also be measured using a golf club head speed measuring embodiment 410 a of fig7 a , which is in most respects similar to the bat speed measuring device 110 a of fig4 b described above , while a golfer hits conventional golf balls from a conventional golf tee . the device 410 a is preferably located behind the tee in line with the flight of the ball , so that the speed of the club head 409 is easily within the field of the antenna 21 while the ball , when it moves , is generally on the opposite side of the club head from the antenna element 21 where its motion does not affect the doppler reading from the moving club head . the display and the controls are connected through a cable or wireless communications link to a remote housing such as housing 18 b of fig4 b , which may also contain the buttons and other controls . the wireless links for the bat , club head and other object speed measuring devices may be any of the telecommunications links that are commercially available , among which are uhf - rf links , ultrasonic links , optical links and others . in the embodiment of fig8 , measurement of the speed of human body parts is provided . a speed measurement unit 210 , similar to the units 10 , 110 described above , is located in a target pad 200 held by a trainer or coach 202 to measure the speed of punches and kicks from a person 203 in martial arts training . the entire unit 210 may be mounted on the back of target pad 200 , or only an antenna radiating element 221 . as with the element 121 in the embodiment above , the element 221 may be connected through a coaxial cable or other transmission line 220 to remaining circuitry 230 of the device 210 , as illustrated in fig8 a , which includes the doppler sensor circuit 50 of fig3 a , as well as the other components of the circuitry of the device 210 that are illustrated for the device 10 in fig3 . the energy radiated from the antenna element 221 passes through the pad 200 and is reflected back from the hand 213 or foot 214 of a boxer 201 who is punching or kicking the pad 200 . other applications of the invention can be made . those skilled in the art will appreciate that the applications of the present invention herein are varied , and that the invention is described in preferred embodiments . accordingly , additions and modifications can be made without departing from the principles of the invention . accordingly , the following is claimed .	6
referring now in greater detail to the drawings in which like numerals represent like components throughout the several views , there is shown in fig1 - 5 an embodiment of the orthodontic indirect bonding tray including stabilization features of the present invention which is broadly designated by the numeral 20 . as best shown in fig1 and 2 , the bonding tray 20 is shown positioned over several teeth 14 of the upper jaw 18 , or maxilla , of an orthodontic patient , the teeth 14 requiring corrective orthodontic alignment . fig1 illustrates the upper dental arch rotated one - hundred eighty degrees to illustrate the occlusal surfaces of the teeth located therein . although the figures illustrate the indirect bonding tray of the present invention positioned over teeth of the upper jaw , it should be understood that it is within the scope of the present invention that the bonding tray 20 could be positioned over teeth of the lower jaw . the tray 20 includes a channel 22 ( fig4 ) comprising a plurality , e . g . three , tooth cavities for receiving selected teeth 14 within a patient &# 39 ; s dental arch . in the exemplary tray 20 shown in the drawings , the channel 22 is adapted to receive teeth 14 located in a patient &# 39 ; s upper dental arch , although it should be understood in this regard that as an alternative , the tray 20 may be constructed to receive teeth 14 located in the patient &# 39 ; s lower dental arch ( not shown ). the tray 20 also includes a number of orthodontic appliances 28 that are detachably connected to the tray 20 . in fig1 - 5 , the exemplary illustrated orthodontic appliance 28 is an orthodontic bracket , although other appliances are also possible . examples of other suitable appliances include buccal tubes , buttons , formed “ bumps ” made , e . g ., of composite material , or any other metal or non - metal “ handle ” or other structure connected to the teeth 14 that provides an attachment point for a force member such as a wire , aligner tray , polymeric strip , elastomeric band or chain , or any combination of the foregoing . referring now to fig5 , the tray 20 may be constructed according to any one of a variety of known techniques . in the example shown in fig5 , the tray 20 is formed of an inner matrix 26 , formed of a relatively flexible material , and an outer shell 30 , which is formed of a material that is relatively hard in comparison to the inner matrix 26 . the inner matrix 26 has a relatively low viscosity before hardening so that intimate contact between the inner matrix 26 and each appliance 28 , e . g ., orthodontic bracket , is assured . as best shown in fig1 , 2 and 5 , three appliances 28 are shown to be in contact with the inner matrix 26 , although it should be understood in this regard that as an alternative , the tray 20 may be constructed to receive a greater or fewer number of appliances 28 . as best shown in fig5 , the relatively soft inner matrix 26 is shown as penetrating the various recesses , cavities and other structural features of each appliance 28 so that a secure connection between the appliances 28 and the inner matrix 26 can be established . in fig5 , the inner matrix 26 is shown as contacting the facial surface of the tooth 14 . the inner matrix 26 also includes a contour that matches and makes contact with the facial surface 14 c of the patient &# 39 ; s teeth 14 in the area surrounding the appliance 28 . it should be understood that alternatively , in the event appliances 28 are to be attached to the lingual surface of teeth 14 , then the inner matrix 26 could be contoured to match and arranged to contact the lingual surface 14 a of the teeth 14 , as opposed to the facial surface . in other words , depending upon whether appliances 28 are to be attached to the facial 14 c or lingual 14 a surfaces of teeth 14 will dictate whether the inner matrix 26 is to be located adjacent the facial or lingual surface of the teeth 14 . any suitable material may be utilized for the inner matrix 26 so long as it is relatively clear to permit a curing light to pass through the inner matrix 26 to enable curing of the adhesive for bonding the appliances 28 to the surfaces of the teeth 14 . an example of a suitable material for the inner matrix 26 is essix ® bleach tray and model duplication material ( 1 . 5 mm thickness ) available from dentsply raintree essix , located in metarie , la . the relatively hard outer shell 30 includes a contour that precisely matches the surfaces of the tooth 14 where the outer shell 30 contacts the tooth 14 , e . g ., the lingual 14 a and occlusal 14 b surfaces of the tooth 14 . for example , as shown in fig5 , the outer shell 30 directly contacts the lingual 14 a and occlusal 14 b surfaces , as well as surrounds the inner matrix 26 over the facial surface 14 c of the patient &# 39 ; s teeth 14 . as shown in fig5 , the inner matrix 26 directly contacts the facial 14 c surface of the tooth 14 . although not shown in the drawings , in the event appliances 28 are to be attached to the lingual surface 14 a of teeth 14 , then the outer shell 30 would include a contour that precisely matches the facial 14 c and occlusal 14 b surfaces of the tooth 14 , and the outer shell would directly contact those tooth surfaces . the outer shell 30 would surround the inner matrix 26 over the lingual surface 14 a of the patient &# 39 ; s teeth 14 , the inner matrix 26 being in direct contact with this tooth surface . preferably , the outer shell 30 chemically bonds to the inner matrix 26 with a relatively high bond strength . any suitable material may be utilized for the outer shell 30 so long as it is relatively clear to permit a curing light to pass through the outer shell 30 to enable curing of the adhesive for attaching the appliances 28 to the surfaces of the teeth 14 . an example of a suitable material for the relatively hard outer shell 30 is essix a +® plastic , also available from dentsply raintree essix , located in metarie , la . for example , the relatively hard surface of the outer shell 30 directly contacts the patient &# 39 ; s teeth on the lingual 14 a and occlusal 14 b surfaces of the teeth 14 , while the relatively soft and flexible surface of the inner matrix 26 is limited to direct contact with the facial surface 14 c of the teeth in the vicinity where it penetrates the appliances 28 . by maximizing the amount of relatively hard outer shell 30 directly contacting the teeth 14 and minimizing the amount of relatively soft and flexible inner matrix 26 directly contacting the teeth 14 , an improved mating fit of the tray 20 with the patient &# 39 ; s teeth 14 may be obtained such that little , if any , tolerance or “ slop ” is present and relative movement between the tray 20 and the teeth 14 of the dental arch is substantially eliminated . in this manner , the transfer tray 20 is sufficiently rigid in the areas where it makes direct contact with the teeth 14 . such a construction will reduce instability , “ wiggle ”, or “ play ” that often arises when the transfer tray is placed over matching surfaces of the patient &# 39 ; s teeth during the indirect bonding process . in this manner , heightened assurance is provided to the practitioner that each appliance 28 will be positioned on the patient &# 39 ; s teeth at precisely the same location that corresponds to the previous location of the same appliance on the stone model . moreover , as an additional feature to address the problem of inaccurate placement of the orthodontic appliance onto a patient &# 39 ; s tooth , the tray 20 of the present invention is provided with a stabilization member 32 which is shown in fig1 - 4 as extending in the mesial direction from the anterior end of the tray 20 to a tooth 34 located adjacent the teeth 14 to which appliances 28 are to be applied . although fig1 - 4 illustrate the stabilization member 32 extending in a mesial direction from the anterior end of the tray 20 , it should be understood that the stabilization member 32 may extend in the distal direction from the posterior end of the tray 20 to an adjacent tooth 34 , also for the purpose of increasing the accuracy of placement of the orthodontic appliance onto a patient &# 39 ; s tooth 14 . the stabilization member 32 provides an extra point of contact to adjacent structure , e . g . an adjacent tooth 34 , and also provides a visual confirmation to the practitioner that a correct fit of the tray 20 that was originally planned for has been achieved . such visual confirmation is especially important in cases where the tray 20 is arranged for placement over posterior teeth where the practitioner may have difficulty seeing the precise position of the bracket 28 relative to the tooth surface . the inner surface of the stabilization member 32 is precisely contoured to the surface of the adjacent tooth 34 and provides a visual indicator of correct tray placement . as best shown in fig1 and 2 , the stabilization member 32 is precisely contoured to match and positioned to contact the facial surface of the adjacent tooth 34 . although fig1 and 2 illustrate the stabilization member 32 as being positioned and contoured to contact the facial surface of the adjacent tooth , it should be understood that the stabilization member 32 may also be precisely contoured to match and positioned to contact the occlusal surface , or the lingual surface of the adjacent tooth 34 . alternatively , the stabilization member 32 could be positioned and contoured to contact two surfaces of the adjacent tooth , e . g ., the facial and occlusal surfaces , or the lingual and occlusal surfaces of the adjacent tooth 34 . the stabilization member 32 may be formed of any suitable material , e . g ., acrylic , acetate , resin , plastic , metal , silicone , polyvinyl , or materials derived from stereolitographic processes , among others . the stabilization member 32 may also be formed of the material used to form the outer shell 30 . the stabilization member 32 may be transparent or translucent . the stabilization member 32 may be integral with the tray 20 , or a separate component that is attached to the tray 20 , by any suitable means . it is understood that the orthodontic indirect bonding tray including stabilization features of the present invention and its constituent parts described herein is an exemplary indication of a preferred embodiment of the invention , and is given by way of illustration only . in other words , the concept of the present invention may be readily applied to a variety of preferred embodiments , including those disclosed herein . while the invention has been described in detail and with reference to specific examples thereof , it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope thereof .	0
the use of an energetic material having a controllable rate of magnitude of energy release has broad application to a number of military applications . for example , the warhead of the present application may be applied to energetic systems for mine clearing , rock penetration , and wall breaching . the warhead of the present invention is believed to control the processes of deflagration , transition , and detonation and in condensed phase explosives through the use of a smart igniter coupled with functionally graded energetic materials and specially designed charge geometries . this invention not only allows several orders of magnitude of variation in energy release rate of the warhead to be achieved , but also allows a range of effects to be produced which include enhanced blast , improved shrapnel acceleration , and a dud or incendiary , e . g . case burning mode for safe destruction or fire initiation , as well as energy focusing on the target . the ability to fabricate charges which may deflagrate , operate entirely in transition between deflagration and detonation , or be overdriven to strong detonation is possible by a proliferation of low energy detonators distributed throughout the change , initiated in response to a microprocessor . the microprocessor is given input from any number of information systems , to include pre - launch / deployment data or on - board , real - time sensor systems and may be programmable during or immediately prior to delivery . the result is a single weapon with multi - mission functionality . the quasi - steady deflagration and detonation process in condensed systems is a research problem that has been studied since the end of the nineteenth century . the problem is far from being completely understood , but several advances on multiple fronts , including improved understanding , dramatic reductions circuit size and energy requirements , and improved three dimensional simulation capabilities , will now allow control of this process . transition from deflagration to detonation is a multistage process . the idea underlying recent research interests has been to separate and study each phase of the process , i . e . deflagration and detonation . this approach has been most revealing , since in some cases , e . g . intense impact , shock , high impulse of a detonation the individual stages last a very short time and some may even appear to be absent . more recent research has lead to an increased understanding of the transition phase that separates the deflagration and detonation processes , and specifically to the development of techniques for sustaining the transition phases for extended periods . this can be accomplished by a knowledgeable choice of energetic material , grain size , surface coating , charge geometry , and most importantly - ignition parameters . this method and apparatus of the present invention allows for an adaptive explosive composition charge which will accomplish the necessary control by employing a multiple controllable low energy detonators , functionally graded energy density explosives , and novel charge geometries to control the warhead energy release rate . these controls will be utilized to operate the charge in a deflagration , convective burning , or detonation mode and thereby vary the energy release rate . a cylindrical warhead design of this type would preferably consist of an inner cylinder of fully dense explosive surrounded by an outer annulus of porous propellant , a sheet of electrical igniters , and a case , which may break up into shrapnel . referring to fig1 , there is a central full defragration ignitor 10 . peripherally surrounding and positioned radially outwardly form the central defragration ignitor 10 , there is a full - density explosive core 12 . peripherally surrounding and positioned radially outwardly from the full - density explosive core 12 , there is a porous convective burning layer 14 . peripherally surrounding and positioned radially outwardly from the porous convective burning layer 14 there is a peripheral sheet ignitor 16 . peripherally surrounding and positioned radially outwardly from the peripheral sheet ignitor 16 there is a profragmenting pressure case 18 . those skilled in the are will appreciate that the munition of the present invention may be in any of the five following modes : 1 . blast and shrapnel : the charge may be overdriven by a simultaneous initiation of the igniters , all the energetic material ( em ) goes to detonation , maximum blast effect is achieved , and the case shatters and produces very small , high velocity shrapnel . 2 . fragment acceleration : the composite charge may be driven to convective burning by a simultaneous initiation of only a few on - axis detonators . this low - rate , high - pressure rise allows the case to break along grooves designed to selectively weaken it and control fragment size . simultaneous with this event , the inner cylinder with full density explosive is initiated and efficiently accelerates the fragments . 3 . one of four off - center line of initiators may be used to cause a radially directed cylindrical blast to propel shrapnel toward the target as the warhead flies by . 4 . a forward directed blast configuration may be achieved by using an inward directed cylindrical charge to confine a fast running axial directed main charge thus producing a very long duration blast at the front of the warhead . 5 . dud or incendiary : in the event that the warhead needs to be duded , one small end igniter coupled may be used with a pyrotechnic blowout plug to produce a safe deflagration of all the chemical energy present . if the case is composed of a high density , reactive metal pair , an incendiary reaction will ensue . if the spatial and temporal structure of explosive energy release can be controlled within a warhead , concepts such as confining the energy release in one primary direction or projecting fragment release toward the target and other energy release mechanisms are possible . fig2 shows an example of a fully versatile charge design although in alternate embodiments actual warheads with only a few well defined modes of operation might appear to be simpler . referring to fig2 , the charge is assembled from alternate layers of micro - detonator sheets as at 20 , 22 , 24 and 26 , and layers of a first explosive as at explosive 28 and a second explosive as at explosive 30 , where the first and second explosives have differing energy release rates . in this example , varying the timing of electrical impulses between sheets can cause the plane detonation wave to travel in either directions , multiple waves can be generated , or the appearance of a bulk initiation of the entire charge . for example , sheets 20 and 22 may be timed at t = 0 , while sheets 24 and 26 may be timed at t = t 1 & gt ; 0 . with additional explosively generated circumferential and end confinement , the warhead could be made to burst from one end , focusing its energy there instead of dispersing the energy over 4π radians as in conventional warheads . shaping and directing energy release may be accomplished by microprocessor control . as such , a wide variety of configurations are possible , limited only by the size of the memory and the existence of the necessary micro - detonators , an example of a proposed control circuit is shown in fig3 . in fig3 the firing circuit includes a dc to cd converter 32 and cpu 34 that are coupled to the platform input 36 . the ignition process begins with the charging of firing capacitors ( c 1 , c 2 , c 3 . . . cn ), sized from 0 . 1 to 10 μf , that are coupled to the dc to dc inverter 32 . the firing capacitors are then selectively switched across resistive loads ( rl 1 , rl 2 , rl 3 . . . r 1 n ), namely the series circuits containing the igniter pads , by a semiconductor switching such as a scr , fet , or gate controlled switch ( in the illustrated example q 1 , q 2 , q 3 . . . qn ) under control of the cpu 34 which can be programmed to provide any desired firing sequence or timing . the circuit can be energized by an internal battery or in this case by the weapon platform itself . energizing the power supply allows the microprocessor to receive commands from the platform &# 39 ; s central fire control computer . a firing power supply which stores energy to drive the detonators is also energized . the firing command can come over the same two conductors as the power in the form of a pulse coded signal from on - board fusing sensors coupled with an automatic target recognition ( atr ) system which take full advantage of the warhead &# 39 ; s mode selection ability . each detonator circuit ( which may contain many detonators ) is switched by a separate semiconductor , time precisely by the microprocessor , and supplied from a single energy storage capacitor . the entire circuit is easily miniaturized and shock hardened for stressing applications such as gun projectile warheads . further information which may be useful to those skilled in the art concerning preferred methods and apparatus for practicing the method and apparatus of this invention may be disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 6 , 363 , 853 , the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference . while the present invention has been described in connection with the preferred embodiments of the various figures , it is to be understood that other similar embodiments may be used or modifications and additions may be made to the described embodiment for performing the same function of the present invention without deviating therefrom . therefore , the present invention should not be limited to any single embodiment , but rather construed in breadth and scope in accordance with the recitation of the appended claims .	5
the present invention is directed to the problem of increasing initiator queue depth while maintaining maximum target port queue depth and maximum controller queue depth . in the conventional art , target ports have a maximum queue depth and support a maximum number of simultaneous connections . for example , target ports may have a maximum queue depth of 512 , and can support up to 64 simultaneous connections . conventional art targets generally allocate queue depth per initiator by dividing the target port maximum queue depth by the maximum number of simultaneous connections . in the above example , this means that each initiator would have a queue depth of 512 divided by 64 , or eight — regardless of the number of initiators currently logged into the target port . while this may be fairly efficient when the maximum number of simultaneous connections is reached , it is very inefficient for a small number of logged in initiators since a significant amount of target port queue depth is wasted . what is needed , therefore , is a more efficient means of allocating available target port queue depth and controller queue depth to logged - in initiators . the present invention is directed to the problem of increasing initiator queue depth while maintaining maximum target port queue depth and maximum controller queue depth . by increasing initiator queue depth , greater target port or controller bandwidth is allocated to logged - in initiators . referring now to fig1 a , a block diagram 100 illustrating components of a data storage network in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is shown . network 104 is any suitable data storage network that supports flow control within the data storage network protocol . for example , data storage network 104 may be an atm or iscsi network . in a preferred embodiment data storage network 104 is an iscsi network . data storage network 104 includes one or more computers 108 a , 108 b , 108 c . computers 108 are host computers that generate i / o requests , where i / o requests are reads and writes . computers 108 may be servers , desktop computers , or portable computers including tablet computers and pdas . data storage network 104 also includes one or more data storage systems 112 a , 112 b , 112 c . data storage systems 112 include data storage subsystems having one or more data storage controllers , and one or more storage devices . in some embodiments , data storage systems 112 have redundant controllers and / or redundant array of inexpensive disks ( raid ) technology . data storage systems 112 receive i / o requests from computers 108 , and store data to storage device ( s )/ retrieve data from storage device ( s ) in response . data storage devices include , but are not limited to , hard disk drives , tape drives , optical drives , and solid state disks . in the context of data storage network 104 , computers 108 each have one or more initiator ports and data storage systems 112 each have one or more target ports . however , it should be understood that computers 108 may also have target ports , and data storage systems 112 may also have initiator ports . referring now to fig1 b , a block diagram illustrating target and initiator flow control for an internet scsi ( iscsi ) connection in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is shown . iscsi utilizes a flow control protocol between the initiator port 116 and the target port 120 . initiator port 116 provides a command sequence number ( cmdsn ) 124 to the target port 120 , where the command sequence number reflects the current i / o request transmitted during a current session from the initiator port 116 to the target port 120 . the target port 120 transfers a maximum command sequence number ( maxcmdsn ) 128 to the initiator port 116 , where the maximum command sequence number 128 communicates to the initiator port 116 how many more i / o requests the target port 120 can accept . therefore the maximum command sequence number 128 indicates the queue depth available to the initiator port 116 at the target port 120 . referring now to fig2 a , a block diagram 200 illustrating components of a first data storage system 112 a in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is shown . the first data storage system 112 a includes one or more controllers 204 , which processes i / o requests from computers 108 to storage devices 220 . in one embodiment , controller 204 is a raid controller . controller 204 includes a cpu 208 , which executes programs stored within controller 204 . controller 204 includes memory 212 , which includes volatile memory , non - volatile memory , or both . memory 212 stores programs utilized by cpu 208 , configuration information , read data from storage devices 220 , and write data to storage devices 220 . memory 212 also stores i / o request queues for each logged in initiators 116 of computers 108 . controller 204 also includes one or more protocol controllers 216 a , 216 b . protocol controllers 216 a , 216 b provide interfaces to data storage network 104 in the form of one or more target ports 120 . for simplicity , the storage network 104 is not shown in fig2 a , and each protocol controller 216 a , 216 b includes one target port 120 . however , it should be understood that a protocol controller 216 may have more than one target port 120 . fig2 a illustrates three computers 108 logged into the target port 120 of protocol controller 216 a , and six computers 108 logged into the target port 120 of protocol controller 216 b . one computer 108 has an initiator port 116 logged into the target port 120 of protocol controller 216 a , and another initiator port 116 logged into the target port 120 of protocol controller 216 b . the total number of computers 108 logged into any target port 120 cannot exceed the maximum number of simultaneous connections supported by the target port 120 . referring now to fig2 b , a block diagram illustrating components of a second data storage system 112 b in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is shown . data storage system 112 b includes a cpu 208 and a memory 212 , and four target ports 120 , including target port a 120 a , target port b 120 b , target port city 120 c , and target port 120 d . target ports 120 a , 120 b , 120 c , and 120 d may be in a single protocol controller 216 containing four target ports 120 , or in up to four protocol controllers 216 each containing a single target port 120 . initiator ports 116 are within computers 108 . one initiator port 116 may be within a single computer 108 , or multiple initiator ports 116 may be within a single computer 108 . in the system of fig2 b , initiator ports 116 a and 116 b are logged into target port a 120 a , initiator port 116 c is logged into target port b 120 b , initiator ports 116 d , 116 e , and 116 f are logged into target port c 120 c , and initiator ports 116 g and 116 h are logged into target port d 120 d . memory 212 includes various parameters used by cpu 208 to manage flow control in each of target port a 120 a , target port b 120 b , target port c 120 c , and target port d 120 d . memory 212 includes a controller maximum queue depth 224 , which specifies the maximum queue depth across all target ports 120 of controller 204 . controller maximum queue depth 224 reflects the combined queue depth of target ports 120 , the size of memory 212 , and the processing power of cpu 208 . each target port 120 has an associated maximum queue depth or maximum port queue depth . target port a 120 a has target port a maximum queue depth 228 , target port b 120 b has target port b maximum queue depth 232 , target port c 120 c has target port c maximum queue depth 236 , and target port d 120 d has target port d maximum queue depth 240 . target port maximum queue depths are generally vendor - specified , and reflect memory 212 and processing resources 208 within the protocol controller 216 containing the target port 120 . memory 212 also includes in initiator queue depth 244 for each logged - in initiator port 116 . in fig2 b , there are eight logged - in initiator ports 116 a through 116 h . therefore , there are eight initiator queue depths 244 in memory 212 . initiator queue depth 244 stores the current queue depth for each initiator port 116 . finally , memory 212 includes an initiator allowed queue depth 248 for each target port 120 . in the preferred embodiment , initiator allowed queue depth 248 depends on the current number of logged - in initiator ports 116 . in other embodiments , there may be more than one initiator allowed queue depth 248 per target port 120 , such as an initiator allowed queue depth 248 per logged - in initiator port 116 . referring now to fig3 , a block diagram 300 illustrating memory 212 components of a three initiator port 116 electronic data storage system 112 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is shown . memory 212 includes a queue 304 , which includes a plurality of i / o requests 308 . in one embodiment , there is a single queue 304 to store all pending i / o requests 308 per target port 120 or controller 204 . in a preferred embodiment , memory 212 includes a separate queue 304 per logged - in initiator port 116 per target port 120 . memory 212 includes an allowed queue depth 312 for each logged - in initiator port 116 . therefore , initiator 1 has initiator 1 allowed queue depth 312 a , initiator 2 has initiator 2 allowed queue depth 312 b , and initiator 3 has initiator 3 allowed queue depth 312 c . initiator allowed queue depth 312 is the maximum queue depth for the corresponding initiator port 116 . in one embodiment initiator allowed queue depths 312 are the same for all initiator ports 116 logged into the same target port 120 . in other embodiments , initiator allowed queue depths 312 are different for one or more initiator ports 116 logged into the same target port 120 . memory 212 includes maximum port queue depth 316 . maximum port queue depth 316 is a parameter specified by the protocol controller 216 manufacturer , and specifies the total queue depth available to all logged - in initiator ports 116 of the target port 120 within the protocol controller 216 . initiators 320 are the number of initiator ports 116 currently logged into the target port 120 . cpu 208 detects a login or logout of an initiator port 116 , and in response updates initiators 320 to reflect the new current number of logged - in initiator ports 116 . in some embodiments , the current number of logged - in initiator ports determines initiator allowed queue depth 312 for one or more initiator ports 116 . initiator queue depth 324 is the current queue depth for each logged - in initiator port 116 . initiator queue depth 324 increments for each new i / o request received by the target port 120 , and decrements for each i / o request completed by controller 204 . initiator queue depth 324 will typically be different for each logged - in initiator port 116 , since each initiator port 116 has different i / o requirements to the data storage system 112 . memory 212 includes port queue depth 328 , which is the sum of the initiator queue depths 324 for all currently logged - in initiator ports 116 . port queue depth 328 is compared to maximum port queue depth 316 by cpu 208 in order to determine if the target port 120 has a queue full condition , or not . if the port queue depth 328 is less than the maximum port queue depth 316 , then the target port 120 is able to accept a number of new i / o requests equal to the difference between the port queue depth 328 and the maximum port queue depth 316 . if the port queue depth 328 is equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 the target port 120 is unable to accept new i / o requests until one or more of the i / o requests 308 in queue 304 completes . in the latter case , a queue full condition is transmitted from the target port 120 to the requesting initiator port 116 . memory 212 also maintains a maximum command sequence number ( maxcmdsn ) 332 for each logged - in initiator port 116 . the maximum command sequence number 332 is typically different for each logged - in initiator port 116 , and is returned independently to each logged - in initiator port 116 in order to communicate how many additional i / o requests may be sent to the target port 120 . it should be understood that the parameters illustrated in fig3 are generally per target port 120 , and a separate set of parameters and queue 304 is usually provided in the memory 212 for each target port 120 . referring now to fig4 a , a block diagram illustrating initiator allowed queue depth 312 for the case of one initiator port 116 login in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is shown . the target port 120 has a maximum port queue depth 316 . in the case of one initiator port 116 , initiator 1 allowed queue depth 312 a is equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 since initiator 1 does not need to compete for target port 120 queue depth resources with any other initiator port 116 . referring now to fig4 b , a block diagram illustrating initiator allowed queue depth 312 for the case of two initiator port 116 logins in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is shown . the target port 120 has a maximum port queue depth 316 , and in the case of two initiators 116 , initiator 1 allowed queue depth 312 a is equal to half of the maximum port queue depth 316 and initiator 2 allowed queue depth 312 b is equal to half of the maximum port queue depth 316 . fig4 b illustrates a case in which the maximum port queue depth 316 is evenly divided between all currently logged - in initiator ports 116 . referring now to fig4 c , a block diagram illustrating initiator allowed queue depth 312 for the case of three initiator port 116 logins in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is shown . the target port 120 has a maximum port queue depth 316 , and in the case of three initiator ports 116 , initiator 1 allowed queue depth 312 a is equal to one third of the maximum port queue depth 316 , initiator 2 allowed queue depth 312 b is equal to one third of the maximum port queue depth 316 , and initiator 3 allowed queue depth 312 c is equal to one third the maximum port queue depth 316 . fig4 c illustrates a case in which the maximum port queue depth 316 is evenly divided between all currently logged - in initiator ports 116 . referring now to fig5 a , a block diagram illustrating target port queue depth for two initiator port 116 logins in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention is shown . fig5 a represents the same case illustrated in fig4 b , or two initiator ports 116 are logged into the same target port 120 . maximum port queue depth 316 is divided into equal regions of initiator 1 allowed queue depth 312 a , and initiator 2 allowed queue depth 312 b . initiator 1 queue depth 324 a is equal to initiator 1 allowed queue depth 312 a , resulting in a queue full status returned to initiator 1 for any new i / o requests 308 . initiator 2 queue depth 324 b is less than an initiator 2 allowed queue depth 312 b , resulting in available target port 120 queue depth 504 for initiator 2 . referring now to fig5 b , a block diagram illustrating target port queue depth for two initiator port 116 logins in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention is shown . fig5 b represents an embodiment whereby an initiator port 116 may borrow available queue depth from another initiator port 116 logged into the same target port 120 , provided the other initiator port 116 has available queue depth . maximum port queue depth 316 is divided into equal regions of initiator 1 allowed queue depth 312 a , and initiator 2 allowed queue depth 312 b . when initiator 1 queue depth 324 a is equal to initiator 1 allowed queue depth 312 a , instead of returning a queue full status automatically as illustrated in fig5 a , initiator 1 borrows queue depth 508 from initiator 2 &# 39 ; s available target port queue depth 504 . this temporarily increases initiator one queue depth 324 a beyond initiator one allowed queue depth 312 a , and allows initiator 1 to temporarily have more outstanding i / o requests 308 than in the embodiment of fig5 a . referring now to fig6 a , a block diagram illustrating a first phase of transfer of target port queue depth for two port logins in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown . the embodiment illustrated in fig6 a and 6 b allows available queue depth of one target port 120 to be transferred to another target port 120 in the event that an initiator port 116 logged into the other target port 120 requires additional queue depth beyond a specified limit . a first target port 120 , target port 1 , has a maximum port 1 queue depth 316 a , and a second target port 120 , a target port 2 , as a maximum port 2 queue depth 316 b . a first predetermined queue depth 604 has been established for a first initiator port 116 logged into the target port 1 . a second predetermined queue depth 612 has been established for a second initiator port 116 logged into target port 2 . in the event the second initiator port 116 requires additional queue depth beyond second predetermined queue depth 612 , the controller 204 transfers port 1 queue depth to port 2 queue depth 608 , as long as target port 1 has additional queue depth remaining below maximum target port 1 queue depth 316 a and target port 2 has additional queue depth less than maximum port 2 queue depth 316 b which is less than or equal to the amount of transferred queue depth 608 . referring now to fig6 b , a block diagram illustrating a second phase of transfer of target port queue depth for two initiator port 116 logins in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown . fig6 b illustrates the target port 1 queue depth and target port 2 queue depth after the queue depth transfer 608 of fig6 a has occurred . the maximum target port 1 queue depth 316 a is reduced by the transferred queue depth 608 , such that the maximum target port 1 queue depth 316 a equals the first predetermined queue depth 604 . similarly , the second predetermined queue depth 612 has been increased by the amount of queue depth in queue depth transfer 608 . at this point , no more queue depth is able to be transferred from target port 1 to target port 2 since the maximum port 1 queue depth 316 a has been reached . referring now to fig7 , a block diagram illustrating port queue depth across the target ports 120 of a controller 204 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown . a controller 204 has a controller queue depth , which is divided up across all target ports 120 of the controller 204 . in the example of fig7 , the controller 204 has four target ports 120 : target port 1 through target port 4 . target port 1 is shown with 3 initiator ports 116 logged in , each initiator port 116 having its own queue depth . initiator 1 has initiator 1 queue depth 324 a , initiator 2 has initiator 2 queue depth 324 b , and initiator 3 has initiator 3 queue depth 324 c . the sum of initiator 1 , initiator 2 , and initiator 3 queue depths is less than the maximum queue depth for target port 1 . therefore , available target port 1 queue depth 704 remains . target port 2 is shown with a single initiator port 116 logged in . initiator 4 has initiator 4 queue depth 324 d , and initiator 4 queue depth 324 d is less than the maximum queue depth for target port 2 . therefore available target port 2 queue depth 708 remains . target port 3 is shown with no initiator ports 116 logged in . therefore available target port 3 queue depth 712 remains . target port 4 is shown with 2 initiators logged in . initiator 5 has initiator 5 queue depth 324 d , and initiator 6 has initiator 6 queue depth 324 f . the sum of initiator 5 and initiator 6 queue depths is less than the maximum queue depth for target port 4 . therefore available target port 4 queue depth 716 remains . the controller 204 keeps track of each target port queue depth , in addition to the controller queue depth . if the sum of initiator 1 queue depth 324 a , initiator 2 queue depth 324 b , initiator 3 queue depth 324 c , initiator 4 queue depth 324 d , initiator 5 queue depth 324 e , and initiator 6 queue depth 324 f is less than the maximum controller queue depth , and available controller queue depth 720 remains . available controller queue depth 720 is equal to the sum of available target port 1 queue depth 704 , available target port 2 queue depth 708 , available target port 3 queue depth 712 , and available target port 4 queue depth 716 . referring now to fig8 , a block diagram illustrating guaranteed initiator queue depth managed to port queue depth in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown . the embodiment of fig8 illustrates a case where a specified initiator port 116 has a guaranteed queue depth , such that regardless of the queue depths allocated to other initiator ports 116 the specified initiator port 116 always has access to the full amount of the guaranteed queue depth . the target port 120 of fig8 has a maximum port queue depth 316 . initiator 1 has guaranteed first initiator queue depth 804 , which is always available to initiator 1 . all other initiator ports 116 other than initiator 1 are required to divide up queue depth out of remaining total initiator port queue depth 812 , which is the difference between a maximum port queue depth 316 and guaranteed first initiator queue depth 804 . initiator 1 has initiator 1 queue depth 324 a , which is less than guaranteed first initiator queue depth 804 . therefore first initiator reserved queue depth 808 remains , which is the difference between the guaranteed first initiator queue depth 804 and initiator 1 queue depth 324 a . initiator 2 has initiator 2 queue depth 324 b , and initiator 3 has initiator 3 queue depth 324 c . if the sum of initiator 2 queue depth 324 b and initiator 3 queue depth 324 c is less than the remaining total initiator port queue depth 812 , then remaining total initiator port queue depth 816 is available . remaining other initiator port queue depth 816 may be used for initiator 2 , initiator 3 , or any other initiators 116 beyond initiator 3 that log into the target port 120 . referring now to fig9 , a block diagram illustrating guaranteed initiator queue depth managed to controller queue depth in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown . in the embodiment of fig9 , a controller 204 has two target ports 120 , each with a separate queue depth . the controller 204 has a maximum controller queue depth 904 , which is available to divide up between the two target ports 120 . target port 1 has a single initiator port 116 logged - in , and initiator 1 has initiator 1 queue depth 324 a . initiator 1 has assigned a corresponding guaranteed first initiator queue depth 804 , which is always available to initiator 1 regardless of how many initiator ports 116 are logged into target port 1 . if initiator 1 queue depth 324 a is less than guaranteed first initiator queue depth 804 , then first initiator reserved queue depth 808 is available to the first initiator . target port 2 has two initiators logged - in . initiator 2 has initiator 2 queue depth 324 b , and initiator 3 has initiator 3 queue depth 324 c . the controller 204 calculates a total initiator queue depth 912 , which is the sum of initiator 1 queue depth 324 a , initiator 2 queue depth 324 b , and initiator 3 queue depth 324 c . the controller 204 maps the total initiator queue depth 912 and the first initiator reserved queue depth 808 to the maximum controller queue depth 904 . the controller calculates the remaining controller queue depth 908 , which is available to the logged - in initiator ports 116 . in one embodiment , the remaining controller queue depth 908 is available only to initiator 2 , initiator 3 , or and in any initiator ports 116 beyond initiator 3 that are logged into the controller 204 . in a second embodiment , the remaining controller queue depth 908 is available to any initiator ports 116 logged into the controller 204 , including initiator 1 when initiator 1 requires more queue depth then the guaranteed first initiator queue depth 804 . referring now to fig1 a , a flowchart illustrating a method for managing a new initiator port 116 login in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown . flow begins at block 1004 . at block 1004 , the controller 204 detects a new initiator port 116 login on a target port 120 . a new login is required prior to a new initiator port 116 transmitting or receiving data on the target port 120 . flow proceeds to block 1008 . at block 1008 , the controller 204 increments a number representing the number of initiator ports 116 currently logged - into the target port 120 . this updates a count 320 to reflect the current number of initiator ports 116 logged - into the target port 120 . flow proceeds to block 1012 . at block 1012 , the controller 204 calculates an initiator allowed queue depth 312 . the initiator allowed queue depth 312 is equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 for the target port 120 divided by the current number logged in initiator ports 320 into the target port 120 . this calculation divides up the maximum target port queue depth 316 equally among all logged in initiator ports 116 . flow proceeds to block 1016 . at block 1016 , the controller 204 calculates an initiator maximum command sequence number ( maxcmdsn ) 332 for the new initiator port 116 that logged into the target port 120 . the initiator maxcmdsn 332 is equal to the initiator command sequence number ( cmdsn ) 124 plus initiator allowed queue depth 312 . the initiator cmdsn 124 was received by the target port 120 concurrent with the new initiator port 116 login . flow proceeds to block 1020 . at block 1020 , the target ( controller 204 ) returns initiator maxcmdsn 332 to the newly logged in - initiator port 116 . flow ends at block 1020 . referring now to fig1 b , a flowchart illustrating a method for managing an initiator port 116 logout in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown . flow begins at block 1024 . at block 1024 , the controller detects an initiator port 116 logout on a target port 120 . flow proceeds to block 1028 . at block 1028 , the controller decrements a number 320 representing the number of initiator ports 116 currently logged - into the target port 120 . this updated count reflects the current number of initiator ports 116 logged into the target port 120 . flow proceeds to decision block 1032 . at decision block 1032 , the controller 204 determines if the number of initiator ports currently logged into the target port 320 is equal to zero . this step eliminates the possibility of a divide by zero in block 1040 if no initiator ports 116 are currently logged into the target port 120 . if the number of initiator ports currently logged into the target port 320 is equal to zero , then flow proceeds to block 1036 . if the number of initiator ports currently logged into the target port 320 is not equal to zero , then flow proceeds to block 1040 . at block 1036 , the controller 204 sets the initiator allowed queue depth 312 to be equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 . at this point , no initiator ports 116 are currently logged into the target port 120 , and the next initiator port 116 that logs into the target port 120 has access to the maximum port queue depth 316 . flow ends at block 1036 . at block 1040 , the controller 204 sets the initiator allowed queue depth 312 to be the maximum port queue depth 316 divided by the number of currently logged in initiator ports to the target port 320 . this establishes a new initiator allowed queue depth 312 based on an updated number of currently logged - in initiator ports 320 . flow ends at block 1040 . referring now to fig1 a , a flowchart illustrating a method for processing initiator i / o requests 308 in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention is shown . this embodiment reflects a first portion of the preferred embodiment of the present invention . flow begins at block 1104 . at block 1104 , a target port 120 receives one or more new i / o requests 308 from an initiator port 116 . flow proceeds to decision block 1108 . at decision block 1108 , the controller 204 determines if the port queue depth 328 is equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 . the port queue depth 328 is the sum of the current initiator queue depths 324 for all initiator ports 116 logged into the target port 120 . if the port queue depth 328 is equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 , then flow proceeds to block 1112 . if the port queue depth 328 is not equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 , then flow proceeds to block 1116 . at block 1112 , the target port 120 returns a queue full and maxcmdsn 332 to the initiator port 116 . the target port 120 is not able to accept the new i / o request ( s ) 308 since the maximum port queue depth 316 has been reached . flow ends at block 1112 . at block 1116 , the controller 204 places the new i / o request ( s ) 308 on the queue 304 . once the new i / o request ( s ) 308 are placed on the queue 304 , the controller 204 may begin processing the new i / o request ( s ) 308 . flow proceeds to block 1120 . at block 1120 , the controller 204 sets the initiator queue depth 324 to be the initiator queue depth 324 plus the number of new i / o requests 308 received from the initiator port 116 . this step updates the current queue depth for the initiator 324 . flow proceeds to block 1124 . at block 1124 , the controller 204 sets the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to be the initiator cmdsn 124 plus the initiator allowed queue depth 312 minus the current initiator queue depth 324 . flow ends at block 1124 . referring now to fig1 b , a flowchart illustrating a method for processing command completions in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention . this embodiment reflects a second portion of the preferred embodiment of the present invention . flow begins at block 1128 . at block 1128 , one or more new i / o request ( s ) 308 from the initiator port 116 complete . flow proceeds to block 1132 . at block 1132 , the controller 204 sets the initiator queue depth 324 to be the initiator queue depth 324 minus the number of completed i / o request ( s ) 308 . this frees up more queue depth for the initiator 324 , in order to accept more new i / o request ( s ) 308 . flow proceeds to block 1136 . at block 1136 , the controller 204 sets the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to be the initiator cmdsn 124 plus the initiator allowed queue depth 312 minus the initiator current queue depth 324 . flow proceeds to block 1140 . at block 1140 , the target port 120 returns the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to the initiator port 116 . flow ends at block 1140 . referring now to fig1 a , a flowchart illustrating a method for processing initiator i / o requests 308 in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention is shown . flow begins at block 1204 . at block 1204 , the target port 120 receives one or more new i / o request ( s ) 308 from an initiator port 116 . flow proceeds to decision block 1208 . at decision block 1208 , the controller 204 determines if the port queue depth 328 is equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 . if the port queue depth 328 is equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 , then flow proceeds to block 1212 . if the port queue depth 328 is not equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 , then flow proceeds to block 1216 . at block 1212 , the target port 120 returns a queue full and initiator maxcmdsn 332 to the initiator port 116 . flow ends at block 1212 . at block 1216 , the controller 204 places the new i / o request ( s ) 308 on the queue 304 . flow proceeds to block 1220 . at block 1220 , the controller 204 sets the initiator queue depth 324 to be the initiator queue depth 324 plus the number of new i / o request ( s ) 308 from the initiator port 116 . flow proceeds to block 1224 . at block 1224 , the controller 204 sets the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to be the initiator cmdsn 124 + the maximum port queue depth 316 minus the port queue depth 328 . flow ends at block 1224 . referring now to fig1 b , a flowchart illustrating a method for processing command completions in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention is shown . flow begins at block 1228 . at block 1228 , one or more new i / o request ( s ) 308 from the initiator port 116 complete . flow proceeds to block 1232 . at block 1232 , the controller 204 sets the initiator queue depth 324 to be the initiator queue depth 324 minus the number of completed i / o request ( s ) 308 . this frees up more queue depth 324 for the initiator port 116 , in order to accept more new i / o request ( s ) 308 . flow proceeds to block 1236 . at block 1236 , the controller 204 sets the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to be initiator cmdsn 124 plus the maximum port queue depth 316 minus the port queue depth 328 . flow proceeds to block 1240 . at block 1240 , the target port 120 returns initiator maxcmdsn 332 to the initiator port 116 . flow ends at block 1240 . referring now to fig1 a , a flowchart illustrating a method for processing initiator i / o requests 308 in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention is shown . flow begins at block 1304 . at block 1304 , a target port 120 receives one or more new i / o request ( s ) 308 from an initiator port 116 . flow proceeds to decision block 1308 . at decision block 1308 , the controller 204 determines if the port queue depth 328 is equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 . if the port queue depth 328 is equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 , then flow proceeds to block 1312 . if the port queue depth 328 is not equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 , then flow proceeds to block 1316 . at block 1312 , the target port 120 returns a queue full and an initiator maxcmdsn 332 to the initiator port 116 . flow ends at block 1312 . at block 1316 , the controller 204 places the new i / o request ( s ) 308 on the queue 304 . flow proceeds to block 1320 . at block 1320 , the controller 204 sets the initiator queue depth 324 to be initiator queue depth 324 plus the number of new i / o request ( s ) 308 from the initiator port 116 . flow proceeds to decision block 1324 . at decision block 1324 , the controller 204 determines if the initiator queue depth 324 is greater than or equal to the initiator allowed queue depth 312 . if the initiator queue depth 324 is greater than or equal to the initiator allowed queue depth 312 , then flow proceeds to block 1332 . if the initiator queue depth 324 is less than the initiator allowed queue depth 312 , then flow proceeds to block 1328 . at block 1328 , the controller 204 sets the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to be initiator cmdsn 124 plus the initiator allowed queue depth 312 minus the initiator queue depth 324 . flow ends at block 1328 . at block 1332 , the controller 104 sets the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to be the initiator cmdsn 124 plus the maximum port queue depth 316 minus the port queue depth 328 . flow ends at block 1332 . referring now to fig1 b , a flowchart illustrating a method for processing command completions in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention is shown . flow begins at block 1336 . at block 1336 , one or more new i / o request ( s ) 308 from the initiator port 116 complete . flow proceeds to block 1340 . at block 1340 , the controller 204 sets the initiator queue depth 324 to be the initiator queue depth 324 minus the number of completed i / o requests 308 . flow proceeds to decision block 1344 . at decision block 1344 , the controller 204 determines if the initiator queue depth 324 is less than the initiator allowed queue depth 312 . if the initiator queue depth 324 is less than initiator allowed queue depth 312 , then flow proceeds to block 1348 . if the initiator queue depth 324 is not less than the initiator allowed queue depth 312 , then flow proceeds to block 1352 . at block 1348 , the controller 204 sets the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to be the initiator cmdsn 124 plus the initiator allowed queue depth 312 minus initiator queue depth 324 . flow proceeds to block 1352 . at block 1352 , the target port 120 returns the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to the initiator port 116 . flow ends at block 1352 . referring now to fig1 a , a flowchart illustrating a method for processing initiator i / o requests 308 in accordance with a fourth embodiment of the present invention is shown . flow begins at block 1404 . at block 1404 a target port 120 receives one or more new i / o request ( s ) 308 from an initiator port 116 . flow proceeds to decision block 1408 . at decision block 1408 , the controller 204 determines if the sum of the port queue depths 328 is equal to the maximum controller queue depth 904 . each target port 120 has a corresponding port queue depth 328 , and the sum of the port queue depths 328 for all target ports 120 are compared to the maximum controller queue depth 904 . if the sum of the port queue depths 328 is equal to the maximum controller queue depth 904 , then flow proceeds to block 1412 . if the sum of the port queue depths 328 is not equal to the maximum controller queue depth 904 , then flow proceeds to block 1416 . at block 1412 , the target port 120 returns a queue full and the maxcmdsn 332 to the initiator port 116 . flow ends at block 1412 . at block 1416 , the controller 204 places the new i / o request ( s ) 308 on the queue 304 . flow proceeds to block 1420 . at block 1420 , the controller 204 sets the initiator queue depth 324 equal to the initiator queue depth 324 plus the number of new i / o request ( s ) 308 from the initiator port 116 . flow proceeds to block 1424 . at block 1424 , the controller 204 sets the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to be the initiator cmdsn 124 plus the maximum controller queue depth 904 minus the sum of the port queue depths 328 . flow ends at block 1424 . referring now to fig1 b , a flowchart illustrating a method for processing command completions in accordance with a fourth embodiment of the present invention is shown . flow begins at block 1428 . at block 1428 , one or more new i / o requests 308 from the initiator port 116 complete . flow proceeds to block 1432 . at block 1432 , the controller 204 sets the initiator queue depth 324 to be initiator queue depth 324 minus the number of completed i / o request ( s ) 308 . flow proceeds to block 1436 . at block 1436 , the controller 204 sets the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to be the initiator cmdsn 124 plus the maximum controller queue depth 904 minus the sum of the port queue depths 328 . flow proceeds to block 1440 . at block 1440 , the target port 120 returns the initiator maxcmdsn 332 to the initiator port 116 . flow ends at block 1440 . referring now to fig1 , a flowchart illustrating a method for processing initiator i / o requests 308 in accordance with a fifth embodiment of the present invention is shown . flow begins at block 1504 . at block 1504 , the controller 204 assigns a guaranteed initiator queue depth 804 to an initiator port 116 . flow proceeds to block 1508 . at block 1508 , the controller 204 maintains a demand rate to the initiator port 116 . the demand rate is the number of i / o requests 308 received from an initiator port 116 during the immediately previous predetermined time period . in one embodiment , the demand rate for initiator port 116 is measured over the immediately previous minute of time . in a second embodiment , the demand rate for initiator port 116 is measured over the immediately previous hour of time . however , demand rate may be measured over any predetermined period of time other than one minute or one hour . flow proceeds to block 1512 . at block 1512 , the target port 120 receives one or more new i / o requests 308 and a sequence identifier 124 from the initiator port 116 . flow proceeds to block 1516 . at block 1516 , the controller 204 determines if the initiator current queue depth 324 a is equal to the guaranteed initiator queue depth 804 . flow proceeds to decision block 1520 . at decision block 1520 , the controller 204 determines if the initiator current queue depth 324 a is equal to the guaranteed initiator queue depth 804 . if the initiator current queue depth 320 a is equal to the guaranteed initiator queue depth 804 , then flow proceeds to block 1524 . if the initiator current queue depth 324 a is not equal to the guaranteed initiator queue depth 804 , then flow proceeds to block 1528 . at block 1524 , the target port 120 returns a queue full and an initiator maxcmdsn 332 to the initiator port 116 . flow proceeds to block 1540 . at block 1528 , the controller 204 places the new i / o request ( s ) 308 on the queue 304 . flow proceeds to block 1532 . at block 1532 , the controller 204 sets the initiator current queue depth 324 a equal to the initiator current queue depth 324 a plus the number of new i / o request ( s ) 308 from the initiator port 116 . flow proceeds to block 1536 . at block 1536 , the controller 204 sets the initiator maxcmdsn 332 equal to the initiator cmdsn 124 + the guaranteed initiator queue depth 804 minus the initiator current queue depth 324 a . flow proceeds to block 1540 . at block 1540 , the controller 204 determines if the demand rate is less than a predetermined demand rate . the predetermined demand rate is a user - set threshold that determines when the guaranteed demand rate should be increased . flow proceeds to decision block 1544 . at decision block 1544 , the controller 204 determines if the demand rate is less than the predetermined demand rate . if the demand rate is less than the predetermined demand rate then flow proceeds to block 1548 . if the demand rate is not less than the predetermined demand rate then flow proceeds to block 1552 . at block 1548 , the controller 204 increases the guaranteed queue depth 804 to be less than or equal to the maximum port queue depth 316 . in one embodiment , the guaranteed queue depth 804 is increased to the maximum port queue depth 316 . in a second embodiment , the guaranteed queue depth 804 is increased to a level below the maximum port queue depth 316 . flow ends at block 1548 . at block 1552 , the controller 204 maintains the guaranteed queue depth 804 . flow ends at block 1552 . referring now to fig1 , a table illustrating an exemplary method for managing target port 120 queue depth for two initiator ports 116 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown . the example of fig1 assumes a maximum port queue depth of 512 . at time zero , no initiator ports 116 are logged - into the target port 120 . this situation represents the state of the target port 120 immediately following power - on of the controller 204 . at time 10 , initiator 1 logs into the target port 120 . initiator 1 transmits cmdsn 1 equal to zero . at time 11 , the target port 120 responds with maxcmdsn 1 of 512 , and maintains an initiator 1 allowed queue depth of 512 . this means that initiator 1 is able to have up to 512 i / o requests 308 in the queue 304 at the same time . at time 637 , initiator 1 transfers 100 new i / o requests 308 to the target port 120 . by this time , cmdsn 1 is 600 , and the initiator 1 queue depth is 410 . at time 638 , the target responds with maxcmdsn 1 equals 602 . after the 100 new i / o requests 308 have been added to the queue 304 , the new initiator 1 queue depth is 510 , leaving queue space for only two more i / o requests 308 — since the initiator 1 allowed queue depth is 512 . at time 639 , initiator 2 logs into the target port 120 . initiator 2 transmits cmdsn 2 equal to zero . at time 640 , the target port 120 responds with maxcmdsn 2 of 256 , and maintains an initiator 2 allowed queue depth of 256 . concurrently with responding to the login of initiator 2 , target port 120 also reduces the initiator 1 allowed queue depth two 256 . each of the two initiators 116 shares half of the maximum port queue depth of the target port 120 . at time 641 , initiator 1 transfers 2 new i / o requests 308 to the target port 120 , along with an initiator 1 cmdsn 1 of 602 . at time 642 , the target port 120 responds with maxcmdsn 1 equal to 602 . target port 120 cannot accept more i / o requests 308 from initiator 1 since the initiator 1 current queue depth ( 512 ) is greater than the initiator 1 allowed queue depth ( 256 ). at time 700 , initiator 2 transfers three new i / o requests 308 to the target port 120 , along with an initiator 2 cmdsn 2 of 3 . at time 701 , the target port 120 responds with maxcmdsn 2 of 256 . at this time , the total target port 120 queue depth is 511 ; 508 for initiator 1 ( four i / o requests 308 from initiator 1 have completed since time 642 ), and three i / o requests 308 from initiator 2 . at time 702 , initiator 2 transfers one new i / o request 308 to the target port 120 , along with an initiator 2 cmdsn 2 of 4 . at time 703 , the target port 120 responds with maxcmdsn 2 of 256 . at this time , the total target port 120 queue depth is 512 ; 508 for initiator 1 , and four i / o requests 308 from initiator 2 . at time 704 , initiator 2 transfers 20 new i / o requests 308 to the target port 120 , along with an initiator 2 cmdsn 2 of 24 . at time 705 , the target port 120 responds with maxcmdsn 2 of 276 , along with a queue full indication . the queue full indication is returned to initiator 2 since the target port queue depth was at 512 . at time 1300 , several i / o &# 39 ; s have completed for initiator 1 , resulting in an initiator 1 queue depth of 259 . at time 1301 , another i / o has completed for initiator 1 resulting in initiator 1 queue depth of 258 . the controller 204 manages the initiator 1 queue depth down until it reaches 256 or lower . therefore , the target port 120 returns a maxcmdsn 1 of 602 to initiator 1 , and a maxcmdsn 2 of 277 to initiator 2 . at time 1302 , another i / o completes for initiator 1 resulting in initiator 1 queue depth of 257 . at time 1303 , another i / o completes for initiator 1 resulting in initiator 1 queue depth of 256 , and an i / o completes for initiator 2 resulting in initiator to queue depth of 278 . the controller 204 continues to manage the initiator 1 queue depth down until it reaches 256 or lower and simultaneously expands the initiator 2 queue depth . therefore , the target port 120 returns a maxcmdsn 1 of 602 to initiator 1 , and a maxcmdsn 2 of 278 to initiator 2 . at time 1304 , the target port 120 returns a maxcmdsn 1 of 602 to initiator 1 , and a maxcmdsn 2 of 279 to initiator 2 after another i / o completes for an initiator 2 . at time 1305 , another i / o completes for initiator 1 , resulting in an initiator 1 queue depth of 255 . since the initiator 1 queue depth has been managed below the initiator 1 allowed queue depth of 256 , the target port 120 returns to initiator 1 a maxcmdsn 1 of 603 . this allows initiator 1 to send one new i / o request 308 to the target port 120 . at time 1320 , initiator 1 transfers one new i / o request 308 to the target port 120 , along with a cmdsn 1 of 603 . at time 1321 , the target port 120 responds with a maxcmdsn 1 of 603 since initiator 1 is at the initiator 1 allowed queue depth of 256 . at time 1322 , initiator 2 transfers 255 new i / o requests 308 to the target port 120 , along with a cmdsn 2 of 279 for the last of the 255 new i / o requests . this is allowed since the current queue depth for initiator 2 is one , allowing 255 new i / o requests 308 to reach the initiator 2 allowed queue depth of 256 . at time 1323 , the target port 120 responds with a maxcmdsn 2 of 279 , since initiator 2 is now at the initiator 2 allowed queue depth of 256 . at time 1324 , one i / o request 308 for initiator 2 completes , freeing up a queue depth of one for initiator 2 . the controller queue depth is now at 511 , allocated as 256 for initiator 1 and 255 for initiator 2 . at time 1325 , an i / o request 308 completes for initiator 1 resulting in the target port 120 transferring a maxcmdsn 1 of 604 to initiator 1 . the example illustrated in fig1 is representative of an embodiment that manages queue depths for multiple initiator ports 116 to a maximum port queue depth 316 . other embodiments as described herein as shown in other figures herein illustrate other operation based on controller queue depth , guaranteed queue depth , and demand rate . finally , those skilled in the art should appreciate that they can readily use the disclosed conception and specific embodiments as a basis for designing or modifying other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims .	6
fig1 shows a refrigerant cycle 20 incorporating two circuits a and b . each circuit includes a compressor 22 , a condenser 24 , a main liquid line 26 downstream of the condenser , and a tap economizer line 28 tapped from this main liquid line 26 . as shown , a return line 36 returns refrigerant from the tap economizer line 28 back to an intermediate point in the compressor 22 . compressor 22 is preferably a scroll compressor , and as known , the returning refrigerant from the line 36 is returned at an intermediate point in the compression cycle . an economizer expansion device 30 is positioned on the tap line 28 . the economizer refrigerant flow in the tap line 28 , and the main flow in liquid line 26 both pass through an economizer heat exchanger 32 . downstream of the economizer heat exchanger 32 , the main flow passes through an expansion device 33 , through an evaporator 34 , and then returns to the suction port of the compressor 22 . fig2 shows the several levels of capacity available if the two compressors 22 a and 22 b are of different sizes . thus , as shown , by just having the economized operation on or off for each of the two compressors ( in addition to the conventional modes of operation ), eight levels of capacity can be provided . in the chart illustrated as fig2 , the compressor associated with circuit 2 is larger , such that these eight numerically different stages of unloading are provided . a control 40 is thus operable to either turn off the compressors 22 a and 22 b , or run the cycle with the economizer expansion device 30 shut down to stop economized operation . it should be understood that the economizer expansion device 30 may also be a shut - off device , or a separate shut - off device could be utilized in combination with the expansion device . the separate shut - off device can be upstream or downstream of the economizer heat exchanger 32 . further , it should be appreciated that while the flow from the tap 28 and the main flow 26 are both shown to pass in the same direction through the economizer heat exchanger 32 , in preferred embodiments , they preferably flow in a counter - flow relationship . also , it has to be understood that additional stages of unloading can be provided by the conventional unloaded and unloaded economized operation modes . the control can compare the required load and system capacity , and match the demand more accurately than the prior art . as shown for example in fig3 , without the economized operation , the actual capacity provided does not come nearly as close to the demand , and also cannot meet the higher levels of demand that can be met by the disclosed two economizer circuit system . the nominal capacity of circuit a is less than circuit b . as can be appreciated from fig2 , the capacity of the two compressors is preferably selected such that the capacity level of the stage a , in economized operation , is greater than the capacity of stage b in non - economized operation . in this manner , the eight stages of capacity can be provided . as shown in fig4 , if the control 40 determines that the humidity in the environment to be conditioned should be reduced , then greater capacity levels may be provided than what might otherwise be demanded by the system , as shown in fig2 . that is , while maintaining a higher capacity than might be necessary for temperature control , one is able to provide better humidity control . this idea could be used separately , or in combination with other methods of humidity control . essentially , by tending to utilize economized operation , one provides greater ability to remove moisture . also , moisture levels can be controlled even more accurately if the bypassed or economized bypass operations are employed . as an example , should the system be operating at level 6 , and more humidity control is desired , the control can move the system to level 7 , such as by moving circuit b to economized operation . of course , given that the levels are selected to be relatively close to each other , only a small incremental step is provided by any one level change . as shown in fig5 , at some conditions , and particularly in operation at high ambient temperatures , the head pressure on the system may approach undesirably high levels . this may sometimes require that a circuit could reach a threshold limit , and the compressor may need to be shut down . the control 40 may be operable to cycle the compressors on and off to avoid these trip points . however , since the control can also choose to move into , or out of , economized operation , it has another method of addressing high head pressures . the control will tend to move the operation toward the shutting down of economized operation to avoid these limits . as an example , should the system be operating at level 7 , and the circuit b be approaching a head pressure limit , the control 40 may decide to move to level 6 , such that the circuit b is no longer operating in the economized mode . by closing off the economized operation , the head pressure will generally be lower . again , since the levels may be quite close , the difference between levels 6 and 7 does not provide an undue amount of excess capacity , while still providing relief from the high head pressure . on the other hand , it is also sometimes true at low ambient temperatures that there is insufficient head pressure . under such conditions , evaporator coil freezing or compressor flooding may result , which would be undesirable . again , utilizing the economized scheme , the economizers can be cycled on to maintain system head pressure at a level where flooding of the compressor can be avoided . the exact opposite would be done as in the prior example . for example , if the control understood that it was operating at level 6 , and circuit b had an undesirably low head pressure , it could move to level 7 , opening the economizer on circuit b , and thus increasing the head pressure . as shown in fig7 , the control may also move to lower operation capacity levels should a power consumption level approach a peak . as an example , if circuit b power consumption were approaching a peak , with the circuit at level 7 , the control could move the two circuits to level 6 . in this manner , circuit b , which might have been approaching a power peak , has its operating power reduced , and the control need not cycle the system off , which may be the case due to compressor motor power limitation or entire power grid requirements . in general , a control is thus provided with several options to manage various refrigerant cycle modes of operation . it should be understood that many of these parameters will provide benefits in a single circuit system , although each of them also provide benefits as shown in the dual circuit system of the present invention , or in other refrigerant cycles where more than two circuits are utilized . in addition to having an economized circuit , the circuits can be equipped with additional unloading capabilities where an economizer line is connected to a suction line with an additional shut - off valve placed into this line , as known . in this case , additional refrigerant cycle control can be achieved by selectively opening and closing this valve . although a preferred embodiment of this invention has been disclosed , a worker of ordinary skill in this art would recognize that certain modifications would come within the scope of this invention . for that reason , the following claims should be studied to determine the true scope and content of this invention .	5
disclosed is a device for enhancing the aging time of wine by passive means , i . e . no external forces or additions are made to or during the aging process , using uniquely shaped aging containers which increase the relationship of interior surface area of the aging container to a specific volume of wine over that of prior art aging containers , thus increasing the area of the reaction region and decreasing the amount of time required for achieving the same level of aging . basically , the aging container is considered as a chemical reactor . the aging of wine is a process which is related to the area of the interface between the wine and the atmosphere and the amount of wine that is available to interact with permeated oxygen at the participating area of the interface ( reaction region ) at the interior of the semi - permeable wall or boundary of the container . the rate of aging is expedited by increasing the reaction region by increasing the interior surface area of the aging container for a specific volume of wine . in accordance with the present device , the relationship between the interior surface of the aging container and the volume of wine in the aging container is increased over prior art configurations , thus passively accelerating the aging process and decreasing the aging time . the configurations of the present device provide for an air - permeable , planar container wall separating the wine from the air , forming , there between , the reaction region . the container walls are made of semi - permeable material such as oak , wood or other suitable ( food grade ) semi - permeable material which allows for the infusion of oxygen from the atmosphere through the walls of the container to interact with the wine in the reaction region it should be understood that the oxygen source need not be solely atmospheric , but can be other compatible gas mixtures which contain oxygen . a conventional , semi - permeable , staved oak barrel , having a top and bottom end , suitably sealed to the walls , for example , has a fixed volume and interior surface area through which air can permeate . a typical 59 - gallon bordeaux barrel , for example , has a belly diameter of about 27 . 5 inches and a contact area of about 20 square feet . a diffusion of oxygen calculation for wine in conventional aging shows that in six months a layer of only two inches is significantly affected . the polyhedron shaped construction with planar faces of the instant aging container , as contrasted with barrel staves , allows for cheaper manufacturing and closer packing with more efficient use of space in the aging facility ( winery ). since the surface area to volume relationship is inversely proportional to the volume of a given solid vessel , enlarging conventional wine barrels actually increases the aging time . thus , the instant aging container configurations allow efficiency by allowing aging containers with large wine volumes while maintaining close proximity of the bulk of the wine to an oxygen supplying surface . this enhances the aging process and reduces aging time . for example , large volume rectangular hexahedron shaped aging containers have advantages as aging vessels over cylindrical tanks . specific examples of dimensions for rectangular hexahedral aging containers are given below : volume , gallons dimensions ( internal ) 60 8 ″ × 36 ″ × 48 ″ ( inches ) 100 8 ″ × 48 ″ × 60 ″ ( inches ) 1000 2 ′ × 4 ′ × 17 ′ ( feet ) rectangular hexahedron shaped aging containers set forth above have rectangular cross sections , and represent a radical departure from the aging characteristics of “ barrels ” of like volume . it will be appreciated by the skilled artisan that a number of semi - permeable materials are available for the construction of the instant aging containers . the diffusion rate of oxygen through the staves of an oak barrel is slow , so it is advantageous to decrease the “ oak barrel stave ” thickness or use a container made of a polymer or sintered ceramics or stainless steel of controlled diffusivity . however , as semi - permeable wall thicknesses become thin and volumes increase , the structural stability of the aging container diminishes . in some instances , as will be more specifically described below , external frames or “ exoskeleton ” type meshes or lattices may be required to help with stability . it will be appreciated that any such support must be placed , so as not to greatly impede the airflow through the semi - permeable wall of the aging container . in accordance with one aspect , a frame of plastic , wood , or metal is used to support a large volume aging container to prevent bulging and collapsing . many frame structures are available . the frame structure set forth in fig5 is exemplary and , in addition , allows rectangular hexahedron aging containers to be placed in a side - by - side gang relationship , as shown , wherein the surface of the first aging container , proximate the second aging container in the gang , is spaced apart from the like surface of the second aging container in order to allow free , uninhibited flow of air there between . other structural supports to enhance the integrity and shape of large volume aging containers may employ a lattice cross - sectional “ mesh type ” support , as shown in fig9 . it would be understood by the skilled artisan that the cross - sections need to provide sufficient area so as not to impede the exposure of the exterior planar surface of the aging container to the atmosphere . thus , rectangular hexahedron shaped aging containers , especially those where every side has a rectangular cross - section , have at least one top or bottom side , which is substantially narrower in width , making the placing of these devices on planar shelving somewhat difficult due to their inherent instability . in this regard , gangs of these large volume aging containers need to be supported in structural lattice frame works which can be , for example , many aging containers high and many aging containers wide , so long as sufficient spacing is maintained between aging containers to allow free flow of air . in another aspect , the aging containers of the instant application can employ one or more corrugated planes as is shown in fig6 . the use of corrugated planes or sides not only increases the structural stability of the aging container , but also increases the surface area . it will be appreciated that corrugations may run horizontally , vertically , or diagonally , as the particular application requires . in another embodiment , the poly - hexahedral shape can also be varied to affect a more structurally stable aging container , while maintaining a desirable relationship between the interior surface area and the volume of the vessel . one such shape is a trapezoid wherein one possible configuration is shown in fig1 . in accordance with this trapezoidal hexahedron aging container , the bottom rectangular plane has a greater width dimension than the top which allows the aging container to be placed on a support rack , while maintaining acceptable vertical stability . it will be realized by the skilled artisan that a number of poly - hexahedron shaped aging containers , which meet the volumetric and interior surface area to volume relationship of the instant passive aging containers , are available , for example , pyramids . however , the most practical polyhedron shaped aging containers appear to be the rectangular hexahedrons . turning to the figures , there is shown in fig1 an aging container 10 for non - deleteriously accelerating the wine aging process . the aging container 10 is a rectangular polyhedron of six sides wherein each side is a rectangle . the aging container 10 includes six semi - permeable walls , each having an exterior surface 12 and a corresponding interior surface within the aging container . one or more bung holes 14 allow ingress and egress of the wine from the aging container 10 . the semi - permeable rectangular front wall of large surface area 16 , as better seen in fig2 , is identical to a rear semi - permeable rectangular wall of large surface area 18 . likewise , a semi - permeable rectangular side wall 20 , as shown in fig3 , is identical to a second semi - permeable rectangular side wall ( not shown ), each of which have an exterior surface 12 and a corresponding interior surface within the aging container . likewise , the semi - permeable rectangular top wall 22 having an exterior surface 12 and a corresponding interior surface within the aging container ( fig4 ) and the semi - permeable rectangular bottom wall 23 are identical and form opposing top and bottom semi - permeable rectangular walls of a width coincident with each of the semi - permeable rectangular side walls . in operation , wine is placed in the aging container 10 through one or more bung holes 14 . the aging container 10 is “ topped off ” and sealed . aging takes place within the aging container 10 , naturally , without further processing , except occasional “ topping off ” as in conventional barrels . because of the increased surface area within aging container 10 , the wine ages more quickly ( for a given amount of wine ) than in conventional aging barrels . a ganged arrangement is shown in fig5 , wherein two aging containers 10 , each identical to that shown in fig1 , are in a “ side - by - side ” relationship a rigid frame 24 for supporting the ganged aging containers 10 in a spaced apart relationship comprises rectangular support structures which support each aging container 10 along it outer edges as shown . the rigid frame 24 has dimensions substantially consistent with the exterior dimensions of the aging containers 10 and has one or more connecting lattice horizontal spacers 25 . in another embodiment , as shown in fig6 , the aging container 10 has rectangular semi - permeable corrugated front wall 30 ( fig7 ) and a rectangular semi - permeable corrugated rear wall 32 . this construction increases the exterior surface area 12 which increases the interior surface area of aging container 10 . in addition , the corrugations in front and rear walls 30 and 32 increase the structural integrity of aging container 10 and provide for a serpentined semi - permeable side wall 34 as better seen in fig8 . the serpentine side walls structurally engage rectangular semi - permeable corrugated front and rear walls 30 and 32 , as shown . in another embodiment , as shown in fig9 , aging container 10 is contained within rigid frame 24 as previously described . a cross - sectional lattice 36 is retained within rigid frame 24 and crisscrosses rectangular semi - permeable front wall 16 , as well as rectangular semi - permeable rear wall 18 ( not shown ) in order to supply structural integrity to aging container 10 . as better seen in fig1 , rectangular semi - permeable sides 20 , are also contained within rigid frame 24 and retained by cross - sectional lattice 36 to support rectangular semi - permeable side walls 20 . as shown in fig1 , rectangular semi - permeable bottom wall 23 is contained within rigid frame 24 and is retained by cross - sectional lattice 36 . turning to fig1 , there is shown another embodiment of the aging container of the instant application . a trapezoidal hexahedral 100 has a rectangular semi - permeable front wall 120 , a rectangular semi - permeable rear wall 122 , a rectangular semi - permeable top wall 124 , and a truncated triangular semi - permeable side wall 118 and , as better seen in fig1 , a rectangular semi - permeable bottom wall 126 . in this embodiment , the trapezoidal hexahedral shape of the aging container 100 allows the aging container 100 to support itself on rails , shelves or the like without vertical structural support . the foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present invention are presented for the purposes of illustration and description . they are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed ; obviously many modifications and variations are possible in view of the above teachings . the embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical applications , 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 following claims and their equivalents .	2
a privacy policy is a legal statement made by businesses to declare their policy regarding collection , use , dissemination , and maintenance of user / consumer / client (“ consumer ”) personally identifiable information ( pii ) during the course of normal business conducted using the software applications or website of the business . businesses are required to provide this legal statement to protect consumer privacy . the united states federal trade commission , u . s . state government agencies and similar agencies from other countries have been using a variety of tools to protect consumers &# 39 ; privacy and personal information . businesses have developed websites and web applications to support the interactive and highly interconnected environment in which people live and work today . these implementations involve : sourcing of content that is displayed in realtime when a user ( e . g ., consumer ) is interacting with the software ; sourcing of content that is personalized to a user . personalizations are based on : location of a user , profile / personality of the user , usage history , customer data from other sources and more ; sourcing content from a multitude of sources ; first party content where a first party is the website or web application owner that has the direct relationship with the user ; third party content , where a third party ( e . g ., advertisement networks ) refers to : a business that is a separate legal entity from the first party , a business not affiliated by a common ownership or corporate control with the first party , a business that has access to first party resources ( websites , web applications and data sources ), if that business is authorized to use the information gathered from the resources for marketing or other purposes ; content generation in realtime using dynamically generated scripts and other techniques , content personalization in realtime , customer data collection by first party or third parties , a large volume of data collection to support profiling and personalization , execution of range of analytics involving personal data to provide insights into individual and group trends , movements , interests , and activities ; frequent and complex interactions among various businesses that involve personal data ; and global availability of personal data , supported by communications networks and platforms . 1 . privacy profiles that are high level and do not offer consumers a precise , transparent and easily understandable statement about collection , use , dissemination , and maintenance of pii and personal profile information ( ppi ). 2 . involvement of numerous third - parties results in privacy profiles that do not provide a complete purpose specifications that requires disclosure of authority that permits the collection of pii & amp ; ppi , intended use of pii & amp ; ppi , inability to control the pii and ppi data collection and therefore adhere to the data minimization requirement which involves : businesses collecting pii that is directly relevant and required to accomplish a specified purpose ( s ), and businesses retaining pii for a duration of time that is necessary to fulfill the specified purpose ( s ). 3 . dynamic nature and the involvement of third parties causes business difficulty in tracking , accounting and auditing of pii 4 . inability of the businesses to capture and record changes to the privacy profile in a timeframe that reflects the reality . 5 . lack of consumer participation in a business privacy policy implementation and maintenance due to lack of awareness regarding the pii data collection ( what , when , where , who , and more ) and inability and lack of technology / tools to offer consent to pii related activities of a business . 6 . security of pii is difficult because of the number of businesses handling the information and distribution to many geographically diverse locations . 7 . inability for industry watchdog groups and law enforcement agencies to monitor and enforce privacy guidelines and laws due to lack of information from the dynamic and realtime network of privacy data collectors and users . a live privacy policy system that is generated by the collaborative efforts of key stakeholders involved in the pii collection , retention , usage , sharing and maintenance , includes : realtime data ( who , what data , retention policy , usage policy and sharing policy ) for a first party and third parties , consumer restrictions and business compliance information , and regulatory requirements and business compliance information . the live privacy policy system is tailored to a user and reflects the true intent of privacy rights . the key stakeholders responsible for the privacy policy are representatives of the business , consumers and third parties . each of the stakeholders contribute to the generation of the live privacy policy using tools and data that is made available to them . fig1 illustrates a block diagram of the live privacy policy system according to some embodiments . the live privacy policy system 100 identifies the pii and ppi data collection of a business . a suite of tools automatically generates pii data from website and web applications associated with the business . for applications on the web / desktop / mobile 102 that capture pii and ppi data , an sdk along with a privacy api 104 is able to be used to capture the pii and ppi data transacted using the application . the first party data is stored in the first party dataset 104 and the third party data is stored in the third party dataset 106 . for websites 108 , pii and ppi data transacted is able to be captured by a browser extension 110 , and the data is saved in first party dataset 104 and in third party dataset 106 . regulated pii and ppi is captured from the regulations and saved in a dataset 112 . users / consumers 114 view the first party dataset 104 , third party dataset 106 , regulatory dataset 112 and specify the consumer restrictions on the dataset 116 . a live privacy policy manager 118 forwards restrictions specified by users 114 to a do not track manager 120 . the do not track manager 120 generates the appropriate do not track requests to third parties and to the business applications . in some embodiments , the do not track requests are managed and monitored by industry entities such as national advertising initiative ( nai ) and digital advertising alliance ( daa ). they will contact the appropriate company and request them to adhere to the user request . once a confirmation is received from these entities , the do not track manager 120 will report back to the live privacy profile manager 118 , and the restriction status will be updated from pending to active or will remain in pending status if a response is not received . in some embodiments , the do not track implementation is automatically executed . pii and ppi from business applications is captured in the business application pii / ppi dataset 122 . each time a user 114 requests a live privacy policy from a business , the live privacy policy manager 118 reads the first party dataset 104 , third party dataset 106 , consumer restrictions and the business apps dataset 122 to generate the live privacy profile 124 . fig2 illustrates a flowchart of an implementation of the live privacy policy method according to some embodiments . in the step 200 , data collection is monitored from enterprise mobile and web applications . the data collection is able to be monitored by integration of enterprise mobile applications with the privacy api using the sdk and / or offering consumers using enterprise web applications and websites to install browser extension . in the step 202 , once the software is integrated and installed , users using the mobile and web applications are able to perform actions regarding privacy . for example , users are able to observe the data being collected . this is reflected in the enterprise privacy policy . users are also able to restrict the data the enterprise and third parties are able to collect , use and share . the restrictions are implemented by the software by forwarding do not track requests . users are also able to have a live privacy policy profile generated which provides privacy information specific to the user . in some embodiments , fewer or additional steps are implemented . in some embodiments , the order of the steps is modified . fig3 illustrates a block diagram of an exemplary computing device configured to implement the live privacy policy method according to some embodiments . the computing device 300 is able to be used to acquire , store , compute , process , communicate and / or display information . in general , a hardware structure suitable for implementing the computing device 300 includes a network interface 302 , a memory 304 , a processor 306 , i / o device ( s ) 308 , a bus 310 and a storage device 312 . the choice of processor is not critical as long as a suitable processor with sufficient speed is chosen . the memory 304 is able to be any conventional computer memory known in the art . the storage device 312 is able to include a hard drive , cdrom , cdrw , dvd , dvdrw , high definition disc / drive , ultra - hd drive , flash memory card or any other storage device . the computing device 300 is able to include one or more network interfaces 302 . an example of a network interface includes a network card connected to an ethernet or other type of lan . the i / o device ( s ) 308 are able to include one or more of the following : keyboard , mouse , monitor , screen , printer , modem , touchscreen , button interface and other devices . live privacy policy application ( s ) 330 used to perform the live privacy policy method are likely to be stored in the storage device 312 and memory 304 and processed as applications are typically processed . more or fewer components shown in fig3 are able to be included in the computing device 300 . in some embodiments , live privacy policy hardware 320 is included . although the computing device 300 in fig3 includes applications 330 and hardware 320 for the live privacy policy method , the live privacy policy method is able to be implemented on a computing device in hardware , firmware , software or any combination thereof . for example , in some embodiments , the live privacy policy method applications 330 are programmed in a memory and executed using a processor . in another example , in some embodiments , the live privacy policy hardware 320 is programmed hardware logic including gates specifically designed to implement the live privacy policy method . in some embodiments , the live privacy policy application ( s ) 330 include several applications and / or modules . in some embodiments , modules include one or more sub - modules as well . in some embodiments , fewer or additional modules are able to be included . examples of suitable computing devices include a personal computer , a laptop computer , a computer workstation , a server , a mainframe computer , a handheld computer , a personal digital assistant , a cellular / mobile telephone , a smart appliance , a gaming console , a digital camera , a digital camcorder , a camera phone , a smart phone , a portable music player , a tablet computer , a mobile device , a video player , a video disc writer / player ( e . g ., dvd writer / player , high definition disc writer / player , ultra high definition disc writer / player ), a television , an augmented reality device , a virtual reality device , a home entertainment system , smart jewelry ( e . g ., smart watch ) or any other suitable computing device . to utilize the live privacy policy method and system , data collection is monitored from enterprise mobile and web applications . once software is integrated and installed , users using the mobile and web applications are able to : observe the data being collected and restrict the data the enterprise and third parties are able to collect , use and share . in operation , live privacy policy method and system provides many advantages : enterprises will provide an accurate and up - to - date privacy policy to the consumers and others who they conduct business with . this will improve the credibility for the enterprise and provide more confidence to consumers and others while conducting online business with the enterprise . data trackers and advertisers are able to continue to provide valuable personalization services to consumers but with explicit consent from the consumers . this cooperative environment will enable more accurate personalization and reduce the risks of inadvertent data leaks and security issues around personal data . consumers get personalized content while controlling what they want to share with enterprises providing products and services . consumer awareness that is context - specific and transparent , such as identifying : pii and ppi that is collected , third parties involved and their pii and ppi activities and other data sharing relationships among third parties that are not directly attributed to business that have direct consumer relationships . a business is better able to establish and maintain consumer confidence and trust , by : enabling consumer participation in pii activities , viewing pii being collected , providing tools to update or remove inaccurate data , providing a process to allow users to register , track and view progress of complaints , enabling business to monitor and manage data minimization requirements , enabling business to monitor and manage pii including usage , quality and integrity and security , and implementing realtime updates to privacy policy . businesses and consumers are offered a process to handle customer “ do not track ” requests . the present invention has been described in terms of specific embodiments incorporating details to facilitate the understanding of principles of construction and operation of the invention . such reference herein to specific embodiments and details thereof is not intended to limit the scope of the claims appended hereto . it will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art that other various modifications may be made in the embodiment chosen for illustration without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the claims .	7
fig1 illustrates generally a fluid supply system and conduit including two mating parts of a leak detecting coupling device such as a union joint or the like in accordance with the present invention . the first part 10 includes a first generally cylindrical conduit 12 having a first flanged end 14 with a leak detector 16 attached thereto . the face 18 of the flanged end 14 , which will be adjoined to the second part of the union joint and held in engagement therewith by suitable bolts , clamps , etc ., includes an annular containment chamber or collector channel 20 and two annular o - ring grooves 22 and 24 . the two o - rings 26 and 28 are shown apart from their respective grooves , and related by dashed correlation lines . the channel 20 is disposed between the two o - ring grooves and their respective o - rings 26 and 28 , and , in the event of a primary o - ring failure , provides a trough or chamber for containment of the escaping fluid . the leak detector 16 is attached to the flange 14 such that the sensor probe 32 is inserted through a hole 30 in the flange 14 and into or closely proximate the channel 20 . the face 18 of the first part 10 of the union joint is shown more clearly in fig2 wherein the primary o - ring 26 is shown located closest to the conduit opening through which system fluid will be caused to pass . the collector channel 20 is formed in only the first part of the union joint , and is in communication with the hole 30 or socket that will house the sensor probe 32 . the secondary o - ring 28 is disposed outermost from the conduit opening and , in the event of a primary o - ring failure , will prevent fluid from leaking out of the joint into the surrounding atmosphere . referring back to fig1 the second part 34 of the union joint is similarly comprised of a generally cylindrical conduit 36 having a second flanged end 38 . the face 40 of the flanged end 38 includes two o - ring grooves 42 and 44 , disposed so as to mirror the two o - ring grooves 22 and 24 on the first part of the joint . in an assembled union joint , the two parts are adjoined and aligned by the mating of each o - ring to it &# 39 ; s respective groove . the two parts are fastened together by clamping , bolting or other suitable means . in the event of a primary o - ring failure , some of the fluid flowing through the joint will leak into the channel 20 . in high priority systems , to prevent contamination of the leaking fluid , all rigid parts forming surfaces contacted or likely to be contacted by the fluid are made of , or are surface coated with , polyfluoroaloxyl , polytetrafluoroethylene or other suitable inert material . the o - rings are preferably made of high priority or encapsulated teflon compatible with the chemical being transported . for other applications other appropriate types of materials could be used . the sensor probe 32 preferably comprises an optical device coupled to a fiber optic conductor which leads to an optical detector . the tip of the probe has an index of refraction such that when surrounded by air , exhibits a high level of internal reflection ; but when in contact with a liquid , assumes a materially different reflective characteristic . as a consequence , the level of light transmitted to the tip through one or more of the fibers of the conductor and reflected back into other receiving fibers falls below a detection threshold and a leak is signaled alternatively , some situations may permit suitable resistive , capacitive or other appropriate type of probe to be substituted for the aforementioned optical leak trace probe . depending upon the application , probe 32 may extend into channel 20 and perhaps be coated with a thin layer of inert material . in some cases where it is important that no material other than that of the coupling device and o - rings be subject to contact by the transported fluid , it may be necessary that a thin wall be preserved separating the socket 30 and the channel 20 . this is appropriate where the material forming the coupling device is translucent . where the material is not translucent a sealed transparent or translucent plug of an appropriate material may be used to separate probe 32 from the channel 20 . once the sensor probe 32 detects a leak , it will transmit a signal to a controller 41 which could activate an alarm , shut off the fluid supply line by de - energizing a pump or pressure system 43 , or exercise any other pre - programmed response . in one embodiment the control system 41 communicates through a data supervisor 45 to a host computer 47 which in turn provides for communication of the status of the coupling to a plurality of pc &# 39 ; s or remote monitors . fig3 illustrates an alternative embodiment of the present invention incorporated into a system component which requires periodic servicing or inspection . process fluids will normally be directed through a filter for cleansing prior to being reused . the filter shown is comprised of a filter cartridge 48 encased in a filter housing 50 . the filter housing 50 is made up of a filter bowl 52 including a sealed vent 54 and a filter head 56 including a drain 58 . the filter bowl 52 can be disassembled from the filter head 56 when the filter cartridge 48 needs servicing or replacement . although an appropriate reservoir 55 and collection tank 57 can prevent loss of fluid through the seal 59 and valve 61 respectively , leaks can occur at the junction 46 of the filter bowl 52 and filter head 56 . the illustrated filter housing is therefore improved by the addition of a leak detector system in accordance with the present invention . as in the previously described embodiment , a sensor probe 64 is inserted through a hole in the flange 62 into a collector channel 66 formed in the face of the flange 62 . the channel 66 lies between two o - rings 68 and 70 that are set into grooves 69 and 71 respectively . the junction leak detection system incorporated in the filter device operates the same as the dual o - ring and leak detector system of the previously described union joint embodiment . in the case of a failure of the primary o - ring 68 , fluid will leak into the channel 66 , the sensor probe 60 will detect a change in internal reflection due to the introduction of the liquid into the channel , and a signal will be sent to an alarm or system controller 41 . although the present invention has been described above in terms of two particular embodiments for use in particular well known devices it will be appreciated that the invention can be incorporated into any fluid handling device in which separable components forming a flow path are included the essence of the invention is that it first provides containment and then detection of a leak through a breached sealing means . it is therefore intended that the following claims be interpreted to cover all application , alterations and modifications that fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention .	8
referring to fig1 and 2 , there is illustrated a truck 10 carrying a body 12 for housing the arrangement and facilities comprising a preferred embodiment of this invention . it is understood that while body 12 is shown mounted on a truck chassis 13 , it may instead be mounted on the bed of a trailer ( not shown ). in either arrangement , body 12 may be brought to the site of a chemical and / or radiation disaster at which equipment as well as persons may have been contaminated . body 12 may be of generally rectangular configuration , as illustrated , with a floor 14 , and a roof 16 . the interior of body 12 is divided into three distinct areas , namely , personnel treatment compartment 18 located at the front of the vehicle , in this case behind cab 20 , a facilities compartment 22 , and the clothing and equipment decontamination compartment 24 located at the rear of the vehicle . body 12 can be extended to increase the size of any compartment or to duplicate any of the compartments , as needed or desired . within compartment 18 personnel who may have had their clothes and their bodies exposed to contamination are treated for the removal of such clothing and their bodies cleansed of any contaminants and dried . for this purpose there is provided an inlet door 26 for the entry of the personnel to be decontaminated and an outlet door 28 for their exit once their clothes have been changed and their bodies cleansed . within compartment 18 is provided drums 32 and 34 to receive the contaminated clothing , a shower room or stall 36 in which the personnel are subjected to a detergent spray and a fresh water deluge from a shower head 36a . drying of their bodies utilizing a blow dryer 37 mounted in the ceiling is carried out in room 38 where they can be suited up with fresh garments and then leave through door 28 ready to be transferred to a hospital for full decontamination and toxic screening . tank 40 for storing clean water is located under shower room or stall 36 , or may be sized to fit under the floor of the unit depending on the sizes of the equipment involved . within facilities compartment 22 there is provided a tank 42 for detergent solution , a filtration system 44 , pump 46 located under floor 14 , and a blower 48 located on ceiling 16 . doors 48 and 52 provide direct access from the outside to compartment 22 . tank 53 for receiving dirty or contaminated water is located beneath the floor of compartment 22 while auxiliary power unit 54 located at the ceiling supplies electric power to operate the apparatus requiring electricity as will be described below . decontamination compartment 24 located in the rear of body 12 with an access door 55 provides for the cleansing of equipment and clothing . for this purpose , compartment 24 is provided with a row of shelves 56 , 29 to 36 inches high , made up of aluminum grating to permit the items placed on the shelves to be reached by sprays of detergent and water emanating from nozzles located below and above shelves 56 . nozzles 58 shown in phantom represent nozzles mounted through the floor and the ceiling directed upwardly and downwardly , respectively , to insure adequate cleansing of the clothing and equipment place on shelves 56 . the items to be sprayed are placed on the shelves , and after adequate deluging , they are dried by blasting with hot air from from duct openings 59 in the walls and / or ceiling , connected to blower 37 . when drying is complete , they are removed from the shelves and replaced by other items of clothing and equipment requiring decontamination . shelves 56 are u - shaped to provide a walk in area 60 adjacent door 55 . operation of the various facilities within body 12 is controlled at a panel 62 located on the outside of said body 12 , at a vantage point where the operation of all decontamination systems can be observed . this makes it possible for the operator to be in a position to know what is going on within all compartments of body 12 while exercising control over the various systems . for a description of the subsystem for distributing water within body 12 , reference is made to fig3 . there is shown clean water tank 40 , dirty or waste water collection tank 53 , nozzles 58 , filters 44 , pump 46 , auxiliary power unit 54 , and control panel 62 , all previously described . the details of the electric , control , and power systems are conventional and do not form a part of this invention . water from an outside supply line would be employed to fill tank 40 . a multi - position valve 64 , controlled from panel 62 , directs water into tank 40 or directs water from the outside source to a multi - position valve 66 which is also controlled from panel 62 . pump 46 , powered by auxiliary power source 54 , is also under control from panel 62 . in this way , when it is desired to supply fresh water from either tank 40 through pump 46 or an outside source ( when available ), clean water can be directed by valve 66 to either or both of shower head 36a or nozzles 58 in compartment 24 . detergent is fed into the lines to shower head 36a and nozzles 58 from tank 42 . a tap off the clean water line from a valve 63 may be employed to flush out dirty water tank 53 periodically . contaminated water is collected in holding tank 53 from shower room or stall 36 and compartment 24 through the use of conventional drain or sewer lines 68 and 72 , respectively . chemically contaminated water in tank 53 is returned to clean water tank 40 by way of line 43 containing filters 44 to remove detergent and contaminants . a pump 73 in line 43 may be employed in the event gravity is not appropriate . a valve 74 under control from panel 62 may be actuated to permit discharge of the clean water into the environment through discharge pipe 76 . water being returned to clean water tank 40 may be chlorinated by chlorine injector 77 if desired . a pair of manually controlled test valves 78 and 82 may be employed to sample for testing the quality of the water before and after treatment in filters 44 . a discharge line 84 from tank 53 would be employed where the disaster is nuclear in nature so that any radioactive water present in tank 53 can be directly transferred to a stationary or mobile tanker ( not shown ) located outside of truck 10 . for this purpose , discharge line 84 is provided with a valve 84a which would be opened when the water is to be discharged and a valve 43a in line 43 to be closed when valve 84a is opened . valves 84a and 43a are controlled from panel 62 as illustrated schematically . clean water is heated as needed by suitable heating elements 86 and 87 in clean water lines from tank 40 at the outlet from pump 46 and from valve 64 energized through and controlled from panel 62 . in this way it is not necessary to heat all of the water in tank 40 thereby reducing the electrical requirements of the system . as seen in fig4 hot air blowers 37 and 48 are under control also from panel 62 . while not shown it is understood that suitable ducting , especially in the ceilings and wall of compartment 24 to distribute the hot air in such a way as to adequately dry the person in the shower room or stall 36 and all of the equipment on the shelves in compartment 24 . in the operation of the apparatus illustrated in fig1 - 4 , vehicle 10 would be brought to the scene of the disaster , and as fire and other emergency personnel as well as their hand carried equipment become contaminated they would come in or would be brought into body 12 for cleaning as described above . in this way , contaminated personnel can be prepared for forwarding to a hospital while hand - carried equipment can be reused thereby making it possible to use all such equipment efficiently and effectively . under those circumstances where it is desired to increase the capability of the vehicle to handle disasters of much larger magnitude , rather than lengthen the vehicle to an impractical length , or exceed the width imposed upon vehicles by transportation authorities , a modified version of the vehicle shown in fig5 to 7 may be employed . in this embodiment , vehicle 100 consists of a cab section 102 , an intermediate section 104 , and a rear section 106 . vehicle 100 contains all of the operational equipment described in connection with the embodiment shown in fig1 - 4 , including a clean water tank 108 located within rear section 106 , one or more contaminated water tanks 110 , filters 112 , pump 114 , and a movable duct or tube 116 for carrying hot air for drying equipment . control panel 118 is shown conveniently located on the outside of vehicle 100 along the intermediate section 104 . the principal feature of the embodiment shown in figs . 5 - 7 is the arrangement wherein there is provided a pair of pivoted drain collectors 122 and 124 on opposite sides of rear section 106 . a plurality of nozzles 126 on one side and 128 on the opposite side of rear section 106 along the top of rear section 106 provide the ejector and deluge sprays of water . folding legs 132 and 134 provide support for drain collectors 122 and 124 when in the down position as shown in fig7 . nozzles 126 and 128 may also be foldable flat against the sides of vehicle 100 if deemed necessary or desirable . in the use of the arrangement shown in fig5 - 7 , vehicle 100 would be driven to the site of the disaster and drain collectors 122 and 124 opened as shown in fig7 and the shower heads 126 and 128 opened if they were folded . the man - carried equipment to be washed are then placed on collectors 122 and 124 and subject to successive sprays of detergent and water solution and then a deluge of rinse water . the waste water in collectors 122 and 124 is then pumped into waste water collection tanks 110 by way of pipes 125 and 125a . drying of the man - carried equipment placed in collectors 122 and 124 is accomplished by pumping heated air under pressure through movable duct or tube 116 to direct the blast against the equipment on collectors 122 and 124 . one of the advantages of the embodiment shown in figs . 5 - 7 is to increase the capacity of the vehicle in terms of the amount of clean water , detergent , and other equipment which can be carried to a site of a disaster without increasing its length excessively and being able to maintain the width of the vehicle within the dimensional requirements for over the road vehicles set by various local and federal transportation authorities . it is thus seen that there has been described a mobile decontamination unit or system with complete capability of washing down and decontaminating equipment at the site of a disaster and washing down personnel . as the system fits within the confines of a vehicle capable of travelling all roads it can readily be brought in close to any such disaster where it can be held on standby and be ready for use as required . a single individual , stationed at the control panel is positioned to monitor all activities going on within the unit and to control the operations of its various components . in addition , it accomplishes all of the preceding without dumping contaminated fluids into the environment thereby worsening what presumably would be an already bad or serious situation . while only certain preferred embodiments of this invention have been described it is understood that many variations of this invention are possible without departing from the principles of this invention as defined in the claims which follow .	6
