The present invention relates generally to gene expression and specifically to a novel enhancer element that increases the rate of transcription of a gene operably linked thereto, particularly in plants.
Genes are regulated in an inducible, cell type-specific or constitutive manner. There are different types of structural elements which are involved in the regulation of gene expression. Cis-acting elements, located in the proximity of, or within genes, serve to bind sequence-specific DNA binding proteins, i.e., trans-acting factors. The binding of proteins to DNA is responsible for the initiation, maintenance, or down-regulation of gene transcription.
Cis-acting elements which control genes include promoters, enhancers and silencers. Promoters are positioned next to the transcription start site and function in an orientation-dependent manner, while enhancer and silencer elements, which modulate the activity of promoters, may be flexible with respect to their orientation and distance from the transcription start site.
An example of a specifically regulated gene in plants is phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), which catalyzes the deamination of phenylalanine to cinnamic acid, the precursor of a wide variety of natural products based on the phenylpropane skeleton. During vascular development, PAL is selectively expressed in differentiating xylem cells associated with deposition of the structural polymer lignin. Lignin, the second most abundant biopolymer after cellulose, is the major structural cell wall component of cells forming vessels in plant tissue (xylem). The xylem is responsible for movement of water and inorganic solutes from plant roots to plant shoots. PAL, genes are expressed at correspondingly high levels in differentiating xylem.
The ability to artificially regulate the rate of gene expression provides a means of producing plants with new characteristics. There are numerous situations in which increased levels of gene expression, including increased endogenous gene expression, may be desirable. Such situations include, for example, production of protein plant products for agricultural or commercial purposes.
The present invention provides a novel repeat element which functions as a non-specific enhancer. In other words, the invention enhancer element does not affect the intrinsic specificity of a promoter associated with the enhancer element. Instead, the enhancer element boosts the activity of the promoter thereby resulting in a desired level of expression of a gene associated with the promoter. A novel transcription factor, palindromic element binding factor (PABF), which binds to the novel repeat element is also provided.
In a first embodiment, the invention provides an enhancer element comprising an isolated nucleotide sequence consisting of at least the sequence (AATT)n, where n=2, and preferably from about 2 to about 20. The sequence (AATT)n has cis-acting, non-specific, enhancer activity. In one aspect, the invention provides a method for increasing expression of a gene in a cell comprising operably linking a (AATT)n repeat element to a heterologous promoter which is operably linked with the gene, thereby permitting increased expression of the gene.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a substantially purified palindromic element binding factor (PABF) polypeptide characterized as having a molecular weight of approximately 67 kDa, as determined by SDS-PAGE, binding to a (AATT)n repeat element, where n=2, and having a H1 histone domain, a glutamine rich domain and a high mobility group (HMG) I/Y domain. PABF acts as a transcription factor and binds to the (AATT) repeat element of the invention.


1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connecting structure for a striking plate of a golf club head. In particular, the present invention relates to a connecting structure for connecting a striking plate to a body of a golf club head for simplifying assembling and positioning for a subsequent welding procedure.
2. Description of Related Art
Taiwan Patent Publication No. 327606 discloses a method for connecting a golf club head body and a striking plate, both made of metal. The golf club head body includes a recess for engaging with the striking plate. The recess includes a shoulder on which a welding material is placed. The striking plate is inserted into the recess and presses against the shoulder to cause deformation of a protruded portion on an inner edge of the shoulder, thereby filling the welding material into a gap defined between the striking plate, the shoulder, and the protruded portion. The welding material is in the form of metal powder and has a melting point lower than that of the golf club head body and that of the striking plate. The combination of the golf club head body and the striking plate is placed into a vacuum furnace or an inert gas atmosphere in a high temperature furnace and then heated at a temperature higher than the melting point of the welding material and lower than the melting point of the golf club head body and lower than the melting point of the striking plate. The molten welding material fills the tiny gaps between the golf club head and the striking plate by capillary action. A solid golf club head without welding marks on appearance is obtained after cooling.
Nevertheless, the gap between the striking plate, the shoulder, and the protruded portion can receive a limited amount of welding material, with a portion of the welding material filling the tiny gaps between an inner perimeter delimiting the recess and an outer perimeter of the striking plate. Thus, the remaining welding material is insufficient to fill the gap between the striking plate, the shoulder, and the protruded portion. Cavities are formed accordingly. As a result, when the striking plate is subjected to a striking stress and thus elastically deforms, cracks are apt to be generated in the welding areas. Further, the gap between the outer perimeter of the striking plate and the inner perimeter delimiting the recess must be precisely controlled to assure the welding material for braze welding to fill the tiny gaps by capillary action. Hence, additional equipment is required for milling the golf club head body and the striking plate so as to precisely control the tolerance of the gap regardless of the process for manufacturing the golf club head body and the striking plate (such as precision casting). The overall time for manufacturing the golf club head and the manufacturing cost are both increased, which is detrimental to mass production.
Taiwan Patent Publication No. 469144, a patent of addition of Taiwan Publication No. 327606, proposes an ordinary welding (such as argon welding) along a seam between the striking plate and the golf club head body after braze welding. Finally, the outer surface of the golf club head is subjected to grinding and surface finishing to guarantee the bonding strength by external welding. Nevertheless, the tolerance between the golf club head body and the striking plate requires precise control. Further, the overall time for manufacturing the golf club head and the manufacturing cost are both increased, which is detrimental to mass production.