good exfoliation corrosion resistance is evidenced by an exco rating of “ ec ” or better for aluminum alloys as indicated in astm g 34 , but in some cases other measures of corrosion resistance may be specified or required by airframe builders , such as stress corrosion cracking resistance or electrical conductivity . satisfying any one or more of these specifications for new or current build airframes is considered good practice to prevent corrosion resistance . however in those applications where an aluminum alloy was developed prior to the exco ratings or the application has been in use far longer than anticipated by the original design , such as older transport aircraft , exfoliation corrosion is an issue that has to be addressed to prevent failure of the component . referring now to the drawings and particularly to fig7 there is shown the corrosion detection system 10 of the present invention having a laser instrument 12 , a laser search peen head 14 connected to said laser instrument , and a controller means 16 connected to control the laser instrument 12 , laser search peen head 16 , overlay applicator mechanism 13 , positioning mechanism 15 and inspection instrument 18 . detection system 10 directs laser search peen head 14 to laser search peen area 22 , and during this process , overlay applicator mechanism 13 applies the processing overlay or overlays as sequenced from controller 16 , and laser system 12 then delivers a laser pulse to laser search peen head 14 . as shown , system 10 is capable of detecting exfoliation corrosion , via camera 18 on significant portions of aluminum alloy plate section 20 as well as other surfaces , by examining the laser search peened surface 22 from low magnification to high magnification depending primarily on the optics and resolution of camera 18 . this magnification could be in the range of , for example , 0 to 30 × but is not limited to this range . other detection means , such as direct visual examination of plate 20 or other ways , may also be utilized to perceive and / or confirm exfoliation delamination within the laser spot areas 22 . upon completion of the inspection of area 22 with camera 18 for evidence of exfoliation determination within area 22 , the laser system 10 , or portion thereof , is indexed to the next area 26 to be laser search peened . the positioning mechanism 15 provides information to controller 16 to index the detection system 10 or laser search peen head 14 from one location 22 to the next location 26 . fig2 shows a side view of a typical location for exfoliation corrosion around a fastener hole 32 in metal plate 20 . the fastener 34 may not be the same metal as the metal plate 20 . this arrangement between two dissimilar metals ( metal plate 20 and metal fastener 34 ) creates a galvanic cell when the gap 36 between the metal plate 20 and the fastener 34 is filled with an aqueous solution that is either acidic or basic . the electrochemical potential of the galvanic cell increases the propensity for exfoliation corrosion in metal plate 20 . evidence of exfoliation corrosion or delamination potential is shown at location “ ex ”. such exfoliation corrosion is typically parallel to the plane of a rolled plate 20 , and generally starts from the surface 32 and propagates into plate 20 away from the fastener 34 . the non - corroded material between the corroded paths and the surface will lift , or exfoliate , when search peened and thereby become visible on the surface . the method of use of corrosion detection system 10 is shown in fig3 to 7 . the laser search peen head 14 connected to laser instrument 12 would have the ability of applying a number of particular search patterns to the surface 36 of plate 20 . these patterns consist of consecutive laser spots that are incremented a specific distance from the edge of the hole or from the previous shot or spot or both . as shown in fig3 a spiral type string of laser beam spots is generated around and radially outward from the edge of hole 32 with an increasing distance from the hole as the location rotates about the hole . in fig3 the laser spots do not overlap the previous spot and are shown to be circular . these two variables need not be the same in all cases , more particularly the spots may overlap and the spots may be of a different shape such as round , square , elliptical , or any other type of desirable spot shape . with this particular search pattern the area about hole 32 may or may not be 100 % covered by laser spots . additionally more than one spiral can be utilized , but offset in radial direction from the previous spiral . fig4 shows a search pattern consisting of a series of concentric circular spots located about hole 32 . the radius of each circle within the pattern may be different depending upon particular needs of the search . the search pattern need not be circular or concentric to the hole if larger areas need to be laser search peen inspected for exfoliation corrosion . a doughnut - shaped laser beam spot to encircle hole 32 efficiently is shown in fig5 and can provide 100 % search peening coverage for the desired area , provided that the power density is sufficient to induce the needed compressive residual stresses to cause the hidden exfoliation corrosion to be revealed . typical laser beam power densities necessary to detect hidden exfoliation corrosion may range from 0 . 5 to 9 gigawatt / cm 2 depending upon the composition and properties of plate 20 . typical laser beam sources may be fired at a rate between one half to one hundred hz ; however , the laser beam source may not be limited to this range of frequencies . more efficient processing rates may be achieved at higher frequencies . fig3 show the area all around hole 32 being searched . however , the search peened area may extend only partially around the hole , as shown in fig6 . fig6 shows a search pattern about a hole with elliptical laser spots with nearly 100 % coverage within the pattern . also within the search pattern , the laser spots do not need to be elliptical . they can be any shape or size that can provide a proper power density and effective pattern for exposing hidden exfoliation corrosion by efficient laser search peening . laser spots may have an elliptical shape , circular shape , square or rectangular shapes , or other necessary shapes . a method , in one form of the invention , provides for defining an area 22 on the surface for corrosion inspection , then applying the transparent or opaque overlay or both to the surface 36 of the area 22 to be laser search peened . the next step includes projecting a laser beam onto a portion of the area 22 , forming a laser beam spot on the surface , and generating a pressure pulse in the material resulting in compressive residual stresses in the surface . after the laser spot or spots have been applied , a means for examining the area of the surface for evidence of exfoliation corrosion either via camera 18 , a photograph , or direct visual examination is needed . such investigation or examination of the surface after the resulting compressive residual stresses have been created would , in the presence of exfoliation corrosion , show the characteristic blistered appearance caused by the delamination of the exfoliated material . although this method would be sufficient for determining exfoliation corrosion around fasteners 36 , other potential locations for exfoliation corrosion , as shown in fig7 include butt joints , edge cuts , or other types of edges where exfoliation corrosion can initiate and progress into the plate from the cut surface , but lie underneath the visible surface . fig7 shows three different search patterns that can be used along edge cuts , such as where two plates engage each other to form a butt joint . location “ a ” shows laser spots applied along the adjoining edges of the two plates with each spot straddling the joint ; while search pattern “ b ” shows laser beam spots applied on separately to each of the adjoining plates ; while test pattern “ c ” shows laser beam spots applied on only one of the two or more plates . although previously it has been inferred that the laser spots are located directly over the areas in which exfoliation corrosion may occur , such may not be the case in particular instances . for example , the laser search peening is applied to one side of the plate , while evidence of the corrosion , i . e ., blistering may be visually evident or perceivable on another side thereof , for example on the surface of the plate opposite the laser search peened surface . in such case , the area at which corrosion inspection is occurring is separate and different than the area to which the laser beam is projected or applied . once exfoliation corrosion has been determined to be located within a particular area , means for removing the exfoliation corrosion can be applied to the area to bring the part back within specifications . for automating the system , the search peening system may be mounted on an equipment such as a remotely controlled robot which would be able to traverse along the surfaces 20 of the part to be laser search peened , such as along an aircraft wing , or other area . mounted on such traversing robot would be the searching peening mechanism 10 or a portion thereof , along with a means for applying the overlays such as a transparent and opaque overlay applicator 13 along with the means for visualizing any delamination , such as a camera 18 . mounted on such a robot could also be the means for focusing the laser beam 14 , positioning the system to the surface 15 , and effluent removal of the used transparent and opaque overlays generated during processing . the umbilical chord from the central robot to a primary laser source 12 and controller 16 can provide laser beam delivery as well as providing other utilities to the robot while it traverses its search surface . the present laser search peening as described overcomes the long preparation times needed for previous exfoliation corrosion searches , such as by glass bead shot peening . previously a tent needed to be erected about the structure to be search peened , such as a wing , to contain the glass bead media . after search peening was completed , the glass bead media needed to be removed from the exposed surface of the wing . in the present laser search peening system , only a small volume of the wing &# 39 ; s surface on an aircraft needs to be enclosed to contain the laser beam and the processing materials . additionally , the process materials , such as the used transparent and opaque overlay can be removed from the wings surface during the process , thereby significantly reducing the cleanup time . the entire wing structure therefore , does not need to be isolated from the rest of the processing facility during use of the processing equipment . while this invention has been described as having a preferred design , the present invention can be further modified within the spirit and scope of this disclosure . this application is therefore intended to cover any variations , uses , or adaptations of the invention using its general principles . further , this application is intended to cover such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art to which this invention pertains and which fall within the limits of the appended claims .	6
to make it easier for our examiner to understand the objective of the invention , its structure , innovative features , and performance , we use a preferred embodiment together with the attached drawings for the detailed description of the invention . please refer to fig1 for the system block diagram of the present invention , which comprises a usb controller 101 for transmitting data , a memory unit 102 electrically coupled to a circuit of said usb controller 101 for storing data , and an encryption unit 103 electrically coupled to circuits of the usb controller 101 and memory unit 102 . after a data is passed to the usb controller 101 and processed by the encryption unit 103 with a symmetric key algorithm such as des , tdes , rc2 , rc4 , and rc5 , etc . the data can be encrypted to be a cipher or decrypted from a cipher , and finally saved in the memory unit 102 or outputted to the external operating system . to improve the data security level , an asymmetric key algorithm ( or called as public key algorithm ) is used to perform further security by encryption such as rsa , dsa , and ecc , etc . to meet the algorithm of pki security system technology . if the power of the kernel of this encryption unit is enough , hash algorithm also can be achieved , like as md2 , md5 or sha , etc . a random number generator 104 is implemented into the system to facilitate and enhance the design of security . the random number generator 104 produces a random number as a key for the foregoing encryption . such arrangement can further improve the data security . to meet the requirements of the hardware operation as shown in fig1 , an appropriate application program interface ( api ) must be provided for system developers to call it and develop her security operating system . besides the capability of the hardware encryption , the design of this invention also focuses on dividing the memory unit into a plurality of blocks with different features . the types of blocks include general block , read only block , and reserved block . the general block is provided for end users to save , modify and read the data to or from this memory block , the read only block is provided for end users to read data , but does not allow end users to write , delete , or modify data unless the end user has gone through an authentication procedure such as entering a correct password . the reserved block does not allow general end users to read , write , modify , delete data , or even format the device or this memory block . the data in the reserved block is reserved for specific system service providers . by the foregoing application program interface ( api ), data can be accessed from the reserved block at a far end via internet , which can further improve the security level of the usb memory card of this invention . such hardware feature of dividing the memory into blocks is not found in traditional smart cards yet . please refer to fig2 for the illustration of the division of a memory unit 200 of the present invention . the memory unit 200 is divided into a general block 201 , a read only block 202 , and a reserved block 203 . please refer to fig3 for the software architecture of the present invention . this software architecture includes a physical layer 301 which adopts an intelligent stick of a usb memory card for the hardware design , a driving layer 302 for calling the subroutine for the data processing between a host system and the physical layer and handling the request for processing the application at the upper layer to this device which could meet the microsoft pc / sc specifications , a user interface layer 303 which could satisfy the pkcs # 11 standard interface or microsoft cryptoapi interface specifications , and an application layer 304 which is the high - level application interface ( api ) providing programmers a familiar programming interface for the system development . a low - cost , low profile , light , thin , short , and compact security usb memory device can be made according to the system block diagram of fig1 and the software architecture as shown in fig3 . further , an intelligent stick as shown in fig4 can be used to commercialize the invention into a security intelligent stick . by means of the design of the usb security operating system according to this invention , users do not need to purchase an expensive smart card reader , and thus greatly reducing costs as well as getting more convenience in pc platform . further , the utilization of intelligent stick can reduce the size of the device to card form factor and need no adapter to transfer usb signal as connecting to a standard usb port thus bring us convenience and portability . in summation of the above description , the present invention enhances the performance of the conventional structure , and further complies with the patent application requirements and is submitted to the patent and trademark office for review and granting of the commensurate patent rights . while the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of a preferred embodiment , it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto . to the contrary , it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements and procedures , and the scope of the appended claims therefore should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements and procedures .	6
referring to fig1 to 5 , an optical keyboard in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the invention comprises a key assembly 10 , a keyboard housing 20 , and two actuation sensing modules 30 as discussed in detail below . the key assembly 10 comprises a plurality of keys 11 for input , a plurality of scissor - type structures 12 , a film circuit board 13 , and a base board 14 . the key 11 is adapted to press and pivotably mounted on top of the scissor - type structure 12 . the scissor - type structure 12 is a pivotal element and pivotably mounted on top of the base board 14 . the film circuit board 13 disposed between the scissor - type structures 12 and the base board 14 serves as a conductive element in response to a depressing of the key 11 . the base board 14 is a support under the film circuit board 13 . alternatively , the key assembly 10 is replaced with a touchscreen or a planar electronic input device in other embodiments . the keyboard housing 20 is an integrally formed rectangular block for surrounding the key assembly 10 . the keyboard housing 20 comprises a left frame member 201 , a right frame member 202 , a rear frame member 203 , and a front frame member 204 . a plurality of reflective members 21 are disposed on inner surfaces of the left frame member 201 , the right frame member 202 , and the rear frame member 203 respectively . the reflective members 21 are adapted to generate signals when light impinged thereon being blocked . the actuation sensing modules 30 are disposed on both ends of the front frame member 204 of the keyboard housing 20 respectively . the actuation sensing module 30 comprises a photo sensor 301 for optically detecting an object ( e . g ., a finger ) about to actuate the key 11 , and a light emitting member 302 ( e . g ., light - emitting diode ( led )) for emitting red light . preferably , the emitted light is invisible light such as infrared or ultra infrared in order not to be interfered by visible light . light emitted by the light emitting members 302 is directed to a predetermined space above the keys 11 within the rectangular keyboard housing 20 to create a sensing zone . light received by the photo sensors 301 is partially blocked when a finger is descending into the sensing zone to actuate a key 11 . strength of the light is thus decreased due to the blocking . further , a signal is created by the photo sensors 301 due to changes of horizontal distance , vertical distance , and light angle , etc . the created signal is sent to a signal processing unit 33 for processing in order to determine whether the finger is sliding or about to press the key 11 . finally , a signal representing a key to be touched instruction containing a corresponding coordinate is created . preferably , the photo sensor 301 is a complementary metal oxide semiconductor ( cmos ) and has a wide angle image taking capability . the number and locations of the actuation sensing modules 30 can be changed based on the required image resolution . for example , in other embodiments , the photo sensors 301 are disposed in four corners of an inner surface of the keyboard housing 20 respectively in order to accurately detect the position of the finger touching the key 11 and carry out a multi - touch scheme . as shown in fig5 specifically , the optical keyboard further comprises a switch unit 50 , a signal sensing unit 40 , and a signal output unit 60 as discussed in detail below . the signal sensing unit 40 is electrically connected to the key assembly 10 and the signal processing unit 33 and adapted to determine a signal representing the depressed key 11 and a signal representing a key to be touched instruction containing a corresponding coordinate . the switch unit 50 is electrically connected to the signal sensing unit 40 and adapted to toggle between an operating mode of pressing key and an operating mode of a key to be touched . the signal sensing unit 40 is responsive to a key depressing signal when the switch unit 50 is toggled to the operating mode of pressing key . further , a signal representing the depressed key 11 is generated by the signal sensing unit 40 and transmitted to the signal output unit 60 . to the contrary , the signal sensing unit 40 is responsive to a key to be touched signal when the switch unit 50 is toggled to the operating mode of a key to be touched . further , a signal representing the key 11 to be touched is generated by the signal sensing unit 40 and transmitted to the signal output unit 60 . the signal output unit 60 is electrically connected to the signal sensing unit 40 , adapted to receive either the signal representing the depressed key 11 or the signal representing the key 11 to be touched , and send the signal to a computer 70 . the computer 70 can process the signal representing the depressed key 11 or the signal representing the key 11 to be touched and generate a corresponding character to be shown on a computer display . the signal output unit 60 is implemented as a wireless bluetooth adapter or a wire universal serial bus ( usb ) adapter . above electronic devices are powered by a battery ( not shown ) and detailed description thereof is omitted herein for the sake of brevity because they are well known in the art . referring to fig6 and 7 , an optical keyboard in accordance with a second preferred embodiment of the invention is shown . the characteristics of the second preferred embodiment are substantially the same as that of the first preferred embodiment except the following : the sensing zone is disposed above a numeric keypad of the key assembly 10 . in detail , a rectangular keypad housing 20 a is provided in the numeric keypad of the key assembly 10 ( see fig6 ) or a touch panel 101 is provided in the keypad housing 20 a as a replacement of the numeric keypad of the key assembly 10 . a plurality of reflective members 21 a are disposed on an inner surface of the keyboard a rectangular keypad housing 20 a is provided on the numeric keypad of the key assembly 10 ( see fig6 ) or a touch panel 101 is provided a in the keypad housing 20 a as a replacement of the numeric keypad of the key assembly 10 . a plurality of reflective members 21 a are disposed on an inner surface of the keypad housing 20 a and two actuation sensing modules 30 a are disposed on both ends of a front edge the keypad housing 20 a respectively . light emitted by the actuation sensing modules 30 a is directed to a predetermined space above the keys 11 within the keypad housing 20 a to create a sensing zone . the actuation sensing modules 30 a are adapted to optically detect an object ( e . g ., finger ) about to actuate the key 11 below the sensing zone and next generating a signal representing a key to be touched instruction containing a corresponding coordinate . referring to fig8 and 9 , an optical keyboard in accordance with a third preferred embodiment of the invention is shown . the characteristics of the third preferred embodiment are substantially the same as that of the first preferred embodiment except the following : three actuation sensing modules 30 are disposed at three vertexes of a virtual triangle on the keyboard housing 20 . in detail , the actuation sensing modules 30 are disposed at both ends of the front frame member 204 and a midpoint of the rear frame member 203 respectively in order to accurately detect the position of the finger touching the key and carry out a multi - touch scheme . while the invention has been described in terms of preferred embodiments , those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modifications within the spirit and scope of the appended claims .	7
it will be understood that the method and system of the present invention are preferably implemented utilizing a programmable digital computer and that the operations herein described are in reference to such an implementation . in the context of imaging , terms such as “ air ”, “ lumen ”, etc . are typically intended to refer to the corresponding imaging of these features . in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention , colon segmentation comprises performing a start - and endpoint calculation , and performing an initial path calculation as will be described hereinafter . this is followed by path centering and smoothing . generally , the method in accordance with the invention starts with a colon dataset that has been obtained using a colonoscopy protocol typically including bowel preparation and air insufflation . the dataset is segmented by applying a threshold to air and doing connected component analysis , whereby connected components that do not belong to the colon are discarded , either automatically or by manual selection . it is noted , nevertheless , that the method of the invention is applicable to other virtual endoscopic examinations and , indeed generally to a cavity having boundary surfaces . furthermore , the method of the invention is applicable to other datasets which are not necessarily prepared for virtual endoscopy , such as , by way of example , blood vessels with contrast . the centerline method has other possible uses , including registration or mapping two centerlines onto each other , making measurements , defining orthogonal cross sections along a vessel , segmentation , and visualization . a . colon segmentation ; b . start - and endpoint calculation ; c . initial path calculation ; and d . path centering and smoothing . in step a , colon segmentation starts with a colon dataset that has been obtained using a colonoscopy protocol , e . g . bowel preparation , air insufflation , and so forth . the dataset is segmented by applying a threshold to air , and doing connected component analysis . connected components that do not belong to the colon are discarded , either automatically or by manual selection . in step b , start - and endpoint calculation , a distance labeling is performed , starting from a first voxel that belongs to the colon . this first voxel is labeled 0 , its neighbors are labeled 1 , their neighbors are labeled 2 , and so forth . a search is then made for the voxel with the highest label . this is designated as the start point p 0 . from p 0 , a new distance label map is created by repeating step b and obtaining another voxel with the highest number . this is designated as end point p 1 . in step c , initial path calculation , starting at p 1 , the distance labels are used to get a path of connected voxel that ends in p 0 . this is done by searching among the neighbors of p 1 for a voxel with a smaller label , storing the position , then searching among this voxel &# 39 ; s neighbors for a voxel with smaller label , and so forth , until p 0 is reached . see fig1 a . it is noted that the foregoing initial path calculation is given by way of example and that other suitable steps for this calculation may be employed instead in an alternative embodiment of the present invention . in step d , path centering and smoothing , the resulting initial path is generally jagged and is smoothed by , for example , applying the known technique of gaussian smoothing . any vertex is replaced by the weighted average of its n neighbors , where n is a constant selected based on the characteristics of the type of smoothing desired , where a larger or smaller value for n will determine the extent of the area over which an average is obtained . the process is repeated over a number of iterations . any new vertex position is tested for collision with the colon wall or boundary surface by verifying whether the new coordinate still lies within the segmented colon . in the event of a collision , the vertex is left at the last collision - free position . the resulting path may be visualized by way of a helpful analogy from the field of static mechanics where the resulting path for this process resembles the path resulting from pulling apart both ends of a mass - less flexible string that goes through the colon . see fig1 b . this smooth path is centered using spheres with increasing sizes . see fig3 . it will be understood that a sphere in the present context is represented by a polyhedral structure with a sufficient number of facets for an acceptably close representation . such a polyhedron exhibits vertices , not to be confused herein with the path vertices . a small sphere is centered at a vertex along the path . the vertices on this sphere are checked for collision with the colon wall . if vertices are in collision , a translation force is defined and calculated , based on the sphere normals . this force is used to move the sphere away from the wall . the sphere is constrained to move on a plane perpendicular to the path . if the sphere is no longer in collision , the size of the sphere is increased and the collision calculation and shift are repeated . the process stops when the sphere cannot be shifted and / or increased any further without creating a collision . thus , the sphere exhibits a maximal size short of colliding with the walls . the center of the sphere is now taken as the new position for the vertex . the process repeats for the next vertex of the trajectory . see fig1 c . after the centering , the path undergoes another gaussian smoothing , with collision control . this time fewer iterations and a smaller neighborhood are used . a description of a collision detection technique and calculation of translation force is given in a publication by geiger , b ., “ real - time collision detection and response for complex environments ,” computer graphics international 2000 ; jun . 19 - 23 , 2000 ; geneva , switzerland . this article , whereof the disclosure is herein incorporated by reference to the extent not incompatible with the present invention , presents a method for collision detection that is well suited to complex environments , such as those obtained from medical imaging and for objects that are in permanent contact . the method is based on a point - intetrahedral - mesh query . spatial and temporal coherence are used to achieve interactive speed . in addition to collision detection , the system calculates a force and torque that can be used for collision response . however , the collision detection and force calculation in the present invention is preferably done directly on the voxel , rather than on polyhedral reconstructions , although it generally follows the approach outlined in the aforementioned paper by geiger . in summary , fig1 a and 2 a show an initial voxel path , fig1 b and 2 b show an initial smoothing step , and fig1 c and 2 c show final centering . fig3 at a shows a centering step in which a sphere is set at the vertex location . in fig3 at b the sphere size is increased until it collides with the wall . from the collision , a translation force is calculated . in fig3 at c , the translation is applied until the sphere is no longer in collision . the sphere size is increased once more and it now collides with the wall . at d a translation is calculated . after translation has occurred , the sphere reaches a position where it cannot grow any further . this is the final vertex position at e in fig3 . the primary example used is that of a virtual colonoscopy ; however , the method of the invention is applicable to other virtual endoscopic examinations and , indeed generally to a cavity having boundary surfaces . it is particularly emphasized that the method of the invention is applicable to other datasets which are not necessarily prepared for virtual endoscopy , such as , by way of example , blood vessels with contrast , as has been stated above . the centerline method has other possible uses , including registration or mapping two centerlines onto each other , making measurements , defining orthogonal cross sections along a vessel , segmentation , and visualization . the invention has been described by way of exemplary embodiments . it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art to which it pertains that various changes and substitutions may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention . for example , as will be appreciated , the consecutive numbering of voxels is conveniently made in ascending numerical order and it is apparent that a descending sequence or any other labeling ordinal sequence of labeling can be used . for another example , variations in the method of derivation of the initial path may be made in an equivalent manner . thus , other suitable ways of deriving the initial path may be substituted for the steps disclosed above by way of example for the steps of colon segmentation , start - and endpoint calculation , and / or initial path calculation . given a suitable initial path , the step of path centering and smoothing can then be carried out . these and similar variations and substitutions are contemplated in the present invention which is defined by the claims following .	6
as shown in fig1 the reference numeral 10 indicates an oil filter to be used with a motor ( not shown ). the filter has an open end 12 which usually is partially covered by a mounting plate and a closed or domed end 14 . the mounting plate has a threaded central aperture ( not shown ) which is used to screw the spin - on oil filter 10 onto the motor . internally of the filter 10 is a cylindrical filter element 16 being spaced from the mounting plate a predetermined distance and extending substantially to the closed end 14 of the filter 10 . a centertube 17 is located longitudinally of the filter element 16 at the interior thereof . in addition , spring means , such as a leaf spring 19 , is positioned between the domed end 14 and the filter element 16 to urge the filter element 16 toward the open end 12 of the filter 10 . as is best seen in fig1 - 3 , the relief valve 20 of the present invention is located near the open end 12 of the filter 10 . the relief valve 20 has a first end 21 and a second end 22 . more particularly , the relief valve 20 has a base 23 which has an opening 24 therein for allowing oil to flow from the filter element 16 into the relief valve 20 . the outer ends 26 of the base 23 are positioned on the top of the filter element 16 . the relief valve 20 also has a housing 48 mounted near the mounting plate of the filter ; the position previously held by the deep drawn outlet neck of the prior art relief valves . as stated above , all prior art relief valves have deeply formed outlet necks needed to space the filter element from the mounting plate . in addition , all prior art relief valves necessarily have long or deep inlet members for housing the spring . in contrast , in the preferred embodiment of the present invention , the outlet neck ( the spring housing ) may be deep drawn to serve as both a means for spacing the filter element from the mounting plate and a means for housing the spring . accordingly , the inlet neck ( base ) does not have to also be deep drawn as in the prior art . more particularly , the base 23 is a shallow drawn member and the tension spring housing 48 may either be deep drawn or more shallow drawn than the tension spring housings of the prior art relief valves . in either case , the present invention is capable of holding drawn parts to a minimum depth or of restricting the number of deep drawn parts to one , i . e ., only the tension spring housing 48 is deep drawn and not the base 23 . located within the base 23 is a valve seat 28 which has an annular configuration and is positioned around the opening 24 in the base 23 . the valve seat can be manufactured from any suitable material compatible chemically with hot oil having a temperature up to 400 ° f . the valve seat 28 comprises an angled oil flow channel 30 which transmits oil entering the filter 10 directly back to the motor when the relief valve is open , thus by - passing the filter element 16 . the valve seat 28 terminates at one end in sealing lips or surfaces 32 . the sealing lips or surfaces 32 are generally pointed or semi - sharp . the pointed or semi - sharp sealing surfaces 32 of the valve seat 28 create a tighter and more dependable seal than the flat soft rubber pistons urged against the outlet necks of the prior art relief valves . it is preferable that the sealing surface 32 be as sharp as possible which allows for use of many types of materials for the valve seat 28 , some of which are relatively inexpensive . even if an expensive molded nylon valve seat 28 is used , since the only force exerted upon the nylon would be the force of spring 60 , to be discussed more fully hereafter , much higher oil temperatures above the softening temperature of nylon can be tolerated . the relief valve 20 also includes a piston 38 which is an annular member that can be produced , e . g ., from rubber , plastics , or paper by molding or lathe cutting . the piston 38 may be partially covered by a piston support 40 which is also an annular member . the piston support 40 also has an opening 42 therein to allow oil to continue in its path from the opening 24 in the base 23 through the oil filter relief valve 20 . generally , the base 23 , the tension spring housing 48 , the piston 38 and / or the support 40 can be formed , molded or machined from metal or another relatively rigid material . for example , the present invention &# 39 ; s improved sealing surface 32 allows the piston 38 to be made of a low cost material such as rubber impregnated paper which is stamped at assembly . the tension spring housing 48 of the relief valve 20 comprises an opening 50 therein for further allowing oil to pass through the relief valve 20 . the tension spring housing 48 has lower ends 52 which abut the ends 26 of the base 23 , and upper ends 54 which form an annular collar 57 for receiving a spring 60 . the tension spring housing 48 also contains oil inlet ports 56 near the lower ends 52 of the tension spring housing 48 . these oil inlet ports 56 allow oil that has passed through the pores in the mounting plate to enter an area 58 formed between the ends 26 of the base 23 and the valve seat 28 . a spring 60 is positioned within the tension spring housing 48 . the spring 60 has a first end 62 which is received by the collar 57 and a second end 64 which abuts the piston support 40 . the spring 60 normally urges the piston support 40 and piston 38 into sealing relation against the sealing lips or surfaces 32 of the valve seat 28 . to assemble the relief valve 20 , the ends 26 of the base 23 are merely rolled over the ends 52 of the tension spring housing 48 . thus , the relief valve 20 of the present invention can be easily assembled and requires no welding , brazing or soldering as does some of the prior art devices . in addition , assembly can be easily and quickly performed by automated machinery . in light of the above discussion , it is apparent that in the present invention the &# 34 ; outlet neck &# 34 ; ( tension spring housing ) does not serve as the sealing surface for the piston . accordingly , the sealing quality of the relief valve of the present invention is not dependent upon the ability of the outlet neck to maintain its structural integrity against the vertical force exerted in the assembled filter . nevertheless , the outlet neck of the relief valve of the present invention is fully supported against this vertical force exerted toward the open end . the practical effect of the present invention is that 0 . 010 inch thick electroplate steel can be used to fabricate the relief valve , whereas the prior art filters using deep drawn outlet necks to withstand the vertical force require a minimum of 0 . 035 inch thick electroplate steel . of course , thicker steel is more costly to buy and to fabricate . overall , as seen in fig2 the oil flow under normal conditions is as follows : oil leaves the motor and passes through the oil inlet pores in the filter mounting plate ( not shown ); with the relief valve 20 closed , oil moves along the outside of the filter ( not shown ) and enters the filter element 16 ( some oil enters oil inlets 56 and channel 30 but not enough pressure is exerted at this time to overcome the force of the spring 60 and cause the piston 38 to move ); the oil leaves the filter element 16 and enters the centertube 17 upon which it flows through openings 24 , 42 , and 50 in the relief valve 20 ( as shown by arrows &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; in fig2 ); and finally , the oil returns through the threaded central aperture 14 to the motor . as best seen in fig3 under abnormal conditions , i . e ., when the filter element 16 reaches its maximum dirt holding capacity or high pressure surges are experienced , such as cold starts of an engine , the relief valve 20 is caused to open and oil entering the filter 10 from the motor is immediately returned to the motor , thus bypassing the filter element 16 . more particularly , when oil has difficulty passing through the filter element 16 due to being saturated with dirt , or when the motor is started and pressure is increased by the immediate surge of oil into the filter 10 , the oil passing through the oil inlet ports 56 , area 58 and channel 30 increases in pressure and exerts this increased pressure against the piston 38 . if the pressure exceeds a particular threshold , i . e ., the normal force exerted by the spring 60 upon the piston support 40 and the piston 38 , the piston and the piston support 40 are moved toward the open end of the filter ( not shown ), and accordingly the spring 60 is partially compressed . after the piston 38 and piston support 40 move away from the valve seat 28 , a space 39 is provided between the piston 38 and the valve seat 28 allowing the oil to move into the center of the relief valve 20 , whereupon it moves out of the relief valve 20 and into the motor . the above - described flow of oil is represented in fig3 for one side of the relief valve 20 by arrow &# 34 ; b &# 34 ;. if the pressure of the oil again returns to a level below the force normally exerted by the spring 60 upon the piston support 40 , the spring 60 again urges the piston support 40 and piston 38 against the valve seat 28 . of course , the sealing lips or surfaces 32 of the valve seat 28 effectively seal the valve seat 28 against the piston 38 to prevent further flow of oil through the relief valve 20 until the time comes that the oil pressure is again greater than the force normally exerted by the spring 60 upon the piston support 40 and the piston 38 . it has been found through testing of the relief valve 20 of the present invention that the sealing virtues of this relief valve increase with time in hot oil . more particularly , after 500 hours at 300 ° f ., the relief valve 20 tends to instantaneously open at the desired pressure , whereas the relief valves known in the prior art tend to open slowly as the pressure is increased . fig4 illustrates another embodiment of the relief valve of the present invention , wherein the base and the tension spring housing have been modified to allow for a reduced overall height of the relief valve extending above the filter element . this capability may be advantageous for particular applications of the filter . more particularly , fig4 illustrates a relief valve 66 wherein the wall 68 of the tension spring housing 70 is bent downwardly at an angle relative to the plane of the top of the filter element 72 . in addition , side wall 74 of the base 76 is elongated to allow the valve seat 78 to be positioned downwardly and closer to the closed end of the filter ( not shown ). finally , inlet ports 81 allow oil to flow from pores in the filter mounting plate ( not shown ) into the area 85 formed between the wall 74 and the valve seat 78 and finally into the channel 87 . together , the modifications to walls 68 and 74 allow the relief valve 84 in its entirety to be positioned downwardly and closer to the closed end of the filter ( not shown ). these modifications allow for a reduced overall height of the relief valve 84 extending above the filter element 72 , thus providing greater flexibility regarding other parameters for designing and manufacturing an oil filter . fig5 and 6 illustrate other embodiments of the oil filter relief valve of the present invention , i . e ., a relief valve structure which can be used in either the upright position , or in the inverted position . the embodiments shown in fig5 and 6 are capable of fitting one of several different centertube diameters . more particularly , fig5 illustrates a relief valve 89 having a tension spring housing 88 with a wall 90 being modified to extend the upper ends 92 thereof to receive , e . g ., a part of the filter mounting plate for example a gasket 94 . in addition , wall 96 near the opening 98 in the base 100 is angled to receive a correspondingly angled bottom of the valve seat 102 , and wall 104 being angled relative to the plane of the top of the filter element 106 . this embodiment preferably fits , e . g ., diameters of 1 . 6 to 1 . 8 inches for centertube 103 . finally , an annular ring gasket 108 is positioned between the ends 110 of the base 100 and the top of the filter element 106 . with the relief valve 89 in the closed position , oil normally flows through the filter element 106 as described in relation to fig2 while some oil enters the relief valve 89 , as indicated by arrows &# 34 ; c &# 34 ; in fig5 . the embodiment of the relief valve 111 shown in fig6 is similar to that shown in fig5 except that the relief valve 111 is inverted relative to the embodiment shown in fig5 . although the spring 112 and tension spring housing 114 of relief valve 111 now take the approximate position of the spring and tension spring housing of the prior art , i . e ., extending into the centertube 116 of the filter element 118 , note that the base 120 of the relief valve 111 shown in fig6 does not function as the sealing surface for the piston 122 . thus , even if the base 120 should become partially bent under the vertical force caused by assembly of the filter , the sealing lips or surfaces 124 of the valve seat 126 will be able to maintain an effective seal with the piston 122 . the oil inlet ports 128 for this embodiment are positioned in the wall 130 of the base 120 and not in the wall 132 of the tension spring housing 114 , as was seen in fig1 - 5 . the wall 134 of the tension spring housing 114 may fit within various diameters for centertube 116 . for example , the tension spring housing 114 preferably fits into a centertube 116 diameter of 1 . 225 to 1 . 550 inches . the wall 138 in the base 120 receives part of the filter mounting plate for example a gasket 140 . with the relief valve 111 in the closed position , oil normally flows through the filter element 118 , as described in relation to fig2 while some oil enters the relief valve 111 , as indicated by arrows &# 34 ; d &# 34 ; in fig6 . it can be seen from the above description of the preferred embodiments that the present invention provides a relief valve which is less expensive to make and which provides more reliable sealing and relief properties than the prior art . the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention . further , since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art , it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described , and accordingly , all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to , falling within the scope of the invention and the appended claims and their equivalents .	8
fig1 is a cross - sectional schematic illustration of an exemplary gas turbine engine assembly 10 having a longitudinal axis 11 . gas turbine engine assembly 10 includes a fan assembly 12 and a core gas turbine engine 13 . core gas turbine engine 13 includes a high pressure compressor 14 , a combustor 16 , and a high pressure turbine 18 . in the exemplary embodiment , gas turbine engine assembly 10 also includes a low pressure turbine 20 , and a multi - stage booster compressor 22 , and a splitter 44 that substantially circumscribes booster 22 . fan assembly 12 includes an array of fan blades 24 extending radially outward from a rotor disk 26 . gas turbine engine assembly 10 has an intake side 28 and an exhaust side 30 . fan assembly 12 , booster 22 , and turbine 20 are coupled together by a first rotor shaft 31 , and compressor 14 and turbine 18 are coupled together by a second rotor shaft 32 . in operation , air flows through fan assembly 12 and a first portion 50 of the airflow is channeled through booster 22 . the compressed air that is discharged from booster 22 is channeled through compressor 14 wherein the airflow is further compressed and delivered to combustor 16 . hot products of combustion ( not shown in fig1 ) from combustor 16 are utilized to drive turbines 18 and 20 , and turbine 20 is utilized to drive fan assembly 12 and booster 22 by way of shaft 31 . gas turbine engine assembly 10 is operable at a range of operating conditions between design operating conditions and off - design operating conditions . a second portion 52 of the airflow discharged from fan assembly 12 is channeled through a bypass duct 40 to bypass a portion of the airflow from fan assembly 12 around the core gas turbine engine 13 . more specifically , bypass duct 40 extends between a fan casing or shroud 42 and splitter 44 . accordingly , a first portion 50 of the airflow from fan assembly 12 is channeled through booster 22 and then into compressor 14 as described above , and a second portion 52 of the airflow from fan assembly 12 is channeled through bypass duct 40 to provide thrust for an aircraft , for example . gas turbine engine assembly 10 also includes a fan frame assembly 60 to provide structural support for fan assembly 12 and is also utilized to couple fan assembly 12 to core gas turbine engine 13 . fan frame assembly 60 includes a plurality of outlet guide vanes 70 that typically extend substantially radially , between a radially - outer mounting flange and a radially - inner mounting flange , and are circumferentially - spaced within bypass duct 40 . fan frame assembly 60 may also include a plurality of struts that are coupled between a radially outer mounting flange and a radially inner mounting flange . in one embodiment , fan frame assembly 60 is fabricated in arcuate segments in which flanges are coupled to outlet guide vanes 70 and struts . in one embodiment , outlet guide vanes and struts are coupled coaxially within bypass duct 40 . optionally , outlet guide vanes 70 may be coupled upstream or downstream from struts within bypass duct 40 . guide vanes 70 serve to turn the airflow downstream from rotating blades such as fan blades 24 . fan frame assembly 60 is one of various frame and support assemblies of gas turbine engine assembly 10 that are used to facilitate maintaining an orientation of various components within gas turbine engine assembly 10 . more specifically , such frame and support assemblies interconnect stationary components and provide rotor bearing supports . fan frame assembly 60 is coupled downstream from fan assembly 12 within bypass duct 40 such that outlet guide vanes 70 and struts are circumferentially - spaced around the outlet of fan assembly 12 and extend across the airflow path discharged from fan assembly 12 . fig1 also illustrates the bifurcations 80 and 82 which extend radially through the bypass duct 40 between the fan casing or shroud 42 and splitter 44 . the configuration of bifurcations 80 and 82 will be described in greater detail hereafter . while the figures herein illustrate two ( upper and lower ) bifurcations , it is possible that for certain configurations ( including certain engine mounting arrangements ) that either a single bifurcation or three or more bifurcations may be utilized . fig2 is an enlarged elevational cross - sectional view of the gas turbine engine 10 of fig1 , showing the elements of fig1 in greater detail as well as illustrating the location at which the sectional elevational view of fig3 is taken along lines 3 - 3 . fig3 is an elevational view which illustrates , looking rearward from the front of the gas turbine engine , the relationship of the vanes 70 to the reference lines and axes of the gas turbine engine 10 . as shown in fig3 , the guide vanes 70 are circumferentially distributed around the central axis 11 of the gas turbine engine 10 . fig3 illustrates the direction of rotation d of the gas turbine engine during normal operation , the radial direction r , and the lean angle l which leaned typical guide vanes 70 make with respect to the radial direction r . in the embodiment shown , the lean angle l shown in the direction of fan rotation , which provides maximum acoustic benefit . fig4 is a plan view looking downward on elements of the gas turbine engine 10 to illustrate the relationship between the fan assembly 12 , guide vanes 70 , and bifurcation 80 . in this illustration , the guide vanes 70 incorporate lean in the direction of rotation , and a sweep angle toward the rear of the engine from their inner end ( root ) 72 to their outer end ( tip ) 74 . as shown in fig4 , the bifurcation 80 is a hollow duct - like structure through which various mechanical , electrical , pneumatic , hydraulic , or other connections ( including structural supports ) can pass without causing disruption to the airflow through the bypass duct 40 . in a typical installation of the gas turbine engine 10 under the wing of an aircraft ( not shown ), the upper bifurcation houses the engine mounts and various electrical , hydraulic , and pneumatic systems while the lower bifurcation houses oil drains and the like . the bifurcations “ fair ” or guide the flow in aerodynamic fashion around these structures . as will become apparent with respect to fig5 - 7 , the forward edge of the bifurcation 80 is leaned and / or swept to meet with and blend into the trailing edge 73 of the guide vane 70 . the remaining portion of the bifurcation , aft of the leading edge portion , may be similarly leaned or may be more radially oriented as needed to accommodate structural loads and the passage of the various service connections . fig5 shows the aerodynamic integration of the guide vane 70 , and particularly the trailing edge of the guide vane 70 , into the leading edge of the bifurcation 80 . this is an important aspect of implementing the swept and leaned guide vane designs into the integral vane frame engine architecture . lean and / or sweep of the guide vanes and bifurcations may provide aerodynamic , acoustic , and / or other benefits in terms of gas turbine engine performance . angles of sweep s such as about 0 to about 40 degrees aft , relative to the hub radial direction ( normal to the central axis ), and / or circumferentially leaning the outlet guide vane 70 with lean angles l from about − 40 to about 0 degrees , relative to the radial orientation , in the direction of fan rotation , may provide acoustic benefits , such as reductions in noise from the fan assembly 12 . angles of sweep greater than about 5 degrees aft , and angles of lean greater than about − 5 degrees , are believed to be particularly useful . negative angles of sweep , i . e ., forward sweep , is also possible for some applications in comparable angular ranges of about − 40 to about 0 degrees forward . positive lean angles are also possible , in comparable angular ranges of about 0 to about 40 degrees . for the sake of illustration , the drawing figures depict configurations employing a lean angle of about − 10 degrees and a sweep angle of about 25 degrees . because of the sweep incorporated into the geometry of guide vane 70 , the axial location of the vane leading edge 71 varies with radial station . aerodynamic and acoustic optimization also requires different vane turning angles at each radial station . fig6 and 7 illustrate the extremes of these differences , at the vane root 72 and tip 74 locations , respectively . comparison of these figures also illustrates increased axial fan / vane spacing at the vane tip 74 , due to the swept design in a positive ( rearward ) sweep configuration , which provides acoustic benefit . fig4 and 7 depict the axial component of vane sweep , from root to tip , as the distance a . fig8 is an elevational partial cross - sectional view similar to fig2 of another embodiment of the gas turbine engine assembly shown in fig1 . in fig8 , the same numbering scheme for individual elements described above with respect to fig2 is employed . the configuration of fig8 differs from that of fig2 in that the fan frame assembly 60 includes guide vanes 70 along with a smaller number ( such as , for example , 6 ) structural strut members 90 spaced annularly around the bypass duct and a bifurcation 80 . in such a configuration , the strut members 90 are load - bearing elements which reduce the structural loads imparted to the guide vanes 70 . as previously described above , the strut members are incorporated into the bifurcation ( s ) and the guide vane ( s ) adjacent to the bifurcation ( s ) are blended or faired in such that the trailing edge of the guide vane and the leading edge of the respective bifurcation are blended together . fig9 is a perspective view of the gas turbine engine of fig8 in a typical installation configuration for an aircraft ( not shown ). the guide vanes and bifurcations may be fabricated from any suitable materials using any suitable fabrication methods as are known in the art and suitable for the intended configuration and operating environment . configuration details , such as the number and thickness of guide vanes 70 , may influence the degree to which lean and sweep can be implemented without interfering with adjacent vanes . while much of the discussion has focused on an aviation gas turbine engine as the context for integration of the guide vane and bifurcation , it is foreseeable that such geometries and integrations may be suitable for use in other environments wherein a stationary guide vane and bifurcation are located downstream from rotating turbomachinery , such as wind or steam turbines . while the invention has been described in terms of various specific embodiments , those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the claims .	5
referring to fig1 to 6 , an archery bow according to a first embodiment of the invention , generally designated 100 , comprises a bow riser 120 ( also referred to interchangeably herein as a riser , a central interconnecting member , or a central section ), and an upper resilient bow limb 130 a and a lower resilient bow limb 130 b , each extending in longitudinally opposite directions from the riser 120 . in this embodiment the bow 100 is configured as a recurve bow , and further comprises a bow string 150 suitably connected to the outer , free recurve ends 132 a , 132 b of the respective limbs 130 a , 130 b . while in this embodiment the limbs 130 a , 130 b are detachably mounted to the riser 120 in a suitable manner , for example via bolts , screws , snap - fit connections , and so on , in alternative variations of this embodiment one or both limbs may be formed integrally with the riser . the bowstring 150 comprises a center string serving 152 comprising a nock point 154 , that engages with the nock 114 of an arrow 110 when the bow 100 is used therewith ( see fig6 in particular ). by way of non - limiting example , the riser 120 may be made from aluminium , magnesium or carbon , and / or the upper and lower limbs 130 a , 130 b may be made as composite elements , comprising an outer laminate ( e . g ., carbon fiber or fiber glass ) and a wood or syntactic foam core , as is well known in the art . alternatively , the riser 120 and / or the upper and lower limbs 130 a , 130 b may be made from any other suitable materials . the riser is configured to be grasped and held by the support hand and support arm of the archer , and the bowstring is drawn by the archer &# 39 ; s other hand and arm , herein referred to as the drawing hand and the drawing arm respectively . according to the illustrated embodiment , the riser 120 is configured for a right - handed archer , and is thus selectively grasped and held by the left hand of the archer ( which is thus the archer &# 39 ; s support hand ), and comprises an upper section 122 and a lower section 124 , substantially co - linear with the longitudinal axis a of the riser 120 . the riser also has a right side 122 a and a left side 122 b , as seen when looking in the forward direction . lower section 124 comprises handle 160 and a bow stabilizer arrangement 190 , and upper section 122 comprises an arrow support arrangement 180 , a sight arrangement 140 , and a tilt alignment arrangement 170 . the longitudinal axis a may be defined , for convenience , as an axis on the plane of motion of the bowstring , also referred to herein as the central plane p of the bow 100 , said axis a being along the elongate length dimension of the riser 120 , and thus can be generally parallel to the string 150 in its unextended position ( also referred to herein interchangeably as the undrawn position ), for example . central plane p ( see fig2 ) may be conveniently defined as the plane comprising the position of the centerline of bowstring 150 in its normally unextended ( but nominally taught ) position illustrated in fig1 and also comprising the position of the centerline of bowstring 150 in its normally extended ( ready to shoot ) or drawn position . axis a generally intersects a mid - portion of the riser 120 . referring in particular to fig4 and fig4 a , the riser 120 comprises gripping handle 160 , also referred to herein interchangeably as handgrip or handle , configured to be selectively gripped , held and controlled , exclusively by one hand — the support hand — of the archer , in this embodiment by the left hand of the archer . in particular , and as will become clearer herein , the handle is configured for providing the archer , at least during aiming and / or shooting the bow , with a pivot point formed and / or positioned with respect to the riser such as to allow the heel of the palm of the support hand to directly resist the bow loads in a generally palm - down position at this pivot point , and to transmit bow loads to the forearm , arm and shoulder in a generally direct and rectilinear manner , but substantially without introducing much torque at the wrist or elbow , if at all . furthermore , the handle is also configured for providing feedback tactile information to the archer regarding the relative position and / or orientation of the bow relative to the archer and / or relative to the desired position for shooting , in at least one degree of freedom , and may include two or three degrees of freedom , or more degrees of freedom . this allows the archer to “ feel ” that the archer is the required shooting position , which it is intended to be repeatable . furthermore , the archer may also execute corrections to the position and / or orientation of the bow via the fingers of the support hand that are in tactile contact with the sides of the riser , in particular the finger separating portion of the riser . in this embodiment , the handle 160 comprises two finger grips 162 , 164 , each extending laterally in mutually opposite directions from the riser 120 and in this embodiment are co - aligned along an axis b . axis b is thus a transverse axis , substantially orthogonal to axis a , and may intersect axis a as illustrated in fig4 . the finger grips are particularly configured for enabling the archer to grasp and manipulate the riser prior to and optionally until the bowstring 150 is fully drawn . finger grips 162 , 164 are generally cylindrical in form in this embodiment , but in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , may have a different form , for example having an oval cross - section . the handle 160 is comprised on the upper portion of lower part 124 of the riser 120 , and further comprises a crotch - engaging portion 169 inbetween and above the finger grips 162 , 164 . in this embodiment , each one of the finger grips 162 , 164 is configured for being gripped by a group of adjacent fingers ( plus optionally the thumb ). the finger of one such group that is adjacent to the finger of the other group are both referred to herein as “ inner fingers ”. in this embodiment , each such group includes two respective adjacent fingers of the left hand of the archer : left hand finger grip 162 is thus configured to be gripped by the small and ring fingers , while right hand finger grip 164 is thus configured to be gripped by the middle and index fingers ; and the inner fingers in this embodiment are the middle and ring fingers . the right hand grip 164 may also be grasped by the thumb of the support hand , for example as illustrated in fig4 a . in alternative variations of this embodiment , the left hand finger grip 162 is configured to be gripped by the small , ring and middle fingers , while right hand finger grip 164 is configured to be gripped by the index finger ( and optionally the thumb ); and the inner fingers in this embodiment are the middle and index fingers . in yet other alternative variations of this embodiment , the left hand finger grip 162 is configured to be gripped by small finger , while right hand finger grip 164 is configured to be gripped by the ring , middle and index fingers ( and optionally the thumb ); and the inner fingers in this embodiment are the ring and small fingers . in alternative variations of this embodiment , the finger grips may be of different forms one from the other , and / or may be of different sizes one from the other , and / or may have non - aligned axes with respect to one another . in these or other alternative variations of this embodiment , the finger grips may be contoured and / or molded to provide a closer and / or more comfortable contact with the respective fingers of the support hand . the crotch - engaging portion 169 is formed , in this embodiment , as part of the lower part 124 of the riser 120 , above the location of finger grips 162 , 164 , and the crotch - engaging portion 169 is configured for engagingly abutting the crotch between the inner fingers at least when the archer &# 39 ; s left hand grips the handle 160 , and facilitates manipulation of the riser prior to and optionally until the bowstring 150 is fully drawn and released . thus , the grips 162 , 164 are laterally spaced from one another by the thickness of the crotch - engaging portion 169 , which thus forces the inner fingers ( and correspondingly the two respective groups of fingers ) to pivot away from each other in an abduction motion , when the archer &# 39 ; s left hand grips the handle 160 , and the two groups of fingers curl over and grip the respective grips 162 , 164 . at the same time , the aft edge 167 a of the crotch - engaging portion 169 is closely aligned with ( and typically slightly forward of ) the aft edges 161 of finger grips 162 , 164 . this arrangement ensures that the crotch between the two inner fingers ( for example , the crotch between the ring and middle fingers ) of the support hand is firmly abutting the crotch - engaging portion 169 when the archer &# 39 ; s left hand grips the handle 160 , and thus facilitates manipulation of the bow by the support hand to the ready to shoot position , and subsequently enables at least a part of the bow forces generated during use of the bow 100 to be transmitted to , and to be resisted by , the support hand . in alternative variations of this embodiment , the handle 160 may omit the finger grips 162 , 164 , and / or the crotch - engaging portion 169 . the handle 160 further comprises a palm abutment member 166 defining a pivot point 163 , configured for enabling the forces generated by the bow , particularly during aiming and shooting , to be transmitted to and resisted by the archer , via the heel g of the palm of the support hand . in other words , these forces are focused at a single point ( or zone ) of contact , the pivot point 163 . the relationship of these forces with respect to the archer may be controlled by varying the relative position and orientation between the bow and the archer at the pivot point . in this ready to shoot position , the support hand is not grasping the bow per se , but rather is holding it in position when the bowstring is drawn , by virtue of resistance of the bow forces by the archer at the heel of the palm of the support hand , and thus the fingers of the support hand may be in an open position and are not in any significant manner resisting these forces . once the arrow is shot and the bow - induced forces are removed , the bow may fall from the support hand as there are no longer any forces pressing the palm abutment member 166 to the palm of the support hand . the palm abutment member 166 has a generally convex form , particularly in the part thereof adjacent to pivot point 163 , and is structurally and mechanically connected to the riser 120 as a rigid body . the palm abutment member 166 comprises a palm rest 165 configured for resting the palm of the archer &# 39 ; s support hand , and for transmitting loads from the bow 100 to the archer during use , in particular during aiming and shooting of the bow . the palm rest 165 is further configured for aligning the back of the support hand with the support forearm to minimize or eliminate extension of the wrist , and thus to minimize or eliminate torque on the wrist joint during use of the bow 100 . the palm abutment member 166 is in the form of a bulbous body projecting in a generally aft direction from the riser 120 . at least a majority of the palm abutment member 166 projects in a generally aft direction with respect to the finger grips 162 , 164 . the upper facing contact surface 167 is thus formed on an upper portion 166 a of the palm abutment member 166 , and the upper portion 166 a in this embodiment is generally convex , having a gently curved profile when viewed from the side ( fig1 ) and from the rear ( fig3 ). the contact surface 167 is thus configured for being symmetrical about the centrals plane p of the bow , but is otherwise generally complementary to the palm of the support hand , when this hand grasps or holds the handle 160 , as will become clearer herein , and thus contact surface 167 is generally ergonomically compatible with the palm . thus , in this embodiment the palm abutment member 166 is generally symmetrical about central plane p , and is generally centrally disposed with respect to the finger grips 162 , 164 . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and in other embodiments , the contact surface of the body of the palm rest may be ergonomically tailored to the specific geometry of a particular &# 39 ; s archer &# 39 ; s hand , and optionally may be asymmetrical with respect to central plane p . the palm abutment member 166 further comprises a lower portion 166 b that structurally and mechanically connects the upper portion 166 a to the riser 120 , and thereby enables bow forces to be transmitted to , and to be resisted by , the user &# 39 ; s palm via the upper portion 166 a . saddle - shaped fairing portions 168 smoothly blend the contours of palm abutment member 166 at each lateral side thereof with the finger grips 162 , 164 . it is to be noted that the profile of upper facing contact surface 167 gently curves from a near or actual horizontal slope at the forward end thereof , i . e ., at base of the crotch - engaging portion 169 , to a slope of acute angle near the aft end thereof , continuing to the generally convex shape of the aft end including the pivot point 163 . this effectively provides a surface for the palm of the support hand to rest on , this surface being sloping gently downwards in a rearwards direction at a shallow angle , between about 10 ° and about 45 ° to the horizontal . in turn , this ensures that when the palm of the support hand rests on the upper facing contact surface 167 it will be generally aligned with the forearm , and the pivot point 163 is accommodated in the heel g of the palm , when the archer is in the ready to shoot position , as will become clearer below , thereby minimizing torque on the wrist , even when shooting the arrow . in the ready - to - shoot position , i . e ., after the bowstring is drawn , the archer may aim the bow and shoot the arrow . in this position , the fingers of the support hand are not , in general , grasping the finger grips , but rather are in a generally open position , with the heel of the palm resisting substantially all the bow forces which are transmitted thereto at the pivot point 163 , as the thrust bearing contact point , via the palm abutment member 166 . a feature of at least this embodiment is that the palm abutment member 166 is formed with respect to the riser 120 , such that a longitudinal control portion 125 of the riser 120 is laterally aligned with the fingers of the support hand and is in tactile contact with the inner fingers of the support hand . in other words , the two inner fingers are on either side of the control portion 125 , each inner finger is in touching contact with a respective lateral side of the control portion 125 . thereby , the archer may feel the position and orientation of the bow when the bow &# 39 ; s forces are being supported at the heel of the palm of the supporting hand by tactile feedback . the control portion is also referred to interchangeably herein as the finger separating portion of the riser . the control portion 125 is a part of the riser above the palm abutment member 166 having lateral faces 125 a , 125 b that are alignable and capable of providing tactile contact with the respective inner fingers of the support hand when these fingers are in the extended open position . referring to fig4 a , this tactile feedback may provide information to the archer regarding angular disposition or rotation of the riser 120 ( and of the central plane p ) with respect to at least one degree of freedom , for example rotations and / or translations with respect to at least one of three mutually orthogonal axes : a horizontal axis “ p ” defined on a vertical plane v ; and / or a vertical axis “ q ” parallel to longitudinal axis a ; and / or a lateral axis “ r ” parallel to axis b . in particular , engagement of the crotch between the two inner fingers and the crotch engaging portion 169 may further enhance the tactile feedback regarding angular disposition or rotation of the riser 120 ( and of the central plane p ) with respect to the lateral axis r . this tactile feedback may also be important during shooting of the arrow , and also after shooting of the arrow . for example , if releasing of the bowstring is not done properly this may induce a rotation to the riser , which may be felt by the archer via tactile feedback , and compensated for in the next shot . the thumb of the supporting hand may also be used by the archer to enhance tactile feedback , in particular for angular disposition or rotation of the riser 120 ( and of the central plane p ) with respect to the horizontal axis , in conjunction with one or both of the inner fingers . furthermore , since there is a moment arm between the contact point of each of the inner fingers and the control portion 125 ( and also between the contact point of the thumb and the control portion 125 ), and the pivot point 163 , the archer may also manipulate the bow by means of these inner fingers , to thereby make relatively small corrections of the bow &# 39 ; s position and / or orientation , when in the shooting position , with respect to the corresponding degrees of freedom , thereby further enhancing the archer &# 39 ; s ability to aim and control the shooting of the bow . referring again to fig1 , the bow stabilizer arrangement 190 comprises a conventional center stabilizer arrangement , comprising a pole 192 that is connected at an aft end 195 thereof to the lower part 124 , at a location below the handle 160 , and projects therefrom in a forward direction generally aligned with the direction of flight f of the arrow , when this is shot with the bow 100 . the forward end 193 of the pole 192 comprises a counter weight 194 that is chosen to dampen vibrations of the bow 100 about central plane p . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , the bow stabilizer arrangement may comprise a different arrangement to that of the illustrated embodiment . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , the bow stabilizer arrangement may be altogether omitted from the bow . the upper section 122 is formed with a recess 126 on the right hand side 122 a thereof , which is generally defined as the side of the riser that faces away from the support hand , the recess 126 comprising a longitudinal recess wall 127 having a laterally facing planar surface 129 substantially parallel to central plane p , but spaced in a leftward direction ( with respect to the archer , when using the bow ), a lower shelf 123 and an upper recess wall 128 . referring in particular to fig3 and 4 , the arrow support arrangement 180 comprises a post 182 and an arrow rest 184 . the arrow rest 184 is resilient and projects from surface 127 in a lateral rightward and forward direction ( with respect to the archer , when using the bow ), i . e ., in a direction generally facing away from the support hand of the archer , in a position to support the arrow 110 from an underside thereof , as best seen in fig6 . the post 182 also projects from surface 127 in a lateral rightward direction ( with respect to the archer , when using the bow ), and engages via abutting end 183 a side of the arrow shaft 117 as it sits atop the rest 182 , and ensures that the axis 119 of the arrow 110 is aligned with the central plane p . the post 182 is adjustable , and an adjustment mechanism 186 enables abutting end 183 to be moved laterally with respect to central plane p to thereby control the position of the arrow 110 with respect thereto . furthermore , the post 182 is also spring loaded , and serves to dampen the amplitude of possible sideways motion of the arrow as it is released from the bow . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , the bow 100 may omit the arrow support arrangement 180 , and additionally or alternatively , the lower shelf 123 of the recess may be configured for supporting the shaft 117 of an arrow 110 when positioned for shooting . the bow further comprises a clicker 188 for performing a draw check ; however , in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , the bow may omit the clicker . referring in particular to fig5 , and 6 , the sight arrangement 140 can be based on conventional sight arrangements known in the art , and comprises a spacer arm 142 , the aft end 141 thereof being affixed to the movable plate 174 of tilt alignment arrangement 170 , via clamping arrangement 143 , and the relative position therebetween with respect to the z - axis being adjustably variable by means of said clamping arrangement 143 . the position of sight 147 with respect to the movable plate 174 may be adjusted by the archer along one or more of three mutually orthogonal axes x , y and z of coordinate axes system c ( which is a local coordinate system referred to the bow ), as desired or required , within limits . axis z is generally parallel to the path f , axis y is generally aligned with the vertical direction , and axis x is orthogonal to axes y and z and is generally in a horizontal direction ( though not to be confused with horizontal direction h which is instead defined on the vertical plane v , which is parallel to the y - z plane ). the forward end 145 of spacer arm 142 comprises a rail member 149 aligned with the y - axis . a shuttle member 146 is movably mounted on said rail member 149 , and the position of the shuttle member 146 may be fixedly adjusted with respect to the rail member 149 , and thus with respect to the y - axis , by means of clamp 146 a of the shuttle member 146 . the sight 147 is movably mounted to a transverse arm 148 , which is mounted to and carried by shuttle member 146 . the position of the transverse arm 148 may be fixedly adjusted with respect to the shuttle member 146 , and thus with respect to the x - axis , by means of a suitable rail arrangement and clamp 146 b of the shuttle member 146 . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , the sight arrangement 140 may be mounted to the bow 100 in a manner that is independent of the tilt alignment arrangement 170 . in other words , in such cases , the sight arrangement 140 may be mounted to a different part of the riser 120 than the tilt alignment arrangement 170 , for example , and may remain mounted with respect to the riser 120 , even if the tilt alignment arrangement 170 is removed from the riser 120 . for example , the tilt alignment arrangement may comprise a line or axis etched , cut or marked on a transparent plate that may be mounted to the left side or right side of the riser 120 , this line or axis being at the desired tilt angle with respect to the central plane p of the bow . further , this tilt alignment arrangement may provide an adjustable tilt angle by providing the aforesaid line or axis in the form of a radial marker that is pivotable about an axis parallel to the z - axis , and the angular position of the radial marker on the transparent plate is correlated to the tilt angle . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , the bow may omit the sight arrangement and / or the tilt alignment arrangement , and thus aiming of the bow with respect to a desired target and / or tilting of the bow with respect to a desired vertical plane may be accomplished by simple visual estimation . referring in particular to fig5 , 6 and 7 , the tilt alignment arrangement 170 is configured for enabling the archer to accurately and repeatably tilt the central plane p of the bow at a desired angle θ with respect to a vertical plane v for shooting an arrow along a desired path f nominally on this vertical plane v . in the illustrated embodiment , where the bow 100 is configured as a right - handed bow in which the riser 120 is to be grasped by the left hand of the archer , the bow is tilted by angle θ such that the upper end 132 a is displaced relatively to the left , while the lower end is displaced relatively to the right , ( with respect to the archer , when using the bow ), and thus angle θ is measured as the anticlockwise tilting of the central plane p with respect to vertical plane v when viewed by the archer using the bow 100 . vertical plane v may be defined as a vertical plane that is aligned with the shaft of the arrow 110 when this is in the ready to shoot position with respect to the bow . thus , and referring in particular to fig7 , for convenience the vertical plane v may be chosen such that the intersection of plane p with vertical plane v is along path f , which is of course aligned with the axis 119 of the arrow 110 when this is in the ready to shoot position with respect to the bow 100 . path f may be tilted with respect to a horizontal direction h , defined on the vertical plane v , by an elevation angle α . in one particular example , angle α may be zero , and thus path f is initially aligned with the horizontal direction h . the tilting of the bow , and thus the central plane p , by an acute angle θ effectively minimizes or eliminates any moments induced by the bow forces on the support arm by dividing these forces into two , to thereby generate two generally equal moments on either lateral side of the support arm , which more - or - less balance out in the lateral direction . accordingly , less effort is required by the archer to balance the bow along the lateral direction when in the ready to shot position , as compared with shooting the bow with a zero tilt angle θ , facilitating aiming and shooting of the arrow . furthermore , by having the arrow resting on the upper - facing right side 122 a of the riser , i . e ., on the side of the riser that faces away from the support arm of the archer and towards the drawing arm of the archer , slap of the bowstring on the support arm or support hand after the bowstring 150 is released is minimized or eliminated , while holding the bow substantially at the central plane p . referring again to fig5 and 6 , the tilt alignment arrangement 170 is configured for facilitating for the archer tilting of the central plane at an adjustable tilt angle θ , and comprises a bracket base 172 , configured for being attached to the planar surface 129 of the recess wall 127 of recess 126 , and the movable plate 174 which is pivotably mounted to bracket base 172 about pivot axis 173 , which is substantially parallel with respect to path f . the sight arrangement 140 is mounted to the movable plate 174 so that it moves with the movable plate 174 as a rigid body . the sight arrangement 140 is mounted on the right hand side 122 a of the riser , which faces in a generally upward direction when the bow is tilted in a positive angle θ . in particular , the rail member 149 has at least one longitudinal edge 144 that is aligned with the movable plate 174 and is substantially orthogonal to pivot axis 173 . this longitudinal edge 144 may be used as a vertical datum to be aligned with the vertical plane v by the archer when aiming and shooting with the bow . thus , when the bracket angle φ between the bracket base 172 and the movable plate 174 is zero , the longitudinal edge 144 is effectively aligned with or is parallel to the central plane p of the bow , when seen along a direction parallel to path f . as the movable plate 174 is rotated about axis 173 to provide an acute bracket angle φ between the bracket base 172 and the movable plate 174 , correspondingly the longitudinal edge 144 is angularly displaced from the central by a tilt angle θ that is equal to the bracket angle φ , when seen along a direction parallel to path f . thus , by setting the bracket angle φ to be equal to a desired tilt angle θ , and then aligning the longitudinal edge 144 with the desired vertical plane v , the central plane p of the bow 100 is automatically tilted to tilt angle θ with respect to this vertical plane v . as already mentioned , the bracket angle φ may be set by angularly displacing the movable plate 174 with respect to bracket base 172 about pivot axis 173 . a locking arrangement 176 locks the tilt alignment arrangement 170 at this angle , and comprises in this embodiment an arcuate bracket 177 affixed to bracket base 172 substantially orthogonal thereto and having an arcuate slot 179 centered on axis 173 , and a pin 178 projecting from the forward end of alignment plate 174 and received in said slot 179 . thus , as movable plate 174 pivots with respect to bracket base 172 , pin 178 moves along slot 179 , and when the desired bracket angle φ is achieved , the movable plate 174 may be locked in position with respect to bracket base 172 by means of locking nut 171 that effectively clamps the arcuate bracket 177 between the movable plate 174 and the nut 171 . optionally , the arcuate bracket 177 may be marked with graduations marking specific angular intervals ( not shown ) to facilitate setting the desired bracket angle φ and thus the desired tilt angle φ . alternatively , other methods may be employed to provide a desired bracket angle φ — for example , desired bracket angle φ may be set by sight estimation only , or by temporarily placing a mechanical wedge ( having a wedge angle at the desired bracket angle φ ) between the movable plate 174 and the bracket base 172 . in the illustrated embodiment , the tilt angle θ may be varied from zero degrees to about 35 ° or up to about 45 °, but may be greater or less than this upper value . for example , with a standard bow longitudinal length of about 1 . 30 meters and a tilt angle θ of about 32 °, the free ends of the bow are laterally separated by about 80 cm , which correlates with the minimum spacing between adjacent archers according to fita rules . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments the tilt alignment arrangement may be configured for enabling the tilt angle θ to be varied between zero degrees to less than 90 °. in use , the archer may adjust the bracket angle φ until a tilt angle θ is reached which minimizes the moment on the support arm when the bow is in the ready to shoot position , or when the tilt angle θ which provides a comfortable load on the support arm , while maintaining the free ends of the bow laterally displaced within desired limits , and then sets the angle bracket at the corresponding bracket angle φ . once the bracket angle φ is set for a particular archer , it need not be changed again until the archer wishes to do so , or when the archer is to be used by a different archer having a different preference for the tilt angle . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , the tilt alignment arrangement may be mounted on the left hand side 122 b of the riser , which faces in a generally downward direction when the bow is tilted in a positive angle θ , mutatis mutandis . the sight arrangement 140 comprises a sight 147 , which in this embodiment comprises a generally annular member , the open center of which is visually aligned with the target by the archer when the archer is aiming the bow at the target . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , though , the sight may additionally or alternatively comprise cross - hairs , magnification lenses , and so on , as in known in the art . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , the tilt alignment arrangement may be non - adjustable , i . e ., fixed , and thus provides a fixed tilt angle θ , i . e ., enables a fixed tilting of the bow &# 39 ; s central plane to be achieved by aligning a suitable datum surface of the bow , such as for example the aforementioned longitudinal edge 144 , in the vertical direction . thus , the tilt alignment arrangement 170 may be replaced with a non - adjustable wedge having a wedge angle corresponding to the desired bracket angle φ ( and thus tilt angle θ ), and thus , alignment of the longitudinal edge 144 with the vertical plane v ensures that the central plane p is the corresponding tilt angle θ to the vertical plane v . the wedge may be configured for enabling the sight arrangement 140 to mounted thereby to the right hand side 122 a of the riser , which faces in a generally upward direction when the bow is tilted in a positive angle θ , or alternatively the wedge may be configured for enabling the sight arrangement 140 to mounted thereby to the left hand side 122 b of the riser , which faces in a generally downward direction when the bow is tilted in a positive angle θ . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , the tilt alignment arrangement may be integrally formed with the riser 120 , for example in the form of a wedge - like protrusion on a lateral side of the riser . thus , when the sight arrangement 140 is mounted to the integral wedge protrusion , the relative position of the sight arrangement 140 is such that alignment of the longitudinal edge 144 with the vertical plane v ensures that the central plane p is the corresponding tilt angle θ to the vertical plane v . the integral wedge may be formed on the right side 122 a of the riser to enable the sight arrangement 140 to mounted thereby to the right hand side of the riser , which faces in a generally upward direction when the bow is tilted in a positive angle θ , or alternatively the wedge may be formed on the left side of the riser to enable the sight arrangement 140 to mounted thereby to the left hand side 122 b of the riser , which faces in a generally downward direction when the bow is tilted in a positive angle θ . alternatively , the sight arrangement 140 may be suitably mounted to a forward edge of the riser . alternatively , it may only be necessary to provide a datum vertical surface or edge on the bow that may be alignable with the vertical plane v , wherein this datum vertical surface is at the fixed tilt angle θ with respect to the central plane p of the bow , and such that when this datum vertical surface is aligned with vertical plane v , the axis 119 of the arrow is aligned on this vertical plane v , or at least in another vertical plane that is parallel to this vertical plane v , and the central plane p is automatically tilted at tilt angle θ to the vertical . for example , the upper recess wall 128 may be set and the desired angle θ to planar surface 129 of the recess 126 , and thus this angled upper recess wall provides such a datum vertical surface . in one particular alternative variation of the embodiment illustrated in fig1 to 6 , an integrated assembly is provided for the sight arrangement and the tilt alignment arrangement . referring to fig8 and 9 which illustrate an embodiment of the bow according to such an alternative variation , the integrated assembly , designated with reference numeral 140 ′, is mounted to left hand side 122 b of the upper part 122 of riser 120 , which faces in a generally downward direction when the bow is tilted in a positive angle θ . the integrated assembly 140 ′ comprises a sight 147 ′, which in this embodiment comprises a generally annular member , the open center of which is visually aligned with the target by the archer . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , though , the sight may additionally or alternatively comprise cross - hairs , magnification lenses and so on , as in known in the art . the position of sight 147 ′ with respect to the upper part 122 may be adjusted by the archer along one or more of three mutually orthogonal axes x , y and z of coordinate axes system c . as before , axis z is generally parallel to the path f , axis y is generally aligned with the vertical direction , and axis x is orthogonal to axes y and z and is generally in a horizontal direction ( though not to be confused with horizontal direction h which is instead defined on the vertical plane v , which is parallel to the y - z plane ). the integrated assembly 140 ′ comprises a spacer arm 142 ′, the aft end 141 ′ thereof being affixed to the left side 122 b of upper part 122 via clamping arrangement 143 ′, and the relative position between spacer arm 142 ′ and the of upper part 122 with respect to the z - axis being adjustably variable by means of said clamping arrangement 143 ′. the forward end 145 ′ of spacer arm 142 ′ comprises an adjustable bracket arrangement 170 ′ comprising a bracket plate 174 ′, which is pivotable along a plane parallel to the x - y plane about pivot axis 173 ′. the bracket plate 174 ′ comprises a rail member 149 ′ that it is desired to be aligned with the y - axis in operation of the bow , when the central plane p thereof is tilted at a desired angle θ with respect to the vertical plane v , similarly to the case described above for the embodiment of fig5 to 7 , mutatis mutandis . the bracket plate 174 ′ further comprises an arcuate slot 179 ′ centered on axis 173 ′, and the adjustable bracket arrangement 170 ′ comprises a pin ( not shown ) projecting from the forward end of forward end 145 ′ and received in said slot 179 ′. thus , as bracket plate 174 ′ is pivotably rotated with respect to forward end 145 ′, the pin moves along slot 179 ′, and when the corresponding desired bracket angle φ is achieved , the bracket plate 174 ′ is locked in position with respect to upper part 122 by means of locking nut 171 ′ that effectively clamps the bracket plate 174 ′ between the forward end 145 ′ and the nut 171 ′. in the embodiment illustrated in fig8 and 9 , the left hand side 122 b of upper part 122 is substantially flat and substantially parallel to the central plane p of the bow . however , this need not necessarily be the case , and in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or other embodiments , the upper part 122 may have any desired configuration , and the spacer arm 142 ′ may be mounted to the upper part 122 in any desired manner and to any desired part thereof , and in such cases , the position of the central plane p with respect to the bracket plate 174 ′ ( i . e ., the intersection of the central plane p , or of a plane parallel to plane p , with the bracket plate 174 ′) is known and may optionally be marked at forward end 145 ′ ( for example as an etched or printed line thereon ) to serve as a datum from which the desired bracket angle φ is measured . a shuttle member 146 ′ is mounted on said rail member 149 ′, and the position of the shuttle member 146 ′ may be fixedly adjusted with respect to the rail member 149 ′, and thus with respect to the y - axis , by means of clamp 146 a ′ of the shuttle member 146 ′. the sight 147 ′ is carried by a transverse arm 148 ′, which is mounted to and carried by shuttle member 146 ′. the position of the transverse arm 148 ′ may be fixedly adjusted with respect to the shuttle member 146 ′, and thus with respect to the x - axis , by means of clamp 146 b ′ of the shuttle member 146 ′. in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , the integrated assembly 140 ′ may be suitably mounted on the right hand side 122 a of the riser , which faces in a generally upward direction when the bow is tilted in a positive angle θ , mutatis mutandis . in alternative variations of this embodiment , and / or in other embodiments , the integrated assembly may be non - adjustable , i . e ., fixed , and thus provides a fixed tilt angle θ , i . e ., enables a fixed tilting of the bow &# 39 ; s central plane to be achieved by aligning a suitable datum surface of the bow , such as for example the aforementioned longitudinal edge 144 ′, in the vertical direction . thus , the tilt alignment arrangement 170 ′ may be replaced with a non - adjustable wedge having a wedge angle corresponding to the desired bracket angle φ ( and thus tilt angle θ ), and thus , alignment of the longitudinal edge 144 ′ with the vertical plane v ensures that the central plane p is the corresponding tilt angle θ to the vertical plane v . this alternative variation of the integrated assembly may be configured for being mounted thereby to the right hand side 122 a of the riser , which faces in a generally upward direction when the bow is tilted in a positive angle θ , or alternatively for being mounted thereby to the left hand side 122 b of the riser , which faces in a generally downward direction when the bow is tilted in a positive angle θ . operation of the archery bow of fig1 to 6 according to one aspect of the invention directed to a method for archery will now be explained in particular with reference to fig5 to 7 . prior to shooting an arrow with the bow 100 , a desired tilt angle θ between the central plane p of the bow 100 and the vertical plane v is chosen , and the corresponding ( and substantially equal ) bracket angle φ is set by angularly displacing the movable plate 174 with respect to bracket base 172 about pivot axis 173 . for example , the desired tilt angle θ may be 30 °. of course , once the desired tilt angle θ is set , there is no further need to manipulate the tilt alignment arrangement 170 until a different tilt angle θ is desired for the bow 100 . operation of the archery bow according to the embodiment of fig8 , 9 according to one aspect of the invention directed to a method for archery , is similar to that described above for the embodiment of fig1 to 6 , mutatis mutandis . referring also to fig1 , the archer , who in this example is considered to be right handed , holds the bow riser 120 with the support hand sh , which in this case is the left hand , and adopts a sideways stance . in particular , the left arm ( the support arm ) is fully extended and the left hand grasps the handle 160 , such that the small finger and ring finger are flexed and curled over the left finger grip 162 , and the middle finger and the index finger are flexed and curled over the right finger grip 164 , with the crotch between the middle finger and the ring finger firmly abutting the crotch - engaging portion 169 . at the same time , the palm of the left hand is firmly rested onto the palm rest 165 and thus in a gently sloping position with respect to the horizontal plane . the left forearm is rotated in a supination direction so as to tilt the central plane p of the bow 100 until the longitudinal edge 144 is aligned vertically with the vertical plane v , which automatically results in the central plane p being tilted at tilt angle θ with respect to vertical plane v . this vertical alignment between the longitudinal edge 144 and the “ imaginary ” vertical plane v may be accomplished via pure visual estimation by the archer , or the archer may align this longitudinal edge 144 with any suitable vertical line ( for example the edge of a building ) in the archer &# 39 ; s line of sight . the arrow 110 , which was previously loaded so that the shaft thereof is supported atop rest 184 and in contact with stop 182 , is then drawn by pulling the center string serving 154 with the drawing hand , i . e ., the right hand , with the arrow nock firmly held by the nock point 152 . at this point , and referring to fig7 and fig4 a in particular , the net force t generated by the bow limbs 130 a , 130 b as the bowstring is drawn is resisted by the heel g of the palm of the support hand ( which is opened and thus the fingers are not grasping the handle ) and support arm of the archer , and are thus generally aligned with a sagittal plane of the archer , which is substantially parallel to the vertical plane v . the direction of the force t is thus through the wrist , and little or no torque is applied to the wrist joint or elbow joint . the arrow can then be aimed and subsequently released , and the tactile feedback provided by the control portion 125 in contact with the open inner fingers enables the archer to perceive the relative position and orientation of the bow with respect to the archer , and to effect fine adjustments to this relative position and orientation . a feature of this method for archery is that the line of force t as resisted by the archer thus passes through the heel of the palm , the forearm , elbow and shoulder of the support arm holding the bow , without the need to bend the arm or wrist to avoid impact of arrow or the bowstring on the support arm . instead , the support arm is effectively laterally spaced from the path f of the arrow by the tilting of central plane p with respect to the vertical plane v , and also by having the arrow supported on the riser on the side of the riser that is facing away from the support hand , i . e ., on the right side of the right - handed riser . another feature of this method for archery is that the limited outward rotation of the wrist of the support arm to provide the tilt angle θ helps to further minimizes or eliminate torque on the wrist when the bow is used . according to other aspects of the invention , the bow may be used for shooting an arrow when the central plane p is fully aligned with the desired vertical plane v , or when fully aligned with the horizontal plane , mutatis mutandis . referring to fig1 , a second embodiment of the archery bow , designated herein with the reference numeral 200 , comprises all the features and elements of , and may be used in a similar manner to , the embodiment disclosed above with respect to fig1 to 9 , mutatis mutandis , with the main difference that the archery bow 200 is configured as a compound bow rather than as a recurve bow . accordingly , while bow 200 comprises limbs 230 a , 230 b and riser 220 , substantially similar to the limbs 130 a , 130 b and riser 120 of bow 100 as disclosed herein , mutatis mutandis , bow 200 additionally comprises a conventional pulley arrangement 259 and bowstring 250 , rather than the recurve bowstring 150 of the first embodiment , mutatis mutandis . a third embodiment of the archery bow ( not shown ) comprises all the features and elements of , and may be used in a similar manner to , the embodiment disclosed above with respect to fig1 to 9 , mutatis mutandis , with the main difference that the archery bow according to the third embodiment is configured as a long bow rather than as a recurve bow . accordingly , while bow according to the third embodiment also comprises limbs and a riser , substantially similar to the limbs 130 a , 130 b and riser 120 of bow 100 as disclosed herein , mutatis mutandis , the long bow according to the third embodiment comprises free ends of the limbs characteristic of long bows , rather than the recurve free ends of the first embodiment , mutatis mutandis . while the above embodiments have been described for a right - handed bow , in which a right - handed archer grasps the respective riser with the left hand , corresponding alternative embodiment ( not illustrated ) of a left - handed bow for a left - handed archer comprises all the elements and features of , and may be used in a similar manner to , the above embodiments , mutatis mutandis , with the main difference that such a left - handed bow is essentially a mirror image of , but otherwise substantially similar to , the respective right handed bow herein described , mutatis mutandis , and its respective riser is thus grasped by the right hand of the archer , which is now the support hand of the archer . in the method claims that follow , alphanumeric characters and roman numerals used to designate claim steps are provided for convenience only and do not imply any particular order of performing the steps . finally , it should be noted that the word “ comprising ” as used throughout the appended claims is to be interpreted to mean “ including but not limited to ”. while there has been shown and disclosed example embodiments in accordance with the invention , it will be appreciated that many changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention .	5
fig3 shows an inflight entertainment ( ife ) system with serial networking line replaceable unit ( sn - lru ) chains 311 - 313 and a head end line replaceable unit ( he - lru ) ring 310 in some embodiments of the invention . as illustrated , sn - lru chain 311 and he - lru ring 310 are positioned outside of the seats , while sn - lru chains 312 , 313 are positioned at the seats . in these embodiments , multiple he - lrus 309 are physically connected by ring via fiber optic links 308 . multiple chains of sn - lrus 301 - 305 are physically connected to he - lrus 309 at their edges ( ends ) via links 307 , for example fiber optics , such that the two edges of each chain are physically connected to a different one of he - lrus 309 . many types of sn - lrus can be employed , for example serial networking onboard network interface unit 301 , serial networking offboard network interface unit 302 , serial networking data loader 303 , serial networking cmt 304 ( generally positioned in the galley ), and serial networking vdus 305 . each sn - lru 301 - 305 discovers through topology messaging the nearest he - lru 309 . in the illustrated embodiment , starting on one sn - lru chain 311 edge , unit 301 is connected to one of he - lrus 309 via a link 307 in the upstream direction while connecting to unit 302 in the downstream direction via another link 306 . unit 301 receives from the he - lru 309 in the upstream direction a presence message including a hop count to the he - lru 309 , increments the hop count , and passes the updated presence message along in the downstream direction to unit 302 . as the presence message progresses in the downstream direction , each successive sn - lru in the chain ( e . g . 302 , 303 , 304 ) increments the hop count . continuing on this chain , unit 302 is connected in the downstream direction to data loader 303 over another link 306 . data loader 303 is connected in the downstream direction to cmt 304 over another link 306 . in the final link of this sn - lru chain 311 , cmt 304 at the edge of the chain is connected back to a different one of he - lrus 309 over yet another link 307 . in the other direction , cmt 304 receives from that he - lru 309 a presence message including a hop count , increments the hop count , and passes the updated presence message along in the upstream direction to data loader 303 . each successive sn - lru in the chain 311 increments the hop count accordingly . the ife system can include at least one additional sn - lru chain 312 and probably at least two additional sn - lru chains 312 , 313 . the additional sn - lru chain or chains 312 , 313 can consist of most any type of sn - lru , such as vdus 305 . on each edge of these additional sn - lru chains 312 , 313 , one of serial networking vdus 305 is connected to one of he - lrus 309 over a link and within each of these sn - lru chains serial networking vdus 305 are connected over links . these additional sn - lru chains 312 , 313 generally disseminate presence messages and hop count information in the same manner as the previously described sn - lru chain 311 . separately , each he - lru discovers through topology messaging whether the he - lru ring 310 is closed or open . each he - lru 309 receives a presence message from neighboring he - lrus 309 and relays the presence message on its non - ingress port until it is determined whether presence message loops - back to the originating he - lrus 309 , in which case it is revealed that the he - lru ring 310 is closed , or does not loop - back to the originating he - lrus 309 , in which case it is revealed that the he - lru ring 310 is open . server functionality ( e . g . application server , audio server , video server , game server , file server , passenger information system server ) is integrated into he - lrus 309 in a modular , scalable , robust fashion that minimizes the impact on the ife system in the event one or more of he - lrus 309 fails . network management processors within he - lrus 309 and sn - lrus restore network access of live sn - lrus 301 - 305 to he - lrus 309 under the following scenarios : ( a ) a connection break along an sn - lru chain 311 - 313 ; ( b ) failure of an sn - lru 301 - 305 in an sn - lru chain 311 - 313 ; ( c ) failure of an he - lru 309 at one end of an sn - lru chain 311 - 313 . moreover , network management processors within he - lrus 309 restore network access of sn - lrus 301 - 305 as described with respect to fig6 a - 7d to live he - lrus 309 under the following scenarios : ( a ) a connection break between any two he - lrus 309 ; ( b ) failure of an he - lru 309 . while the number of sn - lrus 301 - 305 in an sn - lru chain 311 - 313 will vary , relatively short sn - lru chains generally offer a higher level of redundancy and failover bandwidth to sn - lrus . in some embodiments , error indications are provided , e . g . error codes , to facilitate identification , diagnosis , and / or location of the error . in some embodiments the error indications are transmitted to offboard monitoring and / or maintenance systems . fig4 shows a representative he - lru 400 adapted for use in an ife system with sn - lru chains and an he - lru ring in some embodiments of the invention . in these embodiments , he - lru 400 has integrated servers of six different types , including one or more application servers 401 , video servers 402 , audio servers 403 , game servers 404 , file servers 405 and passenger flight information system servers 406 , all of which are connected to an integrated network management processor 407 over internal connections . by way of example , network management processor 407 may be a managed switch . application servers 401 are system controllers that provide the following types of services : content management ; channel packaging ; transaction processing ; billing system integration ; services management ; provisioning integration ; system administration and management ; encryption management ( key servers , authentication etc . ); software client management ; server integration for audio , video , gaming and file servers or the like . video servers 402 provide the following types of services : vod , near vod ; pay per view ; network personal video recorder ; broadcast video or the like . audio servers 403 provide the following types of services : audio on demand ; broadcast audio or the like . game servers 404 provide the following types of services : logic and programming for games ; dynamically delivered web pages for browser based games or the like . file servers 405 provide the following types of services : cached internet content ; cached user data and user profile data or the like . passenger flight information system servers 406 use inputs from the aircraft navigation system and compute various flight information including time to destination , speed , altitude , outside air temperature , time at destination , aircraft location for display to passenger either in text form or graphically such as a moving map display or the like . processor 407 has n ports reserved for physical connections to sn - lrus on the edges of chains and k ports reserved for physical connections to other he - lrus in a ring . the k ports reserved for he - lru ring connections are connected to k he - lru port transceivers 408 over internal connections . port transceivers 408 are in turn connected to a fiber optic panel connector 420 over k internal fiber optic connections . similarly , the n ports reserved for sn - lru chain connections are connected to n sn - lru port transceivers 410 over internal connections . port transceivers 410 are in turn connected to panel connector 420 over n internal fiber optic connections . in some embodiments , the internal fiber optic connections are simplex by the time they connect to panel connector 420 ( e . g . port transceivers 408 and 410 are bidirectional or a coupler is used to convert a unidirectional duplex transceiver output to bidirectional simplex format ). panel connector 420 blind mates with a connector 421 when he - lru 400 is installed in a rack at the head end . connector 421 has k external fiber optic cables reserved for he - lru ports that connect to the corresponding he - lru internal fiber optic connections when he - lru 400 is installed in the rack . similarly , connector 421 has n external fiber optic cables reserved for the sn - lru chain ports that connect to the corresponding sn - lru internal fiber optic connections when he - lru 400 is installed in the rack . k and n are each greater than one . moreover , he - lru 400 has t data ports , where k + n is less than or equal to t . under control of processor 407 , he - lru 400 provides presence information to any sn - lru that is connected directly to he - lru 400 over one of the n external fiber optic cables reserved for sn - lru chain ports ( i . e . any edge sn - lru ). under control of processor 407 , he - lru 400 also provides its own presence information to any he - lru that is connected directly to he - lru 400 over one of the k external fiber optic cables reserved for he - lru ports and relays on its non - ingress port any presence information ( that he - lru did not originate ) received on these ports from neighboring he - lrus . fig5 shows a generic sn - lru 500 adapted for use in an ife system with sn - lru chains and an he - lru ring in some embodiments of the invention . in these embodiments , sn - lru 500 includes an lru core 501 having hardware and software elements , a first fiber optic transceiver 503 , a second fiber optic transceiver 504 and a network management processor 502 , which may be a managed switch . processor 502 is communicatively coupled with first transceiver 503 and second transceiver 504 via internal copper connections . processor 502 is communicatively coupled with lru core 501 via an internal connection , such as a copper connection . first transceiver 503 is physically connected via , for example , an external fiber optic link to an upstream he - lru or sn - lru . second transceiver 504 is similarly physically connected via an external fiber optic link to a downstream he - lru or sn - lru . processor 502 provides lru core 501 network access to an upstream he - lru through first transceiver 503 or to a downstream he - lru through second transceiver 504 . the upstream and downstream directions have been arbitrarily assigned to the network path on the left and the right of the lru respectively . the structure and function of lru core 501 varies by sn - lru type . an lru core for on board network interface unit 301 enables access to public address audio and data for passenger convenience features such as reading light control , flight attendant call and flight information for applications such as moving maps , etc . an lru core for off board network interface unit 302 enables communication with terrestrial networks generally through satellite - or ground - based radio frequency networks . this lru core may enable bidirectional or unidirectional communication depending on implementation . bidirectional versions enable connectivity with terrestrial networks ( broadband connectivity ). unidirectional versions enable access to off aircraft broadcast data sources such as television ( broadcast video ). an lru core for data loader 303 enables media content updates ( movies , audio , games , internet web pages , files , etc . ), key updates and transaction data transfers . this lru core enables data transfer using one of the following mechanisms : removable disk or tape inserted into data loader 303 , portable disk drive or tape drive carried on board and temporarily connected to the ife system , wireless lan , or other wireless link . an lru core for cmt 304 enables flight attendants to perform system management and administration functions such as : lru reboot , video channel preview , flight attendant override , attendant call status , reading light status , built in test , interrogation and system test . lru cores for vdus 305 each include a physical display device ( e . g . flat panel display ) that enables a passenger to view video content and navigate an ife menu . these lru cores may additionally provide pcu functionality , such as volume control , channel control , lighting control , attendant call button , menu buttons and / or menu selection buttons , via a display device touch screen or mechanically actuated buttons . lru cores for display interface units ( not shown ) include a physical interface to an external display device ( e . g . flat panel display ) that enables a passenger to view video content and navigate an ife menu . like the lru cores for vdus , these lru cores may additionally provide pcu functionality , such as volume control , channel control , lighting control , attendant call button , menu buttons and / or menu selection buttons , via a display device touch screen or mechanically actuated buttons . fig6 a through 6d illustrate serial networking data path maintenance in some embodiments of the invention . fig6 a shows physical wiring of an ife system having a ring of four he - lrus and a single chain of four sn - lrus physically wired to he - lru 1 and he - lru 2 . sn - lrus keep apprised of the nearest he - lru through topology messaging and regulate link participation in serial networking data paths to establish and maintain loop - free data paths that minimize the maximum number of network hops of any sn - lru to an he - lru . fig6 b shows the serial networking topology when there are no faults in the chain . the link between sn - lru 2 and sn - lru 3 has been removed from the data path , resulting in establishment of two loop - free data paths wherein the maximum number of hops to an he - lru is two . fig6 c shows the serial networking topology after reconfiguration upon detecting that the link between sn - lru 1 and sn - lru 2 has failed . this reconfiguration is made by adding the link between sn - lru 2 and sn - lru 3 to the data path to provide all sn - lrus a least hop data path to an he - lru lru wherein the maximum number of hops to an he - lru is three . fig6 d shows the serial networking topology after reconfiguration upon detecting that sn - lru 4 has failed . this reconfiguration is made by adding the link between sn - lru 2 and sn - lru 3 to the data path to provide all sn - lrus that remain active a least hop data path to an he - lru wherein the maximum number of hops to an he - lru is three . the additions and subtractions of links illustrated in fig6 b through 6d are made under control of the network management processor in sn - lru 1 , sn - lru 2 and / or sn - lru 3 using hop count and / or presence information gleaned from topology messaging . for example , each sn - lru may under control of its network management processor determine whether it is a middle sn - lru of a chain by comparing the hop counts received on both of its ports . if the hop counts for both ports is the same or differ by only one hop , the sn - lru self - identifies as a middle lru ; otherwise , the sn - lru does not self - identify as a middle lru . if the sn - lru self - identifies as a middle lru , the sn - lru breaks the chain to create a loop - free network topology . if the hop counts for both ports differ by one hop , the sn - lru under control of its network management processor blocks the port with the higher hop count ( i . e . the port that has a longer path to the nearest he - lru ) and unblocks the other port . if the hop count for both ports is identical , the sn - lru under control of its network management processor blocks a predetermined one of the ports and unblocks the other port . fig7 a through 7d illustrate head end data path maintenance in some embodiments of the invention . fig7 a shows physical wiring of an ife system having a ring of four he - lrus and a single chain of four sn - lrus physically wired to he - lru 1 and he - lru 2 . when he - lrus detect a closed he - lru ring as a result of topology messaging , a designated he - lru removes one of its links from the data path to create loop - free data path between he - lrus , which link may later be restored to the data path to maintain the data path if an he - lru or a link fails . fig7 b shows the head end network topology after he - lru loop detection . in that topology , the link between he - lru 1 and he - lru 4 has been removed from the data path to eliminate the loop . fig7 c shows the head end network topology after reconfiguration upon detecting that the link between he - lru 3 and he - lru 4 has failed . this link between he - lru 1 and he - lru 4 has been restored to the data path to maintain network access to all he - lrus . fig7 d shows the head end network topology after reconfiguration upon detecting that he - lru 2 has failed . this reconfiguration similarly results in restoration of the link between he - lru 1 and he - lru 4 to the data path to maintain network access to all live he - lrus . the additions and subtractions of links illustrated in fig7 b through 7d are made under control of the network management processor in he - lru 1 , he - lru - 3 , and / or he - lru 4 using loop information gleaned from topology messaging . in some embodiments , at least two of the he - lrus in an he - lru ring are of a single hardware design configuration . in some embodiments , links are added and removed from data paths by dynamically regulating the state of transceivers in he - lrus and sn - lrus between a data forwarding state and a data blocking state under control of the network management processors . naturally , transceivers and their associated ports and links will continue to carry presence messages and other management information even when they are not participating in a data path . in one embodiment , an important distinguishing feature of the present invention from conventional spanning tree protocols is that in the present invention networks in which the loop - free data path between he - lrus passes through an sn - lru are not formed . it is to be understood that the word “ serial ” as used herein describes the way the devices described are networked together and does not refer to the type of communications or way that communications are sent over the network links . it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that the invention can be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential character hereof . the present description is therefore considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive . the scope of the invention is indicated by the appended claims , and all changes that come with in the meaning and range of equivalents thereof are intended to be embraced therein .	7
( a ) z 1 is n , and z 2 - z 5 are ch , ( b ) z 1 - z 5 are each ch , and ( c ) z 5 is n , and z 1 - z 4 are ch . when r 1 or r 1a is substituted alkoxy it is preferably ( c 2 - 6 ) alkoxy substitituted by optionally n - substituted amino , guanidino or amidino , or ( c 1 - 6 ) alkoxy optionally substituted by piperidyl . suitable examples of r 1 and r 1a alkoxy include methoxy , n - propyloxy , iso - butyloxy , aminoethyloxy , aminopropyloxy , aminobutyloxy , amiinopentyloxy , guanidinopropyloxy , piperidin - 4 - ylmethyloxy and phthalimido pentyloxy . preferably r 1 and r 1a are independently methoxy , amino ( c 3 - 5 ) alkyloxy , guanidino ( c 3 - 5 ) alkyloxy , piperidyl ( c 3 - 5 ) alkyloxy , nitro or fluoro ; more preferably methoxy , amino ( c 3 - 5 ) alkyloxy or guanidino ( c 3 - 5 ) alkyloxy . when z 5 is cr 1a , r 1a is preferably hydrogen , cyano , hydroxymethyl or carboxy . r 2 is preferably hydrogen ; ( c 1 - 4 ) alkyl substituted with carboxy , optionally substituted hydroxy , optionally substituted aminocarbonyl , optionally substituted amino or ( c 1 - 4 ) alkoxycarbonyl ; or ( c 1 - 4 ) alkenyl substituted with ( c 1 - 4 ) alkoxycarbonyl or carboxy . more preferred groups for r 2 are hydrogen , carboxymethyl , hydroxyethyl , aminocarbonylmethyl , ethoxycarbonylmethyl , ethoxycarbonylallyl and carboxyallyl . preferred examples of r 3 include hydrogen ; optionally substituted aminocarbonyl ; optionally substituted ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl ; carboxy ( c 1 - 4 ) alkyl ; optionally substituted aminocarbonyl ( c 1 - 4 ) alkyl ; cyano ( c 1 - 4 ) alkyl ; optionally substituted 2 - oxo - oxazolidinyl and optionally substituted 2 - oxo - oxazolidinyl ( c 1 - 4 alkyl ). more preferred r 3 groups are hydrogen ; conh 2 ; 1 - hydroxyalkyl e . g . ch 2 oh , ch ( oh ) ch 2 cn ; ch 2 co 2 h ; ch 2 conh 2 ; 1 , 2 - dihydroxyalkyl e . g . ch ( oh ) ch 2 oh ; ch 2 cn ; 2 - oxo - oxazolidin - 5 - yl and 2 - oxo - oxazolidin - 5 - yl ( c 1 - 4 alkyl ). in a preferred aspect , when r 3 is in the 3 - position the substitutents at the 3 - and 4 - position of the piperidine ring are cis . particularly preferred are those compounds where a is nh and b is co , or a is choh and b is ch 2 , when more preferably a is the r - isomer of choh . preferably r 11 is hydrogen or ( c 1 - 4 ) alkyl e . g . methyl , more preferably hydrogen . preferably r 4 is ( c 5 - 12 ) alkyl , unsubstituted phenyl ( c 2 - 3 ) alkyl or unsubstituted phenyl ( c 3 - 4 ) alkenyl . suitable groups r 4 include n - pentyl , n - hexyl , n - heptyl , n - octyl , n - nonyl , n - decyl , n - dodecyl , phenylethyl , phenylpropyl or 3 - phenyl - prop - 2 - en - yl optionally substituted on the phenyl ring ; more preferably r 4 is hexyl , heptyl , 5 - methylhexyl , 6 - methyl heptyl or 3 - phenyl - prop - 2 - en - yl , especially heptyl or hexyl . when used herein , the term “ alkyl ” includes groups having straight and branched chains , for instance , methyl , ethyl , n - propyl , iso - propyl , n - butyl , iso - butyl , sec - butyl , t - butyl , pentyl and hexyl . the term ‘ alkenyl ’ should be interpreted accordingly . preferred r 5 groups are unbranched at the α and , where appropriate , β positions . the term “ heterocyclic ” as used herein includes optionally substituted aromatic and non - aromatic , single and fused , rings suitably containing up to four hetero - atoms in each ring selected from oxygen , nitrogen and sulphur , which rings may be unsubstituted or substituted by , for example , up to three groups selected from optionally substituted amino , halogen , ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl , ( c 1 - 6 ) alkoxy , halo ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl , hydroxy , carboxy , carboxy salts , carboxy esters such as ( c 1 - 6 ) alkoxycarbonyl , ( c 1 - 6 ) alkoxycarbonyl ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl , aryl , and oxo groups . each heterocyclic ring suitably has from 4 to 7 , preferably 5 or 6 , ring atoms . a fused heterocyclic ring system may include carbocyclic rings and need include only one heterocyclic ring . compounds within the invention containing a heterocyclyl group may occur in two or more tautometric forms depending on the nature of the heterocyclyl group ; all such tautomeric forms are included within the scope of the invention . where an amino group forms part of a single or fused non - aromatic heterocyclic ring as defined above suitable optional substituents in such substituted amino groups include ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl optionally substituted by hydroxy , ( c 1 - 6 ) alkoxy , thiol , ( c 1 - 6 ) alkylthio , halo or trifluoromethyl , and amino - protecting groups such as acyl or ( c 1 - 6 ) alkylsulphonyl groups . the term “ heteroaryl ” includes the aromatic heterocyclic groups referred to above . examples of heteroaryl groups include pyridyl , triazolyl , tetrazolyl , indolyl , thienyl , isoimidazolyl , thiazolyl , furanyl , quinolinyl , imidazolidinyl and benzothienyl . aryl groups , e . g . phenyl and benzoyl ; heteroaryl and heteroaroyl groups may be optionally substituted with up to five , preferably up to three , groups selected from halogen , mercapto , ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl , phenyl , ( c 1 - 6 ) alkoxy , hydroxy ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl , mercapto ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl , halo ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl , hydroxy , optionally substituted amino , nitro , carboxy , ( c 1 - 6 ) alkylcarbonyloxy , ( c 1 - 6 ) alkoxycarbonyl , formyl , and ( c 1 - 6 ) alkylcarbonyl groups . some of the compounds of this invention may be crystallised or recrystallised from solvents such as aqueous and organic solvents . in such cases solvates may be formed . this invention includes within its scope stoichiometric solvates including hydrates as well as compounds containing variable amounts of water that may be produced by processes such as lyophilisation . since the compounds of formula ( i ) are intended for use in pharmaceutical compositions it will readily be understood that they are each preferably provided in substantially pure form , for example at least 60 % pure , more suitably at least 75 % pure and preferably at least 85 %, especially at least 98 % pure (% are on a weight for weight basis ). impure preparations of the compounds may be used for preparing the more pure forms used in the pharmaceutical compositions ; these less pure preparations of the compounds should contain at least 1 %, more suitably at least 5 % and preferably from 10 to 59 % of a compound of the formula ( i ) or pharmaceutically acceptable derivative thereof . particular compounds according to the invention include those mentioned in the examples and their pharmaceutically acceptable derivatives . suitable pharmaceutically acceptable esters will be apparent to those skilled in the art and include for example benzyl , p - methoxybenzyl , benzoylmethyl , p - nitrobenzyl , 4 - pyridylmethyl , 2 , 2 , 2 - trichloroethyl , 2 , 2 , 2 - tribromoethyl , tert - butyl , tert - amyl , allyl , diphenylmethyl , triphenylmethyl , adamantyl , 2 - benzyloxyphenyl , 4 - methylthiophenyl , tetrahydrofur - 2 - yl , tetrahydropyran - 2 - yl , pentachlorophenyl , acetonyl , p - toluenesulphonylethyl , methoxymethyl , a silyl , stannyl or phosphorus - containing group , an oxime radical of formula — n ═ chr y where r y is aryl or heterocyclyl , or an in vivo hydrolysable ester radical such as defined below . examples of suitable in vivo hydrolysable ester groups include , for example , acyloxy ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl groups such as acetoxymethyl , pivaloyloxymethyl , α - acetoxyethyl , α - pivaloyloxyethyl , 1 -( cyclohexylcarbonyloxy ) prop - 1 - yl , and ( 1 - aminoethyl ) carbonyloxymethyl ; ( c 1 - 6 ) alkoxycarbonyloxy ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl groups , such as ethoxycarbonyloxymethyl , α - ethoxycarbonyloxyethyl and propoxycarbonyloxyethyl ; di ( c 1 - 6 ) alkylamino ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl especially di ( c 1 - 4 ) alkylamino ( c 1 - 4 ) alkyl groups such as dimethylaminomethyl , dimethylaminoethyl , diethylaminomethyl or diethylaminoethyl ; 2 -(( c 1 - 6 ) alkoxycarbonyl )- 2 -( c 2 - 6 ) alkenyl groups such as 2 -( isobutoxycarbonyl ) pent - 2 - enyl and 2 -( ethoxycarbonyl ) but - 2 - enyl ; lactone groups such as phthalidyl and dimethoxyphthalidyl . suitable pharmaceutically acceptable salts will be apparent to those skilled in the art and include for example acid addition salts formed with inorganic acids e . g . hydrochloric , hydrobromic , sulphuric , nitric or phosphoric acid ; and organic acids e . g . succinic , maleic , acetic , fumaric , citric , tartaric , benzoic , p - toluenesulphonic , methanesulphonic or naphthalenesulphonic acid . other salts e . g . oxalates , may be used , for example in the isolation of compounds of formula ( i ) and are included within the scope of this invention . compounds of formula ( i ) may also be prepared as the corresponding n - oxides . certain of the compounds of formula ( i ) may exist in the form of optical isomers , e . g . diastereoisomers and mixtures of isomers in all ratios , e . g . racemic mixtures . the invention includes all such forms , in particular the pure isomeric forms . for example the invention includes compound in which an a - b group ch ( oh )— ch 2 is in either isomeric configuration , the r - isomer is preferred . the different isomeric forms may be separated or resolved one from the other by conventional methods , or any given isomer may be obtained by conventional synthetic methods or by stereospecific or asymmetric syntheses . in a further aspect of the invention there is provided a process for preparing compounds of formula ( i ), and pharmaceutically acceptable derivatives thereof , which process comprises : wherein z 1 , z 2 , z 3 , z 4 , z 5 and n are as defined in formula ( i ); r 1 , r 2 ′, r 3 ′ and r 4 ′ are r 1 , r 2 , r 3 and r 4 as defined in formula ( i ) or groups convertible thereto ; and x and y may be the following combinations : ( i ) x is a ′- cow , y is h and n is 0 ; ( ii ) x is cr 6 ═ cr 8 r 9 , y is h and n is 0 ; ( iii ) x is oxirane , y is h and n is 0 ; ( iv ) x is n ═ c ═ o and y is h ; ( v ) x is nh 2 and y is co 2 w ; ( vi ) one of x and y is co 2 r y and the other is ch 2 co 2 r x ; ( vii ) x is chr 6 r 7 and y is cr 80 ; ( viii ) x is cr 6 ═ pr z 3 and y is cr 8 o ; ( ix ) x is cr 6 o and y is cr 8 ═ pr z 3 ; ( x ) one of x and y is cow and the other is nhr 11 ′ or nco ; ( xi ) x is cr 6 o and y is nhr 11 or x is nhr 11 ′ and y is c r 8 o ; ( xii ) x is nhr 11 ′ and y is cr 8 r 9 w ; ( xiii ) x is cr 6 r 7 w and y is nr 11 ′ or o ; or ( xiv ) x is cr 6 r 7 so 2 w and y is h and n = 0 ; ( xv ) x is nr 11 ′ and y is so 2 w ; in which w is a leaving group , e . g . halogen ; r x and r y are ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl ; r z is aryl or ( c 1 - 6 ) alkyl ; a ′ and nr 11 ′ are a and nr 11 as defined in formula ( i ), or groups convertible thereto ; and oxirane is : wherein r 6 , r 8 and r 9 are as defined in formula ( i ); and thereafter optionally or as necessary converting a ′, r 1 ′, r 2 ′, r 3 ′, r 4 ′ and nr 11 ′; to a , r 1 , r 2 , r 3 , r 4 and nr 11 ′; converting a - b to other a - b , interconverting r 1 , r 2 , r 3 and / or r 4 , and / or forming a pharmaceutically acceptable derivative thereof . process variant ( i ) initially produces compounds of formula ( i ) wherein a - b is a ′- co . process variant ( ii ) initially produces compounds of formula ( i ) wherein a - b is chr 6 — cr 8 r 9 . process variant ( iii ) initially produces compounds of formula ( i ) wherein a - b is cr 6 ( oh )— cr 8 r 9 . process variants ( iv ) and ( v ) initially produce compounds of formula ( i ) where a - b is nh — co . process variant ( vi ) initially produces compounds of formula ( i ) wherein a - b is co — ch 2 or ch 2 — co . process variant ( vii ) initially produces compounds of formula ( i ) wherein a - b is cr 6 r 7 — cr 8 oh . process variant ( viii ) and ( ix ) initially produce compounds of formula ( i ) wherein a - b is cr 6 ═ cr 8 . process variant ( x ) initially produces compounds of formula ( i ) where a - b is co — nr 11 ′ or nr 11 ′— co . process variant ( xi ) initially produces compounds of formula ( i ) wherein a - b is chr 6 — nr 11 ′ or nr 11 ′— chr 6 . process variant ( xii ) initially produces compounds of formula ( i ) wherein a - b is nr 11 ′— cr 8 r 9 . process variant ( xiii ) initially produces compounds of formula ( i ) wherein a - b is cr 6 r 7 — nr 11 ′ or cr 6 r 7 — o . process variant ( xiv ) initially produces compounds of formula ( i ) where a - b is cr 6 r 7 — so 2 . process variant ( xv ) initially produces compounds of formula ( i ) where a - b is nr 11 ′— so 2 . in process variants ( i ), ( v ) and ( x ) the reaction is a standard amide formation reaction involving e . g . : 1 . activation of a carboxylic acid ( e . g . to an acid chloride , mixed anhydride , active ester , o - acyl - isourea or other species ), and treatment with an amine ( ogliaruso , m . a . ; wolfe , j . f . in the chemistry of functional groups ( ed . patai , s .) suppl . b : the chemistry of acid derivatives , pt . 1 ( john wiley and sons , 1979 ), pp 442 - 8 ; beckwith , a . l . j . in the chemistry of functional groups ( ed . patai , s .) suppl . b : the chemistry of amides ( ed . zabricky , j .) ( john wiley and sons , 1970 ), p 73 ff . the acid and amide are preferably reacted in the presence of an activating agent such as 1 -( dimethylaminopropyl )- 3 - ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride ( edc ) or 1 - hydroxybenzotriazole ( hobt ); or 2 . the specific methods of : a . in situ conversion of an acid into the amine component by a modified curtius reaction procedure ( shioiri , t ., murata , m ., hamada , y ., chem . pharm . bull . 1987 , 35 , 2698 ) b . in situ conversion of the acid component into the acid chloride under neutral conditions ( villeneuve , g . b . ; chan , t . h ., tetrahedron . lett . 1997 , 38 , 6489 ). the process variant ( ii ) is a standard addition reaction using methods well known to those skilled in the art . the process is preferably carried out in a polar organic solvent e . g . acetonitrile in the presence of an organic base e . g . triethylamine . in process variant ( iii ) the coupling may be effected in acetonitrile at room temperature in the presence of one equivalent of lithium perchlorate as catalyst ( general method of j . e . chateauneuf et al , j . org . chem ., 56 , 5939 - 5942 , 1991 ). in some cases an elevated temperature such as 40 - 70 ° c . may be beneficial . alternatively , the piperazine may be treated with a base , such as one equivalent of butyl lithium , and the resulting salt reacted with the oxirane in an inert solvent such as tetrahydrofuran , preferably at an elevated temperature such as 80 ° c . use of a chiral epoxide will afford single diastereomers . alternatively , mixtures of diastereomers may be separated by preparative hplc or by conventional resolution through crystallisation of salts formed from chiral acids . the process variant ( iv ) is a standard urea formation reaction from the reaction of an isocyanate with an amine and is conducted by methods well known to those skilled in the art ( for example see march , j ; advanced organic chemistry , edition 3 ( john wiley and sons , 1985 ), p802 - 3 ). the process is preferably carried out in a polar solvent such as n , n - dimethylformamide in process variant ( vi ) the process is two step : firstly a condensation using a base , preferably sodium hydride or alkoxide , sodamide , alkyl lithium or lithium dialkylamide , preferably in an aprotic solvent e . g . ether , thf or benzene ; secondly , hydrolysis using an inorganic acid , preferably hcl in aqueous organic solvent at 0 - 100 ° c . analogous routes are described in de330945 , ep31753 , ep53964 and h . sargent , j . am . chem . soc . 68 , 2688 - 2692 ( 1946 ). similar claisen methodology is described in soszko et . al ., pr . kom . mat . przyr . poznan . tow . przyj . nauk ., ( 1962 ), 10 , 15 . in process variant ( vii ) the reaction is carried out in the presence of a base , preferably organometallic or metal hydride e . g . nah , lithium diisopropylamide or naoet , preferably in an aprotic solvent , preferably thf , ether or benzene at − 78 to 25 ° c . ( analogous process in gutswiller et al . ( 1978 ) jacs 100 , 576 ). in process variants ( viii ) and ( ix ) if a base is used it is preferably nah , kh , an alkyl lithium e . g . buli , a metal alkoxide e . g . naoet , sodamide or lithium dialkylamide e . g . di - isopropylamide . an analogous method is described in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 989 , 691 and m . gates et . al . ( 1970 ) j . amer . chem . soc ., 92 , 205 , as well as taylor et al . ( 1972 ) jacs 94 , 6218 . in process variant ( xi ) where x or y is cho the reaction is a standard reductive alkylation using , e . g ., sodium triacetoxyborohydride ( gribble , g . w . in encyclopedia of reagents for organic synthesis ( ed . paquette , l . a .) ( john wiley and sons , 1995 ), p 4649 ). the process variants ( xii ) and ( xiii ). are standard alkylation reactions well known to those skilled in the art , for example where an alcohol or amine is treated with an alkyl halide in the presence of a base ( for example see march , j ; advanced organic chemistry , edition 3 ( john wiley and sons , 1985 ), p364 - 366 and p342 - 343 ). the process is preferably carried out in a polar solvent such as n , n - dimethylformamide in process variant ( xiv ) and ( xv ) the reaction is a standard sulphonamide formation reaction well known to those skilled in the art . this may be e . g . the reaction of a sulphonyl halide with an amine . reduction of a carbonyl group b to choh can be readily accomplished using reducing agents well known to those skilled in the art , e . g . sodium borohydride in aqueous ethanol or lithium aluminiun hydride in ethereal solution . this is analogous to methods described in ep53964 , us384556 and j . gutzwiller et al , j . amer . chem . soc ., 1978 , 100 , 576 . the carbonyl group b may be reduced to ch 2 by treatment with a reducing agent such as hydrazine in ethylene glycol , at e . g . 130 - 160 ° c ., in the presence of potassium hydroxide . reaction of a carbonyl group b with an organometallic reagent yields a group where r 8 is oh and r 9 is alkyl . a hydroxy group on a or b may be oxidised to a carbonyl group by oxidants well known to those skilled in the art , for example , manganese dioxide , pyridinium chlorochromate or pyridinium dichromate . a hydroxyalkyl a - b group chr 6 cr 8 oh or cr 6 ( oh ) chr 8 may be dehydrated to give the group cr 6 ═ cr 8 by treatment with an acid anhydride such as acetic anhydride . methods for conversion of cr 6 ═ cr 8 by reduction to chr 6 chr 8 are well known to those skilled in the art , for example using hydrogenation over palladium on carbon as catalyst . methods for conversion of cr 6 ═ cr 8 to give the a - b group cr 6 ( oh ) chr 8 or chr 6 cr 8 oh are well known to those skilled in the art for example by epoxidation and subsequent reduction by metal hydrides , hydration , hydroboration or oxymercuration . an amide carbonyl group may be reduced to the corresponding amine using a reducing agent such as lithium aluminium hydride . a hydroxy group in a or b may be converted to azido by activation and displacement e . g . under mitsunobu conditions using hydrazoic acid or by treatment with diphenylphosphorylazide and base , and the azido group in turn may be reduced to amino by hydrogenation . r 1 ′, r 2 ′, r 3 and r 4 ′ are preferably r 1 , r 2 , r 3 and r 4 . r 1 is preferably methoxy . r 2 ′ is preferably hydrogen . r 3 ′ is preferably hydrogen , conh 2 , ch 2 oh , ch 2 co 2 h , ch 2 conh 2 , ch ( oh ) ch 2 oh , ch ( oh ) ch 2 cn , ch 2 cn , 2 - oxo - oxazolidin - 5 - yl and 2 - oxo - oxazolidin - 5 - yl ( c 1 - 4 alkyl ). r 4 ′ is preferably heptyl . conversions of r 1 ′, r 2 ′, r 3 and r 4 ′ and interconversions of r 1 , r 2 , r 3 and r 4 are conventional . in compounds which contain an optionally protected hydroxy group , suitable conventional hydroxy protecting groups which may be removed without disrupting the remainder of the molecule include acyl and alkylsilyl groups . for example r 1 ′ methoxy is convertible to r 1 ′ hydroxy by treatment with lithium and diphenylphosphine ( general method described in ireland et al , j . amer . chem . soc ., 1973 , 7829 ) or hbr . alkylation of the hydroxy group with a suitable alkyl derivative bearing a leaving group such as halide and a protected amino , piperidyl , amidino or guanidino group or group convertible thereto , yields , after conversion / deprotection , r 1 alkoxy substituted by optionally n - substituted amino , piperidyl , guanidino or amidino . r 3 alkenyl is convertible to hydroxyalkyl by hydroboration using a suitable reagent such as 9 - borabicyclo [ 3 . 3 . 1 ] nonane , epoxidation and reduction or oxymercuration . r 3 1 , 2 - dihydroxyalkyl can be prepared from r 3 ′ alkenyl using osmium tetroxide or other reagents well known to those skilled in the art ( see advanced organic chemistry , ed . march , j ., john wiley and sons , 1985 , p 732 - 737 and refs . cited therein ) or epoxidation followed by hydrolysis ( see advanced organic chemistry , ed . march , j . john wiley and sons , 1985 , p 332 , 333 and refs . cited therein ). r 3 vinyl can be chain extended by standard homologation , e . g . by conversion to hydroxyethyl followed by oxidation to the aldehyde , which is then subjected to a wittig reaction . opening an epoxide - containing r 3 ′ group with cyanide anion yields a ch ( oh )— ch 2 cn group . opening an epoxide - containing r 3 ′ group with azide anion yields an azide derivative which can be reduced to the amine . conversion of the amine to a carbamate is followed by ring closure with base to give the 2 - oxo - oxazolidinyl containing r 3 group . substituted 2 - oxo - oxazolidinyl containing r 3 groups may be prepared from the corresponding aldehyde by conventional reaction with a glycine anion equivalent , followed by cyclisation of the resulting amino alcohol ( m grauert et al , ann . chem ., 1985 , 1817 ; rozenberg et al , angew . chem . int . ed . engl ., 1994 , 33 ( 1 ), 91 ). the resulting 2 - oxo - oxazolidinyl group contains a carboxy group which can be converted to other r 10 groups by standard procedures . carboxy groups within r 3 may be prepared by jones &# 39 ; oxidation of the corresponding alcohols ch 2 oh using chromium acid and sulphuric acid in water / methanol ( e . r . h . jones et al , j . chem . soc ., 1946 , 39 ). other oxidising agents may be used for this transformation such as sodium periodate catalysed by ruthenium trichloride ( g . f . tutwiler et al , j . med . chem ., 1987 , 30 ( 6 ), 1094 ), chromium trioxide - pyridine ( g . just et al , synth . commun ., 1979 , 9 ( 7 ), 613 ), potassium permanganate ( d . e . reedich et al , j . org . chem ., 1985 , 50 ( 19 ), 3535 ), and pyridinium chlorochromate ( d . askin et al , tetrahedron lett ., 1988 , 29 ( 3 ), 277 ). other routes to the synthesis of carboxy groups within r 3 are well known to those skilled in the art . r 3 groups containing a cyano group may be prepared by conversion of an alcohol to a suitable leaving group such as the corresponding tosylate by reaction with para - toluenesulphonyl chloride ( m . r . bell , j . med . chem ., 1970 , 13 , 389 ), or the iodide using triphenylphosphine , iodine , and imidazole ( g . lange , synth . commun ., 1990 , 20 , 1473 ). the second stage is the displacement of the leaving group with cyanide anion ( l . a . paquette et al , j . org . chem ., 1979 , 44 ( 25 ), 4603 ; p . a . grieco et al , j . org . chem ., 1988 , 53 ( 16 ), 3658 . other functional groups in r 3 may be obtained by conventional conversions of carboxy or cyano groups . tetrazoles are conveniently prepared by reaction of sodium azide with the cyano group ( e . g . f . thomas et al , bioorg . med . chem . lett ., 1996 , 6 ( 6 ), 631 ; k . kubo et al , j . med . chem ., 1993 , 36 , 2182 ) or by reaction of azidotri - n - butyl stannane with the cyano group followed by acidic hydrolysis ( p . l . ornstein , j . org . chem ., 1994 , 59 , 7682 and j . med . chem , 1996 , 39 ( 11 ), 2219 ). the 3 - hydroxy - 3 - cyclobutene - 1 , 2 - dion - 4 - yl group ( e . g . r . m . soil , bioorg . med . chem . lett ., 1993 , 3 ( 4 ), 757 and w . a . kinney , j . med . chem ., 1992 , 35 ( 25 ), 4720 ) can be prepared by the following sequence :—( 1 ) a compound where r 3 is ( ch 2 ) n cho ( n = 0 , 1 , 2 ) is treated with triethylamine , carbontetrabromide - triphenylphosphine to give initially ( ch 2 ) n ch ═ chbr ; ( 2 ) dehydrobromination of this intermediate to give the corresponding bromoethyne derivative ( ch 2 ) n c ≡ cbr ( for this 2 stage sequence see d . grandjean et al , tetrahedron lett ., 1994 , 35 ( 21 ), 3529 ); ( 3 ) palladium - catalysed coupling of the bromoethyne with 4 -( 1 - methylethoxy )- 3 -( tri - n - butylstannyl ) cyclobut - 3 - ene - 1 , 2 - dione ( liebeskind et al , j . org . chem ., 1990 , 55 , 5359 ); ( 4 ) reduction of the ethyne moiety to — ch 2 ch 2 — under standard conditions of hydrogen and palladium on charcoal catalysis ( see howard et al , tetrahedron , 1980 , 36 , 171 ); and finally ( 4 ) acidic hydrolysis of the methylethoxyester to generate the corresponding 3 - hydroxy - 3 - cyclobutene - 1 , 2 - dione group ( r . m . soll , bioorg . med . chem . lett ., 1993 , 3 ( 4 ), 757 ). the tetrazol - 5 - ylaminocarbonyl group may be prepared from the corresponding carboxylic acid and 2 - aminotetrazole by dehydration with standard peptide coupling agents such as 1 , 1 ′- carbonyldiimidazole ( p . l . ornstein et al , j . med chem , 1996 , 39 ( 11 ), 2232 ). the alkyl - and alkenyl - sulphonylcarboxamides are similarly prepared from the corresponding carboxylic acid and the alkyl - or alkenyl - sulphonamide by dehydration with standard peptide coupling agents such as 1 , 1 ′- carbonyldiimidazole ( p . l . omstein et al , j . med . chem ., 1996 , 39 ( 11 ), 2232 ). the hydroxamic acid groups are prepared from the corresponding acids by standard amide coupling reactions e . g . n . r . patel et al , tetrahedron , 1987 , 43 ( 22 ), 5375 . 2 , 4 - thiazolidinedione groups may prepared from the aldehydes by condensation with 2 , 4 - thiazolidinedione and subsequent removal of the olefinic double bond by hydrogenation . the preparation of 5 - oxo - 1 , 2 , 4 - oxadiazoles from nitrites is decribed by y . kohara et al , bioorg . med . chem . lett ., 1995 , 5 ( 17 ), 1903 . 1 , 2 , 4 - triazol - 5 - yl groups may be prepared from the corresponding nitrile by reaction with an alcohol under acid conditions followed by reaction with hydrazine and then an r 10 - substituted activated carboxylic acid ( see j . b . polya in “ comprehensive heterocyclic chemistry ” edition 1 , p762 , ed a . r . katritzky and c . w . rees , pergamon press , oxford , 1984 and j . j . ares et al , j . heterocyclic chem ., 1991 , 28 ( 5 ), 1197 ). other substituents on r 3 alkyl or alkenyl may be interconverted by conventional methods , for example hydroxy may be derivatised by esterification , acylation or etherification . hydroxy groups may be converted to halogen , thiol , alkylthio , azido , alkylcarbonyl , amino , aminocarbonyl , oxo , alkylsulphonyl , alkenylsulphonyl or aminosulphonyl by conversion to a leaving group and substitution by the required group or oxidation as appropriate or reaction with an activated acid , isocyanate or alkoxyisocyanate . primary and secondary hydroxy groups can be oxidised to an aldehyde or ketone respectively and alkylated with a suitable agent such as an organometallic reagent to give a secondary or tertiary alcohol as appropriate . compounds of formula ( i ) where r 2 and r 3 are a divalent residue ═ cr 5 , r 61 can be prepared by treatment of a compound of formula ( i ) where r 3 is alken - 1 - yl with a strong base in an aprotic solvent . suitable bases include ph 2 pli / phli ( as described in ireland et al , j . amer . chem . soc ., 1973 , 7829 ), t - buli , and suitable solvents include thf and ether . nh is converted to nr 4 by conventional means such as alkylation with an alkyl halide in the presence of base , acylation / reduction or reductive alkylation with an aldehyde . it will be appreciated that under certain circumstances interconvertions may interfere , for example , a or b hydroxy groups in a or b and the piperidine nh will require protection e . g . as a carboxy - or silyl - ester group for hydroxy and as an acyl derivative for piperidine nitrogen , during conversion of r 1 ′, r 2 ′, r 3 ′ or r 4 ′. compounds of formula ( iv ) where x is cr 6 r 7 so 2 w may be prepared by a route analogous to that of ahmed el hadri et al , j . heterocyclic chem ., 1993 , 30 ( 3 ), 631 . thus compounds of formula ( iv ) where x is ch 2 so 2 oh may be prepared by reacting the corresponding 4 - methyl compound with n - bromosuccinimide , followed by treatment with sodium sulfite . the leaving group w may be converted to another leaving group w , e . g . a halogen group , by conventional methods . the isocyanate of formula ( iv ) may be prepared conventionally from a 4 - amino derivative such as 4 - amino - quinoline , and phosgene , or phosgene equivalent ( eg triphosgene ) or it may be prepared more conveniently from a 4 - carboxylic acid by a ‘ one - pot ’ curtius reaction with diphenyl phosphoryl azide ( dppa ) [ see t . shiori et al . chem . pharm . bull . 35 , 2698 - 2704 ( 1987 )]. the 4 - amino derivatives are commercially available or may be prepared by conventional procedures from a corresponding 4 - chloro derivative by treatment with ammonia ( o . g . backeberg et . al ., j . chem soc ., 381 , 1942 .) or propylamine hydrochloride ( r . radinov et . al ., synthesis , 886 , 1986 ). 4 - alkenyl compounds of formula ( iv ) may be prepared by conventional procedures from a corresponding 4 - halogeno - derivative by e . g . a heck synthesis as described in e . g . organic reactions , 1982 , 27 , 345 . 4 - halogeno derivatives of compounds of formula ( iv ) are commercially available , or may be prepared by methods known to those skilled in the art . a 4 - chloroquinoline is prepared from the corresponding quinolin - 4 - one by reaction with phosphorus oxychloride ( pocl 3 ) or phosphorus pentachloride , pcl 5 . a 4 - chloroquinazoline is prepared from the corresponding quinazolin - 4 - one by reaction with phosphorus oxychloride ( pocl 3 ) or phosphorus pentachloride , pcl 5 . a quinazolinone and quinazolines may be prepared by standard routes as described by t . a . williamson in heterocyclic compounds , 6 , 324 ( 1957 ) ed . r . c . elderfield . 4 - carboxy derivatives of compounds of formula ( iv ) are commercially available or may be prepared by conventional procedures for preparation of carboxy heteroaromatics well known to those skilled in the art . for example , quinazolines may be prepared by standard routes as described by t . a . williamson in heterocyclic compounds , 6 , 324 ( 1957 ) ed . r . c . elderfield . pyridazines and napthyridines may be prepared by routes analogous to those described in comprehensive heterocyclic chemistry , volumes 2 & amp ; 3 , ed a . j . boulton and a . mckillop . these 4 - carboxy derivatives may be activated by conventional means , e . g . by conversion to an acyl halide or anhydride . a 4 - oxirane derivative of compounds of formula ( iv ) is conveniently prepared from the 4 - carboxylic acid by first conversion to the acid chloride with oxalyl chloride and then reaction with trimethylsilyldiazomethane to give the diazoketone derivative . subsequent reaction with 5m hydrochloric acid gives the chloromethylketone . reduction with sodium borohydride in aqueous methanol gives the chlorohydrin which undergoes ring closure to afford the epoxide on treatment with base , e . g . potassium hydroxide in ethanol - tetrahydrofuran . if a chiral reducing agent such as (+) or (−)- b - chlorodiisopinocamphenylborane [‘ dip - chloride ’ ] is substituted for sodium borohydride , the prochiral chloromethylketone is converted into the chiral chlorohydrin with ee values generally 85 - 95 % [ see c . bolm et al , chem . ber . 125 , 1169 - 1190 , ( 1992 )]. recrystallisation of the chiral epoxide gives material in the mother liquor with enhanced optical purity ( typically ee 95 %). the ( r )- epoxide , when reacted with a piperazine derivative gives ethanolamine compounds as single diastereomers with ( r )- stereochemistry at the benzylic position . alternatively , the epoxide may be prepared from the 4 - carboxaldehyde by a wittig approach using trimethylsulfonium iodide [ see g . a . epling and k - y lin , j . het . chem ., 1987 , 24 , 853 - 857 ], or by epoxidation of a 4 - vinyl derivative . 4 - hydroxy - 1 , 5 - naphthyridines can be prepared from 3 - aminopyridine derivatives by reaction with ethoxymethylenemalonic ester to produce the 4 - hydroxy - 3 - carboxylic acid ester derivative with subsequent hydrolysis to the acid , followed by thermal decarboxylation in quinoline ( as for example described for 4 - hydroxy -[ 1 , 5 ] naphthyridine - 3 - carboxylic acid , joe t . adams et al ., j . amer . chem . soc ., 1946 , 68 , 1317 . a 4 - hydroxy -[ 1 , 5 ] naphthyridine can be converted to the 4 - chloro derivative by heating in phosphorus oxychloride . a 4 - amino 1 , 5 - naphthyridine can be obtained from the 4 - chloro derivative by reaction with n - propylamine in pyridine . similarly , 6 - methoxy - 1 , 5 - naphthyridine derivatives can be prepared from 3 - amino - 6 - methoxypyridine . 1 , 5 - naphthyridines may be prepared by other methods well known to those skilled in the art ( for examples see p . a . lowe in “ comprehensive heterocyclic chemistry ” volume 2 , p581 - 627 , ed a . r . katritzky and c . w . rees , pergamon press , oxford , 1984 ). for compounds of formula ( v ), suitable amines may be prepared from the corresponding 4 - substituted piperidine acid or alcohol . in a first instance , an n - protected piperidine containing an acid bearing substituent , can undergo a curtius rearrangement and the intermediate isocyanate can be converted to a carbamate by reaction with an alcohol . conversion to the amine may be achieved by standard methods well known to those skilled in the art used for amine protecting group removal . for example , an acid substituted n - protected piperidine can undergo a curtius rearrangement e . g . on treatment with diphenylphosphoryl azide and heating , and the intermediate isocyanate reacts in the presence of 2 - trimethylsilylethanol to give the trimethylsilylethylcarbamate ( t . l . capson & amp ; c . d . poulter , tetrahedron lett ., 1984 , 25 , 3515 ). this undergoes cleavage on treatment with tetrabutylammonium fluoride to give the 4 - amine substituted n - protected piperidine . in a second instance , an n - protected piperidine containing an alcohol bearing substituent undergoes a mitsunobu reaction ( for example as reviewed in mitsunobu , synthesis , ( 1981 ), 1 ), for example with succinimide in the presence of diethyl azodicarboxylate and triphenylphosphine to give the phthalimidoethylpiperidine . removal of the phthaloyl group , for example by treatment with methylhydrazine , gives the amine of formula ( v ). conversions of r 1 ′, r 2 ′, r 3 ′ and r 4 ′ may be carried out on the intermediates of formulae ( iv ), and ( v ) prior to their reaction to produce compounds of formula ( i ) in the same way as described above for conversions after their reaction . further details for the preparation of compounds of formula ( i ) are found in the examples . the compounds of formula ( i ) may be prepared singly or as compound libraries comprising at least 2 , for example 5 to 1 , 000 compounds , and more preferably 10 to 100 compounds of formula ( i ). libraries of compounds of formula ( i ) may be prepared by a combinatorial ‘ split and mix ’ approach or by multiple parallel synthesis using either solution phase or solid phase chemistry , by procedures known to those skilled in the art . thus according to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a compound library comprising at least 2 compounds of formula ( i ) or pharmaceutically acceptable derivatives thereof . novel intermediates of formulae ( iv ) and ( v ) are also part of this invention . the antibacterial compounds according to the invention may be formulated for administration in any convenient way for use in human or veterinary medicine , by analogy with other antibacterials . the pharmaceutical compositions of the invention include those in a form adapted for oral , topical or parenteral use and may be used for the treatment of bacterial infection in mammals including humans . the composition may be formulated for administration by any route . the compositions may be in the form of tablets , capsules , powders , granules , lozenges , creams or liquid preparations , such as oral or sterile parenteral solutions or suspensions . the topical formulations of the present invention may be presented as , for instance , ointments , creams or lotions , eye ointments and eye or ear drops , impregnated dressings and aerosols , and may contain appropriate conventional additives such as preservatives , solvents to assist drug penetration and emollients in ointments and creams . the formulations may also contain compatible conventional carriers , such as cream or ointment bases and ethanol or oleyl alcohol for lotions . such carriers may be present as from about 1 % up to about 98 % of the formulation . more usually they will form up to about 80 % of the formulation . tablets and capsules for oral administration may be in unit dose presentation form , and may contain conventional excipients such as binding agents , for example syrup , acacia , gelatin , sorbitol , tragacanth , or polyvinylpyrrolidone ; fillers , for example lactose , sugar , maize - starch , calcium phosphate , sorbitol or glycine ; tabletting lubricants , for example magnesium stearate , talc , polyethylene glycol or silica ; disintegrants , for example potato starch ; or acceptable wetting agents such as sodium lauryl sulphate . the tablets may be coated according to methods well known in normal pharmaceutical practice . oral liquid preparations may be in the form of , for example , aqueous or oily suspensions , solutions , emulsions , syrups or elixirs , or may be presented as a dry product for reconstitution with water or other suitable vehicle before use . such liquid preparations may contain conventional additives , such as suspending agents , for example sorbitol , methyl cellulose , glucose syrup , gelatin , hydroxyethyl cellulose , carboxymethyl cellulose , aluminium stearate gel or hydrogenated edible fats , emulsifying agents , for example lecithin , sorbitan monooleate , or acacia ; non - aqueous vehicles ( which may include edible oils ), for example almond oil , oily esters such as glycerine , propylene glycol , or ethyl alcohol ; preservatives , for example methyl or propyl p - hydroxybenzoate or sorbic acid , and , if desired , conventional flavouring or colouring agents . suppositories will contain conventional suppository bases , e . g . cocoa - butter or other glyceride . for parenteral administration , fluid unit dosage forms are prepared utilizing the compound and a sterile vehicle , water being preferred . the compound , depending on the vehicle and concentration used , can be either suspended or dissolved in the vehicle . in preparing solutions the compound can be dissolved in water for injection and filter sterilised before filling into a suitable vial or ampoule and sealing . advantageously , agents such as a local anaesthetic , preservative and buffering agents can be dissolved in the vehicle . to enhance the stability , the composition can be frozen after filling into the vial and the water removed under vacuum . the dry lyophilized powder is then sealed in the vial and an accompanying vial of water for injection may be supplied to reconstitute the liquid prior to use . parenteral suspensions are prepared in substantially the same manner except that the compound is suspended in the vehicle instead of being dissolved and sterilization cannot be accomplished by filtration . the compound can be sterilised by exposure to ethylene oxide before suspending in the sterile vehicle . advantageously , a surfactant or wetting agent is included in the composition to facilitate uniform distribution of the compound . the compositions may contain from 0 . 1 % by weight , preferably from 10 - 60 % by weight , of the active material , depending on the method of administration . where the compositions comprise dosage units , each unit will preferably contain from 50 - 500 mg of the active ingredient . the dosage as employed for adult human treatment will preferably range from 100 to 3000 mg per day , for instance 1500 mg per day depending on the route and frequency of administration . such a dosage corresponds to 1 . 5 to 50 mg / kg per day . suitably the dosage is from 5 to 20 mg / kg per day . no toxicological effects are indicated when a compound of formula ( i ) or a pharmaceutically acceptable derivative thereof is administered in the above - mentioned dosage range . the compound of formula ( i ) may be the sole therapeutic agent in the compositions of the invention or a combination with other antibacterials . if the other antibacterial is a β - lactam then a β - lactamase inhibitor may also be employed . compounds of formula ( i ) are active against a wide range of organisms including both gram - negative and gram - positive organisms . all publications , including but not limited to patents and patent applications , cited in this specification are herein incorporated by reference as if each individual publication were specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference herein as though fully set forth . the following examples illustrate the preparation of certain compounds of formula ( i ) and the activity of certain compounds of formula ( i ) against various bacterial organisms . a solution of 6 - methoxyquinoline - 4 - carboxylic acid ( 10 g ) in dichloromethane was heated under reflux with oxalyl chloride ( 5 ml ) and dimethylformamide ( 2 drops ) for 1 hour and evaporated to dryness . the residue , in dichloromethane ( 100 ml ) was treated with a 2m solution of trimethylsilyldiazomethane in hexane ( 50 ml ) and stirred at room temperature for 18 hours . 5m hydrochloric acid ( 150 ml ) was added and the solution was stirred at room temperature for 3 hours . it was basified with sodium carbonate solution , extracted with ethyl acetate and chromatographed on silica gel eluting with ethyl acetate - hexane to give the chloromethyl ketone ( 4 . 2 g ). a batch of the chloromethyl ketone ( 20 g ) was reduced with (+)- b - chlorodiisopinocamphenylborane ( 40 g ) in dichloromethane ( 400 ml ) at room temperature for 18 hours followed by treatment with diethanolamine ( 30 g ) for 3 hours . the product was chromatographed on silica gel eluting with ethyl acetate - hexane to give the chloroalcohol ( 16 . 8 g ), which was dissolved in tetrahydrofuran ( 100 ml ) and reacted with sodium hydroxide ( 2 . 6 g ) in water ( 13 ml ) for 1 . 5 hours . the reaction mixture was evaporated to dryness and chromatographed on silica gel eluting with ethyl acetate - hexane to give the title compound as a solid ( 10 . 4 g ) ( 84 % ee by chiral hplc ). recrystallisation from ether - pentane gave mother - liquor ( 7 . 0 g ) ( 90 % ee ). the absolute stereochemistry was defined to be ( r ) by an nmr study on the mosher &# 39 ; s esters derived from the product obtained by reaction with 1 - t - butylpiperazine . a solution of 1 - tert - butoxycarbonyl - 3 - ethoxycarbonyl - piperidin - 4 - one ( prepared from 3 - ethoxycarbonyl - piperidin - 4 - one and di - tert - butyl - dicarbonate in dichloromethane and triethylamine ) ( 8 . 5 g ) and heptylamine ( 3 . 61 g ) in toluene ( 100 ml ) was heated under reflux in a dean and stark apparatus for 18 hours and then evaporated to dryness to give an oil . the enamine ( 1b ) in ethanol ( 100 ml ) was hydrogenated at 50 psi ( parr reaction vessel ) over 10 % palladium - carbon ( 2 g ) for 48 hours , filtered and evaporated to dryness to give an oil . the product was chromatographed on silica gel ( ethyl acetate - hexane ) to afford the title compound ( 4 . 5 g ), as an oil . the amine ( 1c ) ( 1 . 2 g ) was treated with dichloromethane ( 30 ml ) and trifluoroacetic acid ( 30 ml ) at room temperature for 3 . 5 hours and evaporated to dryness . it was basified with sodium carbonate solution , extracted with dichloromethane , dried over sodium sulfate and evaporated to afford an oil ( 0 . 9 g ). a solution of [ r ]- 2 -( 6 - methoxyquinolin - 4 - yl ) oxirane ( 1a ) ( 0 . 626 g ) and the piperidine ( 1d ) ( 0 . 85 g ) in acetonitrile ( 5 ml ) containing lithium perchlorate ( 0 . 332 g ) was stirred at room temperature for 15 hours and evaporated to dryness . the product was dissolved in dichloromethane , washed with sodium carbonate , dried over sodium sulfate , and chromatographed on silica gel ( ethyl acetate - hexane ) to afford the title compound ( 0 . 69 g ) as the oily free base . the free base was treated with 2 molar equivalents of oxalic acid in ether and the resulting solid was collected , triturated with ether , to afford the dioxalate salt as a white solid . the ester example ( 1 ) ( 0 . 105 g ) in dry tetrahydrofuran ( 5 ml ) at − 10 ° c . was treated with lithium aluminium hydride ( 0 . 27 ml of a 1m solution in ether ) for 3 hours and then quenched by the addition of 2m sodium hydroxide . dichloromethane and sodium sulfate were added and the solution was filtered and evaporated to dryness . the product was chromatographed on silica gel ( methanol - dichloromethane ) to afford the title compound ( 0 . 057 g ), as the oily free base . 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ : 0 . 88 ( 3h , t ), 1 . 30 ( 9h , bs ), 1 . 47 ( 2h , bs ), 1 . 75 ( 1h , bt ), 1 . 95 - 2 . 80 (˜ 8h , m ), 2 . 98 ( 2h , m ), 3 . 85 ( 1h , m ), 3 . 95 ( 3h , s ), 4 . 25 ( 1h , bt ), 5 . 41 ( 1h , m ) 7 . 17 ( 1h , bs ), 7 . 39 ( 1h , dd ), 7 . 65 ( 1h , d ), 8 . 05 ( 1h , d ), 8 . 78 ( 1h , d ). the free base in dichloromethane - ether was converted to the dioxalate salt in the normal manner , affording a white solid . the ester example ( 1 ) ( 0 . 07 g ) was heated in 2m hydrochloric acid ( 7 ml ) under reflux for 5 hours and then evaporated to dryness to give the title compound as a foam . ms (+ ve ion electrospray ) m / z 444 ( mh +). the ester example ( 1 ) ( 0 . 18 g ) in methanol ( 3 ml ) was heated with ammonia ( 3 ml ) and sodium cyanide ( 5 mg ) at 50 ° c . ( sealed bomb ) for 4 days and evaporated to dryness . chromatography on silica gel ( ethyl - acetate then methanol - dichloromethane ) gave the title compound ( 0 . 046 g ), as the free base . the free base in dichloromethane - ether was converted to the dioxalate salt in the normal manner , affording a white solid . [ r ]- 2 -( 6 - methoxyquinolin - 4 - yl ) oxirane ( 1a ) ( 470 mg ) and 1 , 4 - dioxa - 8 - azaspiro -[ 4 , 5 ]- decane ( 0 . 33 ml ) were dissolved in dry dichloromethane ( 5 ml ) and ytterbium triflate ( 30 mol %) was added . the mixture was stirred for 6 hours , filtered through celite , evaporated and chromatographed on silica gel ( dichloromethane then methanol - dichloromethane ) to afford the title compound ( 690 mg ). the acetal ( 5a ) was cleaved by treatment with 5m hcl ( 10 ml ) in acetone ( 20 ml ) at 60 ° c . overnight . the mixture was basified with sodium bicarbonate solution and concentrated . extraction into dichloromethane , evaporation and chromatography on silica gel ( dichloromethane then methanol - dichloromethane ) gave a yellow gum ( 482 mg ). the ketone ( 5b ) ( 159 mg ) was treated with hexylamine ( 0 . 12 ml ) in methanol for 1 hour and sodium triacetoxyborohydride ( 170 mg ) was added . the mixture was stirred for 4 hours , evaporated , and the residue partitioned between dichloromethane / water . the dichloromethane extract was evaporated and chromatographed on silica gel ( dichloromethane then methanol - dichloromethane ) to give a colourless oil as the free base ( 150 mg ) which was converted to the dioxalate salt in the normal manner , affording a white solid . the title compound was prepared from the ketone ( 5b ) as described in example ( 5c ), using heptylamine . this was prepared by the method of example ( 1a ) except that the chloromethylketone was reduced with (−)- b - chlorodiisopinocamphenylborane . the product had 90 % ee . the title compound was prepared from [ s ]- 2 -( 6 - methoxyquinolin - 4 - yl ) oxirane ( 7a ) as described in example ( 5 ) using heptylamine . 3 - amino - 6 - methoxypyridine ( 12 . 41 g ) and diethyl ethoxymethylene malonate ( 20 . 2 ml ) in dowtherm a ( 400 ml ) were heated at reflux , under argon for 1 hour . the cooled reaction mixture was poured into pentane ( 1 litre ). the precipitated solid was collected by filtration , washed with pentane and dried to afforded a solid ( 24 . 78 g , crude ). ms (+ ve ion electrospray ) m / z 249 ( mh +). the ester ( 8a ) ( 0 . 642 g ) in 10 % aqueous sodium hydroxide ( 115 ml ) was heated at reflux for 1 . 5 hours . the reaction mixture was cooled then acidified with glacial acetic acid . the precipitated solid was collected by filtration , washed with water and dried in vacuo to afford a beige solid ( 0 . 542 g ). the acid ( 8b ) ( 6 . 82 g ) was heated in quinoline ( 20 ml ) at reflux for 2 hours , the mixture was cooled and poured into ether ( 200 ml ) and the orange solid was filtered and washed with ether ( 5 × 200 ml ). a sample ( 3 . 87 g ) of the dried solid was treated with phosphorus oxychloride ( 30 ml ) at room temp for 3 hours , the solvent was removed in vacuo and the residue quenched with crushed ice ( 200 g ). the mixture was basified with ammonia solution and filtered . the solid was washed with dichloromethane ( 10 × 100 ml ), which was evaporated and chromatographed on silica gel ( dichloromethane as eluent ) to give a yellow solid ( 3 . 0 g ). a solution of the chloro compound ( 8c ) ( 2 . 0 g ) in pyridine ( 30 ml ) was treated with n - propylamine hydrochloride ( 6 . 0 g ) and the mixture heated at reflux for 16 hours . the reaction mixture was cooled and partitioned between water and ethyl acetate . the aqueous phase was washed with ethyl acetate , the combined organics dried ( na 2 so 4 ) and the solvent removed under reduced pressure . purification by chromatography on silica gel ( 5 - 10 % methanol in dichloromethane ) afforded a yellow solid ( 1 . 0 g ). 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ : 4 . 05 ( 3h , s ), 5 . 36 ( 2h , bs ), 6 . 71 ( 1h , d , j = 5 hz ), 7 . 08 ( 1h , d , j = 9 hz ), 8 . 10 ( 1h , d , j = 9 hz ), 8 . 40 ( 1h , d , j = 5 hz ). a solution of the amine ( 8d ) ( 0 . 32 g , 2 mmol ) in chloroform ( 6 ml ) was treated with n , n - dimethylaminopyridine ( 0 . 24 g , 2 mmol ) then 1 , 1 ′- carbonyldiimidazole ( 0 . 42 g , 2 . 6 mmol ). after 2 hours the chloroform was removed by evaporation and the residue treated with a solution of 4 - oxopiperidine , ethylene ketal ( 0 . 31 g , 0 . 22 mmol ) in n , n - dimethylformamide ( 5 ml ). the mixture was heated at 100 ° c . for 1 hour , then partitioned between ethyl acetate and dilute brine . the organic extract was washed with water ( 3 ×), brine , dried and evaporated to give a yellow solid ( 0 . 8 g ). chromatography on silica gave the product as a white solid ( 0 . 47 g , 71 %). a solution of example ( 8e ) ( 0 . 46 g , 1 . 4 mmol ) in acetone ( 25 ml ) and water ( 5 ml ) was treated with concentrated hydrochloric acid ( 0 . 2 ml ) and the mixture heated to reflux for 4 hours . the cooled mixture was partitioned between ethyl acetate and saturated aqueous sodium bicarbonate solution . the organic extract was dried and evaporated to give a white solid ( 0 . 4 g ). chromatography gave the title compound ( 0 . 2 g , 46 %). a solution of example ( 8f ) ( 0 . 17 g , 0 . 6 mmol ) in methanol ( 5 ml ) was treated with heptylamine ( 0 . 13 ml , 0 . 1 g , 0 . 85 mmol ) and sodium triacetoxyborohydride ( 0 . 18 g , 0 . 85 mmol ). after 3 hours the mixture was partitioned between ethyl acetate and saturated aqueous sodium bicarbonate solution . the organic extract was dried and evaporated to give a white solid ( 0 . 3 g ). chromatography gave the title compound ( 0 . 13 g , 60 %). 4 - heptylamino - 1 -[ 2 -( r )- hydroxy - 2 -( 6 - methoxyquinolin - 4 - yl )] ethylpiperidine ( example 6 ) ( 100 mg ) was alkylated with ethyl bromoacetate ( 0 . 026 ml ) in the presence of potassium carbonate ( 105 mg ) in dimethylformamide ( 3 ml ). after removal of solvent , the crude product was dissolved in dichloromethane and washed with water . chromatography on silica gel ( 10 % methanol / dichloromethane ) gave the title compound ( 85 mg , 70 %). this was converted to the oxalate salt in the normal manner . the ester example ( 9 ) ( 60 mg ) was hydrolysed in 2m hydrochloric acid at 1000c . after evaporation to dryness , the product was triturated with ether . the salt obtained was converted to the free base , and then to the oxalate salt in the normal manner . the ester example ( 9 ) ( 60 mg ) was dissolved in dry tetrahydrofuran ( 2 ml ) and treated with lithium aluminium hydride ( 1m in ether , 0 . 14 ml ) at 0 ° c . for 3 hours . the mixture was treated with sodium hydroxide , and magnesium sulfate , filtered and evaporated to give the free base ( 38 mg , 68 %). this was converted to the dioxalate salt in the normal manner . 4 - heptylamino - 1 -[ 2 -( r )- hydroxy - 2 -( 6 - methoxyquinolin - 4 - yl )] ethylpiperidine ( example 6 ) ( 100 mg ) was alkylated with 2 - bromoacetamide ( 38 mg ) in the presence of potassium carbonate ( 105 mg ) in dimethylformamide ( 5 ml ). after removal of solvent , the crude product was dissolved in dichloromethane and washed with water . chromatography on silica gel ( dichloromethane ) gave the title compound ( 43 mg , 38 %). this was converted to the dioxalate salt in the normal manner . ms (+ ve ion electrospray ) m / z 457 ( mh +). 4 - heptylamino - 1 -[ 2 -( r )- hydroxy - 2 -( 6 - methoxyquinolin - 4 - yl )] ethylpiperidine ( example 6 ) ( 190 mg ) was acylated with a mixture of n - tert - butoxycarbonylglycine ( 87 mg ), bromo - tris - pyrrolidino - phosphonium hexafluorophosphate ( 230 mg ) and n - methyl morpholine ( 0 . 11 ml ) in dry dichloromethane ( 10 ml ). the mixture was poured into water and extracted with dichloromethane . the extract was washed with water and brine , dried and evaporated . the crude product was chromatographed on silica gel ( 2 - 10 % methanov / dichloromethane ) to give a mixture of n - acylated and n , o - diacylated products ( 86 mg ). the above acylated mixture ( 43 mg ) was reduced with lithium aluminium hydride as in example ( 11 ). chromatography on silica gel ( dichloromethane ) gave an n -( 2 - tert - butoxycarbonylaminoethyl ) product ( 15 mg ) which was heated in 5m hydrochloric acid at 100 ° c . evaporation to dryness gave the title compound ( 12 mg ). 4 - heptylamino - 1 -[ 2 -( r )- hydroxy - 2 -( 6 - methoxyquinolin - 4 - yl )] ethylpiperidine ( example 6 ) ( 200 mg ) was alkylated with ethyl 4 - bromocrotonate ( 96 mg ) in the presence of potassium carbonate ( 210 mg ) in dimethylformamide ( 10 ml ). after removal of solvent , the crude product was dissolved in dichloromethane and washed with water . chromatography on silica gel ( dichloromethane ) gave the title compound ( 43 mg , 17 %). ms (+ ve ion electrospray ) m / z 512 ( mh + ). the ester example ( 14 ) ( 35 mg ) was hydrolysed in 5m hydrochloric acid at 100 ° c . evaporation to dryness gave the title compound ( 60 mg ). 4 - amino - 1 - tert - butoxycarbonylpiperidine - 4 - carboxylate ( 5 g ) in acetonitrile ( 22 ml ) and methanol ( 2 ml ) was treated with di - isopropylethylamine ( 3 . 65 ml ) and trimethylsilyldiazomethane ( 2m in hexane , 13 . 9 ml ). after overnight stirring and evaporation of solvent , the crude product was chromatographed on silica gel ( 0 - 50 % ethyl acetate / petrol ) to give a yellow oil ( 4 g , 76 %). a solution of the aminoester ( 16a ) ( 3 . 77 g ) in methanol ( 40 ml ) was treated with heptaldehyde ( 2 . 03 ml ) and stirred for 2 hours . sodium triacetoxyborohydride ( 3 . 43 g ) was added and the mixture was stirred for 16 hours . solvent was evaporated and the residue was dissolved in dichloromethane , washed with water , dried and evaporated , to give a yellow oil ( 4 . 34 g , 83 %). to a solution of the tert - butoxycarbonylpiperidine ( 16b ) ( 0 . 2 g ) in dichloromethane ( 1 ml ) was added trifluoroacetic acid ( 1 ml ). when hydrolysis was complete the mixture was extracted with water . the aqueous extract was washed with ether , basified with sodium hydrogen carbonate and saturated with sodium chloride , then extracted with 5 % methanol / dichloromethane . the extract was dried and evaporated to give a yellow oil ( 90 mg , 63 %). a mixture of the piperidine ( 16c ) ( 0 . 5 g ), oxirane example 1 ( a ) ( 0 . 43 g ) and lithium perchlorate ( 0 . 28 g ) in acetonitrile ( 2 ml ) was stirred for 3 days at room temperature , then heated at 50 ° c . for 16 hours . solvent was evaporated and the residue was dissolved in dichloromethane , washed with water , dried and evaporated . the crude product was chromatographed on silica gel ( ethyl acetate ) to give the free base ( 0 . 35 g , 39 %), which was converted to the dioxalate salt in the normal manner . the ester example ( 16 ) ( 50 mg ) was heated under reflux in 2m hydrochloric acid for 18 hours . evaporation to dryness and trituration with ethyl acetate and ether gave the title compound ( 51 mg ). the ester example ( 16 ) ( 60 mg ) was reduced with lithium aluminium hydride as in example ( 11 ). chromatography on silica gel ( 0 - 20 % methanol / dichloromethane ) gave the title compound ( 31 mg ). 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 ): δ0 . 88 ( 3h , t , j = 7 ), 1 . 28 ( 8h , m ), 1 . 46 ( 2h , m ), 1 . 68 ( 4h , m ), 2 . 41 - 2 . 58 ( 5h , m ), 2 . 73 ( 1h , quintet , j = 5 ), 2 . 85 ( 2h , dd , j = 12 , 3 ), 3 . 38 ( 2h , s ), 3 . 93 ( 3h , s ), 5 . 43 ( 1h , dd , j = 13 , 3 ), 7 . 18 ( 1h . d , j = 3 ), 7 . 37 ( 1h , dd , j = 9 , 3 ), 7 . 63 ( 1h , d , j = 4 . 5 ), 8 . 03 ( 1h , d , j = 9 ), 8 . 77 ( 1h , d , j = 4 . 5 ) the free base was converted to the dioxalate salt in the normal manner , giving a white solid . a solution of amine ( 8d ) ( 0 . 26 g ) in chloroform ( 7 ml ) was treated with 4 - dimethylaminopyridine ( 0 . 2 g ) and 1 , 1 ′- carbonyldiimidazole ( 0 . 44 g ) and stirred for 18 hours . the solvent was evaporated and replaced with dimethyl formamide ( 5 ml ). the piperidine ester example ( 16c ) ( 0 . 46 g ) was added and the mixture was stirred for 2 hours at 100 ° c . the mixture was diluted with water and extracted with ethyl acetate . the extract was washed with brine , dried and evaporated the crude product was chromatographed on silica gel ( 1 : 1 hexane / ethyl acetate ) to give the free base ( 0 . 25 g , 34 %). the ester example ( 19 ) ( 0 . 1 g )) was reduced with lithium aluminium hydride as in example 11 . the reaction mixture was diluted with water and extracted with ethyl acetate . the extract was washed with water and brine , dried and evaporated . the crude product was chromatographed on silica gel ( 0 - 1 % methanol / dichloromethane ) to give the title compound ( 50 mg , 53 %) as a white solid . 1 h - nmr ( cdcl 3 ): δ 0 . 88 ( 3h , t , j = 7 hz ), 1 . 28 ( 8h , m ), 1 . 47 ( 2h , m ), 1 . 70 ( 4h , m ), 2 . 51 ( 2h , t , j = 7 hz ), 3 . 452h , s ), 3 . 59 ( 2h , dm , j = 13 hz ), 3 . 73 ( 2h , dm , j = 13 hz ), 4 . 05 ( 3h , s ), 7 . 13 ( 1h , d , j = 9 hz ), 8 . 20 ( 1h , d , j = 9 hz ), 8 . 31 ( 1h , d , j = 5 hz ), 8 . 64 ( 1h , d , j = 5 hz ), 9 . 08 ( 1h , s ). the mic ( μg / ml ) of test compounds against various organisms was determined : s . aureus oxford , s . aureus wcuh29 , s . pneumoniae 1629 , s . pneumoniae n1387 , s . pneumoniae ery 2 . example 4 has an mic of less than or equal to 1 μg / ml against one or more of the above range of gram positive and gram negative bacteria .	2
referring to fig3 a preferred form of the present invention can be used to control a load 20 powered by an electrical power source 22 capable of supplying voltage in the range of 20 - 260 volts ac or 20 - 260 volts dc . in such a system , the preferred form of the invention basically comprises an electronic switch 28 ( preferably a field effect transistor ), a resistor 29 , a gating circuit 30 , an example of a gating means , a sensor circuit 32 , an example of a sensing means , a storage circuit 34 , an example of a storage means , and a regulator circuit 36 , all connected as shown . the regulator circuit 36 ( preferably a &# 34 ; buck regulator &# 34 ;), the means used to regulate voltage , is further comprised of a metal oxide varistor 24 , a full wave bridge rectifier 26 , including diodes d1 - d4 , a dual diode rectifier 35 , a switching regulator 37 , a voltage regulator 39 , and visual indicator circuitry 40 . the dual diode rectifier is further comprised of diodes d5 and d6 . still referring to fig3 load 20 only has a minimal amount of current flowing through it if switch 28 is in its high impedance state . with switch 28 in its high impedance state , regulator circuit 36 ( fig4 ) provides sufficient power to operate sensor circuit 32 , and regulator circuit 36 charges storage circuit 34 to approximately 8 . 5 volts . once sensor 32 detects the presence of a condition for which the load 20 should be turned on ( i . e ., at least a predetermined quantity of current sufficient to operate the load should flow through the load ), sensor 32 outputs a signal to gating circuit 30 over a conductor 33 . next , gating circuit 30 switches switch 28 into a low impedance mode that permits current to flow through load 20 . in the low impedance mode , storage circuit 34 discharges , supplying the necessary power to sensor circuit 32 to keep it operating . eventually , the storage circuit will have discharged to a point where it cannot continue to supply enough power to sensor circuit 32 to keep it operative . when this happens , gating circuit 30 temporarily switches switch 28 to its high impedance state , and load 20 only has minimal current flowing through it . at this point , regulator circuit 36 : ( 1 ) provides power to sensor circuit 32 ; and ( 2 ) provides sufficient power to recharge storage circuit 34 . once storage circuit 34 is sufficiently recharged , gating circuit 30 switches switch 28 back into its low impedance mode . at this point : ( 1 ) current sufficient to operate load 20 flows through load 20 again ; ( 2 ) storage circuit 34 begins to discharge again ; and ( 3 ) sensor circuit 32 receives power necessary to operate it from storage circuit 34 again . the time necessary to recharge storage circuit 34 is about one - tenth the time storage circuit 34 ( starting from a fully charged state ) can keep sensor circuit 32 operational . referring to fig4 switching regulator 37 comprises resistors 40 , 42 , 44 , 46 , 48 , 50 , 52 , 54 , 56 and 58 , capacitors 60 , 62 and 64 , field effect transistors ( fets ) 66 and 68 , an inductor 70 , an operational amplifier 72 , a dual diode rectifier 74 , transistors 76 and 78 , and a zener diode 80 , all connected as shown . the dual diode rectifier 74 is further comprised of diodes d7 and d8 . switching regulator 37 is responsive to the full wave bridge rectifier 26 ( fig3 ) and essentially controls the impedance seen by load 20 via fet 68 . when fet 68 is in its low impedance state , power is supplied to the circuit through an inductor 70 to the load 20 . when the voltage rises across the output of the switching regulator 37 as set by the operational amplifier 72 , fet 68 is placed in its high impedance state and the energy stored in the inductor 70 is returned to the circuit via dual diode rectifier (&# 34 ; flyback &# 34 ; diode ) 74 . switching regulator 37 supplies approximately 8 . 5 volts dc to voltage regulator 39 ( shown in detail in fig5 ). referring to fig5 voltage regulator 39 comprises an operational amplifier 82 , a zener diode 84 , resistors 86 and 88 , capacitors 90 and 92 , and a transistor 94 , all connected as shown . fig5 also shows fets 96 , 98 and 100 , resistor 102 , and leds 104 and 106 , which are connected to voltage regulator 39 and switching regulator 37 . referring specifically to voltage regulator 39 , zener diode 84 acts as a 1 . 2 volt reference for one of the inputs to operational amplifier 82 . resistors 86 and 88 set the gain of the operational amplifier 82 to ensure that the proper voltage will be available to sensor circuit 32 . the operational amplifier 82 output will be about 5 . 0 volts dc ( 1 . 2 volts ×[ 1 +[ 475 / 150 ]]), which is sufficient voltage for the sensor . the voltage regulator 39 is always operational regardless of the load &# 39 ; s state and provides constant dc voltage to the sensor circuit 32 . transistor 94 , connected to the output of operational amplifier 82 , provides current gain , ensuring that proper current will be available to sensor circuit 32 . still referring to fig5 visual indicator circuitry 40 comprises resistor 102 , light - emitting diodes ( leds ) 104 and 106 and fets 96 , 98 and 100 . fet 96 and fet 100 are enhancement mode fets . these fets are in the high impedance state when their gate voltages are positive with respect to their source voltages . fet 98 is a n - channel fet and is in a low impedance state when its gate voltage is positive with respect to its source voltage , exactly the opposite logic of fets 96 and 100 . thus , fet 98 and fet 100 are complementary , one being in a high impedance state and the other in a low impedance state all of the time . when fet 98 is conducting , led 104 will be illuminated , indicating the absence of a triggering event or condition detected by sensor circuit 32 . when fet 100 is conducting ( fet 98 is not conducting ), led 106 will be illuminated , indicating the presence of a triggering event or condition detected by sensor circuit 32 . leds 104 and 106 are of aid in troubleshooting the preferred embodiment of the invention once it is operative in the field . again referring to fig5 fet 96 essentially short circuits resistor 52 ( fig4 ) when an object is sensed , which disables the current limiting circuit formed by resistor 52 and transistor 78 . this eliminates any delays in refreshing the charge stored in storage circuit 34 ( fig6 ). thus , the current limiting circuit formed by resistor 52 and transistor 78 functions only on powering up the device and serves to minimize the initial surge of current that would otherwise occur and erroneously turn on the load 20 . after powering up , fet 96 renders the current limiting circuit inoperable . referring to fig6 storage circuit 34 ( fig3 ) consists of a 4 . 7 micro farad capacitor 34 and generates a storage signal indicative of the amount of electrical energy stored within it . sensor circuit 32 comprises a photoelectric head , such as honeywell part no . mpd2 . however , it is clear to one of ordinary skill in the art that many other types of sensors could be used in conjunction with the present invention , including , but not limited to , an inductive proximity sensor , such as honeywell part no . 977so1 . still referring to fig6 gating circuit 30 comprises a zener diode 38 , resistors 110 , 112 , 114 and 116 , a capacitor 118 , an operational amplifier 120 ( functioning as a comparator ) having an inverting input 120i and a non - inverting input 120n , and transistors 122 and 124 , all connected as shown . control line 126 of sensor circuit 32 is connected to zener diode 38 ( a 6 . 8 volt zener diode ), which , in turn , is connected to input 120i . control line 126 carries a sensing signal which is generated by the sensor 32 . the zener diode takes the sensing signal and generates a reference signal , which is input into the inverting terminal 120i of operational amplifier 120 . if a triggering event has not occurred , input 120i is pulled high ( to approximately 8 . 5 volts ) by resistor 110 , which is connected via zener diode 38 to an open collector or open drain output of the sensor circuit 32 . non - inverting input 120n of the operational amplifier is approximately 7 . 2 volts ( i . e ., 8 . 0 multiplied by [ 100 / 110 ] due to the resistor divider consisting of resistors 112 and 114 ). since inverting input 120i is higher in voltage than non - inverting input 120n , the output of the operational amplifier 120 is switched to approximately zero volts and fet switch 28 ( the switch means ) is gated to its high impedance state . in this state , the regulator circuit 36 maintains the charge on the storage circuit 34 at about 8 . 5 volts . again referring to fig6 when a triggering event occurs , control line 126 is driven low ( to about zero volts ), and inverting input 120i is reduced to about 6 . 8 volts ( i . e ., to the voltage drop across zener diode 38 ). since non - inverting input 120n is still at about 7 . 2 volts , the output of the operational amplifier 120 is switched high , transistors 122 and 124 are switched to their low impedance states ( placing a high voltage at the gate of fet 28 ), and fet 28 is switched to its low impedance state . this permits a predetermined quantity of electrical power to flow through the load 20 , turning the load on and enabling the load to perform its intended function . transistors 122 and 124 function together to provide current gain , helping the gate of fet 28 react quickly to the presence or absence of a triggering event . at this time , operational amplifier 120 and resistors 112 and 114 try to maintain 7 . 5 volts across storage circuit 34 . however , storage circuit 34 begins to discharge in order to supply the necessary current required by the sensor circuit 32 and voltage regulator 39 . eventually , storage circuit 34 will not have sufficient voltage to maintain the high output of the operational amplifier 120 and fet 28 will switch to its high impedance state . the switching occurs when input 120n drops below about 6 . 8 volts ( i . e ., the voltage on inverting input 120i is maintained by the zener diode 38 ). then , fet 68 ( fig4 ) will go to its low impedance state , allowing the regulator circuit 36 to both supply power to sensor circuit 32 and recharge storage circuit 34 ( because it is less than 8 . 5 volts ). almost instantly , storage circuit 34 will be recharged , and the output of operational amplifier 120 will go high , placing fet 28 in its low impedance state and permitting a predetermined amount of current to flow through load 20 again . fet 28 goes to its high impedance state for such a short time that there is no impact on the load 20 . in fact , the load 20 does not turn off during this time and only sees a slight difference in the impedance of fet 28 during the time the storage circuit 34 is being recharged . referring to fig7 lines a1 , b1 , c1 , d1 , e1 , f1 and g1 of fig4 are connected to lines a2 , b2 , c2 , d2 , e2 , f2 and g2 of fig5 respectively . further , lines h1 , i1 , j1 , k1 and l1 of fig6 are connected to lines h2 , i2 , j2 , k2 and l2 of fig5 respectively . finally , lines m1 , n1 , o1 , p1 , q1 and r1 of fig4 are connected to lines m2 , n2 , o2 , p2 , q2 and r2 of fig6 respectively . those skilled in the art will recognize that the preceding preferred embodiment can be altered and modified without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims .	7
conventional crc generators typically work with single bits or eight - bit data words and typically compute a crc value with a 16 - bit polynomial . sufficient performance is usually achievable in conventional applications by using higher clock speeds with these conventional generators . recently , however , it has become more common for data packets to require the computation of a crc value with a 32 - bit polynomial . use of a 32 - bit polynomial provides for stronger error detection than use of a 16 - bit polynomial . in other words , a 32 - bit crc value is capable of detecting more errors than a 16 - bit crc value . in addition , recent standard interfaces use 32 bits in parallel and higher clock speeds . as such , performance requirements for crc generators are now much greater . one prior solution to the high - speed generation of a 32 - bit crc polynomial involves computation of the 32 - bit crc serially using an eight - bit data word . the use of an eight - bit ( one byte ) data word is well - adapted for applications where the length of the data is a variable number of data bytes . however , the performance of this serial technique is limited by the number of iterations which can be performed per clock cycle . another prior solution to the high - speed generation of a 32 - bit crc polynomial also uses an eight - bit data word , but it utilizes a look - up table to directly read the checksum values . again , the use of an eight - bit ( one byte ) data word is well - adapted for applications where the length of the data is a variable number of data bytes . unfortunately , the performance of this look - up table technique is limited by the large table size of 4 gigabytes which would be required . the present disclosure provides methods and apparatus for the high - speed generation of a 32 - bit crc polynomial for variable - length data . the methods and apparatus may be extended for the high - speed generation of larger crc polynomials , such as a 64 - bit crc polynomial , a 128 - bit crc polynomial , and so on . fig1 is a schematic diagram of a 32 - bit checksum generator 100 for a variable - length data packet in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . the generator 100 is configured to efficiently process 32 - bits in parallel to generate the 32 - bit checksum while allowing the data packet to be a variable number of bytes in length . the data packet may be input one data word at a time into the data input and control circuitry 102 . here , one data word is 32 - bits ( 4 bytes ) of data . this 32 - bit input is advantageously designed to match the 32 - bit wide data word of a data communications interface , such as those in recent standards . the data input and control circuitry 102 is communicatively connected to each of four crc generators : an 8 - bit input crc generator 104 , a 16 - bit input crc generator 106 , a 24 - bit input crc generator 108 , and a 32 - bit input crc generator 110 . communication lines 111 connect the 32 - bit input crc generator 110 to each of the other three crc generators ( 104 , 106 , and 108 ). these lines 111 may be configured to transmit the latest crc value calculated by the 32 - bit input crc generator to the other three crc generators . output selection circuitry 114 , 116 , 118 , 120 and control lines 112 thereto are included . the output selection circuitry may be configured to select a 32 - bit crc value output from a select one of the four crc generators . the particular output selected may be determined by control circuitry based on byte enable bits associated with a last data word of the data packet . the operation of the 32 - bit checksum generator 100 of fig1 is now described in further detail in relation to the method 200 of fig2 . fig2 is a flow chart of a method 200 of generating a 32 - bit checksum for a variable - length data packet in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . the method 200 efficiently processes 32 - bits in parallel to generate the 32 - bit checksum while allowing the data packet to be a variable number of bytes in length . in one implementation , the method 200 may be implemented using the circuitry 100 shown in fig1 . the data packet may be input 202 one data word at a time into the crc generator . here , one data word is 32 - bits ( 4 bytes ) of data . this 32 - bit input is advantageously designed to match the 32 - bit wide data word of a data communications interface , such as those in recent standards . a determination 204 may then be made as to whether the data word is the last data word of the data packet . if it is not the last data word of the packet , then the 32 - bit data word is input 206 into a 32 - bit input crc generator . the 32 - bit input crc generator preferably comprises hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 32 - bit crc value based on a 32 - bit input . the 32 - bit input crc generator thus calculates or updates 208 the 32 - bit checksum value based on the input 32 - bit data word . the method 200 thus continues to input 202 and process 32 - bit data words to update 208 the 32 - bit crc value until the last data word of the data packet is input . if the packet is a variable number of bytes in length , then the last data word may be 32 - bits wide , 24 - bits wide , 16 - bits wide , or 8 - bits wide . in accordance with an embodiment of the invention , the variable - length last data word may be sent 210 to each of four crc generators : the 32 - bit input crc generator ( also used to process the previous data words of the packet ); a 24 - bit input crc generator ; a 16 - bit input crc generator ; and an 8 - bit input crc generator . in one implementation , the 24 - bit input crc generator may comprise hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 32 - bit crc value based on a 24 - bit input . similarly , the 16 - bit input crc generator may comprise hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 32 - bit crc value based on a 16 - bit input , and the 8 - bit input crc generator may comprise hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 32 - bit crc value based on an 8 - bit input . more particularly , the first 8 bits of the last data word may be sent to all four of the crc generators . the second 8 bits , if any , of the last data word may be sent to the 16 - bit input , the 24 - bit input , and the 32 - bit input crc generators . the third 8 bits , if any , of the last data word may be sent to the 24 - bit input and the 32 - bit input crc generators . finally , the fourth 8 bits , if any , of the last data word may be sent to the 32 - bit input crc generator . in addition , the latest checksum from the 32 - bit input crc generator is sent 212 to the 24 - bit input , 16 - bit input , and 8 - bit input crc generators . this latest checksum value is the 32 - bit crc value calculated so far by processing of the data words up until the last data word . thereafter , the 8 - bit , 16 - bit , 24 - bit and 32 - bit input crc generators each updates 214 its value of the 32 - bit checksum by performing an iteration of the crc calculation . while each crc generator calculates its own update of the 32 - bit crc value , only one of the four calculations will be valid . if the last data word is 8 - bits wide , then the 8 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 32 - bit crc value . if the last data word is 16 - bits wide , then the 16 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 32 - bit crc value . if the last data word is 24 - bits wide , then the 24 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 32 - bit crc value . finally , if the last data word is 32 - bits wide , then the 32 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 32 - bit crc value . in accordance with an embodiment of the invention , the valid output is selected 216 by using byte enable signals . if only the first byte of the last word is enabled ( valid ) while the other three bytes are disabled ( invalid ), then control circuitry selects the 32 - bit crc value that is output by the 8 - bit input crc generator . if the first two bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ) while the last two bytes are disabled ( invalid ), then the control circuitry selects the 32 - bit crc value that is output by the 16 - bit input crc generator . if the first three bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ) while the last byte is disabled ( invalid ), then the control circuitry selects the 32 - bit crc value that is output by the 24 - bit input crc generator . finally , if all four bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ), then the control circuitry selects the 32 - bit crc value that is output by the 32 - bit input crc generator . the above - described technique for generating a 32 - bit crc value for a variable - length data packet is advantageous in that it may be implemented with a lower clock frequency . this is because up to 32 bits may be processed in parallel . in addition , the above - described technique may be implemented with reduced complexity because the crc generators may be configured to run at the same speed as a 32 - bit bus interface . fig3 is a flow chart of a method of generating a 64 - bit checksum for a variable - length data packet in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . the method 300 efficiently processes 64 - bits in parallel to generate the 64 - bit checksum while allowing the data packet to be a variable number of bytes in length . in one implementation , the circuitry 100 shown in fig1 may be extended to by additional circuitry so as to implement the method 300 of fig3 . the data packet may be input 302 one data word at a time into the crc generator . here , one data word is 64 - bits ( 8 bytes ) of data . this 64 - bit input is advantageously designed to match the 64 - bit wide data word of a data communications interface . a determination 304 may then be made as to whether the data word is the last data word of the data packet . if it is not the last data word of the packet , then the 64 - bit data word is input 306 into a 64 - bit input crc generator . the 64 - bit input crc generator preferably comprises hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 64 - bit crc value based on a 64 - bit input . the 64 - bit input crc generator thus calculates or updates 308 the 64 - bit checksum value based on the input 64 - bit data word . the method 300 thus continues to input 302 and process 64 - bit data words to update 308 the 64 - bit crc value until the last data word of the data packet is input . if the packet is a variable number of bytes in length , then the last data word may be 64 - bits wide , 56 - bits wide , 48 - bits wide , 40 - bits wide , 32 - bits wide , 24 - bits wide , 16 - bits wide , or 8 - bits wide . in accordance with an embodiment of the invention , the variable - length last data word may be sent 310 to each of eight crc generators : the 64 - bit input crc generator ( also used to process the previous data words of the packet ); a 56 - bit input crc generator ; a 48 - bit input crc generator ; a 40 - bit input crc generator ; a 32 - bit input crc generator ; a 24 - bit input crc generator ; a 16 - bit input crc generator ; and an 8 - bit input crc generator . in one implementation , the 56 - bit input crc generator may comprise hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 64 - bit crc value based on a 56 - bit input . similarly , the 48 - bit input crc generator may comprise hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 64 - bit crc value based on a 48 - bit input . the 40 - bit input crc generator may comprise hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 64 - bit crc value based on a 40 - bit input . the 32 - bit input crc generator may comprise hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 64 - bit crc value based on a 32 - bit input . the 24 - bit input crc generator may comprise hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 64 - bit crc value based on a 24 - bit input . the 16 - bit input crc generator may comprise hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 64 - bit crc value based on an 16 - bit input . finally , the 8 - bit input crc generator may comprise hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 64 - bit crc value based on an 8 - bit input . more particularly , the first 8 bits of the last data word may be sent to all eight of the crc generators . the second 8 bits , if any , of the last data word may be sent to the 16 - bit input , the 24 - bit input , the 32 - bit input , the 40 - bit input , the 48 - bit input , the 56 - bit input , and the 64 - bit input crc generators . the third 8 bits , if any , of the last data word may be sent to the 24 - bit input , the 32 - bit input , the 40 - bit input , the 48 - bit input , the 56 - bit input , and the 64 - bit input crc generators . the fourth 8 bits , if any , of the last data word may be sent to the 32 - bit input , the 40 - bit input , the 48 - bit input , the 56 - bit input , and the 64 - bit input crc generators . the fifth 8 bits , if any , of the last data word may be sent to the 40 - bit input , the 48 - bit input , the 56 - bit input , and the 64 - bit input crc generators . the sixth 8 bits , if any , of the last data word may be sent to the 48 - bit input , the 56 - bit input , and the 64 - bit input crc generators . the seventh 8 bits , if any , of the last data word may be sent to the 56 - bit input and the 64 - bit input crc generators . finally , the last 8 bits , if any , of the last data word may be sent to the 64 - bit input crc generator . in addition , the latest checksum from the 64 - bit input crc generator is sent 312 to the 56 - bit input , 48 - bit input , 40 - bit input , 32 - bit input , 24 - bit input , 16 - bit input , and 8 - bit input crc generators . this latest checksum value is the 64 - bit crc value calculated so far by processing of the data words up until the last data word . thereafter , each of the eight crc generators updates 314 its value of the 64 - bit checksum by performing an iteration of the crc calculation . while each crc generator calculates its own update of the 64 - bit crc value , only one of the eight calculations will be valid . if the last data word is 8 - bits wide , then the 8 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 64 - bit crc value . if the last data word is 16 - bits wide , then the 16 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 64 - bit crc value . if the last data word is 24 - bits wide , then the 24 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 64 - bit crc value . if the last data word is 32 - bits wide , then the 32 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 64 - bit crc value . if the last data word is 40 - bits wide , then the 40 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 64 - bit crc value . if the last data word is 48 - bits wide , then the 48 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 64 - bit crc value . if the last data word is 56 - bits wide , then the 56 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 64 - bit crc value . finally , if the last data word is 64 - bits wide , then the 64 - bit input crc generator will calculate the valid 64 - bit crc value . in accordance with an embodiment of the invention , the valid output is selected 316 by using byte enable signals . if only the first byte of the last word is enabled ( valid ) while the other seven bytes are disabled ( invalid ), then control circuitry selects the 64 - bit crc value that is output by the 8 - bit input crc generator . if the first two bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ) while the last six bytes are disabled ( invalid ), then the control circuitry selects the 64 - bit crc value that is output by the 16 - bit input crc generator . if the first three bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ) while the last five bytes are disabled ( invalid ), then the control circuitry selects the 64 - bit crc value that is output by the 24 - bit input crc generator . if the first four bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ) while the last four bytes are disabled ( invalid ), then the control circuitry selects the 64 - bit crc value that is output by the 32 - bit input crc generator . if the first five bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ) while the last three bytes are disabled ( invalid ), then the control circuitry selects the 64 - bit crc value that is output by the 40 - bit input crc generator . if the first six bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ) while the last two bytes are disabled ( invalid ), then the control circuitry selects the 64 - bit crc value that is output by the 48 - bit input crc generator . if the first seven bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ) while the last byte is disabled ( invalid ), then the control circuitry selects the 64 - bit crc value that is output by the 56 - bit input crc generator . finally , if all eight bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ), then the control circuitry selects the 64 - bit crc value that is output by the 64 - bit input crc generator . the above - described technique for generating a 64 - bit crc value for a variable - length data packet is advantageous in that it may be implemented with a lower clock frequency . this is because up to 64 bits may be processed in parallel . in addition , the above - described technique may be implemented with reduced complexity because the crc generators may be configured to run at the same speed as a 64 - bit bus interface . fig4 is a flow chart of a method of generating a 128 - bit checksum for a variable - length data packet in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . the method 400 efficiently processes 128 - bits in parallel to generate the 128 - bit checksum while allowing the data packet to be a variable number of bytes in length . in one implementation , the circuitry 100 shown in fig1 may be extended to by additional circuitry so as to implement the method 400 of fig4 . the data packet may be input 402 one data word at a time into the crc generator . here , one data word is 128 - bits ( 16 bytes ) of data . this 128 - bit input is advantageously designed to match the 128 - bit wide data word of a data communications interface . a determination 404 may then be made as to whether the data word is the last data word of the data packet . if it is not the last data word of the packet , then the 128 - bit data word is input 406 into a 128 - bit input crc generator . the 128 - bit input crc generator preferably comprises hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 128 - bit crc value based on a 128 - bit input . the 128 - bit input crc generator thus calculates or updates 408 the 128 - bit checksum value based on the input 128 - bit data word . the method 400 thus continues to input 402 and process 128 - bit data words to update 408 the 128 - bit crc value until the last data word of the data packet is input . if the packet is a variable number of bytes in length , then the last data word may be 128 - bits wide , 120 - bits wide , 112 - bits wide , 104 - bits wide , 96 - bits wide , 88 - bits wide , 80 - bits wide , 72 - bits wide , 64 - bits wide , 56 - bits wide , 48 - bits wide , 40 - bits wide , 32 - bits wide , 24 - bits wide , 16 - bits wide , or 8 - bits wide . in accordance with an embodiment of the invention , the variable - length last data word may be sent 410 to each of sixteen crc generators : the 128 - bit input crc generator ( also used to process the previous data words of the packet ); a 120 - bit input crc generator ; a 112 - bit input crc generator ; a 104 - bit input crc generator ; a 96 - bit input crc generator ; a 88 - bit input crc generator ; a 80 - bit input crc generator ; a 72 - bit input crc generator ; a 64 - bit input crc generator ; a 56 - bit input crc generator ; a 48 - bit input crc generator ; a 40 - bit input crc generator ; a 32 - bit input crc generator ; a 24 - bit input crc generator ; a 16 - bit input crc generator ; and an 8 - bit input crc generator . in one implementation , each n - bit input crc generator may comprise hardware circuitry configured to rapidly calculate an update of a 64 - bit crc value based on an n - bit input . in addition , the latest checksum from the 128 - bit input crc generator is sent 412 to the other fifteen crc generators . this latest checksum value is the 128 - bit crc value calculated so far by processing of the data words up until the last data word . thereafter , each of the sixteen crc generators updates 414 its value of the 128 - bit checksum by performing an iteration of the crc calculation . while each crc generator calculates its own update of the 128 - bit crc value , only one of the eight calculations will be valid . in accordance with an embodiment of the invention , the valid output is selected 416 by using byte enable signals . if only the first byte of the last word is enabled ( valid ) while the other fifteen bytes are disabled ( invalid ), then control circuitry selects the 128 - bit crc value that is output by the 8 - bit input crc generator . if only the first two bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ), then the control circuitry selects the 128 - bit crc value that is output by the 16 - bit input crc generator . if only the first three bytes of the last word are enabled ( valid ), then the control circuitry selects the 128 - bit crc value that is output by the 24 - bit input crc generator . and so on . the above - described technique for generating a 128 - bit crc value for a variable - length data packet is advantageous in that it may be implemented with a lower clock frequency . this is because up to 128 bits may be processed in parallel . in addition , the above - described technique may be implemented with reduced complexity because the crc generators may be configured to run at the same speed as a 128 - bit bus interface . 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 .	7
tomato packinghouses in the u . s generate 6 . 12 × 108 kg of defective tomatoes ( culled tomatoes ) every year . tomatoes are deemed defective when they fail customer requirements for firmness and color due to freezing traces and growth cracks ; they have a stem over 3 inches of length , anthracnose , mold , decay , gray wall , or virus mottling ; and they have cloudy spots , ghost spots , internal browning and sunscalds . with u . s . tomato production reaching as high as 1 . 53 × 109 kg / year (˜ 81 % production in ca , al , fl , ga , nc , sc , tn , and va ), the packaging houses incur significant disposal costs . similarly , processing plants generate culled tomatoes during washing , inspection , pulping , juice finishing , evaporation , sterilization , packing , and storage ( fig7 ). a kilogram of processed tomatoes generates 20 grams of culled tomatoes and 20 grams of peel and skin residues ( fig7 ). the packaging houses often prefer to hire third - party vendors to dispose of the culled tomatoes , incurring significant transportation costs . moreover , regarding fig7 , a kilogram ( kg ) of a processed tomato generates 0 . 02 kg of culled tomatoes ( 7 % total solids ), 0 . 02 kg of miscellaneous solid organic waste ( 40 % total solids ), and 77 kg of wastewater . the culled tomatoes and miscellaneous solid wastes can be processed for commercial use . however , the disposal of as is culled tomatoes , pomace , and other solids wastes requires expensive treatment options . the available biotechnologies are not designed to optimize the energy production from the solid organic wastes such as culled tomatoes . activated sludge processes are more suitable for the dilute wastewater ( ww ) and require energy inputs (˜ 112 kw per million gallons of ww ). the land application of culled tomatoes may not be an attractive option due to ever - increasing stringent regulations . on - site composting requires expensive equipment during the site preparation demands lengthy treatment periods and poses both odor and dust issues . anaerobic digestion ( ad ) is an established technology for generating methane - rich biogas but it requires purification step to recover methane . dark fermentation can also be used to generate hydrogen - rich biogas , but it also can require purification . microbial electrochemical systems ( mess ) support an array of engineering applications including biosensors , electrolysis , desalination , reverse electrodialysis , and struvite production . the use of unprocessed solid organic wastes ( sows ) ( e . g ., food waste , sludge , soybean residue and rice husk , leaves , marine sediment , wheat straw as electron donors for mess is conventionally known . specifically , tomato pomace can serve as a viable electron donor in microbial fuel cells . there are a fair number of impedance studies on the use of pure substrates ( e . g ., lactate ), wastewater , and marine wastes in mess . however , there is a notable paucity in art relating to the impedance behavior of sow - based mess . further , the art lacks a showing of mes studies that provide time - variant impedances characterizing the oxidation of unprocessed culled tomatoes . therefore , a need exists to delineate the long - term oxidative behavior and impedance contributions of the particulate fraction ( i . e ., peel & amp ; seed ) of the cull . a series of dc techniques ( voltammetry ), ac techniques ( electrochemical impedance analysis ( eis )), and spectrophotometry tests ( chemical oxygen demand ( cod )) can be used to compare the oxidative behavior of as is culled tomatoes with its peel and seed ( p & amp ; s ) and readily soluble substrates including pure dextrose ( represent monosaccharides in the cull ), pure acetate ( fermentation product of dextrose ), and municipal wastewater . aspects of the present invention disclose indigenous redox shuttles ( e . g . flavins ) and dextrose - rich flesh in the cull promotes its oxidation , while the peel & amp ; seed in the cull impedes the degradation rates of culled tomatoes in mess . there are several reasons why oxidative behavior of unprocessed cull can be different from soluble substrates . first , the flesh in culled tomatoes serve an excellent source for energy - rich sucrose ( δg0f = 1551 . 8 kj / mole ), amino acids ( δg0f = 763 kj / mole ) and redox - active flavins ( e ′ 0fmn / fmnh2 =− 190 mv ), all of which can promote the extracellular electron transport capabilities of arb . the skin and seed in the culled tomatoes are rich in proteins , lipids , and micro - and macro - nutrients ( table 1 ). second , the peel and skin components of as is cull represent the complex particulate form of cod ( pcod ) that is known for sluggish disintegration and hydrolysis in the biological systems . the mess using the pcod can be expected to suffer from the diffusion limitations . third , unlike the municipal wastewater , the culled tomatoes possesses high carbohydrate content ( 39 mg / g cull ), low ph , high electrical conductivity , and unique redox - active species ( table 1 ). from the large - scale treatment perspective , it is important to distinguish the electrical performance of cull - wastewater from municipal wastewater . finally , the dextrose in the cull will proliferate the growth of methanogens . based on the above background , it becomes important to distinguish the polarization response and impedance behavior of mess with culled tomatoes from the peel & amp ; seed , fermentable ( dextrose ) and non - fermentable ( acetate ) substrates , and municipal wastewater . at the typical low current densities (& lt ; 10 a / m2 ) encountered in mess , the present invention contemplates mess with unprocessed cull outperforming the seed & amp ; skin and municipal wastewater . while counterintuitive , the cull is observed outperforming the pure chemicals ( dextrose and acetate ). since the peel and seed are integral components of the cull , an eis study can distinguish the temporal impedance contributions ( charge transfer resistance , ohmic , and diffusion limitations ) of the peel and skin to the electrochemical oxidation of culled tomatoes in mess . a two - chambered microbial fuel cell as a laboratory model for microbial electrochemical systems ( mess ) can be employed . a hydrated ultrex membrane provided a hydraulic separation between the anode and cathode chambers the 100 mm ferricyanide ( in 50 mm phosphate buffer ) can be used as the electron acceptor in the cathode . the tests can be carried out in five identical mess varying in the type of carbon substrate 1 ) as is cull , 2 ) peel & amp ; seed , 3 ) dextrose , 4 ) acetate , and 5 ) municipal wastewater ( table 2 ). the five test mess are herein referred as cull , p & amp ; s , dex , ace , and ww . a mes that lacked carbon source can be run simultaneously to provide a control . the anode can be inoculated with enriched mixture of electrochemically active microbial population described in our earlier study . in accordance with at least one evaluation , the performance of five test mess in 14 consecutive cycles extended during 125 days of fed - batch operation . planktonic microbes were eliminated at end of each cycle by draining the anolyte and gently washing the anode with 50 mm phosphate . the following minimal media can be used to prepare the anolyte : nh4cl , 1 . 24 g / l ; kcl , 0 . 52 g / l ; nah2po4 . h2o , 2 . 45 g l - 1 ; na2hpo47h2o , 4 . 576 g / l ; vitamin mix , 10 ml / l ; and trace minerals , 10 ml / l . the anolyte in test mess can be obtained by modifying the minimal media with the carbon substrates ( table 2 ). 2 . 1 . 1 . cull : fresh tomato culled tomatoes obtained , for example , from immokalee farm , naples , fla ., were quartered and boiled in distilled water for 5 minutes ; cooled at 11 oc for 10 minutes ; placed on an aluminum foil ; heat - dried at 60 oc for 18 hours ; and , 9 . 7 mg of powdered cull was mixed with one liter of minimal media . 2 . 1 . 2 . peel & amp ; seeds : the cull , for example , was quartered and boiled in distilled water for 5 minutes and cooled at 11 oc for 10 minutes . the skin and seeds were manually separated from the dried cull and heated at 60 oc for 18 hours . the skin and seed were combined in a ratio of 3 : 4 ( w / w ) and mixed in minimal media to achieve 9 . 7 mg / l . 2 . 1 . 3 . dex , ace , and ww . the dex and ace used 1 g / l of dextrose and acetate respectively . the ww used primary clarifier effluent from rapid city , sd wastewater treatment facility . in accordance with one exemplary method , 5 ml of anolyte can be periodically collected using a gastight syringe to measure its ph ( cole - palmer probe ) and scod ( method 5220 hach cod system ). voltage data can be acquired with a daq / 54 module configured with an external resistor . the polarization data can be obtained for test mess on day 1 , 45 , 59 , 74 , 86 , and 105 by recording the steady state voltage values at a specified value of external resistor . the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy ( eis ) for cull , p & amp ; s , and dex can be performed with chi electrochemical workstation . the ace and ww can be evaluated with gamry600 workstation . the eis tests can be performed at open circuit potential using an ac signal with an amplitude of ± 10 mv and the eis spectra was obtained in a frequency range of 10000 to 0 . 01 hz . the eis tests can use an anode as the working electrode and a cathode as counter and reference electrodes . the temporal eis responses for cull and p & amp ; s were recorded on days 1 , 16 , 21 , 45 , 72 , 88 , 103 , and 107 . the solution resistance can be interpreted from the nyquist plot as the real axis value at the high frequency intercept . the real axis value at low frequency intercept of nyquist plot corresponds to the sum of the polarization resistance and the solution resistance . a dc cyclic voltammetry technique can be used to analyze cull , ace , and ww using the anode as the working electrode , cathode as the counter electrode respectively , and ag / agcl system as a reference electrode . the working electrode can be scanned in a potential region of 0 . 8 and 0 . 8 v at a sweep rate of 10 mv / s . a randles sevcik equation can be used to analyze the cyclic voltammograms for cull , ace , and ww . ip = peak current ( a ); n = number of electrons transferred ; a = electrode area ( cm2 ); f = faraday constant ( c mole - 1 ); d = diffusion coefficient of the species ( cm2 / s ) v = scan rate ( v / s ); c = bulk concentration of the species ( mol / cm3 ); t = temperature ( k ) table 3 provides performance data for cull , p & amp ; s , dex , ace , and ww . fig1 - 6 demonstrates the unique oxidation behavior of the cull compared to the soluble substrates . unlike the dex , ace , and ww ( fig1 b ), the cull develops reddish - orange color due to the carotenoids ( e . g ., lycopene and redox - active β - carotene ) it also promotes the formation of two distinct phases ( fig1 a ): i ) the particulate phase ( the peel & amp ; seed ) characterized with pcod and ii ) a clear aqueous phase dominated by scod from the flesh ( tissue , columella , pericarp , vascular bundle , and locular activity ). given the slow - kinetics of pcod oxidation and the sluggish disintegration and hydrolysis reactions that characterize the p & amp ; s substrate , the inferior performance of p & amp ; s compared to cull ( fig1 - 5 ) is better understood . as expected , the dex , ace , and ww did not yield any color nor did the solid sludge ( fig1 b ). data for fig1 ( a )-( f ) is obtained from mess with biofilm age of roughly 100 days . additionally , both the cull and p & amp ; s exhibited impedance behavior distinct from that of the dex , ace , and ww . the bode phase angle plots for cull and p & amp ; s yielded a phase angle maximum in the mid - to - low frequency region ( lfr ), indicating the presence of a charge transfer resistance ( ctr ) to the slow bio - electrochemical oxidation of pcod ( fig1 c ). these lfr peaks did not appear in the dex and ace ( fig1 d ). the cull and p & amp ; s also displayed time constants in the mid - frequency region ( mfr ) ( fig1 c , 1 d ) that are likely indicative of the ctr to the indigenous redox shuttles ( e . g . flavin and carotene ; table 1 ) in the cull and its peel and seed . these mfr peaks are also absent in the bode plots for dex , ace , and ww . multiple relaxation constants ( n & gt ; 1 ) are observed in the bode plots for cull and p & amp ; s , while the ace and ww yielded a single loop ( fig1 ). contemporary eis studies on the mess with both waste water and pure substrates have reported only a single time constant . finally , as expected , the temporal profiles for scod consumption in the ace and ww ( fig1 f ) followed a linear pattern and demonstrated 92 % scod removal ( fig1 . however , the scod profiles for cull and p & amp ; s follows a non - linear pattern ( fig1 e ). this is likely due to the complex dynamics of pcod → scod conversion influenced by the synergistic effects of the disintegration and hydrolysis reactions , biofilm history , mass transfer limitations , and electrical parameters . further , the scod initial for dex , ace , and ww can be manually adjusted to 1000 mg / l ( fig1 ; the different mass inputs of the cull and p & amp ; s resulted in different scodi values for cull ( 2000 mg / l ) and p & amp ; s ( 3000 mg / l ) ( fig1 d ). the scod removal efficiency in the dex was less than 50 % and this is likely due to the fact that the dextrose can be fermented to scod - bearing organic acids and ethanol . 3 . 2 . cull outperforms dex , ace - defective tomatoes play superior to pure chemicals the electrical performance of the p & amp ; s is shown to be inferior to cull ( fig2 b , 2 c ; fig3 ) throughout the hundred days of operation ( fig1 ). ohms law is used to estimate the steady state electrical current under a load of 1000 ohm for fig2 ( a ) -( f ). each cycle of fed - batch operation denotes 111 data points for externally measured voltage value . similar start - up behavior is observed of mess with soluble substrates ( dextrose , acetate , and municipal wastewater ), and solid substrates ( culled tomatoes , peel & amp ; seed ), both exhibited a lag phase , and the time requirements to achieve peak current density . while counter - intuitive , the cull has outperformed dex and ace that used pure substrates ( open circuit , fig2 a ; closed - circuit , fig2 b - 2 f ). the average ocvmax for cull ( 0 . 71 v ) is higher than p & amp ; s ( 0 . 67 v ), dex ( 0 . 7 v ), ace ( 0 . 63 v ), and ww ( 0 . 41 v ). considering that p & amp ; s is characterized with the pcod , it is observed that its ocv is equivalent to cull and dex . one - way anova analysis confirms the absence of statistically significant differences between the mean ocv for cull , p & amp ; s , and dex ( n = 22 ; p - value = 0 . 274 & gt ; 0 . 05 , f = 1 . 31 ; bartlett &# 39 ; s statistic = 0 . 9266 , p - value = 0 . 629 & gt ; 0 . 05 ) ( tables 4 - 5 ). as anticipated , the ocv in the ace is lower than dex and higher than ww . fig2 ( b )- 2 ( f ) indicate that the identical start - up behavior of five test mess ( 2400 data points ) under closed circuit conditions ( load - 1000ω ) and ( fig2 ). the cull , p & amp ; s , and dex exhibited a lag of 70 h to register minimal electrical output , and additional 700 h to register maximum current : cull , 1 . 03 a / m2 ; p & amp ; s , 0 . 97 a / m2 ; and dex , 0 . 98 a / m2 ( fig2 ). however , as shown in fig3 , the performance differences between the test mess becomes more pronounced at higher current densities . given the identical reactor configuration , the variance in polarization responses ( fig3 ) are attributed to the differences in the oxidation behavior of the carbon substrates . the polarization losses are ranked as : cull & lt ; dex & lt ; p & amp ; s & lt ; ace & lt ; ww ; the corresponding power densities are in the order : cull & gt ; dex & gt ; p & amp ; s & gt ; ace & gt ; ww ( fig3 ). the polarization data for fig3 is collected for representative cycles of fed - batch operation . the media replacements were performed on days 12 , 27 , 43 , 47 , 53 , 60 , 67 , 74 , 84 , 89 , 95 , and 103 . the bar plot in fig1 compares the magnitude of power densities and current densities for cull , p & amp ; s , and dex . the cull outperformed dex during the fourteen different cycles ( fig . s3 ): the peak current density ( 1504 ma / m2 ) and power density ( 256 . 1 mw / m2 ) in cull was 0 . 6 fold and 1 . 5 fold higher than dex ( fig3 ). the superior performance of cull is attributed to its monosaccharides ( 3 g sugar × g . cull - 1 ), and the putative redox - active species , β - carotene characterized with high electron - transfer rates . the inferior performance of the dex is attributed to methanogens that thrive in the glucose substrates and divert the electron flux towards reduced products ( e . g ., fatty acids ). this observation is consistent with prior findings where glucose substrates yielded lower performance compared to the solid algae . 3 . 3 . redox shuttles in cull appears at potential of 0 . 3 v higher than contemporary species the biofilm - coated anodes in both the cull and ace exhibited non - sigmoidal voltammograms indicating a single electron - transfer process . however , the cull exhibits oxidation and reduction peaks at 0 . 255 v ( vs . she ) and 0 . 425 v ( vs . she ) respectively , and its midpoint peak potential ( 0 . 335 v vs . she ) at higher values ( more positive ) compared to ace (− 0 . 34 v vs . she ). the peak potential for the cv in the cull was 0 . 3 v higher than that for mess based on geobacter , r . palustris dx - 1 , and t . ferriacetica . the higher - potential - redox - active - species ( hpras ) in the cull dominated the cvs at all the tested scan rates ( fig4 b ). at low - scan rate , the ratio of cathodic and anodic peak current ( ipc / ipa ) in cull was 1 . 56 indicating the quasi - reversible nature of the hpras that likely undergoes structural reorganization without disrupting its molecular structure . the peak potential of 0 . 33 v ( vs . she ) for hpras corresponds to the indigenous redox compounds in the culled tomatoes including quercetin ( 0 . 3 v vs . she ) and carotenoid pigments ( 0 . 256 - 0 . 48 v vs . she ). unlike cull , the ace exhibited redox peak at a lower voltage (− 0 . 34 v vs she ) corresponding to known electron acceptors such as ferredoxin (− 0 . 398 vs she ) and cytochrome omcb (− 0 . 19 v vs she ). for 1 mv / s scan rate , the ipc / ipa ratio for ace is close to unity suggesting the reversible nature of participating redox - active species . this is a contemplated result , given the purity of the ace compound compared with the complex particulate nature of the defective tomatoes in the cull . the ww exhibited a mid - point peak at low potential (− 0 . 19 v vs . she ) whose peak current ( ip ) ( both anodic and cathodic sweeps ) is an order of magnitude lower than the cull ( fig4 a - c ). the cvs shown in fig4 ( a ) -( c ) were generated after 365 days of fed - batch operation . prior to obtaining cvs , the anolyte is totally drained , and washed with phosphate buffer two times . the ipc / ipa ratio for both cull and ace decreased with increasing scan rates ( fig4 b ). the slow scan rate provides adequate time for redox - active species to participate in electrochemical reactions and contribute to higher faradic current ( fig4 a ). as scan rates grow faster and voltage range scanned wider , the diffusion rates decreased and the separation between the anodic and cathodic peak potentials ( δep ) increases ( fig4 b ). the increase in δep with increasing scan rate is attributed to the charge transfer limitations induced by the electrostatic factors , chemical interaction between electrolyte ions and anode and interactions of redox couples . the randles - sevcik equation ( eq . 1 ) can be used to confirm that the values of peak current ( ip ) are directly proportional to the v1 / 2 ( square root of scan rate ) indicating the diffusion controlled current in both the cull ( n = 8 ; r2 = 0 . 85 ; f = 12 . 4 ; p = 0 . 77 ) and ace ( n = 20 ; r2 = 0 . 81 ; f = 35 ; p = 0 . 0005 ). however , the slope ( 0 . 00135 ) of the i - v1 / 2 curve in ace is 27 fold higher than the cull ( slope = 0 . 00005 ). the higher slope in the ace indicates higher transfer coefficient of the participating redox - shuttles in the latter case . the differences in the slope can be attributed to the differences in the diffusion coefficient ( d ) of their respective redox couples . the easy electrocatalytic behavior of the redox shuttles and higher peak current ( ip ) in ace can be explained by the fact that the biokinetic rate of the acetate oxidation is significantly higher than the pcod oxidation in the cull . 3 . 4 the higher impedance in p & amp ; s induces its skewed polarization behavior at higher currents the p & amp ; s exhibits a skewed polarization behavior ( i . e ., concave - shaped power density curves ) on day 45 , 59 , and 74 ( fig3 ), while the cull yields a smoother polarization response ( fig3 ). the recalcitrant behavior of the pcod in the peel and seed limits the ability of p & amp ; s to meet the larger over potential required at higher current densities , while the readily available scod from the flesh sustains the performance of cull at all the current densities . the long - term eis studies have corroborated the dominant impedance behavior of the peel & amp ; seed at a range of frequencies ( 10 khz - 10 mhz ) and time - scales ( 1 - 107 days ) ( fig6 ). the frequency of the ac signal in fig6 is varied from 10 khz to 100 mhz with an amplitude of + 10 mv . impedance measurements for fig6 are performed on a full cell configuration . the eis plots of fig6 are obtained during different cycles of fed - batch operation and reflects different biofilm history on the anode surface . the operational changes ( e . g ., media replacement ) have resulted in the diverse impedance behavior of both the p & amp ; s and cull ( see the diverse shapes for the bell - shaped curves in the nyquist plots ; fig6 ) throughout the 103 days of fed - batch operation . for instance , the nyquist plots for day 21 and day 103 yielded three distinct loops ; day 16 and day 72 yielded two incomplete semicircles ; and the day 45 and day 107 yielded a single time constant but characterized with the diffusion resistance ( extended arc in low - frequency region ). it is therefore not feasible to identify a common model ( e . g ., randle &# 39 ; s circuit ( fig1 )) that fits the entire range of the impedance data shown for 106 days ( fig6 ). fig1 illustrates a randle &# 39 ; s circuit with elements representing solution resistance ( rs ), polarization resistance ( r p ), and double layer constant phase element ( c dl ). instead of using the electrical equivalent circuit fitting method , the polarization resistance ( rpolz ) is observed as the real axis value at low frequency intercept . the rpolz for the p & amp ; s is observed to be 17 - 39 % greater than the cull during all the time scales ( fig1 ). fig1 shows the temporal changes in the normalized impedance for mess with a ) peel and seed , b ) cull , and c ) dextrose . for example , the rpolz in the p & amp ; s is 1 . 7 fold higher than the cull on day 45 . the one - tailed t - test ( 95 % confidence interval ) confirms the statistically significant differences between the rpolz for p & amp ; s and the cull ( paired test : p - value 0 . 0245 ; t = 2 . 213 ; n = 11 ; mean of difference = 6 . 674 , r2 = 0 . 3081 ). the eis analysis indicates that the peel & amp ; seed will impede the oxidation of the culled tomatoes at higher current densities . no significant differences are observed in the rohm in five test mess ( fig6 ) ( one - way anova analysis ; n = 12 ; p - value = 0 . 1375 & gt ; 0 . 05 , f = 2 . 109 ; corrected bartlett &# 39 ; s statistic = 1 . 647 ; p - value = 0 . 439 & gt ; 0 . 05 ). the cyclic voltammetry ( cv ) tests confirm the electrochemical influence of mediators such as carotenoids , flavanoids and quercetins on oxidation of culled tomatoes in mess . the cv tests show the peak potential of 0 . 33 v ( vs . she ) corresponding to quercetin compounds in tomatoes . the cv tests also show a peak that matches redox potential for carotenoids ( 0 . 204 - 0 . 449 v vs . she ). culled tomatoes contain a variety of redox - active species such as carotenoids , kampferol , malvin , myricetin , naringenin , naringin , petunidin , quercetin , and riboflavin , which qualify as redox - active mediators in mess for following reasons ; they are characterized by , at least : i ) fast redox equilibration ; ii ) fully reversible reactions ; iii ) experimentally established standard redox potentials ; and iv ) defined stoichiometry with respect to number of electron and protons during faradaic processes . these mediators catalyze extracellular electron transfer from anode - respiring bacteria to solid electrodes in mess and enhance their performance . the disclosure contemplates engineering strategies for mixing culled tomatoes with dilute wastewaters ( e . g ., municipal wastewater ) and using the mixture to drive the mess ; for example , use the mixture to generate electricity in microbial fuel cells . the type of bioreactor design ( fig8 ( a ) -( b )) used to build microbial electrochemical system ( mes ) influences the rate of electric current generated from oxidation of culled tomatoes and determines the overall performance of the mes . for example , the reactor design shown in fig8 shows the schematic of two - chambered fuel cell fabricated with two acrylic blocks integrated with wing - nuts . the two blocks with identical geometry can be used to obtain anode and cathode compartments respectively . a polymer septum glued to the ports carried a titanium wire connected to the electrical circuitry . fig8 ( a ) -( b ) show some exemplary dimensions for inter - electrode spacing and membrane thickness . each compartment can be further modified with an externally threaded joints to provide an inlet , outlet , and sampling ports . the anode and cathode compartments are physically separated with ultrex membrane . additionally , the bioreactor can be selected from reactors of the following type : ( i ) batch reactor , ( ii ) fed - batch reactor , ( iii ) continuous stirred tank reactor , ( iv ) granular sludge based upflow reactor , and ( v ) other reactor types . the mes with culled tomatoes can be configured in a galvanic mode : a microbial fuel cell for converting chemical energy of culled tomatoes into direct current ( dc ) electricity ; a microbial desalination cell for using chemical energy of culled tomatoes to desalinate sea water ; and a microbial capacitive deionization cell for using chemical energy of culled tomatoes to deionize brackish water . the mes with culled tomatoes can be configured in an electrolytic mode and use chemical energy of culled tomatoes to produce a variety of high - value products including methane , struvite and other reduced products . the electrodes and membranes used in the mes can be based on a range of materials . for example , anode can be based on carbonaceous materials including nano - scale graphene , graphite felt , activated carbon , and reticulated vitreous carbon . the membranes can be based on anion exchange membranes or cation exchange membranes . contemporary mes designs do not use pure cultures due to contamination problems from microorganisms in feedstock . the defined composition of culled tomatoes and its year - around availability allows implementation of monocultures . a batch of culled tomatoes can be sterilized from a group of thermal , chemical , and radiation or filtration techniques . the sterilized batch can then be introduced to anode of mes prior to inoculation with monocultures of electricity generating bacteria from the classes of gamma proteobacteria , delta proteobacteria or firmicutes . according to other exemplary aspects of the present disclosure , modification is achieved by use of monocultures of extremophiles ( e . g ., thermophilic bacteria including geobacillus sp . strains dusel r7 and dusel 13 ). monocultures can accelerate electricity generation from culled tomatoes . the thermophilic conditions can range from 60 to 120 degree centigrade . the culled tomatoes in anode of mess can be optimized to produce other valuable products microbially produced enzymes ( e . g ., cellulases , hydrolases , and lipolytic enzymes ); pigments ( e . g ., carotenoids ); proteins ( e . g ., globulin ); and biopolymers . according to some additional exemplary aspects of the present disclosure , the mes can be implemented virtually around the globe wherever there is culled tomatoes for the purpose of generating electricity from culled tomatoes or related wastes from tomato packing houses , tomato processing plants and other industrial facilities . the mes can also be used to generate electricity from tomato scraps typically available during long - term space missions including lunar missions . the cull offered high power density due to its low impedance compared to ace and dex ( fig5 ). the inset graph in fig5 shows a clear view of the high frequency region represented by a dashed box . both p & amp ; s and cull achieved 88 % reduction in the rpolz within the 100 days of the fed - batch operation ( fig3 ; fig6 ). the rpolz in the cull was at least 10 - 40 % lower than the dex ( fig1 ). notably , the peak power densities ( ppd ) in the cull are 1 . 5 fold higher than the dex ( fig1 and fig1 ) and 1 . 3 times higher than the ace ( fig1 ). fig1 shows the temporal changes in the power densities and current densities in three mfcs : i ) cull , ii ) peel and seed , and iii ) dextrose . fig1 shows the temporal data for electrochemical performance of culled tomatoes and acetate . results contemplate impeded cull performance as a result of the sluggish kinetics of pcod from the peel & amp ; seed components ( fig1 ). fig1 shows the temporal data for electrochemical performance of culled tomatoes and p & amp ; s . further , both the p & amp ; s and cull are sensitive to the media replacements , indicating their reliance on the non - bound redox mediators indigenous to the culled tomatoes . the disclosure is not to be limited to the particular embodiments described herein . in particular , the disclosure contemplates numerous variations in the type of ways in which embodiments of the disclosure can be applied to providing and / or facilitating generation of electricity and other value - added products from culled tomatoes in microbially catalyzed electrochemical systems . the foregoing description has been presented for purposes of illustration and description . it is not intended to be an exhaustive list or limit any of the disclosure to the precise forms disclosed . it is contemplated that other alternatives or exemplary aspects that are considered included in the disclosure . the description is merely examples of embodiments , processes or methods of the disclosure . it is understood that any other modifications , substitutions , and / or additions can be made , which are within the intended spirit and scope of the disclosure . for the foregoing , it can be seen that the disclosure accomplishes at least all of the intended objectives . the previous detailed description is of a small number of embodiments for implementing the disclosure and is not intended to be limiting in scope . the following claims set forth a number of the embodiments of the disclosure disclosed with greater particularity .	2