1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to printing methods and systems, and more particularly, to a printing method and system to print files from an electronic book (e-book).
2. Description of Related Art
Nowadays, mobile electronic devices generally can store various files, such as pictures and text files. In order to print a document, a printer driver must be installed on a mobile electronic device. The printer driver corresponds to a first printer. However, if a user wants to print to a second printer, then a different printer driver corresponding to the second printer must be installed. This process must be repeated for the second printer, which is time-consuming and inconvenient.


Many attempts have been made to obtain improved plants for cultivation through breeding programs. A conventional plant breeding program requires as much as ten years to develop a new variety. In addition to the initial hybridization step, several years are typically spent replanting successive generations in order to obtain homozygous plants. An alternative to a conventional plant breeding program is anther culturing in which anthers from one plant are used to pollinate the ovaries of another plant. However, many traits cannot be successfully introduced via such hybridization techniques since the genes for such traits are not found in breeds available for hybridization.
An alternative to hybridization is somaclonal variation. This technique involves the use of vegetative plant parts, such as callus tissue, as explant material. For example, callus that develops from vegetative explants of rice frequently regenerates plants which have genetic characteristics not found in the variety from which the explant was originally obtained. These somatic mutants occur at high frequencies, and the percentage of regenerated plants which differ from the starting variety exceeds, for example, 75 percent in rice. This technique is therefore useful for producing genetic variability. Again, however, there are limits to the extent of variation which can be obtained.
Development of plant genetic engineering began in the early 1940s when experiments were being carried out to determine the biological principle causing formation of crown gall tumors. The tumor-inducing principle was shown to be a bacterial plasmid from the infective organism Agrobacterium tumefaciens. This plasmid has since been characterized in much detail utilizing the currently available techniques of recombinant DNA technology. The bacterium elicits its response by inserting a small fragment of bacterial plasmid into the plant nucleus where it becomes incorporated and functions as a plant gene. This discovery opened the door to using Agrobacterium and its plasmids as vehicles to carry foreign DNA to the plant nucleus. There are, however, limitations to the application of this technique which include: (1) susceptibility to infection with the Agrobacterium plasmid and (2) available tissue culture technology for regeneration of the transformed plants. Thus, there are no successful reports on genetic engineering of monocots such as cereals with Agrobacterium plasmid vectors because of the general inability of Agrobacterium to infect monocots.
More recently, other techniques have been used to genetically transform monocots. For example, electroporation of protoplasts of rice, wheat and sorghum to obtain expression of a foreign gene was reported in Ou-Lee et al, Botany, vol. 83, pp. 6815-6819 (1986). Similar plant protoplast electroporation and electroinjection through cell walls and membranes have also been reported for other monocots, and dicots as well. See, Fromm et al, Proc. Natl. Acad Sci USA, vol. 82, pp. 5824-5828 (1985); Hibi et al, J. Gen. Virol., vol. 67, pp. 2037-2042 (1986); Langridge et al, Plant Cell Reports, vol. 4, pp. 355-359 (1985); Fromm et al, Nature, vol. 319, pp 791-793; Shillito et al, Bio/Technology, vol. 3, pp. 1099-1103 (1985); and Okada et al, Plant Cell Physiol., vol. 27, pp. 619-626 (1986). Similarly, direct and chemical-induced introduction of DNA into monocot and dicot cells has been disclosed. See, Lorz et al, Mol. Gen. Genet., vol. 199, pp. 178-182 (1985); Potrykus et al, Mol. Gen. Genet., vol. 199, pp 183-188 (1986); Uchimaya et al, Mol. Gen. Genet., vol. 204, pp 204-207 (1986); Freeman et al, Plant Cell Physiol., vol. 25, no. 8, pp. 1353-1365 (1984); and Krens et al, Nature, vol. 296, pp. 72-74 (1986). Another technique of interest is the injection of DNA into young floral tillers of rye plants reported in de la Pena et al, Nature, vol. 325, pp. 274-276 (1987).
The agricultural production of major crops has long been significantly affected by insects and plant pathogens. For example, blight and blast are major diseases of rice plants which can decimate a crop. Some plants cannot be cultivated in certain parts of the world because of the presence of diseases in such locations to which the plants are susceptible. For example, the main diseases in potato are bacterial soft rot and bacterial wilt caused by Erwinia carotovora and Pseudomonas solanacearum, respectively. These diseases are primarily responsible for limiting the growth of potatoes in many areas of Asia, Africa, South and Central America. Moreover, pesticides are becoming increasingly difficult to use in an effective, and yet environmentally acceptable manner. Therefore, it would be desirable to have available for cultivation plants which are resistant to insects and other pathogens.