fig3 a shows one example of the present application that allows ice to operate even though ip phone a is located behind a firewall 13 . ice is described in draft - ietf - mmusic - ice - 05 . txt which is herein incorporated by reference and which may be found on the internet engineering task force ( ieft ) website . the call controller 1 operates with voip calls but could be any type of control system . the policy server 3 is any management device 3 that manages security devices for ip phone a . the firewall 13 may be a restrictive nat or any other security device that restricts inbound communications including those from ip addresses to which firewall 13 previously forwarded outbound communications . ice begins normally with ip phone a first sending stun request 301 a to the stun server 22 . because there is an entry for stun server 22 on list 12 , firewall 13 forwards the stun request 301 a and the stun response 301 b . ip phone a then makes local stun server 23 available on ip address x and associates a unique identifier 8 a with that ip address x . next , ip phone a sends call request 302 to voip call controller 1 that includes ip address x and the unique identifier 8 a . firewall 13 forwards the call request 302 because there is an entry for voip call controller 1 on list 12 . after receiving call request 302 , voip call controller 1 sends contact information 303 to the policy server 3 . in the present example the contact information 303 includes ip address x and the unique identifier 8 a . in other examples a greater number of pairs of ip address and port combinations and associated unique identifiers may be provided . also , in other examples an associated bandwidth value may also be communicated to the policy server 3 . an associated bandwidth value helps to identify denial of service attacks by letting the policy server 3 know in advance how much bandwidth associated response signals should be using . after receiving the contact information 303 in this example the policy server 3 generates an opaque token 99 . the use of opaque token 99 is optional and provides scaling benefits for improved management when several security devices are included in a network . in the present example opaque token 99 is a 64 - bit number that is meaningless to all devices except policy server 3 and firewall 13 . policy server 3 advantageously prepends or appends the opaque token 99 to the unique identifier 8 a . instead of prepending or appending , the opaque token may be added as a header in the signaling message 305 . however , one advantage of including the opaque token as part of the unique identifier rather than as a header is that ip phone b does not need to remove the opaque token from a signaling message and include it in a stun request . in other examples tokens are not used . for example , a token is not required as shown in fig4 and 5 . referring back to fig3 a , the policy server 3 also examines values of the ip address x and the unique identifier 8 a and stores those values together with opaque token 99 in a memory 89 . then the policy server 3 sends a communication 304 back to the voip call controller 1 that includes ip address x and the unique identifier 8 a including the opaque token 99 . after receiving the communication 304 , the voip call controller 1 sends the call request 305 to voip call controller 2 . voip call controller 2 sends the call request 306 to ip phone b . after receiving the call request 306 , ip phone b determines what ip addresses and port combinations to receive associated multimedia streams . in this example , ip phone b then sends stun request 307 a to stun server 22 . generally in parallel with stun request 307 a , ip phone b sends stun request 308 to ip phone a . stun request 308 includes unique identifier 8 a including opaque token 99 . firewall 13 intercepts the stun request 308 and examines the opaque token 99 included in the unique identifier 8 a . based on the value of the opaque token 99 , firewall 13 determines that stun request 308 is associated with policy server 3 . accordingly , firewall 13 sends a message 309 containing the entire stun request 308 to policy server 3 . policy server 3 compares a value of unique identifier 8 a including opaque token 99 in stun request 308 to a value in memory 89 . since the values match , policy server 3 strips the opaque token 99 from the unique identifier 99 and sends an authorization 310 to firewall 13 . the firewall 13 examines the stun request 308 to determine a stun transaction id 88 . a stun transaction id 88 is included as a header in stun communications . after storing the stun transaction id 88 in a memory 97 and receiving authorization 310 , the firewall 13 forwards the stun request 308 to ip phone a . the firewall 13 then monitors for a non - error stun response 311 with a same stun transaction id 88 . after the firewall detects a non - error stun response 311 with the same stun transaction id 88 , the firewall 13 opens a pinhole 90 permitting all communications to the ip address in stun request 308 . a pinhole 90 is a path through a firewall ; through which a flow associated with a particular ip address may pass . thus , the firewall 13 leverages the unique identifier 8 a check made at ip phone a as a second verification . in this example , the firewall 13 then forwards stun response 311 based on the pinhole 90 . the stun response 311 arrives at ip phone b before the accept message 312 is sent . however , depending on network characteristics , the accept message 312 may be sent before stun response 311 is received . it will become apparent why this is noted in the detailed description of fig3 b . after ip phone b receives stun response 307 b , the ip phone b then makes a local stun server 24 available on ip address y and associates a unique identifier 8 b with that ip address y . also after receiving stun response 307 b , ip phone b sends an accept message 312 including the ip address y and the unique identifier 8 b . the accept message 312 may be sent before the stun response 311 is received as indicated by dashed line 311 . the firewall 13 forwards the accept message 312 because voip controller 1 is included on list 12 . after receiving the accept message 312 , ip phone a sends a stun request 313 to the stun server 24 to verify that it can reach ip phone b at ip address y . included in the stun request 313 is the unique identifier 8 b . ip phone b receives the stun request 313 and sends a stun response 314 after optionally verifying the unique identifier 8 b . ip phone a has thus verified that it can reach ip phone b at a particular address and visa versa and media communications 315 may begin . fig3 b shows a second example that includes an additional security feature . the operations are the same as the example shown in fig3 a until policy server 3 is ready to send authorization 310 for stun request 308 to firewall 13 . at that point , instead of immediately sending authorization 310 , policy server 3 stores both the entire stun request 308 and the stun transaction id 88 in the memory 89 . next , after receiving stun response 307 b , ip phone b sends accept message 312 to ip phone a through the signaling path to be received by voip call controller 1 . after receiving accept message 312 , instead of just forwarding accept message 312 to ip phone a , voip call controller 1 also determines the source ip address x . voip call controller 1 then sends communication 313 including the source ip address x of the accept message 312 to policy server 3 . alternatively , instead of determining the source ip address x itself , voip call controller 1 may instead send a copy of accept message 312 in communication 313 for determination by policy server 3 . after receiving communication 313 , policy server 3 compares the received source ip address x to a source ip address x for stun request 308 . after verifying a match , policy server 3 finally sends authorization 310 including the entire stun request 308 to firewall 13 . policy server 3 also strips the opaque token 99 from the stun request 308 before sending it to firewall 13 . after receiving authorization 310 , firewall 13 forwards stun request 308 to ip phone a and stores the stun transaction id 88 in memory 89 . a benefit of waiting to store the stun transaction id 88 until after the authorization 310 is that firewall 13 is protected from denial of service attacks . a malicious person sending false or irrelevant stun requests is prevented from filling up the memory 97 with irrelevant stun transaction ids . the firewall 13 then monitors for a non - error stun response 314 with a same stun transaction identification 88 . if the firewall 13 detects a non - error stun response 314 with the same stun transaction identification 88 , the firewall 13 opens a pinhole 90 permitting all communications to and from ip phone b . the firewall 13 then forwards stun response 314 based on the pinhole 90 . next , ip phone a sends a stun request 315 to the stun server 24 to verify that it may reach ip phone b at ip address y . ip phone b receives the stun request 315 and sends a stun response 316 after optionally verifying the unique identifier 8 b . ip phone a has thus verified that it may reach ip phone b at a particular address and visa versa and media communications 317 may begin . referring now to fig4 , an example is shown where ip phone a is behind asymmetric firewalls 16 and 17 . firewalls 16 and 17 restrict the flow of inbound communications but generally allow outbound communications . firewalls 16 and 17 will , however , allow inbound communications from ip addresses that ip phone a has used to send outbound communications . thus firewalls 16 and 17 are less restrictive than the firewall 13 that was previously described . ice begins normally with ip phone a making stun communications 401 with stun server 22 . the ip phone a then makes a local stun server 23 available on ip address x and associates a unique identifier 8 a with that ip address x . next , ip phone a sends call request 402 . the ice protocol includes media information 81 in all call requests 402 . thus call request 402 includes a header with the media information 81 in addition to the payload including ip address x and the unique identifier 8 a . to avoid repetition , it will no longer be specifically indicated whether a particular message includes an ip address and a unique identifier . firewall 16 forwards call request 402 because it is an outbound communication to voip call controller 1 . voip call controller 1 receives call request 402 . after recognizing that the message 402 is a call request , voip call controller 1 sends a message 403 including the media information 81 to policy server 3 . policy server 3 stores in a memory 89 the media information 81 , the ip address x and the unique identifier 8 a . also after receiving call request 402 , voip call controller 1 sends call request 404 to voip call controller 2 . after ip phone b receives call request 405 , ip phone b utilizes any method to determine which ip addresses and port combinations can receive multimedia streams . in this example , ip phone b sends stun request 406 a . ip phone b also sends stun request 407 to ip phone a . stun request 407 includes a header with the media information 81 . firewall 17 intercepts the stun request 407 and determines that the source is ip address y . firewall 17 determines that it has not forwarded outgoing communications to ip address y . as a result , firewall 17 sends a message 408 including the entire stun request 407 to policy server 3 . after receiving message 408 , policy server 3 compares a value of the media information 81 located in stun request 407 to a value stored in memory 89 . policy server 3 may also compare a value of the unique identifier 8 a located in stun request 407 to a value stored in memory 89 . since both the values match , policy server 3 sends an authorization 409 to firewall 17 . firewall 17 receives the authorization 409 , opens a pinhole 90 and forwards the stun request 407 to ip phone a . after receiving stun request 407 , ip phone a sends stun response 410 to ip phone a . firewall 16 forwards stun response 410 because it is an outbound communication . after ip phone b receives the stun response 406 b from stun server 22 , the ip phone b then makes a local stun server 24 available on ip address y and associates a unique identifier 8 b with that ip address y . also after receiving stun response 406 b , ip phone b sends an accept message 411 . firewall 13 forwards the accept message 411 because it was from voip call controller 1 . after receiving the accept message 411 , ip phone a sends a stun request 412 to the stun server 24 . ip phone b receives the stun request 412 and sends a stun response 413 after optionally verifying the unique identifier 8 b . ip phone a has thus verified that it may reach ip phone b at a particular address and visa versa and media communications 414 may begin . referring now to fig5 an example including asymmetric firewalls 31 and 32 is shown . firewalls 31 and 32 have restrictive policies ; they generally only allow communications to and from addresses on respective “ always permitted ” lists 41 and 42 . ice begins normally with ip phone a making stun communications 501 with stun server 22 included on the list 41 . the ip phone a then makes a local stun server 23 available on ip address x and associates a unique identifier 8 a with that ip address x . next , ip phone a sends call request 502 with a header including media information . firewall 31 forwards call request 502 because it is addressed to the voip call controller 1 included on the list 41 . voip call controller 1 receives call request 502 . after recognizing that the message 502 is a call request , voip call controller 1 sends a message 503 including the media information 81 to firewall controller 33 . firewall controller 33 stores in a memory 89 the media information 81 , the ip address x and the unique identifier 8 a . also after receiving call request 502 , voip call controller 1 sends call request 504 to voip call controller 2 . after ip phone b receives the call request 505 , ip phone b utilizes any method to determine which ip addresses and port combinations can receive multimedia streams . in this example , ip phone b sends stun request 506 a . ip phone b also sends stun request 507 to ip phone a . stun request 507 includes media information 81 and stun transaction 88 as headers . firewall 32 intercepts stun request 507 and determines the source . since ip phone b is not on the list 42 , firewall 32 sends a message 508 including the entire stun request 507 to policy server 3 . after receiving message 508 , firewall controller 33 stores the stun transaction id 88 in memory 89 . firewall controller 33 also compares a value of media information 81 located in stun request 507 to a value stored in memory 89 . firewall controller 33 may also compare a value of the unique identifier 8 a located in stun request 507 to a value stored in memory 89 . since the values match , firewall controller 33 sends an authorization 509 a to firewall 32 . optionally , firewall controller 33 may also broadcast a message 509 b authorizing firewall 31 to forward a stun response 510 with stun transaction id 88 . after receiving the authorization 509 a , in this example the firewall 32 forwards the stun request 507 to ip phone a . firewall 32 also opens a pinhole 52 . optionally , the firewall 32 may also forward message 509 b to firewall 31 thereby relieving firewall 31 from having to request authorization from firewall controller 33 concerning an outgoing message with stun transaction 88 . in larger networks , firewall 32 may multicast message 509 b to all other firewalls in its multicast group . after receiving stun request 507 , ip phone a sends stun response 510 to ip phone a , which is intercepted by firewall 31 . firewall 31 determines that stun response 510 is addressed to ip phone b that is not included on list 41 . if firewall 31 previously received authorization 509 b , it is determined whether stun response 511 has a same stun transaction id 88 . if so , stun response 511 is forwarded to ip phone b and pinhole 51 is opened . if authorization 509 b was not received , firewall 31 sends an authorization request 511 including the entire stun response 510 . firewall controller 33 examines the stun response 510 and may compare values of the media information 81 , the stun transaction id 88 and / or the unique identifier 8 a located in stun response 510 with values stored in memory 89 . after determining a match , firewall controller 33 sends authorization 512 to firewall 31 . firewall 31 then forwards stun response 510 to ip phone b and opens pinhole 51 . meanwhile , ip phone b receives stun response 506 b and makes a local stun server 24 available on ip address y with an associated unique identifier 8 b . also after receiving stun response 506 b , ip phone b sends an accept message 513 . the firewall 31 forwards the accept message 513 based on the pinhole 51 . after receiving the accept message 513 , ip phone a sends a stun request 514 through pinhole 51 to the stun server 24 . ip phone b receives the stun request 514 and sends a stun response 515 through pinhole 52 after optionally verifying the unique identifier 8 b . ip phones a and b have verified that they can exchange information and thus media communications 516 may begin . referring now to fig6 , an example employing asymmetric firewalls 31 and 32 and opaque tokens 99 is shown . in this example the functions of a firewall controller and a policy server have been optionally incorporated into voip call controller 4 . also in this example firewalls 31 and 32 employ restrictive policies ; they only allow communications to and from addresses on respective lists 41 and 42 . ice begins normally with ip phone a making stun communications 601 with stun server 22 included on the list 41 . ip phone a then makes a local stun server 23 available on ip address x and associates a unique identifier 8 a with that ip address x . next , ip phone a sends call request 602 . firewall 31 forwards call request 602 to voip call controller 4 that is included on list 41 . after receiving call request 602 , voip call controller 4 adds an opaque token 99 as a header . in the present example token 99 is a 64 bit opaque token 99 that is meaningless to all devices except voip call controller 4 and firewalls 31 and 32 . the voip call controller 4 also examines values of the ip address x and the unique identifier 8 a and stores those values along with opaque token 99 in memory 89 . then voip call controller 4 sends a communication 603 to the voip call controller 2 that includes the opaque token 99 . after ip phone b receives call request 604 , ip phone b utilizes any method to determine which ip addresses and port combinations can receive multimedia streams . in this example , ip phone b sends stun request 605 a . ip phone b also sends stun request 606 to ip phone a . stun request 606 includes a header with the opaque token 99 . firewall 32 intercepts the stun request 606 and examines the opaque token 99 . based on the opaque token 99 , firewall 32 determines that voip call controller 4 generated the opaque token 99 . firewall 32 then sends an authorization request 607 including the entire stun request 606 to voip call controller 4 . voip call controller 4 compares a value of the opaque token 99 located in stun request 606 to a value stored in memory 89 . policy server 4 also compares a value of the unique identifier 8 a located in stun request 606 to a value stored in memory 89 . since there is a match , voip call controller 4 sends an authorization 608 to firewall 32 . authorization 608 may include the entire stun request 606 to relieve firewall 32 from the burden of storing it during authorization . after receiving the authorization 608 , the firewall 32 opens a pinhole 52 and forwards the stun request 606 to ip phone a . after receiving stun request 606 , ip phone a sends stun response 609 to ip phone b , which is intercepted by firewall 31 . firewall 31 then examines the opaque token 99 and determines that it was generated by voip call controller 4 . firewall 31 then sends an authorization request 610 containing the entire stun response 609 to voip call controller 4 . after voip call controller 4 receives authorization request 610 , values of the opaque token 99 , the ip address x and / or the unique identifier 8 a located in stun response 609 are compared to values in memory 89 . in some examples the voip call controller 4 may also compare values of media information 81 ( not shown ) and a stun transaction id 88 ( not shown ) or any other value . after determining a match , voip call controller 4 sends authorization 611 to firewall 31 . voip call controller 4 may also send stun response 609 back to firewall 31 . firewall 31 opens pinhole 51 and forwards stun response 609 to ip phone b . meanwhile , ip phone b receives stun response 605 b and then makes a local stun server 24 available on ip address y with an associated unique identifier 8 b . also after receiving stun response 605 b , ip phone b sends an accept message 612 . the firewall 32 forwards the accept message 612 because it was sent from voip call controller 4 . after receiving the accept message 612 , ip phone a sends a stun request 613 through pinhole 51 to the stun server 24 . ip phone b receives the stun request 613 and sends a stun response 614 after optionally verifying the unique identifier 8 b ( not shown ). ip phone a has thus verified that it can reach ip phone b at a particular address and visa versa and media communications 615 may begin . it is noted that private networks frequently include more security devices than the two shown . only two security devices were shown to simplify the explanation . if a private network is scaled to include many security devices , scaling is simplified by the use of opaque tokens and a central management device storing information in a table . referring now to fig7 , an example employing asymmetric firewalls 16 and 17 and opaque token 99 is shown . in this example the opaque token is advantageously prepended or appended to the unique identifier 8 a by ip phone a . also , for simplification , in this example firewalls 16 and 17 employ less restrictive policies ; they restrict the flow of inbound communications but generally allow outbound communications . ice begins normally with ip phone a making stun communications 701 with stun server 22 included on the list 41 . ip phone a then makes a local stun server 23 available on ip address x and associates a unique identifier 8 a with that ip address x . next , ip phone a sends a communication 702 to voip call controller 4 requesting an opaque token value to include with unique identifier 8 a . one advantage of ip phone a including the opaque token 99 to the unique identifier is that cryptographic signatures will remain intact . for example , if ip phone a used a cryptographic signature to ensure that a signaling message 704 was not modified , inclusion of the opaque token 99 by the voip call controller 4 would break the signature . in response to communication 702 , voip call controller 4 sends communication 703 including the opaque token 99 . after receiving communication 703 , ip phone a prepends or appends the opaque token to the unique identifier 8 a . next , ip phone a sends call request 704 that may include a cryptographic signature . after receiving call request 704 , the voip call controller 4 also examines values of the ip address x and the unique identifier 8 a including opaque token 99 and stores those values in memory 89 . then voip call controller 4 sends a communication 705 to the voip call controller 2 . after ip phone b receives call request 706 , ip phone b utilizes any method to determine which ip addresses and port combinations can receive multimedia streams . in this example , ip phone b sends stun request 707 a . ip phone b also sends stun request 708 a to ip phone a . stun request 708 a includes the unique identifier 8 a including opaque token 99 . firewall 17 intercepts the stun request 708 a and examines the opaque token 99 included in the unique identifier 8 a . based on the opaque token 99 , firewall 17 determines that voip call controller 4 generated the opaque token 99 . firewall 17 then sends an authorization request 709 including the entire stun request 708 a to voip call controller 4 . voip call controller 4 compares a value of the unique identifier 8 a including opaque token 99 located in stun request 708 a to a value stored in memory 89 . since there is a match , voip call controller 4 strips the opaque token 99 from the unique identifier 8 a to create modified stun request 708 b and sends an authorization 710 to firewall 17 . after receiving the authorization 710 , the firewall 17 opens a pinhole 90 and forwards the modified stun request 708 b to ip phone a . after receiving stun request 708 b , ip phone a sends stun response 711 to ip phone b . meanwhile , ip phone b receives stun response 707 b and then makes a local stun server 24 available on ip address y with an associated unique identifier 8 b . also after receiving stun response 707 b , ip phone b sends an accept message 712 . after receiving the accept message 712 , ip phone a sends a stun request 713 to the stun server 24 . ip phone b receives the stun request 713 and sends a stun response 714 after optionally verifying the unique identifier 8 b . ip phone a has thus verified that it can reach ip phone b at a particular address and visa versa and media communications 715 may begin . it is noted that many variations of the above process may be used . for example , voip call controller may prepend or append the opaque 99 token to the unique identifier 8 a . also , firewall 17 or ip phone a may later strip the opaque token 99 from unique identifier 8 a . fig8 shows a policy server 800 that authorizes ice messages . the policy server 800 includes a processor 801 and a memory 802 . the memory 802 includes instructions that , when executed by the processor 801 , perform the functions described in the flowcharts of fig9 . referring to fig9 , the policy server 800 in block 901 receives contact information from a security device such as a firewall or nat . the contact information includes a list of ip addresses and port combinations with associated unique identifiers . the policy server 800 generates an opaque token in block 902 . in block 903 , the policy server 800 stores the contact information and the opaque token in a memory 802 . in block 904 , the policy server 800 sends a message including the contact information and the opaque token . later in block 905 , the policy server 800 receives an authorization request including a stun request from a security device . in block 906 the policy server examines the stun request for an opaque token and contact information . next in block 907 the policy server 800 compares the values of the opaque token and contact information located in the stun request to the values in the memory 802 . if there is not a match in block 908 , the policy server 800 does not authorize the stun request in block 909 a . if there is a match in block 908 , the policy server 800 may authorize the stun request in block 909 b . alternatively , in block 909 c the policy server 800 compares the source ip address of the stun request with a source ip address of a received accept message . after finding a match in block 910 , the policy server 800 authorizes the stun request . referring now to fig1 and 11 , a firewall 1000 that has a restrictive policy and is still compatible with ice is shown . the firewall 1000 may also be a restrictive nat 1000 or other security device 1000 . the firewall 1000 includes a processor 1001 and a memory 1002 . the memory 1002 includes instructions that , when executed by a processor , perform functions described in the flowchart of fig1 . referring to fig1 , in block 1101 the firewall 1000 receives an unauthorized ice message including a stun request . the firewall 1000 inspects the stun request in block 1102 . in block 1103 the firewall 1000 discovers and examines an opaque token that was generated by a policy server . in block 1104 , the firewall 1000 forwards the entire stun request to the policy server thereby requesting authorization . if authorization is received in block 1105 , the firewall 1000 in block 1106 a forwards the stun request and monitors for a non - error stun response with a same stun transaction id . if the non - error stun response is received in block 1107 , the firewall 1000 opens a pinhole in block 1108 a . if the non - error response is not received in block 1107 , the firewall 1000 does not open a pinhole in block 1108 b . finally , if authorization was never received in block 1105 , the firewall 1000 drops the ice message in block 1106 b . referring now to fig1 and 13 , a firewall controller 1200 that makes ice compatible with asymmetric security devices such as firewalls is shown . the firewall control 1200 may also be a policy server 1200 or any other management device 1200 . the firewall controller 1200 includes a processor 1201 and a memory 1202 . the memory 1202 includes instructions that , when executed by a processor , perform functions described in the flowchart of fig1 . referring to fig1 , in block 1301 the firewall controller 1200 receives a message including media information and contact information including a list of ip address and port combinations with associated unique identifiers . the firewall controller 1200 then stores the media information and the contact information in the memory 1202 in block 1302 . later , in block 1303 the firewall controller 1200 receives an authorization request including a stun request from a security device . in block 1304 the firewall controller 1200 examines the stun request for media information , a stun transaction id and contact information including a list of ip address and port combinations with associated unique identifiers . in block 1305 the firewall controller 1200 stores the stun transaction id in memory 1202 and compares values of the media information and the contact information located in the stun request to the values located in the memory 1202 . if there is a match in block 1306 , the firewall controller authorizes a stun request in block 1307 a . the firewall controller 1200 may also broadcast the stun transaction id to all security devices in block 1308 . if instead there is not a match in block 1306 , the firewall controller 1200 does not authorize the stun request in block 1307 b . later in block 1310 the firewall controller 1200 receives an authorization request including a stun response from a security device . in block 1311 the firewall controller 1200 examines the stun response for a stun transaction id . in block 1312 the firewall controller 1200 then compares a value of the stun transaction id located in the stun response to the value located in the memory 1202 . if there is a match in block 1313 , the firewall controller 1200 authorizes the stun response in block 1314 a . if there is not a match in block 1313 , the firewall controller 1200 does not authorize the stun response in block 1314 b . referring now to fig1 and 15 , an asymmetric firewall 1400 that is compatible with ice is shown . the firewall 1400 may also be any other security device 1400 . the firewall 1400 includes a processor 1401 and a memory 1402 . the memory 1402 includes instructions that , when executed by a processor , perform functions described in the flowchart of fig1 . referring now to fig1 , in block 1501 a firewall 1400 receives a stun request . the firewall 1400 inspects the stun request in block 1502 . the firewall 1400 determines that the stun request is not authorized in block 1503 . accordingly , in block 1504 the firewall 1400 forwards the entire stun request to a management device . if authorization is received in block 1505 , the firewall 1400 forwards the stun request and opens a pinhole in block 1506 a . if authorization is not received in block 1505 , the firewall drops the stun request in block 1506 b . later another firewall 1400 may receive a stun response in block 1507 . the firewall 1400 inspects the stun response and locates a stun transaction id in block 1508 . in block 1509 , if the firewall 1400 has previously received authorization for the stun transaction id from a broadcast by the management device or by another firewall , then the firewall 1400 forwards the stun request and opens a pinhole in block 1512 a . if the stun transaction has not been previously authorized in block 1509 , the firewall 1400 forwards the entire stun response to a management device . if authorization is received in block 1511 , the firewall 1400 forwards the stun response and opens a pinhole in block 1512 a . if authorization is not received in block 1511 , the firewall 1400 drops the stun response in block 1512 b . the system described above can use dedicated processor systems , micro controllers , programmable logic devices , or microprocessors that perform some or all of the operations . some of the operations described above may be implemented in software and other operations may be implemented in hardware . for the sake of convenience , the operations are described as various interconnected functional blocks or distinct software modules . this is not necessary , however , and there may be cases where these functional blocks or modules are equivalently aggregated into a single logic device , program or operation with unclear boundaries . in any event , the functional blocks and software modules or features of the flexible interface can be implemented by themselves , or in combination with other operations in either hardware or software . having described and illustrated the principles of the invention in a preferred embodiment thereof , it should be apparent that the invention may be modified in arrangement and detail without departing from such principles . i claim all modifications and variation coming within the spirit and scope of the following claims .	7
as required , detailed aspects of the present invention are disclosed herein , however , it is to be understood that the disclosed aspects are merely exemplary of the invention , which may be embodied in various forms . therefore , specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting , but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art how to variously employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed structure . certain terminology will be used in the following description for convenience in reference only and will not be limiting . for example , up , down , front , back , right and left refer to the invention as orientated in the view being referred to . the words , “ inwardly ” and “ outwardly ” refer to directions toward and away from , respectively , the geometric center of the aspect being described and designated parts thereof . forwardly and rearwardly are generally in reference to the direction of travel , if appropriate . additional examples include a mobile smart device including a display device for viewing a typical web browser or user interface will be commonly referred to throughout the following description . the type of device , computer , display , or user interface may vary when practicing an embodiment of the present invention . said terminology will include the words specifically mentioned , derivatives thereof and words of similar meaning . gasses associated with bowel movements which would trigger the present invention include , but are not limited to : indole ( c8h7n ), 3 - methylindole ( c9h9n ), hydrogen sulfide ( h2s ), amines , ethanoic acid ( c2h4o2 ), butyric acid ( c4h8o2 ), and methane ( ch4 ). these compounds are included amongst a number of outputs from human solid waste . for the purposes of the present application , any or all of these outputs should be considered to be used or to be detected for by the sensor system embodying the present invention . two types of gaseous sensor systems exist in the market place : ( 1 ) electrochemical sensors ; and ( 2 ) metal oxide semiconductor ( mos ) sensors . either sensor type could be used in an embodiment of the present invention ; however an mos sensor is utilized in the preferred embodiment . the preferred sensor , mics - 5524 , is capable of measuring and detecting volatile organic compounds in a relative manner , such as by detecting changes in the environment , which provides an output of resistance change . the sensor can measure virtually any reducing and / or aromatic gas : such as : ammonia , carbon monoxide , hydrogen sulfide etc ., as well as any compound mentioned above . the mos sensors are combusted by the presence of reducing gases at the sensor surface , and the release of electrons from these gases causes resistance across the sensor plate to drop . odors from human waste relate to foods eaten , not age . the emissions are essentially the same between infants and adults , but the present application focuses our technology on the most common denominator : hydrogen sulfide , but other gasses must also be tested for . as is well known , infants less than 6 months that are breast feeding do not emit much if any odor . detecting latent odorless gasses would be highly beneficial to the purpose of the present invention . referring to the figures in more detail , fig1 shows a diagrammatic representation of a preferred bm sensor system 2 , including a bm sensor / detector 4 for detecting a bm based upon gasses in the room , a mobile device 6 for receiving alerts from the bm sensor , and a wireless network 8 over which the mobile device 6 and the detector / sensor 4 communicate . the detector 4 can also be used in conjunction with standard monitoring devices 10 , such as a baby monitor with audio and / or video surveillance . similarly , the detector 4 may access the wireless network 8 directly , or it may interact with a network relay 40 device for communicating between the network 8 and the detector 4 . alternatively , the relay 40 may only allow direct communication between the mobile device 6 and the detector 4 , wherein other network access is limited or cut off . as shown , the detector 4 includes sensors for detecting gas within the room , such as a methane sensor 12 , a hydrogen sulfide sensor 14 , or other sensors capable of detecting gasses which are emitted as part of solid or liquid human waste for detection with the bm detector 4 . a microprocessor 16 receives data from the sensors 12 , 14 and determines whether or not an alert should be sounded based upon preset or predetermined thresholds . the microprocessor can facilitate an alert by creating a noise amplified through a speaker 18 , by flashing one or more lights 20 located on the detector 4 , or by sending a wireless alert to the mobile device 6 using a wi - fi antenna 22 or other means of communication with the mobile device 6 . to increase the range of notifications , the audio or visual alerts created by the detector 4 through the use of the speaker 18 or the lights 20 , respectively , a monitoring device 10 can be used . this monitoring device may or may not include a graphical user interface 34 , a separate speaker or alarm 36 for the audio alert , and a remote camera 38 for the visual alert . this monitoring device 10 could be a standalone baby monitoring system to alert a parent if the baby is crying or not sleeping . the mobile device 6 , such as a standard smartphone device , includes a separate microprocessor 24 , a speaker 26 , an antenna 28 , a graphical user interface ( gui ) 30 , and messaging software 32 . the gui may be a touchscreen interface , and may allow the user to directly make changes to the settings of the detector 4 using wireless access through software . the messaging software may include typical sms messages sent using a service associated with the detector 4 , or a completely separate software application or app downloaded from a wireless network for use specifically with the detector 4 . fig2 shows a relationship between the mobile device 6 and the detector 4 . the detector shown here includes controls 50 for accessing the settings of the detector directly . these settings can also be controlled wirelessly using the mobile device 6 . a typical gui 30 display screen on the mobile device includes such features as : ambient status 42 of the room being monitored ; alert statuses 44 associated with various chemical compounds typically associated with a bm ; information “ buttons ” 46 for accessing information about each substance or air quality value being detected for ; and a settings pulldown button 48 for choosing different views or altering software settings of the mobile device 6 or of the detector 4 . the detector 4 may include controls 50 which allow direct access to the software or hardware settings of the detector . a speaker 18 located somewhere on the body of the detector delivers audio alerts , while a display or light 20 delivers visual alerts . here , the gui is also shown to include settings information that may be accessible via the mobile device 6 . the gui could simply flash when an alert is detected , may display the settings of the detector , or may otherwise give visual alerts to the user . fig3 and 4 are examples of gui display screens 52 that may be accessible via the mobile device 6 or the display portion of the detector 4 . fig3 , for example , shows the information status of h2s ( hydrogen sulfide ) being detected in the room by the detector 4 . this display screen may be accessed by selecting the information button 46 associated with h2s on a home screen as shown in fig2 . the status 54 of the selected element or room factor ( e . g ., temperature , gas presence , humidity ) is displayed prominently , along with a checkmark or other indicator that everything is normal , or another indicator if the levels of the selected room factor or element are outside the set parameters . the parameters may be set using a scrolling bar 58 for determining when the alarm will be triggered by that room factor , if at all . a description of the element or room factor being reviewed is shown at 56 . fig4 shows a similar display , using air temperature as an example . here , the sliding bar 58 includes an upper range and a lower range , allowing the user to customize that particular room factor even further . fig5 shows a floorplan 60 for a building , such as a home , hospital , or healthcare facility . three rooms 62 . 1 , 62 . 2 , 62 . 3 are displayed , and three detectors 4 . 1 , 4 . 2 , and 4 . 3 are placed in the rooms respectively . a central relay 40 relays all data received from the detectors 4 . 1 , 4 . 2 , 4 . 3 to a stationary or mobile computing device , or multiple devices , to alert staff of a bm or other room irregularity . this setup is particularly useful in an adult care facility . fig6 is a flowchart demonstrating some steps taken while practicing a preferred embodiment of the present invention . the process starts at 102 . a sensor is placed in a location at 104 , preferably in a child or patient &# 39 ; s room where a bm may occur while that person is sleeping . a check is performed at 106 whether an existing room monitoring device , such as a baby monitor , exists . if an existing room monitoring device exists at 106 , there is a determination at 108 if there is also a remote video camera associated with the existing room monitoring device . if yes , then the visual notification feature of the sensor is activate at 110 . either way , an audio notification is activated at 112 . regardless of whether an existing monitor exists or not at 106 , the sensor device is synched with one or more mobile computing devices at 114 . this allows alert messages or other communication to be sent from the sensor / detector device and the mobile device ( s ). the user may also set desired settings 116 of the detector using the mobile computing device or the detector itself . these settings are the preferences for how sensitive the detector will be , and will be the basis for the ambient room atmosphere . after this is all setup , the sensor actively monitors the ambient atmosphere of the room at 118 . a check is constantly performed at 120 to determine whether the ambient room factors are within normal levels . if yes , then the cycle continues . once an abnormality is determined at 120 , alert notifications must be sent out by the sensor device . if there is an existing monitoring device at 122 and a remote camera is present at 124 , then the sensor will flash , light up , or otherwise activate a visual display that can be seen via a remote monitoring device connected to the remote camera at 126 . at the same time , audio alerts , such as beeps or buzzing noise , will be produced by the sensor device at 128 . this also will be sent through the monitoring device and played on a speaker associated with the existing monitoring device . at the same time , or if there is no exiting monitor in place , a wireless notification is sent to the mobile device ( s ) associated with the sensor / detector at 130 . these notifications may be sent via sms messaging , or software specifically associated with the sensor / detector device , or through other means ( e . g ., automated telephone call ). once all alerts are sent , the process ends at 132 . the process may automatically revert to a detection of ambient atmosphere at 118 once the issues associated with the alert have been addressed , or the system may require manual reset . fig7 - 9 show an alternative embodiment event sensor system 202 , which uses an event sensor 204 to detect an event , such as a fecal event , urine event , emesis , or other important event in a space , and can determine whether cleaning or other immediate response is necessary . primarily , this system 202 could be used in hospitals , nursing homes , or could even be adapted for use in nurseries or for home use . the sensor 204 , as shown in fig7 and 8 , includes a bottom housing 206 and a top housing 208 . the top housing has a power port opening 210 for receiving power at a power input 216 , a data connection opening 212 for receiving data connection cables , such as usb ports 218 and networking or ethernet cable port 220 ( e . g . category 6 connector ). the top housing also contains openings 214 for various gas sensors 222 and a motion sensor 224 for detecting elements of an event . the sensors 222 , 224 , usb ports 218 , ethernet port 220 , power input 216 , and all relevant components are mounted to a printed circuit board ( pcb ) 226 within the top 208 and bottom 206 housing . each gas sensor 222 includes a heating element for igniting and detecting various chemical elements . the four gas sensors 222 detect various chemical elements which , when sensed in specific amounts , will indicate a specific event has triggered . a first gas sensor may sense iaq ammonia , sulfide , and benzene . a second gas sensor may sense hydrogen sulfide . a third gas sensor may sense ammonia . a fourth gas sensor may sense voc gas ( e . g . alcohol , toluene , and acetone ). in a preferred embodiment , however , as shown in fig9 , each gas sensor 222 detects a broadband of gasses with varying selectivity . each are not specific to a single gas species but are optimized for different applications . this allows for a more accurate determination of when an event occurs . coupled with a motion sensor 224 , temperature sensor , and humidity sensor , a specific event can be detected for , resulting in assigning an appropriate response and alerting the proper crews what sort of event they need to prepare for cleaning and servicing the patient . through use and testing using this combination of sensors , specific profiles have been determined for various events , including fecal event , urine event , or emesis . fig9 shows the occurrence of an “ event ” as detected by one or more of the various sensors . the sensors detect various chemicals , and based on the profile 228 of the detected event amongst the various sensors , the sensor system can determine what type of event has occurred , which directly leads to what type of response is required . in addition to the gas sensors 222 , and motion sensor 224 , there are temperature and humidity sensors which detect temperature and humidity in the vicinity of the patient or occupant . tests have shown that both temperature and relative humidity increase at the time of an event and decrease significantly after cleaning . each of the four gas sensors 222 detect multiple gasses of various profiles , each optimized for different applications . as shown in fig9 , each of the four sensors is reporting different levels of response , but the variances would indicate what type of event has occurred . in an embodiment , the four sensors could include one mq135 sensor , one mq136 sensor , one mq137 sensor , and one mq138 sensor . in addition , relative humidity and changes in temperature would also add to the generation of the profile . fig1 shows a flowchart stepping through the process of practicing this embodiment of the present invention . the process starts at 250 . as before , the sensor is placed in location 252 , such as in a room or in the vicinity of a patient / subject . the sensor beings detecting the ambient atmosphere at 254 , and the sensors and heaters are activated at 256 , thereby detecting temperature , humidity , movement , gas levels , and other various attributes of the surroundings of the sensor . as long as normal atmosphere is detected at 258 , the monitoring of the room continues . if abnormal atmosphere is detected at 258 , a second , optional testing is done at 260 . if this second test determines a false alarm at 262 , monitoring continues at 254 . however , if the second test confirms abnormal atmospheric conditions at 262 , a profile is generated at 264 . that profile is based on all sensor data , including motion , temperature , humidity , and gas and particle detection levels . at 266 , the generated profile is compared with existing known profiles to determine if the event is a known type of event . if a matching profile is detected at 268 , the sensor system generates and sends an appropriate notification to the user at 270 and the process ends at 272 with the user responding to the event appropriately . if a mating profile is not detected at 268 , that means that the sensor has detected something abnormal , but it is not recognized based on its profile as any known even type . a new profile is then generated at 274 , and a request for inspection of the room is sent at 276 . someone must inspect the room and determine what the event is , and provide profile data at 278 to the new profile . this may be identifying this new profile with a previously known event , or by creating an entirely new event - type that wasn &# 39 ; t previously being monitored for by the system . the new profile is stored at 280 for future reference , and the process ends at 272 . all of the potential evens have specific atmospheric profiles that can be measured by the sensor ( s ) in real time . information can be stored locally and / or sent to an offsite server for analysis , review , and then can be presented to the user via a web interface or some other display means , allowing , for example , hospital or nursing home staff to view , customize , and report event data . it is to be understood that while certain embodiments and / or aspects of the invention have been shown and described , the invention is not limited thereto and encompasses various other embodiments and aspects .	6
with reference to fig1 reference numeral 10 generally designates an oven for use in small bakeries , deli &# 39 ; s , hotels or the bakery departments of grocery stores , which is preferably a rotatable rack oven . the oven is a self - contained unit having exterior walls 11 , a roof and an inlet door 12 leading to a baking chamber 14 . the oven 10 also includes a control room door 16 providing access to a control room housing the temperature and air flow controls . with reference to fig2 it may be seen that the exterior walls of the oven 10 include insulation to reduce the heat transfer through the walls 11 to maintain the desired temperature within the baking chamber 14 and to reduce energy consumption . the baking chamber 14 is housed within the walls 11 of the oven and is defined by baking chamber side walls 18 and a baking chamber ceiling 20 . in its preferred form , the oven 10 includes a rack rotation device generally indicated by reference numeral 22 . this rack rotation device consists of a rack engagement member 24 within the baking chamber 14 , which member is formed to mate with a top portion of a rack 26 used to hold the goods to be baked . rotation device 22 also includes a motor and lift mounted above an insulated ceiling 87 of the oven 10 . the device 28 is operatively connected to the engagement member 24 such that when a rack 26 is in engagement with the engagement member 24 the device 28 will lift the rack 26 a short distance above the floor of the oven 10 and rotate the entire rack during the baking process . adjacent to the baking chamber 14 , but within the walls 11 of the oven , is a heating cell 30 which houses an appropriate heat exchanger 32 . the heat exchanger 32 includes a combustion chamber 34 containing at least one burner which produces heat by combustion . the hot combustion gases are led from the combustion chamber 34 through a series of serpentine heat exchange pipes 36 before finally exiting from a flue 38 . the flue 38 is appropriately vented to atmosphere . a blower 40 is mounted adjacent the top of the heating cell 30 such that the blower may receive air at its inlet from the heating cell , and in particular from an area adjacent the heat exchange pipes 36 . as is best shown in fig2 and 4 , the outlet 44 of the blower is directed above the ceiling 20 of the baking chamber 14 , but within the oven 10 . mounted to the upper surface of the ceiling 20 are appropriate guide walls 46 which serve to channel the air exiting the blower 40 around the lift shaft of the motor and lift / device and towards the opposite side wall 18 of the baking chamber 14 . at this location are located at least one , and possibly several , curved guide vanes 48 which served to channel the air passing above the ceiling 20 into the space between the wall 11 and side wall 18 . located below the guide vanes 48 and in communication with the air flow from the blower 40 , is an air inlet vent 50 . as is best shown in fig5 the air inlet vent 50 includes a front plate 52 which will define a portion of the side wall 18 opposed to the heating cell 30 . the front plate 52 is formed of a perforated metal such that numerous vent holes 54 extend therethrough . extending rearwardly from the lateral edges of the front plate 52 are side plates 56 . the side plates are of such a length that their rear edge is spaced inwardly from the interior surface of the adjacent wall 11 of the oven 10 . extending between the rear edges of the side plates 56 is a rear plate 58 . the rear plate 58 preferably includes a pair of rearwardly extending buffer flanges 60 extending along the lateral edges thereof , and a pair of inwardly extending slat flanges 62 ( one of which is shown ) extending along the longitudinal ends of the rear plate 58 . as with the front plate 52 , the side plates 56 , rear plate 58 , buffer flanges and slat flanges 60 and 62 are all formed of perforated metal providing a plurality of vent holes 54 therethrough . as is best shown in fig2 when the inlet vent 50 is operatively located in the oven 10 the front plate 52 extends within the plane of the side wall 18 , as noted above . the rear edges of the buffer flanges 60 are spaced from the interior face of the wall 11 such that the wall 11 and rear plate 58 define a duct into which the air from blower 40 may be channeled . this air will interact with steam baffle generators located on either side of rear plate 50 to produce moist air to aid in the baking process , as is known in the art , and is subject to a positive pressure due to blower 40 . this pressurized air will pass through the vent holes 54 in rear plate 58 and into the interior of the air inlet vent 50 and outwardly through the vent holes of the front plate 52 to enter the baking chamber 14 . as is apparent from the description above , a three dimensional cavity is formed within the air inlet vent 50 . this cavity is filled with a series of longitudinally spaced and vertically extending first slats 64 and a series of vertically spaced and laterally extending second slats 66 which therefore define a lattice of ducts within the air inlet vent 50 . these slats extend across at least substantially all of the depth of the interior cavity of the air inlet vent and serve as numerous small ducts extending normal to the plane of the wall 18 containing the inlet vent 50 . these slats and the ducts they define serve to remove any lateral or downward inertia from the air flow passing downwardly into the channel defined by the wall 18 and buffer flanges 60 . as such , the air exiting the air inlet vent 50 does so substantially normal to the front plate 52 ( and thus the wall 18 ). this produces superior air flow characteristics and helps to maintain a well - defined column of air passing across the baking chamber 14 . due to this well defined column of air , the volume of air flow is increased , but velocity is significantly reduced with respect to prior art devices . for example , the volumetric flow of the present invention may be 1 . 13 m 3 / s ( 2400 cfm ) compared to 0 . 71 m 3 / s ( 1500 cfm ) for the prior art , while the velocity of the present invention is 2 . 8 - 3 . 8 m / s ( 550 - 750 fpm ) compared to 7 . 6 - 12 . 7 m / s ( 1500 - 2500 fpm ) for the prior art . this allows the oven of the present invention to be employed with certain baked goods , such as meringue , which were unsuitable for baking in prior art ovens of this type . additionally , the reduced velocity of the air greatly increases the likelihood of producing a laminar air flow over the goods to be baked , providing improved heat transfer . to further enhance the air flow across the baking chamber 14 the oven 10 includes an improved air return vent 68 . the air return vent is of substantially the same size as air inlet vent 50 and is placed in an opposing relationship to define a portion of an opposite wall 18 of the baking chamber 14 . this location also places the air return vent 68 adjacent the heat exchanger 32 and combustion chamber 34 , and below the intake of the blower 40 , as is best shown in fig3 . intermediate the air return vent and the furnace is a vent wall 72 which blocks the flow of air passing from the air return vent from exiting at any point except at the bottom of the vent wall . to accomplish this the vent wall may extend from the ceiling of the heating cell to a position spaced from the floor , and from wall to wall of the heating cell . alternatively , the vent wall may be formed to be approximately the same size as the air return vent . by this arrangement , air will be drawn towards the intake of the blower 40 through the air return vent 68 . the drawing of the air through the air return vent will aid in producing a well defined column of air through the baking chamber 14 . the air drawn through the return vent must pass under the lower edge of the vent wall 72 , however , and this ensures that the air will be drawn past the heat exchange pipes 36 to be heated prior to entering the inlet of the blower 40 . to provide further heat exchange with the air , a heat sink 74 , in the form of solid metal rods , may be placed between the air return vent and the vent wall such that air may flow through and on either side of the heat sink to receive additional heat therefrom . the air return vent 68 is primarily composed of a main plate 70 which is formed of metal and includes a plurality of vent holes 54 , as were present in the air inlet vent 50 . to further enhance the uniformity of the air flow passing through the baking chamber 14 , the air return vent 68 is formed such that air is uniformly drawn therein . in this regard it is noted that the air may be drawn by the blower only from beneath the vent wall 72 . because of this the drawing force is greatest near the lower end of the air return vent , which is nearest the open bottom of the vent wall . to reduce this effect the vent holes are provided in the main plate 70 in inverse proportion to the amount of the drawing force . therefore , where the drawing force is strong , near the opening of the vent wall , the main plate is provided with relatively few vent holes . however , where the drawing force is weak , far from the opening in the vent wall , the main plate has a relatively large number of vent holes . in this manner a uniform amount of air is drawn across the vertical extent of the air return vent . this uniform draw serves to improve the uniformity of the air flow across the baking chamber . this is because the draw generally helps to inhibit the air stream from forming a wedge shape and maintains it in a uniform column . the uniformity of the present draw , in combination with the uniform and well directed air stream exiting from the air inlet vent , ensures that no single portion of the air stream will form too great of a wedge shape , which may have a degrading effect upon other portions of the air stream . a preferred method of achieving the varying number of vent holes in the main plate 70 is to provide a uniform array of holes in the main plate , but to block a number of the holes such that there is a varying number of effective vent holes . this may be achieved by fixing a solid block plate 76 to the main plate , with the block plate having a peripheral configuration to provide the blocking of the necessary number and placement of holes . in the embodiment shown , the width of the block plate increases towards the opening in the vent wall , such that fewer holes are effectively available near this opening than are available far from this opening . it should be realized that other block plate configurations are possible , especially if the opening in the vent wall is not adjacent the bottom of the air return vent ( and block plate ). it should also be noted that the use of a separate block plate is not strictly necessary . for example , the main plate 70 may be provided with vent holes 54 only in certain portions of its surface which correspond to those necessary to provide a uniform draw . alternatively , the vent hole spacing may be uniform , with the vent hole diameter being varied . from the foregoing it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to attain all ends and objects herein above set forth together with the other advantages which are obvious and which are inherent in the structure . it will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations . this is contemplated by and is within the scope of the claims . since many possible embodiments may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof , it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense .	0
fig2 a shows an exemplary latch circuit , or latch , 200 . as shown in fig2 , latch 200 , may include a pass transistor switch 202 and a storage circuit 204 that may include a feed forward inverter 206 , and a feedback inverter 212 , shown in fig2 as including p - type transistor 208 and n - type transistor 210 . as further shown in fig2 , pass transistor switch 202 may include an n - type control gate , phi , a p - type control gate , phib , an input gate and an output gate . the input gate of pass transistor switch 202 may be connected to a binary data signal at node 201 and an output gate of pass transistor switch 202 may be connected to node 215 . one of a source and a drain of p - type transistor 208 may be connected to a high voltage source , vdd , while the other of the source and the drain of p - type transistor 208 may be connected to node 215 . one of a source and a drain of n - type transistor 210 may be connected to a low voltage source , vss , while the other of the source and the drain of n - type transistor 210 may be connected to node 215 . a input of forward feed inverter 206 may be connected to node 215 , and the output of forward feed inverter 206 may be connected to both the gate of p - type transistor 208 and the gate of n - type transistor 210 . in operation , when a high logic signal is received on n - type control gate , phi , and a low logic signal is received on p - type control gate , phib , pass transistor switch 202 is closed and a binary signal data value , d , may be passed from node 201 to node 215 . when a low logic signal is received on n - type control gate , phi , and a high logic signal is received on p - type control gate , phib , pass transistor switch 202 is opened , and the data value passed through pass transistor switch 202 to node 215 may be maintained by storage circuit 204 , indefinitely , or until replaced with a subsequent data value received from pass transistor switch 202 . the data value maintained by storage circuit 204 may be presented as a binary signal data value , q , at node 203 . if a high value is placed at node 215 the value is inverted by inverter 206 and a low value is placed on node 217 . a low value on node 217 results in closing p - type transistor 208 and opening n - type transistor 210 . as a result , node 215 is connected to high voltage source vdd and the value at node 215 is held high . alternatively , if a low value is placed at node 215 the value may be inverted by inverter 206 and applied to the gates of both p - type transistor 208 and n - type transistor 210 . as a result of placing a high value at node 217 , p - type transistor 208 opens and n - type transistor 210 closes thereby forming a direct connection between node 215 and vss . in this manner the value at 215 may be maintained at a low value . fig2 b shows an exemplary pin - out block representation of latch circuit 200 , or latch , shown in fig2 a . as shown in fig3 , the pin - out block representation of latch circuit 200 includes input pins d , phi , phib and output pin q . these input and output pins correspond with the input and output nodes described above with respect to fig2 a . specifically , input d represents node 201 in fig2 a . phi and phib correspond to the n - type and p - type control gates , respectively ; and output q represents node 203 in fig2 a . leads shown in fig2 a connected to high voltage source , vdd , and low voltage source , vss , are not shown in the pin - out block representation of latch circuit 200 , by convention . in subsequent figures described in this application , both the circuit based representation of latch 200 , as shown in fig2 a and the pin - out block representation of latch circuit 200 , as shown in fig2 b may be used . for example , the circuit - based representation of latch circuit 200 , as shown in fig2 a , may be used in figures in which the details of the latch are needed to facilitate comparison of the circuit with circuits described in other figures . the pin - out block representation of latch circuit 200 , as shown in fig2 a , may be used to conserve drawing space in figures in which multiple latches are shown , and the significant point being illustrated is that the latches may be formed in an array capable of receiving and / or transmitting a plurality of binary signal data values in support of a combinational logic circuit . fig3 is exemplary portion of a combinational logic circuit 300 . combinational logic circuit 300 may be capable of receiving input binary values , submitting the received binary values to a combinational logic matrix , and generating and indefinitely storing the output values of the combinational logic matrix . however , the circuit 300 shown in fig3 does not include an internal scan chain structure for testing the combinational logic included in the circuit , such as the scan chain structure described above with respect to fig1 . as shown in fig3 , combinational logic circuit 300 may include an array of master input latches 302 , a combinational logic 304 , and an array of slave output latches 306 . as further shown in fig3 , combinational logic circuit 300 may be controlled by master phase clock signal ( phim ), inverted master phase clock signal ( phimb ), slave phase clock signal ( phis ), and inverted slave phase clock signal ( phisb ). as addressed in greater detail below , prim and phis may be master and slave phase clock signals of a two - phase clock generated from external master clock em_clk . as such , during normal functional operations , phim and phis are never high at the same time . master input latch array 302 may include a plurality of master input latches 302 a - n , each latch within the array may be the same as latch 200 described above with respect to fig2 a and fig2 b , and each latch within the array may open and close simultaneously based on the value of master phase clock signal ( prim ). for example , when phim is high ( and phimb is low ), all of master input latches 302 a - n may close and may allow a binary input value on each of the respective input leads d in 1 through d in n to pass to a corresponding input port in combinational logic 304 ; however , when phim is low ( and phimb is high ), all of master input latches 302 a - n may open , thereby isolating combinational logic 304 from each of the respective input lines d in 1 through d in n . combinational logic 304 may include a plurality of interconnected logic elements , e . g ., and , nand , or , nor , etc ., that may be prearranged to receive binary input data values , i . e ., an electrical signal that corresponds to one of a high logic value , or a low logic value , on each of input lines d in 1 through d in n and to process the received input data values based on the preconfigured logic circuits contained in combinational logic 304 to produce binary output data values , i . e ., an electrical signal that corresponds to one of a high logic value , or a low logic value , on each of output lines d out 1 through d out m . it should be noted that , for the sake of clarity , combinational logic circuit 300 shown in fig3 shows a plurality of input lines d in 1 through d in n to combinational logic 304 , and a plurality of data output lines d out 1 through d out m . for convenience sake , this document may refer to input lines d in 1 through d in n collectively , and individually , as d in x , and may refer to output lines d out 1 through d out m collectively , and individually , as d . further , slave output latch 306 , may be configured as a slave output latch array such that when phis is low ( and phisb is high ), all of the slave output latches in the slave output latch array may be open , thereby isolating each output storage latch 308 from its respective data output line , d out x ; but when phis is high ( and phisb is low ), all of the slave output latches in the slave output latch array may be closed , thereby allowing binary output data on each of data output line , d out x , to be stored on its respective output storage latch 306 . however , for convenience , slave output latch 306 , may be referred to at a single latch , since , as addressed above , a single slave output latch 306 may be associated with each data output line , d out n . in operation , when master input latches 302 are closed , slave output latches 306 are open . therefore , binary input data may pass from each of input electrodes d in x into combinational logic 304 to produce outputs on each of output leads d out x . however , the value on each output lead from combinational logic 304 may not proceed to the respective slave output latches 306 to be maintained by slave output latch array 306 until ( 1 ) master phase clock signal phim goes low thereby opening the master input latches in master input latch array 302 and ( 2 ) slave clock phis goes high thereby closing the slave output latch 306 . as soon as slave clock phis becomes high , slave output latch 306 may be closed and the values on each output lead from combinational logic 304 may proceed to a respective slave output latch in slave output latch array 306 to be maintained by the latch , as described above with respect to fig2 . as addressed in greater detail below with respect to fig9 , the logical signal value presented at each node q may be provided as an input to one of input electrodes d in x of the next combinational logic 304 of the next combinational logic circuit 300 in a chain of combinational logic circuits 300 on the semiconductor integrated circuit . in this manner , with each full cycle of the external master clock em_clk , master phase clock phim and slave phase clock phis may be sequentially triggered ( 1 ) to pass data into the next phase of combinational logic and then ( 2 ) to store the output results for presentation on the next clock cycle as inputs to the next unit of combinational logic included on the ic chip . as described above with respect to fig1 , in order to verify the proper operation of the functional units of combinational logic circuits included on an integrated circuit , it may be desirable to be able to test the output of each of the combinational logic circuits included on the ic chip . therefore , processes have been developed that allow the respective combinational units included on the ic chip to be tested . as described above with respect to fig1 , such an approach may be accomplished with the use of multiplexed flip - flops added to the integrated circuit at designated locations so that test input data may be scanned into the integrated circuitry on the ic chip and test output data produced as a result of passing the test input data through the respective combinational logic . the generated output data may be compared to a set of expected results to determine whether the combinational logic circuits performed correctly . fig4 shows an exemplary portion of a combinational logic circuit , as described above with respect to fig3 , in which the slave output latch circuit may be adapted for use with an internal scan chain structure , using a multiplexed flip - flop based approach , that may be used to test the combinational logic included in the circuit in a manner similar to that described above with respect to fig1 . features in fig4 , similar to those described earlier with respect to fig3 , have been identified with like numerals . for example , a feature in fig4 corresponding to a like feature described with respect to fig3 will be identified with a number that retains the last two digits of the numeric identifier of the object described with respect to fig3 . unless otherwise indicated , the features and operational function of like numbered objects remain identical to those described above with respect to fig3 and therefore are not addressed in further detail with respect to fig4 . however , please note that slave output latch 406 may be the same as the latch described above with respect to fig2 and , therefore , components within latch 406 are labeled with numbers that match those used above with respect to fig2 . as shown in fig4 , the combinational logic circuit described above with respect to fig3 may be adapted to support scan chain based testing using a multiplexed flip - flop based approach . in such a modified circuit , the features of master input latch array 402 , combinational logic 404 , and slave output latch 406 , remain the same as those described with respect to fig3 above and , therefore , will not be described again . however , the circuit shown in fig4 includes a multiplexed flip - flop 430 having digital multiplexor 432 , flip - flop 434 , and second digital multiplexor 438 . similar to the circuit described above with respect to fig3 , the circuit shown in fig4 includes an array of master input latches 402 that controls data signal value transmitted to combinational logic 404 . however , due to space limitations , only a single slave output latch 406 that receives and maintains an output data value from a first output lead , d out x , from combinational logic 404 is shown . in an actual circuit , a multiplexed flip - flop 430 and a slave output latch 406 would be provided for each output lead , d out 1 , from combinational logic 404 . further , the respective slave output latches may be configured in a slave output latch array similar to that described above with respect to fig3 . further , although different representations are used , please note that each latch in array of master input latches 402 and slave latch 406 may be the same as the latch described above with respect to fig2 a and fig2 b . each latch in master input latch 402 is presented using the pin - out block representation described with respect to fig2 b , above , while slave latch 406 is represented using the circuit schematic described above with respect to fig2 a , above . as shown in fig4 , multiplexor 432 may be controlled by a scan enable signal , scan_en and multiplexor 438 may be controlled by a scan test mode signal , scan_test_mode . if the scan_en and scan_test_mode signals are low , each of the respective multiplexors will pass a signal received on a first input line , indicated in fig4 with a “ zero ” on each digital multiplexor , to the output of the respective digital multiplexor . if the scan_en and scan_test_mode signals are high , each of the respective multiplexors will pass a signal received on a second input line , indicated on fig4 with a “ 1 ” on each digital multiplexor , to the output of the respective digital multiplexor . as shown in fig4 , the low input of multiplexor 432 may be connected to node 411 at the output of combinational logic 404 and the high input line of multiplexor 432 may be connected to a scan input data line ( scan_in ). the output of multiplexor 432 may be connected to the data input port of flip - flop 434 . the low input of multiplexor 438 may be connected to an output lead of combinational logic 404 , the high input line of multiplexor 438 may be connected to the data output port of flip - flop 434 and the output of multiplexor 438 may be connected through pass transistor switch 202 to node 215 of slave output latch 406 . the input clock of flip - flop 434 may be connected to a scan clock ( scan_ckb ). further , the output port of flip - flop 434 may be connected through inverter 436 to node 409 which may be connected to the high input lead of multiplexor 438 , as addressed above , and through inverter 440 to node 419 , labeled scan_out , which may be used to output scan results to a next multiplexed flip - flop in an internal scan chain ( not shown in fig4 ), or to output final scan chain results to a scan test output data storage register ( not shown in fig4 ). during operation if the scan_en lead and scan_test_mode lead are set low the circuit performs in exactly the same manner described above with respect to fig3 with the exception that on every clock cycle of phim , the output value d x of combinational logic 404 may be passed via the low input lead of multiplexor 432 to the input lead of flip - flop 434 . however , unless the scan_ckb signal is triggered , the output value d x may be ignored by flip - flop 434 . in preparation for a scan test , the scan_test_mode signal may be set to high , thereby isolating input d at node 401 from combination logic matrix 404 . further , the slave phase clock signal phis may be fixed to a high value , thereby closing pass transistor switch 202 in the slave phase latch . in addition , master phase clock signal phim may be fixed to a high value , thereby closing the master latch . such a configuration may be referred to as the transparent mode of the circuit . next , the scan_en signal may be set to high so that multiplexor 434 may receive data from the scan_en lead 421 and binary scan test input values may be sequentially input at node 421 on the scan_in electrode and the scan_ckb signal may be cycled between high and low signal values to sequentially read each input value presented on the scan_en line into multiplexed flip - flop 434 . as described above with respect to fig1 , the scan_out electrode at node 419 may be connected to the scan in node 421 of the subsequent multiplexed flip - flop circuitry in the scan chain . therefore , each time a new binary value is placed on node 421 and scan clock signal scan_ckb is cycled on node 423 , a new test value may be stored in flip - flop 434 and the previously stored value may be forwarded to the next multiplexed flip - flop until each binary scan test input value has been sequentially read into the circuit . once all binary scan test input values have been input into the integrated circuit , and stored to the respective multiplexed flip - flops , a test of the combinational logic of combinational logic matrix 404 may be conducted . for example , to execute a test of the combinational logic of combinational logic matrix 404 using the binary scan test input values , the scan_en signal may be set to low , and the values of input electrodes d in 1 through d in n may be passed into combinational logic 404 to generate respective combinational logic output values d x which may be passed through low input terminal of multiplexor 432 and presented to the input lead of each multiplexed flip - flop 434 . a single pulse of scan clock signal scan_ckb on node 423 may then read the value into multiplexed flip - flop 434 . once the test output values have been stored into multiplexed flip - flops 434 , the scan_en signal may then be set to high . the scan test results stored in the respective flip - flops 434 may be output by clocking scan clock scan_ckb at node 423 a sufficient number of times to pass the string of output data from each of the respective flip - flops 434 through 419 through the chain of remaining multiplexed flip - flops to a final scan output of the last multiplexed flip - flop circuit included in the chain . the scan output may be received by a storage register connected to scan_out electrode 419 of the last multiplexed flip - flop circuit included in the chain . the scan_test_mode signal may be held high during the whole test and the subsequent part of logic receives data from multiplexed flip - flop 434 although the circuit described above with respect to fig4 may be used to support internal scan testing of a combinational logic circuit , an internal scan chain based on the insertion a multiplexed flip - flop at each test point within the circuit requires significant chip space due to the inclusion of two digital multiplexors , a flip - flop , as well as an additional scan clock scan_ckb lead directed to the multiplexed flip flop for each scan point established within the circuit . further , due to the complexity of the circuit , the chance of introducing faults within the scan chain circuitry itself is greatly increased . fig5 shows an exemplary semiconductor integrated circuit ( ic ) combinational logic circuit of fig3 , adapted to support scan chain based testing using an approach which is different from the circuit and approach described above with respect to fig4 . features in fig5 similar to those described earlier with respect to fig3 have been identified with like numerals . for example , a feature in fig5 corresponding to a like feature described with respect to fig3 will be identified with a number that retains the last two digits of the numeric identifier of the object described with respect to fig3 . unless otherwise indicated , the features and operational function of like numbered objects remain identical to those described above with respect to fig3 and therefore are not described again with reference to fig5 . as shown in fig5 , combinational logic circuit 500 does not include a multiplexed flip - flop at each test point within the combinational logic ic circuitry to be tested . instead , the original combinational logic circuit 300 , as described above with respect to fig3 , is modified so that the modified storage circuit , as shown in fig5 at 508 , may be used to support both normal processing as well as scan chain based test processing . the modified output latch may be referred to as a scan flip - flop latch ( sfflat ) 555 and is described in greater detail below . specifically , sfflat 555 , as shown in combinational logic circuit 500 , may include two additional n - type transistors . the source of n - type transistor 524 may be connected to the drain of p - type transistor 516 at node 515 , the drain of n - type transistor 524 may be connected to the source of n - type transistor 526 and the drain of n - type transistor 526 may be connected to the source of n - type transistor 518 . further , the gate of n - type transistor 524 may be connected to an electrode that may receive inverted slave phase clock signal phissb and the gate of n - type transistor 526 may be connected to an electrode that may receive an inverted scan clock signal sclkb . during operation , so long as n - type transistor 524 and n - type transistor 526 are both closed , modified storage circuit 508 performs in the same manner described above with respect to feedback inverter 212 in fig2 . however , if any one or both of n - type transistor 524 and n - type transistor 526 are open , the connection between node 515 and vss is broken . as a result , sfflat 555 may be controlled by inverted scan slave phase clock signal phissb and inverted scan clock signal sclkb to serve as a semi - fighting latch , as described in greater detail below . the latch is non - fighting for a change low to high at node 515 and fighting for a change of high to low at note 515 . therefore , when in operation supporting normal processing functions of combinational logic circuit 500 , inverted scan clock signal sclkb may be set high , and sfflat 555 operates in the same manner as output storage latch 306 , described with respect to fig3 , receiving and maintaining output data signal values received from combinational logic 504 . however , in support of scan chain based testing , sfflat 555 may be used to store and forward both scan test input values , as well as scan test output values , as described in greater detail below . in addition to the modifications made to sfflat 555 , described above , combinational logic circuit 500 may also include a scanning control circuit 550 that may be used to control receipt and sequential shifting scan test input data in preparation of a scan test , as well as to control the receipt and sequential shifting scan test output data after completion of a scan test , as described in greater detail below . as shown in fig5 , scanning control circuit 550 may include a first scan passthrough switch 552 , a output storage circuit 554 , and a second scan passthrough switch 556 . first scan passthrough switch 552 may be configured so that the latch may be closed when scan clock signal sclk is low and inverted scan clock signal sclkb is high . second scan passthrough switch 556 may be configured so that the latch may be closed when scan clock signal sclk is high and inverted scan clock signal sclkb is low . in operation , when sclk is low and inverted scan clock signal sclkb is high , first scan passthrough switch 552 may be closed and second scan passthrough switch 556 may be open and first scan passthrough switch 552 may pass a signal value received at node 551 to input node 553 of output storage circuit 554 and output storage circuit 554 may maintain the signal value received . when scan clock signal sclk becomes high and inverted scan clock signal sclkb becomes low , first scan passthrough switch 552 may be open and second scan passthrough switch 556 may be closed and the signal value maintained by output storage circuit 554 may be passed to node 515 , where the passed signal value may be maintained by storage circuit 508 , as described in greater detail below . note that during this mode , phiss may be held low and phissb may be held high to avoid contention at node 515 . output storage circuit 554 , shown in fig5 may include a high voltage source , vdd , a p - type transistor 560 , a first n - type transistor 562 , a second n - type transistor 564 , a first inverter 568 , a second inverter 570 and a low voltage source vss . vdd may be connected to the source electrode of p - type transistor 560 , the drain of p - type electrode 560 may be connected to the source electrode of n - type transistor 562 at node 553 , the drain of n - type transistor 562 may be connected to the source of n - type transistor 564 , and the drain of n - type transistor 564 may be connected to vss . the input side of first inverter 568 may be connected , at node 553 , to the junction of the drain electrode of p - type transistor 560 with the source electrode of n - type transistor 562 . the output side of first inverter 568 may be connected to node 569 which may be connected to both the gate of p - type transistor 560 and to the gate of n - type transistor 564 . in addition the gate of n - type electrode 562 may be connected to scan clock signal sclk . in operation , assuming that scan clock sclk is high , and hence n - type transistor 562 may be closed , if a high value is placed at node 553 the value may be inverted by first inverter 568 and a low value may be placed on node 569 . a low value on node 569 results in closing p - type transistor 560 and opening n - type transistor 564 . as a result , node 553 may be connected to high voltage source vdd and the value at node 553 may be held high . alternatively , if a low value is placed at node 553 the value may be inverted by first inverter 568 and a high value may be applied at node 569 and across the gates of both p - type transistor 560 and n - type transistor 564 . as a result of placing a high value at node 569 , p - type transistor 560 opens and n - type transistor 564 closes thereby forming a direct connection between node 553 and vss . in this manner the low value placed at 553 may be maintained . as addressed above , the gate of n - type electrode 562 may be connected to scan clock signal sclk . since , scan clock signal sclk is low when first scan passthrough switch 552 is closed , the connection between node 553 and vss is open . as a result , output storage circuit 554 avoids a scenario in which a high signal value provided via electrode si is forced to set the signal value of node 553 to high when node 553 is grounded , i . e ., the circuit avoids “ fighting ” between the new input value and a previous stored value being maintained by storage circuit 554 . p - type transistor 560 may be sized so that p - type transistor 560 operates as a weak pull - up transistor . for example , when a low value needs to be placed at node 553 , which is initially high , circuit 554 may exhibit a fighting style behavior , but the initially high value at node 553 may be overwritten by a low value because p - type transistor 560 operates as a weak pull - up transistor . when sclk goes high , switch 552 is open and node 553 may maintain a low value because n - type transistor 562 is closed . if switch 556 is closed , the value stored in node 553 may be passed through inverter 568 and inverter 570 to node 515 . when sclk is high , phiss may be low , as explained below with respect to the clock circuit presented in fig8 . hence switch 506 may be open and n - type transistor 524 may be closed , since phissb may be high , and n - type transistor 526 may be open because sclkb may be low . if node 515 was high , node 517 may be low and p - type transistor 516 may be closed . a low value from 553 may be passed through inverter 568 and inverter 570 to node 515 and the weak pull - up of p - type transistor 516 may be closed . a low value from node 553 may be passed through inverter 568 and inverter 570 to node 515 and the weak pull - up of p - type transistor 516 may be overwritten by strong pull - down of inverter 570 . if node 515 was low , a high value from node 553 may be passed through inverter 568 and inverter 570 to node 515 and since n - type transistor 526 is open , it avoids fighting a high value at node 515 . when sclk goes back to low , n - type transistor 526 may be closed and switch 556 may be open . a high value at node 515 may be inverted by inverter 520 , thereby placing a low value at node 517 , which closes p - type transistor 516 , opens n - type transistor 518 and keeps a high value at node 515 . a low value at node 515 may be inverted by inverter 520 , thereby placing a high value at node 517 . p - type transistor 516 may , therefore , be open , and n - type transistor 518 may be closed , thereby maintaining a low value at node 515 . fig6 shows , in isolation , an ssflat output latch 555 with a passthrough switch 506 , a modified storage circuit 508 , and a scanning control circuit 550 , in isolation from any other circuitry . the combined circuitry may be referred to as a scan - enabled ssflat module 555 . fig7 shows an exemplary pin - out block representation of scan - enabled ssflat module , or ssflat module 555 . as shown in fig7 , the pin - out block representation of ssflat module 555 may include input pins d , si , phiss , phissb , sclk , sclkb and output pins q and so . these input and output pins correspond with the input and output nodes described above with respect to fig5 and fig6 . specifically , input d represents node 501 in fig5 which is connected to an output lead d out x of combinational logic 504 ; phiss and phissb correspond to the n - type and p - type gate leads on passthrough switch 506 and n - type transistor 524 , that receive slave phase clock signal phiss and inverted slave phase clock signal phissb , respectively ; output q represents node 503 in fig5 and fig6 which presents a single binary output value output by combinational logic 504 on one of the respective one of output leads d out x ; and output so represents node 517 in fig5 and fig6 which , when scan chain mode is enabled , forwards scan test input data or scan test output data along the scan chain , as addressed in greater detail below . fig8 shows an exemplary clock circuit that generates timing signals for operating the exemplary combinational logic circuit 500 with an ssflat module 555 , as shown in fig5 , during both normal functional operations and during scan chain based testing . as shown in fig8 , exemplary clock circuit 800 may include four sections : scan - enable module 802 ; external clock module 804 ; scan clock module 806 ; and master / slave clock module 808 , each of which is described in detail below . scan - enable module 802 may receive a power down signal pd , a scan enable signal scan_enable and scan test mode signal scan_test_mode . further , scan - enable module 802 outputs a single data signal , labeled x 1 . as shown in fig8 , scan - enable module 802 includes an inverter 826 , a flip flop 822 , and a digital multiplexor 824 controlled by scan test signal scan_test_mode . power down signal pd may be supplied via flip flop 822 to the low input line of digital multiplexor 824 . scan enable signal scan_enable may be supplied via inverter 826 to the high input line of digital multiplexor 824 . the single output data signal x 1 may be produced at the output of digital multiplexor 824 . therefore , when scan test signal scan_test_mode is high , output data signal x 1 may be the same as inverted scan enable signal scan_enable ; when scan test signal scan_test_mode is low , output data signal x 1 may be the same as power down signal pd . external clock module 804 may receive an external master clock signal em_clk and outputs the signal to both nand gate 812 of scan clock module 806 , described below , and nand gate 828 of a first section of a master / slave clock module 808 a , described below . scan clock module 806 may receive scan enable signal scan_enable , em_clk and scan test signal scan_test_mode . further , scan clock module 806 outputs scan clock sclk and inverted scan clock sclkb , described above with respect to fig5 . as shown in fig8 , scan clock module 806 includes a nand logic gate 812 and inverter 816 . signal em_clk , signal scan_test_mode and the scan enable signal scan_enable may be supplied to the input lines of nand gate 812 . the output of nand gate 812 is presented as inverted scan clock sclkb . scan clock sclk may be produced by passing the output of digital multiplexor 814 through inverter 816 . master / slave clock module 808 may receive output signal x 1 from scan - enable module 802 , em_clk from external clock module 804 , scan test signal scan_test_mode , signal inc_novlp , a hardware reset control signal hw_reset , a high voltage signal vdd and a low voltage signal vss . further , master / slave clock module 808 outputs master phase clock signal phim , slave phase clock signal phis and scan slave phase clock signal phiss , described above with respect to fig3 and fig5 . signals phimb , phisb and phissb are derived by inverting phim , phis and phiss , respectively . a first section of master / slave clock module 808 , labeled in fig8 as 808 a , may include nand gate 828 , inverter 830 , inverter 832 and digital multiplexor 834 . a second section of master / slave clock module 808 , labeled in fig8 as 808 b , may include nand gate 836 , and inverting tri - state switch 838 , an inverter 839 and pull - up / pull - down transistors 840 . a third section of master / slave clock module 808 , labeled in fig8 as 808 c , may include a nor gate 844 , inverter 846 , and inverting tri - state switch 848 with pull - up / pull - down transistors 850 . a fourth section of master / slave clock module 808 , labeled in fig8 as 808 d , may include inverting tri - state switch 852 , inverter 854 , and pull - up / pull - down transistors 856 . note that pull - up / pull - down transistors 840 , 850 and 856 may be similarly configured with a high voltage source vdd , a p - type transistor , labeled 840 a , 850 a and 856 a , respectively , an n - type transistor , labeled 840 b , 850 b and 856 b , respectively , and a low voltage source vss . master / slave clock module section 808 a may receive signal x 1 from scan - enable module 802 , may receive signal em_clk from external clock module 804 and may output signal x 3 and ′ x 3 . signal x 1 and em_clk may be received as inputs to nand gate 828 . the output of nand gate 828 may be signal x 3 , which may be further processed to produce signal ′ x 3 . digital multiplexor 834 may be controlled by external signal inc_novlp . for example , signal x 3 may be supplied to the low input line of digital multiplexor 834 and signal x 3 may also be supplied to the high input line of digital multiplexor 834 after having passed through inverter 830 and inverter 832 . therefore , if signal inc_novlp is low , output signal ′ x 3 from digital multiplexor 834 may be a delayed form of signal x 3 . if signal inc_novlp is high , output signal ′ x 3 from digital multiplexor 834 may be a more delayed version of x 3 . unless otherwise noted , signal inc_novlp may be assumed to be high and , therefore , signal ′ x 3 is a slightly delayed version of x 3 . master / slave clock module section 808 b may receive signal x 3 and ′ x 3 from section 808 a and outputs master phase clock signal phim . signal x 3 and signal ′ x 3 may be received as inputs to nand gate 836 . the output of nand gate 836 may be signal x 4 . signal x 4 may be inverted by inverting tri - state inverter 838 and maintained by pull - up / pull - down 840 at node 841 . the inverted x 4 signal may be presented outside of clock circuit 800 as master phase clock signal phim . phimb is generated by inverting phim . a hardware reset control signal , hw_reset , may control tri - state inverter 838 , and via an inverter 839 , control the control signal applied to p - type transistor 840 a of pull - up / pull - down 840 . for example , by setting signal hw_reset to high , tri - state inverter 838 may be turned off and a low value may be applied to p - type transistor 840 a of pull - up / pull - down 840 , thereby holding the value of clock signal phim to high . master / slave clock module section 808 c may receive signal x 3 and ′ x 3 from section 802 a and outputs scan slave phase clock signal phiss . phissb is generated by inverting phiss . signal x 3 and signal ′ x 3 may be received as inputs to nor gate 844 . the output of nor gate 844 may be signal x s . signal x 5 may be inverted by inverter 846 to produce signal x 6 . signal x 6 may be inverted by tri - state inverter 848 and maintained by pull - up / pull - down 850 at node 851 . the inverted x 6 signal may be presented outside of clock circuit 800 as scan slave phase clock signal phiss . the hardware reset control signal , hw_reset , may control tri - state inverter 848 , and via an inverter 839 , control the control signal applied to p - type transistor 850 a of pull - up / pull - down 850 . for example , by setting signal hw_reset to high , tri - state inverter 848 may be turned off and a low value may be applied to p - type transistor 850 a of pull - up / pull - down 840 , thereby holding the value of clock signal phiss to high . master / slave clock module 808 d may receive signal x 6 from section 808 c , may receive scan test signal scan_test_mode and outputs slave phase clock signal phis . signal x 6 may be received from section 808 c , inverted by tri - state inverter 852 and maintained by pull - up / pull - down 856 at node 857 as the clock signal phis . phisb is generated by inverting phis . however , the phis signal level at node 857 may be overwritten based on the value of signal scan_test_mode . for example , scan_test_mode may control tri - state inverter 852 , and via an inverter 854 , may control the control signal applied to p - type transistor 856 a of pull - up / pull - down 856 . for example , by setting signal scan_test_mode to high , tri - state inverter 848 may be turned off and a low value may be applied , via inverter 854 to p - type transistor 856 a of pull - up / pull - down 856 , thereby holding the value of clock signal phis to high . the signal at node 857 may be presented outside of clock circuit 800 as slave phase clock signal phis . fig1 shows exemplary clock timing relationships between an exemplary external master clock em_clk , an exemplary master phase clock signal phim , an exemplary slave phase clock signal phis , and an exemplary scan slave phase clock signal phiss , as described above with respect to clock circuit 800 in fig8 . for example , master phase clock signal phim and slave phase clock signal phis , shown in fig1 , may each represent a single phase of a master / slave two - phase clock generated by master / slave clock module 808 of clock circuit 800 , described above with respect to fig8 . however , two separate signals , phis and phiss , may be needed to control a combinational logic circuit , such as combinational logic circuit 900 , as described below with respect to fig9 , that includes both scan enabled and non - scan enabled output latches . for example , the slave clock signal phis may be used to control an output latch that does not support scan testing , such as latch 200 described above with respect to fig2 a , fig2 b and fig3 , while slave clock signal phiss may be used to control a scan enabled output latch , such as scan flip - flop latch ( sfflat ) 555 , described above with respect to fig5 and fig6 . further , the values of phis and phiss may be overwritten with one of high and low values based on the respective operational modes in which a combinational logic circuit is operated , as described below in greater detail with respect to table 4 . for example , as shown in fig1 , the rising edge of external master clock em_clk , via external clock module 804 of clock circuit 800 , may lead the falling edge of master phase clock signal phim , which in turn may lead the rising edge of scan slave phase clock signal phiss . the falling edge of external master clock em_clk may lead the falling edge of scan slave phase clock signal phiss , which in turn may lead the rising edge of master phase clock signal phim . the exemplary timing shown in fig1 is exemplary only , and represents exemplary timing relationships in a mode in which slave clock signal phis is held constant the timing relationships , addressed above , may be important to the physical opening and closing of electronic components used to implement control combinational logic circuit 900 . for example , although the opening and closing of electronic components , e . g ., transistors , latches , flip - flops , multiplexors , etc ., may be discussed with respect to the logic level , e . g ., high or low , of the respective driving signals used to control the respective components , the physical response of the respective components may actually be driven by the rising and falling edges of the respective driving signals . therefore , such relationships may be considered during the circuit design process based on the mix and nature of the components used to implement the respective circuits , e . g . rising edge driven components , falling edge driven components , etc . table 1 presents an overview of signal value relationships at each of the respective nodes identified in the description of exemplary clock circuit 800 , for a single cycle of external master clock em_clk , when the signal scan_test_mode is set low , and scan_enable may be set to any value . as described in greater detail , below , such scan_test_mode and scan_enable values may be applied in order to allow combinational logic circuit 500 to operate in normal operational mode , i . e ., not in scan chain test mode , to sequentially pass input data into combination logic 504 , and then pass generated output results to the next combination logic . in such a mode , combinational logic circuit 500 may operate in the same manner as combinational logic circuit 300 , as described above with respect to fig3 . table 2 presents an overview of signal value relationships at each of the respective nodes identified in the description of exemplary clock circuit 800 , for a single cycle of external master clock em_clk , when the signal scan_test_mode is set high , and scan_enable is set high . as described in greater detail below , such values may be applied to scan_test_mode and scan_enable to isolate each sfflat from combination logic 504 , and thus , such values may be set prior to sequentially inputting and shifting new test data values into the respective ssflats in a scan chain , or to shift test results out of a scan chain after a test has been conducted and a binary test result may be stored at node 515 of each storage circuit 508 in the scan chain . table 3 , below , presents an overview of signal value relationships at each of the respective nodes identified in the description of exemplary clock circuit 800 , for a single cycle of external master clock em_clk , when the signal scan_test_mode is set high , and scan_enable is set low . such scan_test_mode and scan_enable values may be applied after test values have been sequentially input and stored at node 515 in each storage circuit 508 in a scan chain . as described in greater detail below , by setting scan_enable to low for a single clock cycle allows the test data values to be passed through master input latch array 502 into combinational logic 504 and for the resulting data values to be passed through passthrough switch 506 and stored at node 515 of each storage circuit 508 in the scan chain . after the test data has been generated and stored , the settings for scan_test_mode and scan_enable may both be returned to high and the signal value relationships may return to those described above with respect to table 2 , so that the test data may be sequentially shifted out , as described above with respect to table 2 . table 4 presents an overview of the relationships between the clock signals that may be used to control combinational logic circuit 500 described above with respect to tables 1 - 3 . as shown in table 4 , combinational logic circuit 500 with scan - enabled ssflat module 555 may support three operational modes : mode i , or functional mode , in which combinational logic circuit 500 operates without consideration of its embedded scan chain test capabilities to functionally process operational data ; mode ii , or shift - in / shift - out mode , in which each combinational logic circuit 500 in a scan chain passes data to the next ssflat module 555 in the scan chain either to receive a chain of test input data , or to output a chain of test output data ; and mode iii , or test execution mode , in which the master phase clock signal may be initiated for one cycle to submit a sequence of test input data , preloaded during a previous mode ii shift - in phase , to a combinational logic and to store the resulting test output data , in preparation for a subsequent mode ii shift - out phase . it should be understood that a next sequence of test input data may be sequentially shifted into the scan chain in preparation for the next test execution phase , as test output data from the previous test execution phase may be sequentially shifted out . during normal functional operations , i . e ., mode i , or functional mode , signal scan_test_mode is fixed low , and the scan_enable signal may be ignored . as a result , as indicated in table 1 , based on the exemplary clock circuit 800 described above with respect to fig8 , inverted scan clock signal sclkb remains high , master phase clock signal phim follows an inverted version of external master clock signal em_clk , slave phase clock signal phis follows external master clock signal em_clk , and scan slave phase clock signal phiss also follows external master clock signal em_clk . when master phase clock signal phim is high , inverted master phase clock signal phimb is low , and slave / scan slave clock signals phis / phiss are low and inverted slave / scan slave signals phisb / phissb are high . when master phase clock signal phim is low , inverted master phase clock signal phimb is high , and slave / scan slave clock signals phis / phiss are high and inverted slave / scan slave signals phisb / phissb are low . based on the above - described timing relationships , combinational logic circuit 500 , as described with respect to fig5 , may operate as described below . since inverted scan clock signal sclkb is set high , as shown in table 1 and table 4 , second scan passthrough switch 556 may be open and no shift - in or shift - out data may be passed from scanning control circuit 550 to node 515 for maintenance by storage circuit 508 . further , because inverted scan clock signal sclkb is high , transistor 526 in storage circuit 508 may be fixed in a closed state . when scan slave phase clock signal phiss is low , inverted scan slave phase clock signal phissb is high , therefore , when passthrough switch 506 is open , transistor 524 is closed , thereby allowing storage circuit 508 to maintain a previously received signal value . at the start of the next data processing cycle , however , master phase clock signal phim goes high , thereby closing master input latch 502 and allowing an input data signal to pass from input line d in x into combinational logic 504 , resulting in a new output data value emerging from combinational logic 504 on output line d out x . however , soon after the new output data value emerges on output line d out x , phiss goes high , thereby allowing the new output data value to pass to node 515 . at the time that phiss is high , and the new output data value is passed to node 515 , inverted scan slave phase clock signal phissb is low and transistor 524 is open . therefore , there is no closed connection between node 515 and the low data signal vss . this allows the new output data value to be passed to node 515 and avoids “ fighting ,” i . e ., a condition in which inverter 510 may be required to place a high signal value at node 515 when node 515 connected to low signal source vss , or ground . for a high to low transition , p - type transistor 516 may be always weaker than switch 506 and drivers before that , so the value can be switched . however , when phiss again becomes low , phissb becomes high , thereby closing transistor 524 and allowing storage circuit 508 to maintain the newly received output data value , either high or low . during mode i , the above cycle of events may repeat continuously to process operational data and to generate operational output results . during mode ii , or shift - in / shift - out mode , each combinational logic circuit 500 in a scan chain may pass data to the next ssflat module 555 in the scan chain either to receive a chain of test input data , or to output a chain of test output data . as addressed above , a next sequence of test input data may be sequentially shifted into a scan chain as test output data may be sequentially shifted out . in preparation for mode ii , both signal scan_test_mode and signal scan_enable may be set high . as a result , as indicated in table 2 and table 4 , and based on the exemplary clock circuit 800 described above with respect to fig8 , master phase clock signal phim is set high , slave phase clock signal phis is set high and scan slave phase clock signal phiss is set low . therefore , master input latch 502 remains closed , passthrough switch 506 remains open , and transistor 524 , in storage circuit 508 , remains closed . as a result , computational logic 504 may be isolated , by the blocking capabilities of passthrough switch 506 , from ssflat module 555 . however , operation of ssflat module 555 may proceed , driven by scan clock sclk and inverted scan clock sclkb as described below . further , because phis is high , the slave output latch of each combinational logic circuit is set in a closed state . therefore , even though each combinational logic circuit includes a output storage latch that does not support scan chain testing , rather than an sfflat module that does support scan chain testing , each combinational logic circuit remains transparent to scan chain testing and , therefore , does not interfere with the scan chain testing process . as described above with respect to fig5 , when sclk is low and inverted scan clock signal sclkb is high , first scan passthrough switch 552 may be closed and second scan passthrough switch 556 may be open and first scan passthrough switch 552 may pass a signal value received at node 551 to input node 553 of output storage circuit 554 and output storage circuit 554 may maintain the signal value received . when scan clock signal sclk becomes high and inverted scan clock signal sclkb becomes low , first scan passthrough switch 552 may be open and second scan passthrough switch 556 may be closed and the signal value maintained by output storage circuit 554 may be passed to node 515 , where the passed signal value may be maintained by storage circuit 508 . when scan clock signal sclk becomes high and inverted scan clock signal sclkb becomes low and the signal value maintained by output storage circuit 554 is passed to node 515 , n - type transistor 526 of storage circuit 508 may be open . therefore , there may be no closed connection between node 515 and the low signal source vss , or ground . this allows the new data value to be passed to node 515 and avoids “ fighting ,” i . e ., a condition in which scanning control circuit 550 may be required to place a high signal value at node 515 when node 515 may be grounded . if a low value needs to be placed on node 515 , since p - toye transistor 516 is week , node 515 can be overwritten to a low value . however , when sclk again becomes low , sclkb becomes high , thereby closing transistor 524 and allowing storage circuit 508 to maintain the newly received data value . as described above , node 515 of ssflat module 555 may be connected to node 551 of the subsequent ssflat module 555 in a scan chain . in such a configuration , when sclk is low , a data value may be passed from node 551 to node 553 of scanning control circuit 550 , and when sclk is high the stored data value may be passed from 553 to node 515 of ssflat module 555 , and presented at node 551 of the subsequent ssflat module 555 . during mode ii , the above cycle of events may repeat continuously to either load new test input data received at node 551 of a first ssflat module 555 into a scan chain or to pass test input data from one ssflat module 555 in a scan chain to a subsequent ssflat module 555 in a scan chain . further , after a scan test has been executed , as described below with respect to mode iii , the same mode ii process may be used to pass test output data along the respective ssflat modules in a scan chain to a last ssflat module 555 and out to a scan test result storage buffer . such a storage buffer may receive data simultaneously from the last ssflat module 555 of a plurality of scan chains , thus allowing results from multiple scan tests to be output in parallel to be analyzed against expected results . mode iii , or test execution mode , may be executed after implementing mode ii to shift in a sequence of test input data into a scan chain , as described above . during test execution mode , the master and slave phase clock signal may be initiated for one cycle to submit a sequence of test input data stored in the respective ssflat modules of the scan chain to a combinational logic and to store the resulting test output data in the same ssflat modules of the scan chain . in transitioning from mode ii , to mode iii , signal scan_test_mode is held high , but signal scan_enable is set low . as a result , based on clock circuit 800 described above with respect to fig8 , both slave phase clock signal phis and inverted scan clock signal sclkb may be set high , master phase clock signal phim follows inverted external master clock signal em_clk , and scan slave phase clock signal phiss follows external master clock signal em_clk . since inverted scan clock signal sclkb is high , second scan passthrough switch 556 is open and no shift - in or shift - out data may be passed from scanning control circuit 550 to node 515 for maintenance by storage circuit 508 . further , because inverted scan clock signal sclkb is high , transistor 526 in storage circuit 508 may be fixed in a closed state . as addressed above with respect to mode ii , mode iii may be used immediately after loading a sequential series of test input data into a scan chain . as soon as scan_enable is set low , on the next em_clk going high , master phase phim goes to low , thus opening the master latch 502 and disconnecting d in from 504 . this is followed by phiss going high and the previously evaluated value generated by combinational logic 504 may be passed to node 515 through the closed switch 506 . phim , being low , blocks the updated value in 515 from affecting the stored value in subsequent sfflat &# 39 ; s . when em_clk goes low , phiss goes low , switch 506 opens and node 515 maintains the value stored . phim goes high , but since phiss is low , closed switch 502 does not affect the stored value at node 515 . as described above , when phiss is high , phissb is low , and n - type transistor 524 of storage circuit 508 is open . therefore , there may be no closed connection between node 515 and the low data signal vss . this allows the new data value to be passed to node 515 and avoids “ fighting ,” i . e ., a condition in which passthrough switch 506 may be required to place a high signal value at node 515 when node 515 may be connected to low signal source vss , or ground . however , when phiss again becomes low , phissb becomes high , thereby closing transistor 524 and allowing storage circuit 508 to maintain the newly received data value . the high to low transition at node 515 does cause fighting , but since p - type transistor 516 is weak , the value is overwritten . mode iii may be initiated for one clock cycle , thereby allowing a single stored test input data value at node 515 to be passed to combinatorial logic 504 to generate a new test output data value which is then stored at node 515 . once the once clock cycle is completed , signal scan_enable may be set high , and combinational logic circuit 500 may return to mode ii to sequentially scan out the respective stored test output data in the manner described above with respect to mode iii . fig9 shows a portion of an exemplary combinational logic scan chain 900 equipped with slave output latch circuits 906 a and 906 b that do not support scan based testing operations and ssflat module 555 a , ssflat module 555 b and ssflat module 555 c that do support scan chain based testing . the plurality of combinational logic circuits shown in fig9 may represent only a portion of the total number of combinational logic circuits chained together and placed on a single integrated circuit chip . for example , an exemplary combinational logic circuit 500 as described above with respect to fig5 , may be found in fig9 and may include input line d in 1 , master input latch 902 a , combinational logic 904 , output line d out 1 , and ssflat module 555 a . further , an exemplary combinational logic circuit 200 as described above with respect to fig2 a , fig2 b and fig3 , may be found in fig9 and may include input line d in 4 , master input latch 902 d , combinational logic 9 04 , output line d out 4 , and slave output latch circuit 906 b . the exemplary portion of a scan chain represented in fig9 includes a total of three combinational logic circuits 500 , as described above with respect to fig5 , and a total of two combinational logic circuit 300 as described above with respect to fig3 . it should be understood that number and type of combinational logic circuits included in fig9 is exemplary only . any number of combinational logic circuits may be arranged in any manner , e . g ., in series , or in parallel , with other combinational logic circuits in the integrated circuit . for example , array of output latches 910 may be provide input data values to a subsequent combinational logic which may generated output data values , each stored in one of a slave output latch circuit that does not support scan based testing operations , e . g ., such as latch 200 as described above with respect to fig2 , and a slave output latch circuit that does support scan based testing operations , e . g ., such as latch 555 as described above with respect to fig5 . one such an exemplary integrated circuit may include any number of latches arranged in series , each latch separated from another latch by combinational logic , as shown in fig9 . in such a circuit , at least one phim - controlled latch may be included between any two phiss - controlled latches in series ; however , any number of alternating prim - controlled and phis - controlled latches may be placed between any two phiss - controlled latches in series in the circuit . as shown in fig9 , a scan chain may be formed by the respective ssflat modules 555 . for example , a first link in the scan chain may be formed by ssflat module 555 a , a second link in the scan chain may be formed by ssflat module 555 b , and a third link in the scan chain may be formed by ssflat module 555 c . the respective ssflat modules 555 support functional operations as described above with respect to mode i , and provide 3 test points for combinational logic 904 , as described above with respect to mode ii and mode iii . further , as shown in fig9 , exemplary combinational logic scan chain 900 may include three slave output latch circuits 906 that support functional operations in mode i , and that transparently support scan chain testing during mode ii and mode iii , as described above . for example , in mode ii , slave output latch circuits 906 do not interfere with the sequential loading of test input data into the scan chain , nor interfere with the sequential shifting out of test output data from the scan chain . further , in mode iii , slave output latch circuits 906 transparently pass test output data from , for example , output leads of combinational logic 904 to the input leads combinational logic 908 b . for example , as described above with respect to table 4 , during scan based testing operations , e . g ., mode ii and mode iii , as described above , slave phase clock signal phis is fixed to a high signal value . in this manner , slave output latch circuits 906 may be configured to transparently pass test output data from , for example , output leads of combinational logic 904 to the input leads of combinational logic 908 . fig1 shows a flow - chart of an exemplary process for scan chain based testing of one or more integrated circuits on a semiconductor wafer . as shown in fig1 , operation of the method begins at step s 1102 and proceeds to step s 1104 . in step s 1104 , a semiconductor wafer is fabricated that includes one or more integrated circuits . each integrated circuit may include a plurality of combinational logic circuits , as described above with respect to fig9 . these combinational logic circuits support scan chain based testing of the combinational logic matrices using any number of scan chains , as described above with respect to fig5 and fig9 . further , these scan chains may scan test data out to any number of output scan registers , as described above with respect to fig9 . after the semiconductor wafer , with one or more integrated circuits is fabricated , operation of the method continues to step s 1106 . in step s 1106 , the semiconductor wafer with one or more integrated circuits is configured for testing , for example , by placing the wafer in an automated testing system capable of forming electrical connections to the leads of one or more integrated circuits on the wafer , and operation of the method continues to step s 1108 . in step s 1108 , a first , or next , integrated circuit is prepared for testing by the automated testing system by establishing , e . g ., using pins or probes , electrical connections to the control leads of the integrated circuit so that power , control signals and / or data and clock signals may be passed from the automated testing system to the integrated circuit under test , and operation of the method continues to step s 1110 . in step s 1110 the automated testing system passes power and signals to the integrated circuit to configure combinational logic circuits into mode ii , shift - in / shift - out mode , as described above with respect to table 4 . for example , in preparation for mode ii , both signal scan_test_mode and signal scan_enable may be set high . as a result , as indicated in table 2 and table 4 , and based on the exemplary clock circuit 800 described above with respect to fig8 , master phase clock signal phim is set high , slave phase clock signal phis is set high and scan slave phase clock signal phiss is set low . operation of the method continues to step s 1112 . in step s 1112 , once configured in mode ii , with each cycle of scan clock signal sclk , each combinational logic circuit in a scan chain may receive a binary bit of test input data via ssflat module 555 from either a scan input port at the start of a scan chain or from a preceding ssflat module 555 in the scan chain and may pass a binary bit of test input data to the next ssflat module 555 in the scan chain , and operation of the method continues to step s 1114 . if , in step s 1114 , all of the test input data needed to execute a test has been loaded , operation of the method continues to step s 1116 , otherwise operation of the method returns to step s 1112 . in step s 1116 , the automated testing system may pass power and signals to the integrated circuit to configure combinational logic circuits into mode iii , test execution mode , as described above with respect to table 4 . for example , the automated testing system may hold signal scan_test_mode to high , but may set signal scan_enable to low , thereby adjusting the clock signals generated by clock circuit 800 , as described above with respect to table 3 and table 4 above , thereby configuring combinational logic circuits into mode iii , test execution mode , as described above with respect to table 4 , and operation of the method continues to step s 1118 . in step s 1118 , the master phase clock signal may be initiated for one cycle to submit a sequence of test input data stored in the respective ssflat modules of the scan chain to one or more combinational logic matrices and to store the resulting test output data in the same ssflat modules of the scan chain , and operation of the method continues to step s 1120 . in step s 1120 , the automated testing system passes power and signals to the integrated circuit to configure combinational logic circuits back into mode ii , shift - in / shift - out mode . for example , both signal scan_test_mode and signal scan_enable to high , as indicated in table 2 and table 4 , and based on the exemplary clock circuit 800 described above with respect to fig8 , master phase clock signal prim is set high , slave phase clock signal phis is set high and scan slave phase clock signal phiss is set low . operation of the method continues to step s 1122 . in step s 1122 , once reconfigured in mode ii , each combinational logic circuit 500 in a scan chain may , with each cycle of scan clock signal sclk , receive a binary bit of test output data via ssflat module 555 from a preceding ssflat module 555 in the scan chain and may pass a binary bit of test output data to the next ssflat module 555 in the scan chain , or to a scan output port at the end of a scan chain , and operation of the method continues to step s 1124 . if , in step s 1124 , the test application determines that the output registers are full , operation of the method continues to step s 1126 , otherwise , operation of the method returns to step s 1122 . in step s 1126 , the test output data stored in the output register may be compared to an expected test result , and operation of the method continues to step s 1128 . if , in step s 1128 , the test application determines that the output data in the output register does not match an expected test result , operation of the method continues to step s 1138 , the circuit is marked for discard for failing to pass the applied test , and operation of the method then continues to step s 1136 . if , in step s 1128 , the test application determines that the output data in the output register does match an expected test result , operation of the method then continues to step s 1130 . if , in step s 1130 , the test application determines that all test output data has been scanned out to the scan chain test output registers , operation of the method continues to step s 1132 , otherwise , operation of the method then returns to step s 1122 . if , in step s 1132 , the test application determines that all desired tests have been executed , operation of the method continues to step s 1134 , otherwise , operation of the method then returns to step s 1110 . in step s 1134 , the integrated circuit , having passed all applied scan chain based tests , may be marked for packaging , and operation of the method continues at step s 1136 . if , in step s 1136 , the test application determines that all the integrated circuits to be tested have been tested , operation of the method then proceeds to step s 1140 and the process terminates , otherwise operation of the method returns to step s 1108 . for purposes of explanation , in the above description , numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the sfflat and use of the sfflat to support scan chain testing of combinational logic circuits . it will be apparent , however , to one skilled in the art that the sfflat may be practiced without these specific details . in other instances , well - known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring the features of the sfflat . while the sfflat has been described in conjunction with the specific embodiments thereof , it is evident that many alternatives , modifications , and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art . accordingly , embodiments of the sfflat as set forth herein are intended to be illustrative , not limiting . there are changes that may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .	6