It is well known that the pupae of Hyalophora (a type of silk moth) respond to bacterial infection by the synthesis of mRNAs which culminate in the production of about 15 to 20 new proteins. Lysozyme, the antibacterial protein found in egg white and human tears, and two other classes of antibacterial peptides, called cecropins and attacins, have been purified from Hyalophora humor. These proteins have a rather broad spectrum of activity in that they are effective on many different types of bacteria. Thus, the insects have evolved a rather successful and novel means to fight bacterial infections. Although a traditional immunologist would think this system lacks specificity, the insect has a rather potent arsenal of at least three different antibacterial proteins which may work in different ways to destroy bacterial pathogens. Thus, the invading bacteria is presented with a formidable challenge which is very difficult to circumvent. While a bacterial pathogen may be naturally resistant to one, it is highly improbable that it would be resistant to all three toxins. Although the exact mode of action of the protein toxins is not fully understood, they are generally procaryote specific and appear to be benign to eucaryotic insect cells.
As mentioned above, the property of certain peptides to induce lysis of procaryotic microorganisms such as bacteria is well known. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,355,104 and 4,520,016 to Hultmark et al describe the bacteriolytic properties of some cecropins against Gram-negative bacteria. Quite interestingly, the cecropins described in the Hultmark et al patents were not universally effective against all Gram-negative bacteria. For example, the cecropins described therein lysed Serratia marcescens D61108, but not Serratia marcescens D611. Moreover, cecropins have generally been reported to have no lytic activity towards eucaryotic cells such as insect cells, liver cells and sheep erythrocytes, as reported in the Hultmark patents; International Patent Publication WO/8604356; Andreu et al, Biochemistry, vol. 24, pp. 1683-88 (1985); Boman et al, Developmental and Comparative Immunology, vol. 9, pp. 551-558 (1985); and Steiner et al, Nature, vol. 292, pp. 246-248 (1981).
Other lytic peptides heretofore known include, for example, the sarcotoxins and lepidopterans. Such peptides generally occur naturally in the immune system of Sarcophaga peregrina and the silkworm, lepidopteran, respectively, as reported in Nakajima et al, The Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 262, pp. 1665-1669 (1987) and Nakai et al, Chem. Abst. 106:214351w (1987).
A number of the antibacterial polypeptides have been found to be useful when the genes encoding therefor are incorporated into various animals. Such transformation of animals with genes encoding therefor are described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 069,653, filed Jul. 25, 1986, now abandoned by Jesse M. Jaynes, Frederick M. Enright and Kenneth F. White, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Polynucleotide molecules expressible in E. coli and having the sequence araB promoter operably linked to a gene which is heterologous to such host are also known. The heterologous gene codes for a biologically active polypeptide. A genetic construct of a first genetic sequence coding for cecropin operably linked to a second genetic sequence coding for a polypeptide which is capable of suppressing the biological effect of the resulting fusion protein towards an otherwise cecropin-sensitive bacterium is also described in International Publication WO86/04356, Jul. 31, 1986.
The Hultmark et al patents mentioned above also mention that there are no known antibodies to cecropin, indicating a wide acceptability for human and veterinary applications, including one apparently useful application for surface infections because of the high activity against Pseudomonas. Similarly, EPO publication 182,278 (1986) mentions that sarcotoxins may be expected to be effective in pharmaceutical preparations and as foodstuff additives, and that antibacterial activity of sarcotoxin can be recognized in the presence of serum Shiba, Chem. Abstr. 104:230430K (1985) also mentions preparation of an injection containing 500 mg lepidopteran, 250 mg glucose and injection water to 5 ml.
Several analogs of naturally-occurring cecropins, sarcotoxins and lepidopterans have been reported. For example, it is reported in Andreu et al, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, vol. 80, pp. 6475-6479 (1983) that changes in either end of the amino acid sequence of cecropin generally result in losses in bactericidal activity in varying degrees against different bacteria. It is reported in Andreu et al (1985) mentioned above that Trp.sup.2 is clearly important for bactericidal activity of cecropin, and that other changes in the 4, 6 or 8 position have different effects on different bacteria. From the data given in Table II at page 1687 of Andreu et al (1985), it appears that almost any change from natural cecropin generally adversely affects its bactericidal activity. Cecropin is defined in International Publication WO86/04356 to include bactericidally active polypeptides from any insect species and analogs, homologs, mutants, isomers and derivatives thereof having bactericidal activity from 1% of the naturally-occurring polypeptides up to 100 times or higher activity of the naturally-occurring cecropin. Other references generally discuss the effects of the .alpha.-helix conformation and the amphiphilic nature of cecropin and other lytic peptides.
It is known that lysozyme and attacins also occur in insect hemolymph. For example, it is reported in Okada et al, Biochem. J., vol. 229, pp. 453-458 (1985) that lysozyme participates with sarcotoxin against bacteria, but that the bactericidal actions are diverse. Steiner et al mentioned above suggests that lysozyme plays no role in the antibacterial activity of insect hemolymph other than to remove debris following lysis of bacteria by cecropin. Merrifield et al, Biochemistry, vol. 21, pp. 5020-5031 (1982) and Andreu et al (1983) mentioned above state that cecropin purified from insect hemolymph may be contaminated with lysozyme, but demonstrate that the synthetically prepared cecropin is as bactericidally active as purified cecropin from insect hemolymph.