fig1 discloses a typical operating environment for the apparatus of the present invention , in which a ventilating hood 11 is fixed with respect to and opens downward over a fume - producing device 12 such as a cooking unit or units , here exemplified by a three - bay deep fat fryer . cooking fumes , particularly heated air laden with volatilized grease or the like ( hereafter simply referred to grease laden air ), rise from the upward facing surface of the cooking unit 12 and collect within the downward opening hood 11 to be drawn therefrom up a communicating exhaust stack 14 by conventional means such as an exhaust blower schematically indicated at e , conventionally , the exhaust blower vents the fumes outside the building containing the hood 11 and cooking unit 12 . the hood 11 and exhaust stack 14 may be fixed with respect to the ceiling , wall , or floor of the building in any convenient manner . in the particular embodiment shown , the hood is double - walled to define an inlet air chamber 16 ( fig2 ) between inner and outer hood shells 17 and 18 . the chamber 16 receives fresh air through an inlet air stack 19 , surrounding and extending along the exhaust stack 14 preferably from outside the building , by a conventional inlet air mover schematically indicated at i , such as a conventional motor driven blower . a fresh air outlet 21 may be conventionally provided from the lower front edge of the inlet air chamber 16 . the hood 11 here shown has an interior defined by the top , front , rear and sidewalls of the inner shell 18 and which opens downward ( as seen in fig2 ) toward the cooking unit 12 . the interior of the hood is divided by a barrier wall 23 ( fig2 and 10 ) into an inlet zone 25 open toward the cooking unit 12 , and an outlet zone 26 open toward the exhaust stack 14 . the barrier wall 23 extends the full width of the hood interior and incorporates an opening 28 , preferably extending over a large part of the height and width of such barrier wall , for communication from inlet zone 25 to the outlet zone 26 . the barrier wall 23 is preferably sloped so as to face forward and downward toward the cooking unit 12 and such barrier wall extends from the back wall 31 to the top wall 32 of the inner shell , connecting with such top wall forward ( to the right in fig1 ) of the exhaust stack 14 . in use , the opening 28 is normally occupied by a filter panel 35 which fully occupies the opening 28 , such that air swept into the inlet zone 25 of the hood 11 , from above the cooking unit , can proceed to the outlet zone 26 and exhaust stack 14 only by passing through the filter panel 35 . the filter panel 35 is to remove at least most of the grease and other contaminants in the air received from the cooking unit , before such air passes through stack 14 . turning now in more detail to the present invention , a wash down assembly 41 ( fig2 - 6 ) includes an elongate hood wash down pipe 43 which effectively spans the width of the outlet chamber 26 of the hood . a stack wash down pipe 44 extends upward into the exhaust stack 14 , preferably substantially along the central axis thereof and to a point near the top of such exhaust stack . spray nozzles 46 distributed along the wash down pipes 43 and 44 face radially therefrom for spraying a suitable wash liquid onto the opposed surfaces of the hood inner shell , filter and exhaust stack . in the preferred embodiment shown , the hood wash down pipe 43 is offset rearwardly ( leftwardly in fig2 a ) and downwardly from the stack wash down pipe 44 in exhaust stack 14 , such that the pipe 43 is spaced behind and substantially centered on the filter opening 28 and a filter panel 35 located therein . when so placed , the pipe 43 lies at least near the geometric center of the triangular cross section hood outlet zone 26 . the ends of pipe 43 are closed against leakage and supported for rotation by suitable bearings 47 and 48 ( e . g . simple sleeve bearings or bushings ) fixed on the end walls 49 ( fig4 ) of the hood 11 . a conventional liquid supply swivel 51 ( fig2 a and 5 interposed intermediate the ends of the pipe 43 serves to supply wash liquid to the pipe 43 while assisting in supporting it for rotation . as a practical matter , it will be understood that the pipe is open within the swivel such that the swivel joins and supplies liquid to the two visible end segments of the pipe 43 . the swivel 51 is formed as a tee which connects to a wash liquid supply pipe 53 ( fig2 a and 6 ) which extends into the outlet zone 26 within the hood 11 along any convenient path . in the embodiment shown , the supply pipe 53 enters the top of the hood behind the stacks 14 and 19 and communicates with the swivel 51 through an elbow 54 and tee 56 interconnected by suitable nipples . the stack wash down pipe 44 is supported for rotation within the stack . preferably , a rigid strap member 59 ( fig4 and 6 ) extends across the exhaust stack 14 near the upper end thereof . the opposite ends of the strap member 59 are bent upward at 61 ( fig6 ) for securement to the sidewalls of the stack 14 as by screws or the like . the upper end of the stack pipe 44 is supported for rotation on the strap 59 in any convenient manner . in fig5 for example , the upper end of pipe 44 is capped against leakage at 62 , which cap 62 rides rotatably on a bushing 63 fixed to and extending through the strap 59 . if desired , a collar 64 fixed to the pipe 44 beneath the strap 59 limits upward movement of the pipe . a swivel connector 66 ( fig5 and 6 ) here serves to connect the lower end of stack pipe 44 not only with the liquid supply , but also with a rotary drive assembly generally indicated at 67 ( fig2 a , 5 and 6 ). the swivel connector 66 , like swivel 51 above - mentioned , is of tee configuration , having a central liquid inlet leg 68 connected , here through elbows 70 and 71 , to the wash liquid supply at elbow 56 , through suitable interposed nipples or pipe lengths . the rotary drive assembly 67 includes a rotatable motor 73 , ( preferably electric ) which conveniently mounts atop the inner shell 18 , within the inlet air chamber 16 of the hood 11 , as seen in fig3 - 5 . the rotating output shaft 74 of motor 73 extends through a suitable opening in the wall of exhaust stack 14 . secured to the end of motor shaft 74 , within the exhaust stack 14 are rotational drive connections to the rotary hood pipe 43 and rotary stack pipe 44 , which drive connectors here take the form of a chain drive 76 to the hood pipe 43 and a flexible drive 77 to the lower end of the stack pipe 46 within the swivel 66 . the chain drive 76 comprises a coplanar pair of sprockets respectively fixed on the pipe 43 and motor shaft 74 and interconnected by an endless chain loop . the flexible drive 77 may be of conventional type and here comprises an l - shaped conduit 80 fixed at one end to the exterior of swivel 66 and at its other end supported by an internally bushed collar 81 with respect to the end of motor shaft 74 . a flexible drive member 79 extends rotatably through the conduit and is fixed to the end of the pipe 44 within the swivel 66 to rotatably drive same . the input end of flexible drive member 79 , within the collar 81 , is fixed to the free end of the motor shaft 74 for rotation therewith . thus , both the substantially horizontal hood wash down pipe 43 and the substantially vertical exhaust stack wash down pipe 44 are simultaneously rotatable by the common drive motor 73 . the spray nozzles 46 distributed along the pipes are thus rotated to apply wash liquid to the entire circumferential extent of the surrounding hood and stack surfaces . wash liquid is supplied to supply pipe 53 from a supply generally indicated in 81 in fig6 . the wash liquid supply 81 here includes a drum 82 for a suitable cleaning agent , such as a detergent and a pump 83 actuable to supply such detergent to a mixture control valve 85 . hot water , for example at a minimum of 140 ° f ., is applied from a conventional hot water source schematically indicated at h , preferably through a conventional vacuum breaker 87 to the mixture control valve 85 . the valve 85 is actuable to apply a mixture of hot water and detergent through the supply pipe 53 to the wash down pipes 43 and 44 . the valve 85 may be of any convenient type presetable to a desired detergent - hot water ratio and actuable to turn on and off the hot water - detergent mixture input to supply pipe 53 . the hot water source h may be for example a conventional water heating tank supplied at city , or higher , water pressure . a master control panel 88 includes suitable manual and / or automatic means for demand or periodic supply of wash liquid to the wash down pipes 43 and 44 , by simultaneous actuation of pump 83 and motor 73 and opening of mixture supply valve 85 as schematically indicated in broken lines at 90 , 91 and 92 in fig6 . if desired , the valve 85 may be incorporated in the control panel 88 which may in turn be mounted at 85 . if desired , the control 88 may be arranged to supply hot water alone , by shutting off detergent pump 83 , after a quantity of detergent - water mix has been sprayed from the wash down pipes 43 and 44 , for rinsing the hood , filter and exhaust stack surfaces surrounding the wash down pipes . instead of a central control 88 of manual and / or automatic type , the liquid supply valve 85 , detergent pump 83 and rotate motor 73 may be individually manually controlled to perform the wash down operation . if desired , the master control panel 88 may be located other than adjacent the detergent tank . on the other hand , it is contemplated that suitable electrical wash down controls may be mounted adjacent the hood in a readily accessible position , as on the front face of the hood , as at 94 ( fig1 ) for remote actuation of the master wash down control 88 . to collect wash liquid sprayed on and draining from the surfaces of the exhaust stack 14 , hood outlet zone 26 and a filter panel 35 at opening 28 , the barrier wall 23 forms a substantially v - shaped collection trough 96 ( fig1 ) with the back wall 31 of the hood . a drain conduit 97 connects the bottom edge of the trough 96 to a suitable drain for removal of used cleaning liquid from the hood . when installed in the opening 28 in barrier wall 23 , the filter panel 35 faces directly toward and is directly exposed to the top of the cooking unit 12 and thus its forward ( inlet ) side tends to collect heavy deposits of grease from the grease laden air swept into the hood from above the cooking unit . while some grease may penetrate through the filter to its rear ( exhaust ) side , the exhaust side of the filter can be cleaned of accumulated grease and the like by wash liquid sprayed from the rotating pipes 43 and 44 . however , washing down the exhaust side of the filter panel does not , and it not intended to , result in cleaning of the intake side of the panel . particularly , wash liquid expelled from the nozzles on pipe 43 is desirably blocked by the filter 35 and barrier wall 23 from entering the inlet zone 25 , to avoid contaminating the space above and surfaces of the cooking unit 12 with used wash liquid carrying grease and other contaminants . the filter panel 35 preferably comprises a rectangular perimeter frame 103 ( fig7 and 11 ) of substantially u - shaped , or channel , cross section , which forms a rigid frame work . the actual filtering agent is held by perimeter frame 103 and in the preferred embodiment shown takes the form of two opposed sets of side - by - side trough members 104 , here of substantially v - shaped configuration . as seen in fig1 , the trough members 104 have their convex faces , or vertices , 106 facing outwardly to form the corresponding side of the filter panel . the free edges of adjacent trough members 104 are spaced apart though substantially less than the width of a given trough member 104 , to form an air passage 107 therebetween . as seen in fig1 , the free edges of two adjacent troughs 104 are spaced by an air passage 107 and intrude slightly into the opposed mouth 108 of a trough 104 of the opposite set . accordingly , air passing through the filter panel 35 must travel the substantially s - shaped path 109 and thus tends to deposit entrained grease and other contaminants upon the surfaces of the troughs 104 . the ends of the troughs 104 are fixed in the top and bottom channels 103 of the filter panel . to further rigidify the panel , a horizontal strap 111 extends sinuously between the two sets of troughs and is secured by any convenient means not shown , such as welding , to the central portions of each of the troughs 104 . drain holes 112 ( fig7 and 8 ) are spaced along the top and bottom members of the perimeter frame , at the corners of the channel - shaped cross section , to permit the filter panel 35 to drain free of wash liquid applied thereto . while filter panels of different construction may be used in connection with the present invention , filter panels of the type shown at 35 , with the interfingered troughs 104 , have proved advantageous , not only for effectively filtering grease from air passing therethrough , but also for blocking travel of wash liquid from the sprays within the exhaust zone 26 of the hood , out into the inlet zone 25 and onto the cooking unit 12 . to support the filter panel 35 in its normal use position of fig7 - 9 , the barrier wall 23 includes a rectangular perimeter flange 114 which extends rearward ( leftward in fig1 ) therefrom to a depth preferably somewhat exceeding the depth of the filter panel 35 . the top and opposed sides of the perimeter flange 114 frame the fume opening 28 in the barrier wall 23 . the bottom length 116 of perimeter flange 114 is spaced somewhat below the lower edge 117 of the fume opening 28 leaving an upward extending lip 119 along the bottom of fume opening 28 . plural drain openings 121 ( fig8 ), spaced along the forward edge of the bottom length 116 where it joins the lip 117 , permit wash liquid draining from the filter panel 35 to drain downward along the inner surface of the barrier wall 23 to the drain conduit 97 . the lower edge portion of the filter panel 35 rests on the flange bottom length 116 and lip 117 . the bottom length 116 prevents the filter panel from sliding down along the inside of the barrier wall 23 and the lip 117 prevents the lower filter edge from falling forward out of the opening 28 . to block rearward movement of the filter panel 35 from its position of use into the exhaust zone 26 of the hood , further lips 122 and 123 on the rear edges of the top and side parts of perimeter flange 114 overlap the opening 28 . latches 126 , preferably fixed on opposite sides of the opening 28 to the barrier wall 23 , prevent the filter panel 35 from falling forwardly from its normal operating position of fig7 - 9 and 11 . in such operating position , the latches 126 urge the back face of the filter panel 35 against the top and side lips 122 and 123 , while the bottom edge of the filter panel 35 rests atop the flange bottom length 116 at lip 119 . preferably the filter panel 35 has small risers 125 along its upper and lower edges to space the filter perimeter frame 103 a bit above the flange bottom length 116 . in the embodiment shown , the latches 126 shown in fig1 are conventional over - center latch units each having a base 131 fixed , as by rivets to the barrier wall 23 and pivotally supporting an operating lever 132 and a clamping lever 133 , which are pivotally interconnected by an over - center link 134 . a resilient block 136 adjustably supported on the free end of clamping lever 133 forceably engages the forward face of the filter panel 35 in the latched , over - center position of operating lever 132 ( to the right in fig1 ) and , alternatively , swings forwardly and laterally away from the filter panel 35 in response to unlatching movement of the operating lever 132 to its position to the left in fig1 , to permit the filter panel 35 to move forwardly out of opening 28 . when closed , the latches 126 snugly urge the filter panel against the lips 122 and 123 . a pivoting lost motion connection 141 ( fig7 and 10 ) permits cleaning of both sides of the filter panel 35 while it is attached to the hood 11 . connection 141 comprises an elongate link 142 on each side of the filter panel 35 . the upper end of each link 142 is pivoted at 143 on the corresponding side of the perimeter flange 114 at the edge of opening 28 . the location of pivot 143 preferably is somewhat above the center of the opening 28 . a headed pin 144 fixed centrally to and extending sidewardly from the perimeter frame 103 of filter 35 is captive in pivoting and sliding relation in a slot 146 extending the major , lower length of the link 142 . when installed in opening 28 as in fig9 the link 142 extends from its pivot 143 along the adjacent side of the filter panel 35 with the filter supporting pin 144 near but not at the top of the slot 146 in link 142 . upon release of the latches 126 , the filter 35 , in response to gravity , pivots forwardly as generally indicated by arrow r ( fig1 ) raising the lower end of the filter 35 over the lip 119 . at the same time , the link 132 pivots forward along arrow s and the filter panel , riding on its sidewardly extending pins 144 , slides downward along the slots 146 of links 142 to the bottom thereof , as indicated by arrow t . thereafter , the filter panel 35 can be manually rotated , as indicated by arrows u , through 180 °. the above - mentioned removal steps , indicated by arrows t , s and r , can then be reversed to restore the panel 35 to its installed position in opening 28 but with the sides reversed . in a typical wash down operation , the wash down pipes 43 and 44 are operated briefly to clean one side of the filter panel 35 installed in the opening 28 , the liquid supply to the rotating pipes 43 and 44 is shut off , and the filter panel 35 is reversed as indicated by arrows r , s , t and u above - discussed with respect to fig1 . with the filter panel 35 installed once again in opening 28 , but reversed side - for - side , the wash down pipes are once again actuated , and wash the other side of the filter panel 35 . after a period of use of the hood 11 this washing cycle can be repeated , either by manual actuation or automatically as desired . in addition to cleaning both sides of the filter , this wash down cycle also results in cleaning of the remaining interior surfaces of the outlet zone 26 of the hood 11 and of the exhaust stack 14 , as a result of the wash liquid sprayed by the rotating pipes 43 and 44 on these surfaces . as seen above , the filter unit 35 during its 180 ° reversal described with respect to fig1 , remains pivotally and slidably joined to the links 142 by reason of the engagement of its headed pins 144 and the corresponding slots 146 . if desired , the filter unit 35 can readily be disconnected from the links 142 while in its fig1 position , simply by raising filter unit 35 upward along the slots 146 until pins 144 reach the top of the slots . the tops of the slots are enlarged as indicated at 147 , sufficient to pass axially therethrough the large head of the corresponding pin 144 , as by slight laterally outward flexing of the links 142 . reinstallation of a filter unit on its links 142 is accomplished by reversal of such steps . the enlarged upper end 147 of the slot 146 lies somewhat above the corresponding pin 144 with the filter unit 35 in the filter opening 28 , as can be seen in fig9 . moreover , the filter unit 35 is free to pivot forwardly and downwardly ( via arrow r in fig1 ) without advancing the pin 144 upward into the enlarged upper end 147 of slot 146 . accordingly , the pins 144 are normally laterally retained by their enlarged heads within the corresponding slots 146 , either in the fig9 position of use or the fig1 reversing manipulation , such that the filter unit 35 is removable from the links 142 only by a purposeful raising of its pins 144 above their normal range of movement within the slots 146 so that they can reach and exit from the enlarged upper slot ends 147 . fig1 schematically discloses a modified wash down pipe arrangement . parts of the fig1 apparatus , similar to parts in fig1 - 11 , carry the same reference numerals with the suffix &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; added . in fig1 the horizontal hood wash down pipe 43a is moved forward in the hood 11a so as to be coplanar with the upstanding stack wash down pipe 44a . this permits rotative joining of pipes 43a and 44a through a conventional right - angle gear drive , or transmission , 161 . also in fig1 , the rotative drive motor 71a is conveniently mounted on one side of the hood 11a with its drive shaft fixed to the adjacent end of the hood pipe 43a to rotatably drive same , and through the transmission 161 , to simultaneously rotatably drive the stack pipe 44a . to assist in locating the rotating pipes 43a and 44a , the lower portion of 44a , just above transmission 161 , passes through a suitable bushing 162 carried by a strap member 163 . the strap member 163 may be similar to aforementioned strap member 59 of of fig6 spans the lower end portion of the exhaust stack 14a and is suitably anchored to the sidewalls thereof . wash liquid is brought into the hood 11a by a fixed supply pipe 53a which connects to the upstanding stack pipe 44a through a conventional water transfer swivel 166 and additionally connects to the horizontal hood pipe 43a . the latter connection is conveniently through a conventional right - angle swivel 167 which is also provided with mounting flanges 168 for rotatably supporting the rightward end of the horizontal pipe 43a on the rightward wall of the hood 11a . additional supporting bearing may be provided along the rotatable wash down pipes , as at the upper end of the pipe 44a generally in the manner of fig6 at 59 , 61 . the fig1 embodiment operates substantially in the manner above - described with respect to the embodiment of fig1 - 11 . the fig1 embodiment reduces somewhat the number of piping and drive components in the central area of the hood 11a , by use of the right angle drive transmission 161 to join the pipes 33a and 44a in substantially coplanar relation . however , the fig1 arrangement requires the hood pipe 43a to be shifted forward somewhat from its generally centered location of fig1 - 11 , bringing it closer to the filter panel , which , unless particular care is taken in distributing spray nozzles along the horizontal wash down pipe , may produce a less uniform washing action than in the fig1 - 11 embodiment . the pipes and pipe fittings disposed within the hood 11 or 11a , as above - discussed with respect to fig1 - 12 , are preferably of stainless steel for maximum durablity . however , use of other materials , such as galvanized steel , is also contemplated . the aforementioned swivels of fig1 - 12 are preferably commercially available , nickle - plated swivel connectors with impregnated teflon bearings for reducing rotating friction . in one embodiment , standard 1 / 2 inch size pipe was used for the rotating pipes and liquid supply pipe assembly . typically , in the embodiment of fig1 - 11 , nozzles are distributed on 8 inch centers along the hood wash down pipe 43 and deliver about 0 . 7 gallon per minute of wash down liquid at about 40 pounds per square inch pressure , while nozzles on the stack pipe 10 are disposed on 10 inch centers with each delivering about 0 . 4 gallons per minute at about 40 pounds per square inch pressure . consideration has been given to use of a higher pressure wash liquid supply and in one embodiment , according to the modified fig1 embodiment for example , nozzles on the pipes 43a and 44a are distributed on about 6 inch centers with each delivering about 0 . 5 gallon per minute at about 150 pounds per square inch pressure . although a particular preferred embodiment of the invention has been disclosed in detail for illustrative purposes , it will be recognized that variations or modification of the disclosed apparatus , including the rearrangement of parts , lie within the scope of the present invention .	8
the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention and the production method thereof are explained below by preferable embodiments , but the present invention is not limited by the explanation . the present inventors found that the grain growth of barium titanate particles can be regulated in the firing step in the ni - mlcc forming process by uniformly depositing metal compounds , such as mg , mn , ca , ba , rare earth elements , that are added to enhance the ni - mlcc property , onto the particle surface of barium titanate particles obtained by hydrothermal reaction under a high temperature / high pressure condition . the reason has not been clearly understood , but it can be thought as follows . barium titanate particles that are synthesized by hydrothermal reaction under a high temperature / high pressure condition exhibit better dispersibility than those of conventional solid phase reaction or hydrothermal reaction at a low temperature / low pressure condition , so it is easier for metal compounds to be deposited uniformly on their surface , and when fired at a high temperature , reaction on the particle surface of barium titanate particles with metal compounds proceeds uniformly . as a result , for mg , mn , ba , ca , the metals become a homogenous solid solution in barium titanate and regulate grain growth , and for rare earth elements , substances effective for regulating grain growth , namely , ba 2 tio 4 , rare earth oxides , or complex oxides of rare earth elements and titanium oxide are uniformly formed on the particle surface . in addition , in the conventional ni - mlcc production process , metal compounds and binders were added to barium titanate and uniformly mixed using a wet - type dispersing machine , such as a beads mill . however , it was difficult to uniformly disperse the metal compounds on the particle surface of the barium titanate particles , and an uneven dispersion led to reduction of the mlcc property . on the other hand , the present invention allows metal compounds to be uniformly deposited on the particle surface of the barium titanate particles , and thus , enables not just grain growth regulation , but also formation of a uniform core shell structure , so the present invention is effective in enhancing the mlcc properties . the atom rate of barium and titanium ( ba / ti ratio ) in the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention is 0 . 80 to 1 . 20 , preferably 0 . 90 to 1 . 10 , and more preferably 0 . 95 to 1 . 05 . when the ba / ti ratio is smaller than 0 . 80 , impurities exist in the particles , the c / a ratio decreases , the particle form becomes un - uniform , and the dielectric property decreases . further , when the ba / ti ratio is larger than 1 . 20 , impurities such as ba compounds exist in the particles , and the dielectric property decreases . the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention have a mean particle size of 10 to 1000 nm , preferably 10 to 500 nm , and more preferably 10 to 200 nm . the mean particle size of the barium titanate particles is obtained based on observation by a transmission electron microscope ( tem ) measuring the particle size of any 200 or more particles in the tem image of a magnification of 30 , 000 × to 200 , 000 × and obtaining a mean amount . the minimum size for obtaining a uniform particle form and a high dispersibility is 10 nm . when the reaction temperature is set high , and much alkali is added to accelerate crystal growth , the mean particle size exceeds 1000 nm and the particles become un - uniform . the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention has a relative standard deviation of the particle size distribution of 25 . 0 % or lower , and preferably 20 . 0 % or lower . a narrow particle size distribution provides a good sheet smoothness in the sheet forming step in the mlcc production process . the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention should preferably have a c / a ratio of tetragonal batio 3 of 1 . 001 or higher , more preferably 1 . 003 to 1 . 010 , and even more preferably 1 . 005 to 1 . 010 . a c / a ratio of the tetragonal batio 3 that is lower than 1 . 001 is not preferable , since it leads to a decrease in the dielectric constant . the tetragonal batio 3 was subjected to an x - ray diffraction analysis , and the c / a ratio of the tetragonal batio 3 was obtained by the rietveld analysis . the metal compound of the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention includes oxides , hydroxides , and / or carbonates ( including hydrates of carbonates ) of mg , ca , ba , mn , or rare earth elements . the rare earth elements include sc , y , la , ce , pr , nd , pm , sm , eu , gd , tb , dy , ho , er , tm , yb , and lu . the amount of metal compounds covering the particle based on the total mass of coated barium titanate particles should preferably be 0 . 01 to 20 . 0 mass %, and more preferably 0 . 1 to 15 . 0 mass %. when the amount covering the metal compound is less than 0 . 01 mass %, the grain growth regulating effect is small . when the amount covering the metal compound is greater than 20 . 0 mass %, the grain growth regulating effect exists , but the dielectric property decreases . next , a preferable production method of the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention is explained . the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention may be produced by i ) step of synthesizing barium titanate particles , and ii ) step of coating the barium titanate particles with metal compounds , shown below . to begin with , an aqueous solution containing barium and titanium hydroxide is prepared . the preparation methods include methods ( a ) and ( b ), shown below . ( a ) firstly , a titanium salt solution is prepared , to which an alkali solution is added , then a neutralization reaction is performed to generate titanium hydroxide to obtain an aqueous solution containing titanium hydroxide . then , a barium salt solution is added to the aqueous solution containing titanium hydroxide to obtain an aqueous solution containing barium and titanium hydroxide . ( b ) firstly , a titanium salt solution is prepared , and the titanium salt solution is added to the alkali solution , then a neutralization reaction is performed to generate titanium hydroxide to obtain an aqueous solution containing titanium hydroxide . then , a barium salt solution is added to the aqueous solution containing titanium hydroxide to obtain an aqueous solution containing barium and titanium hydroxide . in the methods of ( a ) and ( b ), the barium salt solution may be added in advance to the titanium salt solution or the alkali solution before the neutralization reaction . the dissolution or addition of the barium salt should preferably be performed in an inactive atmosphere , preferably a nitrogen atmosphere , to prevent carbonic acid , etc . in the air from reacting . in the methods of ( a ) and ( b ), barium and titanium hydroxide generated by the neutralization reaction can be heated at a temperature range of 200 ° c . or lower to generate barium titanate in advance . or else , in the methods of ( a ) and ( b ), an organic compound can be added to an aqueous solution containing barium and titanium hydroxide after the neutralization reaction , or an organic compound can be added to a barium salt solution , titanium salt solution or an alkali solution before the neutralization reaction . the organic compound to be used is not limited as long as the desired physical property is satisfied , and it can be a polymer , such as a surfactant , etc . the amount of organic compound to be added should preferably be 0 . 01 mass % or higher , more preferably 0 . 01 to 15 . 0 mass %, and even more preferably 0 . 1 to 10 . 0 mass %, with regard to the theoretical generation amount of barium titanate . the titanium salt solution to be used in the methods of ( a ) and ( b ) includes , for example , an aqueous solution of various titanium salts , such as sulfate , nitrate , chloride , or alkoxide . also , a single titanium salt solution may be used , or a mixture of a plurality of titanium salt solutions may be used . the concentration of a titanium salt solution is preferably 0 . 05 to 5 . 5 mol / l , more preferably 0 . 13 to 3 . 0 mol / l . in addition , an aqueous solution containing titanium oxide can be used instead of a titanium salt solution . the barium salt solution to be used in the methods of ( a ) and ( b ) includes , for example , an aqueous solution of various barium salts , such as sulfate , nitrate , chloride , carbonate , or alkoxide . also , a single barium salt solution may be used , or a mixture of a plurality of barium salt solutions may be used . the concentration of a barium salt solution is preferably 0 . 05 to 2 . 0 mol / l , more preferably 0 . 1 to 1 . 5 mol / l . the above mentioned titanium salt solution and barium salt solution should be added so that the ba / ti ratio of the solution containing barium and titanium hydroxides is 0 . 8 to 1 . 20 , preferably 0 . 90 to 1 . 10 , more preferably 0 . 95 to 1 . 05 . the alkali solution to be used in the methods of ( a ) and ( b ) includes , for example , an aqueous solution of naoh , koh , nh 3 , na 2 co 3 , k 2 co 3 , nahco 3 , khco 3 , or ( nh 4 ) 2 co 3 . the concentration of the alkali solution should preferably be 0 . 1 to 20 . 0 mol / l , more preferably 1 . 0 to 10 . 0 mol / l , and the amount of alkali should be such that the degree of neutralization of the barium titanate particles is 0 . 8 or higher . when the degree of neutralization is lower than 0 . 8 , barium titanate becomes a plate like particle of 100 nm or lower , and the ba / ti ratio becomes an amount lower than 0 . 80 , and an impurity phase of a titanium - rich barium titanium compound other than a batio 3 phase is formed in the crystal structure . further , in the aqueous solution containing barium and titanium hydroxide , compounds , such as mg , ca , sr , pb , etc ., may be added to replace the ba site of the perovskite crystal structure with at least one element selected from mg , ca , sr , pb , etc ., and compounds , such as zr , hf , sn , may be added to replace the ti site , in order to control the dielectric constant , curie temperature , the temperature constant of a dielectric constant , as a dielectric material . these compounds may be added at any stage of preparing the aqueous solution containing barium and titanium hydroxides , and it can be added after the aqueous solution containing barium and titanium hydroxides is prepared . next , the aqueous solution containing barium and titanium hydroxides is subjected to hydrothermal reaction under a high temperature / high pressure condition . the hydrothermal reaction is performed at a temperature of 200 ° c . or higher , preferably 200 to 450 ° c ., more preferably 250 to 400 ° c ., and a total pressure of 2 mpa or higher , preferably 2 to 50 mpa , more preferably 10 to 40 mpa , and for the duration of normally 0 . 1 minute or longer , preferably 0 . 1 minute to 1 hour , more preferably 0 . 1 to 30 minutes . hydrothermal reaction is thus performed at such high temperature / high pressure condition to control the particle form , such as the particle size , and the particle uniformity , and after filtration and washing by water , a drying process and a disintegration process are performed to obtain barium titanate particles . in particular , the control of the reaction time allows control of the particle size . the above hydrothermal reaction condition can be determined appropriately within the above range by the type of material , ba / ti ratio , alkali amount , reaction scale , reaction temperature , reaction pressure and reaction time , etc . for the aqueous solution containing barium and titanium hydroxide . the minimum temperature for forming barium titanate particles by the above hydrothermal reaction is 60 ° c ., but a temperature of 200 ° c . or higher is preferable to obtain particles with high crystallinity and dispersibility . the maximum temperature for the hydrothermal reaction is not particularly limited , and it may exceed the critical point , but the specification of the reactor sets the limit & lt ; ii ) step of coating the barium titanate particles with metal compounds & gt ; the barium titanate particles obtained by i ) are coated with metal compounds . firstly , the barium titanate particles are dispersed uniformly in water . to uniformly disperse barium titanate particles , it is preferable to adjust ph and perform dispersion by dispersing machines , such as the ultrasonic homogenizer , planetary ball mill , henschel mixer , colloid mill , wet - type jet mill , wet - type beads mill . alkali is added to the resulting barium titanate particle slurry to mix the slurry to a homogenous state , then , an aqueous solution of metal compounds is added to induce neutralization reaction , and to deposit the metal compounds uniformly on the particle surface of the barium titanate particles . further , when performing neutralization reaction , alkali can be added after an aqueous solution of a metal compound is added to the barium titanate particle slurry , or an aqueous solution of a metal compound and alkali may be added at the same time . furthermore , the aqueous solution of a metal compound and alkali may be subjected to neutralization reaction before adding it to a uniformly dispersed barium titanate particle slurry to uniformly deposit the metal compound on the particles , or conversely , a uniformly dispersed barium titanate particle slurry may be added to an aqueous solution of a metal compound and alkali . in addition , when barium titanate particles are added as powder , the mixed slurry is uniformly dispersed thereafter . also , alkali may be added as an aqueous solution , or as powder , solid and crystal . the aqueous solution of a metal compound can be sulfate , nitrate , chloride , alkoxide , etc . of mg , ca , ba , mn , rare earth elements . the concentration of the aqueous solution should preferably be 0 . 001 to 10 mol / l , more preferably 0 . 01 to 5 . 0 mol / l . the alkali to be used includes , for example , the solution , powder , solid and crystal of naoh , koh , nh 3 , na 2 co 3 , k 2 co 3 , nahco 3 , khco 3 , ( nh 4 ) 2 co 3 . the alkali concentration should preferably be 0 . 01 to 20 . 0 mol / l , more preferably 1 . 0 to 10 . 0 mol / l , and the amount of alkali to be added should be adjusted to make the degree of neutralization of the metal compound solution 0 . 8 or higher . when depositing the metal compound , neutralization reaction may be performed at a temperature range of 100 ° c . or lower . a hydrothermal treatment at 100 ° c . or higher may be subsequently performed . then , the barium titanate particle slurry treated with the aqueous solution of a metal compound and alkali is filtered , washed with water , then dried , disintegrated to obtain coated barium titanate particles . the coating layer consists of hydroxides or carbonates of mg , ca , ba , mn , or rare earth elements , and it is amorphous . also , the layer may be subjected to thermal treatment to form crystalline oxide . the highest temperature to be reached in the thermal treatment should preferably be 300 to 1500 ° c ., more preferably 500 to 1000 ° c . the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention and a production method thereof is explained by examples , but the present invention is not limited by the examples . an aqueous solution containing titanium hydroxide was used as the titanium salt solution , a barium nitrate solution was used as the barium salt solution , and a sodium hydroxide solution was used as the alkali solution to prepare the raw materials to obtain a ti amount of 0 . 43 mol , a ba amount of 0 . 43 mol , an alkali amount of 2 . 58 mol [ degree of neutralization = alkali amount /( 4 × ti amount + 2 × ba amount )= 1 . 0 ]. then , in the raw material tank , a sodium hydroxide solution was added to an aqueous solution containing titanium hydroxide under room temperature and the atmosphere , followed by addition of a barium nitrate solution , to prepare a reaction precursor , that is , an aqueous solution containing amorphous barium and titanium hydroxide . the ph value of the prepared reaction precursor was 13 . 2 . the prepared reaction precursor was subjected to a hydrothermal reaction using a continuous hydrothermal reaction device at a temperature of 400 ° c ., a pressure of 25 mpa , a residence time of 0 . 4 min , then it was filtered , washed with water , and dried to obtain 50 nm of barium titanate particles . the obtained barium titanate particles were evaluated in terms of x - ray diffraction , mean particle size and particle size distribution . in addition , a transmission electron microscope ( tem ) image ( magnification of 200 , 000 ×) is shown in fig1 . a rietveld analysis by x - ray diffraction showed that the barium titanate particles are tetragonal barium titanate having a c / a ratio of 1 . 004 , a crystallite size of 50 nm , a mean particle size of 50 nm , a ba / ti ratio of 1 . 000 , a specific surface area of 31 . 1 m 2 / g , and the particle size distribution measurement indicated that the median size was 50 nm , and the coefficient of variation was 20 . 0 %. observation by tem showed a good uniformity in the particle form . also , since crystallinity was high , and the mean particle size and median size matched , and the coefficient of variation was low , it can be understood that a good dispersibility was obtained . in the production method for 50 nm barium titanate particles , shown above , the alkali amount in the material preparation was changed to 5 . 16 mol ( degree of neutralization = 2 . 0 ), and the other conditions were kept the same to prepare 100 nm of barium titanate particles . the obtained barium titanate particles ( 100 nm ) were similarly evaluated in terms of x - ray diffraction , mean particle size , and particle size distribution . the transmission electron microscope ( tem ) image ( magnification of 100 , 000 ×) is shown in fig2 . the obtained barium titanate particles ( 100 nm ) were tetragonal barium titanate having a c / a ratio of 1 . 007 , a crystallite size of 100 nm , a mean particle size of 100 nm , a ba / ti ratio of 1 . 000 , a specific surface area of 8 . 1 m 2 / g , and the particle size distribution measurement indicated that the median size was 100 nm , and the coefficient of variation was 20 . 0 %. observation by tem showed a good uniformity in the particle form . also , since crystallinity was high , and the mean particle size and median size matched , and the coefficient of variation was low , it can be understood that a good dispersibility was obtained . first , the above 0 . 150 mol of barium titanate particles was added to 550 ml of pure water and a monodispersion solution was obtained using an ultrasonic homogenizer . note that barium titanate particles of 100 nm were used in example 63 and comparative example 4 , a commercial product ( oxalic acid salt method , particle size 500 nm ) was used in comparative example 5 , and barium titanate particles of 50 nm were used in all other examples . after alkali was added to the monodispersion solution of barium titanate and the solution was mixed uniformly , 200 ml of a metal salt solution was added , and a neutralization reaction was performed to deposit the metal compounds on the particle surface of barium titanate particles . after deposition , the particle was filtered / washed with water , dried at 150 ° c ., and disintegrated to obtain the target coated barium titanate particles . concerning examples 64 to 67 , the coated barium titanate particles were thermally treated under the atmosphere ( 700 ° c ., 3 hours ) to convert the deposited metal compounds to their oxides . the resulting thermally treated , coated barium titanate particles were evaluated by x - ray diffraction , fluorescent x - ray analysis , and thermogravimetric analysis . the coated barium titanate particles obtained in examples 1 to 67 , and comparative examples 1 to 5 without coating were subjected to firing at 1000 ° c . for 3 hours under a nitrogen atmosphere , 5 vol . % hydrogen atmosphere ( the remaining part is nitrogen ), or the atmosphere , and the grain growth regulating effect was evaluated by x - ray diffraction , fluorescent x - ray analysis , transmission electron microscope ( tem ), and specific surface area measurement . the results are shown in tables 1 to 3 . further , the tem image ( magnification of 60 , 000 ×) of examples 3 , 8 , 31 , 41 and comparative example 1 are shown in fig3 to 7 . note that the result of x - ray diffraction after firing showed the creation of batio 3 and ba 2 tio 4 ( rhombic ) in all of examples 1 to 67 excluding examples 14 and 15 , and comparative examples 1 to 3 . meanwhile , examples 14 and 15 showed the peak of baco 3 as well as batio 3 . in addition , comparative examples 4 and 5 showed only the peak of batio 3 . the marketed product ( oxalic acid salt method , particle size 500 nm ) of barium titanate particles was used to deposit nd , gd , la on the surface by a similar method as examples 1 to 63 , and the grain growth regulation effect was similarly evaluated . the coating condition and the result are shown in tables 1 to 3 . further , the tem image ( magnification of 60 , 000 ×) of comparative example 6 is shown in fig8 . the barium titanate particles ( 50 nm ) prepared by the method of the present invention and nd 2 o 3 powder or ho 2 o 3 powder were subjected to wet - type mixing in water using the planetary ball mill ( 100 rpm , 3 h ) to deposit nd or ho . after deposition , the particles were dried at 150 ° c . and disintegrated to obtain the target coated barium titanate particles . the obtained , coated barium titanate particles were evaluated in terms of grain growth regulation by methods similar to examples 1 to 67 and comparative examples 1 to 8 . the coating condition and result are shown in tables 1 to 3 . further , the tem image ( magnification of 60 , 000 ×) of comparative example 9 is shown in fig9 . when examples 1 to 60 and comparative example 1 are compared , the specific surface area after firing under a nitrogen atmosphere in comparative example 1 is 2 . 8 m 2 / g , but the specific surface are after firing under a nitrogen atmosphere in the method of the present invention , in which the barium titanate particle of a particle size of 50 nm is coated , is larger than 2 . 8 m 2 / g , clearly indicating that the grain growth regulating effect is enhanced largely by the coating layer of the present invention . when example 36 and example 39 are compared , the specific surface areas are respectively 15 . 5 m 2 / g and 17 . 8 m 2 / g for coating layers of carbonate and hydroxide , indicating that a use of a hydroxide provided a grain growth regulating effect similar to that of a carbonate . when the tem image ( fig3 ) of example 3 , a tem image ( fig4 ) of example 8 and the tem image ( fig7 ) of comparative example 1 were compared , a grain growth regulating effect was confirmed for particles coated by the method of the present invention from the tem image after firing . when example 19 and comparative example 10 , or example 27 and comparative example 9 were compared , the specific surface area after firing under a nitrogen atmosphere was largely enhanced by coating the particles using the method of the present invention compared to coating by the conventional wet - type mixing , clearly indicating a high grain growth regulating effect . the tem image ( fig9 ) before firing in comparative example 9 revealed that the coating layer is uniformly formed by the conventional coating process using a wet - type synthesis , but the grain growth regulating effect was low . when example 63 and comparative example 4 are compared , the barium titanate particles of a particle size of 100 nm coated by the present method largely improved the specific surface area after firing under nitrogen atmosphere from 3 . 3 m 2 / g to 5 . 1 m 2 / g compared to particles whose surface were not coated , clearly indicating the grain growth regulating effect by the coating layer of the present invention . when examples 11 to 67 and comparative example 2 are compared , the specific surface area after firing in a 5 vol . % hydrogen atmosphere in comparative example 2 is 2 . 7 m 2 / g , whereas the specific surface area after firing under a 5 vol . % hydrogen atmosphere is larger than 2 . 7 m 2 / g when the barium titanate particles of a particle size of 50 nm are coated by the method of the present invention , clearly indicating that the grain growth regulating effect is largely enhanced by the coating layer of the present invention . when examples 61 , 62 , 65 and 66 are compared , the specific surface areas are respectively 9 . 4 m 2 / g , 10 . 7 m 2 / g , 5 . 9 m 2 / g , 6 . 2 m 2 / g , and a similar grain growth regulating effect was seen for a coating layer of carbonate as well as oxide . from the tem image ( fig5 ) of example 31 and the tem image ( fig6 ) of example 40 , it can be seen that the grain growth after firing is regulated . when examples 14 to 23 and comparative example 3 are compared , the specific surface area after firing under the atmosphere in comparative example 3 is 1 . 8 m 2 / g , whereas the specific surface area after firing under the atmosphere is larger than 1 . 8 m 2 / g when the barium titanate particles of a particle size of 50 nm are coated by the method of the present invention , clearly indicating that the grain growth regulating effect is largely enhanced by the coating layer of the present invention . from comparative example 5 and comparative examples 6 to 8 , it can be seen that the grain growth regulating effect for particles coated with the method of the present invention does not differ largely from those that are not coated when barium titanate of a marketed product is used . from the tem image ( fig8 ) before firing of comparative example 6 , it can be seen that when barium titanate of a marketed product is coated with the method of the present invention , the coating layer is not uniformly formed . from the results of examples 1 to 67 , a grain growth regulating effect in firing under respective atmospheres was observed in the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention compared to the barium titanate particles of comparative examples 1 to 5 without coating . from the comparison of examples 4 , 5 , 8 , 11 to 16 , a high regulating effect was seen in the order of nitrogen atmosphere , a 5 vol . % hydrogen atmosphere ( the remainder is nitrogen ), and the atmosphere , under the effect of the firing atmosphere . in addition , the regulating effect was at the same level when the metal compound was hydroxide , carbonate or oxide . coating was performed similarly in comparative examples 6 to 8 using barium titanate particles of 500 nm of a marketed product , but the particle surface could not be uniformly coated , and particulates of rare earth compounds were generated . hence , the grain growth regulating effect was lower than the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention . in comparative examples 9 , 10 , the rare earth oxide powder was dispersed uniformly in barium titanate particles by wet - type mixing similarly to the conventional mlcc production process , but the particle surface could not be coated uniformly compared to the coated barium titanate particles of the present invention , and the grain growth regulating effect was low . the x - ray diffraction device of bruker axs ( d8 advance / v ) was used for measurement to perform a qualitative analysis , or a quantitative analysis by the rietveld analysis ( tetragonal batio 3 , cubic batio 3 , baco 3 , etc . ), and to obtain a lattice constant ( c / a ratio of tetragonal barium titanate ) and a crystallite size . the fluorescent x - ray analysis device of bruker axs ( s8 tiger ) was used for measurement . the ba / ti ratio was obtained according to the glass - beads method under the standard of electronic materials manufacturers association of japan , emas - 4202 . full - automatic bet specific surface area measurement device by mountech co ., ltd . ( macsorb hm model - 1210 ) was used for measurement . a transmission electron microscope ( tem ) by hitachi high - technologies corporation was used to measure more than 200 particles , and the average was obtained . the particle shape was evaluated by observation of the tem image , and uniformity was evaluated by relative standard deviation of the measured value of the mean particle size . particles ( 5 to 10 mg ) were added to 30 ml of a 0 . 2 mass % sodium hexametaphosphate solution and dispersed using an ultrasonic homogenizer ( 600 w , 30 seconds ). the dispersion was measured using a dynamic light scattering particle size distribution measurement device by horiba , ltd . ( lb - 550 ), and the median size and the coefficient of variation were obtained . the x - ray diffraction device of bruker axs ( s8 tiger ) was used for element analysis . hydrogen , carbon , oxygen in the compound were obtained by theoretical calculation from the metal content . further , the ba coating was obtained from the difference with the barium titanate particles without coating . the coated barium titanate was obtained by metal compound types , and by metal oxides after firing . differential thermogravimetric analyzer ( tg - dta ) by rigaku corporation ( tg - 8210 ) was used to measure the temperature range from room temperature to 1200 ° c . when the metal compound is amorphous , the metal compound type was confirmed from the difference with the reduction in the thermogravity amount and the fluorescent x - ray analysis value of before and after firing of barium titanate particles without coating .	2
fig2 shows one embodiment of an improved memory controller 201 and display controller 204 design that strives to optimize the power consumption efficiency of the display mode when little or no memory read / write requests are expected over the front side bus ( except perhaps those targeted for the display 205 ). according to the design of fig2 , the display fifo 213 of the graphics controller 204 is designed to be large enough so that the memory controller 201 and system memory 202 can be kept in reduced power consumption states for long periods of time while the display fifo 213 feeds the display controller &# 39 ; s core logic circuitry 214 . specifically ( according to one embodiment ), over the expanse of a single display refresh cycle , except for a relatively brief period of time in which an entire display refresh cycle &# 39 ; s worth of data is read from system memory 201 and entered into the display fifo 213 , the memory controller &# 39 ; s core logic circuitry 208 is deactivated through the disabling of the mcc clock 212 and the system memory 202 is placed in “ self refresh ” mode . the graphics controller ( s ) 216 may also be deactivated . during the relatively brief period of time in which an entire refresh cycle &# 39 ; s worth of data is entered into the display fifo 213 , the mcc clock 212 is enabled and the system memory is placed in “ auto refresh ” mode . an embodiment of the scheme can be better understood in reference to fig2 and fig3 together . referring to fig2 and 3 , at time t 0 , the display fifo 213 is “ full ” or otherwise contains enough data to refresh an entire screen &# 39 ; s worth of visual content . starting in this state , note that the mcc clock 212 , 312 is “ off ”, the mic clock 209 , 309 is “ off ”, the memory clock 211 , 311 is “ off ”, and the memory &# 39 ; s data bus 210 , 310 is quiet ( i . e ., substantive data is not being read from system memory 202 ). because the mcc clock 212 , 312 is “ off ” the memory controller &# 39 ; s core logic 208 and graphics controller ( s ) 216 are not consuming large amounts of electrical power . because the mic clock 209 , 309 is also “ off ” and because the memory clock 211 , 311 is derived from the mic clock 209 , 309 , a memory clock 211 , 311 is not being supplied to the system memory 202 by the memory controller 201 . because the memory clock 211 , 311 is “ off ”, the system memory 202 is in “ self - refresh ” mode ( i . e ., the system memory 202 does not use an external clock in preventing its internal data from being lost ). therefore as of time t 0 , the display fifo 213 is “ full ” ( or otherwise contains enough data to refresh an entire screen &# 39 ; s worth of visual content ), the memory controller &# 39 ; s core logic 208 and graphics controller ( s ) 216 are in a reduced power consumption state , and , the system memory 202 is in “ self refresh ” mode . this essentially corresponds to a situation where both the memory controller 201 and the system memory 202 are in reduced power consumption states . from time t 0 to t 1 data is read from the display fifo 213 for the purposes of refreshing the content rendered on the display 205 . during this time period , the memory controller 201 and system memory 202 are in their reduced power consumption states as described above . at time t 1 , however , fifo state detection logic circuitry 216 detects that the display fifo 213 state has fallen to a first “ watermark level ” wm 1 . the wm 1 level essentially indicates that the display fifo 213 is becoming sufficiently empty and will soon need more data if it is to continue supporting the rendering of new content on the display 205 . as such , notice of the wm 1 level being reached is directed from the fifo state detection logic circuitry 216 to clock control logic circuitry 217 on the memory controller 201 . in response , the clock control logic circuitry 217 “ wakes up ” the mcc clock 212 , 312 such that it emits its one or more clock signals . in the particular implementation being discussed herein , the mcc clock 212 , 312 and the logic circuitry that runs from the mcc clock 212 , 312 ( the front side bus interface logic circuitry 207 , the graphics controller ( s ) 216 and core logic 208 ) take a longer amount of time to wake up ” than the mic clock 209 , 309 and the logic circuitry that runs from the mic clock 209 , 309 ( the system memory interface logic circuitry 206 and the system memory 201 ( when in auto - refresh mode )). as such , the system memory 202 is allowed to stay in its lower power state ( self refresh mode ) for a longer period of time ( t 0 to t 2 ) than the memory controller core logic circuitry 208 and graphics controller ( s ) 216 ( t 0 to t 1 ). at time t 2 , a second watermark level wm 2 is detected by the fifo state detection logic circuitry 216 . notification of the second watermark level wm 2 is sent to the clock control circuitry 217 . in response , the clock control circuitry 216 “ wakes up ” the mic clock 209 , 309 ; which , in turn , causes the memory clock 211 , 311 to be generated at time t 3 . the generation of the memory clock 211 , 311 at time t 3 is at least part of the system memory &# 39 ; s exit from self refresh mode and entry into auto refresh mode after the second watermark wm 2 is detected . therefore , after time t 4 , the memory controller 201 and system memory 202 will have both been converted from a lower performance and power consumption state to a higher performance and power consumption state . from time t 4 to t 5 , data is read from the system memory 201 ( signified by the data bus 210 , 310 being “ busy ”) sufficient to re - fill the display fifo 213 by time t 5 . at this point , the mcc clock 212 , 312 and mic clock 209 , 309 are turned “ off ” and the process repeats . note that from time t 0 to time t 5 data to be processed and displayed is continuously being read from the display fifo 213 ( e . g ., if the display fifo 213 was not refilled between times t 4 and t 5 , it would run out of data by time t 5 ). note also that the particular description above was oriented toward a particular implementation in which the amount of data read from time t 4 and t 5 and the size of the display fifo 213 corresponds to an entire refresh cycle &# 39 ; s worth of data ( i . e ., a screen &# 39 ; s worth of data ). said another way , time t 0 to time t 5 corresponds to the refresh cycle time of the display 205 such that there is one display 205 re - fill procedure per display refresh cycle . in alternative implementations there may be less than one display fifo re - fill per display refresh cycle ( e . g ., time t 0 to t 5 corresponds to two refresh cycles and the display fifo 213 is large enough to hold two refresh cycles worth of data ), or , more than one display fifo re - fill per display refresh cycle ( e . g ., time t 0 to t 5 corresponds to one half of a refresh cycle and the display fifo 213 is large enough to hold one half of a refresh cycle &# 39 ; s worth of data ). note also that , other than activating / deactivating the mcc and mic clocks as described above , the mcc and mic clocks themselves may be permitted to continuously operate , but , one or more output clock signals generated from them are “ squelched ” so as not to reach the circuitry there are designed to time the operation of ( e . g ., a logic gate could be inserted between the mcc clock circuitry 212 and the core logic circuitry 208 that squelches the core logic &# 39 ; s clock input ). also , given that the display mode process may be performed while the processor ( s ) 203 are not supposed to send system memory read requests or system memory write requests to the memory controller 201 , additional logic circuitry on the memory controller ( not shown in fig2 ) may be used to detect the operational state ( s ) of the processor ( s ) 203 ( e . g ., through the processor ( s ) broadcasting of entry into such state ( s )) that correspond to this behavior on the part of the processor ( s ). fig4 shows one embodiment of a high level methodology of the processing described above . it can be assumed that data is being continuously read from the display fifo through the process of fig4 . according to the process of fig4 , when a display fifo is recognized 401 as being below a certain threshold ( e . g ., the first watermark level wm 1 of fig3 ), one or more memory controller clocks are enabled or their output clock signals are otherwise permitted to reach the circuitry they are designed to drive 402 . these one or more clocks may drive one or more of : a memory controller &# 39 ; s graphics controller ( s ), core logic circuitry ( or a portion thereof ), system memory interface circuitry , front side bus interface circuitry and a system memory . data to be processed by a display controller and displayed by a display is then read from the system memory and loaded into the fifo 403 . once the fifo state reaches a higher threshold ( e . g ., it is filled up ) 404 , the process returns to monitoring for the fifo state to reach the lower threshold 401 . it is also possible that the front side bus logic circuitry could be replaced with data - link layer and physical layer networking circuitry in computing systems where the processor ( s ) 203 are coupled to the memory controller 201 by way of a network containing point - to - point links . fig2 depicts one embodiment of a memory controller 201 having an integrated graphics controller 216 . graphics controllers that , architecturally speaking , are not integrated with a memory controller exist and are presently in use , and , may be referred to as discrete graphics controllers . fig5 shows an embodiment of an implementation of the present teachings that is adapted for a discrete graphics controller 501 . a graphics controller , whether integrated with a memory controller or discrete , is typically capable of processing graphics related instructions so that the processor ( s ) of the corresponding computing system do not have to . that is , a purpose of the graphics controller is to “ off - load ” graphics related work from the processor ( s ) so that the processor ( s ) 103 can entertain other tasks . according to the depiction of fig3 , such instructions are received by the graphics controller 501 ( either directly from the processor ( s ) or indirectly from a memory controller 503 ) through a bus interface 507 . the core logic 508 of the graphics controller 501 is responsible for processing graphics related instructions received through bus interface 507 and writing them into local memory 502 . here , local memory 502 is often implemented as the graphics controller &# 39 ; s own “ private ” memory . after the data processed by the graphics controller &# 39 ; s core logic 508 is written into local memory 502 , it is eventually read back from local memory 502 by the core logic 508 which then enters it into the display fifo 513 of a display controller 504 . in this respect , a design and process can be effected which is analogous to that described above with respect to fig2 and 4 . specifically , it is altogether possible that new instructions are not received at bus interface 507 for extended periods of time thereby permitting core logic 508 to be essentially deactivated save for brief moments of time while data is read from local memory 502 and entered into display fifo 513 , where , the amount of data and the size of fifo 513 is sufficient to supply an entire display 505 refresh cycle ( or , e . g ., two display refresh cycles , half a refresh cycle , etc .). during the brief moment of time while data is being read from local memory 502 , the graphics controller clock circuitry 512 and memory interface clock circuitry 509 are activated by the clock control circuitry 517 ( responsive to one or more watermark levels detected by detection circuitry 516 ) such that , similar to the approach described above with respect to fig2 and 4 , the graphics controller 501 and local memory 502 are in a high performance , high power consumption state . after this brief period of time ( when display fifo 513 has been supplied with a sufficient amount of data to feed the display for an extended period of time and the detection circuitry 516 detects this event ), the clock control circuitry 501 triggers the deactivation of the graphics controller clock circuitry 512 and the memory interface clock circuitry 509 . note also that embodiments of the present description may be implemented not only within a semiconductor chip but also within machine readable media . for example , the designs discussed above may be stored upon and / or embedded within machine readable media associated with a design tool used for designing semiconductor devices . examples include a circuit description formatted in the vhsic hardware description language ( vhdl ) language , verilog language or spice language . some circuit description examples include : a behaviorial level description , a register transfer level ( rtl ) description , a gate level netlist and a transistor level netlist . machine readable media may also include media having layout information such as a gds - ii file . furthermore , netlist files or other machine readable media for semiconductor chip design may be used in a simulation environment to perform the methods of the teachings described above . thus , it is also to be understood that embodiments of this invention may be used as or to support a software program executed upon some form of processing core ( such as the central processing unit ( cpu ) of a computer ) or otherwise implemented or realized upon or within a machine readable medium . a machine readable medium includes any mechanism for storing information in a form readable by a machine ( e . g ., a computer ). for example , a machine readable medium includes read only memory ( rom ); random access memory ( ram ); magnetic disk storage media ; optical storage media ; flash memory devices ; etc . in the foregoing specification , the invention has been described with reference to specific exemplary embodiments thereof . it will , however , be evident that various modifications and changes may be made thereto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims . the specification and drawings are , accordingly , to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense .	6
the present invention is further explained in detail with the accompanying embodiments . the example 1 relates to an atractylodes lancea extract feed additive . a method of preparing the above atractylodes lancea extract feed additive comprises steps of : step 1 : naturally drying and impurity removing stems and leafs of atractylodes lancea , drying for 6 h at 60 ° c ., smashing , sieving through a sieve with an aperture of 1 . 2 mm , adding 20 ml , 85 wt % ethanol solution per gram atractylodes lancea to immerse for 6 h ; removing to an ultrasonic extractor for ultrasonically extracting at room temperature and a frequency of 115 khz for 45 min ; filtering after the extraction for obtaining filtrate and a first solid residue ; vacuum evaporating for removing ethanol in the filtrate to obtain a first extracting solution ; step 2 : adding eight times an amount of water into the first solid residue , boiling for 5 h at a steam pressure of 0 . 5 mpa , filtering to obtain a second extracting solution and a second solid residue ; step 3 : adding five times an amount of water into the second solid residue , boiling for 3 h at a steam pressure of 1 . 6 mpa , filtering to obtain a third extracting solution and a third solid residue ; step 4 : mixing the first extracting solution , the second extracting solution and the third extracting solution , concentrating till d ( which is a proportion of the mixed solution )= 0 . 6 - 1 . 2 for obtaining an extractum ; putting the extractum into a spray dryer with an inlet air temperature of 180 ° c . and an outlet air temperature of 80 ° c . ( which is able to be in a range of 70 - 90 ° c .) to obtain an atractylodes lancea extract dry powder ; and step 5 : evenly mixing the atractylodes lancea extract dry powder with a carrier ( which is a mixture of attapulgite and maltodextrin with a weight ratio of 1 : 1 ) to obtain the atractylodes lancea extract feed additive , wherein a weight ratio of the atractylodes lancea extract dry powder and the carrier is 1 : 3 . the comparative example 1 relates to an atractylodes lancea extract feed additive . a method of preparing the above atractylodes lancea extract feed additive comprises steps of : step 1 : naturally drying and impurity removing stems and leafs of atractylodes lancea , drying for 6 h at 60 ° c ., smashing , sieving through a sieve with an aperture of 1 . 2 mm ; adding the sieved atractylodes lancea into an alcohol extraction tank , adding eight times an amount of 85 wt % ethanol , boiling for 5 h at a steam pressure of 0 . 7 mpa , making an ethanol reflux ; filtering after firstly extracting ethanol for obtaining a first filtrate and a first filter residue , wherein ethanol is recycled from the first filtrate by a decompression concentration tank till a concentration of the recycled ethanol is smaller than 60 %, concentrating the first filtrate to obtain a concentrated solution ; step 2 : adding eight times an amount of 85 wt % ethanol into the first filter residue , boiling for 5 h at a steam pressure of 0 . 7 mpa , making an ethanol reflux , wherein ethanol is recycled till a concentration of the recycled ethanol is smaller than 60 %, filtering to obtain a second filtrate and a second filter residue ; step 3 : adding five times an amount of water into the second filter residue , boiling for 3 h at a steam pressure of 1 . 4 mpa , filtering to obtain a third filtrate and a third filter residue ; discarding the third filter residue ; step 4 : mixing the concentrated solution , the second filtrate and the third filtrate , concentrating till d ( which is a proportion of the mixed solution )= 0 . 6 - 1 . 2 for obtaining an extractum ; putting the extractum into a spray dryer with an inlet air temperature of 180 ° c . and an outlet air temperature of 80 ° c . to obtain an atractylodes lancea extract dry powder ; and step 5 : evenly mixing the atractylodes lancea extract dry powder with a carrier ( which is a mixture of attapulgite and maltodextrin with a weight ratio of 1 : 1 ) to obtain the atractylodes lancea extract feed additive , wherein a weight ratio of the atractylodes lancea extract dry powder and the carrier is 1 : 3 . an object of the example 2 is to study the effects of a ph value in a step of water extraction after ultrasonically extracting on a ratio of dry extraction and an extraction ratio of active components . the preparation method of the example 2 is as same as that of the example 1 , and the differences therebetween are that : in the step ( 2 ) of the example 2 , respectively add acetic acid to adjust a ph value of solution to 5 . 5 , 6 . 0 and 6 . 5 , and respectively add saturated naoh to adjust a ph value of solution to 7 . 5 , 8 . 0 and 9 . 0 in the step ( 3 ) of the example 2 for forming nine experimental groups , wherein nine experimental groups 2a - 2i respectively correspond to nine groups of ph values in step ( 2 ) and step ( 3 ) which are respectively 5 . 5 , 7 . 5 ; 5 . 5 , 8 . 0 ; 5 . 5 , 9 . 0 ; 6 . 0 , 7 . 5 ; 6 . 0 , 8 . 0 ; 6 . 0 , 9 . 0 ; 6 . 5 , 7 . 5 ; 6 . 5 , 8 . 0 ; 6 . 5 , 9 . 0 . take 100 g atractylodes lancea medicinal material to make a comparative experiment on the example 1 , the example 2 and the comparative example 1 as follows . measure the ratio of dry extraction : respectively mix the first extracting solution , the second extracting solution and the third extracting solution obtained by the above nine experimental groups and the example 1 ; the concentrated solution , the second filtrate and the third filtrate obtained by the comparative example 1 , and concentrate the mixture to be with a volume of 500 ml , take 20 ml concentrated solution to a moisture analyzer for determining moisture , and calculate the ratio of dry extraction of the extract based on a moisture value . experimental group is abbreviated as eg , example 1 is abbreviated as e1 , comparative example is abbreviated as ce1 , and the ratio of dry extraction is abbreviated as rode . it can be seen from table 1 that when acetic acid is added to adjust the ph value of solution to 6 . 5 in the step ( 2 ), and saturated naoh is added to adjust the ph value of solution to 8 . 0 in the step ( 3 ), the ratio of dry extraction of the extract is best . the example 3 relates to an atractylodes lancea extract feed additive , the preparation method thereof is as same as that of the example 1 and the differences therebetween are as follows . before spraying drying , following steps further included : eluting the extractum with silica gel column chromatography gradient which takes petroleum ether / ethyl acetate as an eluent with a ratio of petroleum ether / ethyl acetate = 10 : 1 ; 5 : 1 ; 3 : 1 ; 2 : 1 ; 1 : 1 , 1 : 5 and an eluting time of 15 min , respectively collecting eluting solution , concentrating for obtaining a new extractum , spraying and drying to obtain the atractylodes lancea extract dry powder . evenly mix the six groups of atractylodes lancea extract dry powder with a carrier ( which is a mixture of attapulgite and maltodextrin with a weight ratio of 1 : 1 ) to obtain the atractylodes lancea extract feed additives which are respectively recorded as experimental group 3a , experimental group 3b , experimental group 3c , experimental group 3d , experimental group 3e and experimental group 3f , wherein a weight ratio of the atractylodes lancea extract dry powder and the carrier is 1 : 3 . an object of the example 4 is to study the effects of various carriers on the atractylodes lancea extract feed additive . the preparation method thereof is as same as that of example 1 and the differences therebetween are as follows . the carriers are respectively selected from attapulgite , maltodextrin , maltodextrin and attapulgite with a weight ratio of 1 : 2 , 2 : 1 , 4 : 1 , which are respectively recorded as experimental group 4a , experimental group 4b , experimental group 4c , experimental group 4d and experimental group 4e . comparatively experiment on the examples 1 , 3 , 4 and the comparative example 1 at the experimental place of yuanheng animal chinese medicine research center , shanghai of china . the experimental animals are three - breed growing - finishing pigs bred in the late and fed with mixing materials , wherein 650 g atractylodes lancea extract feed additives are added per ton fodder . no atractylodes lancea extract feed additive is added to the comparative group . it can be seen from table 2 by comparing the examples 1 , 4a , 4b , 4c , 4d and 4e that : the mixture of attapulgite and maltodextrin with a weight ratio of 1 :( 1 - 2 ) as the carrier is capable of playing a synergic role in the atractylodes lancea extract and reducing the malaria incidence of pigs . it can be found by comparing experimental groups in the example 3 that : when the eluent with the ratio of petroleum ether / ethyl acetate = 5 : 1 ; 3 : 1 ; 2 : 1 is used , the eluted component is capable of significantly reducing the malaria incidence of pigs and improving rate of survival . all in all , the atractylodes lancea extract feed additive of the present invention is capable of preferably enhancing the animal immune function , resisting diseases , promoting growth , reducing the malaria incidence of pigs and improving rate of survival . one skilled in the art will understand that the embodiment of the present invention as shown in the drawings and described above is exemplary only and not intended to be limiting . it will thus be seen that the objects of the present invention have been fully and effectively accomplished . its embodiments have been shown and described for the purposes of illustrating the functional and structural principles of the present invention and is subject to change without departure from such principles . therefore , this invention includes all modifications encompassed within the spirit and scope of the following claims .	0
in the following description , the corresponding elements , as shown in each figure of the drawings , are given the same reference number . we have observed that the use of apparatus of the type described in the underwood patent ( u . s . pat . no . 4 , 994 , 297 , which is incorporated by reference ), utilizing as feed stock high stability vegetable oils or fats , instead of wood , results in flavouring compositions having uniquely distinct grilled flavour notes that are extremely smooth and lack harsh flavour notes . these flavour notes are distinct from the flavour notes or characteristics achieved using the similar feedstock in the apparatus and process of the dicicca ( u . s . pat . no . 4 , 571 , 342 ) and schulman ( u . s . pat . no . 4 , 820 , 538 ) patents . fig1 discloses a schematic of a transport fast pyrolysis reactor of type that can be utilized to make the grilled flavourings of the present invention . the feed stream of vegetable oil or fat enters the reactor radially through an animization nozzle ( 1 ) which is positioned just prior to the solid heat carrier separator , and / or just after the solid heat carrier separator , position ( 2 ), and / or just after the secondary solid separator , position ( 3 ). a heat - carrier ( hot sand , other solid , or hot carrier gas ) is transported in a fluid ( recirculation gas or nitrogen with up to 4 % molar residual oxygen which is present from pressure tap purge ports ; see below ) and comes in contact with the atomized feedstock at any one of the entry points . a preferred heat carrier is that of hot sand . in the reaction zones there is thorough and rapid mixing and conductive heat transfer from the heat carrier to the oil as the heat carrier transport gas and feed stock , with pyrolysis products , travels through the reactor system . preferred ratios of the mass of the heat carrier to the mass of the feedstock , for example of sand : oil , are of about 20 : 1 to 50 : 1 . in section ( 4 ) of the system the heat carrier is brought up to the desired approach temperature by means of electrical resistance heating , indirect combustion , direct combustion or a combination thereof . at the exit of the heat carrier heating system ( 4 ) the solid heat - carrier is quickly removed using a high - efficiency cyclone ( 5 ). any fine solids which might avoid separation in this device are removed in a secondary separation means ( 6 ). after separation from the heat carrier , the pyrolysis products are rapidly quenched , resulting in an extremely short overall reaction residence time for the feedstock at the elevated temperatures . the heat carrier together with other solids which are removed by the cyclonic separator are transferred to a heat carrier re - heating system ( 4 ). a noncondensible gas which is a byproduct of the high temperature reactions , is compressed in a blower and transferred to the re - heater ( 4 ) along with the solid heat carrier . in the re - heater ( 4 ), any organic deposits on the sand particles that were not removed in the cyclone separator , can be efficiently combusted by the addition of oxygen to the recirculation line ( 12 ) to help provide process heat and rid the sand of contaminants . byproduct gases can also be combusted in the re - heater ( 4 ) to add to the reaction thermal energy demand . immediate quenching of the hot product gaseous / vapour stream from the cyclonic separators occurs in a direct contact condensing system ( 7 ). a pump draws condensed liquid from the bottom of the condensing column and passes it through a heat exchanger ( 8 ). the cool product liquid is then sprayed back to the top of the direct contact column ( 7 ). any liquids which are carried out of the direct contact collection system are removed in stainless steel demister ( 9 ) and fibreglass filter ( 10 ). utilization of a secondary condenser ( 11 ) can also be used in order to improve the efficiency of the process . the system operates between 485 ° c . and 550 ° c . with a vapour residence time of less than 1 . 0 seconds and it preferred a vapour residence time of between 50 to 300 milliseconds . the “ vapour residence time ” is defined as the period of time from the point at which the feed stock comes into contact with the hot inert heat carrier to the time that it is separated from the heat carrier and cooled in the primary condensers . in any system of fast pyrolysis it is important to recognize that it is the entire period of time at which the feed stock and pyrolysis products are maintained at elevated temperatures that is critical . any processes which can minimize this period of time will result in a preferred fast pyrolysis system . the appropriate vegetable oils that are utilized in the present invention are those having a high stability , namely , those vegetable oils that are saturated or are partially saturated . examples of appropriate vegetable oils would be saturated or partially saturated palm oil , soya oil , peanut oil , canola , corn oil or coconut oil . alternative feedstocks include animal fats such as butter , beef tallow , etc . however , use of unsaturated vegetable oils results in unwanted side reactions which transform the pyrolysis products into undesirable tars , etc , and is to be avoided . the process is conducted in a reductive atmosphere that is essentially free of oxygen or air . the only oxygen present is that which is necessary for pressure tap purging , or residual amounts that enter the system by reason of system limitations or leaks . according to the present invention by “ flavour note ” it is meant the compound that gives rise to a flavour component of the compositions of this invention . the term “ flavour note ” and “ compound ” are used interchangeably . specific flavour notes can be identified by analytical means such as detection following gas chromatography by a suitable detector , or by smell , or taste . chemical analysis of the grilled flavouring composition made utilizing the present invention is set out in table 2 ( see example 1 , below ). for comparative purposes , an analysis of the product made utilizing the schulman patent is also set out . it can be seen from table 2 that the flavour notes that result from the present invention are markedly different from those obtained using the schulman process even when using the same feedstock . in particular , in a comparative taste test panel , it was noted that the flavour profile of the present invention was more enhanced and of a rich , higher concentration ( approximately twice as strong ). the process of the present invention is to be conducted at temperatures over 480 ° c . ( 900 ° f .) and preferably over 500 ° c . to 550 ° c . ( 930 - 1020 ° f .). while the precesses of schulman and dicicca are performed at lower temperature ranges , in the order of 315 - 370 ° c . ( 600 - 700 ° f . ), and 150 - 475 ° c . ( 300 - 890 ° f . ), respectively . by reason of the absence or essential absence of oxygen from the reaction zone , the present process is endothermic , and it is a non - combustion process . this results in an entirely different series of reactions resulting in different products than those achieved utilizing the schulman process . in addition , the shorter residence time and rapid quenching , result in a different product profile as is exemplified in table 2 . the flavour compositions that are made utilizing the present invention are very strong and distinctive and as such , can be added with other flavourings resulting in a blended product . in addition , the product of the present invention can be utilized in a spray dried form associated with an appropriate carrier such as malto dextrin , starches , or other carriers as would be known to one of skill in the art . the blended product can then be applied to meats and other food stuffs , including but not limited to , milk products , vegetables , deep fried , surface fried , baked , microwaved , barbequed , grilled , or snack foods , and sea foods for which it is desired to produce an enhanced flavour . in addition , a blended flavouring can be sold directly to consumers , in the form of a liquid , solid , powder , paste , sauce , or cream for applications to meats and other foods that are to be prepared . the grill flavourings of this invention and blends containing these flavourings can also be sold as microwave browners and flavour additives . this invention will now be further described by references to the following examples : the procedure of underwood , u . s . pat . no . 4 , 994 , 297 , which is incorporated by reference , with the following feedstock was employed for this example . a mixture of partially hydrogenated soy and cottonseed oil ( see table 1 , below ), was processed in the reaction system . the mixture was preheated to approximately 40 ° c . ( for ease of pumping ), and injected into the reaction vessel . the reactor was maintained at a temperature of 504 ° c . the reaction residence time was determined to be 211 milliseconds ( i . e ., for the time of injection to the time of rapid quenching ). the resultant liquid material was taste tested and found to possess a char - grilled flavour , suitable for application to foods . a sample of the product was extracted in propylene glycol and analysed using gas chromatography . for comparison , a sample of a commercially available natural grill flavour , prepared using the schulman process with a feed stock comprising partially hydrogenated soybean / cottonseed oil and extracted in propylene glycol , was also analysed . a varian star 3400cx gas chromatograph was used , fitted with a 30 meter × 0 . 25 mm i . d ., 0 . 25 micron film thickness , j & amp ; w scientific fused silica db - wax capillary column ( catalog number # 122 - 7032 ). the column was run at 40 ° c . initial temp and ramped to 220 ° c . at 10 ° c ./ min with a 5 minute hold at 220 ° c . the carrier gas was hydrogen at 25 psig , and 1 microliter samples were injected onto the column . results of the peak areas are indicated in table 2 , as are compounds that are of importance to the natural grill flavour . these compounds were determined by smelling each peak as it eluted from the gc through a heated “ sniff port ”. comparisons of the gas chromatography profiles are provided in fig2 a ( the product of this example ) and fig2 b ( the commercially available product ). as can be seen from table 2 and fig2 the product of this example comprises a more complex gc peak profile when compared with the commercially available product . furthermore , this product has a greater variety of important flavour notes . a comparison of the peak areas of the gc profiles of the important flavour notes indicates up to a two fold increase in the product produced by this example ( e . g . compare peaks areas at 6 . 493 min of 546 v 248 etc .). furthermore , the commercially available product lacks the compliment of compounds eliciting important flavour notes observed after elution times greater than 10 min . a pure soybean oil ( see table 3 ) was processed under similar conditions to example 1 , at two different reactor temperatures of 500 ° c . and 560 ° c . the resultant liquid product of resulting form either reaction run had a sharper taste and lacked the broad flavour profile of example 1 . however , it still exhibited the char - grilled flavour of example 1 . it can also be seen that the composition of the 560 ° c . reaction temperature product comprises higher levels of compounds than that of the lower , 500 ° c ., run . a pure canola oil feedstock ( see table 5 ) was processed under similar conditions referred to in example 1 , at 500 ° c . and 560 ° c . with a reactor residence time of 130 ms . the feedstock was atomized and injected into the reactor followed by rapid quenching . the resultant liquid product was subsequently taste tested and analysed by gc ( table 6 ). the flavour profile exhibited some meaty flavour notes , however , it was found to be much weaker than the flavour composition of example 1 . products analysed by gc ( table 6 ) indicate the presence of different amounts of between the two reaction temperature runs . an increase in the amount and occurrence of important flavour notes is observed with flavour composition produced by the higher reaction temperature run . a blended product was produced to achieve a grilled flavouring food that resembled the product of example 1 but having a slightly mellower flavour . this was achieved by adding feed stock comprising 80 % hydrogenated soy and cottonseed oil ( see example 1 , table 1 for specifications ) and 20 % soybean oil ( see example 2 , table 3 for specifications ). the feedstock was processed at 500 ° c . with a reactor residence time of 170 ms . the feedstock was atomized and injected into the reactor followed by rapid quenching . the resultant liquid product was taste tested . the flavour profile was weaker than that observed with the product of example 1 , and exhibited more mellow overtones . the present invention has been described with regard to preferred embodiments . however , it will be obvious to persons skilled in the art that a number of variations and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention as described in the following claims .	0
with reference to fig2 the synchronization device according to the present invention comprises a first logic comparison circuit 5 that determines whether the two inputs , memory enable signal cen and output enable signal oen , are at the enabling logic level suitable to activate the memory device and its output stage 3 ( shown in fig1 ). typically , both signals cen and oen are at logic level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; to activate the output stage 3 . the memory enable signal cen is also sent to a flip - flop circuit 6 together with the data load signal load . the signal cen is sent to the disable input , whereas the signal load is sent to the enable input of the flip - flop circuit 6 . the outputs of the first logic comparison circuit 5 and of the flip - flop circuit 6 are sent to a second logic comparison circuit that generates the actual signal oe that enables the output stage 3 of the memory . fig3 illustrates an embodiment of the device of fig2 . the first logic comparison circuit is constituted by a first nor gate 8 , whereas the flip - flop circuit is constituted by a second nor gate 9 and by a third nor gate 10 . the output of the third nor gate 10 is connected to an input of the second nor gate 9 and vice versa . the memory enable signal cen is applied to the remaining input of the second nor gate 9 , and the load signal load is applied to the remaining input of the third nor gate 10 . the output of the second nor gate 9 is the output of the flip - flop circuit . the outputs of the first logic comparison circuit and of the flip - flop circuit are sent to the second logic comparison circuit , which is constituted by a nand gate 11 and by an inverting gate 12 . the second logic comparison circuit generates the actual signal oe that enables the output stage 3 . the flip - flop circuit 6 is meant to control the enabling of the actual signal oe that enables the output stage . the flip - flop circuit 6 is in fact reset ( disabled ) by the memory enable signal cen so as to prevent the first enabling on the part of the enable signal of the output stage oen . the signal load , which indicates that the data has propagated in the memory , enables the flip - flop circuit 6 for the signal oen . the operation of the device according to the present invention is as follows . every time the signal cen is set to logic level &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, the flip - flop circuit 6 is reset by the signal cen itself and the circuit located downstream of said circuit is disabled . this reset condition persists until cen is equal to logic level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;. the output stage enable signal oen cannot produce any effect in this configuration , since the first logic comparison circuit 5 , that is to say the nor gate 8 , is controlled by the forcing condition of the signal cen . the data load step , represented by the signal load , is assuredly at logic level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;. as soon as the memory enable signal cen is set to logic level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, the disabled condition of the flip - flop circuit 6 ceases and said flip - flop circuit 6 can be enabled by the signal load ( producing a &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; on the output of the second nor gate 9 ), which assuredly occurs after a wait time that is equal to the propagation time of a normal data reading operation . if in the meantime the signal oen is set to logic level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, it can propagate , through the first nor gate 8 , as the first confirmation signal to the second logic comparison circuit 7 , that is to say , to the nand gate 11 and to the inverter 12 ; this , however , produces no effect downstream , since it is necessary to wait for the second confirmation signal that arrives from the flip - flop circuit 6 . said second enabling occurs only at the end of the propagation of the data in the memory , that is to say , as mentioned , when the signal load is enabled . if instead the signal oen continues to be kept at logic level &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;, then even resetting of the flip - flop circuit 6 does not enable the actual output stage enable signal oe . in these conditions , the first switching of oen to logic level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; produces the immediate effect of propagation downstream of the nand gate 11 , consequently enabling the actual output stage enable signal oe and therefore the output stage 3 . fig6 illustrates the typical waveforms of the device according to the present invention . initially , at the time t 0 , the signal cen and the signal oen are at logic level &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; and accordingly the device is not enabled . in fact , during the interval t 1 - t 0 the signal oen varies from &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; to &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; without any effect , since cen is always at level &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;. at the time t 1 , the signals cen and oen reach logic level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; and the device is enabled . however , since a signal load is missing , the actual output stage enable signal 0e remains unchanged . at the time t 2 , the signal load is sent to the flip - flop circuit 6 , and since the signals cen and oen are at level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, the actual signal oe reaches logic level &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; and thus enables the output stage 3 . at the time t 3 , the output stage enable signal oen becomes &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; and therefore the actual signal oe also becomes &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;. at the time t 4 , the signal oen again reaches &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; and the actual signal oe returns to the enabled state (&# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;), since the flip - flop circuit 6 has not been reset by the signal cen . at the time t 5 , the signal cen reaches logic level &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; and thus disables the actual signal oe even if the signal oen has remained at logic level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;. at the time t 6 , the signal cen again reaches logic level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, and thus the device is enabled . when the signal cen is altered , the flip - flop circuit 6 is reset and a further enabling of the actual signal oe must wait for a new signal load . at the time t 7 , after the data propagation time t 7 - t 6 , the flip - flop circuit 6 is enabled by a signal load . a logic level &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; is present at the output of the first logic comparison circuit 5 , since cen and oen are at logic level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, and therefore the first confirmation signal occurs . a logic level &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; is present at the output of the flip - flop circuit and constitutes the second confirmation signal , which together with the first enabling of the first logic comparison circuit 5 activates the second logic comparison circuit 7 ( the nand gate 11 and the inverter 12 ), which generate an actual signal oe at logic level &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ;. at the time t 8 , the actual signal is disabled , since the output stage enable signal oen returns to logic level &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; and the first logic comparison circuit 5 does not produce the first confirmation signal . a further embodiment of the present invention is shown in fig4 . the device is identical to the one of fig2 except that a forced activation circuit 13 is interposed between the flip - flop circuit 6 and the second logic comparison circuit 7 . with reference to fig5 the forced activation circuit can be constituted by an 0r gate 14 which , in the presence of a forced signal oe forced , generates the second confirmation signal and is thus capable , together with the first logic comparison circuit 5 ( the nor gate 8 ), of activating the second logic comparison circuit ( the nand gate 11 and the inverter 12 ) to generate an actual output stage enable signal oe . this is shown in fig6 in the interval t 10 - t 9 , where without the presence of a signal load and with the signals cen and oen at logic level &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; the signal oe forced is able to force an actual enabling signal oe . such a condition is provided for all those special situations in which internal propagation times are negligible and therefore require immediate reading . these special situations may be readings of internal parts such as byte identifiers or registers , testing activities , etcetera . fig7 illustrates another embodiment of the device according to the present invention . like the embodiments described above , the device is provided with first logic comparison circuit , constituted by a nor gate 8 , to which the signals cen and oen are sent . the device is furthermore provided with a flip - flop circuit which is constituted by two nand gates 15 and 16 . since in this case nand gates are used instead of nor gates as before , the inputs of the flip - flop circuit are an inverted load signal loadn and an enable signal ce ( which is not inverted ). the inverted ce signal ( cen ) used by the first logic comparison circuit can be generated by way of an inverter 17 . the first logic comparison circuit and the flip - flop circuit is connected to second and third logic comparison circuits . the second logic comparison circuit is constituted , as before , by a nand gate 11 and by an inverter 12 . a forced activation circuit , advantageously constituted by an or gate 14 , are furthermore associated with the second logic comparison circuit . the third logic comparison circuit is constituted by a three - input nand gate 11a and by an inverter 12a which are connected in series . in this case , too , a forced activation circuit , constituted by the or gate 14a , is associated with the third logic comparison circuit . the output of the second logic comparison circuit is the actual output stage enable signal oe , whereas the output of the third logic comparison circuit is an enable signal oe high for the output stage of the most significant bits . in this manner it is possible to enable the outputs in packets ; that is to say , it is possible to enable the output stages in groups . the particularity of this embodiment resides in the fact that the signal sent to one of the three inputs of the nand gate 11a is a signal word mode for enabling the third logic comparison circuit . this signal is suitable to enable or disable the third logic comparison circuit so as to enable or disable the outputs that it controls . multiple packets of output stages are controlled in this manner . the invention thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations , all of which are within the scope of the inventive concept . clearly , changes may be made to the circuit as described and illustrated herein without , however , departing from the scope of the present invention . thus , for example , it is possible to provide the devices according to the present invention with combinations of logic gates that are different from those described . all the details may furthermore be replaced with other technically equivalent ones . having thus described at least one illustrative embodiment of the invention , various alterations , modifications , and improvements will readily occur to those skilled in the art . such alterations , modifications , and improvements are intended to be within the spirit and scope of the invention . accordingly , the foregoing description is by way of example only and is not intended as limiting . the invention is limited only as defined in the following claims and the equivalents thereto .	6
referring to fig1 a , the invented high asymmetry variable reluctance pickup system includes a separate magnetic circuit element 10 for each string of the musical instrument ( in this case a 6 string instrument ). each magnetic circuit element 10 has a permanent bar magnet 11 insulatively mounted on a printed circuit board 12 ( see fig1 b ). the bar magnets 11 are oriented parallel to each other in a row with their north - south polarity axes ( indicated by the arrow 13 ) aligned in a common direction parallel to the longitudinal axes of the strings of the musical instrument . ( see fig2 a ). each magnetic circuit element 10 further includes two pole pieces , a primary pole piece 14 and a secondary pole piece 16 . the primary pole piece 14 has a thick rectangular cross section in a plane parallel to the string plane , while the secondary pole piece 16 has a thin rectangular cross section in the plane parallel to the string plane . the primary pole pieces 14 are located on alternate north - south ends of adjacent bar magnets 11 . planar poletip faces 17 are mounted on the end of each of the primary pole pieces . as shown in fig1 a and 2a , the poletip faces 17 have a planar configuration of an isosceles trapezoid with a long base dimension approximately equal to the distance between the secondary pole pieces 16 of the adjacent magnetic circuit elements 10 , and a short base dimension approximately equal to the width dimension of the primary pole piece 14 . the primary pole pieces 14 , the secondary pole pieces 16 and the planar poletip faces 17 are composed of magnetically susceptible materials which serve to shape and direct the magnetic field provided by the bar magnets 11 into a plurality of asymmetrical magnetic field regions which encompass the strings . referring now to fig1 c and 1d , sensing coils 21 are disposed around each of the primary pole pieces 14 between the planar poletip face 17 and the bar magnet 11 . each sensing coil has two leads , an inside lead 22 from the inside of the coil , and an outside lead 23 from the outside of the coil . referring now to fig1 b , the inside lead 22 and the outside lead 23 of each sensing coil 21 are connected to separate conductive strips 24 on the printed circuit board 12 . a shielded multiple conductor cable 26 having a separate conductive wire 25 for each conductive strip 24 establishes the electrical connection between the sensing coils 21 and a suitable electronic amplification system . the amplification system amplifies the electrical signals produced in the coils 21 for driving a suitable acoustical speaker system . referring to fig2 a , the position of the magnetic circuit elements 10a , b , and c are shown relative to the quiescent position of the strings 27 of a musical instrument . specifically , each magnetic circuit element 10 is centrally aligned beneath the quiescent position of a string 27 such that the string 27 is located centrally with respect to the magnetic field emanating from the pole pieces and poletip faces ( see fig2 b ). the magnetic fields emanating from the primary pole pieces 14 , the secondary pole pieces 16 , and the trapezoidal poletip faces 17 are illustrated by the lines of equal magnetic field strength 28 shown in fig2 b . specifically , since the polarity axes of the respective magnetic circuits are aligned in a common direction , the magnetic field of each circuit element 10 bucks the magnetic field of the adjacent magnetic circuit elements 10 . in effect , each magnetic circuit element 10 has a separate magnetic field region which , in part , is shaped by the magnetic fields of the adjacent magnetic circuit elements 10 . the rectangular cross sections of the pole pieces 14 and 16 provide the magnetic field emanating therefrom with a large magnetic flux gradient in a direction perpendicular to the poletip face ( perpendicular to the sounding board and string plane ) and a small magnetic flux gradient in a direction parallel to the poletip face ( parallel to the string plane and perpendicular to the string axes ). from fig2 b , when the string 27 is moved perpendicular to the poletip face , it crosses a large number of lines of equal magnetic field strength 28 to generate a corresponding large change of reluctance in the magnetic circuit . however , when the string 27 is moved parallel to the poletip face , it crosses relatively few lines of equal magnetic field strength 28 and generates a correspondingly small change of reluctance in the magnetic circuit . the amplitude of the electrical signals generated in the sensing coils of the magnetic circuits 10 corresponds to the magnitude of the change of reluctance and , therefore , of magnetic flux in the circuits . accordingly , it can be seen that the asymmetrical magnetic field regions provided by the magnetic circuit elements 10 tend to preferentially sense and generate electrical signals responsive to string motions perpendicular to the string plane . the trapezoidal planar poletip face 17 on a primary pole piece 14 spreads the magnetic field emanating from the pole piece 14 over the entire area of its planar face 17 to enhance the asymmetrical configuration of the magnetic field in that region . more particularly , referring to fig2 c , line 29 shows the contour of the bucking magnetic field regions provided by the magnetic circuit elements 10 in the absence of the trapezoidal planar poletip faces 17 . as illustrated , the strength of the magnetic field drops off significantly in regions between the magnetic circuits , a factor which increases sensitivity to linear motion of the string from its quiescent position which occurs during bending . the field drop - off in the regions between the magnetic circuits prevents a sustained , continuous tone upon bending . line 31 of fig2 c shows the strength of the magnetic field emanating from the separate magnetic circuits with the trapezoidal poletip faces 17 . the lines 29 and 32 indicate measurements taken along line b -- b * of fig2 a . specifically , as can be seen from fig2 c , the poletip faces 17 eliminate the drop - offs or dips in the magnetic field between the respective magnetic circuit elements 10 , thus rendering the pickup system insensitive to bending . specifically , the pickup system is capable of generating a sustained and continuous tone or note upon bending of a string . more importantly , the trapezoidal poletip faces 17 spread the magnetic field emanating from the primary pole pieces 14 into the space 30 between the magnetic circuit elements 10 . the space 30 between the magnetic circuit elements is determined by the spacing between the respective strings 27 of the particular musical instrument . absent the planar poletip faces 17 , a vibrating string 27 , upon bending across the space 30 between the magnetic circuit elements 10 , would not generate a continuous signal but , rather , would generate a signal which would decrease significantly in magnitude as the string passes over the space 30 . however , with the poletip faces 17 , a string 27 vibrating about its quiescent position will primarily generate a signal in the magnetic circuit therebelow . referring to fig3 as the vibrating string moves from its normal quiescent position 32 to the bending position 33 , it generates a signal both in the magnetic circuits 10c and 10d , with the primary component of the signal being provided by the magnetic circuit 10d . as the string 27 moves further to the deep bending position 34 , a signal is generated in the magnetic circuits 10c and 10d . however , in the latter case , the primary component of the signal is provided by the magnetic circuit 10c . accordingly , the string 27 can be moved from its normal quiescent position 32 to the deep bending position 34 without a significant decrease in the signal output from the pickup system . in fact , it is possible to shape the configuration of the planar poletip faces such that there is an enhanced signal output from the acoustic speaker system as the vibrating string 27 moves off its quiescent position 32 . specifically , the aperture of the magnetic circuit elements 10 ( the minimum length of string sensed by the circuit ) is basically determined by the height dimension ( h ) of the trapezoidal poletip face 17 . hence , while the strings 27 vibrate about their normal quiescent positions 32 , there is a relatively high degree of separation between the signals input into the electronic amplification system ( greater than 20 decibels ) from the separate magnetic circuits . however , as can be seen from fig3 as a string 27 moves or is bent from its normal quiescent position 32 , it begins to establish an aperture with respect to the adjacent magnetic circuit element 10c in a different linear section of the string . as the string 27 moves further away from its quiescent position 32 , its aperture increases with the second magnetic circuit element 10c while its aperture decreases with the first magnetic circuit element 10d . accordingly , a continuous electrical signal is produced by the combination of the first and second magnetic circuit elements as the string moves from the quiescent position 32 to the deep bending position 34 . the amplitude of the electrical signal ( the sum of the outputs of the two sensing coils ) is determined by the aperture of each magnetic circuit as the string moves . hence , by properly shaping the planar poletip faces 17 , it is possible to provide an enhanced electrical signal . such an enhanced response characteristic is particularly desirable since such enhancement counteracts the decay in amplitude of string vibration experienced during a bending movement . the secondary polepieces 16 do not significantly affect the aperture of the magnetic circuits 10 . in fact , the primary function of the secondary pole pieces 16 is to provide a more efficient flux return path in the magnetic circuit . in fact , a magnetic circuit element 10 with a thick rectangular primary pole piece 14 and a thin rectangular secondary pole piece 16 preserves the signal generating efficiency of a u - shaped magnetic circuit element while minimizing its aperture . more particularly , the height dimension ( h ) of the planar trapezoidal poletip face 17 and the thickness ( t ) of the secondary pole piece 16 determine , to a large degree , the aperture of the magnetic circuit element 10 . in explanation , the primary and secondary pole pieces 14 and 16 provide high efficiency magnetic flux return paths because they are composed of magnetically susceptible materials . increasing the height dimension of the trapezoidal planar poletip face 17 increases the length of string intersecting the magnetic field region emanating therefrom . analogously , decreasing the thickness and / or height of the secondary pole piece 16 decreases the linear length of the string intersecting the magnetic field region forming the magnetic circuit . specifically , decreasing the thickness or reducing the height of the secondary pole piece decreases its efficiency as a magnetic flux return path to the end of the bar magnet 11 . accordingly , as the efficiency of the secondary pole piece for providing a magnetic flux return path decreases , so does the aperture of the magnetic circuit element . the primary pole pieces 14 are disposed alternatively on opposite magnetic poles of the bar magnets 11 . accordingly , the sensing coils 21 disposed around the primary pole pieces may be electrically connected in series in a humbucking arrangement , using the conductive wires 25 of the shielded multiple conductor cable 26 . the humbucking connection system is schematically shown in fig4 . specifically , the inside lead 22 of the sensing coil 21a is electrically connected to the positive terminal of the amplifying system . the outside lead 23 of the sensing coil 21a is electrically connected to the inside lead 22 of the sensing coil 21b , while the outside lead 23 of the sensing coil 21b is electrically connected to the inside lead 22 of the sensing coil 21c . now , sensing coils 21a , b and c are disposed around the primary pole pieces 14 of north polarity , while sensing coils 21d , e and f are disposed around the primary pole pieces 14 of south polarity . accordingly , the outside lead 23 of the coil 21c must be connected to the outside lead of the first south polarity coil 21d . continuing , the inside lead of the sensing coil 21d is electrically connected to the outside lead 23 of the sensing coil 21e while the inside lead 22 of the sensing coil 21e is electrically connected to the outside lead 23 of the sensing coil 21f . the inside lead 22 of the sensing coil 21f is then connected to the negative terminal of the amplifier system . when the coils are connected in a humbucking arrangement as just described , string vibrations generate electrical signals having the same positive or negative polarity . however , an external electromagnetic field will generate signals in the coils of opposite positive and negative polarity which cancel out , a factor which eliminates hum in the ultimate acoustic output of the system . however , the impedance of each sensing coil 21 is low , for low frequency electromagnetic signals . specifically , the sensing coils 21 are physically small and have a relatively short wire length when compared with single or double coil prior art pickup systems . accordingly , the &# 34 ; hum &# 34 ; pickup of each sensing coil due to external electromagnetic fields is not significant . since there are separate conductive wires 25 in the multiple conductor output cable 26 for each sensing coil 21 , and since the hum sensitivity of each coil is insignificant , a performer can electrically connect the sensing coils in any arrangement he desires . for example , he may connect the coils 21 generating electrical signals for bass strings of his instrument to one channel of an amplifier system , while connecting the coils generating electrical signals for the treble strings of his instrument to a second channel of the amplifier system . alternatively , the performer could connect each coil 21 to a separate channel of an amplifying system to get multi - phonic output . finally , the multiple conductor output for the sensing coils 21 gives the performer the ability for electronically amplifying , filtering , or otherwise modifying , the electrical signal output from each coil . fig5 a shows another embodiment of a high asymmetry variable reluctance pickup system which includes a plurality of &# 34 ; t - shaped &# 34 ; magnetic circuit elements 40 , each having a bar magnet 36 , a planar pole face 37 , and a sensing coil 38 . the planar pole face 37 is composed of a magnetically susceptible material , such as iron , and has the general configuration of a parallelogram . the bar magnet 36 forms the shank of the t while the planar pole face 37 forms the crossbar of the t . the sensing coil 38 is disposed around the bar magnet 36 and has suitable inside and outside leads 35 adapted for electrical connection to an amplifier system . more particularly , the bar magnets 36 have a small circular cross section and are oriented in a parallel row , each with its polarity axis aligned in a common direction ( indicated by the arrow 39 ) perpendicular to the string plane 30 . the bar magnets 36 are held in position by two structural members 41 and 42 composed of non - magnetic materials . the planar pole faces 37 are secured to the ends of the bar magnets 36 and arranged in a row on the top surface of the structural member 41 . referring now to fig5 b , the height of each planar pole face 37 determines the aperture of the magnetic circuit element 40 . the sides 43 of the planar pole face 37 are oriented at an angle with respect to the axes of the strings 44 of the instrument . accordingly , the pickup system is relatively insensitive to bending of a string since , as the string moves from the aperture of a first magnetic circuit element , it moves into the aperture of a second magnetic circuit element . hence , a vibrating signal will produce a sustained and continuous signal as it is moved in a bending motion . referring now to fig5 c , the planar pole face 37 spreads the magnetic field emanating from the circular bar magnet 36 over its entire surface area . further , the magnets 36 are arranged in a bucking configuration . accordingly , each magnet circuit 40 has a distinct magnetic field region 45 . the configuration of the magnetic fields are shown by the lines of equal magnetic field strength , lines 47 , in relationship to the quiescent string position 46 . the combined effect of the bucking fields and shaping by the planar pole faces 37 give the magnetic field regions 45 a large magnetic flux gradient in a direction perpendicular to the planar pole faces 37 ( perpendicular to the string plane ) and a small magnetic flux gradient in a plane parallel to the planar pole faces 37 . accordingly , the pickup system will preferentially sense and generate electrical signals responsive to the string vibrations perpendicular to the plane of the planar pole faces 37 ( perpendicular to the string plane ). the sensing coils 38 of the high asymmetry variable reluctance pickup shown in fig5 a cannot be connected in a humbucking configuration . however , since the coils are relatively small , external electromagnetic fields will not cause significant hum . more particularly , the t - shaped magnetic circuit elements 40 are less efficient than the u - shaped magnetic circuit elements previously described because the magnetic flux return path does not occur through magnetically susceptible materials but , rather , occurs through air . hence , in order to generate comparable electrical signals for variations in magnetic flux caused by a vibrating string , the coil size in the t - shaped elements 40 must be increased over that necessary for the u - shaped magnetic circuit elements 10 . however , spacing between the respective strings of an instrument limits the maximum size of the coils 38 , and the only way to increase coil size is to decrease the diameter of the bar magnet 36 , thus diminishing the magnetic flux emanating therefrom . accordingly , for the t - shaped magnetic circuit elements 40 , the coil size and the diameter of the bar magnet 36 are largely determined by optimizing the required magnetic field strengths for good signal generation with the physical space parameters ( string spacing ) of the particular muscial instrument . if hum shielding is needed for a particular system , the pickup structure can be potted in an insulative epoxy 56 and then coated with a metallic paint 57 . when properly grounded , the metallic paint 57 would shield the pickup system from external electromagnetic fields . fig7 shows still another embodiment of a high asymmetry variable reluctance pickup system which includes a single magnetic element 49 and single pole pieces 51 for each string of the instrument . the pole pieces 51 have a rectangular cross section . the system further includes planar poletip faces 52 having a planar configuration of an isosceles trapezoid . sensing coils 53 are disposed around each of the pole pieces 51 . the magnetic element 49 has a north - south polarity , indicated by the arrow 54 . the pole pieces 51 are located on opposite polarity sides of the magnetic element 49 for adjacent strings . again , the combination of the rectangular pole pieces 51 and the trapezoidal planar poletip faces 52 provide an asymmetrical magnetic field region surrounding each string of the instrument which preferentially senses and generates electrical signals responsive to string vibrations perpendicular to the plane of the poletip face . since the pole pieces 51 are located on opposite polarity sides of the magnetic element 49 , it is possible to connect the sensing coils 53 in a humbucking arrangement . the humbucking connection may be made by a printed circuit board mounted on the magnetic element 49 . in such a case , the output cable need have only two conductors . fig6 shows the finished embodiment of the high asymmetry variable reluctance pickup system depicted in fig1 a potted in an insulative epoxy 56 . the epoxy 56 forms a rigid matrix for holding the separate magnetic circuit elements in a fixed relationship to one another . in addition , the epoxy matrix greatly increases the durability of the pickup system . while the invented high asymmetry variable reluctance pickup system for steel string musical instruments is described with respect to particular embodiments , schematics , and the like , numerous variations and modifications can be effected within the spirit and the scope of the invention as described above and as defined and set forth in the appended claims .	6