The treatment of eucaryotic pathogens and other cells with lytic peptides, and novel lytic peptides, is the subject matter of U.S. Ser. No. 102,175, filed Sep. 29, 1987, now abandoned by Jaynes, Enright, White and Jeffers, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Approximately 70% of the world's human population lives in underdeveloped countries, and have diets nutritionally inadequate in proteins, fats and calories. Malnutrition in these countries is wide-spread and persistent. Protein malnutrition can usually be attributed to a deficiency in the diet of one or more of the essential amino acids. The major food staples of many underdeveloped countries, cereals and tubers, are deficient in most limiting essential amino acids. When a major portion of the diet consists of such staples, the result is limiting essential amino acid deficiency. In children, this condition is particularly debilitating, because of the large requirement for high quality polypeptide needed for normal growth and development.
Protein malnutrition of this type could be alleviated or eliminated by adding supplements to the diet, which supplements contained polypeptides high in these limiting essential amino acids. Such polypeptides would have to be susceptible to digestion by normal human or animal proteases. Further, such polypeptides would be manufactured by cloning and expression of synthetic DNA.
Synthetic DNA of a desired sequence can now be constructed using modern chemical techniques, and the DNA can then be cloned into various microorganisms using recombinant DNA technology. It is known, for example, that a synthetic DNA which codes for poly(1-aspartyl-1-phenylalanine) can be cloned and expressed in E. coli. Doel et al, Nucleic Acids Research, Vol. 8, No. 20, pp. 4575-4592 (1980). Also Tangus et al, Applied and Environmental Microbiology, Vol. 43, No. 3, pp. 629-635 (March, 1982), have obtained expression of a cloned homopolymeric synthetic DNA sequence coding for poly-1-proline.
A number of United States patents have issued concerning the synthesis of polypeptides by conventional polypeptide sequencing, or by using DNA technology. Such patents include U.S. Pat. No. 3,796,631 to Choay et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,850,749 to Kaufman et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,299,043 to Schramm et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,594,278 to Naylor, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,300,469 to Bernardi et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,338,397, issued Jul. 1982 to Gilbert et al, discloses a method for synthesizing within a bacterial host, and secreting through the membrane of the host, a selected mature protein or polypeptide using these DNA techniques. The polypeptide can be any selected polypeptide such as proinsulin, serum albumin, and the like.
Peptides high in limiting essential amino acids and transformed plants expressing the same are the subject matter of U.S. Ser. No. 837,722, filed Mar. 7, 1986, now abandoned by Jaynes; and U.S. Ser. No. 837,211 filed Mar. 8, 1986, now abandoned by Jaynes, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference.


This invention relates generally to turbine engine stator assemblies, and more particularly, to apparatus and method for controlling operating clearance between a stationary shroud surface in a turbine engine stator assembly and a rotating surface of juxtaposed blading members.
Forms of an axial flow turbine engine, typically a gas turbine engine, include rotating assemblies radially within stationary assemblies that assist in defining a flowpath of the engine. Examples include a rotary compressor assembly that compresses incoming air, and a rotary turbine assembly that extracts power from products of engine fuel combustion. Such assemblies comprise stages of rotating blades within a surrounding stator assembly that includes a shroud surface spaced apart from cooperating surfaces of the rotating blades. Efficiency of a turbine engine depends, at least in part, on the clearance or gap between the juxtaposed shroud surface and the rotating blades. If the clearance is excessive, undesirable leakage of engine flowpath fluid will occur between such gap resulting in reduced engine efficiency. If the clearance is too small, interference can occur between the rotating and stationary members of such assemblies, resulting in damage to one or more of such cooperating surfaces.
Complicating clearance problems in such apparatus is the well known fact that clearance between such turbine engine assemblies changes with engine operating conditions such as acceleration, deceleration, or other changing thermal or centrifugal force conditions experienced by the cooperating members during engine operation. Clearance control mechanisms for such assemblies, sometimes referred to as active clearance control systems, have included mechanical systems or systems based on thermal expansion and contraction characteristics of materials for the purpose of maintaining selected clearance conditions during engine operation. Such systems generally require use of substantial amounts of air for heating or cooling at the expense of such air otherwise being used in the engine operating cycle. Provision of an improved means for active clearance control that reduces the need for engine flowpath fluid for such heating or cooling could enhance engine efficiency.


1. Field
The embodiments described below relate generally to the delivery of radiation therapy to a patient according to a “dynamic strobe” delivery scheme. In some embodiments, the “dynamic strobe” delivery scheme may encompass and/or seamlessly combine with one or more other radiation therapy delivery methods.
2. Description
According to conventional radiation therapy, a beam of radiation is directed toward a tumor located within a patient. The radiation beam delivers a predetermined dose of therapeutic radiation to the tumor according to a treatment plan. The delivered radiation kills cells of the tumor by causing ionizations within the cells. A major concern is limiting the damage to healthy tissue surrounding the tumor.
FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional patient treatment process that includes radiation therapy. According to some examples of process 100, image data of a patient is acquired, and a target volume and critical internal structures are identified based on the image data during diagnosis (105). A radiation dose is prescribed (110) for achieving desired results with respect to the target volume while minimizing damage to the critical structures. Next, a treatment plan for delivering the dose is determined (115).
The treatment plan is then delivered (125) to the patient during several sessions, or “fractions”, spaced over some period of days. Prior to each fraction, the patient is positioned (120) as required by the treatment plan. Such positioning may involve the use of lasers, skin markers, etc.
Various methods or modes of radiation therapy delivery have been proposed and utilized. A radiation therapy delivery system typically includes hardware and a control system optimized for one specific mode of radiation therapy delivery. Some modes of radiation therapy delivery include, for example, conventional IMRT, Dynamic Modulated Arc Therapy, CT-Guided IMRT (Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy), and Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy.
In a conventional IMRT system, beams with modulated intensity are generated at a number of fixed positions or angles around the patient. These beams are then delivered with the gantry stationary at each fixed position. The beam intensity is modulated by either superimposing several shapes at a fixed position (“Step and Shoot IMRT”) or by moving leaves of a multileaf collimator (“MLC”) across the beam with varying speeds (“Sliding Window IMRT”). In a Dynamic Modulated Arc therapy system the gantry of the delivery system performs a contiguous rotational motion (360 degrees or less per arc). Throughout the rotational motion, the beam remains on at constant dose rate, and the MLC leaves constantly re-form to maintain a shape which is conformal with the shape of the tumor, as viewed from the respective angle. The throughput of Dynamic Modulated Arc therapy is greater than in conventional IMRT, but requires more sophisticated control of the MLC leaves.
In a CT-Guided IMRT system, such as a TomoTherapy® system provided TomoTherapy Incorporated, a linear accelerator is mounted in a ring-shaped gantry and moves in a 360 degree rotation around the patient. The beam is always on during this motion and is partially blocked or unblocked by rapidly opening and closing the MLC leaves as the gantry rotates. In a Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy system, such as provided by the RapidArc™ radiotherapy technology from Varian Medical Systems, an L-shaped gantry performs a 360 degree rotation around the patient. The beam is constantly on and the dose rate may be modulated. Also, the MLC leaves are in constant motion, thus creating different shapes as the gantry rotates. These latter two systems require complex and expensive components for synchronizing and controlling motion of the gantry and the MLC leaves.
During the treatment planning stage (115), a decision is made regarding which delivery mode to use. The decision may be based on a number of factors, including for example the patient's diagnosis, delivery system constraints, time issues related to schedules and availability of the patient and/or radiation therapy systems, etc. After the specific mode of delivery is decided, a treatment plan that is adapted to the delivery mode is determined.
Selection of a delivery mode involves trade-offs or compromises as described above. Other radiation therapy delivery modes which may be particularly suitable to certain applications are desired.


Hitherto, in order to manufacture a surface magnet rotary electric machine at low cost, a combination of a rotor core having a perfectly circular cross section and a plate-shaped permanent magnet having a flat bonding surface has been used. It is difficult to bond the permanent magnet having the flat bonding surface to an outer peripheral surface of the rotor core having the perfectly circular cross section with highly accurate positioning of the permanent magnet. Therefore, retaining portions each having a polygonal columnar shape are provided to ends of the rotor core in an axial direction of the rotor core (see, for example, Patent Literature 1).


1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to photovoltaic element useful as a solar cell or the like, the structure of an electrode thereof, and a process for producing the photovoltaic device.
2. Related Background Art
In recent years, the global temperature rise caused by increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, namely the greenhouse effect, has become a great problem. Therefore, clean energy sources are increasingly demanded. Nuclear power generation which does not cause the greenhouse effect involves the problem of disposal of radioactive waste. A safer and cleaner energy source is thus required.
Among promising clean energy sources, solar cells are attracting particular attention because of the safety, cleanness, and ease of handling thereof.
Of the solar cells, amorphous silicon type solar cells which employ an amorphous silicon semiconductor are promising because they have advantages of ease of large area cell production, high light absorbance enabling thin film operation, and so forth, although the photovoltaic conversion efficiency is lower than that of crystalline silicon type solar cells.
FIGS. 24A to 24D illustrate schematically a conventional photovoltaic element for comparison with the one of the present invention. FIGS. 24A to 24C illustrate the steps of forming a collecting electrode, and FIG. 24D is a cross-sectional view along the line 24D--24D in FIG. 24C. The solar cell element 500 of FIGS. 24A to 24D is prepared by successively laminating a lower electrode layer 502 on the surface of a substrate 501, a semiconductor layer 503 thereon, and an upper electrode layer 504 further thereon.
In such a solar cell element, in order to completely electrically separate the upper electrode layer from the lower electrode layer, a part 505 of the upper electrode layer is removed, and collecting electrodes 506 for the upper electrode layer 504 are provided on the surface of the upper electrode layer (FIG. 24A). In one method, for example, the collecting electrodes 506 are prepared by applying an electroconductive paste on the face of the photovoltaic laminate by screen printing and heat curing it. By this method, electrodes having a line width of 100 to 150 .mu.m, and thickness of 10 to 20 .mu.m are obtainable industrially. The electroconductive paste includes various materials. For amorphous silicon type solar cells, for which high temperature treatment is not suitable, polymer pastes comprising a thermosetting resin such as of polyester, epoxy and phenolic type, and a fine particulate material such as silver and copper dispersed therein are frequently used.
On the collecting electrodes 506 a bus bar electrode 507 is provided which further collects the generated power from the above collecting electrode 506 (FIG. 24B). Then crossing points of the bus bar electrode 507 over the collecting electrodes 506 are connected by applying an electroconductive adhesive 508 in spots and curing it in an air drier (FIG. 24C). Thus a leadout electrode which outputs the power from the upper electrode 504 is prepared by electrically connecting the collecting electrodes 506 with the bus bar electrode 507. Insulation tapes 509 are applied at the ends of the solar cell element 500 to ensure electrical separation of the bus bar electrode 507 from the substrate.