reference will now be made in detail to the present embodiments of the invention , examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings . wherever possible , the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts . the hydroxy - type novolac resin ( a - 1 ) was prepared by synthesis examples a - 1 - 1 to a - 1 - 5 according to table 1 . a 1000 ml four - necked conical flask equipped with a nitrogen inlet , a stirrer , a heater , a condenser and a thermometer was purged with nitrogen , and the following components were charged to the flask . the aforementioned components comprising 0 . 70 moles of m - cresol , 0 . 30 moles of p - cresol , 0 . 5 moles of 3 , 4 - dihydroxybenzaldehyde and 0 . 020 moles of oxalic acid were stirred slowly and heated to 100 ° c ., so as to carry out polycondensation for 6 hours . next , the reaction was heated again to 180 ° c . and then dried under a decreased pressure at 10 mmhg for evaporating the solvent , thereby obtaining a hydroxy - type novolac resin ( a - 1 - 1 ). synthesis examples a - 1 - 2 to a - 1 - 5 were practiced with the same method as in synthesis example a - 1 - 1 by using different kinds and different amounts of the components of the hydroxy - type novolac resin ( a - 1 ). the formulations of synthesis examples a - 1 - 2 to a - 1 - 5 were also listed in table 1 rather than focusing or mentioning them in details . synthesis examples a - 2 - 1 to a - 2 - 3 were practiced with the same method as in synthesis example a - 1 by using different kinds and different amounts of the components of the other hydroxy - type novolac resin ( a - 2 ). the formulations of synthesis examples a - 2 - 1 to a - 2 - 3 were also listed in table 1 rather than focusing or mentioning them in details . the following examples are directed to the preparation of the positive photosensitive resin composition of examples 1 to 13 and comparative examples 1 to 6 according to tables 2 and 3 . 100 parts by weight of the hydroxy - type novolac resin ( a - 1 - 1 ) of the synthesis example a - 1 - 1 , 25 parts by weight of 2 , 3 , 4 - trihydroxybenzophenone and 1 , 2 - naphthoquinone diazide - 5 - sulfonic acid ester ( b - 1 ) ( 85 % of average esterification degree ), 5 parts by weight of 2 , 3 , 4 , 4 ′- tetrahydroxy benzophenone and 1 , 2 - naphthoquinone diazide - 5 - sulfonic acid ester ( b - 2 ), 2 parts by weight of c . i . solvent black 3 ( trade name of sudan black 141 ; manufactured by chuo synthetic chemical co ., ltd . ; c - 1 - 1 ) and 1 parts by weight of c . i . acid violet 17 ( trade name of coomassie violet r200 , manufactured by sigma ; c - 2 - 1 ) were added into 1000 parts by weight of propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate ( pgmea ) of the solvent ( d - 1 ), and the aforementioned mixture was stirred and dissolved in the solvent by a shaking mixer , so as to form a positive photosensitive resin composition of example 1 of the present invention . and then , the properties of the positive photosensitive resin composition were determined by using the following evaluation methods and resulted in table 2 . the detection methods of the post - etch decolorization ratio , the resolution and the film - remaining ratio were described as follows . examples 2 to 13 were practiced with the same method as in example 1 by using different kinds and different amounts of the components of the positive photosensitive resin composition . the formulations of examples 2 to 13 were also listed in table 2 rather than focusing or mentioning them in details . comparative examples 1 to 6 were practiced with the same method as in example 1 by various kinds or usage of the components . the formulation and the evaluation results were also listed in table 3 . the positive photosensitive resin compositions examples 1 to 13 and comparative examples 1 to 6 were spin - coated on a glass substrate , and then prebaked at 110 ° c . for 160 seconds , thereby obtaining a prebaked and coated film with a thickness of about 1 . 5 μm . and then , the prebaked and coated film was placed under a given mask , and irradiated by ultraviolet light of 300 mj / cm 2 ( exposure machine model no . ag500 - 4n ; manufactured by m & amp ; r nano technology ). next , the film was developed in 2 . 38 % of tmah solution at 23 ° c . for 1 minute , and then the exposed portion of the film on the substrate was removed . subsequently , the remained pattern of the films was washed by pure water and obtained . the film was postbaked at 220 ° c . for 40 minutes , and then etched by aluminic acid at 30 ° c ., to obtain a glass substrate containing a pattern . the transmittance spectrum of the glass substrate containing the pattern ( 400 nm to 780 nm of detected spectrum wavelength ) was measured by a luminousness detector ( model no . ncpd - 300 ; manufactured by otsuka tech electronics co ., ltd .). based on the luminousness of the glass substrate without pattern as the reference value , the luminousness of the glass substrate with the pattern was measured by the luminousness detector , and the value of the luminousness was 0 % to 100 %, and an evaluation was made according to the following criterion . the positive photosensitive resin compositions of examples 1 to 13 and comparative examples 1 to 6 were spin - coated on a glass substrate , and then prebaked at 110 ° c . for 160 seconds , thereby obtaining a prebaked and coated film with a thickness of about 1 . 5 μm . subsequently , the prebaked and coated film was placed under a light mask of line and space ( manufactured by nippon filcon co ., ltd ), and irradiated with ultraviolet light of 300 mj / cm 2 ( exposure machine model no . ag500 - 4n ; manufactured by m & amp ; r nano technology ). next , then the film was developed in 2 . 38 % of tmah solution at 23 ° c . for 1 minute . afterwards , the exposed portion of the film on the substrate was removed . subsequently , the film was washed by pure water and obtained , in which the minimum value of the linewidth of the pattern was defined as the resolution , and an evaluation was made according to the following criterion . the thickness ( δ d1 ) of the prebaked and coated film resulted from the aforementioned “ evaluation method 2 . resolution ” was measured at any given location then the film was immersed and developed in a developing solution ( 2 . 38 % of tmah solution ) at 23 ° c . for 1 minutes , followed by measuring another thickness ( δ d2 ) of the prebaked and coated film at the same location . later , the film - remaining ratio was calculated according to formula ( xiii ) as below . the evaluation results of the post - etch decolorization ratio , the resolution and the film - remaining ratio of the positive photosensitive resin composition resulted from the aforementioned examples and comparative examples were shown in tables 2 and 3 . as shown in the results in tables 2 and 3 , when the positive photosensitive resin composition included the hydroxy - type novolac resin ( a - 1 ), the resulted pattern had less post - etch decolorization and better resolution . moreover , the positive photosensitive resin composition further simultaneously included the at least one ( c - 1 ) selected from the group consisting of diazo dye , anthraquinone dye and chromium ( iii , cr 3 + ) azo dye and the triarylmethane dye ( c - 2 ), the resulted pattern had better resolution and higher film - remaining ratio , and much better resolution could advantageously be achieved when such positive photosensitive resin composition further included the phthalocyanine dye ( c - 3 ), thereby achieving the purpose of the present invention actually . it should be supplemented that , although specific compounds , components , reaction conditions , processes , evaluation methods or specific equipments are described as examples of the present invention , for illustrating the positive photosensitive resin composition of the present invention and the method for forming patterns by using the same . however , as is understood by a person skilled in the art instead of limiting to the aforementioned examples , the positive photosensitive resin composition of the present invention and the method for forming patterns by using the same also can be manufactured by using other compounds , components , reaction conditions , processes , evaluation methods and equipments without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention . although the present invention has been disclosed with reference to the embodiments above , these embodiments are not intended to limit the present invention . in view of the foregoing , it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims . therefore , the scope of the present invention should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar structure .	7
the object of the invention is a system and method for the design and production of reinforcement of the structural elements of buildings , which is time efficient and reduces the risk of errors . one essential element of the system according to the invention is the database , which contains all necessary data for the description of the building , the structural elements , such as columns , beams and footings , and the reinforcement . this database is utilized by all parties involved in the detailed design , namely the designer , the building contractor and the manufacturing plant . as these three parties work , in general , in different computers , data retrieval is not performed on the same physical database . thus , in order to ensure that they all share the same data , replica databases , i . e . “ mirror images ”, are used , so that the design , order , implementation and production of reinforcement is based on identical data of the building , without risking data integrity and security . the creation of the mirror images is entrusted to a communication protocol for the bidirectional electronic communication among designer contractor - manufacturing plant , which automatically updates the mirror databases , whenever each of the parties updates a field of the database , which is installed to his / her computer . if the three roles , i . e . the designer , contractor and manufacturing plant are performed by one entity using one single computer then they may all work on the same physical database that is installed in it . the proposed invention combines , for the first time , the exact spatial representation of the structural frame with the exact spatial representation of the reinforcement in one single image . additionally , the automation and standardization of the reinforcement description reduces the difficulties related to the plethora of data in an order since the reinforcement may consist of several thousands of pieces . the invention may be used for projects of newly constructed buildings , as well as the reinforcement or extension of existing buildings . it may be used for steel reinforcement of concrete as well as for reinforcement elements made of p . the system and process according to the present invention offers among others the advantages described below . the present invention allows for easy modifications of the structural elements ( e . g . a beam ) and of the reinforcing elements ( e . g . steel bars ). it ensures the clarity and consistency of the construction process because the errors due to human factor are minimized the present invention further ensures very fast and unambiguous digital communication among the designer , the contractor and the manufacturing plant . it allows for cost and time savings during the data creation for cnc production machines , e . g . at the reinforcement cutting and bending catalogues . the present invention &# 39 ; s advantages include that the invention : guarantees the correctness of the order according to the requirements of the design ; may be implemented with existing or new software ; allows for the use of “ expert ” software that may be used for the calculation of the reinforcement ; ensures the correctness of the implementation of the design ; facilitates and simplifies the submission of offers by several manufacturing plants ; and accelerates the process of offers and reduces drastically their cost . a preferred embodiment of the invention is comprised of three modules : two identical modules , known as module d , that are installed in the computer of the designer and the building contractor and one module that is installed in the computer of the manufacturing plant , module p . table 1 presents the elements of these modules . modules d and p include a data input unit , a data output unit , a data processing unit , a database , a unit for the bi - directional electronic communication and visualization software . data input unit : the data input unit is used for entering data related to the description of the building , building materials , price lists for these materials , availability of materials , etc . in the usual case , the data input unit consists of a keyboard and a mouse . data entry is facilitated by specialized software , such as : software for the modification and storage of the structural model of the building . software for the modification and storage of available material types and their prices . software for the modification , storage and forwarding of electronic orders . software for the modification , storage and forwarding of electronic offers . software for the description of the structural elements of the building frame , which is discussed in a paragraph that follows , named input software . data output unit : the data output unit may consist of a printer , plotter , computer monitor , or any conventional accessory device in use with a processor to produce an output . the data output unit produces deliverables in various forms such as the following : printer reports ( e . g . report of structural calculations for submission to the urban planning authority for approval ). plotter drawings ( e . g ., architectural drawings , block plans , reinforcement drawings , various types of floor plans etc ). three - dimensional structural models , which include the frame of the building and its reinforcement . three - dimensional architectural models , which include not only the building frame but also its architectural and decorative elements ( walls , doors , windows , fencing , furniture , landscaping etc .) conventional or stereoscopic digital videos showing virtual walkthroughs of the structural or architectural three - dimensional models . estimation of material quantities in digital or printed form . reinforcement catalogues and schedules in digital or printed form . monetary cost estimates . orders of materials in digital or printed form . data processing unit : the data processing unit may be a cpu , which performs the calculations . the calculations are based on the building model specified by the user , the catalogues of available type of reinforcement and the governing rules and regulations for structural building design and construction . with the aid of reinforcement price lists , this unit may also calculate the cost of production and placement of reinforcement on site . database : the database is the organized collection of data , which describes the geometry of the building , its structural elements and their reinforcement . such data are stored in the database , which is accessible by the designer , building contractor and manufacturing plant . the database stores all necessary data to represent the logical , linear and architectural model of the building , the static and dynamic analysis results and the elements of the report for submission to the urban planning authority . the database also stores catalogues of reinforcement elements . each reinforcement element is identified with a unique identifier ( id ), which represents its structural details and its position in the building . the designer , the contractor and the manufacturing plant work , in general , in different computers and therefore data retrieval is not performed on the same physical database , but on the database that is included in the module , where each one works . thus , in order to ensure that they all share the same data , replica databases , i . e . “ mirror images ”, are used , so that the design , order , implementation and production of reinforcement is based on identical data of the building , without risking data integrity and security . the creation of the mirror images is entrusted to a protocol of bidirectional electronic communication among designer - contractor - manufacturing plant , which automatically updates the mirror databases , whenever each of the parties updates a field of the database , which is installed to his / her computer . a mirror image of the database or the database itself may be held centrally on a server . communication protocol . this is a protocol of bidirectional electronic communication among the designer the contractor and the manufacturing plant , which is employed for data synchronization , namely the automatic update of the databases of each module , whenever a field in a database of any module is updated . the protocol dispatches digitally data from one module and automatically updates the database of the other modules , so that the content of the databases of all modules is identical . thus , replica databases , i . e . “ mirror images ”, are achieved , so that all parties that work on the building project share identical data . communication protocol : this is a software for the bidirectional electronic communication among the designer the contractor and the manufacturing plant , which is employed for data synchronization , namely the automatic update of the databases of each module , whenever a field in a database of any module is updated . this particular communication software dispatches digitally data from one module and automatically updates the database of the other modules , so that the content of the databases of all modules is identical . thus , replica databases , i . e . “ mirror images ”, are achieved , so that all parties that work on the building project share identical data . visualization software for the visualization of structural elements of the building : the structural elements and their reinforcement are viewed in a virtual three - dimensional environment so that the user ( engineer , contractor , reinforcement technician etc .) has full awareness of the structure . in this virtual environment , the user has the ability to navigate in real time through all areas inside the construction , even areas which are difficult to access at the real construction site . with the aid of advanced stereoscopic representations , the user may realize fully the precise placement method of the reinforcement which is displayed at his / her eye level , because this technique enhances the visual separation of the reinforcement in depth and , thus reduces the need for navigation inside the virtual construction . using these tools , inexperienced engineers and building contractors are able to prepare for visiting the construction site , supervise the reinforcement detailing and placement , and , having in mind ready solutions for the areas where the assembly of the reinforcement may be problematic , instruct correctly the reinforcement workers . further , module d , the modules installed in the respective computers of the designer and the contractor , comprise input software and calculation software . input software : the present invention includes input software that facilitates the input of the data , which describes the geometry of the building and the location of the structural elements . the software for the description of structural elements of the building assists the user in defining the building model and provides facilities such as tools for the fast and accurate definition of floor plans , easy modification of existing structural elements , ability to check the user actions , detection of possible user errors and subsequent communication of warning messages . calculation software : the present invention further includes calculation software that facilitates the calculation of the data . according to the preferred embodiment , the definition of the reinforcement of a building ( i . e ., number of bars , diameters , shape and length of reinforcing bars , reinforcement material ) is performed automatically by the calculation software on the basis of a ) appropriate mathematical models and b ) artificial intelligence methods which simulate the way that a human engineer works . thus , the calculation software employs the best practices for placing the reinforcement and , furthermore , ensures that the governing anti - seismic and concrete - related regulations and statutory codes are obeyed . for the calculation of the correct arrangement of the reinforcement in space , the calculation software utilizes a virtual three - dimensional environment and a mathematical software component called solid modeler . in this way the system may identify all cases in which a piece of reinforcement cannot be placed because of spatial overlapping , namely because it is obstructed by another reinforcement element . in such a case it either places the pieces of reinforcement in appropriate positions or alters their shape ( creating “ bottles ” or diversions ), using rules that a construction supervisor or reinforcement technician would use on the building site , and finally verifies the correctness of their new position . after having the details of all reinforcement of the construction , the system inserts the data into the database , where they are stored . module p of the preferred embodiment , i . e . the module installed in the computer of the manufacturing plant , comprise a unit for the creation of commands for the cnc machines : unit for the creation of commands for cnc machines : this is software , which produces the commands to instruct appropriate computer numerically controlled ( cnc ) machines to produce the reinforcement , on the basis of the data describing each piece of reinforcement , without human intervention . the unit may use reinforcement catalogues which are stored in the database . in a further embodiment of the invention , which is used in case that the designer , the building contractor and the manufacturing plant coincide in a single entity and use one computer , all elements of the system that are described above , are included in one module . an important feature of the invention is the means for electronic communication among the various software element . for example , there must be electronic communication between the database and the various software elements such as the software to input data , the software for the calculation of the details of structural elements , the software to output the results and the visualization software , and the software which commands the cnc machines . the provision of such means allows for the automatic update of the content of the database . the present invention is further comprised of the method employing the system described herein . below are the steps of the method performed by the designer , contractor and manufacturing plant . a ) create the model of the building using the data input unit and the software for the description of structural elements of the building frame , and selection of parameters describing the building and its structural elements ; b ) store the selected parameters of the model in the database ; c ) using the data processing unit and the software for the calculation of construction details of each structural element , process the building model and allow for the automatic production of the required reinforcement and the detailed models of each piece of reinforcement ; d ) overview and inspect the reinforcement using the software for the visualization of structural elements of the building frame , and decide to accept or modify the results ; and e ) store the results in the database and update all mirror databases . a ) retrieve the results from the database . in case there is a central server , the deliverables become available to the contractor immediately after the designer transfers them to the central server ; b ) allow for the production of deliverables from the data output unit . the deliverables include the reinforcement order in digital and printed form ; c ) initiate a request for offers from suppliers ; and d ) select supplier and submit the order . if there is a central server the order may be submitted via that server . a ) create electronic price list using the data input unit ; b ) receive request for offer and the electronic reinforcement data from the building contractor or the central server ; c ) process the order data and compile offer using the data processing unit ; d ) receive deliverables ( final offer ) from the data output unit ; e ) submit offer and acceptance of awarded job ; f ) create command files containing cutting and bending commands for cnc machines based on the electronic reinforcement data ( data processing unit ); g ) send the command files containing cutting and bending commands for cnc machines to output unit . according to the preferred embodiment of the inventive method , mirror images of the database are automatically updated via a communication protocol , upon entering , deleting or amending any field of the database . thus all persons working in different computers may share the same data of the building . using the internet and fast internet connections ( e . g ., adsl ), the building contractor may send the order electronically in a secure manner to all interested manufacturing plants and the sender may receive electronically the offers of the plants . the plants , after receiving the electronic order , are able to submit their offer electronically using price lists in digital form . that is , upon receipt of the electronic order , the plant creates the offer with no human intervention . this approach eliminates time - consuming procedures for compiling an offer by hand and the errors associated with the transfer of the order details to the offer . the aforementioned steps of the method may be accelerated if the embodiment of the invention includes a central server , which would be responsible for the coordination of the work flow of the ordering process , the availability of the required data ( material catalogues for each design , catalogues of available materials and price lists for each supplier , etc . ), and the interconnection and digital communication of the parties involved ( forwarding and receipt of orders and offers , offer acceptance , supervision of orders and time schedules , etc .). the system and method described here may be used for the production of building elements such as windows , doors , railing , flooring , and masonry . the foregoing disclosure has been set forth merely to illustrate the invention and is not intended to be limiting . since modifications of the disclosed embodiments incorporating the spirit and substance of the invention may occur to persons skilled in the art , the invention should be construed to include everything within the scope of the appended claims and equivalents thereof .	6
referring now to the drawings in detail , and particularly to fig1 and 2 , in fig1 a prior art embodiment of a sphincter treatment apparatus 10 is shown which delivers polymer to a target tissue site 12 in esophagus 28 to produce tissue - bulking implant 14 in a sphincter 16 , such as the lower esophageal sphincter ( les ). in this embodiment , sphincter treatment apparatus 10 comprises a flexible elongate shaft comprising a viewing endoscope 17 , also called a catheter , with a distal extremity 26 carrying injection needle 20 , which is in fluid communication with a syringe , not shown in fig1 . the injection means includes the tissue piercing distal end needle 20 , which is configured to penetrate a fixed depth into a sphincter wall 28 and deliver polymer to a portion thereof . fig2 shows generally an apparatus 10 of the invention with catheter 18 , having distal needle tip 20 leading to implant 14 at site 12 in sphincter wall 16 , part of esophagus 28 . as shown in fig2 , the flexible elongate shaft 18 of the sphincter treatment apparatus 10 connects to the syringe 21 containing polymer implant 19 . the connection is made by a standard luer type connection 23 . the luer connection 23 allows fluid communication between the syringe 21 and a catheter lumen 30 , and the needle 20 . pressure applied to the syringe plunger 24 injects the polymer implant 19 into the lumen 30 and then later into the needle 20 . the distal catheter end 26 is configured to be positionable in a sphincter 16 such as the les or adjacent anatomical structure , such as the cardia of the stomach . the catheter 18 has sufficient length to position the needle end 20 in the les and / or stomach using a trans - oral approach . typical lengths for the catheter 18 include , but are not limited to , a range of 40 - 240 cm . the catheter 18 must have at least one lumen 30 for the delivery of the injectable polymer implant 19 , which lumen 30 extends the full length of catheter 18 . the injection needle 20 should include a pointed , beveled tip capable of delivering the injectable polymer 19 . the opening may be of the type used in endoscopic injection systems . it should be noted that catheters of the type described above are suitable for use in conventional endoscopes with a viewing and steering means for achieving the methods set forth below . the first several layers of a mammalian sphincter 16 is shown in fig3 , and consists of a mucosal layer 32 , a submucosal layer 33 and an underlying smooth muscle layer 34 . the injection needle 20 is positioned to produce controlled tissue bulking 14 preferably in the smooth muscle layer 34 underlying the mucosal and submucosal layers 32 and 33 . more specifically , the needle 20 is positioned to inject controlled amounts of the polymer in the portion of the smooth muscle tissue 34 that lies approximately 1 - 4 mm from the surface of the mucosal layer 32 . the injection needle 20 shown in fig4 has an opening 36 , directed away from the mucosal layer 32 . the opening 36 of the needle 20 extends into the sphincter wall 28 and allows for delivery of the polymer to an optimal site preferably within the smooth muscle layer 34 . fig5 displays a flow chart illustrating a preferred embodiment of the method for using the sphincter treatment apparatus 10 of the present invention . in this embodiment , the sphincter treatment apparatus 10 is first introduced into the patient &# 39 ; s esophagus under local anesthesia and positioned at the target tissue site 12 . the sphincter treatment apparatus 10 can be introduced into the esophagus by itself or through a lumen in an endoscope ( not shown ), such as disclosed in u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 448 , 990 and 5 , 275 , 608 , incorporated herein by reference , or a similar esophageal access device known to those skilled in the art . the diagnostic phase of the procedure may be performed using a variety of diagnostic methods , including , but not limited to , the following : ( i ) visualization of the interior surface of the esophagus via an endoscope or other viewing apparatus inserted into the esophagus , ( ii ) visualization of the interior morphology of the esophageal wall using ultrasonography to establish a baseline for the tissue to be treated , and ( iii ) various manometry techniques , as are known in the art , for determining sphincteric integrity . after the diagnosis , the treatment phase of the procedure may begin by the delivery of a polymer to the target tissue site 12 , and such delivery of polymer can be conducted under visual feedback control . a second diagnostic phase may be included after the treatment is completed , or after each injection . this provides an indication of les tightening treatment success , whether or not additional treatment is needed , and how the geometry of the implant locations is affecting les function . it will be appreciated that the above procedure is applicable in whole or part to the treatment of other sphincters in the body . the number and volume of injections in the les or sphincter 16 can vary . in a preferred embodiment , the polymer bulking material is utilized in the range of 1 - 10 ml per site and produces implants at depths ranging from 1 - 4 mm from the interior surface of the les or sphincter wall 28 . since the implant is incompressible , the tension is translated to the surrounding tissue . the result is tightening of the sphincter tissue as depicted in fig6 . these changes are reflected in transformed sphincter geometry shown in fig7 . it is desirable that these implants 14 are predominately located in the smooth muscle layer of the sphincter 16 at depths ranging from 1 - 4 mm from the interior surface of the sphincter wall 28 . accordingly , the diameter of the implants 14 can vary between 1 to 10 mm . it is preferable that the implants 14 are less than 10 mm in diameter in order to reduce the risk of ischemic damage or pressure necrosis of the mucosal layer . in one preferred embodiment , a 2 mm diameter implant centered in the wall of the smooth muscle provides a 2 mm buffer zone to prevent damage to the mucosa , submucosa and adventitia , while still allowing for blood flow . also , the implants 14 can vary in both number and position within the esophagus or the sphincter 16 . it is desirable to implant the polymer so that it accentuates or augments the natural geometry of a sphincter . in fig8 , the polymer is depicted preferably implanted in a locus 30 of the les defined by the natural undulated profile of the sphincter 16 . this method of the invention has several advantages . the implant introduced at the site 37 depicted in fig9 creates internal forces that displace adjacent tissue surfaces 38 , 39 , 40 in the direction indicated by arrows 41 , 42 , 43 , respectively . the procedure in this embodiment results in maximal filling of the lumen 35 of the les with minimal implant volume displaced away from the lumen . for example , the site shown in fig1 illustrates an implant site 44 that produces displacement of implant outside 45 the lumen 35 of the les . injection into the locus 30 serves to augment the natural protuberance “ p ” of the sphincter tissue without relying primarily on an overall tightening of the sphincter . this results in improved sphincter function , especially with respect to desirable sphincter opening . the representation shown in fig1 a and b illustrate an undesirable method of sphincter augmentation . fig1 a shows the natural alignment of reference points on the mucosal layer 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 and smooth muscle layer 46 ′, 47 ′, 48 ′, 49 ′. when the implant is placed outside the preferred locus 30 , the mucosal layer of the esophagus 32 is displaced as a whole toward the stomach as depicted in fig1 b by the misalignment of the aforementioned reference points . since the blood vessels 50 travel through the smooth muscle layer to nourish the mucosal layer , displacement of the mucosal layer relative to the smooth muscle layer stretches the “ blood ” vessels 50 . the vessels 50 can become occluded or rupture , thus resulting in ischemia of the mucosal layer . this may result in a worsening of the gerd symptoms , even if sphincter function is improved . fig1 illustrates yet another undesirable method of sphincter augmentation . it is possible to use a curved needle or like instrument to form a channel of curvature 51 in the smooth muscle tissue of the les . an implant may be injected during or after the formation of the curved channel 51 resulting in the implant conforming to this geometry and forming a curved implant 52 . these implants may be joined as illustrated with 54 and 56 . a single joined implant may be formed by injecting sufficient material that 51 , 52 , 54 , 56 join circumferentially forming an encircling ring . the resulting encircling implant prevents the annulus formed by the les from changing . and while sufficient implant may be delivered to decrease the annulus diameter and thus reduce gastric reflux , it also compromises the annulus opening making it difficult to swallow . additionally , the natural peristaltic motion of the esophagus is known to cause ring implants to erode into the stomach . the primary cause of the implant erosion is believed to be due to a combination of factors , among them modulus differences between the implant and the surrounding tissue and the propensity of the implant to decouple or pull away from surrounding tissue . the latter may be exacerbated by inflammation , pressure necrosis and various chemical compounds excreted by infiltrating cells . the series of drawings of fig1 a , b and c represent the peristaltic motion referenced against a set of fixed coordinated f 1 , f 2 , f 3 . the peristaltic motion is characterized by a locus of a contracted esophagus that travels toward the stomach ( not shown ). in fig1 a the contraction locus 60 of the esophagus travels toward the stomach indicated by arrow 62 . note the alignment of fixed reference points f 1 - f 3 and tissue reference points t 1 - t 3 . as the locus 60 travels through the reference points t 1 - t 3 as shown in fig1 b , note that points t 1 - t 3 contract together relative to coordinates f 1 - f 3 . and as shown in fig1 c , reference points t 2 and t 3 are stretched apart relative to coordinates f 2 - f 3 as the locus 60 travels beyond the referenced tissue location . it is preferred that the implant of the present invention have the same modulus as the surrounding tissue . then the force per unit area , or pressure , generated around the locus 60 deforms the tissue and the implant similarly . therefore there is no net pressure discontinuity that occurs across the tissue / implant interface that could cause tissue / implant decoupling and eventually erosion in the present invention . fig1 a illustrates a cross section of the esophagus 100 in the relaxed states with a reference circle 63 fixed to the tissue . when the locus 60 travels through the circle it deforms the circle into an ellipse as depicted in fig1 b . however , as shown in fig1 c , a high modulus implant 64 implanted in the tissue will not deform in this way producing forces depicted by arrows 66 that tend to cause the implant to cut through the tissue . under repeated action , the implant decouples from the implant site and migrates through the tissue , usually toward the stomach , as depicted in fig1 d . furthermore , a ring geometry for the implant will increase erosion forces . as shown in fig1 a , a spherical implant 69 will be compressed in one direction 70 and expand in two directions 72 and 74 . a torus on the other hand can expand in only one direction 76 , and is actually compressed in two directions , 78 and 80 as depicted in fig1 b . the compression is depicted along direction 80 due to an overall contraction of the esophagus annulus and consequently the implant ring circumference . the modulus of the present invention can however be tailored to the modulus of the surrounding tissue by adjusting the amount of saline or other aqueous solution mixed with the polymer implant prior to implantation of the polymer . a preferred embodiment for such polymer solution is for example , a ratio of 80 : 20 saline to polymer , which ratio was found to match sphincter tissue compliance . modulus matching is therefore one preferred way in the present invention to reduce the likelihood of implant migration . therefore “ modulus adjustability ” is a critical feature . precipitation implants that form a solid upon contact with tissue or water have a set modulus , and that modulus is characteristic of the formerly dissolved polymer in the implant . varying the percentage of dissolved polymer will not change the final implant modulus , since the precipitated polymer and body fluid reach a characteristic equilibrium regardless of the initial implant polymer concentration . a second cause of implant erosion is whether the polymer implant evokes an inflammatory reaction . implants that are absorbed over time present a constantly changing surface to the body that evoke infiltration of cells and release of inflammatory compounds . inflammation can also be caused by the hydrophilic nature of the implant . for example , ptfe , which is hydrophobic , generally provokes a marked inflammatory response even though it is chemically neutral . the present invention creates a water interface at the tissue / implant interface . at water concentration greater than 10 %, a hydrogel is formed that contains mobile water molecules that migrate to the implant surface preventing protein deposition and a hydrophilic layer . a third cause of implant erosion is a lack of connectivity between the implant and surrounding tissue . most tissue structures , even those formed in layers , are bound together so that perturbations of the tissue result in coupled motion between the layers of tissue . in general , uncoupled or relative motion between tissue parts results in inflammation . usually the body counters by forming an adhesion joining the parts . there are a few notable exceptions such as the pericardium of the heart , which allows the heart to beat unhindered by attachment to surrounding tissue . but this relative motion is achieved by forming a liquid ( noncellular ) layer between the beating heart and the pericardium . when the pericardium is removed , it is common for adhesions to form between the heart and surrounding tissue . furthermore , without the presence of a lubricant , relative motion between tissue structures naturally leads to wearing away of tissue and thus effecting erosion . many of the features that make implants biocompatible , such as chemical inertness , also prevents adhesions to form between the implant and the tissue . thus relative motion , because of no adhesion between adjacent tissue structures , is common . the present invention is an implant that not only forms a permanent solid implant within the body , but also forms a bond between the implant and surrounding tissue , that bond mostly composed of water . therefore , high water content , permanence of implant , modulus matching and tissue bonding are key features of the present invention that prevent implant erosion . however , tissue necrosis plays a role in implant erosion . introducing an incompressible volume into a confined space defined by incompressible tissue will result in a high internal implant pressure . that pressure is simply the minimum force per unit area required to tear tissue to cause the space to enlarge . since that pressure is always non - zero , the implant will always be implanted in a high pressure environment . this fact has two consequences . one , if the implant does not solidify quickly in the body much of the implant may be lost through the delivery hole . two , if the implant does solidify quickly , high internal pressure will persist resulting in clamping of local blood supply and pressure death of cells , both of which cause tissue to necrose around the implant . under these conditions a chemically inert implant is treated by the body as a non - biocompatible foreign object , and the concomitant process to eliminate the implant ensue . therefore , a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a delivery means that has features that are both unique and critical for acceptance of the implant by the body . the delivery device may include several preferred embodiments . the common feature of these devices is that the delivery device must provide a means for creating a pocket in the target tissue . this pocket may be formed before , during or after delivery of the implant polymer solution so as to achieve optimal location , shape and reduction of implant pressure . the simplest delivery means is shown in fig1 , having a catheter tip 18 , generally having a 7 fr . outer dimension and a 4 fr . inner dimension , with a 23 - 18 gauge needle tip extension 20 . the tip of the needle 20 will have a spade shape , as shown in fig1 , the edges of which are sharp . generally the width 86 of the needle tip 20 will be less than 2 . 3 mm ( diameter of a 7 fr . catheter ), and more preferably 2 . 0 mm . the tip may be shielded 88 by a covering of a biocompatible wax that can pass safely through the digestive tract while the tip is introduced into the endoscope to prevent damage to channel surfaces of that endoscope . the shield 88 may be removed after introduction of the catheter into the endoscope or removed at the site of injection by manipulably actuating the endoscope in a manner which will cause the shield 88 to pop off the needle tip 20 . under visualization provided by the components of the endoscope , not shown here for clarity , the needle tip 20 is directed to a site for injection and the tip introduced into the tissue a distance of 1 - 4 mm . once at the proper depth of tissue , a small amount of polymer implant may be introduced into the body to confirm proper tip placement . then by manipulating the endoscope supporting the needle 20 , the needle 20 may produce a cutting action 90 as represented in fig1 , that action serving to form a pocket 92 in the delivery site . additional implant can be injected to give volume to the implant site ( preferably in a protuberance “ p ”) and further direct cutting action of the needle tip . once a desired profile is achieved the pocket can be filled to a desired volume . if the tissue appears to be under tension , further enlargement of the pocket is possible . the result is a low tension implant . the formation of pockets in tissue are common , and can also be achieved in a further embodiment as represented in fig1 , through needle delivery of a balloon 102 . in this embodiment a double lumen catheter 104 would be employed , one lumen 106 of which is fluidically connected to the balloon and the other lumen 108 connected to the exit port of the needle 110 . thus the balloon 102 can be inflated independently of the delivery of implant . a pocket 112 can thus be formed by introducing the needle / balloon 110 and 102 combination to a tissue site , inflating the balloon 102 to form a pocket 112 , and then deflating the balloon 102 and filling the pocket 112 with a bolus of implant polymer 114 . alternatively saline ejected through the first lumen 106 could precede the bolus 114 of polymer , and may be used to form the pocket 102 without the use of a balloon , but in this approach the saline must be removed before the implant is introduced into the site . due to the high affinity of the polymer of the present invention to the uptake of water , the removal of saline is not as critical as for other implants . for example , for precipitating an implant there is normally an excess of carrier fluid present in the implant volume which must be absorbed by the body . this plus any residual saline in the pocket contributes to shrinking of the implant “ effective volume ” as the saline and carrier is absorbed by the body , which is typical in the prior art . the foregoing description of a preferred embodiment of the 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 . it is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the following claims and their equivalents .	0
referring now to the drawings and particularly to fig1 a and 1b , there is shown a connector plate 10 having a plurality of toothed apertures therein arranged in rows designated as a , b , c and d . all of the toothed apertures are identical in construction but their orientation on the plate 10 differs . it will be noted that the toothed apertures in rows a and c have their larger ends toward the left and that they are in vertical registration . the toothed apertures in rows b and d have the larger ends to the right and are in vertical registration . however , the toothed apertures of rows a and c are seen to be shifted to the left with respect to the apertures in rows b and d . in a preferred form of the plate hereof , precisely defined by way of illustration but not limitation , the longitudinally extending rows of teeth defined in rows a and b lie on centers equispaced one from the other across the plate and particularly centers 0 . 248 inches apart as indicated by the dimension with the centerline of the rows adjacent the margin of the plate lying 0 . 128 inch from the edge of the plate . the spacing b between the opposing faces of the doublets or teeth is 0 . 544 inches . the plate is preferably formed of u . s . s . 20 gauge galvanized sheet metal having a nominal thickness of 0 . 0397 inch . the arrangement of teeth disclosed has approximately 7 . 1 teeth per square inch . in the preferred embodiment , variations of approximately plus or minus ten percent are permissible . only toothed apertures 12 and 14 will be described in detail . the shaded portion at the ends of the aperture 12 are the ends of the teeth 16 and 18 that are formed by male and female dies , to be described later , from the metal of the plate 10 . the shape of the dies is such that the metal is severed along a dotted cleavage line 20 so that the high point of the tooth 16 , indicated by the solid line 22 , is in horizontal alignment with the point 24 where the dotted line 20 intersects the top of the aperture 12 . similarly , the high point of the tooth 18 indicated by the solid line 26 is in horizontal alignment with the point 28 where the dotted line 20 intersects the bottom side of the aperture 12 . an important feature of this invention is that the width of the tooth 16 at its base or root 30 , as indicated by the dimension line , is greater than the width of the tooth 18 at its base or root , as indicated by the dimension line 32 . it is also to be noted that the wider tooth 16 is taller than the tooth 18 , as can be seen from fig1 b . this difference in width and height contributes significantly to the ease with which the plate can be applied to wooden members by means of a roller type press . the ability of the connector plate of this invention to maintain its position even when the wooden members being joined thereby work is due in large part to the clenching action of the teeth 16 and 18 resulting from the fact that the high points 22 and 26 are asymmetrically located . the tooth 16 curves upwardly , as viewed in fig1 a , when inserted in the wood , i . e ., toward the side of the tooth closest to its high point 22 , and the tooth 18 curves downwardly when inserted in the wood because its high point 26 is closest to the lower side . because the teeth 16 and 18 curve in opposite directions in the wood , any forces of tension generally parallel to the aperture 12 are resisted by some horizontally disposed portions of the wood that are in common and some that are different . the fact that the tooth 16 curves upwardly when pressed into the wood causes it to penetrate portions of the wood that are not horizontally aligned with any portion of the tooth 18 because the latter curves downwardly upon insertion . the same maintenance of position also results in part from the fact that the teeth are of different width and height . as illustrated in fig1 the aperture 14 has a tooth 34 at its left end that is narrower at its base or root , as indicated by the dimension line 36 than the tooth 38 at the opposite end of the aperture 14 , as indicated by the dimension line 40 . the high points of the teeth 34 and 38 , as indicated by the solid lines 42 and 44 respectively , lie on opposite sides of the horizontal center line of the aperture 14 . both teeth are visible when viewed from the left as indicated in fig1 a . it will be noted that the narrower tooth 34 is also the shorter one and that the high points of the teeth are on the opposite sides of their respective center line . for this reason , the tooth 34 will curve upwardly when inserted in the wood and the tooth 44 will curve downwardly so as to cause the type of clenching action previously referred to . as shown in fig1 all of the teeth are seen to have a v - shaped cross section with the teeth at opposite ends of each aperture having their concave sides facing each other . the included angle of each &# 34 ; v &# 34 ; is 120 °, and the apex of the &# 34 ; v &# 34 ; is at the center . the modified diamond shape of the teeth contributes to their columnar strength and causes them to follow curved paths when inserted into the wood as is best illustrated in fig1 a . in this figure , the shorter teeth 34 are seen to have a point with an included angle of 60 ° and the longer teeth are seen to have an included angle of 45 ° with 15 ° on one side of vertical and 30 ° in the other . hence , the longer teeth have sharper points so as to enable them to penetrate more easily . attention is now directed to fig2 a and 2b showing the configuration of the dies used to form the teeth illustrated in fig1 a and 1b . the female die 46 is seen to have shoulders 48 at its ends . the male die 50 is shorter than the female die 46 by an amount approximating the thickness of the metal in the plate so as to accommodate the teeth in the spaces 52 . as the male die 50 passes through the plate , it severs the metal along all edges except the &# 34 ; v &# 34 ; shaped ends , i . e ., where the edges of the dies are close together . at the same time , it pushes the teeth into an upright position below the openings 52 . as seen in the bottom view of fig2 b , the teeth are separated by a tearing action along the cleavage line 20 due to a raised edge 54 in the male die 50 . fig2 a shows an elevational view of the male die 50 showing the raised edge 54 . this invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof . the present embodiments are , therefore , to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive , the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description , and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency are therefore intended to be embraced therein .	8
the perfluoro ( alkyl vinyl ether ) to be copolymerized with chlorotrifluoroethylene according to the present invention is an ether of the formula ( i ). the perfluoroalkyl group r f of the formula ( i ) has 3 to 6 carbon atoms and may optionally have at least one substituent . specific examples of the perfluoroalkyl group are a perfluoropropyl group , a perfluorobutyl group , a perfluoro ( propoxypropyl ) group , and the like . in view of easy availability and low cost , perfluoro ( propyl vinyl ether ) is preferred . the content of the perfluoro ( alkyl vinyl ether ) ( i ) in the copolymer is from 0 . 01 to 1 % by mole . when the content of the perfluoro ( alkyl vinyl ether ) is increased , the crystallization of the copolymer can be effectively prevented but the melting point of the polymer is decreased and the copolymer becomes soft so that the mechanical strength is deteriorated . preferably , the content of perfluoro ( alkyl vinyl ether ) is from 0 . 05 to 0 . 5 % by mole . when the content of perfluoro ( alkyl vinyl ether ) exceeds 1 % by mole , a polymerization rate is decreased to 50 % or less of a homopolymerization rate of chlorotrifluoroethylene . such low polymerization rate is uneconomical , or at such low polymerization rate , a polymerization degree may not be increased . the copolymer of the present invention may be prepared by a per se conventional method . in general , the copolymerization is carried out in an autoclave equipped with a stirrer . preferably , aqueous suspension polymerization is employed . in this case , a weight ratio of water to chlorotrifluoroethylene is from 1 / 10 to 10 / 1 . a polymerization temperature is from 0 ° to 100 ° c ., preferably from 5 ° to 30 ° c . a polymerization pressure is determined by a vapor pressure of chlorotrifluoroethylene and in turn the polymerization temperature . a weight of the perfluoro ( alkyl vinyl ether ) ( i ) to be copolymerized depends on the type of the perfluoro ( alkyl vinyl ether ) ( i ). a method for the changing of the perfluoro ( alkyl vinyl ether ) ( i ) is not critical , and all of the perfluoro ( alkyl vinyl ether ) ( i ) may be added to the reaction system in an initial stage or may be added portionwise or continuously . as a polymerization initiator , an organic peroxide is preferably used . among the organic peroxides , to improve heat stability of the produced copolymer , organic peroxides of the following formulas are preferably used : wherein n is an integer of 1 to 5 , and x is a hydrogen atom , a fluorine atom or a chlorine atom . in the present invention , the composition and properties of the copolymer are measured as follows : the content of the perfluoro ( alkyl vinyl ether ) is measured by 19 f ft - nmr of a solution of the copolymer in benzotrifluoride . that is , the content of the perfluoro ( alkyl vinyl ether ) is calculated from a ratio of an integrated strength of a peak assigned to the side chain perfluoro ( alkyl ether ) groups to those of other peaks from 19 f nmr spectrum . by using a koka - type flow tester , a melt flow rate is measured by extruding a melt of the copolymer from a nozzle having a diameter of 1 mm and a length of 1 mm under a load of 100 kg / cm 2 at 230 ° c . from a sheet which is molded by heat press and has a thickness of 1 mm , a sample having a length of 60 mm and a width of 8 mm is cut out and heated in an electric furnace at 100 ° c . for one hour to prepare a test sample . each sample is bent by a bending modulus tester with increasing a bending angle by 10 degrees , and an angle at which the sample is first whitened on bending is measured as a whitening start angle . the larger whitening start angle means better suppression of crystallization . the present invention will be illustrated by following examples , in which &# 34 ; parts &# 34 ; are by weight . preparation of a chlorotrifluoroethylene polymer modified with 0 . 05 % by mole of perfluoro ( propyl vinyl ether ) in a jacketed polymerization reactor equipped with a stirrer which could contain 4000 parts of water , deionized deaerated water ( 1000 parts ) and sodium hydrogencarbonate ( 0 . 75 part ) were charged . after replacing the interior atmosphere with pure nitrogen gas , the nitrogen gas was evacuated under reduced pressure . then , chlorotrifluoroethylene ( 1000 parts ), perfluoro ( propyl vinyl ether ) ( 10 parts ) and carbon tetrachloride ( 10 parts ) were injected under pressure . after adjusting the interior temperature at 20 ° c ., stirring was started . to the stirred mixture , a solution of [ cl ( cf 2 cfcl ) 2 -- cf 2 coo ] 2 in trichlorotrifluoroethane ( 0 . 3 g / ml ) ( 13 parts ) was added as a polymerization initiator to initiate polymerization . after 24 hours polymerization , unreacted chlorotrifluoroethylene was purged , and a resulting copolymer was recovered , washed with warm water and dried to obtain powdery copolymer ( 370 parts ). a composition and properties of the copolymer are shown in the table . preparation of a chlorotrifluoroethylene polymer modified with 0 . 5 % by mole of perfluoro ( propyl vinyl ether ) in the same manner as in example 1 but charging 107 parts of perfluoro ( propyl vinyl ether ) and no carbon tetrachloride , polymerization was carried out to obtain a powdery copolymer ( 240 parts ). a composition and properties of the copolymer are shown in the table . preparation of a chlorotrifluoroethylene polymer modified with 1 . 1 % by mole of perfluoro ( propyl vinyl ether ) in the same manner as in example 1 but charging 244 parts of perfluoro ( propyl vinyl ether ) and no carbon tetrachloride , polymerization was carried out to obtain a powdery copolymer ( 120 parts ). a composition and properties of the copolymer are shown in the table . preparation of a chlorotrifluoroethylene polymer modified with 4 . 0 % by mole of vinylidene fluoride in a jacketed polymerization reactor equipped with a stirrer which could contain 4000 parts of water , deionized deaerated water ( 1000 parts ) and sodium hydrogencarbonate ( 0 . 75 part ) were charged . after replacing the interior atmosphere with pure nitrogen gas , the nitrogen gas was evacuated under reduced pressure . then , chlorotrifluoroethylene ( 1000 parts ), vinylidene fluoride ( 16 parts ) and carbon tetrachloride ( 8 parts ) were injected under pressure . after adjusting the interior temperature at 20 ° c ., stirring was started . to the stirred mixture , a solution of [ cl ( cf 2 cfcl ) 2 -- cf 2 coo ] 2 in trichlorotrifluoroethane ( the same concentration as in example 1 ) ( 10 parts ) was added as a polymerization initiator to initiate polymerization . during polymerization , vinylidene fluoride ( 10 parts ) was additionally added over 48 hours to make the gas composition in the reactor constant , and after 24 hours from the start of the polymerization , the same solution of [ cl ( cf 2 cfcl ) 2 -- cf 2 coo ] 2 in trichlorotrifluoroethane as above ( 10 parts ) was added . the total polymerization time was 48 hours . thereafter , unreacted chlorotrifluoroethylene was purged , and a resulting copolymer was recovered , washed with warm water and dried to obtain powdery copolymer ( 580 parts ). a composition and properties of the copolymer are shown in the table . in a jacketed polymerization reactor equipped with a stirrer which could contain 4000 parts of water , deionized deaerated water ( 1000 parts ) and sodium hydrogencarbonate ( 0 . 75 part ) were charged . after replacing the interior atmosphere with pure nitrogen gas , the nitrogen gas was evacuated under reduced pressure . then , chlorotrifluoroethylene ( 1000 parts ) was injected under pressure . after adjusting the interior temperature at 20 ° c ., stirring was started . to the stirred mixture , a solution of [ cl ( cf 2 cfcl ) 2 -- cf 2 coo ] 2 in trichlorotrifluoroethane ( the same concentration as in example 1 ) ( 3 parts ) was added as a polymerization initiator to initiate polymerization . after 24 hours from the start of the polymerization , the same solution of [ cl ( cf 2 cfcl ) 2 -- cf 2 coo ] 2 in trichlorotrifluoroethane as above ( 1 . 5 parts ) was added . the total polymerization time was 42 hours . thereafter , unreacted chlorotrifluoroethylene was purged , and a resulting copolymer was recovered , washed with warm water and dried to obtain powdery copolymer ( 460 parts ). a composition and properties of the copolymer are shown in the table . table__________________________________________________________________________ tensile properties . sup . ) example melt flow rate melting heat of fusion crystallization ys ts el whiteningno . modifier ( mol %) (× 10 . sup .- 3 cc / sec .) point (° c .) ( cal / g ) temp . ( kg / cm . sup . 2 ) ( kg / cm . sup . 2 ) (%) start angle (°) __________________________________________________________________________1 perfluoro - 27 . 6 213 . 5 5 . 22 174 . 0 424 . 7 257 . 2 49 . 5 60 ( propyl vinylether ) ( 0 . 05 ) 2 ↑ ( 0 . 5 ) 2 . 65 201 . 0 3 . 04 164 . 0 389 . 4 262 . 3 61 . 5 90comp . 1 ↑ ( 1 . 1 ) 27 . 6 189 . 5 2 . 45 146 . 0 368 . 2 269 . 2 139 . 8 90comp . 2vinylidene 59 . 0 193 . 5 4 . 61 153 . 0 367 . 8 219 . 7 64 . 2 60fluoride ( 4 . 0 ) comp . 3 -- 39 . 4 213 . 5 4 . 81 178 . 5 441 . 7 274 . 7 72 . 5 40__________________________________________________________________________ note : . sup .) ys : yield stress ts : tensile strength el : elongation	2
fig1 shows a video screen 1 containing a menu that comprises buttons 2 , 3 and related text describing the buttons . when a user presses a button 5 , 6 on a remote control 4 , the state of a button 2 , 3 may change , and also the representation of the button . in fig1 one button 2 is selected , and thus looks different from the unselected buttons 3 . when the user e . g . presses the “ right ” button 6 on the remote control , another button 3 is selected being right from the currently selected button 2 . when the user presses the “ ok ” button 5 , the selected button is activated , and the function associated with the selected button is performed . the selected button 2 according to the invention is animated , e . g . has another color and another shape than an unselected button 3 , and its color or shape may change . particularly , the button may also be replaced by a moving symbol , a moving cartoon or the like , depending on the state . a preferred embodiment of the invention is based on the syntax and semantics of the subtitling specification contained in the document “ ets 300 743 : digital video broadcasting ( dvb ); subtitling system ” ( dvb - st ), provided by the european telecommunication standardization institute ( etsi ). to provide enhanced capabilities for menus relating to optical storage media , the page composition segment defined in dvb - st is extended to describe animated menu buttons and to associate a sound or sound sequence to a button . the enhanced page composition segment is herein called a “ menu page composition segment ”. this invention , like dvb_st , uses page composition segments to describe the position of one or more rectangular regions on the display , assuming that a region contains a representation of one button in a certain state , e . g . as pixel data or bitmap . each button image is thus addressable through an identifier ( id ), or “ region_id ”. in this embodiment of the invention , backward compatibility is kept with dvb - st by using an associated segment type id for the menu page composition segment . the menu page composition segment is defined as listed in tab . 1 . the “ menu page composition segment ” according to the invention may also replace the original page composition segment , e . g . in dvb - st . a menu page composition segment describes a menu and provides the necessary layout and timing information as well as additional control information . in one embodiment of the invention , being a simple case with static menus , each button is represented by e . g . three images . a first image represents the button in the “ normal ” state , a second image represents the button in the “ selected ” state and a third image represents the button in the “ activated ” state . these images may be stored e . g . as bitmap files on the storage medium , and may be used to display the menu . in another embodiment , going beyond static menus , the menu page composition segment also allows to describe animated buttons . in this case , the “ normal ” state and the “ selected ” state of a button are each represented through a series of images that are displayed , and may be e . g . cyclically repeated , on the screen to achieve the animation effect . also for the “ activated ” state of a button an animation can be defined , but here it may be advantageous to display the animation phases only once , because the menu will usually disappear or be modified after a button was activated . for all button animations of a menu the menu author can specify an animation frame rate , defining how long each phase of an animation is displayed . advantageously , the invention also provides the possibility to give aural feedback to the user . if a button is either in the “ selected ” state or in the “ activated ” state , it may be assigned a sound identifier associated with a sound , which may be stored on the storage medium . the associated sound is played back when the button enters the respective button state . in one embodiment of the invention the associated sound is played back repeatedly , as long as the button is in the respective state . the structure of the menu page composition segment and the semantics of the fields of the menu page composition segment are based on the structure and semantics given in dvb - st , section 7 . 2 . 1 “ page composition segment ”. additional semantics definitions are used for an enhanced menu according to the invention . tab . 1 shows the structure of a menu page composition segment according to the invention . lines 1 - 8 are identical to the subtitle segment of the dvb - st standard , giving the possibility to keep backward compatibility . the meaning of the fields shown in tab . 1 is described in the following . the addressing of pixels is based on a coordinate system whose origin is defined by the top - left corner of the associated video screen . pixel addresses increase from left to right and from top to bottom . the dimensions of the associated video are defined as video_width * video_height . a segment is generally a data unit within the storage area . the segment_type defines its type . the menu page composition segment may be identified by setting e . g . segment_type = 0x18 , since this value is not used in dvb - st yet . the other fields in lines 2 - 8 of tab . 1 define the segment data set . the animation_frame_rate_code field specifies the frame rate of animations in the case of animated buttons being used . it applies to a range of regions specified by start_region_id_xxx and end_region_id_xxx , with the “ xxx ” referring the state of a button . if a start_region_id_xxx and its corresponding end_region_id_xxx differ , they define a range of regions that shall be presented with this animation frame rate . for the normal and selected state , the presentation may be cyclically repeated ; for the “ activated ” state , the presentation shall be performed only once . when any start_region_id_xxx is identical to the associated end_region_id_xxx , this designates a static or non - animated button state . only the region designated by start_region_id_xxx is displayed , and for that button state the animation_frame_rate_code shall have no meaning . tab . 2 shows an exemplary list of animation_frame_rate_codes . an animation may be visible at full video frame rate , e . g . 30 pictures per second , meaning that with each video frame another phase of the animation is displayed . it may also be sufficient to display only with every other video frame another phase of the animated button , thus achieving another effect . further , it is possible to define the frame rate to either be relative or absolute . therefore the values of the animation_frame_rate_code field have two different meanings , depending on if an associated video is present . in this case the animation_frame_rate_code gives the animation frame rate relative to the video frame rate , otherwise it gives the absolute frame rate . the button_number field specifies a number that is an internal identifier for a button , and is used for the fields defined below , e . g . the neighbour_info ( ) field . additionally , when button_number is entered directly through the user interface ( ui ), the associated button may be activated . therefore a button_number is unique within the menu . it may be e . g . a two - digit number in the range between 0 and 99 . some fields used for menu animation according to the invention must be specified separately for each button . they are listed from line 11 of tab . 1 , where a loop over all buttons starts . each instance of the loop refers to one button . implicitly , the button described by the first instance of the while - loop within menu_page_composition_segment ( ) may be considered as “ selected ” when entering the menu , and may be considered as “ activated ” if a page timeout for the menu is set and becomes active . the button_horizontal_address field specifies the horizontal address of the top left pixel of the button . the specified horizontal position may be in between 0 and video_width − 1 . likewise , the button_vertical_address field specifies the vertical address of the top left pixel of the button . the specified vertical position may be in between 0 and video_height − 1 . the upper_button_number field specifies the button to be selected when the user navigates upward from the current button . the lower_button_number field specifies the button to be selected when the user navigates downward from the current button . the left_button_number field specifies the button to be selected when the user navigates left from the current button . and the right_button_number field specifies the button to be selected when the user navigates right from the current button . the start_region_id_normal field specifies the id of the first region to be presented for a button presentation in normal state , and the end_region_id_normal field specifies the id of the last region to be presented for a button presentation in normal state . all regions with an id between and including start_region_id_normal and end_region_id_normal shall exist ; if start_region_id_normal differs from end_region_id_normal , that range of regions shall be presented cyclically with the animation frame rate as defined by animation_frame_rate_code . the start_region_id_selected field specifies the id of the first region to be presented for a button presentation in the selected state , and the end_region_id_selected field specifies the id of the last region to be presented for a button presentation in the selected state . all regions with ids between start_region_id_selected and end_region_id_selected shall exist ; if start_region_id_selected differs from end_region_id_selected , that range of regions shall be presented cyclically with the animation frame rate described by animation_frame_rate_code . the start_region_id_activated field specifies the id of the first region to be presented for a button presentation in activated state , and the end_region_id_activated field specifies the id of the last region to be presented for a button presentation in activated state . all regions with ids between start_region_id_activated and end_region_id_activated shall exist ; if start_region_id_activated differs from end_region_id_activated , that range of regions shall be presented once with the animation frame rate described by animation_frame_rate_code . the button_command_info ( ) field serves as a container for commands associated with this button , specifying the commands to be performed when the button is activated . finally , the selected_sound_id field specifies the id of the sound to be played when the button enters the “ selected ” state , and the activated_sound_id field specifies the id of the sound to be played when the button enters the “ activated ” state . the invention may be used particularly for menus stored on blu - ray discs , but also dvd or other optical or non - optical high - capacity storage media .	6
as shown in fig1 the whisk handle is composed of a hollow handle body 1 , into which is inserted an insert 2 which , in cooperation with the handle body 1 keeps in place the metal loops 3 constituting the actual whisk . the insert 2 is affixed to the handle by a pin 4 . the free end of the handle is sealed by a stopper 5 and the handle body insert assembly 1 , 2 is over - molded , such that an outer coat 6 provides an impermeable seal , in particular against liquids . the body 1 of the handle , as shown in fig2 comprises two main parts . the first part 20 is long and straight , and the second part 21 is hollow and frustoconical and constitutes the affixation zone for the metal loops 3 . however , the overall shape imparted to the handle is meant to facilitate gripping the handle , and to allow its use without muscle tensing , by avoiding hand slippage in the direction of the whisk . in this manner , besides its actual function , the handle of the invention also is ergonomically significant and thus boosts its usefulness . the long part 20 is hollow for lightening the whisk , and consequently , it is able to float when in a liquid . the cavity is sealed by a stopper 5 , composed of two superposed cylinders , of which the narrower ( 22 ) enters the body of the handle , whereas the wider ( 23 ) is locked in place by an offset 24 present for that purpose at the free end of the handle . the handle cross - section is octagonal , as can be observed in fig6 . the main advantage of this configuration is to allow proper gripping while avoiding rotation of the handle in the hand if the hand is wet or greasy . the flared portion 21 of the body of the handle 1 is meant to receive the insert 2 to keep the metal loops 3 in place between the cone 25 and said insert 2 . this flared portion consists of a frustum - of - cone 25 with an angle of a few degrees and of blades 26 running radially relative to the base of this flared portion , toward the axis of revolution of the body of the handle 1 . these blades 26 cooperate with the insert 2 to lock in place the ends 7 of the metal loops 3 . two diametrically opposite orifices 27 , 28 are present near the end of the frustrum - of - cone 25 to house a pin 4 affixing the insert 2 onto the body of the handle 1 . the insert 2 shown in fig3 evinces a generally frustoconical shape . at the large conical cross - section , the insert 2 comprises a central cylinder 30 , to keep the insert 2 in place and consequently , also the body of handle 1 , during over - molding . moreover , its flared end cooperates the with plastic layer 6 put in place by over - molding , to endow the handle with a convex , domed shape where the whisk - constituting wires 3 issue , thereby enhancing the flow and evacuation of the washing liquid in this vicinity and hence , enhancing anti - bacterial action . on its periphery the insert 2 comprises a set of regularly spaced grooves 32 running along generatrices of the frustrum - of - cone . these grooves 32 receive the lower part of the metal loops 3 . the grooves which are diametrically opposite ( 32 , 34 ) are also of the same length . all pairs of grooves are of different lengths , the smallest gap between two lengths essentially corresponding to the thickness of the metal wire constituting the loops 3 . thus , in order to use identical loops 3 , the offset caused by loop superposition is accomplished by insert 2 . the end of the lower portion of the loops 3 terminates into a hook 7 , bent back at the end of the groove to prevent the corresponding wire from being tom out . when the loops are each in their respective grooves , the insert - loops assembly is moved into the flared portion 21 of the body of the handle , and the periphery 33 of the insert cone as well as the loops thereby come to press against the inside surface of the cone 21 . furthermore , entry of the insert 2 into the core of the zone 21 is limited by molded blades 26 located at the bottom of the flared zone 21 . these blades 26 run radially from the inside surface of the wall defining the zone 21 . they are designed to cooperate with the ends of the grooves 32 , in a manner to ensure that the hook 7 of each metal loop 3 is locked in place , thereby precluding the danger of these loops being tom out or rotating about themselves . said blades are of different heights , in order to tightly cooperate with the grooves which also are of different lengths , the highest blades cooperating with the shortest flutings and vice - versa . the central part of the insert 2 is hollow to allow bending back the ends 7 of the loops 3 . the hollow cylinder also is useful when injection - molding the insert . after all the components have been assembled , over - molding is carried out , for instance using a slightly flexible polyethylene , such as the one commercially known as kraton ® made by multibase , as a result of which an impermeable seal is formed around the handle . the mold evinces a convex , domed surface where the loops issue ( 31 ), and thereby , as already mentioned the utensil may be easily cleaned . as shown in fig2 two protrusions 36 are present on the body of the handle 1 away from the flared region 21 . these two protrusions are flush with the handle periphery following over - molding . in other words , the projecting height they cause substantially corresponds to the thickness of the plastic , surface - molded layer 6 . during over - molding , the body of the handle and the insert keeping the loops in place are moved into an over - molding mold . the main function of the protrusions 36 is to assure centering the handle body 1 in the mold . moreover , the rise of these protrusions constitutes a zone within which a sign or logo may be affixed . it follows from the above description that the invention offers many advantages in particular relating to sanitation , because of the perfect sealing achieved by over - molding . moreover the novel design of the insert allows using a single kind of loop and thereby manufacture of the whole whisk is made easier . notice also should be taken that lightweight materials are used and that ergonomic shapes are offered which impart reliable comfort to the user . this comfort is further enhanced by the slightly flexible material used for over - molding at the handle , thus avoiding any tetanization during use .	0
fig1 is a block diagram of a generic disk drive system 10 , which represents the general environment in which the invention may be practiced . the system includes a magnetic media disk 12 that is rotated by a spindle motor 14 and spindle driver circuit 16 . a data transducer or head 18 is locatable along selectable radial tracks ( not shown ) of the disk 12 by a voice coil motor 22 . the radial tracks may contain magnetic states that contain information about the tracks , such as track identification data , location information , synchronization data , as well as user data , and so forth . the head 18 is used both to record user data to and read user data back from the disk , as well as to detect signals that identify the tracks and sectors at which data is written , and to detect servo bursts that enable the head to be properly laterally aligned with the tracks of the disk , as below described . analog electrical signals that are generated by the head 18 in response to the magnetic signals recorded on the disk are preamplified by a preamplifier 24 for delivery to read channel circuitry 26 . servo signals are detected and demodulated by one or more servo demodulator circuits 28 and processed by a digital signal processor ( dsp ) 30 to control the position of the head 18 via the positioning driver circuit 32 . the servo data that is read and processed may be analog data that is interpreted by the dsp 30 for positioning the head 18 . a microcontroller 34 is typically provided to control the dsp 30 , as well as an interface controller 36 to enable data to be passed to and from a host interface ( not shown ) in known manner . a data memory 38 may be provided , if desired , to buffer data being written to and read from the disk 12 . details of the spindle motor driver circuit 16 are shown in the box diagram , or “ signal flow graph ” of fig2 to which reference is now additionally made . drive signals to a commutator circuit 42 are provided by a vco section 44 of the circuit 16 , and a phase detection of the voltages applied to the motor 14 are detected in a phase detector circuit 46 , both in a similar manner as in prior art circuits . however , the circuit 16 includes a phase detector circuit 48 , a filter circuit 50 and an oscillator , or “ voltage controlled oscillator ” ( vco ) 52 , which , according to a preferred embodiment of the invention , are digital circuits , in contradistinction to the analog circuits previously used for these purposes . the phase detector circuit 48 takes its inputs from the phase detector 46 and from a timing circuit 58 . more particularly , the “ zero ” and “ invert ” signals from the phase detector 46 are delivered on respective lines 54 and 56 to the input of a phase detector circuit 48 . in addition , the timing circuit 58 provides clock signals ( rc_clk ) on line 60 , a reset signal ( udrst ) on line 62 and an enable signal ( uden ) on line 64 as inputs to the phase detector circuit 48 . the relative timing of the various signals rc_clk , uden , and udrst are below described in detail . in operation , the phase detector circuit 48 calculates a phase error signal ( phe ) on line 66 , and adjusts the frequency of the output of the vco circuit 52 upward or downward , according to this phase error . the phase detector circuit 48 determines the phase error by accumulating a value during a window that is established by the timing circuit 58 , and includes an up / down register 68 that provides an accumulated phase error value to a phase - error latch circuit 70 , the output of which controls the frequency of the vco circuit 52 . the up / down register is referred to herein as the phase - error accumulator register . as will become apparent , the phase error value is used to determine a control signal drc on line 72 , which is actually used to control the frequency of the vco circuit 52 , as well as to provide a signal to be accumulated in the phase - error accumulator register 68 , which may be , for example , in a hardware implementation , a series of d - type flip - flops . thus , the drc signal on line 72 is weighted , if desired , in a weighting circuit 74 , and is passed through a maximum value circuit 76 . the maximum value circuit provides a lower limit to the value of drc that is allowed to pass , as well as establishing a minimum value ( udincmin ), such as 3 in the embodiment shown . the minimum value of udincmin in provided as a programmable input on line 78 to the maximum value circuit 76 . the output from the maximum value circuit 76 is applied to an invert circuit 80 and a zero value circuit 82 to provide an increment value that is summed by a summer 84 with the output from the phase - error accumulator register 68 on line 86 . the summed value is then inputted to the phase - error accumulator register 68 on line 88 , and registered therein . the phase - error accumulator register 68 is clocked by the output of the vco . still more particularly , the operation of the phase - error accumulator register 68 is determined by the values of the various input signals invert , zero , udrst , uden , and rc_clk , as shown in fig3 to which reference is now additionally made . the phase detector controls the invert and zero signals , depending upon the phase of the signals detected between the floating coil of the motor 14 and the center tap thereof . when zero is low and invert is low , as denoted by reference numeral 90 , a positive phase error will accumulate in the phase - error accumulator register 68 . when zero is low and invert is high , as shown by reference numeral 92 , a negative phase error will accumulate in the phase - error accumulator register 68 . during times when zero is high , as denoted by reference numeral 94 , no error will be accumulated in the phase - error accumulator register 68 . additionally , the phase detector circuit 48 builds up a count that represents the phase error in the phase - error accumulator register 68 during a time interval defined by uden being high 96 . just before uden rises , udrst changes state 98 to clear the phase - error accumulator register 68 to enable it to begin a fresh count . once the phase error has been determined and accumulated in the phase - error accumulator register 68 , the accumulated value is latched by the signal rc_clk 102 in the phase - error latch circuit 70 to become the current phase error . the phase - error latch circuit 70 also may be , for example , in a hardware implementation , a series of d - type flip - flops . thus , the amplitude of the error accumulated on each vco clock edge is proportional or related to drc , is developed by the filter circuit 50 to provide the input to the vco circuit 52 . the filter circuit 50 calculates a proportional and integral error and updates drc . the update rate of the filter circuit 50 is controlled by the rc_clk signal on line 60 , which rises shortly after the phase error has been accumulated in ud , as shown by signal 102 in fig3 . the filter circuit 50 weights the phase error signal from the phase - error latch circuit 70 in weighting circuits 110 and 112 , with weighting factors ki and kp , respectively . ki controls the integral gain of the filter integrator circuit 114 , and kp provides a proportionality gain of the output in establishing drc . the ki and kp constants may be user programmable , if desired , and typical values are given below . it is desirable to provide user programmability of these values to permit the user to tailor the step response of the pll to his needs . in general , a high bandwidth pll will have more phase jitter but be will respond more quickly to a phase error . a low bandwidth pll will take longer to respond , but will have less phase jitter . the output of weighting circuit 110 is summed with the output of the filter integrator circuit 114 in a summer 116 . the filter integrator circuit 114 may be , for example , in a hardware implementation , a series of d - type flip - flops . the output of the weighting circuit 112 is also summed with the output of the summer 116 in a summer 118 , which is weighted in a third weighting circuit 120 to provide the signal drc to line 72 . typically , the weighting factor , kdrc , in weighting circuit 120 would not be user adjustable . the signal drc , as mentioned above , is supplied back to the phase detector circuit 48 and to the vco circuit 52 . the vco is an “ accumulator style ” circuit , which also may be , for example , in a hardware implementation , a series of d - type flip - flops that output an average frequency proportional or related to the drc signal on line 72 . the drc signal is weighted in a weighting circuit 122 , and is summed in a summer 124 with the output of the vco circuit 126 . the vco circuit 126 is clocked by a system clock signal , which may be , for example , on the order of 10 mhz . the output of the vco circuit 126 is the sign bit of the accumulator on line 128 , which controls the commutator circuit 44 . this signal is : f vco = drc × f clk 2 n it can be seen that the behavior of the circuit is determined by the constants udincmin , kud , kp , ki , kdrc , and drcmin . for example , if the word in the phase - error accumulator register 68 is 15 bits long , the word in the phase - error latch circuit 70 may be 12 bit long , least significant bit ( lsb ) adjusted to the word in the phase - error accumulator register 68 . preferably , roll over of the phase - error latch circuit 70 is not allowed ; however , the register may be saturated and sign extended if necessary . the word contained in the filter integrator circuit 114 may be a 16 bit unsigned word , least significant bit ( lsb ) adjusted to the word in the filter integrator circuit 114 . again , preferably roll over of the filter integrator circuit 114 is not allowed ; however , the register may be saturated and sign extended if necessary . the length of drc on line 72 may be the upper 12 bits of the filtered phase error signal , phe , on line 66 , and the word length in the vco circuit 126 may be 13 bits , with the sign bit providing the output ( qvco ) on line 128 . the coefficients kud , kdrc , kp , and ki may be fixed in hardware in a preferred embodiment ; however , kp and ki may be user adjustable , if desired to optimize the tradeoff between vco slew rate and vco jitter . in practice , the user may use one value of kp and ki during motor start and another during motor run . with the word lengths as described above , typical values for these constants may be as follows : udincmin = 3 ; drcmin = 32 ; kud = 1 / 64 ; kdrc = 1 / 16 ; kp = 1 ; ki = 1 / 8 . although the invention has been described above with reference to fig2 with respect to a hardware implementation , it will be appreciated that many of the functions performed by the hardware may be performed in a suitably programmed digital signal processor ( dsp ). more particularly , many of the functions can be performed in the dsp 30 associated with the mass data storage device 10 , as shown , for example , in the block diagram of fig4 to which reference is now additionally made . as can be seen , the functions of the phase detector circuit 48 and the filter circuit 60 have been incorporated into the dsp 30 , to provide the output signal drc to the vco 52 . if desired , the functions of the vco circuit may also be incorporated into the dsp 30 . fig5 shows a flow chart of a program that may be used in the dsp 30 of fig4 showing how the timing signal for delivery to the commutation circuit is developed by the dsp 30 . typically , a 20 mhz clock signal is provided , although it is not intended to limit the operation of the circuits herein to such frequency . the vco 126 operates on the rising clock edge of every other clock pulse . thus , the first step in the process is to determine if the received clock edge is an even clock edge 104 . if the clock is an even cycle , the next pll / vco instruction is implemented 106 , and the clock cycles are continued to be monitored 104 . if the clock is not an even cycle , the maximum drc and dacmin values are added to the vco 108 . the sign bit of the vco value is outputted on the line 128 ( qvco ), and the clock cycles are continued to be monitored 104 . fig6 is a flow chart showing how the dsp 30 may be programmed to develop the drc signal . each time a pll / vco instruction is implemented , as shown in box 106 of fig5 the loop 130 runs . the first decision 132 is to determine whether a phase detection window has begun . if not , the process loops and continues . if the phase detection window has begun , which corresponds to the occurrence of udrst and uden in the hardware embodiment described above , then the first udinc is loaded into the ud register 134 . a determination is then made 136 whether a phase detection window has ended . if not , then an incrementing value udinc is added to the contents of the ud register 138 if qvco 128 has recently risen . during the passes through block 136 while awaiting the end of the phase detection window , the phase error value is accumulated . this may take , for example 64 increments for each pwm cycle . the number of pwm cycles contained in the phase detection window may vary from application to application , for instance between 1 and 4 . the user may be allowed to program values corresponding to the values ki 110 and kp 112 in the hardware implementation above to define the loop gain of the pll . these values , referred to herein as pki and pkp , will be multiplied by the accumulated phase error value for processing , as below described . as mentioned , the clock frequency used for the accumulation is qvco in the embodiment illustrated . if a phase detection window has ended , corresponding to the occurrence of rc_clk in the hardware embodiment above , the contents of the ud register , which represents the accumulated phase error , are stored in a phase error register 140 , in preparation for storage in an accumulator register of the dsp . the accumulated phase error value stored in the phase error register is then multiplied by the pki multiplier , described above , and added to the value in the filter register . this corresponds to the provision of user programmability to adjust the step response of the pll to his needs . the multiplied value of the accumulated phase error and pwm weighting factor pki are then stored in an integrating circuit register or accumulator 142 in the dsp . this value is further weighted with a value , pkp , corresponding to the weight provided in the hardware embodiment described above by factor kp 112 in fig2 and the new value stored 144 in the accumulator 142 . the updated value is then stored in a register as a drc value 146 , for use in controlling the frequency of the vco . although the invention has been described and illustrated with a certain degree of particularity , it is understood that the present disclosure has been made only by way of example , and that numerous changes in the combination and arrangement of parts can be resorted to by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention , as hereinafter claimed .	7
the present invention is a method and composition for desensitizing the detonation potential of ammonium nitrate formulations or any other inorganic oxidizing salts which may be used in the production of anfo . the invention generally includes adding carrier elements containing a suppressant into the composition . the carrier elements are formulated to allow selective release of the suppressant to control the detonation potential . for example , the detonation potential can be controlled by adding an encapsulated suppressant to ammonium nitrate at the time of manufacture , and later activating the suppressant when desired to reduce or entirely eliminate the detonation potential . the inorganic oxidizing salts useful in the manufacture anfo include fertilizer grade ammonium nitrate and others as set forth in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 637 , 849 to harris , jr ., the &# 39 ; 849 patent being incorporated herein by reference . these inorganic oxidizing salts may include ammonium , alkali metals and alkaline earth metal nitrates , perchlorates , sulfates and the like . specific examples of commonly employed salts are ammonium nitrate , ammonium perchlorate , sodium nitrate , sodium perchlorate , potassium nitrate , potassium perchlorate , magnesium nitrate , magnesium perchlorate , calcium nitrate and the like . mixtures of the foregoing salts can be used . the present invention is applicable to all such inorganic oxidizing salts , albeit the preferred salt is ammonium nitrate . ammonium nitrate ( nh 4 no 3 ) is a well known and widely used nitric fertilizer . plants easily absorb ammonium nitrate in their growing period . prilled ammonium nitrate is a porous pelletized product comprising particles approximately 0 . 5 - 2 . 5 mm in size . when used in the manufacture of anfo , the porous prills absorb fuel oil . a composition of 94 % ammonium nitrate and 6 % fuel oil yields the explosive product , anfo . in accordance with the method of the present invention , an encapsulated suppressant is added to the porous prilled ammonium nitrate to reduce the detonation potential of anfo . preferably , the encapsulated suppressant is in the form of a microballoon . microballoons are small capsules which range in size from 10 - 500 μm in diameter . sizes at the smaller end of this range are preferred because small balloons have a higher surface area - to - volume ratio and release their contents faster than large diameter balloons . the larger surface area allows for more efficient and rapid water release upon rupture in response to a shock wave . the microballoons are incorporated into the porous cavities of the ammonium nitrate prills , and assimilation renders the microballoons difficult to separate from the prills . the shell of the microballoons is preferably made of sodium silicate or a carbimide resin . an exemplary microballoon is available in powder form from the chemical delivery systems , inc . of kettering , ohio . these microballoons are capable of holding at least 80 % water content by weight in the cavity of the capsules . they are resistant to dessication in a dry environment , and they can survive high temperatures ( 170 c ). other acceptable shell materials include alginates , phospholipids , polysaccharide , cellulose , synthetic polymers , natural gums , waxes , melamine , nylon , saran , zein , polycarbonates , or resins . the shell material of the microballoons encapsulates a detonation suppressant . the microballoons are sufficiently durable for holding the encapsulated suppressant under normal conditions , yet are fragile enough that they break apart in response to a shock wave passing through the fertilizer . in regard to the latter , the encapsulated suppressant can be selectively released into the ammonium nitrate . this can be accomplished by intentionally exposing the composition to a shock wave , thereby selectively releasing the suppressant and reducing or entirely eliminating the detonation potential . in the context of the present invention the preferred suppressant or desensitizing agent is water . inorganic oxygen supplying salts which comprise commercial grade fertilizers are highly water soluble . water or moisture is known to reduce or eliminate the detonation potential of explosives manufactured from such salts and is known to desensitize ammonium nitrate at concentrations of approximately 10 %. moreover , the above - described microballoons serve well to hold a water content even when mixed with ammonium nitrate , and they withstand light pressure , mixing and hand pressing without releasing their contents . specifically , the balloons withstand crushing or pressure to 1000 psi , yet release their contents at 5000 psi . alternative encapsulated materials may also be used including for example , urea . urea encapsulated additives require concentrations of approximately 60 % ( or greater ) to reduce the explosive performance of an / fuel . however , the advantage to adding microencapsulated urea is that urea also acts as a fertilizer , and so is a potentially beneficial additive for an desensitization despite the unfavorably high concentration requirement . the encapsulated suppressant as set forth in the foregoing examples is difficult to separate from the ammonium nitrate prills , is environmentally benign when the ammonium nitrate is released for its intended purpose as a fertilizer , and it serves well to selectively reduce or eliminate the detonation potential of explosives manufactured from commercially available sources of inorganic oxidizing salts , such as commercial fertilizers . in an alternate embodiment hydrated crystals , preferably borax ( sodium tetraborate decahydrate ), may be used as a means of encapsulation . hydrated crystals are most effective at a concentration of approximately 40 % by weight of the ammonium nitrate , and are mixed into the prills during the prill manufacturing process . borax is available in a powder form from fischer scientific . other hydrated crystals which are effective encapsulation agents are mgcl 2 . 6h 2 o , na 2 s 2 o 3 . 5h 2 o , na 2 ( h 2 sio 4 ). 95h 2 o , caso 4 . 2h 2 o , fecl 2 . 4h 2 o , feso 4 . 7h 2 o . fig1 is a table listing exemplary microballoons and their design parameters . each microballoon sample is given a designation listed in the first column . an “ sp ” prefix indicates that the suppressant is water , and an “ rd ” prefix indicates that the suppressant is urea . the third column indicates the percent concentration of the suppressant , and the final column indicates approximate size of each sample . in order to determine which additives are most successful at desensitization or performance reduction , microballoon samples , supplied by chemical delivery systems , inc ., were tested in mixtures of an / fuel compositions at various concentrations . two tests were performed — a small scale shock reactivity test ( ssrt ) and a closed bomb test . the following examples will facilitate a more complete understanding of the invention in term of the test results . the ssrt test was designed to measure prompt shock reactivity of an acceptor explosive mixture . the ssrt consists of four detonators in four separate holes in a steel confinement apparatus bonded to an aluminum dent block . candidate an formulations are placed in each of the steel holes between the detonator and the aluminum dent block . explosive performance is gauged by measuring the dent depth produced in an aluminum dent block after explosion of the detonator . the results of the ssrt are shown in fig2 which is a comparison of results for various concentrations of microballoons and borax with an . the solid line trace shows the performance of diluent ( flyash ) added to an as a baseline for comparison . the 100 to 200 μm microballoon samples perform similarly to the diluent until their concentration exceeds 20 %. the results tend to baseline when a concentration of 25 % microballoon / an is reached . sample 272 - 8 - 2 performs better as a desensitizer at all concentrations tested than its larger counterpart . the microballoon sample baselines performance at a concentration of 20 %. borax also baselines performance at 20 % concentration . results with urea - filed micro - balloons are shown in fig3 . both samples comprise 87 % urea by weight . as urea filled microballoon concentrations are raised above approximately 50 %, the compositions baseline performance . the performance of these compositions tend to baseline the result to that of the inert material at 70 % compositions . the water - filled closed bomb apparatus consists of a stressproof ™ 1144 steel body with a 1 . 5 inch diameter and a 2 . 72 inch deep cavity . a head piece , with a double o - ring system is inserted in to the bomb body . the piece holds the detonator leads which extend into the cavity . the charge is placed in the water and a clamping cap is screwed onto the body to secure the charge / head assembly into place . super pressure lines are connected externally to the bomb , one line containing a housing for a transducer to measure pressures at a distance of approximately eight inches away from the charge , and a second line connected to a valve which is opened and closed externally to the firing chamber . the lines are filled with water prior to connecting to the bomb . pressure external to the bomb is monitored during the experiment by a second transducer mounted in the firing chamber wall . pressures of up to half a kilobar are maintained in the apparatus for up to 12 hours . the results of the closed bomb test are shown in are shown in fig4 . the first column of table ii gives the shot number , while the second column describes the charge . cb - 13a was fired using an rp - 80 detonator ( delrin sleeve ) only , and serves as the baseline for all results . shot cb - 14 contained no microballoons , but used a detonator with a pure 90 % an / 10 % carbon mixture to simulate anfo . all subsequent charges ( shots cb - 15 to cb - 22 ) consisted of a detonator together with an / c mixed with the microballoon sample listed in the description column . the third column gives the weight of the explosive ( mg ) contained in each sample . in the fourth and fifth column are values for b and m , which are linear fitting parameters , obtained by fitting the data from 6 to 12 ms to a line . the column headed p ( t ) gives the quasi - static pressure within the bomb at the time indicated two lines above it . all values below this are compared with the pressure in the next column headed p - pdet to provide the residual or excess pressure produced by the explosive charge above that produced by the detonator alone . the next column gives the weight of each charge normalized to an arbitrary value of 300 mg , which was the total average sample weight in each shot . the p - pdet column was then divided by these normalized weight values to give a normalized value for the residual pressure produced by each sample . these values are presented in the last column , and can be compared directly to examine the output performance of each sample compared to standard an / c at 2 . 03 kpsi . fig5 shows a bar chart of the pnorm values for each sample . the chart shows data from a snapshot at 5 . 5 ms . the detonator serves as the baseline for the charges so it is listed as zero normalized pressure output . water filled micro - balloon samples at concentrations of 10 % to 12 % had a negligible effect on the output performance of the an / c . the height of the residual pressure bar for 10 % sp381 - 337 - 8 is the same as the adjacent bar for pure an / c , indicating that water - filled microballoons at this concentration had no effect on the performance of the an / c . as microballoon concentrations approached 20 %, they significantly reduced the output performance of the an / c mixture . twenty percent concentrations of sp381 - 337 - 8 and sp378 - 271 - 8 - 2 reduced performance from 2 . 03 kpsi output for an / c to approximately 1 . 6 kpsi , which is the residual pressure produced by the detonator alone . having now fully set forth the preferred embodiments and certain modifications of the concept underlying the present invention , various other embodiments as well as certain variations and modifications of the embodiments herein shown and described will obviously occur to those skilled in the art upon becoming familiar with said underlying concept . it is to be understood , therefore , that the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically set forth in the appended claims .	2
as shown in fig1 and 2 , a sabot assembly 10 may include a frangible sabot body portion 12 and a sabot base plug or portion 14 . the sabot base plug 14 may have , as a part thereof , a separate or integral circumferential rotating band 16 . the sabot body 12 may be joined to the sabot base plug 14 by a threaded connection , a press fit , a force fit , notches , studs and grooves or adhesives . the sabot 10 encloses a projectile 18 . the sabot body 12 may have a plurality of pressure application regions or pressure pads 20 formed or secured upon its outer surface . the sabot body 12 has a plurality of separation slots 22 formed in its inner surface 24 parallel to the axis of the sabot body 12 , preferably , positioned beneath respective ones of the pressure pads 20 . the separation slots 22 may have a triangular , square , u - shape or other shape to cause stress concentration in the region of the sabot body 12 proximate to the apices of such triangularly shaped slots to assure fracture lines of predetermined location when the sabot 10 , including the projectile 18 , is launched . the sabot base plug 14 , carrying the sabot body 12 and the projectile 18 , may be secured to a cartridge case 26 by means of a crimp and groove combination 28 . an appropriate propellant 30 is included in the cartridge case 26 , as is a primer 27 . in fig3 the sabot assembly 10 , including the sabot body 12 and the projectile 18 , is shown in position for launching through a barrel or launching tube 32 . as can be seen from fig3 prior to activation of the propellant 30 , the pressure pads 20 of the sabot body 12 extend slightly beyond the inner wall 34 of the barrel or launching tube 32 . when the sabot assembly 10 is forced through the barrel 32 , which has a smaller inside diameter than the diameter of a circle circumscribing the pressure pads 20 , great pressure is exerted on the sabot body 12 and the stress thus produced is concentrated at the apices of the separation slots 22 with a consequent failure line being produced in the sabot body 12 , causing that body to be broken into as many segments as are defined by the failure lines corresponding to the separation slots 22 . although the inner surface 34 of the barrel or launching tube 32 has been shown in fig3 as being smooth , it is to be understood that the inner surface 34 may be rifled so as to cause the sabot 10 , including the projectile 18 , to spin about its longitudinal axis when launched . while in most cases it is true that the projectile to be launched is circular in cross section , it need not be . in such a situation the function of a sabot is to adapt the projectile of non - circular cross section to a launching device , whether it be a gun barrel , launching tube or launching ring of circular cross section or even of other non - circular cross - section . such a use of a sabot is shown in fig4 wherein a payload 36 is carried in a sabot 38 having a plurality of separation slots 40 therein . a pressure ring 41 is a portion of a launching device , not shown , and , as can be seen from fig4 it has an inner diameter which is less than the outer diameter of the sabot 38 . of course , in place of the pressure ring 41 there may be the inner bore of a gun barrel or launching tube . as the sabot 38 carrying the payload 36 is forced through the pressure ring 41 , he sabot 38 will fracture at lines corresponding to the apices of the separation slots 40 . in addition to the tubes and rings , the pressure necessary to produce the fragmentation of the sabot may be produced by means of other point , line or area contact pressure means such as balls , pins , rods , rollers and bars at one or more points into contact with which the sabot moves . where one pressure point is used , a load bearing surface may be utilized to constrict movement of the sabot away from the pressure point , or the inertia forces inherent to a moving sabot assembly moving past a single projecting pressure point will insure contact and resulting pressure . in fig5 a plurality of pressure devices 42 , which may be balls or rods , are positioned to cooperate with the pressure pads 20 so as to cause fragmentation of the sabot 44 along lines corresponding to the apices of the separation slots 22 . the remainder of the launching apparatus of which the rings or balls 42 are parts is not shown in fig5 . where the pressure producing means , such as the balls or rods 42 , do not form a continuous surface , proper orientation of the sabot 44 is necessary . such orientation of the sabot 44 can be achieved by means of indexing notches , studs , magnets , conductive tape or radiation - emitting materials and such indexing means may be located on the sabot , projectile or cartridge case itself . the separation slots used to produce concentrations of mechanical stresses need not be parallel to the axis of the projectile and sabot . they may be circumferential in orientation or there may be a combination of a circumferential and longitudinal separation slots or slots at any angle with respect to the longitudinal axis . one such embodiment is set forth in fig6 wherein a sabot 50 has a plurality of circumferential separation slots 52 therein . in addition , longitudinal separation slots , such as a slot 54 , are provided . the sabot 50 has a plurality of pressure pads 56 , corresponding to pressure pads 20 on sabot body 12 in fig1 . fig7 illustrates a similar configuration in which the separation slots 57 are intersecting and are generally oriented diagonally , relative to the longitudinal axis of the sabot 50 . the development of stresses to produce fragmentation of the sabot body in apparatus according to this invention may be achieved by means other than those set forth in connection with fig1 through 7 . in fig8 instead of pressure pads carried by the sabot body , a stud 58 is carried on an inner wall 60 of a barrel , launching tube or pressure ring 62 . while a single stud is shown in fig8 multiple studs , for example four in number , may be disposed about the inner wall 60 . a sabot body 64 has a plurality of slots 66 designed and dimensioned to cooperate with the stud 58 and its related studs on the inner wall 60 . the number of slots 66 should not be less than the number of the studs 58 ; however , the number of slots 66 may be more than the number of the studs 58 . when the sabot body 64 carrying a projectile 68 moves through the barrel , tube or ring 62 , each of the studs 58 exerts pressure upon the sabot body 64 in the region of a corresponding slot 66 , producing stresses which cause the sabot body 64 to fracture in the region of each of the slots 66 . if desired , additional separating slots , such as a slot 70 of triangular configuration , may be provided in the sabot body 64 along its inner wall 72 to assure fragmentation of the sabot body 64 along well defined , predetermined lines . the sabot body 64 must be properly oriented with respect to barrel , tube or ring 62 in order to assure engagement of each of the slots 66 by one of the studs 58 . if the studs 58 extend for the length of the barrel , tube or ring 62 , initial indexing of the sabot body 64 with its slots 66 engaging the studs 58 is a simple process . the other orientation methods which have been described hereinbefore may also be utilized . the concept of utilizing mechanical pressure on a sabot while the sabot is still within the barrel , launcher tube or pressure ring to produce internal stresses which effect automatic separation of the sabot from the projectile may take an additional form . in fig9 a sabot body portion 74 is separated from a sabot base portion 76 by a sleeve or band 78 to which both the body 74 and the base 76 are secured , as by an adhesive . the pressure of the propellant on the sabot base portion 76 during the launching process causes mechanical pressure , upwardly directed in fig9 to be applied to the band 78 through a sloped surface 80 on the sabot base 76 and a corresponding sloped surface 82 on band 78 . because of the initial inertia of rest of sabot body 74 and the frictional and other forces which sabot body 74 encounters in the launching device , a mechanical force , downwardly directed in the presentation of fig9 is applied to the band 78 by reason of the contact between a sloped surface 84 of the sabot body 74 and a sloped surface 86 of the band 78 . the oppositely directed mechanical forces experienced by the band 78 during the launching process are translated into tensile and other stresses within the band 78 by reason of the sloping relationship between the surface 84 and the surface 86 and between the surface 80 and the surface 82 . this combination of stresses causes the band 78 to be fractured . thus separation of the sabot body 74 and the sabot base 76 from a projectile 88 results . sabot body 74 and sabot base 76 may have pre - cut radial cuts ( not shown ) to assist in separation from the projectile 88 . while energy to move the sabot assembly 10 is shown in fig1 to be a chemical propellant , other energy sources known to practitioners of the engineering arts such as electrical energy , plasmas , magnetic force fields , springs , weights , compressed or heated gases , motors , water induced swelling , etc . can be utilized . although there have been described herein a number of embodiments of a self - separating sabot in accordance with this invention for the purpose of illustrating the manner in which the invention may be used to advantage , it will be appreciated that the invention is not limited thereto . accordingly , any and all modifications , variations or equivalent arrangements which may occur to those skilled in the art should be considered to be within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims .	5
according to fig1 and 2 , the piston 1 according to the invention has a piston head 2 with a combustion recess 3 . the piston head is bounded on the circumferential side by an encircling fire land 4 which is adjoined in the axial downward direction of the piston by an encircling ring portion 5 with circumferential grooves for receiving piston rings ( not illustrated ). piston hubs 6 with hub bores 7 for receiving a piston pin ( not illustrated ) are arranged below the piston head 2 . the piston - side end of a connecting rod 8 is arranged axially between the piston hubs 6 , with the piston pin ( not illustrated ) passing through the piston - side joint eye of said connecting rod and through the piston hubs 6 . during operation , the piston 1 is thermally heavily loaded . an encircling cooling duct 9 into which oil for cooling is sprayed in a manner illustrated further below during operation of the engine is therefore provided radially within the fire land 4 . in addition , during the operation of the engine , the lower side of the piston head 2 is acted upon with cooling splash oil . alternatively , the present invention could also be used on a piston cooled only by splash cooling . for this purpose , an oil reservoir 10 which can be formed , for example , by a half - pipe - shaped sheet metal shell 11 is arranged on that side of the piston - side end of the connecting rod 8 which faces the piston head 2 . said sheet metal shell 11 has a curved longitudinal axis in such a manner that the shell 11 forms a u bend , which is centered with respect to the axis a of the piston pin ( not illustrated ), and can very substantially tightly adjoin the outer side of the piston - side end of the connecting rod 8 , which outer side faces the piston head 2 . in order to fasten the sheet metal shell 11 to the connecting rod 8 , humps 12 which protrude inward toward the connecting rod 8 are impressed into the sheet metal shell 11 . the humps 12 are designed to bear against the outer side of the connecting rod 8 , wherein the height of the humps 12 with respect to the sheet metal shell 11 determines the distance of the sheet metal shell 11 from the connecting rod 8 . the bearing surfaces of the humps 12 , which bearing surfaces are arranged on the inner side of the sheet metal shell 11 , can be spot - welded to the connecting rod . at one longitudinal end , the sheet metal shell 11 is designed as a funnel - like mouth 13 while the other longitudinal end of the sheet metal shell 11 is closed . in addition , one or preferably more splash holes 14 are provided on that side of the sheet metal shell 11 which faces the piston head 2 . the oil reservoir 10 formed by the sheet metal shell 11 interacts with a splash nozzle 15 which is arranged in a stationary manner in the crank space ( not illustrated ) of an internal combustion engine and , during a predetermined phase of the operating cycle of the piston 1 , sprays oil into the mouth 13 of the sheet metal shell 11 and therefore into the oil reservoir 10 . when the piston 1 then runs through the upper dead center thereof during the operating cycle and very high accelerations occur because of the change in direction of the piston movement , the oil previously accommodated in the oil reservoir 10 is held out of the splash holes 14 on to the facing lower side of the piston head 2 . the oil reservoir 10 here forms a shaker space , the shaking movements of which are used for ejecting the oil . in a preferred embodiment , some , and preferably all of the splash holes are arranged with respect to the connecting - rod zenith on that side of the shell part 11 which faces away from the inlet opening 17 , as viewed in a circumferential direction about the axis of articulation of the connecting rod 8 . alternatively or additionally , the size of two or more splash openings 14 in the shell part 11 along a u - shaped longitudinal axis can increase at an increasing distance from the inlet opening 17 . for this purpose , the shell part 11 has at least one first and one second splash opening 14 , wherein the second is larger than the first and is further away than the first from the inlet opening 17 . by means of the two measures , the majority of the oil is ejected via the splash openings 14 precisely where the oil is most urgently needed for cooling , namely on that side of the connecting rod which faces away from the splash jet . the cooling of that part of the piston head 2 which faces away from the splash nozzle 15 is thus improved in a targeted manner . since , during pure splash cooling , the remote regions always obtain less cooling oil at an increasing distance from the splash jet , the two measures contribute to a more uniform cooling of the piston head 2 . the cooling oil is consequently guided in the reservoir 10 around the connecting - rod head and is then released particularly at the point at which the cooling of the piston head solely by splashing would be the weakest . insufficiently cooled and therefore excessively hot regions in which impinging oil may change into coke and form undesirable carbon can thus be avoided . over the course of the operating cycle of the piston 1 , the connecting rod 8 executes pivoting movements relative to the piston 1 , said pivoting movements leading to a tumbling movement of the mouth 13 , with the distance from the splash nozzle 15 being changed at the same time . said tumbling movements and changes in distance can serve for controlling the splash jet produced by the nozzle 15 . for this purpose , the splash jet or the splash nozzle 15 and the mouth 13 can be aligned with respect to each other in such a manner that the splash jet is directed into the mouth 13 only during a first phase of the operating cycle of the piston , whereas said splash jet misses the mouth 13 in a subsequent or preceding second phase and either directly splashes the piston head 2 or preferably penetrates into a piston - side opening 16 which communicates with the annular cooling duct 9 such that the latter is supplied with cooling oil which can subsequently run out again via the opening 16 or another opening ( not illustrated ). in this manner , the oil reservoir 10 according to the invention can be filled and alternatively conventional splash or duct cooling can be brought about using a single oil nozzle 15 . however , according to a further embodiment of the invention , it is also possible to assign two splash nozzles to each piston in the crank space of the engine , with one splash nozzle serving to fill the oil reservoir 10 and the other splash nozzle serving to splash the piston head 2 or to introduce oil into the opening 16 or into the cooling duct 9 . depending on the direction of rotation of the crankshaft connected in terms of drive to the piston 1 via the connecting rod 8 , the mouth 13 of the oil reservoir 10 executes tumbling movements relative to the splash nozzle 15 in mutually opposite directions , wherein the mouth 13 can move in the direction of the splash jet or counter to the splash direction . in the former case , a relatively laminar flow can be obtained during the filling of the reservoir 10 while , in the other case , the reservoir 10 can be filled comparatively rapidly . instead of a sheet metal shell 11 , a shell part composed of another material , for example plastic or the like , can also be provided , wherein even materials which are not highly thermally loadable are possible because the shell part 11 is at a sufficient distance from the thermally highly loaded piston head 2 . however , in all of the configurations , the shell part 11 should be relatively flat such that it is possible for there to be relatively small distance between piston head and axis of articulation of the joint connection piston 1 and connecting rod 8 and accordingly a small compression height of the piston . the invention is not limited to the piston shapes illustrated in fig1 and 2 . on the contrary , the splash cooling according to the invention of the piston heads is possible and advantageous in the case of any piston shapes , for example even in the case of pistons with piston heads which are convexly spherical in the combustion - chamber side .	5