In producing this type of element, three steps are necessary: (1) registration of bus bar electrode to a prescribed position, (2) application of an electroconductive adhesive in spots at prescribed positions with the bus bar electrode fixed, and (3) curing the electroconductive adhesive by heating in an air drier or an IR oven. The steps involve many working operations and take a long time, and thus are disadvantageously not suitable for mass production. In the example shown in FIGS. 24A and 24B, the problems are not so serious since the area of the photovoltaic element is small and the number of the collecting electrodes is small. However, in the production of a photovoltaic element of a larger area, the number of the collecting electrodes is larger and a plurality of the bus bar electrodes are necessarily employed. In such a case, the electrically connected points increase in number and the working time becomes correspondingly longer, which is undesirable in respect of productivity.
Usual family consumption of electric power is about 3 KW per family. To supply 3 KW of power by means of solar cells, the solar cell needs to have a light-receiving area of as large as 30 m.sup.2, by assuming the photovoltaic conversion efficiency of the cell to be 10%. Such a large solar cell is required to have a bus bar to collect the generated power, which increases the cell element production steps. The larger the number of the production steps, and the larger the area of the cell, the more the defects of the element are developed. The defects cause shunting and short circuits which lower the photovoltaic conversion efficiency. If the defect is distant from the electrodes or the bus bar, loss of current is relatively small because of high resistance to the current flowing into the defective portion. On the other hand, if the defect is beneath the electrode or the bus bar, the loss of current is large.
To solve these problems, electrode constructions are disclosed which are suitable for a large-area solar cell without using the bus bar. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,260,429 discloses a process in which a copper wire is covered with a solid polymer containing electroconductive particles and is attached as the electrode to a solar cell. U.S. Pat. No. 5,084,107 discloses a process in which a metal wire is connected and fixed by an electroconductive adhesive to a surface of a photovoltaic element. In these methods, the electrode is formed by covering an electroconductive wire with an electroconductive particle-containing solid polymer (electroconductive adhesive) with a low ohmic loss even with an electrode length of 10 cm or more.
However, in a study of electrode constitution and reliability of solar cells conducted by the inventors of the present invention, it was found that the electrodes formed by the methods of the above U.S. Patents are insufficient in adhesion at the interface between the electroconductive wire or the metal member and the electroconductive particle-containing solid polymer or the electroconductive adhesive, and the electrodes are not uniform in the width or diameter. The insufficient adhesion at the interface between the electroconductive wire or the metal member and the electroconductive adhesive causes initial power loss, increase of series resistance by peeling at the interface in a long-term run, resulting in a drop in conversion efficiency, and other problems in reliability. Further, in the above elements, shunting and low yield may be caused, depending on the resistance of the electrode layer formed from the electroconductive adhesive, and disadvantageous migration of ionic substances may be caused by interaction with water, resulting in leakage due to humidity in practical use.
In the above U.S. Patents, the coated wires are bonded by heating or pressing, but neither the apparatus nor the method are shown specifically. However, it has been found that the usual method of heat-press bonding causes spreading of the coating polymer, which increases shadow loss, and particularly in a large-area photovoltaic element, the pressure applied to the coated wire becomes non-uniform to give non-bonded portions which disadvantageously increase the series resistance.
Electrical connection is now further considered for outputting the generated power of the photovoltaic element.
FIG. 17 is a schematic plan view of a photovoltaic element from the front side (light-receiving side) for comparison. The photovoltaic element of FIG. 17 is constituted by an electroconductive substrate for supporting the entire photovoltaic element, a non-crystalline semiconductor layer, an electrode layer, collecting electrodes, and lead-out terminals successively formed over the substrate. The electroconductive substrate is made of a metallic material such as stainless steel. The semiconductor layer is constituted by a back-face reflection layer, a p-type semiconductor layer, an i-type semiconductor layer, and an n-type semiconductor layer successively arranged from the bottom layer. These semiconductor layers are formed and laminated by a film-forming method such as CVD (chemical vapor deposition) so that the light may be efficiently absorbed and converted to electric power. The aforementioned electrode layer is a light-transmissive electroconductive film made of indium oxide or the like, serving both as a reflection-preventing means and as a power-collecting means.
The light-transmissive electroconductive film is formed by application of an etching-paste containing FeCl.sub.3, and AlCl.sub.3, or the like by screen printing, and subsequent heating. An etched groove 17401 is formed by removing the light-transmissive electroconductive film by etching in a line shape. This partial removal of the light-transmissive electroconductive film is conducted for preventing short circuits between the substrate and the light-transmissive electroconductive film on the effective light-receiving area of the photovoltaic element. Such short-circuits may occur in cutting of the outer periphery of the photovoltaic element.
On the surface of the above photovoltaic element, collecting electrodes 17402 are formed for efficiently collecting the generated power. The collecting electrodes 17402 are formed by using a fine metal wire of low resistance such as copper as the core material, applying an electroconductive adhesive on the outer surface of the metal wire for adhesion, drying the adhesive, cutting the wire in a predetermined length, arranging the cut wires, and heat-bonding the wires on the surface of the effective light-receiving area by hot pressing.