reference will now be made in detail to several embodiments of the invention that are illustrated in the accompanying drawings . wherever possible , same or similar reference numerals are used in the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts or steps . the drawings are in simplified form and are not to precise scale . fig1 shows a perspective view of a sample embodiment of the gearing of the invention in exploded view . on a threaded spindle 10 is arranged a spindle nut 20 , which can be placed in rotation by a drive worm 60 , which can be driven by an electric motor . thanks to a rotation of the spindle nut 20 , it can move in the axial direction on the threaded spindle 10 . the spindle nut 20 and the drive worm 60 are mounted , able to rotate , in a housing assembled from two housing pieces 30 , 32 . the mounting of the spindle nut 20 occurs via bearing bushes 40 ( or alternatively called bush bearing ), which are suitably arranged in the housing . likewise , the mounting of the drive worm 60 occurs via suitably arranged bearing bushes 62 . fig1 furthermore shows an elastic shell 80 , which encloses the assembled housing from the top . fig2 shows a housing piece 30 of the housing of the gearing of fig1 in perspective representation , looking at the inside of the housing piece 30 . the housing pieces 30 , 32 are molded as so - called identical parts , which means that two identical housing parts 30 , 32 are used to assemble one housing . as is shown in fig2 , one housing piece 30 has an essentially rectangularly shaped cross section , on which pins 33 are arranged at two diagonally opposite corners . at the two remaining corners of the housing piece 30 , again being diagonally opposite , there are arranged openings 34 with which the pins 33 engage when assembling two housing pieces 30 , 32 , and which line up and join together the housing pieces 30 , 32 . in the lower part of the housing piece 30 there is a recess 37 to receive the spindle nut 20 in the axial direction . the recess 37 is bounded by contact surfaces 38 front and rear in the axial direction . the contact surfaces 38 have a semicircular opening 35 in the axial direction , by which the threaded spindle 10 is guided in the assembled condition . furthermore , the contact surfaces 38 have two roughly triangular thickenings 39 , which are placed on the contact surfaces 38 at the height of the upper and lower limit of the recess 37 and outside of a diameter of the spindle nut 20 . in the upper region , the housing piece 30 has another opening 36 transversely to the axial direction of the spindle nut , being suitably configured to receive a bearing bush 62 to mount the drive worm 60 . fig3 shows a perspective representation of the housing piece 30 from fig2 , looking at the outside of the housing piece 30 . in this view , the pins 33 and openings 34 described in fig2 for assembling the two housing pieces 30 , 32 can again be seen . through the recess 37 to accommodate the spindle nut 20 , one can also see one of the contact surfaces 38 with the thickenings 39 arranged on the contact surface 38 . in the upper part of the housing piece 30 , in the middle , is arranged the opening 36 described in fig2 to mount the drive worm 60 . fig4 shows a side view of the housing piece 30 from fig2 , 3 , looking at the inside of the housing piece 30 . in the view shown in fig4 , the rectangular recess 37 to accommodate the spindle nut 20 is especially well seen , being bounded front and rear by the contact surfaces 38 in the axial direction . in particular , the thickenings 39 placed on the contact surfaces 38 are especially evident in this view , standing out as projections . fig5 shows a cross section along line a - a of the housing piece 30 of fig4 . in this representation of the housing piece 30 , the contact surface 38 with the semicircular opening 35 is especially well seen . likewise well seen are the thickenings 39 , approximately triangular in plan view , which are arranged on the outer margin of the contact surface , at the upper and lower end , respectively , of the recess 37 . the thickenings 39 are each provided with a bevel toward the inside of the housing 30 , so that a platelike bearing shoulder 41 of the bearing bush 40 can be shoved across the bevel when putting the gearing together . fig6 shows a perspective view of the bearing bush 40 used in the gearing of fig1 to mount the spindle nut 20 in the gearing housing . the bearing bush 40 consists of a platelike bearing shoulder 41 and a tubular bearing segment 42 arranged on the platelike bearing shoulder 41 . the platelike bearing shoulder 41 is fashioned approximately as a circle and has approximately triangular projecting regions 45 arranged on the bearing shoulder 41 on the outer side , which extend in particular beyond the diameter of the spindle nut 20 . the bearing shoulder 41 , furthermore , has a circular opening in the region of the tubular bearing segment 42 , formed as a single piece with it , so that the bearing shoulder 41 is arranged essentially as an annular region 44 at one end of the tubular bearing segment 42 . the bearing bush 40 is dimensioned so that the platelike bearing shoulder 41 in the mounted condition of the gearing coincides with the contact surfaces 38 and the projecting regions 45 are arranged in the region of the thickenings 39 . the annular region 44 of the bearing shoulder 41 is dimensioned so that it has an outer diameter corresponding to the outer diameter of the spindle nut . as can be seen from fig6 , the projecting regions 45 are situated at the annular region 44 of the bearing shoulder 42 so that two outer edges 41 a are produced , being arranged parallel to each other and tangential to the annular region 44 . the bearing bush 40 is fabricated as a single plastic piece , for example . fig7 shows a side view of the bearing bush 40 from fig6 . especially well seen in this view is the platelike bearing shoulder 41 and the tubular bearing segment 42 arranged on this bearing shoulder . fig8 shows a side view of the assembled gearing from fig1 . the spindle nut 20 is mounted in the housing 30 , 32 by means of the bearing bushes 40 . the tubular bearing segments 42 will come to lie in a circular opening of the housing 30 , 32 , formed from the semicircular openings 35 , as can be seen in fig9 . the threaded spindle 10 is led through the bearing bush 40 and the spindle nut 20 . it is especially well seen in the view from fig8 that the projecting regions 45 in the assembled condition of the gearing are arranged so that they sit in the recess 37 on the thickenings 39 in the axial direction . as is especially well seen in fig9 , the outer edges 41 a of the bearing shoulder 41 are flush with the housing pieces 30 , 32 on the outer side . fig1 shows a representation of the assembled gearing from fig8 and 9 in the region of the elastically deformed bearing bush 40 in a side view . hi this side view of the assembled gearing , it is especially well seen that the platelike bearing shoulder 41 is under a prestressing in the finally assembled gearing and runs along a line of flexure b , as shown . the prestressing of the bearing shoulder 41 is achieved in that the contact surfaces 38 are arranged at a distance from each other , corresponding to the sum of the length of the spindle nut 20 and twice the thickness of the platelike bearing shoulder 41 . because the projecting regions 45 come to lie against the thickenings 39 , a prestressing of the platelike bearing shoulder 41 is produced , which prevents any play in the mounting of the spindle nut 20 . in fig1 , the gearing from fig1 is represented with the spindle nut 20 not yet installed . if the bearing bush 40 is inserted into the gearing housing 30 , 32 in its relaxed state , the bearing shoulder 41 will come to lie against the thickenings 39 with its projecting regions 45 . there will remain a gap between the annular region 44 of the bearing shoulder 41 and the contact surface 38 at the height of the thickenings 39 , which defines the possible spring travel x of the bearing bush 40 . by installing the spindle nut 20 , the bearing shoulder 41 will be forced against the contact surface 38 between the thickenings 39 , becoming thus prestressed along the aforementioned line of flexure b . it should be noted here that the invention is not limited to the thickenings 39 being arranged on the housing . for example , it is also possible to provide the thickenings 39 directly on the projecting regions 45 of the bearing shoulder 41 . fig1 shows a longitudinal section of another sample embodiment of the gearing of the invention . in this embodiment , a prestressing of the bearing bush 40 is achieved not by thickenings 39 , but instead by a tension ring 70 , which is arranged between the bearing bush 40 and the contact surface 38 . by a beveling of the contact surfaces 38 , one ensures that the tension ring 70 comes to lie in optimal position relative to the bearing bush 40 , and a force is produced in both the axial and the radial direction of the bearing bush 40 . the rest of the construction of the gearing corresponds to that of the above described sample embodiment and therefore will not be set forth further . fig1 shows the gearing from fig1 , with a tension ring 70 provided on the bearing bushes 40 at either side of the spindle nut 20 . having described at least one of the preferred embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings , it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to those precise embodiments , and that various changes , modifications , and adaptations maybe effected therein by one skilled in the art without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims .	8
the following discussion focuses on the preferred construction of the memory control unit (&# 34 ; mcu &# 34 ;) 100 , which in the preferred embodiment forms part of an integrated processor , in accordance with the general design of fig1 . additional details regarding the preferred integrated processor design may be found in commonly assigned u . s . pat . no . 5 , 557 , 757 entitled &# 34 ; high performance integrated processor architecture including a sub - bus control unit for generating signals to control a secondary non - multiplexed external bus ,&# 34 ; the teachings of which are incorporated herein . moreover , the following discussion regarding the mcu 100 is focused on those components that relate to the operation of the refresh and queue logic so as not to obscure the present invention . other components may be provided as part of the mcu without departing from the present invention . in the preferred embodiment of fig5 the mcu 100 is provided as part of an integrated processor 150 , and coupled to the cpu local bus 165 and / or to local internal buses , such as an 8 - bit z - bus 170 . it should be understood , however , that the mcu 100 of the present invention could be located independently of the processor . in that case , the internal buses would be replaced by a suitable host bus . in the preferred embodiment , the cpu core 120 implements a model 80486 microprocessor instruction set and the cpu local bus 165 comprises a model 80486 - style local bus . thus , in the preferred embodiment , the cpu local bus 165 includes a 32 - bit set of data lines d ( 31 : 0 ), a 32 - bit set of address lines a ( 31 : 0 ), and a set of control lines ( not shown specifically ). once again , however , it should be understood that the cpu core could be configured to implement other microprocessor - type instruction sets , such as a pentium compatible instruction set , without departing from the principles of the present invention . similarly , local bus 165 could be designed according to any of a number of protocols , including a pentium compatible protocol . the integrated processor 150 also preferably includes a bus interface unit 110 and an on chip peripheral device 180 . the integrated processor 150 preferably connects to one or more external devices 128 via external bus 140 . in accordance with the preferred embodiment , the bus interface unit 110 orchestrates the transfer of signals between the local bus 165 and the external bus 140 . the external bus 140 may be configured in accordance with any of a number of conventional computer bus protocols , including a pci ( peripheral component interconnect ) bus , an isa ( industry standard architecture ) bus , or an eisa ( extended industry standard architecture ) bus . the mcu 100 controls memory transactions to the dram memory array 80 , which preferably is comprised of four banks of dram circuits , 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 . the mcu 100 connects to the dram memory array 80 via memory bus 90 . the memory bus preferably includes a set of address , data and control lines , in accordance with conventional practices . referring now to fig2 and 5 , the general configuration of the mcu 100 is shown in block diagram form connected to the cpu local bus 165 and to the 8 - bit z bus 170 , in accordance with the preferred embodiment . the mcu 100 preferably comprises a unified control unit which supports a high performance address and data path to the dram array 80 , as shown in fig5 . the mcu 100 controls access to the dram array 80 and connects to the cpu local bus 165 to provide a path to ram for the cpu , and other peripheral components . the memory control unit 100 connects to the dram array through the memory bus 90 . with continued reference to fig2 fig5 shows a memory bus 90 which preferably comprises the memory address lines ( maddress ), the memory data lines ( mdata ), and various control lines including ras , cas , and write enable we . the dram array 80 comprises the main working memory of the cpu 120 , in accordance with normal convention . the dram array 80 preferably comprises dram circuits configured into a plurality of banks 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , with each bank 32 bits ( or 4 bytes ) wide . in the preferred embodiment , the dram array 80 accommodates as many as four 32 - bit banks supporting up to 256 mb of ram using industry standard modules . as will be understood by one skilled in the art , each of the dram banks typically are sub - divided into &# 34 ; pages .&# 34 ; the page size depends upon the size of the respective dram chips that are used . to enable the dram chips to operate with fewer connector pins , which decreases the number of chips that can be located on the system board , the dram chips are addressed in a multiplexed fashion ; that is the address of each memory cell is transmitted in two phases . the first phase of the address cycle defines the row address and the second phase defines the column address . in the preferred embodiment , the first twelve lines of the memory address bus ma ( 11 : 0 ) are multiplexed outputs and convey the row address location when row address strobe signals ( ras ) are transmitted , and convey the column address location when column address strobe signals ( cas ) are transmitted . an individual memory cell in dram , therefore , is selected by a row address and a column address which are transmitted separately to the dram array . referring still to fig2 the mcu 100 preferably includes an address decoder 30 , an address router 60 and a dram multiplexer 70 ( which forms part of a memory interface unit 65 ) for controlling the manner in which the address a ( 31 : 0 ) from the local bus 165 is provided on the memory address bus maddress . the mcu 100 also preferably includes a bus arbiter unit 35 for initiating memory transactions , and a cpu local bus interface 40 for controlling the transfer of data d ( 31 : 0 ) between the local bus 165 and the memory data bus mdata . in addition , the mcu 100 also preferably includes a dram controller 75 for orchestrating the operation of the mcu during a dram transaction , configuration control logic 45 , a dram edge generator 50 , and a refresh and queue logic 200 . the address decoder 30 preferably connects to the cpu local bus 165 to receive address signals and control signals such as read / write signals r / w , memory or i / o cycle status signals . the address decoder 30 also receives a system clock ( sysclk ) signal to control its timing . the address decoder 30 receives an input signal from the dram router indicating if a dram bank hit occurs , and in turn produces a memhit output signal to the local bus 165 , and a dram enable signal to the bus arbiter 35 . the address decoder 30 also produces an output signal to the memory interface unit 65 to control the write enable we control signal . in accordance with the preferred embodiment , the dram address router 60 couples to the address lines a ( 31 : 0 ) of the cpu local bus 165 and provides row and column address signals to the dram multiplexer 70 . the dram address router 60 also provides as an output signal to the dram edge generator 50 a bank select signal and a byte select signal to indicate to the edge generator 50 which row address strobe ( ras ) line ras ( 3 : 0 ) and which column address strobe ( cas ) line cas ( 3 : 0 ) to assert to complete the memory transaction . the dram multiplexer 70 preferably receives the row and column addresses from the address router 60 and multiplexes these addresses to first provide the row address on the memory address lines maddress ( 11 : 0 ), and then to provide the column address on the same memory address lines . the selection and timing of the column address is determined by an input signal received from the dram edge generator 50 . the bus arbiter 35 receives an ads signal from the cpu local bus 165 to indicate the beginning of a cycle . in addition , the bus arbiter 35 preferably receives a signal from the dram router 60 indicating whether the next memory access is on the same bank or page as the previous access . the bank and page information preferably are transmitted by the bus arbiter 35 to the dram controller 75 as part of a dram bus request . as shown in the exemplary embodiment of fig2 the bus arbiter 35 may also receive a refresh request from the refresh and queue logic 200 and may transmit this request to the dram controller 75 as part of a dram bus request . the cpu local bus interface 40 connects to the cpu local bus 165 to receive and transmit data signals d ( 31 : 0 ) to and from the cpu local bus 165 . similarly , the local bus interface 40 preferably connects to the memory data bus mdata ( 31 : 0 ) through a separate data control buffer 68 to transmit and receive data signals to and from the dram array . the direction in which the data signals are driven preferably is controlled by a read / write ( r / w ) control signal from the address decoder 30 . the cpu local bus interface 40 preferably is enabled by control signals from the dram controller 75 . as one skilled in the art will understand , the cpu local bus interface 40 and the data control buffer 68 may be constructed as a single unit , if desired . referring still to fig2 the dram controller 75 preferably receives control signals from the bus arbiter 35 to indicate that a data transaction to dram is requested . after receiving the control signals from the bus arbiter 35 , the dram controller generates a ready rdy signal to the cpu local bus interface 40 and a shifter enable signal to the dram edge generator 50 . in the exemplary embodiment of fig2 the dram controller 75 receives an indication from the refresh and queue logic 200 indicating when a refresh cycle is active . the dram controller 75 preferably includes a state machine for resolving when the memory bank is idle , and produces a signal such as memory idle representing the status of the memory bus . the dram controller 75 preferably includes a bank precharge counter 55 , which comprises a down counter , clocked by the system clock ( sysclk ) signal , which determines the precharge period . the bank precharge circuit 55 begins counting down when shifter enable output signals are transmitted by the dram controller 75 . in the preferred embodiment , the precharge period is determined by appropriate registers in the configuration control logic 45 ( depending upon whether a ras precharge or a cas precharge is occurring ). at the beginning of the count , the bank precharge circuit 55 also provides an output signal to the dram edge generator 50 to indicate the start of a precharge period to indicate to the dram edge generator 50 that the previous memory transaction is complete . at the completion of the count , a signal also is generated by precharge circuit to indicate that the dram circuit cycle time has been met and the next transaction can begin . each of the above identified components of the mcu 100 are clocked with the system clock ( sysclk ) signal . the dram edge generator 50 , however , preferably is clocked with a memclk signal that operates at a frequency which is a multiple of the sysclk signal . in the preferred embodiment , the memclk operates at twice the frequency of the sysclk signal . in addition , both edges of the memclk signal are used by the dram edge generator 50 to effectively provide a four - fold increase in resolution . the configuration control logic 45 preferably includes several configuration registers . the values in these configuration registers preferably are established during system initialization by the basic input / output system ( bios ). in the preferred embodiment , each dram bank has a dedicated configuration register ( four are shown as 141 , 142 , 143 , 144 ) to indicate if the bank is populated , and , if so , to indicate the size and type of dram device used . in addition , the configuration control logic preferably includes a mcu control register 148 , with dedicated bits to indicate the type of refresh to be implemented . thus , for example , three bits may be dedicated in the mcu control register to indicate the refresh rate ( such as 62 . 5 microseconds or 125 microseconds ), among other parameters associated with refresh ( self refresh or standard refresh ). in accordance with the preferred embodiment , the register 141 is identified as dbc1l , with an index of 63h , and comprises an eight bit register , with bit 0 - 4 dedicated for indicating whether the dram bank is populated , and the size of dram in bank 81 ( fig5 ). dram bank configuration register 142 similarly is identified as dbc2l , with an index of 65h ; dram bank configuration register 143 is identified as dbc3l , with an index of 67h ; and dram bank configuration register 144 is identified as dbc4l , with an index of 69h . mcu control register 148 preferably is identified as mcr , with an index of 6 ch . referring still to fig2 the refresh and queue logic 200 preferably receives signals indicative of the contents of configuration registers 141 , 142 , 143 , 144 , and 148 to establish whether each of the dram banks are populated , and also to indicate the type of refresh to be implemented , as predetermined by the system bios . the refresh and queue logic 200 also receives signals from the dram controller 75 indicating that the current memory transaction cycle or refresh cycle is done , and the status of the memory bus . in response to receipt of these signals , and during appropriate intervals , the refresh and queue logic 200 issues signals to the dram edge generator 50 indicating that refresh is active , and indicating which bank of dram to refresh . the dram edge generator then generates the appropriate refresh sequence ( such as cas before ras ) to perform a refresh cycle on the specified dram bank . in accordance with customary techniques , the row address strobe ( ras ) lines ( ras3 #- raso #) preferably comprise active low outputs that are used by the dram array to clock in row address data from the memory address bus maddress ( 11 : 0 ) for each dram bank . in the preferred embodiment , one ras line is dedicated to each bank . four ras lines are provided in the preferred embodiment where four ram banks are used . similarly , four column address strobe ( cas ) lines ( cas3 #- caso #) are provided as active low outputs that are used by the dram array to clock in column address data from the memory address bus maddress ( 11 : 0 ) for each byte of the dram bytes , one cas per byte . thus , for example , cas3 # is the dram column address strobe for byte 3 in each dram bank . according to the protocol of the preferred embodiment , to perform a refresh cycle to bank 3 , all of the cas lines are asserted low , and then the ras3 # is asserted low for a predetermined period ( defined by the number of lines in the dram to perform the refresh . the preferred construction of the dram refresh and queue logic 200 now will be described with reference to fig6 . fig6 illustrates the preferred construction of a logic device to provide the refresh active and bank selection signals to initiate a refresh cycle . as shown in fig6 the refresh and queue logic 200 preferably includes a clock divider 215 , an up / down counter 225 , a refresh bank pointer 220 , a current bank detect 230 , and a latch 250 . the refresh divider 215 receives a clock input signal from external timer 205 , which preferably outputs a signal with a frequency of 256 khz , to provide a clock signal approximately every 4 microseconds . the divider 215 also receives a control signal from the bank configuration register , and in particular , register 148 ( fig2 ) to indicate the power consumed by the refresh cycle . in response to the status of the control signal from the mcr register 148 , divider 205 divides the 256 khz signal by an appropriate divisor . in the preferred embodiment , the divisor is either 4 or 8 to indicate whether the refresh is a low power or medium power refresh . the output of divider 215 is provided as an input to an and gate 217 , and to and gate 247 . the output of and gate 217 is provided to increment up / down counter 225 . the decrement input for counter 225 is obtained from the refresh done output signal from dram controller 75 , which also is provided as the reset input to latch 250 . the up / down counter is clocked by the systcl clock , and provides an output to a comparator 235 , which determines if the count of the counter is equal to the predetermined maximum value of the queue . the maximum value of the queue is predetermined to correlate to the maximum period between refresh cycles to a dram . referring still to fig6 the comparator 235 preferably provides an output to and gate 237 if the queue or count is full , or an output to and gate 227 if the queue is not full . the other input to and gate 237 is obtained as the current cycle done output from dram controller 75 . the other input to and gate 227 preferably comprises the memory bus idle indication from memory controller 75 . the output lines of the and gates 227 , 237 , are provide d a s inputs to or gate 229 . the output of or gate 229 connects to the set terminal of latch 250 . the refresh done signal from the dram controller 75 and the output of and gate 247 connect as inputs to or gate 219 . the output of or gate 219 is provided to the refresh bank pointer 220 . the refresh bank pointer 200 preferably comprises a mod - n counter 220 , which according to known techniques , count s from 0 to n . t he value n is selected as the queue value . in the preferred embodiment , a queue value of 4 is used as n . thus , the counter 220 counts through a range of four values , such as 0 to 3 . these four values can be digitally encoded with two bits , and thus a two line conductor is shown between counter 220 to the current bank detect 230 , which provides an indication of the dram bank to be refreshed . the current bank detect 230 also receives configuration signals from the bank configuration resister logic 45 to indicate which dram banks are populated , and which are not . in response to the pointer , and the configuration signals , the current bank detect logic 230 provides an input signal to and gate 247 to indicate if the current bank is populated . if the bank is populated , the current bank detect provides a refresh bank signal ( 3 : 0 ) to the dram edge generator 50 indicating the bank to be refreshed . the latch 250 receives as a set signal the output of or gate 229 . the reset signal is provided from the refresh done output signal from dram controller 75 . in response to receipt of an active set signal from or gate 229 , the latch 250 provides an active refresh output , which is provided to the dram edge generator 50 and to the dram controller 75 . the operation of the refresh and queue logic 200 will now be described with reference to fig6 . initially , the configuration registers in bank configuration logic 45 provide indications of which dram banks are populated to the current bank detect 230 , and also provide a divisor for divider 215 . a refresh request is provided from timer 205 to divider 215 , which provides an increment signal to the counter if the current bank is populated . the comparator 235 determines if the queue counter is full . if the queue counter is not full , the refresh will only be activated if the bus is idle ( as determined by and gate 227 ). if the queue counter is full , the refresh cycle is initiated as soon as the current memory cycle is completed ( as determined by and gate 237 ). the bank to be refreshed is determined by the refresh bank counter 220 and bank detect 230 . the refresh bank pointer preferably sequentially points to each dram bank in order . the pointer only changes at the completion of a refresh ( as indicated by dram controller 75 ), or at the next output signal from divider 215 if the current bank is not populated . the pointer 220 provides an encoded binary signal indicative of the status of the pointer , to current bank detect 230 . current bank detect provides an appropriate output signal to edge generator 50 indicating the bank to be refreshed . if the current bank is not populated , current bank detect provides an output signal causing the pointer 220 to advance to the next bank . referring now to fig3 a and 6 , timing of a refresh is shown for a dram array with four populated banks , during a period when the memory bus is idle . the queue count is shown initially at 3 , with the queue pointer at bank 0 . at approximately 11 , 200 nanoseconds , a refresh active signal appears , and substantially simultaneously therewith , a refresh cycle is begun by asserting the cas lines low . shortly thereafter , the ras ( 0 ) line is asserted low , refreshing bank 0 . at substantially the same time , a refresh pending signal is driven low . when the ras line is deasserted , the queue counter is decremented to 2 , and the queue pointer is changed to bank 1 . subsequently , the refresh active signal is deasserted , and the refresh pending signal is deasserted ( or alternatively , a refresh done signal is asserted ). because the memory bus still is idle ( no read or write assertion , no brdy assertion ) and the queue remains loaded , another refresh is initiated to bank 1 by asserting a refresh active signal , which results in the assertion of the cas lines . substantially simultaneously therewith , the refresh pending signal is asserted . subsequently , ras ( 1 ) is asserted to refresh bank 1 . a similar process also occurs to refresh bank 2 . referring still to fig3 a , a refresh request signal is received when the queue pointer is pointing to bank 3 and the queue count is at 0 . this causes the queue count to increment to 1 . because the memory bus is still idle , a refresh cycle to bank 3 ensues . referring now to fig3 b , a refresh cycle is shown for an example where the queue counter becomes full during active memory bus cycles . initially , the queue counter is at 3 , and the queue pointer is pointing to bank 2 . the memory bus is engaged in a dram read cycle , as shown by the status of the r / w , brdy , blastf , and other signals . a refresh request is received , causing the queue to increment to 4 , which in the example of fig3 b indicates a full queue counter . at the conclusion of the twprecharge dram state , the refresh active signal is asserted , and the cas lines are asserted . subsequently , and at substantially the same time , the ras ( 2 ) line is asserted and the refresh pending signal is deasserted . at the deassertion of the ras ( 2 ) line , the queue counter is decremented to 3 , and the queue pointer is indexed to 3 . fig3 c illustrates a refresh cycle during an input / output access ( m -- iof is low ). a queue count is received , causing the queue counter to increment to 1 . the queue pointer points to dram bank 0 . the refresh active signal is asserted and the cas lines are asserted low . the ras ( 0 ) line is asserted low , with the refresh pending signal asserted low . when ras ( 0 ) is deasserted , the queue pointer is indexed to bank 1 , and the counter is decremented to 0 . subsequently , a dram write cycle ensues to dram bank 1 . fig4 a shows a dram array with banks 0 and 1 populated and banks 2 and 3 not populated . the refresh queue is serviced during idle memory bus periods , and when the queue pointer points to a populated dram bank . initially the pointer points to unpopulated bank 3 , with a count of 4 . when the refresh request is received , the queue counter increments and the queue pointer advances to bank 0 . a refresh cycle ensues to bank 0 , followed by a refresh cycle to bank 1 . fig4 b also shows a dram array with only banks 0 and 1 populated . initially , the queue pointer points to 0 , and the queue counter is full , at 4 . a refresh cycle ( cas before ras ) ensues . the counter then decrements to 3 , and the pointer advances to bank 1 . shortly thereafter , a refresh request is received , incrementing the counter back to 4 . the refresh active signal is asserted , and a refresh cycle ensues as the cas lines are asserted , followed by the ras ( l ) line . the counter decrements to 3 , and the pointer indexes to bank 2 , which is not populated . the refresh request advances the counter to 4 . at each subsequent refresh request , the pointer indexes , without any refresh , until the pointer again points to bank 0 , when a refresh cycle is initiated . thus , in summary , if a refresh cycle is pending in the queue counter 225 , it is retired or serviced , if the memory controller unit 100 detects an io cycle , or a non dram cycle in progress , or the memory bus is idle ( no cpu accesses to memory ). as a result , the refresh cycle is effectively hidden under a non dram cycle . the refresh attains higher priority only when all of the levels of the refresh request queue are full . once the queue becomes full , the mcu 100 waits for the current dram access ( if any ) to complete . at that time , a refresh event is retired before any subsequent dram access is permitted . after the completion of the refresh cycle , the priority of the refresh is again minimized until the queue is again full . the refresh requests are continually retired during non - dram cycles . numerous variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated . thus , while a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described , modifications thereof can be made by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention . it is intended that the following claims be interpreted to embrace all such variations and modifications .	6
the pumping system according to the invention comprises ( fig3 ) a device mx for mixing a number n of components placed upstream from a pump p . in the example described hereafter , this number n is reduced to two for simplicity purposes . mixing device mx ( fig3 ) comprises , preferably in a single body 7 , n ( n = 2 here ) antechambers 8a , 8b upstream from a mixing chamber 9 . communication between each antechamber and mixing chamber 9 is made intermittent by on - off solenoid valves eva ( shown open ) and evb ( shown closed ) respectively . the two antechambers 8a , 8b communicate permanently , by means of lines 10a , 10b , with vessels ra , rb containing the liquid constituents to be mixed . each antechamber 8a , 8b contains a dampening device 11a , 11b for damping the accelerations and decelerations undergone by the liquids as a result of the intermittent opening and closing of solenoid valves ev1 , ev2 consisting here of an extensible volume whose volume varies in relation to the cyclic velocity variations . a bellows whose outer surface is in contact with the liquid in each antechamber and whose inside communicates with the outside of body 7 can be used for example . a homogenization device such as a rotating blade 12 is placed in the mixing chamber . a magnetized blade is preferably used and driven in rotation without contact from the outside of chamber 9 by means of a rotating disk 13 bearing magnets 14 , the disk being coupled to a motor 15 . the presence of these bellows in the antechambers has the effect of considerably reducing the unwanted effects of sudden flow rate variations of the constituents . the pressure increase in antechamber 8b for example , resulting from the closing of the corresponding solenoid valve evb , is automatically balanced by a contraction of bellows 11b . conversely , the pressure decrease in antechamber 8a for example resulting from the opening of the corresponding solenoid valve eva , is automatically balanced by an expansion of bellows 11a . running regularization is further improved if the dampening devices being placed as close as possible to the mixing chamber . by placing the elastically deformable volumes 11a , 11b as close as possible upstream from the solenoid valves and these solenoid valves as close as possible to pump p or mixing chamber 9 , the mass of the liquid to be displaced when the solenoid valves open is decreased . this elastic volume must be calculated to absorb accelerations so that the negative pressure created is low enough in order not to cause cavitation in the liquids pumped and not to change the opening and closing times of the solenoid valves . the previous mixing device can be placed upstream from a great variety of different pumps p , whether they have a regular suction capacity or not , but preferably upstream from the pumping device described hereafter . the pumping device according to the invention comprises reciprocating pumping units with each having a phase of suction of the liquid mixture and a discharge phase . as described in the aforementioned patent french patent 2 , 726 , 332 ( u . s . pat . no . 5 , 755 , 561 ), each pumping module comprises ( fig4 ) a rod 1 forming a piston , partly engaged in the inner cavity of a pump shell 2 . rod 1 is provided with a head 16 . a spring 17 is placed between the head and the end of the shell so as to exert a permanent extraction force on the piston . at the opposite end thereof , the inner cavity of body 1 communicates with a line 18 provided with a one - way valve 19a such as a ball check valve for example , which opens during the suction phase when rod 1 moves backwards , and with another , similar valve 19b which opens during the discharge phase . according to a first embodiment ( fig4 ), the extension of rod 1 in shell 2 is provided by the translation of an endless screw 20 resting on head 16 by means of a ball thrust 21 . the screw translation comprises for example a nut 22 threaded to screw 20 , which is for example housed in the hollow rotor of a stationary electric motor 23 and driven in rotation thereby . the direction of translation of the screw 20 is changed by inverting the direction of rotation of the motor at each pumping half - cycle . according to a second embodiment ( fig5 ), the extension of rod 1 in shell 2 is provided by the rotation of a cam 24 resting against head 16 , whose shaft 25 is driven in rotation by a motor 26 . the extension of rod 1 in the inner cavity of shell 2 is obtained by changing the offset . increment . of the cam on the shaft thereof . motor 26 is driven by a control processor pc . the pumping device according to the invention is improved in relation to the well - known embodiment of fig1 so as to obtain a constant flow rate at the input as well as at the discharge end . this result is obtained which is illustrated in fig6 by using a third reciprocating pumping unit pu3 similar to the previous ones . this third unit pu3 permanently communicates with the outlet of mixing device mx by a line 27 . units pu1 and pu2 are fed by the liquid discharged by third unit pu3 through one - way valves 28 . the liquid volumes are discharged by the two units pu1 , pu2 towards a delivery tee 29 , as previously , through one - way valves 30 . the desired flow rate regularization which is also sought at the pump inlet is obtained by permanently adjusting the velocity of displacement of piston 1 in third unit pu3 and the phase shift thereof in relation to the pistons of units pu1 , pu2 so that the sum of the velocities of the three pistons is constant during the suction phase . with the described combination of the mixing device and of the pump thus regulated , when the form factor of the signal controlling the solenoid valves proportioning the various liquids varies according to the expected mixture , the accuracy obtained in the proportioning and the flow rate of a mixture is excellent , as can be clearly seen in fig7 . this also applies to the flow rate of the mixture which is reproducible , whatever the form factor of the signals controlling the various solenoid valves . fig7 illustrates the perfect linearity of the proportion variation of a substance mixed with one of the liquid constituents of a mixture when the respective opening times of the two solenoid valves of a mixing device according to the invention are varied with a constant sum of the opening times . according to the embodiment of fig8 which is suitable for certain applications , an injector 31 allowing intermittent connection of an adjacent channel 32 connected to a vessel re containing a mixture is interposed in circuit 27 between mixing device mx and pump p . this injector comprises a solenoid valve evc also controlled by computer pc . a ball - and - spring type one - way check valve 33 for example is interposed in circuit 27 . during the phase of injection of the mixture through adjacent channel 32 , valves eva , evb of mixing device mx are maintained closed and solenoid valve evc is opened . check valve 33 prevents diffusion of the mixture injected towards mixing device mx . when the suction operations for the mixture from device mx are resumed , the predetermined proportions of the mixed constituents are thus guaranteed without any trailing effect . other embodiments can be used without departing from the scope of the invention . a ) a variable - volume mixing chamber whose volume is adjusted according to the flow pumped can be used for example . b ) it is also possible to apply to the bellows , on their face external to antechambers 8a , 8b , a constant back pressure that is however adjustable according to the pressure of the constituents admitted in mixer mx . c ) a preferred embodiment where the constituent velocity variations are regularized by compensation of the resulting pressure variations in both antechambers 8a , 8b has been described . it is however possible to use another regulation . for example , each bellows can be replaced by a variable - volume compensation chamber whose volume is permanently adjusted by a processor programmed to vary the volume of each compensation chamber according to at least one parameter affecting the velocity of each constituent . the processor can for example be so programmed that the acceleration applied to the constituents follows a certain predetermined variation profile .	5
the wholly aromatic polyester according to the present invention has characteristics that the polyester shows liquid crystallinity in a molten state , is melt - moldable and is small in anisotropy of the physical properties when molded into shaped articles . the wholly aromatic polyester according to the present invention comprises ( i ) the above - mentioned four structural units ( a ), ( b ), ( c ) and ( d ), or ( ii ) the above - mentioned four structural units ( a ), ( e ), ( f ) and ( g ). the structural unit ( a ) is a terephthaloyl group which is derived from terephthalic acid or a derivative thereof , for instance , an alkyl terephthalate . the structural unit ( a ) is present in the wholly aromatic polyester in an amount of 5 to 20 mol %, preferably 8 to 15 mol % thereof and in the substantially equimolar amount to that of the structural unit ( d ). the structural unit ( b ) is ## str9 ## group which is derived from p - hydroxybenzoic acid or a derivative thereof , for instance , an alkyl p - hydroxybenzoate . the structural unit ( b ) is present in the wholly aromatic polyester in an amount of 35 to 65 mol %, preferably 45 to 55 mol % thereof . the structural unit ( c ) is ## str10 ## group which is derived from m - hydroxybenzoic acid or a derivative thereof , for instance , an alkyl m - hydroxybenzoate . the structural unit ( c ) is present in the wholly aromatic polyester in an amount of 15 to 45 mol %, preferably 25 to 35 mol % thereof . the structural unit ( d ) is 1 , 4 - naphthalenedioxy group which is derived from 1 , 4 - naphthalendiol or a derivative thereof , for instance , a mono - or dialkylester thereof . the structural unit ( d ) is present in the wholly aromatic polyester in an amount of 5 to 20 mol %, preferably 8 to 15 mol % and in the substantially equimolar amount to that of the structural unit ( a ). since both the structural units ( a ) and ( b ) are parasubstituted groups and form rigid structures , they exhibit an effect of improving the mechanical properties of the wholly aromatic polyester . on the other hand , since both the structural units ( c ) and ( d ) have the molecular structure thereof which shows asymmetry to the main chain of the wholly aromatic polyester , they exhibit an effect of reducing the rigidity of the wholly aromatic polyester , which is exhibited by the structural units ( a ) and ( b ). in other words , the wholly aromatic polyester which has a liquid crystal temperature range in which the polyester is melt - moldable can be produced . in addition , particularly the m - hydroxy group of the structural unit ( c ) has an effect of bending the main chain of the polyester of the present invention into the direction of 60 ° from the straight chain thereof , the structural unit ( c ) has an effect of reducing the anisotropy of the physical properties of the molded articles made of the polyester of the present invention . accordingly , by adjusting the ratio of the concentration of the structural units ( c ) and ( d ) to the concentration of the structural units ( a ) and ( b ) in the wholly aromatic polyester , it is able to obtain the wholly aromatic polyester which is melt - moldable and has a high mechanical properties and a low anisotropy in the physical properties . such a wholly aromatic polyester can be produced by , for instance , the melt - polymerization process . namely , after mixing terephthalic acid , p - hydroxybenzoic acid , m - hydroxybenzoic acid and 1 , 4 - naphthalenediol ( or the respective derivatives thereof ) and melting the resultant mixture , the molten mixture is polymerized by heating thereof at a temperature in a range of from 250 ° to 350 ° c . under ordinary pressure . in order to promote the polymerization ( to attain 100 % polymerization ), it is necessary to remove the by - products of polymerization such as acetic acid , acetic esters , etc . out from the reaction system . for that purpose , during the polymerization , at the time when the distillation of the byproducts under ordinary pressure comes to stop , the pressure of the reaction system is reduced to , for instance , lower than 1 mmhg and the polymerization is carried out while continuing the distillation of the by - product and then , at the time when the conversion becomes to nearly 100 % and the degree of polymerization of the product has been sufficiently raised , the reaction is finished . in addition , these wholly aromatic polyesters have a merit of sufficiently producible even at the reaction temperature of from 250 ° to 300 ° c . in addition , the above - mentioned polymerization can be , of course , carried out in an ordinary vessel for use in conventional polymerization and can be carried out in a kneader or an extruder . the structural unit ( a ) is the same as in ( i ), i . e ., terephthaloyl group which is derived from terephthalic acid or a derivative thereof , for instance , an alkyl terephthalate and terephthaloyl chloride . the structural unit ( e ) is isophthaloyl group which is derived from isophthalic acid or a derivative thereof , for instance , an alkyl isophthalate and isophthaloyl chlorides . the structural unit ( f ) is a monosubstituted 1 , 4 - phenylenedioxy group which is derived from a mono - substituted hydroquinone or a derivative thereof , for instance , a dialkyl ester thereof and a dialkaline metal salt thereof . the structural unit ( g ) has the structure shown in the formula ( g ) and has the same chemical reactivity as that of the structural unit ( f ) and accordingly , the structural unit ( g ) is derived from a dialkylester of a hydroquinone derivative and a dialkaline metal salt thereof . the molar ratio of the amount of the structural unit ( a ) to that of the structural unit ( e ) is 95 : 5 to 5 : 95 , and preferably 80 : 20 to 50 : 50 and the molar ratio of the amount of the structural unit ( f ) to that of the structural unit ( g ) is 65 : 35 to 100 : 0 . since the physical properties of the wholly aromatic polyester becomes poorer if the molar ratio of the amount of the structural unit ( f ) to that of the structural unit ( g ) becomes too small , such a molar ratio is not favorable . in addition , the sum of the molar amounts of the structural units ( a ) and ( e ) is the same as the sum of the molar amounts of the structural units ( f ) and ( g ). as the monomer usable as the source of the structural unit ( f ), methylhydroquinone , ethylhydroquinone , propylhydroquinone , methoxyhydroquinone , ethoxyhydroquinone , chlorohydroquinone , bromohydroquinone , phenoxyhydroquinone and the derivatives thereof may be mentioned . as the monomer usable as the source of the structural unit ( g ), 2 , 2 - bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) propane , 2 , 2 - bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 , 5 - dimethylphenyl ) propane , 2 , 2 - bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 , 5 - dichlorophenyl ) propane , 2 , 2 - bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 - methylphenyl ) propane , 2 , 2 - bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 - chlorophenyl ) propane , bis ( 4 - hydroxydiphenyl ) methane , bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 , 5 - dimethylphenyl ) methane , bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 , 5 - dichlorophenyl ) methane , bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 , 5 - dibromophenyl ) methane , 1 , 1 - bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) cyclohexane , 4 , 4 &# 39 ;- dihydroxydiphenyl - bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) ketone , bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 , 5 - dimethylphenyl ) ketone , bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 , 5 - dichlorophenyl ) ketone , bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) sulfide , bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 - chlorophenyl ) sulfide , bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 , 5 - dichlorophenyl ) sulfide , bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) sulfone , bis ( 4 - hydroxy - 3 , 5 - dichlorophenyl ) ether , 4 , 4 &# 39 ;- dihydroxybiphenyl may be mentioned . these compounds may be used singly or used as a mixture thereof . the structural units ( a ) and ( f ) are para - substituted groups and form rigid structures , they exhibit an effect of improving the mechanical properties of the wholly aromatic polyester . on the other hand , the structural units ( e ) and ( f ) have the molecular structure thereof which shows asymmetry to the main chain of the wholly aromatic polyester , they exhibit an effect of relaxing the rigity of the wholly aromatic polyester , which is exhibited by the structural units ( a ) and ( d ). further , the structural unit ( f ) also has an effect of providing softness and heat - resistance to the molecule of the wholly aromatic polyester . namely , by the use of the structural units ( e ) and ( f ), the wholly aromatic polyester which has a liquid crystal temperature range in which the polyester is melt - moldable can be produced . in addition , particularly the isophthaloyl group of the structural unit ( e ) has an effect of bending the main chain into direction of 60 ° from the straight chain thereof and accordingly , the structural unit ( e ) has an effect of reducing the anisotropy of the physical properties of the molded articles made of the wholly aromatic polyester . consequently , by adjusting the molar ratio of the amount of the structural unit ( a ) to that of the structural unit ( e ) in the polyester of the present invention , it is able to obtain the wholly aromatic polyester which is melt - moldable and has a high mechanical properties and a low anisotropy of the physical properties . the above - mentioned wholly aromatic polyester shown in ( ii ) can be produced by the known process of polymerization , for instance , the process of intersurface polymerization , solution polymerization and melt polymerization . the wholly aromatic polyester according to the present invention shows a logarithmic viscosity of at least 0 . 4 dl / g . the logarithmic viscosity of a polymeric substance is the quotient obtained by dividing the value of natural logarithum of the relative viscosity of the solution of the polymeric substance in a solvent [ in the present case , a mixed solvent of tetrachloroethane and phenol ( 1 : 1 by weight )] by the concentration of the polymeric substance in the solvent ( in the present case , 0 . 5 % by weight ), and in the present invention , the logarithmic viscosity is determined in a solution of the wholly aromatic polyester dissolved in the mixed solvent of tetrachloroethane and phenol ( 1 : 1 by weight ) at concentration of 0 . 5 % by weight . the logarithmic viscosity of the wholly aromatic polyester of the present invention is preferably in the range of from 0 . 5 to 1 . 5 dl / g . the judgement whether a polymeric substance is able to show anisotropy in a molten state or not is suitably carried out on the basis of an optical method by a polarization microscope . namely , after placing a specimen on a heat stage attached to a polarization microscope , the image of the specimen is observed under the microscope while using a transmitted light through the specimen or a reflected light by the specimen and raising the temperature of the specimen slowly from the room temperature . on observation , the solid polymer which does not show anisotropy suddenly changes to the isotropic molten state at the melting point of the polymer , and on the other hand , the solid polymer which show anisotropy changes from the crystalline state into a liquid crystalline state when the temperature passes over a certain temperature and thereafter , the thus liquefied polymer shows a stable liquid crystalline state within a relatively broad range of temperature and then , with the raise of temperature thereover , the liquid crystalline polymer changes to the isotropic molten state . the above - mentioned method is the most convenient and simple method for judging the anisotropy of a polymeric substance . the wholly aromatic polyester according to the present invention can be melt - molded even at a temperature of lower than 300 ° c ., and since the molded article shows a high rigidity ( a high modulus of elasticity ), it is useful as the material for small and accurate parts necessitating the thinner design , such as connectors , sockets and bobbins as the electronic parts . the present invention will be explained more in detail while referring to the non - limitative examples shown below . in a tubular vessel for polymerization , provided with a stirrer , 16 . 6 g of terephthalic acid , 90 . 0 g of p - acetoxybenzoic acid , 54 . 0 g of m - acetoxybenzoic acid and 24 . 4 g of 1 , 4 - naphthalenediol were introduced , and after purging the vessel 3 times with gaseous nitrogen , the vessel was immersed in an oil bath at 290 ° c ., and the resultant mixture was stirred for one hour under a flow of gaseous nitrogen while distilling a large part of acetic acid by - produced during the stirring . on reducing the inner pressure of the vessel to 0 . 5 torr , the thus formed pre - polymeric substance solidified into blocks . on taking out the solid blocks of the prepolymer ( logarithmic viscosity : 0 . 75 ) from the vessel , pulverizing the prepolymer , introducing the thus pulverized prepolymer into a glass vessel for polymerization provided with a stirrer and subjecting the prepolymer to solid - phase polymerization for 8 hours under the conditions of the temperature of 100 ° c . and the pressure of 0 . 5 torr while stirring , the completely polymerized substance was obtained in a yield of nearly 100 %, however , a part of the product was insoluble in the ordinary solvent and measurement of the viscosity of such a fraction was impossible . the elemental analytical data of the thus obtained polymer are as follows . ______________________________________ c (%) h (%) ______________________________________found : 70 . 89 3 . 40calculated : 71 . 02 3 . 39______________________________________ ( on the basis that the ratio of composition was the same as the ratio of charge .) the polymer showed an optical anisotropy in the temperature range from 260 ° c . to 350 ° c . ( the upper temperature - limit for determination ) in a molten state . the optical anisotropy was observed by a polarization microscope ( made by nippon kogaku co ., ltd ., model poh ) provided with a heat stage ( made by zeiss co .). after preparing a strand - shaped article from the thus obtained polymer by using an extruder , the sonic modulus of the thus produced polymer was measured on the extruded strand - shaped article as the specimen following the method disclosed in astm f 89 - 68 , the value being shown in table 1 with the values of sonic moduli of other conventional polymers . the value of sonic modulus was obtained by measuring the velocity of sound ( v ) transmitted through the strand - shaped article by using a dynamic modulus tester ® ( made by toyo seiki works , co ., ltd ., model ppm - 5r ) and calculating from the formula of laplace : wherein e is the sonic modulus ; ρ is the density of the specimen ( as measured by density gradient tube ) and v is the velocity of sound . table 1______________________________________example orcomparativeexample specimen sonic modulus ( gpa ) ______________________________________example 1 polymer of example 1 7 . 0comparative nylon 6 . sup . ( 1 ) 2 . 8example 1comparative polyamide - imide . sup . ( 2 ) 6 . 0example 2comparative p - hydroxybenzoyl 6 . 0example 3 copolymer . sup . ( 3 ) ______________________________________ notes : . sup . ( 1 ) novamid ® 1010j ( made by mitsubishi chemical industries ltd . . sup . ( 2 ) torlon ® 4203 ( made by mitsubishi chemical industries ltd .) . sup . ( 3 ) ekonol ® e2000 ( made by sumitomo chemical company ltd .) infrared absorption chart of the polymer obtained in example 1 is shown in fig1 . in the same manner as in example 1 except for changing molar ratio of terephthalic acid , p - acetoxybenzoic acid , m - acetoxybenzoic acid and 1 , 4 - naphthalenediol as shown in table 2 , 13 kinds of polymers were produced . sonic modulus of each of the thus produced polymers is shown also in table 2 . table 2__________________________________________________________________________mol % mol % 1 , 4 - naphtha - terephthalic p - acetoxy - m - acetoxy - sonic modulus logarithmicexamplelenediol acid benzoic acid benzoic acid ( gpa ) viscosity__________________________________________________________________________2 8 8 55 29 6 . 0 0 . 783 8 8 50 34 7 . 0 0 . 804 8 8 45 39 5 . 5 0 . 755 10 10 55 25 6 . 5 0 . 756 10 10 45 35 6 . 5 0 . 887 12 12 50 26 6 . 0 0 . 958 12 12 45 31 7 . 5 0 . 909 15 15 50 20 5 . 5 1 . 0010 15 15 45 25 7 . 5 1 . 2511 15 15 40 30 6 . 5 0 . 9812 20 20 45 15 5 . 5 1 . 0513 20 20 40 20 6 . 0 0 . 9014 20 20 35 25 5 . 5 0 . 93__________________________________________________________________________ strand - shaped article was prepared from the polymer obtained in example 1 by subjecting thereof to an extruder , and chips of 3 mm square were taken out of the strand - shaped article ( 5 mm in diameter ), and the compression strength of the polymer was measured on the thus prepared chip as the specimen at a compression velocity of 1 mm / sec . the compression strength is the value obtained by dividing the maximum load necessary for 10 % deformation of the initial thickness of the chip by the sectional area of the specimen ( chip ) ( refer to astm d - 1621 ). the number of specimen is 5 in the direction parallel to the strand , and 5 in the direction perpendicular to the strand . the test was carried out by using a tensilon ® tester ( made by toyo baldwin co ., ltd .). as comparative example 4 , a representative liquid crystalline polyester ( produced from 40 mol % of polyethylene terephthalate and 60 mol % of p - acetoxybenzoic acid by mitsubishi chemical industries ltd ., showing an inherent viscosity . sup . ( 1 ) of 0 . 66 ) was subjected to the same test in measuring the compression strength thereof . the data of compression strength test are shown in table 3 . table 3______________________________________unit of compressionstrength : kg / cm . sup . 2example or compressioncomparative strength anisotropyexample specimen md * td ** ( md / td ) ______________________________________example 15 polymer of 310 220 1 . 4 example 1comparative see above 280 130 2 . 2example 4______________________________________ notes : parallel to the strand extruded : perpendicular to the strand extruded further , the polymer obtained in example 1 and the polymer used in comparative example 4 were respectively subjected to an injection molding machine ( made by nissei jushi co ., ltd . model au - 30 ) to prepare the plates of 80 mm in length , 80 mm in width and 3 mm in thickness at a temperature of the cylinder of 300 ° to 345 ° c . for the polymer obtained in example 1 and 230 ° to 250 ° c . for the polymer used in comparative example 4 . from each plate , strip - shaped specimens ( md ) were cut out in the direction parallel to the flow of the polymer and strip - shaped specimens ( td ) were cut out in the direction perpendicular to the flow of the polymer , and the bending modulus of elasticity and the bending strength thereof were measured by tensilon ® tester ( toyo - baldwin co ., ltd . ), the data being shown in table 4 . table 4______________________________________unit of modulus andstrength : kg / cm . sup . 2 flexural flexuralexample or modulus strengthcomparative ( kg / cm . sup . 2 ) ( kg / cm . sup . 2 ) md / example md td md / td md td td______________________________________example 16 73 × 10 . sup . 3 54 × 10 . sup . 3 1 . 4 750 510 1 . 5comparative 62 × 10 . sup . 3 17 × 10 . sup . 3 3 . 6 850 440 2 . 0example 5______________________________________ in a desk - type kneader of a capacity of 1 liter , 49 . 8 g of terephthalic acid , 207 . 0 g of p - hydroxybenzoic acid , 124 . 2 g of m - hydroxybenzoic acid , 48 . 0 g of 1 , 4 - naphthalenediol and 459 . 0 g of acetic anhydride were introduced , and the temperature of the kneader was elevated to 150 ° c . and the kneader was stirred for 1 hour , and then the temperature of the kneader was elevated to 280 ° c ., thereby acetic acid and unreacted acetic anhydride were distilled from the kneader . after reducing the inner pressure of the kneader to 1 torr , the content of the kneader was stirred for one hour to obtain a solid prepolymer showing a logarithmic viscosity of 0 . 65 . on reducing the temperature of the kneader to 100 ° c . and stirring thereof for 8 hours , solid polymerization proceeded to form powdery polymer . thus , the polymer was obtained in a yield of nearly 100 %. a part of the polymer was insoluble in the conventional solvents and the viscosity of such insoluble polymer could not measure . in 40 ml of pyridine , 52 mmol ( 9 . 89 g ) of p - toluenesulfonic chloride and 40 mmol of dimethylformamide ( 2 . 92 g ) were dissolved , the thus prepared solution being named as solution ( a ). in 32 ml of pyridine , 10 mmol ( 1 . 66 g ) of isophthalic acid and 10 mmol ( 1 . 66 g ) of terephthalic acid were dissolved , the thus prepared solution being named as solution ( b ). after adding solution ( a ) to solution ( b ), the mixture was sitrred at 120 ° c . for 10 min to obtain a transparent solution . into the transparent solution , a solution of 20 mmol ( 2 . 48 g ) of methylhydroquinone in 40 ml of pyridine was added dropwise within 20 min , and the mixture was stirred for 3 hours at 120 ° c . under a flow of gaseous nitrogen to carry out the reaction . after the reaction was over , the reaction mixture was poured into methanol to precipitate the thus formed polymer . after collecting the polymer by filtration , the polymer was dried . the yield of the polymerization was nearly 100 %, and the polymer showed the logarithmic viscosity of 0 . 85 dl / g . the elementary analytical data are as follows : ______________________________________ c (%) h (%) ______________________________________found : 71 . 01 3 . 92calculated : 70 . 84 3 . 97______________________________________ note : * on the basis that the composition ratio is the same as the ratio of the charge infrared absorption spectral chart of the thus obtained polymer is shown in fig2 . from these results , it is recognized that the thus produced polymer ( polyester ) has just the same composition as the charged ratios of each of the component as the starting material . the polymer showed an optical anisotropy in a molten state in a temperature range of from 250 ° c . to 350 ° c . which is the upper limit of the measurement carried out by using a nicon ® polarization microscope ( made by nippon kogaku co ., ltd ., model poh ) provided with a heat - stage ( made by zeiss co .). the sonic modulus of the strand - like molded article made of the polymer by extruding from an extruder in the same method as in example 1 , and the value is shown together with the sonic moduli of other commercialized polymers in table 5 . table 5______________________________________example orcomparativeexample specimen sonic modulus ( gpa ) ______________________________________example 18 polyester in example 18 12 . 0comparative nylon 6 2 . 8example 6comparative polyamide - imide 6 . 0example 7comparative p - hydroxybenzoyl 6 . 0example 8 copolymer______________________________________ in the same manner as in example 18 except for changing the molar ratio of terephthalic acid and isophthalic acid as shown in table 6 , the polymers according to the present invention were produced . the monomeric ratio in the reaction and the logarithmic viscosity and the sonic modulus of each polymer are shown also in table 6 . table 6______________________________________ logarithmic molar ratio of viscosity sonic modulusexample iso . sup . ( 1 ) to tere . sup . ( 2 ) ( dl / g ) ( gpa ) ______________________________________example 19 40 / 60 0 . 76 9 . 0example 20 60 / 40 1 . 00 11 . 5example 21 30 / 70 0 . 59 4 . 5example 22 70 / 30 0 . 97 4 . 5______________________________________ notes : . sup . ( 1 ) iso means isophthalic acid . sup . ( 2 ) tere means terephthalic acid in the same manner as in example 18 except for changing the molar ratio of terephthalic acid , isophthalic acid , methylhydroquinone and 2 , 2 - bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) propane ( referred to as bis - a hereinafter ) shown in table 7 , the polymers were obtained , the logarithmic viscosity and the sonic modulus of each of the thus obtained polymers being shown also in table 7 . table 7______________________________________molar ratio logarithmic mh . sup . ( 3 ) / viscosity sonicexample iso . sup . ( 1 ) / tere . sup . ( 2 ) bis - a ( dl / g ) modulus______________________________________example 23 40 / 60 90 / 10 0 . 91 8 . 5example 24 50 / 50 90 / 10 0 . 89 8 . 0example 25 30 / 70 70 / 30 1 . 35 5 . 0example 26 50 / 50 70 / 30 0 . 76 4 . 0______________________________________ notes : . sup . ( 1 ) iso means isophthalic acid . sup . ( 2 ) tere means terephthalic acid . sup . ( 3 ) mh means methylhydroquinone the polymer obtained in example 18 was molded into plates to 80 mm in width , 80 mm in length and 3 mm in thickness by using an injection molding machine ( nissei resin co ., ltd . model au - 30 ) at a cylinder temperature of 300 ° to 345 ° c . as comparative example 13 , a representative liquid crystalline polyester ( made by mitsubishi chemical industries ltd ., showing an inherent viscosity of 0 . 66 made of 40 mol % of polyethylene terephthalate and 60 mol % of p - acetoxybenzoic acid ) was also molded in the same manner except for using the cylinder temperature of 230 ° to 250 ° c . two kinds of strips were cut out from the thus prepared plates , ( i ) in the direction parallel to the flow of the resin ( md ) and ( ii ) in the direction perpendicular to that ( td ), and bending modulus of elasticity and bending strength of the strip were measured according to astm d - 790 by subjecting the specimen to tensilon ® tester ( made by toyo - baldwin co ., ltd .). the test data are shown in table 8 . table 8______________________________________unit : kg / cm . sup . 2example or flexural flexuralcomparative modulus md / strength md / example m / d t / d td md td td______________________________________example 27 120 × 10 . sup . 3 86 × 10 . sup . 3 1 . 4 800 530 1 . 5comparative 62 × 10 . sup . 3 17 × 10 . sup . 3 3 . 6 850 440 2 . 0example 9______________________________________ in the same manner as in example 18 except for changing the molar ratio of isophthalic acid to terephthalic acid to 60 : 40 , using 14 mmol of methylhydroquinone and 6 mmol of 4 , 4 &# 39 ;- dihydroxydiphenyl instead of 20 mmol of methylhydroquinone , a polymer of a logarithmic viscosity of 0 . 80 dl / g was produced . the polymer showed the sonic modulus of 7 . 0 gpa in the same manner as in example 1 . in the same manner as in example 18 except for using chlorohydroquinone instead of methylhydroquinone in example 18 , a polymer of a logarithmic viscosity of 1 . 10 dl / g and sonic modulus of 9 . 0 gpa was obtained .	2
the preferred embodiment of the cutting die is illustrated in fig1 in the form a support surface 10 having a two - dimensional cutting element 12 shown as having a generally elliptical configuration with a one - dimensional central cutting element 14 of generally linear shape ; and a pair of recesses 16 and 18 formed by the cutting elements 12 and 14 . the web of the transdermal bandage is adapted to lay across the rigid support surface shown in fig2 covering the entire well area formed by the cutting element 12 . the cutting element 12 is sized with respect to the web so as to completely cut through the web , while the cutting element 14 is sized so as to cut only the release liner . the web is applied with the release liner facing the support . referring to fig2 a cross section of the device taken along lines 2 -- 2 , the sizing of the cutting elements 12 and 14 is such that the difference in height between cutting element 12 and cutting element 14 is equal to the height of the release liner . thus , cutting elements 12 and 14 are sized so that cutting element 12 is substantially the height of the web , while cutting element 14 is the height of the transdermal web less the height of all layers other than the release liner . fig4 shows a transdermal web in lateral cross section prior to being cut . layer 22 is the backing material , layer 24 is the adhesive containing drug and layer 26 is the release liner layer . for purposes of this invention , the release liner layer prior to being cut is available as a web or a continuous roll prepared by applying the fluid adhesive to either the release liner 26 or the backing material 22 , then applying either the backing material 22 over release liner 26 , respectively , to the other side of the adhesive containing the drug . the stock or web 20 is then placed on the solid support 10 with the release liner 26 facing the cutting elements 12 and 14 . the transdermal device is then punched out with a die cooperating with the solid support . the solid support and the die are preferably made of steel or relatively imcompressible rigid material . it can be machined from a solid member or cast with a generally desired configuration and then machined to the proper dimensions . in any event , the outer cutting element 14 generally has a circumference of from 3 to 40 mm and preferably from 7 . 9 to 17 . 7 mm , depending on the surface area needed for delivery of the drug and a radius of 0 . 48 to 6 . 4 mm and preferably 1 . 3 to 2 . 8 mm , again depending on the appropriate radius for the drug to be delivered , as is known to those skilled in the art . any configuration of cutting elements 12 and 14 is possible ; however , superior results have been found where cutting element 12 has a single slanted face directed toward the periphery of the template , and cutting element 14 has a dual slant terminating in a central apex . cutting elements 12 and 14 are sized so that cutting element , in cooperation with the web , passes completely through the web , while cutting element 14 passes only through the release liner . in general , cutting element 12 is from 100 to 1500 in height , and preferably 900 to 1000 , and more preferably , 930 to 950 microns , although obviously the height of the cutting element is dependent upon the height of the web . again , the cutting element 14 is preferably 100 to 1500 microns and more preferably 850 to 950 microns and even more preferably 925 to 945 microns , although again the height is totally dependent on the thickness of the release liner . for example , with a stock of 10 microns in thickness where the release liner is 4 microns in thickness , cutting element 12 would 937 in height while cutting element 14 would be 935 microns in height . obviously , the cutting element 14 has to extend sufficiently into the release liner to cause a score , but not sufficiently to also cut the adhesive drug - containing layer . although the apparatus of this invention can be used with release liners that are as flexible , as more flexible than or equally flexible as the combination of the backing and adhesive layer , it is desirable to use a backing having the same order of frangibility as the release liner , so that the force needed to cut the entire device and at the same time score only the release backing would be about the same . the foregoing arrangement allows the outside cutting rule to cut complete through all layers of the transdermal device while the center cutting rule only cuts through the release liner . the device further can have the peripheral cutting device extending on one side only toward the periphery , thus permitting straight lines on the interior surface of the cutting element . the dual edge of the intermediate cutting device avoids uncut material in the area . other variations of the instant device will be apparent to one skilled in the art .	8
the seismic events to be classified consist of all of the seismic traces resulting from the n repeated 3d seismic surveys considered for the reservoir . these seismic events are characterised by seismic parameters or attributes extracted from the various records obtained from the repeated seismic survey , at the level of the target zone of the subsoil , in most cases a hydrocarbon reservoir . the methodology for defining the classes comprises the following stages : a ) the first stage is a stage of definition of learning classes . this stage is carried out by simultaneous analysis of the seismic events available from all the surveys . a first possibility consists in extracting the seismic events recorded in the vicinity of wells , whose geologic interpretation ( and the evolution in the course of time of this interpretation ) has been carried out . this methodology will thus allow to classify all of the seismic events according to geologic variations observed in the wells . the second possibility consists in carrying out a , non - supervised analysis of all of the seismic events recorded during the various surveys , using for example the technique described in the aforementioned patent fr - 2 , 768 , 818 ( u . s . pat . no . 6 , 052 , 651 ). there are other possibilities , for example of defining the learning classes using mathematical modelling of the expected physical states in the reservoir , considering the variations generated by its production . the point to be underlined in our approach is that the seismic events are considered and analysed simultaneously for all the surveys . b ) the second stage consists in calibrating a classification function from the seismic events selected in the previous stage so as to represent the physical state classes considered . this calibration can be done , for example , by discriminant analysis . once this classification function calibrated , it is implemented during the third stage in order to assign the seismic events of all of the surveys to the various classes considered in the previous stage , and thus to create for each survey a classification chart of its seismic events . finally , charts representing seismic facies differences from one survey to the next can be created in order to detect the assignment changes of certain seismic traces in time . the various stages of the method are clearly illustrated by the figures . in order to monitor the physical changes in the reservoir related to the production mechanisms , three seismic surveys have been recorded : the first one before producing the reservoir , and the other two several months after production start . these changes are analysed within a constant 20 - ms time window shown in fig1 a and 1 b . this time window approximately corresponds to the reservoir zone . the seismic events analysed are then the seismic trace portions that can be extracted from each of these data volumes , within this window . the attributes used to represent these events are the values of the amplitudes sampled over the 11 successive time intervals included in the 20 - ms window . careful observation of fig1 a and 1 b shows , for a particular spatial position , that the variations of the events in this position after the three surveys concern both their amplitude and their form . simple calculation of a & lt ;& lt ; difference event & gt ;& gt ;, which is the result of a subtraction of the values of the attributes of two events belonging to two different surveys , but located in the same place (& lt ;& lt ; difference events & gt ;& gt ; represented in fig1 b ), does not allow to accurately take into account these amplitude and form variations , the latter being related to travel time variations of the seismic wave . pertinent analysis therefore requires comparison of the events of all of the surveys in relation to one another by studying them as a whole so as to integrate the two variation types in the analysis . the learning classes supposed to represent the different physical states of the reservoir have been defined from the multivariate probability density function calculated on all of the events of the three seismic surveys s 1 to s 3 in a space generated by the aforementioned 11 seismic attributes . the learning samples of the classes are chosen by selecting the events belonging to the high - value peaks of the density function . an event classification function is then established , for example by means of a discriminant analysis calibrated on the learning classes . this classification function is then applied to all of the seismic events of the three surveys s 1 , s 2 , s 3 so as to assign them to one of the learning classes . the various classes resulting from this assignment can be represented in planes of the seismic attributes space , as shown in fig3 a to 3 c , which show the plane generated by the amplitude of the top in the window centred on the reservoir ( a ( 20 ms )) as a function of the amplitude 4 ms above the base of the reservoir ( a ( 4 ms )). this plane is displayed three times ( fig3 a to 3 c ) to show separately the classifications of the events belonging respectively to the three seismic surveys considered , s 1 , s 2 and s 3 . however , in the space of the attributes , the events have been classified simultaneously , they are distinguished by survey only to facilitate display of the classes and their evolution as a function of time , i . e . as a function of their belonging to the different seismic surveys s 1 , s 2 and s 3 . the results for surveys s 1 ( before producing the reservoir ) and s 2 ( first survey after producing ) are also presented in form of class charts ( fig2 ) which show the physical states of the reservoir and their evolution in the course of time ( between s 1 and s 2 ). it can thus be observed that , although the northern edge of the reservoir is not affected by production ( same class distribution between surveys s 1 and s 2 ), the southern part is characterised by the disappearance of a class between s 1 and s 2 , compensated by the appearance of a new class mainly in the south - western zone , and the spatial extension of one of the main classes of the chart associated with s 1 . these evolutions can of course also be found in the planes of fig3 a to 3 c concerning surveys s 1 and s 2 . these charts can also be interpreted by analysing the changes in the assignment to the classes of the events from one survey to the next . the results can thus be shown as a class difference chart as shown in fig4 for the differences between surveys s 1 and s 2 , where the white zones correspond to zones where the assignment of events to a class has not changed , unlike the coloured zones . the changes are mainly distributed in the southern part of the reservoir .	6
a restriction indicator gauge is useful in providing a reliable indication of an air filter &# 39 ; s performance . by having this restriction indicator attached to the air intake system of an internal combustion engine , owners and / or maintenance personnel can have a reliable indication regarding the operating condition of their air filters . consequently , air filters are less likely to be changed prematurely thus saving costs for the engine owners . referring to fig1 there is shown a conceptual diagram of an engine &# 39 ; s intake system . as is understood by those skilled in the art , the engine 10 draws air through a filter 12 . more specifically , air is drawn into a filter intake 14 , through filter 12 , and then on to the actual engine air intake 16 . attached to air intake 16 , downstream from filter 12 , is shown the restriction indicator gauge 20 of the present invention . actually , two restriction indicator gauges 20 are shown in alternative locations , a first on the filter housing 22 , and a second attached to intake coupling 24 . either location is acceptable as the same pressure or vacuum signal can be measured from either location . fig2 shows a side view of restriction indicator gauge 20 . as can be seen , restriction indicator gauge 20 includes a housing 30 and a coupled base cap 32 . also shown in fig2 housing 30 includes a window 33 for viewing a visual indicator . referring now to fig3 the internal components making up restriction indicator gauge are shown in an exploded format . as previously mentioned , restriction indicator 20 includes housing 30 and base cap 32 . these are the two major components which form the external structure of the gauge . further included within the gauge are a label 34 , a calibration spring 36 an indicator cup 38 ( or alignment cup 38 ), a flexible diaphragm 40 , a lock ring 42 , and a reset cover 44 . in operation , indicator cup 38 , flexible diaphragm 40 , and lock ring 42 all make up a diaphragm assembly 48 which is movable within housing 30 . referring now to fig4 the relationship of the various components , when assembled , can be more easily seen . fig4 provides a cross sectional view of restriction indicator gauge 20 in its reset or rest position . housing 30 has an inlet 50 at one end thereof . inlet 50 is configured for attachment to the air intake system , and consequently allows the desired pressure or vacuum signal to enter an internal chamber 52 within housing 30 . with general reference back to fig1 it will be understood that there are many different ways to attach switch gauge 20 to engine air intake 16 . for example , a threaded attachment could extend outwardly from air intake 16 which would accommodate attachment of switch gauge 20 thereto . further , a bayonet - type mount could be used which again would attach directly to air intake 16 . generally speaking , any mechanism could be used which would physically connect switch gauge 20 so that inlet 50 is exposed to the pressure signals within the air intake 16 . housing 30 is attached to base cap 32 via a snap fitting . this snap fitting is accomplished by appropriate grooves 54 in housing 30 and related ridges 56 in base cap 32 . this snap fitting between housing 30 and base cap 32 also captures an exterior edge 58 of flexible diaphragm 40 . the interface is specifically configured to form an air tight seal between flexible diaphragm 40 and housing 30 . also attached to flexible diaphragm 40 are indicator cup 38 and lock ring 42 . an internal edge 60 of flexible diaphragm 40 is captured between lock ring 42 and indicator cup 38 . indicator cup 38 and lock ring 42 are specifically designed to interlock with one another , and form a seal with flexible diaphragm 40 . indicator cup 38 is configured to be within housing internal chamber 52 whereas lock ring 42 is positioned on the opposite side of flexible diaphragm 40 . thus , lock ring 42 is not contained within internal chamber 52 . also situated within internal chamber 52 is calibration spring 36 . calibration spring 36 is in contact with housing 30 at one end , and indicator cup 38 at another end . as is obvious from this positioning , calibration spring 36 is designed to bias indicator cup 38 away from the top of housing 30 . in fig4 indicator cup 38 and lock ring 42 are positioned in their reset or rest positions . as can be seen , a lower extension 62 of lock ring 42 is in contact with base cap 32 . diaphragm assembly 48 ( again , including indicator cup 38 , flexible diaphragm 40 , and lock ring 42 ) will be held in this position by calibration spring 36 until additional forces are created to counteract the force of calibration spring 36 . base cap 32 is positioned immediately adjacent lock ring 42 , and at times , in contact therewith . base cap 32 includes a button portion 64 and an annular outer portion 66 . a hinge element 68 connects button portion 64 and annular outer portion 66 to one another . referring to fig7 there is shown a bottom view of base cap 32 ( with base cap 32 removed ), where button portion 64 , annular outer portion 66 , and hinge element 68 can be more easily seen . base cap 32 also includes an integral locking extension 70 which extends upwardly from button portion 64 . locking extension 70 is specifically configured to interact with an upper portion 72 of lock ring 42 . this upper portion 72 includes an opening or hole 74 , through which locking extension 70 extends . when diaphragm assembly 48 is in its reset position , as shown in fig4 locking extension 70 extends upwardly through lock ring opening 74 and is situated immediately below indicator cup 38 . locking extension 70 includes a ramped , notched portion 76 at an upper end thereof . this ramped , notched portion 76 will interact with lock ring 42 when lock ring 42 is moved upwardly . reset cover 44 is configured to snap into base cap 32 . outwardly extending extensions 46 of reset cover 44 are configured to interact with lips 47 and base cap 32 . more specifically , locking tab 46 of reset cover 44 is shown to insert and interlock with structural tab 47 . consequently , reset cover 44 is held in place immediately beneath button portion 64 . as previously mentioned , base cap 32 provides a snap fit attachment mechanism to housing 30 . referring to fig9 an enlarged portion of this joint can be seen . more specifically , outer edge 58 of flexible diaphragm 40 is shown sandwiched between base cap 32 and housing 30 . also situated immediately adjacent the inner wall of housing 30 is shown label 34 . referring to fig9 the hinging operation of the present invention is also shown . specifically , button portion 64 of base cap 32 is shown in two positions in fig9 . first , shown in cross sectional form , button portion 64 is in its natural or rest position . alternatively , shown in phantom outline , button portion 64 has been moved to a depressed position such that a portion has rotated about hinge portion 68 . as previously mentioned , the engine to which restriction indicator gauge 20 is attached creates a vacuum signal downstream from the air filter . this vacuum signal is translated to internal chamber 52 via housing inlet 50 . as internal chamber 52 is an air - tight enclosure , this vacuum signal creates a force on all walls thereof , including diaphragm assembly 48 . because flexible diaphragm 40 is allowed to freely move , the vacuum signal creates a translational force which urges diaphragm assembly 48 upward . this translational force opposes calibration spring 52 to create a controlled movement of diaphragm assembly 48 . as the vacuum signal increases , the force also increases , thus causing compression of calibration spring 36 . referring now to fig5 restriction indicator gauge 20 is shown after it has reached a predetermined vacuum signal level . the components are chosen so that this predetermined vacuum signal level will produce a very predictable range of motion for diaphragm assembly 48 . as can be seen in fig5 diaphragm assembly 48 has moved to a position where it is now locked in its set or locked position . this locking is accomplished by having ramped notch 76 retain lock ring 42 in the set position . stated alternatively , the annular surface surrounding lock ring opening 74 is in direct contact with an upper shelf portion 78 of ramp notch 76 . in order to reset restriction indicator gauge 20 , the locking or holding relationship between locking extension 70 and lock ring 42 must be disturbed . to accomplish this , button portion 64 of base cap 32 is depressed , causing a related lateral movement of locking extension 70 . referring now to fig6 button portion 64 is shown in its depressed orientation . more specifically , a force is applied to reset cover 44 in the direction of arrow a . this causes a hinging movement of button portion 64 about hinge element 68 . this hinging action causes locking extension 70 to move laterally , thus sliding upper shelf portion 78 out from the holding surface 80 of lock ring 42 . as previously mentioned , calibration spring 36 biases diaphragm assembly 48 away from the upper portion of housing 30 . consequently , when upper shelf portion 78 of locking extension 70 is pulled out from beneath lock ring 42 , calibration spring 36 causes motion in the direction of arrow b . lock ring 42 can then proceed downwardly in this direction until it contacts button portion 64 ( provided no counteracting vacuum signal is present in internal chamber 52 ). referring now to fig1 , the functional action of button portion 64 is shown . more specifically , fig1 shows how button portion 64 reacts to various forces . in each case , locking extension 70 is designed to extend upwardly from the button portion 64 . this entire structure of locking extension 70 and button portion 64 is attached to annular outer portion 66 via hinge element 68 . in each case , the hinge produces a desired reaction to forces presented by various elements . referring now specifically to fig1 a , when a lateral force is presented to locking extension 70 in the direction shown by arrow c , button portion 64 and locking extension 70 both rotate about hinge portion 68 . this force would be presented to locking extension 70 in this manner as diaphragm assembly 48 travels upwardly . that is , as the vacuum signal within internal chamber 52 is increased , force is presented via flexible diaphragm 40 to the lock ring 42 . lock ring 42 slides along locking extension 70 until reaching ramp notch 76 . due to the configuration of ramp notch 76 , a lateral force is then presented to locking extension 70 in the direction of arrow c . this force produces the aforementioned desired reaction of causing button 64 ( and locking extension 70 ) to rotate about hinge element 68 . referring to fig1 b , the reaction of button portion 64 is shown to an upward force presented from below in the direction of arrow d . force in the direction of d represents the typical reset force which would be applied by the user to reset the restriction indicator gauge 20 . once again , the desired rotation motion about hinge element 68 is shown . referring now to fig1 c , button 64 is now exposed to a downward force in the direction of arrows e . as can be seen , this downward force causes button portion 64 to be moved back to its rest position . the force in direction of e represents that force that would be presented by calibration spring 36 as it biases diaphragm assembly 48 back down into contact with button portion 64 . specifically , this force would be presented by lock ring 42 as it contacts button portion 64 . lastly , fig1 d shows a force represented by arrow f in a downward direction which is applied to the top of locking extension 70 . this again moves button portion 64 back into its rest position . this force would exist when a portion of indicator cup 38 is in contact with the top of locking extension 70 . as can be appreciated , the different forces presented in fig1 represent those which would be typically encountered during in a normal operating cycle . referring now to fig8 there shown a top cross sectional view consistent with section lines 8 — 8 of fig5 . specifically , this figure shows the top surface of lock ring 42 and lock ring opening 74 situated therein . locking extension 70 extends at least partially through lock ring opening 74 . as can be seen by comparing fig5 this sectional diagram is shown with diaphragm assembly 48 in its locked position . the cooperation between base cap 32 and diaphragm assembly 48 specifically accommodates the use of a single base cap design . as is well known by those familiar with plastic moldings , a problem or complication exists when molded plastic hinges are used . that is , due to the nature of the material , the hinging element tends to take on the configuration in which it spends most of its time . for example , if a plastic part is continually forced into some shape by an external source , the plastic part will ultimately take a “ set ” in that configuration . in the case of base cap 32 , button portion 64 is configured to be in its natural or rest position when the hinge element 68 is not bent . however , when depressed to accomplish the reset function of restriction indicator gauge 20 , button portion 64 is depressed and hinge element 68 is bent some distance . it would be highly undesirable to have base cap 32 take on a configuration where button element 64 is maintained in its depressed position due to continuous bending of hinge element 68 . the present invention however specifically avoids this problem by appropriately configuring locking extension 70 , with lock ring 42 . as has previously been described , locking extension 70 is specifically configured to extend through lock ring opening 74 . as can be seen in fig4 when restriction indicator gauge 20 is in its reset configuration , locking extension 70 is contained by lock ring opening 74 such that the button portion 64 is retained or held in its rest position at almost all times . this is critical as it avoids any “ setting ” of the hinge element 68 in an undesired configuration . referring now to both fig5 and 8 , indicator cup 38 includes a cylindrical extension 82 which substantially covers locking extension 70 . similarly , housing 30 includes a related substantially cylindrical housing 84 aligned with indicator cup cylindrical extension 82 . both cylindrical extension 82 and cylindrical housing 84 are coaxially aligned with one another such that movement of diaphragm assembly 48 is sufficiently contained within the restriction indicator gauge . this relationship provides proper alignment for diaphragm assembly 48 . referring specifically to fig8 this coaxial alignment can easily be seen . as previously indicated , the restriction indicator gauge 20 has a visual indication of when a predetermined vacuum signal has been achieved . as shown above , this indication may simply include the existence or non - existence of indicator cup 38 in window 33 . referring now to fig1 - 13 , an alternative two color visual indication is shown . in this embodiment , window 33 would display a first color when the gauge is in its reset or rest position , while showing a second color once the gauge has reached its set or locked position . during transitional periods , partial viewing of either color could be obtained . referring now to fig1 and 11 , there shown one structure for achieving this multicolor display feature . in the device of fig1 , the indicator cup 38 has been altered to accommodate a contrasting ring 90 which is seated within the previously existing indicator cup 38 . a viewing extension 92 of contrasting ring 90 is specifically configured to extend above the remainder of indicator cup 38 . in this embodiment , housing 30 again has a view window 33 which could be either a clear portion of housing 30 or a clear portion of label 34 . in this embodiment , when the gauge is in its reset condition , contrasting ring 90 and specifically viewing extension 92 is positioned immediately adjacent window 33 . for example , contrasting ring 90 could be fabricated from a green colored material , consequently a green indication would be shown through window 33 . alternatively , when restriction indicator gauge 20 has reached its set position , both indicator cup 38 and contrasting ring 90 have been moved upwardly . in this set position , the side wall of indicator cup 38 is now positioned immediately adjacent window 33 . as indicator cup 38 is colored differently from contrasting ring 90 , a different color display will be present in window 33 . consequently , a two color display is achieved by adding contrasting ring 90 . an alternative embodiment for achieving this two color display feature is shown in fig1 and 13 . in this case , an indicator cup 38 substantially similar to that shown in fig3 - 5 is used . additionally , a downwardly extending shield 96 is now attached to an upper portion of housing 30 . generally , shield 96 extends a sufficient distance downward so that it can be viewed through window 33 . consequently , when restriction indicator gauge 30 is in its set position , as shown in fig1 , indicator cup 38 will be positioned below window 33 and shield 96 will be exposed . when restriction indicator gauge 20 reaches its set position , however , indicator cup 38 has again been moved to a position immediately adjacent window 33 . thus , indicator cup 38 is now seen through window 33 . again , by fabricating indicator cup 38 and shield 96 from materials of different colors , the contrasting display capability is achieved . while the above - described invention has been described as a dual position indicator ( either set position or reset position ), it is understood that a multi - position gauge could equally be achieved . referring now to fig1 , an alternative locking extension 98 is shown . in this embodiment , multiple locking positions are shown , thus providing the gauge the ability to lock at multiple stages of its operation . those skilled in the art will further appreciate that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or central attributes thereof . in that the foregoing description of the present invention discloses only exemplary embodiments thereof , it is to be understood that other variations are contemplated as being within the scope of the present invention . accordingly , the present invention is not limited to the particular embodiments which have been described in detail therein . rather , reference should be made to the appended claims as indicative of the scope and content of the present invention .	8
the present invention discloses a new combination of adjustment members for an artificial leg to achieve , in part a stable adjustment of the angular position of the tube relative to an imagined load line , and in part an adjustable setting of the translatory position of the tube relative to an upper connecting sleeve . the object of the present invention is with a first adjustment means to set the translatory position of the tube . the first adjustment means thereby includes a supporting plate having a flat surface facing the prosthetic sleeve , whereby the flat surface abuts a lower flat surface on an upper connecting sleeve attached to the prosthetic sleeve . this connecting sleeve demonstrates a central bore permitting a through - bolt to be translatory displaced relative to the upper connecting sleeve . furthermore a second adjustment means is used for the setting of the angular position of the tube , the adjustment means including a pyramid adapter stud integrated with the supporting plate . additionally the pyramid adapter stud is provided with a through - hole into which the through - bolt is threaded and thereby will maintain its alignment independent of the angular position set . a number of additional adjustment means fixed into a proximal sleeve attached to the tube are used for the setting of the angular position of the tube by abutting and locking to the inclined sides of the pyramid adapter stud . the invention will be described in form of a preferred illustrative embodiment and by means of the attached drawings in which equal reference numbers indicate equal or corresponding elements , in which : fig1 demonstrates an illustrative embodiment of a portion of an artificial leg according to the present invention ; fig2 demonstrates a longitudinal cross section of the embodiment of fig1 ; and fig3 demonstrates an additional longitudinal cross section of a preferred embodiment according to the present invention . fig1 demonstrates in an illustrative embodiment a portion of an artificial leg according to the present invention , while fig2 demonstrates a longitudinal cross section of the device according to fig1 . the artificial leg device presents as main components , in a way well known to a person skilled in the art , an extension element in the form of a tube 10 , an adjustment head and a prosthetic sleeve 23 . the tube 10 is , in a way well known to a person skilled in the art , fixed to a proximal sleeve 20 which thereby will constitute a lower portion of the adjustment head . the proximal sleeve is additionally provided with a number of radial threaded screws 46 , for instance of a socket head cap screw type . the screws 46 incline slightly downwards in a direction towards the central line of the tube to abut a corresponding number of flat surfaces 45 of a second upper portion of the adjustment head . this upper portion constitutes a member 42 having the form of a pyramid adapter stud . in the illustrative embodiment this pyramid adapter stud has four inwardly inclined sides 45 , but the pyramid adapter stud in an additional embodiment may be made having , for instance , 3 or 5 inclined sides , which will then correspond to a corresponding number of screws 46 in the lower proximal sleeve . the inclined sides of the pyramid adapter stud correspond generally to the inclination of the screws 46 in the lower proximal sleeve 20 , such that the screws will approximately perpendicularly abut the inclined sides of the pyramid adapter stud . the second upper portion of the adjustment head including the member 42 further consists of a supporting plate 32 in which the pyramid adapter stud , constituting the member 42 , is included as an integral portion . the supporting plate 32 presents at the sides of the pyramid adapter stud a convex surface 35 facing the proximal sleeve 20 . this convex surface furthermore corresponds to a concave surface 43 at the perimeter edge of the lower proximal sleeve 20 , which edge is intended to abut the convex surface 35 of the supporting plate . furthermore the supporting plate 32 presents a flat surface facing the prosthetic sleeve 23 , whereby this flat surface abuts a lower flat surface of an upper connecting sleeve 21 being affixed to the prosthetic sleeve 23 , for instance , by casting . accordingly , the supporting plate 32 with the pyramid adapter stud 42 and the upper connecting sleeve 21 constitute the upper portion of the adjustment head . the upper connecting sleeve 21 presents an outer flange 22 casted into the prosthetic sleeve 23 . additionally the connecting sleeve 21 presents in its lower flat surface a through - hole 33 which is much larger than the diameter of a bolt or a screw 34 which is threaded into a through - hole of the pyramid adapter stud 42 onto the supporting plate 32 . additionally , the screw 34 in the illustrative embodiment is countersinked into an upper washer 36 which , irrespective of the position of the screw 34 in the through - hole 33 , principally covers the bore 33 . thus , the upper connecting sleeve 21 , the washer 36 , the screw 34 passing through and the supporting plate 32 with the pyramid adapter stud 42 constitute the adjustment device in the translatory direction , while the pyramid adapter stud 42 , the convex surface 35 of the supporting plate and the lower proximal sleeve 20 with the screws 46 constitute the adjustment device for the angular adjustment of the tube 10 . fig3 shows a preferred embodiment of the present invention . the embodiment according to fig3 differs from the embodiment of fig2 in that the screw or bolt 34 is not threaded in the through - hole of the pyramid adapter stud 42 , but the screw or bolt 34 is brought from below through a bore in the pyramid adapter stud 42 and is instead threaded into the washer 36 which preferably is made slightly thicker . consequently , in the embodiment of fig3 it is possible to adjust the translatory position of the pyramid adapter without removing the prosthetic sleeve 23 from the stump of the leg . in both embodiments a number of threaded through - holes 50 are additionally arranged at the outer periphery of the supporting plate 32 , just outside where the convex surface 35 ends . in the bores 50 locking screws 52 are applied which with a sharp end engage the flat lower surface of the upper connecting sleeve 21 to further mutually lock the supporting plate 32 to the connecting sleeve 21 in the translatory position set . due to the construction , according to the present combination of the translatory adjustment device and the angular adjustment device of the present invention , an advantage is obtained compared to , for instance , the disclosed construction according to the swedish patent no . se 454 046 , in that the screw for translatory setting will not be subject to direct breaking forces by being angled due to the angular setting of the tube , but this screw all the time maintains a fixed alignment . furthermore an advantage is achieved in that the tube 10 with the lower proximal sleeve 20 being fixed with the screws 46 may on demand be fully released from the adjustment head without first having to remove the prosthetic sleeve from the stump of the leg . in other words the lower portion of the artificial leg can simply be detached by means of a tool , in this case a socket - head tool , for possible other adjustments without having to take off the prosthetic sleeve . the forces acting from below in the present combination will primarily be absorbed by the convex surface 35 of the supporting plate , which surface abuts the corresponding concave surface portion 43 of the lower proximal sleeve 20 , while the screws 46 constitute only locking of the angular position set . however , it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention can be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential character thereof . the presently disclosed embodiments are therefore considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive . the scope of the invention is indicated by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description , and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalents thereof are intended to be embraced therein .	0
referring to fig1 and 2 , there is depicted an exemplary form of a curette generally designated 10 , fashioned in accordance with the present principles and being one medical instrument of a set of medical instruments for treating bony aberrations of the calcaneus such as , but not limited to , calcaneal compression fractures . the curette has a handle 12 with a shaft 14 extending from the handle 12 such that the handle 12 is situated at a proximal end of the shaft 14 . a blade 16 is situated at a distal end of the shaft 14 . as best seen in fig2 , the blade 16 is defined by curved portion 17 that extends from the distal end of the shaft 14 with a scoop 18 at the end of an angled portion 17 . the shaft 14 has a working length ( e . g . 23 . 8 cm ) sufficient to allow the blade 16 to extend beyond the distal end of the access needle shaft when the curette is inserted into an access needle ( see access needle 40 of fig7 - 8 ). the blade has a blade length ( e . g . 20 mm ) adequate to reach and create a void at the desired calcaneal site . referring to fig3 and 4 , there is depicted an exemplary form of a depth guide , generally designated 20 , fashioned in accordance with the present principles and being one medical instrument of a set of medical instruments for treating bony aberrations of the calcaneus such as , but not limited to , calcaneal compression fractures . the depth guide 20 has a generally cylindrical body 21 with a head 23 at one end and an elongated portion 22 extending from the head 23 , the elongated portion 22 having a smaller diameter than the head 23 . a bore ( not seen ) extends through the body 21 from the head 23 through the elongated portion 22 . a fitting 24 is connected to a marker 26 that is disposed within a chamber 29 of the elongated portion 22 . the fitting 24 has a bore ( not shown ) that receives an instrument shaft . a number of demarcations 28 are provided along the chamber 29 of the elongated portion 22 that show depth . as the fitting 24 moves with the instrument , the marker 26 and thus mark 27 moves along the chamber 29 . a mark 27 shows depth relative to the demarcations 28 . a button 25 is provided which upon compression allows for fitting 24 to translate . as fitting 24 elongates the curette tip exposure reduces when stacked upon the access cannula . the amount of tip exposure runs from 4 mm to 32 mm . referring to fig5 and 6 , there is depicted an exemplary form of a drill , generally designated 30 , fashioned in accordance with the present principles and being one medical instrument of a set of medical instruments for treating bony aberrations of the calcaneus such as , but not limited to , calcaneal compression fractures . the drill 30 has a handle 32 with a shaft 34 extending from the handle 32 such that the handle 32 is situated at a proximal end of the shaft 34 . threads or threading 36 is situated at a distal end of the shaft 34 . the shaft 34 has a working length ( e . g . 21 . 9 cm ) sufficient to allow the threading 36 to extend beyond the distal end of the access needle shaft when the drill is inserted into the access needle 40 ( see fig7 - 8 ). the length of threading 36 defines a drill length . the drill length ( e . g . 38 mm ) is adequate to reach a desired calcaneal site . referring to fig7 , 8a , and 8b , there is depicted an exemplary form of an access needle , generally designated 40 , fashioned in accordance with the present principles and being one medical instrument of a set of medical instruments for treating bony aberrations of the calcaneus such as , but not limited to , calcaneal compression fractures . the access needle 40 is characterized by a cannula portion ( cannula ) 41 ( see fig8 a ) and a trocar tip portion ( trocar tip ) 43 ( see fig8 b ). the cannula portion 41 includes a handle 42 having a central body 45 with a hollow shaft 44 extending from the body 45 such that the handle 42 is situated about an open proximal end of the hollow shaft 44 . a boss 65 , situated on an end of the body 45 , is in communication with the open proximal end of the hollow shaft 44 , and is configured to releasably receive a cap 48 of the trocar tip 40 ( see fig8 b and below ). the distal end of the hollow shaft 44 terminates in an open end 46 . the hollow shaft 44 is thus open from its distal end 46 to its proximal end 65 . the shaft 44 has a working length ( e . g . 12 . 9 cm ) sufficient to allow the other medical instruments to extend beyond the end 46 when inserted into the hollow shaft 44 . the handle 42 is preferably , but not necessarily , ergonomically configured for easy manipulation by the user . the trocar tip 43 includes a seal for the open proximal end of the hollow shaft 44 of the cannula 41 in the form of a cap 48 that is configured to releasably join with the boss 65 of the handle 42 such that the proximal opening of the hollow shaft 44 of the cannula 41 is obturated . an elongated rod 66 extends from the cap 48 and terminates at its distal end in a pointed blade 67 . the pointed blade 67 is preferably , but not necessarily , cut at an angle or bias . other sharp and / or pointed style tips may be used . the rod 66 is sized such that it is slightly less than the inner diameter of the shaft hollow 44 with a length to at least extend to the open distal end 46 of the hollow shaft 44 such that the blade 67 is beyond the open distal end 46 . when the cap 48 is releasably held over and / or onto the boss 65 of the handle 42 , the rod 66 extends through the hollow shaft 44 and the blade 67 is exposed , thereby releasably retaining the trocar tip 43 in the cannula 41 . structure in the form of a flange 68 of the cap 48 cooperates with a cap reception structure 47 of the handle 42 to removably retain the cap 48 on the handle 42 , and thus the rod 66 within the hollow shaft 44 . the removable trocar 43 provides controlled access to the hollow shaft 44 such that an item or items may be inserted into and through the hollow shaft 44 when the trocar 43 is removed . in an exemplary form , the cap reception structure 47 of the handle 42 includes a slot 49 that accepts the flange structure 68 of the cap 48 . referring to fig9 and 10 , there is depicted an exemplary form of a cement plunger , generally designated 50 , fashioned in accordance with the present principles and being one medical instrument of a set of medical instruments for treating bony aberrations of the calcaneus such as , but not limited to , calcaneal compression fractures . the cement plunger 50 has a handle 52 with a hollow shaft 54 extending from the handle 52 such that the handle 52 is situated at a proximal end of the shaft 54 . the distal end of the shaft 54 terminates in blunt tip 55 . the hollow shaft 54 thus has an opening at its distal end and an opening at its proximal end . the shaft 54 has a working length ( e . g . 21 . 9 cm ) sufficient to extend through and beyond the distal tip 46 of the hollow shaft 44 of the cannula 41 of the access needle 40 . the handle 52 includes a closure structure 53 formed as a cap 56 that removably couples with mating structure ( not seen ) on an end 57 of the handle 52 , the end 57 providing access to the hollow shaft 54 from its proximal end . the mating structure may be a luer lock or the like . once the cap 56 is removed , a syringe ( not shown ) having a mating luer lock ( structure ) is received on the end 57 , the syringe having bvf or other bone cement . fig1 - 14 depict several of the present medical instruments as used in the present method for treating bony aberrations of the calcaneus and , for this particular illustration , a method of treating a calcaneal compression fracture that provides a minimally invasive approach . fig1 shows the cannula 41 of the access needle 40 with the trocar tip 43 of the access needle 40 has been removed after the access needle 40 was placed into the calcaneus ( not shown ) via a stab incision or a simple puncturing the plugged access needle 40 through the skin and into the bone . with the use of fluoroscopy , die marker or otherwise , a surgeon locates the bone fracture with the blade 67 of the trocar tip 43 of the access needle 40 . this may be accomplished by hand insertion , with the use of a mallet , or otherwise . in fig1 , the drill 30 is shown inserted into the cannula 41 with its bone drill threading 36 extending beyond the tip 46 of the cannula shaft 44 . the drill 30 may then be used to reach a desired location within the calcaneus through hand manipulation ( i . e . twisting ) of the handle 32 of the drill 30 . in fig1 , the drill guide 20 is shown coupled to the cannula 41 of the access needle 40 ( particularly , the handle 42 thereof ) with the curette 10 situated in the drill guide 20 and cannula 41 . the curette 10 is situated in the drill guide 20 such that the handle 12 of the curette 10 abuts the fitting 24 . the curette 10 is shown at a maximum depth relative to the cannula 41 such that the blade 16 extends a maximum distance beyond the tip 46 of the cannula 41 . the mark 27 of the marker 26 of the depth guide will be at its lowest point within the indicator 29 thus indicating a maximum depth . upward and downward movement of the fitting 24 of the depth guide 20 moves the position of the curette up and down relative to the cannula 41 thus setting a depth of the blade 16 of the curette 10 ( or other of the present medical instruments ), while correspondingly moving the mark 26 of the drill guide 20 . through mechanical ( e . g . hand ) manipulation , the blade 16 of the curette 10 creates a small fenestra or void at the distal end ( tip 46 ) of the cannula 41 for reception of bone cement ( e . g . bvf ) in order to augment and stabilize the fracture . the curette 10 and the depth guide 20 are removed after the void has been created in order to fill the distal void ( not shown ) with the bvf . in fig1 , the cement plunger 50 is shown inserted into the cannula 41 in order to provide bvf to the distal void ( not shown ) of the calcaneus ( not shown ). the cap 56 is removed and a syringe of bvf attaches to handle 52 of the cement plunger 50 for injecting the bvf into the calcaneal site . fig1 depicts a cannula 60 as a medical instrument of the present set of medical instruments or as an augmentation of one of the present medical instruments such as the cannula 41 of the access needle 40 . the cannula 60 is defined by longitudinal shaft 62 having an internal , longitudinal bore 63 extending from a proximal end ( not shown ) thereof to the distal end 61 thereof . a fenestra or opening 64 , which may be one of several , is disposed in the side of the shaft 62 proximate the distal end 61 thereof . this cannula can be used to inject bvf into the central lumen of a bone fracture screw ( such as bone fracture screw 70 shown in fig1 and 17 , and described in greater detail below ) in the same desired calcaneal site . in some instances , the surgeon will install a bone fracture screw across the fracture line of a calcaneal break . the cannula is thus designed to be inserted into the bone fracture screw 70 ( see fig1 ) to allow for bvf to be injected into the fracture site , via the cannula 60 and bone fracture screw 70 . referring to fig1 and 17 , there is depicted an exemplary form of a bone fracture screw , generally designated 70 , fashioned in accordance with the present principles and being one medical instrument of a set of medical instruments for treating bony aberrations of the calcaneus such as , but not limited to , calcaneal compression fractures . the bone fracture screw 70 has a shaft 72 having a head 73 at a proximal end of the shaft 72 , and bone screw threading 74 at a distal end of the shaft 72 . a longitudinal bore 75 extends through the shaft 72 from the proximal end to the distal end . the bone fracture screw 70 includes several fenestrae 76 situated about the bone screw threading 74 at the distal end of the shaft 72 . the fenestrae 64 of the cannula 60 may be aligned with the fenestrae 76 of the fracture screw 70 . it should be appreciated that many medical instrument sets may be formed using permutations of the various medical instruments described herein . it should also be appreciated that dimensions of the medical instruments of the present medical instrument set &# 39 ; s components , structures , and / or features can be altered as desired .	0
fig1 illustrates an mht configuration of powertrain 10 components that includes an internal combustion engine 12 , an engine disconnect clutch 14 , a high voltage battery 16 , a high voltage to low voltage dc / dc converter 18 , low voltage battery 20 , low voltage starter 22 , torsion damper 24 , electric machine 26 , torque converter 28 , torque converter bypass clutch 30 , transmission gear box 32 , driveshaft 34 , final drive gearing 36 , halfshafts 38 , 40 , and driven wheels 42 , 44 . the torsion damper 24 comprises a coiled spring or a mechanism that includes multiple coiled springs , wherein torsion applied to the damper causes displacement of the spring mechanism . torsional energy is dissipated by the damper 24 due to frictional contact between the moving springs and the walls of a damper casing containing the springs . a main transmission pump 46 , driven by the engine 12 , supplies pressurized hydraulic fluid to the hydraulic system of the transmission 32 and the torque converter 28 . an auxiliary oil pump , driven by an electric motor ( not shown ), supplies pressurized hydraulic fluid to the hydraulic system of the transmission 32 and the torque converter 28 when the engine is off . the internal combustion engine ( ice ) 12 is connected to the electric machine 26 and transmission 32 through the disconnect clutch 14 , which can engage and disengage the engine from the powertrain to satisfy operational requirements of the hybrid vehicle in different modes . the high voltage electric machine 26 is secured to the impeller shaft 50 of the torque converter 28 . the electric machine 26 is powered by the high voltage battery 16 . the hev powertrain 10 could share the same transmission hardware with conventional vehicles but different control algorithm , e . g . a regular step ratio transmission could be used in the powertrain to drive the vehicle . the torque converter 28 used in this configuration is preferably identical to the torque converter used in conventional automatic transmissions . when bypass clutch 30 is open , differential speed between the transmission input shaft 52 and the impeller shaft 50 is possible . when the bypass clutch 30 is closed the torque converter impeller and turbine are mechanically connected , in which case the speed of the electric machine 26 and transmission input 52 are substantially identical . alternatively , other types of automatic transmissions can be used in the powertrain 10 , e . g . a continuously variable transmission ( cvt ) having a drive belt engaged with a two pulleys , or an automatic manual transmission , or other hev technologies . the overall hybrid operation is similar but details of the mechanism disconnecting the motor from the transmission are different . the torsion damper 24 is a mechanical component having the primary function of modulating or eliminating high frequency torsional vibration from the powertrain 10 . the engine 12 is cranked to start by the high voltage motor 26 . engine cranking torque required to pull up an engine varies significantly base on the position of engine at crank . less torque is required to start an engine when an engine piston 70 is advancing close to top dead center in its cylinder than when the cylinder is farther from , but approaching top dead center . the torque required to overcome the first and second compression strokes of an engine , when engine speed is low and compression energy is lost , i . e ., does not drive the engine crankshaft during the expansion stroke , will change based on the crank angle at which the engine is stopped . the crank angle varies between 0 degrees and 720 degrees for a four stroke engine . fig2 shows that for an engine stopped at 60 degrees btdc , the first few compression strokes of a starting engine waste energy and provide no compression help on the expansion stroke . when starting torque is low 82 , the period length for engine speed to reach 300 rpm is longer than when starting torque is higher 84 . fig3 shows that for an engine stopped at 10 degrees btdc , after the second compression stroke energy from the compressed air - fuel mixture on the expansion stroke increases reducing the period length required for engine speed to reach 300 rpm . fig4 shows that over a range of engine crank positions when a relatively low magnitude of cranking torque is applied , the engine may not accelerate . fig5 shows a pressure profile 90 for disconnect clutch 14 when the engine 12 is stopped at 60 degrees btdc , as determined from an electronic signal representing an engine crank angle produced by sensor 91 . when hydraulic pressure of 56 . 5 psi is supplied to clutch 14 , the torque transmitting capacity of the clutch is 73 lb - ft . curve 92 shows the corresponding increase of engine speed during a period 102 required for engine speed to reach 300 rpm using clutch pressure profile 90 . similarly , fig5 shows a pressure profile 94 for disconnect clutch 14 when the engine 12 is stopped at 10 degrees btdc . when hydraulic pressure of 52 . 5 psi is supplied to clutch 14 , the torque transmitting capacity of the clutch is 65 lb - ft . curve 96 shows the corresponding increase of engine speed during the period 102 required for engine speed to reach 300 rpm using clutch pressure profile 94 . the clutch pressure profile 98 for disconnect clutch 14 when the engine 12 is stopped at 60 degrees btdc with hydraulic pressure of 62 . 5 psi supplied to clutch 14 , produces 85 lb - ft of clutch torque transmitting capacity . curve 104 shows that the engine speed corresponding to clutch pressure profile 98 increases rapidly to 300 rpm . the engine start produced by pressure profile 98 is premature , i . e ., occurs over a period 106 that is too short for the operating conditions or vehicle operator &# 39 ; s expectations , and wastes energy , which is supplied by starting motor 26 . curve 108 shows that an alternate engine start that is produced by pressure profile 98 is delayed , i . e ., requires a period 110 that is too long for the engine speed to reach 300 rpm , particularly so when the engine start is initiated by the vehicle operator &# 39 ; s depressing the accelerator pedal . preferably the period 102 for engine speed to reach 300 rpm has a consistent length . each of the disconnect clutch pressure profiles 90 , 94 , 98 determines how much electric machine torque will be directed to cranking the engine 12 . if the disconnect clutch pressure profile changes based on the stopping position of the engine , a reduction of torque required to crank the engine may be realized or anticipated . fig6 shows a variation 112 of the disconnect clutch pressure profile 90 of fig5 and the corresponding engine speed variation 114 during an engine restart . the desired pressure profile 11 , applicable when the engine 12 is stopped at 60 degrees btdc , provides a stepwise increase in clutch pressure when needed at 114 instead of the linear increase of pressure profile 90 whose peak magnitude supplied to clutch 14 is of 56 . 5 psi . curve 114 shows the corresponding increase of engine speed during a period 112 required for engine speed to reach 300 rpm . the open loop pressure profiles for disconnect clutch pressure control are selected and applied to crank and start engine 12 with reference to the angular position of the engine , i . e ., the crank angle of the stopped engine , and the basis for a command to restart the engine . for example , if the vehicle is operating in electric mode with the engine stopped , and the state of charge of battery 16 is low , the powertrain controller will issue a command to restart the engine using the electric machine 26 . an engine restart under such condition is preferably smooth , of high quality and occurs over a consistent length 102 . the engine restart occurs at relatively low cranking torque with the desired disconnect clutch pressure profile being 90 or 94 , depending on the crank angle position of engine 12 while stopped . but if the vehicle operator initiates an engine restart , such as by depressing the accelerator pedal 124 , the engine restart occurs over a relatively short period 106 at relatively high cranking torque . under such operating conditions the engine restart may be less smooth and of shorter duration and the desired disconnect clutch pressure profile is 98 depending on the crank angle position of engine 12 while stopped . in order to facilitate sustained engine combustion following engine cranking , the magnitude of pressure applied to clutch 14 decreases . after combustion becomes sustained in engine 12 , the magnitude of pressure applied to clutch 14 increases to a magnitude that is able to transmit engine torque through the electric machine 26 , torque converter 28 , transmission gearing 32 and final drive 36 to the driven wheels 42 , 44 . in accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes , the preferred embodiment has been described . however , it should be noted that the alternate embodiments can be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described .	8