The power collected by the collecting electrode 17402 is transmitted to lead-out terminals 17403 provided on both ends of the element. The lead-out terminals 17403 are foils made of a low-resistance metal such as copper, with an insulating member 17404 as the lowest layer to insulate the foils from the surface of the photovoltaic element.
The connection between the collecting electrodes 17402 and the lead-out terminals 17403 is conducted by spot-like application of an electroconductive adhesive 17405 to ensure reliable connection.
This process involves the problems of: necessity of spot-like application of an electroconductive adhesive, requiring a heat-curing step for curing the electroconductive adhesive, thereby increasing the working steps, taking a long time, and requiring a complicated apparatus for conducting these steps; the high cost of the electroconductive adhesive; the protrusion of the spot-wise applied electroconductive adhesive requiring a thick surface coating material, thus raising the production cost; deterioration of the surface of the terminal material such as copper by oxidation and other causes during the heating process of the element prior to the application of the electroconductive adhesive, whereby a sufficiently low connection resistance is not obtained by the application of the electroconductive adhesive.


1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a vehicle rollover avoidance system and, more particularly, to a vehicle rollover avoidance system that employs a roll control factor and a yaw rate stability control factor to control semi-active suspension dampers to mitigate the risk of vehicle rollover.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
It is known in the art to mitigate a potential vehicle rollover using differential braking control, rear-wheel steering control, front-wheel steering control, or any combination thereof. A vehicle rollover avoidance system may receive vehicle dynamics information from various sensors, such as yaw rate sensors, lateral acceleration sensors and roll rate sensors, to determine the proper amount of action to be taken to detect a potential vehicle rollover. A balance typically needs to be provided between estimating the vehicle roll motion and the vehicle yaw motion to provide the optimal vehicle response. Thus, it is usually necessary to detect certain vehicle conditions to provide the roll detection. To precisely identify vehicle roll stability conditions, it may be advantageous to know the vehicle's roll rate and roll angle because they are the most important states in vehicle roll dynamics.
Under normal driving conditions, drivers can direct the vehicle to the desired heading through the control of the steering wheel. When the vehicle is turning, there are actually three motions taking place with the vehicle. Particularly, a turning motion, or yaw, is occurring, as the vehicle body is turning around an imaginary access vertical to the ground through the so-called yaw-center of the vehicle. Also, there is subtle vehicle sliding laterally, sometimes in the direction of the turn and sometimes away from the turn, depending mainly on the vehicle speed. Further, a tilting motion or roll motion occurs as the vehicle's body is turning around an imaginary axis parallel to the ground through the so-called roll-axis of the vehicle.
Under normal vehicle maneuvering conditions, the tire/road contact surfaces can generate sufficient forces to sustain the desired vehicle motions, and drivers are accustomed with these motions as they occur. However, when the vehicle maneuver starts approaching limit-handling conditions, the tire/road contact surfaces can no longer sustain the desired yaw motion and side-slip motion, and the vehicle body will exhibit an increased roll motion. As a result, a discrepancy will build up between the vehicle's yaw rate and its desired yaw rate, and between the vehicle's side-slip velocity and its desired side-slip velocity. Further, if the roll motion becomes too large, the vehicle may roll over.


This invention relates to high energy electrochemical power cells. More particularly, it relates to cells having an oxidizable anode material and a liquid active cathode material and a solid current collector.
Recently there has been a rapid growth in portable electronic products requiring electrochemical cells to supply the energy. Examples are calculators, cameras and digital watches. These products, however, have highlighted the deficiencies of the existing power cells for demanding applications. For example, digital watches were developed using the silver oxide cell, and although these watches have become popular, it is now generally recognized that the least developed component of the digital watch system is the power cell. In particular, the energy density of the silver cells is such that thin, stylish watches with reasonable operating life are difficult to make. Additionally, these cells have poor storage characteristics, low cell voltages, and leakage problems.
In an effort to develop a cell that addresses one or more of the foregoing problems, substantial work has been done with cell chemistries using a lithium anode. The cathode and electrolyte material consisting of a solvent and solute vary. Indeed the literature is replete with examples of lithium anode cells with different cathodes and electrolytes. The electrical characteristics of these cells such as energy per unit volume, called energy density; cell voltage; and internal impedance vary greatly.
Among all of the known combinations of lithium anodes with different cathodes and electrolytes, those believed to have among the highest energy density and lowest internal impedance use certain inorganic liquids as the active cathode depolarizer. This type of cell chemistry is commonly referred to as "liquid cathode".
Early liquid cathode cells used liquid sulfur dioxide as the active cathode depolarizer as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,567,515 issued to Maricle, et. al. on Mar. 2, 1971. Since sulfur dioxide is not a liquid at room temperature and at atmospheric pressure, it proved to be quite a difficult chemistry with which to work. More importantly, sulfur dioxide cells are unsafe for most consumer applications due to their propensity to explode under certain circumstances.
A major step forward in the development of liquid cathode cells was the discovery of a class of inorganic materials, generally called oxyhalides, that are liquids at room temperature and also perform the function of being the active cathode depolarizer. Additionally, these materials may also be used as the electrolyte solvent. Liquid cathode cells using oxyhalides are described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,926,669 issued to Auborn on Dec. 16, 1975, and in British Pat. No. 1,409,307 issued to Blomgren et al. on Oct. 18, 1975. At least one of the oxyhalides, thionyl chloride (SOCl.sub.2), in addition to having the general characteristics described above, also provides substantial additional energy density.