the purified - opioid receptors are isolated by a receptor purification method disclosed in u . s . ser . no . 07 / 677 , 003 , now u . s . pat . no . 5 , 225 , 543 , issued jul . 6 , 1993 the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference . the purified opioid receptors are described in u . s . ser . no . 08 / 026 , 140 the contents which are incorporated herein by reference . opioid receptors can be found in a wide variety of tissue types ( jaffe and martin , supra , the contents of which is incorporated herein by reference ). in particular , the δ , μ , κ , and σ classes of receptors are found in brain , as well as other tissues ; the ε type is found in vas deferens and the κ type is also plentiful in placenta ( ahmed et al ., supra ). the opiate receptor is isolated initially as a complex with its associated g proteins . a number of opiate or opioid analogs are commercially available that can be used for receptor binding . for example , research biochemicals , incorporated , 1991 catalog , page xv , identifies a number of opioid ligands by their subtype specificity . the ligand used will generally be selected based on its affinity for a particular receptor subtype . in a preferred method for purification , a biotinylated opiate analog is used . in the following examples , the ligand used for isolation of receptor is a biotinylated β - endorphin . in the preferred isolation method , the ligand is first bound to intact cell membranes , thereby forming a receptor : ligand ( r : l ) complex . after this prebinding step , the membranes are solubilized in detergent and intact receptor : ligand complexes are obtained . a useful detergent for this purpose is a combination of deoxycholate and lysophosphatidylcholine in a 1 : 1 ratio , preferably at a concentration of 0 . 2 % w / v or less . at this stage , the complex consists of the receptor and its associated g protein subunits . the association of the receptor with g proteins is confirmed by the rapid dissociation of the complex in the presence of a stable gtp analog . the solubilized complex is then contacted with an appropriate high affinity binding column . when the ligand is biotinylated , the column used is preferably streptavidin - agarose ( sa - a ), whereby the biotinylated portion of the r : l complex will tightly bind to the streptavidin . streptavidin is preferred , due to its lower non - specific binding ; however , free and its lower non - specific binding ; however , free and immobilized avidin is also available ( pierce , vector ) and may be suitable for some purposes . the column is eluted with a gtp analog , such as gtp - γ - s . the gtp analog serves to dissociate g protein subunits from the receptor , thereby lowering the affinity of the receptor for its ligand , and thus indirectly causing dissociation from the ligand . in a preferred embodiment , the elution with gtp analog is combined with elution with at least 25 mm nacl , preferably 50 - 100 mm , up to a maximum of about 500 mm nacl . although dissociation will occur with gtp alone , it occurs at a relatively low level ( about 30 %), and the use of nacl enhances this dissociation . alternately , a high level , i . e ., 500 mm of salt can be used alone . the eluate from the streptavidin column is then incubated with a lectin affinity chromatography substrate , such as wheat germ agluttinin ( wga )- agarose , which will separate glycoproteins from nonglycoproteins . the eluate containing the glycosylated material shows a protein with a molecular weight of about 66 , 000 ; this protein is also seen in material eluted by gtp - γ - s and / or with nacl , but is not seen in eluates from samples not previously bound with the biotinylated β - endorphin , indicating its ligand dependence . this band appears to represent an opioid receptor , presumably a “ mu ” or “ delta ” type opioid receptor , based on β - endorphin &# 39 ; s known preferential binding to “ mu ” or “ delta ” receptor types , and the pharmacological data discussed below . in the nonglycosylated material that is not bound to the lectin affinity column , there appears a second smaller band of about 30 - 40 , 000 , which apparently elutes with gtp - gamma - s alone ( i . e ., without nacl ). this material also is apparently ligand - dependent , since , like the 66k band , it only appears in eluates from samples which have been prebound with biotinyl - β - endorphin . it is assumed that this band represents g protein subunits , particularly in light of binding with anti - g iα as seen in fig4 . the identity of the isolated material is confirmed by additional experiments using nonbiotinylated β - endorphin analog ligands . a [ 125 i ] β - endorphin analog is used as described above to create r : l complexes in rat brain cell membranes . these complexes , when applied to wheat germ agluttinin , and eluted with n - n ′- n ″- triacetyl - chitotriose , shows a fairly high level of specifically bound material ( see tables 1 and 2 , infra ), confirming the identity as a glycoprotein . the purified 66 kda glycoprotein is subjected to lys - c endoprotease digestion , sds polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and electroblotting , producing a 15 kda peptide band . this peptide yields 20 cycles of high quality amino acid sequence . the n - terminus of this band overlaps by 4 amino acid residues with a 7 - amino acid residue sequence obtained from a band of about 3 kda from a cyanogen bromide digest , giving a total sequence length of 23 amino acid residues . the sequence ( sequence id no . 14 ) obtained is as follows : this sequence is quite similar to a region of the sstr1 somatostatin receptor , spanning parts of intracellular loop iii and transmembrane region vi . significantly , it is 83 % identical with the same region of a recently cloned delta opioid receptor from mouse ( c . j . evans , et al ., science 258 : 1952 - 1955 , 1992 ). underlined residues indicate the differences between the two receptors in this region . pharmacological evaluation of the purified protein indicates that it is a mu - subtype receptor , and that the difference between the repacted delta subtype receptor and the present receptor is not attributable to a simple species difference , but is due to a known mu - specific peptide capable of blocking the binding of β - endorphin to the isolated receptor . the novel sequence information obtained provides the basis for isolation and cloning of the corresponding gene encoding the receptor . the delta opioid sequence in this region is nearly identical to the same region of sstr1 , and seems to be highly conserved in a set of 5 or 6 receptors , indicating homology in the mu receptor as well . the combination of primers , including the mu specific - based primer , in pcr of whole brain mrna , selectively yields the mu receptor . the purified receptor , or biologically active fragments thereof , are useful for a number of purposes . for example , the purified material , in glycosylated or nonglycosylated form , is used to create monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies having specificity for the opioid receptor . the technology for creation of monoclonal antibodies is well known in the art ( see , e . g ., goding , monoclonal antibodies : principle and practice , 2nd ed ., 1986 ). such antibodies have utility in manipulating purified opioid receptors involved in gut motility and growth hormone secretion , or in drug delivery to specific tissues or for tumor imaging . general techniques for preparing anti - receptor antibodies are found in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 857 , 637 , the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference . the isolated receptor protein itself , and protein expressed from the cloned opiate receptor cdna is useful in screening assays to identify compounds that act as analogs . for example , the receptor protein is immobilized by any means which does not interfere with opiate binding activity . the immobilized receptor is then contacted with a specific compound or mixture and its ability to compete with radiolabelled opiate for binding to the receptor is evaluated . variations on this method are apparent to those skilled in the art . the present invention encompasses the opiate receptor protein and its biologically active fragments produced by any means , whether synthetically , recombinantly , or by purification of the native protein . the isolated opiate receptor , as described above , is used in protein sequencing procedures . the protein sequence in turn is used to design oligonucleotide probes used to screen λgt10 libraries containing the relevant cdna ( copies of rna ), e . g ., from brain cells . hybridization of oligos with the library identifies the clone ( s ) containing the srif receptor gene or portions thereof . the gene or gene fragments are isolated from the clones , the whole gene reconstructed and then ligated into an appropriate vector by known methods . the vector is chosen based upon the choice of preferred host cell . the host cell is prokaryotic , e . g ., e . coli or other bacteria ; or eukaryotic , e . g ., yeast , insect , or mammalian cells . the following materials and methods are referred to throughout the examples . whole male rat brains frozen in liquid n 2 are purchased from pel - freez ( rogers , ark .). all procedures for membrane preparation are carried out at a temperature of 2 - 6 ° c . the brains are homogenized in a waring blender in a buffer containing 1 mm na - bicarbonate ( ph 7 . 2 ), 1 mm edta , 1 mm egta ( all chemicals from sigma chemical , st . louis , mo .) and 0 . 7 % ( vol ./ vol .) of the 100 × 4pase protease inhibitor mixture ( see “ protease inhibitors ” below ). the ratio of tissue / homogenization medium is from 25 - 35 gm of brain / 500 ml . the blender is controlled through a variable output rheostat ( staco energy products , dayton , ohio ; type 3pn1010 ) at a setting of 40 . the homogenate is centrifuged for 10 minutes at 1 , 000 × g pellet is rehomeginized in 500 ml of homogenization medium and recentrifuged for 10 minutes at 1 , 000 × g . the 1 , 000 × g pellet is discarded . the 1 , 000 × g supernatants are combined and centrifuged for 30 minutes at 20 , 000 × g . the 20 , 000 × g membrane pellet is washed by being resuspended with a dounce homogenizer in 500 ml of homogenization medium supplemented with 10 mm edta ( ph readjusted to 7 . 4 ) and then washed twice by being resuspended in 25 mm tris buffer ( sigma chemical co . ; ph 7 . 4 ) and centrifuged for 25 minutes at 20 , 000 × g . the final membrane pellet is resuspended in 25 mm inhibitor mixture to a protein concentration of 4 - 12 mg / ml . the resuspended membranes are aliquoted , frozen on dry ice and stored at − 90 ° c . binding of [ 125 i ]- labelled β - endorphin , β - endorphin and other β - endorphin analogs and opioids is done in a binding buffer containing 50 mm hepes ( sigma ; ph 7 . 4 ; phed with koh ), 0 . 1 % ( w / v ) bovine serum albumin ( miles laboratories , elkhart , ind .) and protease inhibitors as specified below for specific applications . all binding incubations are carried out at room temperature ( 20 - 23 ° c .). a . analytical — this assay is carried out in 96 well microtiter plates ( immulon ii with snap - off wells ; dynatech , chantille , va .). to carry out the assay , the following components are added to the wells in the order and volumes shown : ( 1 ) 5 μl of non - labelled ligand . for this purpose , ligands ( for example β - endorphin or biotinylated b - endorphin ) are made up at 40 × the desired final concentration in the 40 × p / b / pz protease inhibitor mixture ( experimental procedures . 4 . c .) ( 2 ) 50 μl of [ 125 i ] β - endorphin in binding buffer + 1 / 100 volume of the 100 × 4pase protease inhibitor mixture ; mix briefly on a microtiter plate shaker ( dynatech micro - shaker ii , dynatech , chantilly , va .). ( 3 ) 145 μl of rat brain membrane diluted in binding buffer + 1 / 1000 volume of 100 × 4pase to deliver 30 - 50 μg of membrane protein per well . the plates are then covered with linbro mylar plate sealers ( flow labs , mclean , va .) and incubated for 1 hour at room temperature ( 20 - 23 ° c .). the membranes are pelleted by centrifugation at 2 , 000 × g , the supernatants ( containing nonbound ligands ) are decanted and the pellets are washed by the addition of 200 μl of ice cold binding buffer , brief shaking and recentrifugation . cpm of [ 125 i ] in the final membrane pellets is then counted in a gamma counter ( lkb gammamaster 1277 ; 80 % efficiency ). b . preparative — rat brain membranes are diluted to a concentration of 0 . 5 mg of membrane protein / ml in binding buffer containing 1 / 400 ( vol ./ vol .) of the 400 × p / b / bz protease inhibitor mixture ( see section 4 ). biotinyl - β - endorphin ( synthesized and purified as described below ; 1 : 1 mixture of hplc fractions 1 and 2 is added , most commonly to a concentration of 60 nm . the mixture is incubated either by stirring in a large polypropylene beaker ( 1 - 2 liters volume ) or by rotation on a tube rotator ( 100 - 250 ml per polypropylene centrifuge tube ). control incubations designed to show ligand specificity of purified proteins are done by various means as follows : i . no ligand . rat brain membranes are incubated as above except with no biotinyl - β - endorphin or other opioid analog . ii . blocking ligand . binding of biotinyl - β - endorphin is blocked by a large molar excess ( 500 - 1 , 000 fold ) of a non - biotinylated opioid ligand such as β - endorphin , met - enkephalin or nalox - one . in this case , the blocking ligand is added from 5 - 15 minutes prior to the addition of biotinyl - β - endorphin . in some cases only the blocking ligand is added . for example , the receptor sites may simply be saturated with naloxone . the binding reactions ( 1 hour ) are terminated by centrifugation for 10 - 15 minutes at 20 , 000 × g . the supernatants are decanted and the membrane pellets are washed with a volume of binding buffer ( minus bovine serum albumin ) equal to the original incubation volume . for this wash step , the membranes are dispersed in the wash buffer in a dounce homogenizer , diluted out in the wash buffer and recentrifuged at 20 , 000 × g . this final membrane pellet is then solubilized in detergent as described in part 3 , below , and used to characterize soluble r : l complex ( when prebinding is done with [ 125 i ] β - endorphin ) or for purification of opioid receptor and associated g protein ( when prebinding is done with biotinyl - β - endorphin ). this step is carried out in a solubilization buffer containing 25 mm tris ( ph 8 . 0 ) and 10 % glycerol . all procedures are at 4 ° c . or on ice . deoxycholate : lysophosphatidylcholine ( 1 : 1 ( w / w ) mixture ; hereafter referred to as d : l ; stock solutions = 10 % ( w / v ) in h 2 o ; purchased from sigma ] is added to the solubilization buffer to a final concentration of 0 . 15 % w / v ( deoxycholate = 0 . 075 %; lysophosphatidylcholines = 0 . 075 %). protease inhibitors ( 100 × 4pase ; 1 % vol ./ vol .) are added and rat brain membranes are diluted out into this medium to a protein concentration of 0 . 5 mg / ml . after 30 - 45 minutes incubation on ice , the samples are centrifuged for 30 minutes at 100 , 000 × g . the 100 , 000 × g supernatants are aspirated out of the centrifuge tubes as far as possible without disturbing the pellets of insoluble material . then the remaining supernatant is poured out of the tubes and filtered through a 0 . 2μ cellulose acetate or nylon filter unit ( corning inc ., corning , n . y .) to remove particulate matter dislodged from the pellet . this filtered supernatant is then combined with the material removed by aspiration . three mixtures of protease inhibitors are used in these procedures . ( a ) 100 × 4pase . 5 mg pepstatin a , 15 mg chymostatin , 38 mg leupeptin and 73 mg phenylmethylsulfonylfluoride ( pmsf ; all compounds from bachem , torrance , calif .) are dissolved per 5 ml of dimethylsulfoxide ( dmso ; aldrich chemicals ). aliquots are stored frozen at 4 ° c . ( b ) 40 × pmsf / baci . 2 mg of pmsf and 2 mg of bacitracin ( sigma ) are dissolved per ml of dmso . aliquots are stored frozen . c . 400 × p / b / bz . 20 mg of pmsf , 20 mg of bacitracin and 20 mg of benzamidine ( sigma ) are dissolved per ml of dmso . aliquots are stored frozen . a peptide with the amino acid sequence h 2 n - tyr - gly - gly - phe - met - thr - ser - glu - lys - ser - gln - thr - pro - leu - val - thr - leu - phe - lys - asn - ala - ile - ile - lys - asn - ala - tyr - lys - lys - gly - glu --[ biotinyl - lys 32 ]- co ([ biotinyl - lys 32 ] β - endorphin ) ( sequence id no . 13 ) is synthesized at applied biosystems inc . ( abi ; foster city , calif .). synthesis is by solid phase from the c terminal by the fmoc method . after synthesis , while the peptide is still on the resin , the ε - amino group of lys 32 is specifically deprotected . the ε - amino group is then reacted with n - hydroxy - succinimidyl - aminohexanoyl - biotin ( nhs - lc - biotin ; pierce , rockford , ill . ; “ lc ”= aminohexanoate ). after biotinylation , all of the protected amino acid residues are deprotected and the peptide is released from the resin by hf cleavage . in the example shown the final product ( about 50 % pure ; see fig1 a ), is further purified by reverse phase hplc on a brownlee “ aquapore ” c8 column ( 1 × 25 cm ). elution is by a gradient of acetonitrile mixed in water / 0 . 1 % trifluoroacetic acid . two closely spaced product peaks are eluted from the column . these two peptide fractions are lyophilized and solubilized in water at 1 mg / ml . aliquots are stored frozen at − 90 ° c . 100 , 000 × g supernatants from rat brain membranes carried through the ligand binding and solubilization steps are incubated with immobilized streptavidin ( streptavidin - agarose or sa - a ; pierce chemical , rockford , ill .). the incubations contain 1 volume of sa - a per 29 volumes of supernatant . incubations are for 4 hours at 4 - 8 ° c . on a tube rotator . then the mixtures are poured into glass chromatography columns ( econo - columns , bio rad labs , richmond , calif .) and the non - bound material is filtered through the bed on packed resin . the resin is washed with 20 bed volumes of solubilization buffer + 0 . 15 % d : l + 1 / 500 volume of the 100 × 4pase protease inhibitor mixture . the eluates from the sa - a columns are incubated overnight ( 12 - 15 hours ) with 1 / 200 to 1 / 400 volumes of immobilized wheat germ agglutinin ( wga - agarose or wga - a ; vector labs , burlingame , calif .). the wga - a is pelleted by centrifugation , washed twice with 50 - 100 volumes of solubilization buffer + 0 . 15 % d : l ( after removing the supernatants containing material not bound to wga ) and then either : ( a ) eluted with 8 mm triacetylchitotriose ( tac ; sigma ) in solubilization buffer + 0 . 15 % d : l ( 3 sequential elutions where resin is mixed with 2 volumes of elution buffer at room temperature for 15 - 20 minutes , pelleted by centrifugation and supernatant removed and saved ) or b . solubilized directly by addition of 1 × laemmli sample buffer and heating at 90 ° c . for 10 - 15 minutes . these samples are analyzed by sds - page and silver staining . the nonbound supernatants from the wga - binding step are concentrated , solubilized in 1 × laemmli sample buffer and analyzed by sds - page and silver staining . candidate partial - length rat brain opioid receptor cdnas are obtained using several mrna and cdna sources and several oligonucleotide primers for pcr amplification . ppcr4a is a 700 basepair ( bp ) ppcrii ( in vitrogen ) subclone of a partial cdna amplified from single strand cdna prepared from whole rat brain using 35 cycles at 94 ° c . for 1 minute , 55 ° c . for 1 minute and 72 ° c . for 1 min and 20 - base oligonucleotide ( 5 ′ aga ccg cca cca aca tat ac3 ′ seq id no : 3 ) and ( 5 ′ gct tga agt tct cgt cca gg3 ′ seq id no : 4 ) that are complementary to mouse μ - opioid receptor sequences . sequence analysis , following manual sequencing , reveals an open reading frame predicting amino acids similar to those of the murine μ - opioid receptor , and identical to 23 amino acids sequenced from opiate receptor protein preparations . the 700 bp insert from ppcr - 4a is excised with ecori , radiolabelled by random priming to specific activities of 10 9 dpm / μg , and used to screen 5 × 10 6 plaques from a oligo dt - primed rat cerebral cortex lambda zap cdna library that was selected so that inserts are & gt ; 1 . 5 kb in size ( p6 = 26 ). hybridization is performed at 30 ° c . in buffer contained 29 % formamide and 6 × ssc , washing is at 50 ° c . in 0 . 4 × ssc / 0 . 1 % sds , and 2 days &# 39 ; autoradiographic exposure is used . plasmids are autoexcised from λ - zap phage dna grown from positive plaques as described ( p6 = 26 ) and analyzed by restriction analyses and dna sequencing . one clone , termed rc8 - 1 , is subjected to complete sequencing of both strands using automated and manual methods , and subcloned into pcdna1 ( invitrogen ) to yield pcdna1rc8 - 1 . dna sequences are analyzed using conventional methods . cos cells are transfected by electroporation with 20 ug / 10 7 cells pcdna1rc8 - 1 - 1 or pcdna1 vector . transfected cos cells are plated in dmem containing 10 % fbs , cultured for 2 - 3 days , and tested for opiate receptor expression by radioligand binding . for typical radioligand binding assays , medium is removed from 150 mm plates containing 5 × 10 6 cos cells , plates are rinsed briefly with 50 mm tris buffer ( ph 7 . 4 ), and cells are harvested by scraping . membranes are prepared at 4 ° c . by polytron homogenization in tris buffer , discarding material pelleted by 15 min 1000 × g centrifugation , and retaining membrance fractions pelleted by a second centrifugation for 30 min at 46 , 000 × g . membrane fraction protein concentrations are determined by the bradford method ( biorad ). membranes from 10 6 cos cells , corresponding to 50 ug protein , are resuspended in 0 . 5 ml tris buffer with various labelled and unlabelled compounds and incubated for 90 min at 22 ° c . binding is terminated by filtration through gfb filters ( whatman ) and 3 washes with 4 ml tris buffer at 4 ° c . using a brandel filtration device . in some assays , nacl , mgso 4 , gtp to atp are added to incubations ( p8 - 10 = 29 - 31 ). radioligands include [ h ] damgo [ d - ala2 , n - methyl - phc4 , glyo15 ] enkephalin ; 60 ci / mmole , amersham ), [ h ] dpdpepcl [ d - pen2 , 4 ′- cl - phe4 , d - pen5 ] enkephalin ; 51 ci / mmole , nen ), [ h ] dale ( d - ala2 , d - leu5 enkephalin : 37 ci / mmole , nen ), and [ h ] u - 69 , 593 ( 57 ci / mmole amersham ). radioactivity is assesed in a beckman liquid scintillation counter at 40 efficiency . rna is prepared from rat tissues that are rapidly dissected and frozen at − 70 ° c . 20 μg of total rna is prepared and electrophoresed along with molecular weight standards ( brl ) and transferred to nylon membranes . blots are hybridized with the 2 . 2 kb [ 32 p ]- random - primed insert of pcdna1rc8 - 1 in 5 × sspe / 1 % sds / 150 % formamide / 2 . 5 × denhardt / 200 μg / ml herring sperm dna at 42 ° c . overnight , washed twice in 0 . 4 × ssc / 0 . 5 % sds for 30 min at 52 ° c ., and radioactive patterns identified using a phosphoimaging molecular dynamics device following overnight exposures . rnase protection assays use incubation of 5 μg of rna and a [ 32 p ]- labeled crna transcribed from the t7 promoter of ppcr4a linearized with bamh1 to form a 400 basepair fragment , under conditions described by the manufacturer ( v1 = 40 ), with detection of protected fragments using a phosphoimaging system . for in situ hybridization , 10 μm cryostat sections through the diencephalons of rats perfused with plpg ( 0 . 5 % paraformaldehyde , 1 % glutaraldehyde , 75 mm lyside hc1 , 37 . 5 mm na 2 hpo ph 7 . 4 and 10 mm sodium periodate ) ( w = 41 ) are thaw mounted onto slides pretreated with denhardt &# 39 ; s solution , 0 . 02 % ficoll , 0 . 02 % polyvinylpyrrolidone , 0 . 02 % bovine serum albumin , poly - d - lysine coating and acetylation , and are hybridized with 40 - and 50 - base 35 s - labelled oligonucleotide hybridization probes that are complementary to bases encolding amino acids indicated in fig1 and labelled by a primer extension method to ca . 2 × 10 ci / mmole and gel - purified as described ( w = 41 ). hybridization at 37 ° c . overnight in a complexbuffer is followed by washing at 50 ° c . and emulsion autoradiography with 2 week exposures , emulsion development , tissue section staining , and analyses . grain densities overlying individual neurons are counted and analyzed , with positively - hydridizing neurons identified as those with densities more than five times background autoradiographs values . neurons are identified based on size , shape , nuclear profiles , and frequent presence of nucleoli . 10 . characterization of soluble complexes between [ 125 i ] β - endorphin and opioid receptor an initial attempt is made to determine whether opioid receptors can be manipulated in the same general ways as somatostatin receptors ( u . s . ser . no . 07 / 677 , 003 now u . s . pat . no . 5 , 225 , 543 , issued jul . 6 , 1993 and u . s . ser . no . 07 / 677 , 009 ). the first experiment is conducted to observe whether radioligand binding to membranes followed by detergent solubilization produce r : l complexes that are stable enough for purification and yet readily dissociable under relatively mild conditions ( i . e ., gtp , salt , ph changes , etc .). to determine this , [ 125 i ] β - endorphin is bound to rat brain membranes and solubilized membranes are assayed for the presence of intact complexes between [ 125 i ] β - endorphin and receptor ( r : l complex ). the assay for r : l complex exploits the well known glycoprotein nature of receptors which , like most cell surface proteins , contain covalently linked carbohydrate . the ligand , β - endorphin , is not glycosylated and will not bind to a carbohydrate - binding lectin , such as wheat germ agglutinin ( wga ). binding of the radioligand , solubilized after the binding step , to immobilized wga is considered to reflect binding of the r : l complex to wga via oligosaccharide groups on the receptor . because opioid receptors appear to be coupled to g proteins , dissociation of the r : l complex by a gtp analog is tested . this is done by incubating the solubilized preparations with gtp - γ - s prior to incubation with wga - agarose . the effects of high salt concentrations and , separately , of low salt concentrations in combination with gtp - γ - s on r : l complex dissociation are also tested . the results are shown in tables 1 and 2 below : table 1 . binding of solubilized [ 125 i ] β - endorphin : opioid receptor complex to wga - agarose and dissociation of the complex by gtp - g - s and nacl . i . rat brain membranes are incubated with [ 125 i ] β - endorphin as previously described . the “ total ” binding sample is incubated with only [ 125 i ] β - endorphin . the “ nonspecific ” binding sample is incubated with [ 125 i ] β - endorphin plus 10 − 6 m nonlabelled β - endorphin . after the binding step , the membranes are solubilized as described previously . cpm of [ 125 i ] β - endorphin in the 100 , 000 × g supernatant are counted as described previously . some samples are held on ice as an internal standard for the ratio of total to nonspecific cpm in the starting material (“ a . 100 , 000 × g supernatant ”; see “ a / b ” ratio ). other samples (“ b . supernatants + wga - agarose ”) are warmed to room temperature and then receive 100 μm gtp - g - s ( sigma ; diluted from a 2 mm stock solution in h 2 o ), 500 mm nacl ( diluted from a 5 m stock solution in h 2 o ) or no treatment and are further incubated for 10 minutes at room temperature . then all samples are placed on ice , mixed with 60 μl of immobilized wheat germ agglutinin ( wga - agarose ; vector labs , burlingame , calif .) and incubated for 2 hours at 4 - 8 ° on a tube rotator . then the wga - agarose is pelleted by centrifugation , the supernatants are removed and the wga - agarose is washed once in solubilization buffer + 0 . 15 % d : l and counted for radioactivity . table 2 . binding of solubilized [ 125 i ] β - endorphin : opioid receptor complex to wga - agarose and dissociation of the complex by gtp - g - s and nacl . ii . all steps are done essentially as in table 1 above except that here gtp - γ - s is tested either alone or in the presence of different concentrations of nacl . samples of 1 . 5 ml volume are mixed with 0 . 35 ml of wga - agarose . several conclusions are reached from reviewing the results in tables 1 and 2 . first , the membrane bound complex between [ 125 i ] β - endorphin and its receptor is solubilized mostly in intact form . this is shown by the adsorption of a high proportion of the solubilized [ 125 i ] β - endorphin to immobilized wga . not only is a high proportion of the specifically bound radioligand adsorbed to wga , as would be expected if it is bound to the receptor , but wga selects for specifically bound material . this is shown by the large increase in the ratio of total cpm / nonspecific cpm in the wga - bound material . also , the soluble r : l complex is stable enough to be separated from free ligand in a step taking 2 - 3 hours . this predicts that a biotinylated β - endorphin is used to form a r : l complex that could be adsorbed in intact form to immobilized streptavidin . further , binding to immobilized wga serves as an assay for the soluble r : l complex , and binding to wga serves as a purification step for the receptor . finally , the r : l complex is easily dissociated . this provides a means for eluting the receptor from an affinity column . for example , a soluble complex between the receptor and biotinyl β - endorphin could be bound to immobilized streptavidin and the receptor then eluted by gtp ( partial elution ), gtp + nacl or nacl . the interactions of gtp with low concentrations of salt to cause dissociation of receptor and ligand is consistent with the known properties of opiate receptors . later results in receptor purification experiments show that lower salt concentrations do not affect stability of this r : l complex and thus the gtp / salt interactions are synergistic . the two fractions of biotinylated β - endorphin are assayed for binding to rat brain opioid receptor by competition with [ 125 i ] β - endorphin . the ic 50 s for reduction of radioligand binding by competition with cold ligand are : β - endorphin , 1 nm ; biotinyl - β - endorphin ( f1 ), 1 nm ; and biotinyl - β - endorphin ( f2 ), 5 nm . thus , both fractions of biotinylated β - endorphin show high affinity binding to opioid receptor . the f1 fraction consists of two peptides with molecular masses , identified by mass spectroscopy , of 3816 and 3875 daltons . the f1 fraction contains only the 3816 dalton species , the expected mass for biotinyl - β - endorphin . what is shown here is that heating the f1 fraction for 5 min . at 50 ° c . eliminates the 3875 dalton species . thus there is only one species of biotinyl - β - endorphin , with a mass of 3816 daltons , by mass spectrometry . before further use , the f 1 fraction is heated at 50 ° c . for 5 min . this material has been reanalyzed for binding to receptors in rat brain membranes by competition vs . [ 125 i ] β - endorphin and it binds with a protency very similar to that of β - endorphin . the ic 508 are 1 . 2 nm for β - endorphin and 1 . 8 nm for biotinyl - β - endorphin . samples of brain membranes are incubated either with or without the f1 and f2 fractions of biotinyl - β - endorphin and carried through the procedure of solubilization , adsorption with immobilized streptavidin , elution and protein analysis by sds - page . the wga bound glycoprotein ( wga +) fractions of the eluates primarily contain a protein with mw about 66 , 000 . small amounts of this protein are seen in the material eluted by gtp - γ - s and much larger amounts elute with the subsequent elution with 500 mm nacl . the appearance of this band is ligand - dependent because it does not appear in eluates from the samples done without prior binding of biotinyl - β - endorphin . the nonglycosylated ( wga −) fractions show that gtp - γ - s alone elutes nonglycosylated bands in the 30 - 40 , 000 mk ( 30 - 40k ) range . these also occur only in samples incubated with biotinyl - β - endorphin and are thus ligand - dependent . subsequent elution with 500 mm nacl yields little if any further 30 - 40k mw material . because both the f1 and f2 fractions give purification of the 66k band , they are used together in a 1 : 1 ratio in further experiments . the elution of the 66k glycoprotein correlates with the effects of gtp - γ - s on stability of the soluble r : l complex . thus 100 μm gtp - γ - s gives only partial dissociation of the soluble r : l complex and partial elution of the 66k glycoprotein . this band is considered to be the opioid receptor and will be referred to as such . it will also be referred to as “ 66k glycoprotein ”. in a similar experiment , the 30 - 40k , gtp - γ - s eluted protein specifically purified by biotinyl - β - endorphin is reactive with anti - g protein antiserum ( fig4 ). in this experiment , biotinyl - nh -[ leu 8 , d - trp 22 , tyr 25 ] srif - 28 ( bio - s28 ); and biotinyl - β - endorhin are used to purify srif and opioid receptors , respectively by similar techniques . both purifications employ essentially the same steps : binding of biotinylated ligand to intact membranes ( from gh 4 c 1 pituitary tumor cells and brain ); solubilization of intact r :( bio ) l complex ; binding of r :( bio ) l complex to streptavidin - immunoreactive material in the 40k size range only with the samples where receptor is complexed with biotinyl - ligand . samples where the receptor is unoccupied or occupied by non - biotinyl ligand show no evidence of g iα . the ligand specificity of the 66k glycoprotein is further tested by blocking binding of the biotinylated β - endorphin with a large molar excess of nonbiotinylated ligand . when 100 nm biotinyl - β - endorphin ( 1 : 1 f1 + f2 ) is competed with a combination of 50 μm β - endorphin + 50 μm met - enkephalin , the yield of the 66k glycoprotein is greatly diminished . in another test of specificity , 40 μm naloxone effectively competes with 60 nm biotinyl - β - endorphin to nearly eliminate the recovery of 66k glycoprotein ( fig5 b ). in this experiment , two additional bands are seen with mws of about 140 - 160 , 000 and 50 - 55 , 000 . since both show ligand specificity they may be receptor subtypes , proteolytically degraded receptor or receptor aggregate . while the 66k band is always the primary protein recovered by these methods , the relative amounts of the 140 - 160k and 50 - 55k bands are variable . the sa - a column is first washed with 1 mm edta + 1 mm egta and then with 100 mm nacl prior to elution with 500 mm nacl . since these wash steps carried out with very little loss of the 66k receptor band , they are incorporated into further procedures . in the purifications shown above , elution of receptor from the sa - a columns is with 500 mm nacl . this is used as an alternative to gtp because it elutes the 66k glycoprotein more effectively . however , the ability of the gtp - γ - s + lower salt concentrations ( 25 - 100 mm nacl ) to dissociate the r : l complex suggests that it is possible to elute the receptor by avoiding high salt concentrations . this is tested by adsorbing the solubilized complex between receptor and biotinyl - β - endorphin to sa - a , dividing the sample into two different columns and eluting in two different ways as follows : a . elute sequentially with 100 pm gtp / 75 mm nacl and with 500 mm nacl ; b . wash with 100 mm nacl and then elute with 500 mm nacl . from the first sa - a column , elution with 100 μm gtp / 75 mm nacl yields nearly all of the 140 - 160k and 50 - 55k bands and a large proportion of the 66k band . the remainder of 66k material is eluted with 500 mm nacl . from the second sa - a column , very little material is eluted by 100 mm nacl while 500 mm nacl elutes all of the ligand specific bands . specificity is shown in this experiment by a naloxone block , where naloxone competes with biotinyl - β - endorphin for receptor binding and the 140 - 160k , 66k and 50 - 55k bands are not seen . the results are significant for two reasons . first , they provide further correlations between the recovery of 66k protein and known properties of opioid receptors . a na + / gtp interaction is shown at two levels ; by dissociation of the soluble r : l complex ( tables 1 and 2 ) and by recovery of specific receptor bands upon elution of affinity columns . because the na + / gtp interaction is such a well documented property of opioid receptor binding , this data increases the probability that the 66k glycoprotein and other specific bands are , in fact , opioid receptor proteins . it is further shown that elution with 100 μm gtp / 100 mm nacl gives complete elution of the 66k band and other ligand specific species from the sa - a column . thus subsequent elution with 500 mm nacl yields little further ligand specific protein . however for routine receptor purification , elution with 500 mm nacl alone provides a good yield of receptor which can be further purified on wheat germ agglutinin to yield sequencing quality receptor . further pharmaceutical analysis is done to determine the subtype of the 66 kda receptor protein . two different peptides , one known to exhibit mureceptor selective binding ([ d - ala 2 , n - mephe 4 , glyol 5 ] enkephalin or dago ; bachem ; 300 fold selectivity for mu over delta ) and the other known to exhibit delta receptor selective binding ([ d - pen 2 , 5 , pcl - phe 4 ] enkephalin or pcl - dpdpe ; 500 - fold selectivity for delta over mu ) are used to block binding of biotinyl - β - endorphin to rat brain membranes . this pair of ligands is appropriate because their affinities for their respective receptors are very similar ( approximately 1 mm k d ). each incubation contains 3 nm biotinyl - 62 - endorphin , and the blocking peptides are included at 50 , 500 , and 5000 nm . the ligand mixtures are incubated with unsolubilized membranes for one hour at room temperature and then purification of the receptor proceeds as described herein . a summary of the condition is provided in table 3 . the ability of the respective peptides to block β - endorphin binding is determined by observing the relative recovery of biotinylated β - endorphin bound 66 kda protein from each sample . it can be seen that the 66 kda protein is recovered in about the same amounts from the control as when the pcl - dpdpe is used as a competitor . in contrast , dago blocked recovery of receptor almost completely at 500 nm and completely at 5000 nm , thereby confirming the identity of the protein as a mu - subtype opioid receptor . analyses of products derived from pcr amplification of rat brain cdna using oligonucleotides complementary to regions of the mouse μ - opioid receptor identify the 700 base pair cdna clone ppcr4a . this cdna display 70 % nucleotide sequence identity to the rat μ - opioid receptor cdna and homology with cdna sequences of other g - linked receptor . one open reading frame of the ppcr4a sequence matches each of the 23 amino acids sequenced from a μ - opioid receptor protein preparation . several rat cerebral cortical cdnas hybridize with radiolabeled ppcr4a hybridization probes ; one 2 . 2 kb cdna termed rc8 - 1 is selected for further analysis . sequence analyses reveals that 996 rc8 - 1 seq id no : 1 nucleotides encode an open reading frame of 332 amino acids with 63 % amino acid identity to sequences of the μ - opiate receptor , good homology to other neuropeptide receptors , and more distant homology to an “ opiate binding protein ” receptor , a catecholamine receptor and rhodopsin . hydrophobicity analyses reveals at least seven hydrophobic putative membrane spanning domains of 20 - 24 amino acids whose sequences are especially conserved with other g - linked receptors . threonine residue 23 is found in a context especially favorable for protein kinase a phosphorylation . one consensus sequence for n - linked glycosylation at amino acid 11 is observed in the n - terminal domain ( z = 44 ). cos cell expression of rc8 - 1 in the expression vector pcdna1 yield naloxone - blockable , high affinity specific binding of [ h ] damgo and [ 3 h ] dadle binding saturation experiments are most consistent with a single population of binding sites for each ligand , with kk values of 0 . 4 and 0 . 5 nm , respectively . [ 2 h ] damgo binding is reduced by addition of na + or gtp to incubations , but not by adding atp ( fig3 ). mg ++ addition increases binding by cos cell expression of rc8 - 1 in the expression vector pcdna1 yielded naloxone - blockable , high effinity specific binding of [ 3 h ] damgo and [ 3 h ] dadle , with no appreciable specific recognition of [ 3 h ] dpdpe or [ 3 h ] u 69 , 593 , that is not present in cells transfected with vector alone . scatchard analysis of [ 3 h ] damgo and [ 3 h ] dadle binding saturation experiments are most consistent with a single population of high affinity binding sites for each ligand , with kn values on 0 . 4 and 0 . 5 nm respectively . [ 3 h ] damgo binding is reduced by addition of na + of gtp to incubations . [ 3 h ] damgo binding is displaced by a number of opioid compounds in stereoselective fashion . pharamcologically active (−) naloxone and dextrorphan isomers display substantially greater potency than pharmacologically less active (+) naloxone and dextrorphan isomers . morphine , dadle , (−) naloxone , naloxonazine , ethylketocyclazocino and bromazocino displace binding of [ 3 h ] damgo with high potency ( table 1 ). dpdpe and p - cl - dedpe , relatively mu - selective , u 50 , 488 and u 69 , 593 , relatively k selective , display substantially less potency . these potencies display a good correlation with values described for affinities for the mu - opioid receptor , but poor correlations with affinities documented at mu or k - opioid receptors . goldstein , a . & amp ; naidu , a . ( 1989 ) mol . pharmacol . 36 , 265 - 272 . [ 3 h ] damgo binding could be displaces by a number of opioid compounds in stereoselective fashion . pharmacologically - active (−) naloxone and levorphan isomers display substantially greater potency than their pharmacologically - inactive isomers . morphine displaces binding with high affinity shared by dadle , (−) naloxone , naloxonazine , and bremazocine ( fig4 a ). dpdpe , relatively μ - selective , and u - 50 , 488 , relatively μ - selective , displayed substantially loss potencies . these protencies display a good correlation with values described for affinities for the μ - opioid receptor , but poor correlations with affinities documented at μ - opioid receptor . initial northern analyses of the distribution of mrna hybridizing with - radiolabeled rc8 - 1 hybridization probes suggests that relatively high expression levels of an 10 . 5 kb mrna are found in the thalamus . rnase - protection assays of greater sensitivity are able to detect protected fragments consistent with significant μor mrna presence in the thalamus , cerebral cortex , straitum , hypothalamus , midbrain , hippocampus , brainstern , and spinal cord but not cerebellum or liver . in situ hybridization studies identify grain densities more than five - fold greater than autoradiographic background over cells in several thalamic nuclei that displayed the size , shape , and presence of nucleoli characteristic of neurons . met arg ser glu pro thr gly leu gly gly asn asp ser leu cys pro phe gln ser val asn tyr leu met gly thr trp pro phe gly thr ile leu cys lys ile val ile ser ile asp tyr tyr asn met phe thr ser ile phe thr leu cys thr met ser val asp arg tyr ile ala val cys his pro val lys ala leu asp phe arg thr pro arg asn ala lys ile met phe met ala thr thr lys tyr arg gln gly ser ile asp cys thr leu thr phe ser his pro thr trp tyr trp glu asn leu leu lys ile gly ser lys glu lys asp arg asn leu arg arg ile thr arg met val tyr val ile ile lys ala leu ile thr ile pro glu thr thr phe gln thr val ser trp his phe cys ile ala leu gly tyr thr asn ser cys leu asn pro val leu tyr ala phe leu asp glu asn phe lys arg cys met arg ser glu pro thr gly leu gly gly asn asp ser leu cys pro phe gln ser val asn tyr leu met gly thr trp pro phe gly thr ile leu cys lys ile val ile ser ile asp tyr tyr asn met phe thr ser ile phe thr leu cys thr met ser val asp arg tyr ile ala val cys his pro val lys ala leu asp phe arg thr pro arg asn ala lys ile met phe met ala thr thr lys tyr arg gln gly ser ile asp cys thr leu thr phe ser his pro thr trp tyr trp glu asn leu leu lys ile gly ser lys glu lys asp arg asn leu arg arg ile thr arg met val tyr val ile ile lys ala leu ile thr ile pro glu thr thr phe gln thr val ser trp his phe cys ile ala leu gly tyr phe asn ser cys leu asn pro val leu tyr ala phe leu asp glu asn phe lys arg cys leu gly asn val leu val met phe gly ile val arg tyr thr lys leu leu ala thr ser thr leu pro phe gln ser ala lys tyr leu met glu thr trp pro phe gly glu leu leu cys lys ala val leu ser ile asp asp arg tyr ile ala val cys his pro val lys ala leu asp phe arg asp gly ala val val cys met leu gln phe pro ser pro ser trp tyr cys trp ala pro ile his ile phe val ile val trp thr leu val asp leu asp glu asn phe lys arg cys phe arg gln leu cys arg thr pro leu asn leu ala ile ala asp glu leu leu met leu ser val pro phe leu val thr ser thr leu leu arg his trp pro phe gly ala leu leu cys arg leu val leu ser val asp ala val asn met phe thr ser ile tyr cys leu thr val leu ser val asp arg tyr val ala val glu his met leu met pro glu pro ala gln arg trp leu val gly phe val leu tyr thr phe leu met gly phe leu leu pro val gly ala ile cys leu cys tyr val leu ile ile ala lys met arg met val pro ser arg pro ala gly ser thr gln arg ser glu arg lys ile thr leu met val met tyr gly phe leu ser asp asn phe lys arg ser phe gln arg ile leu cys leu ser trp met asp asn ala ala glu glu pro val asp tyr tyr ala thr ala leu lys ser arg ala tyr ser val glu asp phe gln pro glu asn leu glu ser gly gly val phe arg asn gly thr cys ala ser trp val ala gly phe arg met thr his thr val thr thr ile ser tyr leu cys lys phe val phe thr ile val asp ile asn leu phe gly ser his pro val trp thr gln asn his arg thr val ser leu ala lys lys thr phe asn phe ser pro trp thr asn asp pro lys glu arg ile lys ala thr lys ile his lys gln gly leu ile lys ser ser arg pro leu gln gly met tyr lys glu ile gly ile ala val asp val thr ser ala gly gln asp phe arg glu arg leu ile his ala leu pro ala ser leu val ile trp ile val leu ala his lys arg met arg thr val thr asn asn ala leu val asn phe ile tyr ala leu his gly glu trp tyr phe gly ala asn tyr cys arg phe gln asn phe phe pro ile thr ala val gln cys leu tyr ser lys ile lys val met pro gly arg thr leu cys tyr val gln trp pro glu gly ser arg gln his phe thr tyr his met asp thr cys asp lys tyr gln glu gln leu lys ala lys arg lys val arg trp lys tyr ile gln gln val tyr leu ala ser phe trp leu ala his val ser ser tyr asp glu leu glu leu lys ala thr arg leu his met ala ser val pro arg gly glu asn trp thr asp gly thr val glu phe val gln pro ser trp arg ile ala leu trp ser leu ala tyr gly ile leu ala his lys arg met arg thr val thr asn tyr phe leu val asn phe ile tyr gly leu his ser glu trp tyr phe gly ala asn tyr cys arg phe gln asn phe phe pro ile thr ala val phe ala ser ile ser lys ile lys val met pro gly arg thr leu cys tyr val gln trp pro glu gly pro lys gln his phe thr tyr his ile ile val ile ile ile ile val val thr phe ala ile cys trp leu pro tyr his val tyr phe ile leu thr ala ile tyr gln gln leu asn arg trp lys tyr ile tyr asn pro ile ile tyr cys cys leu asn lys arg phe arg ala gly phe lys arg ala phe arg trp cys pro phe ile gln val ser ser tyr asp glu leu glu leu lys thr thr arg phe his pro thr arg gln ser met asn gly thr glu gly pro asn phe tyr val pro phe ser asn ala thr gly val val arg ser pro phe glu tyr pro gln tyr tyr leu ala glu pro trp gln phe ser met leu ala ala tyr met phe leu leu ile thr ser leu his gly tyr phe val phe gly pro thr gly cys asn leu val val leu ala ile glu arg tyr val val ile cys lys pro met ser asn phe arg phe gly glu asn his ala ile met gly val val phe thr arg tyr ile pro glu gly met gln cys ser cys gly val asp tyr tyr thr leu lys pro glu val asn asn glu ser phe val ile tyr met phe met val val phe phe leu ile cys trp phe pro tyr ala gly val ala thr leu pro ala phe phe ala lys ser ser ser ile tyr asn pro val ile tyr ile met met asn lys gln phe arg asn cys met leu thr thr leu cys cys gly lys asn ile leu gly asp asp glu ala ser ala thr met glu pro his gly asn asp ser asp phe leu leu ala pro asn gly ser arg ala pro gly his asp ile thr gln glu arg asp glu ala trp phe gly asn val leu val ile thr ala ile ala lys phe glu arg leu gln thr val thr asn tyr phe ile thr ser leu ala cys ala asp leu lys met trp asn phe gly asn phe trp cys glu phe trp thr ser ile val asp arg tyr val ala ile thr ser pro phe lys tyr gln ser leu ser gly leu thr ser phe leu pro ile gln met his trp tyr arg ala val ala lys arg gln leu gln lys ile asp lys ser glu gly arg phe his ala gln asn leu ser gln val glu gln asp gly arg ser gly his lys glu val tyr ile leu leu asn trp leu gly tyr val asn ser ala phe asn pro leu ile tyr cys arg ser pro asp arg ile ala phe gln ala pro gly met glu gly phe val asn cys gln gly thr val pro ser leu ser ile asp ser gln gly arg asn cys asn thr asn asp ser pro tyr gly gly phe met thr ser glu lys ser gln thr pro leu val thr	2
the present invention will now be described with reference to fig1 – 9 which in general relate to an education system for teaching children or other individuals language and / or arithmetic . in a preferred embodiment , the system would be utilized by children to spell words and / or to indicate a mathematical result . however , it is understood that the present invention may be utilized by any individual to provide one or more computer - recognizable characters in a desired sequence , generally in response to computer generated questions or prompts . referring now to fig1 , the present invention preferably includes a plurality of blocks 20 , each containing an alphanumeric character on a surface thereof . the alphanumeric characters may include letters , numbers and / or punctuation marks . in an alternative embodiment of the invention , it is contemplated that the blocks 20 include pictures or symbols such as the sun , moon , animals , etc ., in addition to or instead of the alphanumeric characters . in a further embodiment of the present invention , the blocks may include characters made up of raised dots that form braille letters , numbers and other braille characters . a character on a surface of a block 20 may be defined by being a different color than the rest of the block surface surrounding the character . the character may additionally be raised or lowered relative to the block surface containing the character . in the embodiment of the invention including braille characters , the characters would of course be at a different elevation relative to the block surface surrounding the characters . the blocks 20 are preferably formed of durable and wear - resistant material capable of withstanding substantial shock due to throwing of the block or other similar impacts . moreover , the blocks are preferably formed of a non - toxic material to avoid injury in the event a child attempts to put the block in his or her mouth . a preferred material is any of several high strength polycarbonates . however , several other materials may be used , such as for example wood and metal . preferably , the material should allow character - recognition components , certain embodiments of which described hereinafter , to be included with the blocks 20 during block fabrication . moreover , to make the blocks suitable for use by children , the blocks should be large enough not to fit entirely within a child &# 39 ; s mouth , should have all edges rounded , and should be light weight to prevent injury if thrown . it is understood that the above - described characteristics of the blocks that make them suitable for use by children may be omitted in alternative embodiments of the present invention . the blocks are used in conjunction with a processing device 22 , which may include in part a conventional computer . as shown in the isometric view of fig1 and the schematic representation shown in fig3 , the processing device 22 preferably includes a conventional data storage device 23 for storing data , a conventional monitor 24 for visual display , a conventional speaker 26 for audio playback , a working platform 28 for supporting the blocks 20 and for generating character - identification and block information , and a conventional central processing unit (“ cpu ”) 30 capable of executing software instructions , and capable of communicating with the data storage device 23 , the monitor 24 , the speaker 26 , and the working platform 28 . it is understood that one or the other of the monitor 24 and speaker 26 may be omitted in alternative embodiments of the present invention . it is also understood that the data storage device 23 may be omitted in alternative embodiments of the invention . moreover , as shown in the alternative embodiment of fig2 , the processing device 22 may be contained within a unitary enclosure , the upper surface of which forms the working platform 28 . in the embodiment shown in fig2 ; the cpu 30 , the data storage device 23 , and the speaker 26 may be included within the enclosure . once a block is located on the working platform , the platform generates a signal for use by an application program running on the processing device 22 as explained hereinafter . the generation processes in the working platform are controlled by a microprocessor 55 ( fig9 ) in the working platform . as described in greater detail below , the microprocessor 55 scans the working platform for placement of one or more blocks thereon . upon detection of the placement of a block on the working platform , the microprocessor 55 encodes the location and identification information into an encoded binary message . the message is then sent preferably over a dedicated line 32 to the processing device 22 . the line 32 is preferably bi - directional so the processing device 22 can send commands or other information to the working platform . for example , in the embodiments described below in which the working platform comprises a touch - sensitive display screen ( preferably , flat panel ), the bi - directional line allows the processing device 22 to display images on the flat panel screen to facilitate interaction between the application software and user thereof . in an alternative embodiment , line 32 my be omitted and replaced by a wireless digital communication link between the processing device 22 and working platform 28 . advantageously , according to this embodiment , the working platform may be used a greater distance from the processing device 22 without concern over extension wires . referring now to fig1 and 4 – 5 , each block 20 is capable of outputting a character identification signal that uniquely represents the character indicated on the upper surface of the block . the working platform 28 serves to support the blocks 20 , to generate character identification information for a block based on the character identification signal output from that block , and also to generate location information indicating the location of a block 20 relative to each other block 20 an the working platform . the working platform forwards the block location information and the character identification information to the processing device 22 via the line 32 coupling the working platform 28 with the cpu 30 . the working platform 28 further includes a button 34 which initiates the generation of the block location information and character identification information by the working platform , and also triggers the transfer of the information to the processing device 22 . ( in an alternative embodiment , in operation the block location information and the character identification information are continuously generated and transmitted to the processing device 22 .) it is understood that structures other than button 34 may be used in alternative embodiments , such as for example a conventional mouse . in operation , when a user of the system according to the present invention is finished arranging the blocks 20 on the platform 28 , the user depresses button 34 , and the generation and transfer of information is initiated . in a preferred embodiment , the block location information and character identification information may converted to a digital signal , which may be transmitted over the line 32 to the cpu 30 . the block location and character identification information may be stored and transferred as a multiple bit word , containing both block location information and character identification information . it is understood that the number of bits used to transmit the digital signal may vary in alternative embodiments of the present invention . the character identification information and the block location information may be generated by any of several known technologies . as shown in fig4 and 5 , each block 20 preferably includes a transmission system 36 mounted within the block proximate to a surface of the block opposed to the surface including the character . known transmission systems are sufficiently small so as to allow one or more such systems to be provided within the block . in one embodiment of the present invention , the transmission system includes a receiver 38 , a microprocessing chip 40 , and a transmitter 42 . the microprocessing chip 40 is powered by an energizing signal , in the form of an electromagnetic wave received from the working platform 28 , as explained in greater detail below . receipt of the energizing signal allows the transmission system to operate without an on - board power source . the energizing signal is received in the chip 40 via the receiver 38 . once energized , the chip emits the character identification signal including encoded information uniquely representative of the character on the block . the character information signal is forwarded by the transmitter 42 to the working platform 28 , where the signal is converted to a digital signal via an analog - to - digital converter ( not shown ). systems such as transmission system 36 are commercially available from sensor engineering co ., hamden , conn . 06517 . it is understood that other known technologies may be utilized to communicate the identity of the character on a block 20 to the working platform 28 . for example , block 20 may include a transmission system 36 comprised of magnetically encoded data uniquely representative of the character on the block . the magnetically encoded data may be read by one or more sensors such as transducers provided within the working platform . in a further embodiment of the present invention , each block having a different character may have a different weight , which weight is sensed by the working platform to identify the character . it is further contemplated that the working platform and the surface of the block supported adjacent thereto may be transparent so that the transmission system may be any of various optical systems . it is understood that various other known technologies may be used to generate the character identification signal within working platform 28 . the blocks 20 may include between one and six characters on its respective surfaces . in a preferred embodiment a block 20 will include a transmission system within the block for each of the characters on the surfaces of the block . thus , for example , in an embodiment where a block 20 includes six characters , the block will includes six different transmission systems , with each character / transmission system pair provided proximate to opposed surfaces from each other . it is understood that a block may include less transmission systems than there are characters on the block . in such an embodiment , the transmission system will transmit a particular character identification depending on the orientation of the block 20 on the working platform , i . e ., depending on which character was showing on the top surface of the block . it is necessary to identify not only the character information , but also the location of a block on the working platform relative to other blocks so as to allow identification of whole words , phrases and / or mathematical results . therefore , the working platform includes one of various known block location systems . in the embodiment shown in fig5 , working platform 28 includes a grid of readers 44 . the grid of readers are intended to operate with the transmission system described above including receiver 38 , microprocessing chip 40 , and transmitter 42 . each reader emits the energizing signal described above to energize the microprocessor chip 40 of a block 20 . the microprocessor chip then emits the character identification signal back to the reader via the transmitter 42 , whereupon the signal is converted to a digital signal as explained above . readers such as readers 44 are commercially available from sensor engineering co ., hamden , conn . 06517 . the readers 44 and transmission system 36 are configured such that a particular reader 44 will only receive a character identification signal from a block 20 if that block 20 is located proximately thereto . in one embodiment of the invention , a reader will only receive a character identification signal from a block located 2 to 4 inches away . with such a system , it is possible that more than one reader 44 will detect a particular block . however , based on the number of readers within the working platform and the distance range over which a reader will detect a particular block , the microprocessor 55 is able to determine the location of the detected block 20 on the working platform . by identifying which reader receives a particular character identification signal , a block location signal associated with that character identification signal may also be generated . it is understood that other known technologies may be utilized to generate the block location signal . for example , as shown in fig6 , a grid may be set up as described above , but comprised of a plurality of emitters 46 for emitting the energizing signal . the system may further comprise a single reader 47 for receiving a character identification signal . in order to generate the block location information signal , the microprocessor 55 may control the emitters 46 to fire the energizing signal one emitter at a time . thus , breaking the emitter grid into a cartesian plane of x , y coordinates , the emitter at 1 , 1 fires the energizing signal at a time t 1 . if there is a block 20 located thereabove , its chip is energized and a character identification signal is transmitted to the reader 47 . each emitter 46 fires the energizing signal at a different time . the time t at which each emitter fires its energizing signal is known . thus , by identifying the time at which a character identification signal is received in the reader 47 , the emitter 46 which caused the generation of the character identification signal may be determined , and the block location signal may thus be generated . in a further embodiment of the present invention , the block location system within the working platform may comprise a single reader , such as for example one of the readers 44 shown in fig5 , capable of both transmitting an energizing signal and receiving a character identification signal . in this embodiment , the reader is mounted for translation so that the reader is moved across the entire surface of the working platform . when a character identification signal is sensed by the reader , the position of the reader is noted , and the block location signal associated with the sensed character identification signal is generated . grids of various other known configurations may be utilized in the block location system in alternative embodiments of the invention . for example , a grid of wires may be provided within the working platform , together with a single reader as described above capable of both transmitting an energizing signal and receiving a character identification signal . in this embodiment , in addition to transmitting the character identification signal , each block also emits a magnetic field . thus , when a block 20 is placed on the working platform , a character identification signal is generated . the magnetic field of that block also generates a current in one or more of the wires of the grid , from which the location of the block may be determined . alternatively , the grid of wires may be energized sequentially much in the same way as described in connection with fig6 to induce a magnetic field to facilitated detection of the location and identification of the blocks . a further embodiment of the present invention is shown in fig7 and 8 , where the position of each block 20 on the working platform may be determined by a pair of sensors 48 a and 48 b . the sensors 48 a , 48 b are preferably provided at the upper corners of the working platform . however , the sensors 48 a , 48 b may alternatively be located at the lower corners , at the left or right corners , or spaced from each other along a side of the working platform . when a reader 44 or an emitter 46 sends an energizing signal to energize a chip 40 as described above , the chip in this embodiment generates both a character identification signal and a proximity signal . the proximity signal is transmitted to both of the sensors 48 a and 48 b . once a proximity signal is received in the sensors 48 a and 48 b , the signal may be used to determine the distance between the chip 40 and the sensors 48 a , 48 b , respectively , by known technology . such technologies include surface wave acoustics , measurement of the em field emanating from the chip , or measurement of the time it takes for the signal to reach the sensors 48 a , and 48 b . once the distance between a block 20 and the sensors 48 a and 48 b , respectively , is determined , the precise location of the block 20 on the working platform 28 may be calculated by triangulation . it is understood that in an embodiment of the invention , the character identification signal may also act as the proximity signal . as shown in the cross - sectional view of fig7 , the sensors 48 a , 48 b are preferably located in a lower portion of the working platform 28 so that the proximity signal of a first block does not interfere with a proximity signal of a second block located between the first block and the sensors 48 a , 48 b . it is understood that other known technologies for generating the character identification and block location information may be used in alternative embodiments of the invention . for example , a further embodiment of the invention incorporating many of the features previously described to identify the location and identification of the placement of a block on the working platform includes the use of a platform that is able to detect the image of the impression of the block on the platform , hereinafter referred to as image - sensitive platforms . examples of image - sensitive platforms include touch - sensitive surfaces , such as those frequently used in many automated teller machines , or optically - sensitive screens , such as a screen employing one or more arrays of imaging mechanisms , such as charge - coupled devices . in this embodiment , the placement of a particular block on the image - sensitive platform creates a unique impression on the image - sensitive screen . the location of this impression is also detectable by the microprocessor 55 . for example , in touch - sensitive displays , the controller is able to identify the location of the impression by identifying the pixel or pixels associated with the impressions of the block on the platform . similarly , in optically - sensitive screens , the controller is able to identify the location of the impression by identifying the array of charge - coupled devices detecting the impression of the block on the platform . the identification of this impression is also detectable by the microprocessor 55 . by known imaging techniques , the controller can compare the detected impression information with a plurality of images stored in memory to recognize the identification of the block . in an alternative embodiment of the invention , the working platform may have a fixed number of discrete locations into which blocks may only be placed . this is preferably accomplished by providing a fixed number of indentations approximately the size of the block on the surface of the working platform . typically , the indentations may be a quarter of an inch deep . the indentations may be arranged either in a single row or column or in a multi - dimensional array . according to this embodiment , there would exist only a fixed number of locations on the working platform in which a block may be located . there are advantages associated with this embodiment . because there are only a fixed number of locations on the working platform in which a block may be placed , the generation of block location and identification information is simplified . in this embodiment , it is possible to have only one reader or sensor associated with each discrete location . the possibility that more than one reader or sensor will detect more than one particular block is greatly reduced or eliminated . in operation , when a block is placed on the working platform and the microprocessor 55 has recognized its location and identification , a series of actions are set into motion . the microprocessor 55 encodes the location and identification information into an binary message compatible with protocols of today &# 39 ; s personal computers . an example of such a protocol is set forth in frank van gilluwe , the pc undocumented , a programmer &# 39 ; s guide to i / o , cpus , and fixed memory areas . as shown on fig9 , the microprocessor 55 sends an encoded message over line 32 . the line 32 is connected to the processing device 22 via any of the processing device &# 39 ; s many input / output connectors ( e . g ., mouse connector , keyboard connector or the parallel or serial ports ) a controller 56 in the processing device 22 receives the encoded message . the controller 56 translates the encoded message into a system value and places the value into a buffer 57 . the controller 56 then issues an interrupt request via interrupt control 58 indicating that data is available in output buffer 57 . the operating system of the processing device 22 or application program running thereon uses an interrupt to access the buffer 57 via cpu 30 . various interrupt functions are used to find and retrieve block information and to determine the block information in the buffer 57 . the controller 56 in the processing device 22 communicates with the working platform over line 32 . a synchronized clock line is provided from the controller 56 to the working platform via microprocessor 55 when data are sent from the working platform . preferably , information over line 32 is sent in an 11 - bit serial frame consisting of a start bit , 8 data bits , an odd parity bit and a stop bit . it is understood that different length frames and different configurations of the frames consistent with the processing device 22 are contemplated by the present invention . internal to the working platform is a first - in - first - out buffer 59 . preferably , this buffer 59 holds up to 20 bytes of information although a platform buffer of smaller or great size is contemplated within the present invention . in the idle state , both the data and clock lines are high . to begin sending the data to the processing device 22 , the working platform sends the start bit on the line 32 . the controller 56 responds by starting the clock line , with the first clock pulse going low . the clock is continued , with the working platform sending each bit in turn . at the 11th clock , the working platform sends the stop bit , and the clock line resumes its idle state . depending on the configuration of the working platform , the data sent from the working platform to the controller 56 normally includes one or more of the following : block identification information , block location information , and / or commands . a placement of a block on the working platform may result in the transmission of identification information alone , location information alone , or both identification and location information to the keyboard controller . while a block is moved on the working platform , the working platform transmits the identification of the moved block and the new locations of the block on the working platform . when a block is removed from the working platform , the working platform will transmit a removal code along with identification of the block removed . in operation , the , above - described hardware is preferably used with software applications which , in general , prompt a child to arrange the blocks 20 in a particular configuration on the working platform 28 . the prompt can be , for example , a question that either appears visually on the monitor 24 or is played over the speaker 26 . once the child has arranged the blocks 20 in what he or she believes to be the correct response to the question , the button 34 is depressed , the microprocessor 55 generates the character identification and block location information , and the result is sent to the cpu 30 ( it is understood that the microprocessor 55 may continuously generates character identification and block location information as blocks are set down and lifted from the working platform ). the cpu 30 then indicates to the child whether or not that response is correct . if the response is incorrect , the software can prompt the child to try again . it is understood that the software may be written to ask a wide variety of questions , appropriate for children of various ages and educational levels . for example , the child may be prompted to spell a series of words , either audibly over the speaker , or by showing a picture of the object to be spelled on the monitor . in one embodiment , the software program may branch to more difficult or simple questions , depending on the number of correct previous answers . in a further embodiment intended for children first learning the alphabet , the child may randomly place a block on the working platform , and the software then audibly indicates the sound of the letter , and shows a number of words including that letter . the applications software may be stored within the system on the data storage device 23 , loaded onto the system from a from a floppy drive , or received into the system from a remote location over data transmission lines . it is understood that the software and / or hardware according to the present invention may be provided for operation by individuals other than children . for example , as indicated above , the characters on the surfaces of the blocks 20 may be braille characters to teach individuals the braille language . in a further embodiment , the blocks 20 may comprise tiles having letters and numbers thereon such as those on the tiles of the board game scrabble ® in this embodiment , the processing device 22 may be configured to read words formed both vertically and horizontally , and the software may include an encoded dictionary in memory . thus , the present invention may operate as an electronic scrabble ® game , where letter sequences are formed on the board ; and the processing device 22 indicates whether the letter sequences in fact form words found in the stored dictionary . although the invention has been described in detail herein , it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the embodiments herein disclosed . various changes , substitutions and modifications may be made thereto by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as described and defined by the appended claims .	6
specific embodiments of the invention now will be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings . this invention may , however , be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein ; rather , these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete , and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art . fig1 illustrates a power converter apparatus 100 according to embodiments of the invention . the apparatus 100 includes an input port 110 a , 110 b at which a voltage v in , for example , a dc voltage produced by a rectifier , may be applied . the apparatus 100 also includes an output port 140 a , 140 b , an inductance in the form of a primary winding 122 of a transformer 122 , a clamping circuit 170 and an output circuit 130 , here shown as including a secondary winding 124 of the transformer 120 , coupled to the inductance 122 and the output port 140 a , 140 b . the apparatus further includes a switch 150 that is operative to couple and decouple the input port 110 a , 110 b and the inductance 122 to selectively apply the input voltage v in thereto . the apparatus 100 further includes a control circuit 160 , here shown as including a current sensor 162 coupled in series with the clamping circuit 170 and a switch control circuit 164 that is responsive to the current sensor 162 . the control circuit 160 is operative to sense a current in the inductance 122 while the clamping circuit 170 receives current from the inductance 122 . the control circuit 160 is further operative to control the switch 150 responsive to the current in the inductance 122 . it will be understood that , in a particular application , the converter apparatus 100 will typically include other components . in particular , the control circuit 160 and / or the clamping circuit 170 may be further controlled responsive to , for example , a voltage and / or current at the output port 140 a , 140 b , or to another circuit state , such as a voltage and / or current of additional circuitry coupled to the apparatus . for purposes of the generality of description , detailed discussion of such voltage and / or current feedback control techniques will not be provided herein . it also will be appreciated that the configuration of fig1 may be modified within the scope of the invention . for example , rather than using a current sensor 162 coupled in series with a clamping circuit 170 as shown in fig1 other current sensing techniques can be used with the invention , including , for example , a current sensor coupled in series with the inductance 122 . it will also be understood that the invention is not limited to the “ clamped converter ” configuration shown in fig1 . in general , the invention is also applicable to a variety of power converter configurations , including configurations that use types of inductances other than transformer windings . the invention is also generally applicable to configurations using a variety of different types of clamping circuits , including , but not limited to , resonant ( e . g ., capacitive ) clamping circuits , dissipative ( e . g ., resistive ) clamping circuits , and combinations thereof . moreover , the invention may be embodied in a variety of different types of devices , such as dc — dc converters , power supply devices , uninterruptible power supply ( ups ) devices , and the like . the invention generally may be implemented using discrete electrical components , integrated circuits , and combinations thereof . fig2 illustrates a power converter apparatus 200 according to other embodiments of the invention . the apparatus 200 includes an input port 210 a , 210 b , an output port 240 a , 240 b , an inductance in the form of a primary winding 222 of a transformer 220 , and an output circuit 230 , here shown as including a secondary winding 224 of the transformer 220 , coupled to the inductance 222 and the output port 240 a , 240 b . a switch 250 , here shown as including a transistor q and associated body diode db , is operative to couple and decouple the input port 210 a , 210 b and the inductance 222 to selectively apply an input voltage v in thereto . a clamping circuit 270 includes a capacitor c and second switch 272 , here shown as including a transistor q and a body diode d b , that is operative to control current flow between the capacitor c and the inductance 222 . a current sensor 262 is coupled in series with the switch 272 and is operative to sense a current in the inductance 222 while the switch 272 couples the clamping capacitor c across the inductance 222 . a switch control circuit 264 generates respective control signals that are applied to respective ones of the switches 250 , 272 . in particular , the switch control circuit 264 is operative to control the switch 250 responsive to a current sense signal 263 generated by the current sensor 262 . as illustrated in fig3 a power converter apparatus 300 according to other embodiments of the present invention is similar to the apparatus 200 of fig2 with like components being indicated by like reference numerals , description of which is provided in the foregoing discussion of fig2 . the apparatus 300 includes a switch control circuit 264 ′ including a switching signal generator circuit 310 that generates first and second switch control signals s 1 , s 2 . the switch control signal s 1 is applied to an and gate circuit 320 , which also receives a current sense signal scs generated by a current sensor 262 ′ coupled in series with a clamping circuit 270 . the and gate 320 generates a control signal s 1 ′ that is applied to the switch 250 , which controls current flow between the inductance 222 and the input port 210 a , 210 b responsively thereto . exemplary operations of the apparatus 300 may be understood by reference to fig4 a and 4b . in the embodiments illustrated in fig3 a and 4 b , the first and second drive signals s 1 , s 2 transition in a substantially complementary fashion , i . e ., in a complementary fashion that may incorporate a small amount of “ dead time ” such that signal s 1 delays transition to a “ high ” state for a short period after transition of the signal s 2 to a “ low ” state , and / or vice versa . generation of the control signals s 1 , s 2 may be achieved via any of a number of conventional control techniques commonly used in clamped converter apparatus , for example , using voltage and / or current feedback techniques . prior to a time t 1 , it is assumed that the first and second signals s 1 , s 2 transition at substantially constant complementary duty cycles such that the first signal s 1 has a duty cycle approaching 0 % and such that the second signal s 2 has a duty cycle approaching 100 %, i . e ., such that the second signal s 2 is at nearly a continuous “ high ” state while the first signal is at nearly a continuous “ low ” state . as a result , the switch 272 of the clamping circuit 272 is “ on ” substantially more than the switch 250 . accordingly , the current i 1 in the inductance 222 remains relatively low and , consequently , the voltage v c across the clamping capacitor c remains relatively low . such a condition might occur , for example , when the apparatus 300 is lightly loaded at the output port 240 a , 240 b . at time t 1 , however , the duty cycles of the signals s 1 , s 2 abruptly change such that the duty cycle of the signal s 1 abruptly increases to around near 50 % and the duty cycle of the switch s 2 abruptly decreases to around 50 %. such a change might occur , for example , in response to an increase in load at the output port 240 a , 240 b . in a first “ on ” interval of the switch 250 from time t 1 to time t 2 , the current i 1 ramps up to a relatively high level , such that , when the switch 250 is turned off at time t 2 and the switch 272 turns “ on ” by forward biasing of the body diode d b shortly thereafter , a relatively large current i 2 begins to flow from the inductance 222 to the capacitor c . because the decay time for this large initial current is relatively long due to the highly discharged state of the capacitor at time t 2 , the current i 2 remains relatively high when the signal s 1 goes “ high ” again at time t 3 . however , the current sense signal scs remains “ low ” due to the positive , nonzero level of the current i 2 , maintaining the switch 250 in an “ off ” state until the current i 2 falls to near zero at time t 4 , several cycles of the signals s 1 , s 2 later . for the operations illustrated in fig4 a and 4b , this current limiting action continues for subsequent cycles of the signals s 1 , s 2 . however , assuming that the duty cycles of the signals s 1 , s 2 remain relatively constant , the converter may approach a steady state , wherein the current i 2 reaches zero before each new rising edge of the signal s 1 and the voltage v c remains relatively constant . the action of the current sense signal scs serves to limit the peak value of the current generated in the inductance 222 during the transient period following the abrupt change in the substantially complementary duty cycles of the signals s 1 , s 2 at time t 1 . this can prevent saturation of the transformer 220 . the action of the current sense signal scs can also provide a more controlled reverse recovery of the body diode d b of the switch 272 . it will be understood that apparatus and operations described with reference to fig3 and 4 a - 4 b may be modified within the scope of the invention . for example , rather than configure the current sensor 262 ′ to transition the current sense signal scs when the current i 2 is approximately zero , the current sensor 262 ′ could be configured to transition the current sense signal scs at some other current level , such as a positive level that can still provide saturation protection , or a negative level that can provide better reverse recovery for the body diode d b of the switch 272 . fig5 illustrates a converter apparatus 500 according to other embodiments of the invention . the converter apparatus 500 is similar to the apparatus 200 of fig2 with like components indicated by like reference numerals , description of which is provided in the foregoing description of fig2 . the converter apparatus 500 further includes an asymmetrical current limiting circuit 280 coupled in series with the clamping circuit 270 . here shown as including a current limiting resistor r cl connected in parallel with a bypass diode d bp , the asymmetrical current limiting circuit 280 serves to limit current in the switch 272 of the clamping circuit 270 in an asymmetrical fashion . in particular , the current limiting circuit 270 allows relatively large currents to flow from the inductance 222 to the clamping capacitance c through the forward biasing of the bypass diode d bp , but limits reverse current through the action of the current limiting resistor r cl . this latter characteristic may be particularly advantageous in limiting currents in the switch 272 during transients in which the switch 250 transitions abruptly from a relatively high duty cycle , e . g ., near 100 % ( corresponding to a heavily loaded condition ) to a substantially lower duty cycle , with concomitant transitioning of the switch 272 from a relatively low duty cycle , e . g ., near 0 %, to a substantially higher duty cycle . although the bypass diode d bp could be omitted , its presence can reduce unnecessary power dissipation in comparison to use of the current limiting resistor r cl alone . as noted above , the invention is not limited to “ clamped converter ” embodiments , and is generally applicable to many types of converter configurations that cyclically charge a transformer winding , inductor , or other inductance and “ clamp ” the charged inductance using a resonant , dissipative or other type of clamping circuit . for example , as illustrated in fig6 a converter 600 according to embodiments of the invention may have a structure like that found in an asymmetrical half - bridge converter . as shown , the converter 600 includes a first switch 620 that control current flow between and inductance l and an input port 610 a , 610 b at which an input voltage v in is applied . as shown , the first switch 620 includes a transistor q and associated body diode d b . current flow between the inductance l and a clamping capacitance c is controlled by a second switch 630 , here also shown as including a transistor q and associated body diode d b . the inductance l may be coupled to an output port ( not shown for purposes of generality of illustration ) in a number of different ways , including , for example , via magnetic coupling ( as in a transformer ) or electrical coupling to the inductance l . a switch control circuit 664 controls the first and second switches 620 , 630 . in particular , the switch control circuit 664 controls the first switch 620 responsive to a current sense signal generated by a current sensor 662 coupled in series with the clamping capacitor c . much like the embodiments described above with reference to fig1 - 5 , the switch control circuit 664 operates the switches 620 , 630 in a substantially complementary fashion . the switch control circuit 664 is further operative to condition closure of the switch 620 responsive to the current in the inductance l while the capacitor c is still coupled to the inductance l . in this manner , peak current in the inductance l can be limited , and reverse recovery of the body diode db of the switch 630 can be controlled . fig7 illustrates a converter apparatus 700 according to other embodiments of the invention . the apparatus 700 is similar to the apparatus 600 , with like components illustrated by like reference numerals , description of which is provided in the foregoing description of fig6 . the apparatus 700 includes a combined current limiting / current sensing circuit including a current limiting resistor r cl , a bypass diode d bp , and a current sense diode d cs coupled in series with the current limiting resistor r cl . a voltage v cs at a node 680 at which the current limiting resistor r cl is coupled to the clamping capacitor c serves as a current sense signal provided to a switch control circuit 664 ′ that controls the first and second switches 620 , 630 . along the lines of the switch control circuit 664 of fig6 the switch control circuit 664 ′ is operative to condition closure of the switch 620 responsive to the current sense signal v cs , which is representative of the current in the inductance l while the capacitor c is coupled to the inductance l . in particular , assuming the voltage at the second terminal 610 b of the input port is signal ground ( zero volts ), when the current i c in the clamping capacitor c is positive ( in the sense defined by the arrow ), the voltage v cs is approximately one diode drop ( e . g ., 0 . 6 volts ) positive due to the forward biasing of the bypass diode d bp . however , when the current ic approaches zero and passes to a negative value , the bypass diode becomes reversed biased , and the current sense diode d cs becomes forward biased . this causes the current sense voltage v cs to transition to at least one diode drop negative ( e . g ., − 0 . 6 volts or lower ). this change in voltage can be detected by the switch control circuit 664 ′, which may responsively enable closure of the first switch 620 . for example , the switch control circuit 664 ′ may include , for example , comparator and / or other signal detection circuitry that detects such a transition of the current sense voltage v cs . in this manner , saturation of the inductance l and / or reverse recovery of the body diode d b of the switch 630 can be controlled . fig8 illustrates yet another possible converter topology according to embodiments of the invention . the converter apparatus includes an inductance l and a clamping capacitance c . as with the converter apparatus of fig6 and 7 , the inductance l may be coupled to an output port ( not shown for purposes of generality of illustration ) in a number of different ways , including magnetic and electrical coupling . a first switch 820 , including a transistor q and associated body diode d b , is operative to control current flow between the inductance l and an input port 810 a , 810 b at which an input voltage v in is applied . a second switch 830 , also including a transistor q and body diode d b , is operative to control current flow between the clamping capacitor c and the inductance l . a switch control circuit 864 operates the first and second switches 820 , 830 in a substantially complementary fashion , and is further operative to condition operation of the switch 820 on a current sense signal v cs generated at a node 880 at which the second switch 830 is connected to a current limit / current sense circuit including a current limiting resistor r cl , a bypass diode d bp , and a current sense diode d cs . the current limit / current sense circuit can operate in a manner similar to that described with reference to fig7 . fig9 illustrates a converter apparatus 900 according to yet other embodiments of the invention . the apparatus 900 is similar to the apparatus 800 of fig8 with like elements indicated by like reference numerals , description of which is provided above with reference to fig8 . the apparatus 900 differs from the apparatus 800 in that the current limiting resistor r cl and bypass diode d bp are moved to the other side of the transistor switch 830 . this allows the switch 830 to operate in a linear , current limiting manner when current i c in the clamping capacitance c becomes excessive in the negative direction . a current sensor 862 coupled in series with the switch 830 provides a current sense signal to a switch control circuit 864 ′ that controls the first and second switches 820 , 830 . in the drawings and foregoing description thereof , there have been disclosed typical embodiments of the invention . terms employed in the description are used in a generic and descriptive sense and not for purposes of limitation , the scope of the invention being set forth in the following claims .	8
referring to fig1 - 2 , a heat dissipation device 10 in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated . the heat dissipation device 10 mainly comprises a first heat sink 20 , a second heat sink 30 and a heat pipe 40 conducting heat from the first heat sink 20 to the second heat sink 30 . a bracket 50 connects the first heat sink 20 , the heat pipe 40 and the second heat sink 30 , so as to reinforce the whole structure of the heat dissipation device 10 . the first heat sink 20 comprises a base 22 , two spaced groups of fins 24 extending upwardly from the base 22 and a separating member 28 mounted between the two groups of fins 24 . a connection area 26 of the base 22 is formed between the two groups of fins 24 . a groove 260 is defined in the connection area 26 of the base 22 for receiving an evaporating portion 42 of the heat pipe 40 . the separating member 28 is mounted on the connection area 26 of the first heat sink 20 . the separating member 28 comprises a base 282 parallel to the base 22 and a plurality of fins 284 extending upwardly from the base 282 thereof . each of the fins 284 is parallel to each of the fins 24 of the first heat sink 20 . the base 282 of the separating member 28 has a same length as the base 22 of the first heat sink 20 along a lateral direction . a length of the fins 284 is shorter than that of the base 282 such that a mating area 281 is formed at a top edge of the base 282 . a pair of threaded holes 283 is defined in the mating area 281 of the base 282 . a groove 280 corresponding to the groove 260 is defined in a bottom of the base 282 . the groove 280 and the groove 260 cooperatively form a channel for receiving the evaporating portion 42 of the heat pipe 40 . the second heat sink 30 comprises a plurality of fins 34 spaced from and snapped ( i . e . connected ) with each other . the fins 34 are perpendicular to the base 22 of the first heat sink 20 . a through hole 340 is defined in the fins 34 for receiving a condensing portion 44 of the heat pipe 40 . the bracket 50 is made from any high strength material such as metal , metal alloy , plastic or any other suitable material . the bracket 50 comprises two free ends 51 , 52 and a connecting arm 53 . the free end 51 parallel to the base 22 of the first heat sink 20 is mounted on the mating area 281 of the separating member 28 of the first heat sink 20 and the free end 52 parallel to the fins 34 of the second heat sink 30 is mounted on the second heat sink 30 . the free end 51 defines a pair of mounting holes 513 corresponding to the threaded holes 283 of the mating area 281 of the first heat sink 20 . the free end 52 is substantially perpendicular to the free end 51 , and defines a through hole 520 therein . the through hole 520 has an annular sidewall 522 extending perpendicularly from an edge thereof . the connecting arm 53 has a bend 530 at a substantially central portion thereof . in assembly , the grooves 280 , 260 , the connection area 26 , an inner surface of the through hole 340 and the sidewall 522 are coated with solder . the evaporating portion 42 of the heat pipe 40 is soldered into the channel of the first heat sink 20 formed by the grooves 260 , 280 . the free end 52 of the bracket 50 abuts against a lateral side of an outmost fin 34 of the second heat sink 30 near the first heat sink 20 and the through hole 520 of the bracket 50 is aligned with the through hole 340 of the second heat sink 30 . the condensing portion 44 of the heat pipe 40 is brought to extend in the through holes 340 , 520 and is soldered therein so that the second heat sink 30 and the bracket 50 are connected together via the condensing portion 44 of the heat pipe 40 soldered to the free end 52 of the bracket 50 and the fins 34 . the free end 51 of the bracket 50 is positioned on the mating area 281 of the separating member 28 of the first heat sink 20 . a pair of screws 54 extends through the mounting holes 513 of the bracket 50 and screw into the threaded holes 283 of the first heat sink 20 . thus the first heat sink 20 and the second heat sink 30 are immovably connected together . in a further preferred embodiment , the free end 52 is also soldered to the lateral side of the outmost fin 34 of the second heat sink 30 . it is to be understood , however , that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description , together with details of the structure and function of the invention , the disclosure is illustrative only , and changes may be made in detail , especially in matters of shape , size , and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed .	8
next , an embodiment of the present invention will be explained with reference to fig1 to 4 . a semiconductor wafer processing apparatus of this embodiment comprises a substrate processing chamber 1 , a vertically movable substrate processing chamber lid 2 , introducing pipes 3 for substrate processing gas and for carrier gas charging gas , quartz turrets 4 used for supporting quartz platforms 6 and 7 , rotating mechanisms ( bearings ) 5 , the quartz outer platform 6 placed on the quartz turrets 4 for supporting the quartz inner platform 7 , the quartz inner platform 7 placed on the quartz outer platform 6 for supporting a quartz plug 8 , the quartz plug 8 placed on the quartz inner platform 7 and capable of moving vertically by quartz wafer lift pins 9 , the quartz wafer lift pins 9 used when a wafer is loaded and unloaded , a wafer - vertically moving mechanism 10 used when a wafer is loaded and unloaded , a rod - like halogen lamp 11 used for heating a substrate , lamp electrodes 12 , a radiation thermometer 13 used when radiation light of a substrate which is being processed is sensed , a reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 , an emissivity measuring probe 14 used for lighting the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 and measuring its radiation strength and detecting a measurement value of reflection strength from a wafer 20 when the lamp 15 is lit , an exhausting pipe 16 used when a substrate processing chamber is exhausted ( evacuated ), and a guide pin 81 for preventing the quartz plug from being deviated in position . one example of process of the semiconductor wafer processing as one step of producing steps of a semiconductor device will be explained below with reference to fig1 and 2 using the semiconductor wafer processing apparatus of the embodiment . since this semiconductor wafer processing apparatus employs a vacuum transfer system , a substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 is received and delivered in a vacuum between all modules . when the substrate processing chamber 1 is in a vacuum state and the quartz plug 8 is in an up state ( substrate receiving and delivering position ) by the wafer lift pins 9 and the wafer - vertically moving mechanism 10 , an atmosphere isolation valve which is not shown in fig1 is opened , the substrate 20 is inserted into the substrate processing chamber 1 , and after the inserting operation is completed , the atmosphere isolation valve is closed . then , the quartz plug 8 on which the substrate 20 is placed by the wafer - vertically moving mechanism 10 is moved into a down state ( substrate processing position ), and rotation is started by the rotating mechanisms 5 . at that time , not only the quartz plug 8 on which the substrate 20 is placed , but also the quartz turrets 4 which are placed on the rotating mechanisms 5 , the quartz outer platform 6 and the quartz inner platform 7 are rotated . thereafter , emissivity is measured by the emissivity measuring probe 14 and the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 . since the emissivity is different depending upon kinds of wafer , an actual temperature is calculated by correcting the measured value using the emissivity . to obtain the emissivity of the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 , first , in a state in which the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 is lit , radiation strength a of the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 is measured such that a tip end of the emissivity measuring probe 14 is directed toward the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 existing directly above the emissivity measuring probe 14 . next , in a state in which the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 is lit , radiation strength b from the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 is measured such that the tip end of the emissivity measuring probe 14 is directed to the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 existing directly below the emissivity measuring probe 14 . then , in a state in which the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 is lit , radiation strength c from the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 is measured . since the radiation strength c from the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 is included in the radiation strength b from the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 in the state in which the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 is lit , ( c - b ) is strength of reflection light of light from the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 reflected by the substrate 20 and as a result , a reflection coefficient α of light from the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 reflected by the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 is expressed as follows : a relation between reflection coefficient , absorption index and transmittance of light of the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 with respect to the substrate 20 is expressed as follows : the light of the reflection coefficient measuring lamp 15 is white light having a maximum strength of 0 . 9 μm . since the light of 0 . 9 μm does not pass through the semiconductor silicon wafer 15 , the transmittance is 0 . therefore , reflection coefficient + absorption index = 1 , and since the absorption index and emissivity on a surface of an arbitrary material are equal to each other , the following equation is established : if a measured value measured by the radiation thermometer 13 is corrected with the emissivity obtained in this manner , it is possible to obtain the actual temperature of the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 . the rod - like halogen lamp 11 is lit to increase a temperature and adjust a pressure , and when process conditions are satisfied , a substrate processing event is started . as main processing , film - forming processing for forming an oxide film using o 2 gas and n 2 gas , anneal processing and the like are carried out . the radiation thermometer 13 is used for monitoring a substrate temperature during temperature increasing , and correction is carried out in the above - described manner to obtain an actual temperature of the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 . after the processing , the substrate processing chamber 1 is evacuated and after the evacuation is completed , if the wafer - vertically moving mechanism 10 assumes the up position , the atmosphere isolation valve ( not shown ) is opened , and if the unloading operation of the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 from the substrate processing chamber 1 is completed , the atmosphere isolation valve is closed and the processing is completed . when light - shield coatings are applied to surfaces of the quartz platforms 6 and 7 , if the above - described processing is repeated , the coatings are peeled off . a reason why the surface coatings of the quartz platforms 6 and 7 are peeled off is a difference in coefficient of thermal expansion between the quartz itself and the surface coating . thereupon , as countermeasures against this problem , the quartz platforms 6 and 7 are formed into such a structure that a coating 76 is sandwiched between quartz 15 and quartz 17 as shown in fig3 . with this structure , since the coating 76 is not peeled off , it is possible to restrain particles from being generated , and to keep shielding stray light from a periphery of the substrate . preferable coating materials are sic , si and the like which can shield the stray light . it is also effective to change the quality of material of the quartz to colored quartz ( opaque quartz ) having low transmittance with respect to lamp light ( see fig4 ). with this structure , it is also possible to omit the coating itself , and the same effect as that when the coating is sandwiched between quartz and quartz can be obtained . as shown in fig2 the quartz inner platform 7 is provided at its inner side with a substrate - placing portion 71 , and a peripheral portion of the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 is placed on the substrate - placing portion 71 . the structure in which the coating 76 is sandwiched between the quartz 15 and quartz 17 is provided in portions ( in a region a in fig2 ) of the quartz platforms 6 and 7 other than a region thereof where the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 is placed . this is because that the entire surface of the substrate ( semiconductor wafer ) 20 receives the heat radiation from the rod - like halogen lamp 11 , and stray light in a region other than a region when the substrate 20 is placed is effectively shielded . although the structure in which the coating 76 is sandwiched between the quartz 75 and quartz 77 is explained in the above embodiment , a plate ( e . g ., sic plate or the like ) having material capable of shielding stray light of the lamp may be sandwiched between the quartz and quartz instead of the coating 76 . the quartz plug 8 is provided at its lower portion with three guide pins 81 for preventing positional deviation of the quartz platform which are separated through 1200 from one another . with the guide pins , when the quartz plug 8 is vertically moved , the quartz plug 8 is prevented from being deviated in position between itself and the quartz inner platform 7 . in this embodiment , since the peeling of the surface coating is eliminated , at least particles are restrained from being generated . therefore , particles adhering to the substrate are reduced , it is possible to prevent the device characteristics from being deteriorated , and to eliminate the influence on the yield . further , since the stray light of the lamp is eliminated , a temperature is controlled smoothly , and a substrate can be processed without exerting an influence on process data , and the throughput can be enhanced . the entire disclosure of japanese patent application no . 2002 - 087924 filed on mar . 27 , 2002 including specification , claims , drawings and abstract are incorporated herein by reference in its entirety . although various exemplary embodiments have been shown and described , the invention is not limited to the embodiments shown . therefore , the scope of the invention is intended to be limited solely by the scope of the claims that follow .	7
shown in fig1 , is an example of an engine 1 with a prime mover 2 driving a piece of rotating equipment 3 via a drive axis 4 . the engine 1 further has a reference gear 5 , a sensor 6 and a governor 7 . the reference gear 5 is equipped with teeth and mounted on the drive axis 4 . the sensor 6 is arranged for detecting teeth of the rotating reference gear 5 passing by and delivering a pulse to the governor 7 for each instance of detection . the governor 7 is in turn connected to a valve 8 . the valve 8 is arranged for controlling the supply of an energy source 9 to the prime mover 2 . in this example , the prime mover 2 may be a diesel engine to be supplied with diesel as energy source . the supply of diesel 9 will run the prime mover 2 which in turn will drive the rotary equipment 3 via the drive axis 4 . the reference gear 5 will rotate in the same direction , as indicated by arrow 12 and at the same speed as the prime mover 2 and allows to feedback the rotational speed to the governor 7 . the output 10 delivered by the rotating equipment 3 may be measured by a meter 11 to be fed back to the governor 7 and taken also in account for controlling the energy supply 9 via the valve 8 . the governor 7 is provided with a measurement device 13 configured for performing a method for assessing a rotational speed of an engine . turning to fig2 , an example of such method for assessing the rotational speed of the engine 2 of fig1 is shown . the method requires measuring 101 a number of pulses x during a measurement interval , determining 102 a portion of a pulse pattern , determining 103 an integration period , and calculating 104 the rotational speed based on the portion of the pulse pattern . the sensor 6 detects the teeth of the gear passing by and provides an input signal 14 consisting of pulses for each detection . the pulses delivered by the sensor 6 may be measured 101 by a pulse counter which counts the number of pulses . a time counter may measure the time delay between consecutive pulses . and the pulse index of each pulse is also monitored . when an engine starts running the measurements may start immediately . as the reference gear 5 has a fixed number of teeth which is known to the governor 7 , each incoming pulse can be assigned a pulse index number , running from one to the number of teeth m . on completing one full rotation of the reference gear 5 , the next pulse corresponds to the first pulse index again . this allows to acquire a pulse pattern of the reference gear 5 by storing the time proportional delay for each pulse index . hence , for pulse index number two , the time proportional delay between the first pulse and the second pulse is stored . in this embodiment the acquired pulse pattern is stored in a pattern type table , which initial measurement may in general be referred to as a learning phase . in other embodiments the pattern type table may be provided in advance by the manufacturer of the engine . a full rotation of the reference gear 5 may take several measurement intervals i . e . sampling periods of the pulse counter . depending on the structure of engine , e . g . the number of cylinders , a pulse pattern may correspond to one revolution or several revolutions of the reference gear 5 . the pattern table will thus contain time delays for pulse indices for n pulses , with n equal to the number of teeth m on the reference gear , or a multiple thereof , like 2 * m , 3 * m , or 4 * m . in order to determine 102 the portion of the pulse pattern the incoming measured pulses are compared against the stored pulses of the pattern type table . in one embodiment , this may be done by comparing the pulse indices and selecting the portion that matches the index of the measured pulses . in another embodiment , this may be done by comparing the consecutive time delays against the proportional time delays of the pattern type table and then selecting the portion matching that matches the measured pulses . selection of the portion based on the indices of the pulses requires the pulse counter to be synchronised with the pulse pattern table . which is readily obtained when the learning phase has preceded the phase in which the measurements are used by the governor . if the pulse pattern table is supplied by the manufacturer , synchronization of the pulse counter with the start index of the pulse pattern table may be required . selection of the portion based on comparison of consecutive pulses does not require synchronization of the pulse counter and the pulse pattern table , but instead results in the portion being selected by identifying the consecutive pulse indices of which the proportional time delays match the measured pulses . either way , based on the pulses x and time delays of the corresponding pulse indices a corrective value portion is calculated as the ratio of n pulses of the full pattern divided by the sum of the total time delay of the full pattern and the received pulses x divided by the sum of the time delays of the corresponding pulse indices . as shown in the formula below : in other words , the corrective value portion is the ratio of the average speed of pulses n of a full pattern and the relative speed of pulses x . the integration period may be determined 103 from the sampling period , i . e . the period during which pulses were measured , and the time delay from the last measured pulse till the end of the sampling period . this method is known from european patent ep 2172785 b1 , granted to schneider electric on mar . 16 , 2016 . the method disclosed therein allows to determine more accurately the period of the measurement interval during which pulses were received . in particular , it deducts the time from the last detected pulse till the end of the sampling period and adds the corresponding time interval of the previous sampling period . with the number of pulses measured in the measurement interval , the portion of the pulse pattern and the integration period available , the rotational speed of the engine may be calculated 104 as a frequency based on the portion of the pulse pattern . by taking the formula : herein , x pulses is the number of pulses x measured . t integration is the time of the measurement interval . and portion is the corrective value as described above . turning to fig3 , a flowchart is shown illustrating an example of the method in more detail . the method includes measuring 201 a number of pulses x during a measurement interval , determining 202 a portion of a pulse pattern , determining 203 an integration period , and calculating 204 the rotational speed based on the portion of the pulse pattern . and the method further includes providing a pattern type table 205 , triggering 206 a measurement interval through a clock signal from a time base generator , and verifying 207 the size of the integration period . as described above , a pattern type table may be provided 205 in advance by the manufacturer of the engine . or it may be provided by storing the measurements obtained when the engine is started , i . e . during the learning phase . the learning phase is preferably performed when the engine is running at normal operational speed . preferably , the load of the engine is kept stable during the learning phase , so the engine may be running more or less at constant speed to allow capturing a pulse pattern representative of the engine . the learning phase will only take a few revolutions to capture and store the pulse pattern . a time base generator may be used to provide a clock signal for triggering 206 the measurement interval . this time base determines the length of the measurement interval , which due to its &# 39 ; periodic nature may also be referred to as a sampling period . when the engine is running at low frequencies , e . g . less than 60 revolutions per minute , it could be that no pulse is delivered by the sensor in the measurement interval as the reference gear is rotating equally slow . it may also be that the integration period does not meet the expected accuracy , which may e . g . happen when the integration period becomes less than half of the sampling period . or , for example , when the frequency of the engine lies between two and three times the sampling rate , the integration period may fluctuate between half and less than once the sampling rate . the higher the ratio between frequency and sampling rate , the closer the integration period will be in size to the sampling period . which optimises the potentially achievable accuracy . hence , to guarantee the accuracy of the calculation , the size of the integration period needs to be verified 207 . and the integration period needs to be extended 208 if no pulse was measured or if the integration period is less than a predetermined threshold . for example , to obtain an accuracy of 0 . 005 % of error or more , the integration period must be greater than 20000 times the system clock period . referring to fig4 , a measurement device 20 for measuring a rotational speed of an engine is shown . the measurement device includes an input port 21 for an input signal . the measurement device further including : a system clock 22 providing a system clock signal . a time base generator 23 determining a sampling period derived from the system clock signal . a counter clock 24 providing a counter clock signal derived from the system clock signal . an input pulse counter 25 counting pulses of the input signal during a sampling period and keeping track of an index of the input pulses . a time counter 26 counting pulses of the counter clock 24 between two consecutive pulses of the input signal . and a latching memory 27 for capturing and storing the index of a value of the input pulse counter and a value of the time counter at an end of the sampling period of both a current sample period and a previous sample period . the latching memory 27 may comprise two pairs of latching registries 28 and 29 . each pair 28 , 29 consists of two latching registries 28 a , 28 b & amp ; 29 a , 29 b for storing the values for the pulse index and the pulse delay . one pair 29 will store the values of the previous measurement interval , which may be referred to as “ sample begin ”. the other pair 28 will store the values of the current measurement interval , which may be referred to as “ sample end ”. in the embodiment of fig4 the time base generator 23 and the counter clock 24 derive their signal frequency from the system clock 22 . the signal frequency of the time base generator 23 determines when measurements are updated . the signal frequency of the counter clock 24 relative to the signal frequency of the time base generator 23 determines the accuracy of the measurement . for example , for an accuracy of 0 . 005 % the frequency of the counter clock 24 must be 20000 times higher than the frequency of the time base generator 23 . the measurement device 20 may further include a pattern type table 30 . the pattern type table 30 holding at least one pulse pattern of a series of pulse indices and a proportional delay for each of the pulse indices . the measurement device may further include a portion calculator 31 for comparing the stored pulse indices of the latching memory 27 against the pulse pattern table and calculating the portion of the pulse pattern from the proportional delays associated with the stored pulse indices of the latching memory 27 . the measurement device 20 may further include a processing unit 32 . the processing unit 32 being arranged for calculating the number of pulses by subtracting the pulse index stored of the previous sample period from the pulse index stored of the current sample period . further arranged for calculating an integration period from the sampling period , the proportional delay of the pulse index stored for the previous sample period and the proportional delay of the pulse index stored for the current sample period . and arranged for calculating the frequency of the rotational speed from the number of pulses , the portion of the pulse pattern and the integration period . in another embodiment , the processing unit 32 of the measurement device 20 may also be arranged for performing the function of the portion calculator 31 . hence , no separate hardware for portion calculator 31 is present . although the present invention has been described above with reference to specific embodiments , it is not intended to be limited to the specific form set forth herein . rather , the invention is limited only by the accompanying claims and , other embodiments than the specific above are equally possible within the scope of these appended claims . furthermore , although exemplary embodiments have been described above in some exemplary combination of components and / or functions , it should be appreciated that , alternative embodiments may be provided by different combinations of members and / or functions without departing from the scope of the present disclosure . in addition , it is specifically contemplated that a particular feature described , either individually or as part of an embodiment , can be combined with other individually described features , or parts of other embodiments .	6

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