As described in the Auborn and Blomgren patents, the anode is lithium metal or alloys of lithium and the electrolyte solution is an ionically conductive solute dissolved in a solvent that is also an active cathode depolarizer.
The solute may be a simple or double salt which will produce an ionically conductive solution when dissolved in the solvent. Preferred solutes are complexes of inorganic or organic Lewis acids and inorganic ionizable salts. The requirements for utility are that the salt, whether simple or complex, be compatible with the solvent being employed and that it yield a solution which is ionically conductive. According to the Lewis or electronic concept of acids and bases, many substances which contain no active hydrogen can act as acids or acceptors or electron doublets. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,542,602 it is suggested that the complex or double salt formed between a Lewis acid and an ionizable salt yields an entity which is more stable that either of the components alone.
Typical Lewis acids suitable for use in the present invention include aluminum chloride, antimony pentachloride, zirconium tetrachloride, phosphorus pentachloride, boron fluoride, boron chloride and boron bromide.
Ionizable salts useful in combination with the Lewis acids include lithium fluoride, lithium chloride, lithium bromide, lithium sulfide, sodium fluoride, sodium chloride, sodium bromide, potassium fluoride, potassium chloride and potassium bromide.
The double salts formed by a Lewis acid and an inorganic ionizable salt may be used as such or the individual components may be added to the solvent separately to form the salt. One such double salt, for example, is that formed by the combination of aluminum chloride and lithium chloride to yield lithium aluminum tetrachloride.
In addition to an anode, active cathode depolarizer and ionically conductive electrolyte, these cells require a current collector.
According to Blomgren, any compatible solid, which is substantially electrically conductive and inert in the cell, will be useful as a cathode collector since the function of the collector is to permit external electrical contact to be made with the active cathode material. It is desirable to have as much surface contact as possible between the liquid cathode and the current collector. Therefore, a porous material is preferred since it will provide a high surface area interface with the liquid cathode material. The current collector may be metallic and may be present in any physical form such as metallic film, screen or a pressed powder. Examples of some suitable metal current collectors are provided in Table II of the Auborn Patent. The current collector may also be made partly or completely of carbon. Examples provided in the Blomgren Patent use graphite.
Electrical separation of current collector and anode is required to insure that cathode or anode reactions do not occur unless electrical current flows through an external circuit. Since the current collector is insoluble in the electrolyte and the anode does not react spontaneously with the electrolyte, a mechanical separator may be used. Materials useful for this function are described in the Auborn Patent.
Although the varied cells described in the Blomgren and Auborn patents may be feasible, much of the recent interest is in cells using thionyl chloride as the active cathode depolarizer and electrolyte solvent. This results from thionyl chloride's apparent ability to provide greater energy density and current delivery capability than other oxyhalide systems. Yet even though thionyl chloride cells have proven to be the best performer among the oxyhalides, they have not lived up to expectations on energy density or internal impedance. Furthermore, the thionyl chloride cell is equally if not more dangerous than the sulfur dioxide cell. As a result, all known efforts to commercialize cells using this chemistry have failed.


1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an imaging device which uses a solid state image pickup element. More particularly, the present invention relates to an imaging device which (a) adjusts the ratio of color excitation values (for example, red/green/blue "RGB") of the image pickup element in correspondence with the exit pupil position of an associated optical unit, and (b) adjusts the ratio of the color excitation values in correspondence with the size of an aperture controlling light passing through the associated optical unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional imaging device converts optical images to image signals using a solid state image element, such as a CCD element (charge coupled device) or a MOS element (metal oxide semiconductor element). Moreover, recent technological developments have attempted to produce such an imaging device with a more compact solid state image element and to increase the number of pixels in the imaging device. Unfortunately, as an imaging device is made with a more compact solid state image element, the aperture efficiency of the image pickup element is reduced and the signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio of the image signals is decreased.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a cross section of a conventional CCD image pickup element. Referring now to FIG. 1, an image pickup element 1 includes a light receiving unit 1a (such as a "pixel") which converts light to an electric charge, and a transfer unit 1b which transfers the electric charge from light receiving unit 1a. Light receiving part 1a and transfer unit 1b are formed on the surface of image pickup element 1. An on-chip micro-lens 2 forms a condenser lens which corresponds to light receiving units 1a. On-chip micro-lens 2 is arranged on the surface of image pickup element 1.
With image pickup element 1, the light incident on-chip micro-lens 2 is focused on light receiving unit 1a. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1, a light ray A and a light ray B are both focused by on-chip micro-lens 2 so that the respective light rays strike light receiving unit 1a. Therefore, the amount of light received by light receiving unit 1a is increased. Consequently, the level of the signals that are optoelectrically converted by light receiving unit 1a becomes larger, and the imaging device can output image signals with a high S/N ratio.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a conventional electronic still camera using a conventional CCD image pickup element. Referring now to FIG. 2, an aperture 4 and a mirror 5 are arranged in the optical axis of a photographic lens 3, and image pickup element 1 is arranged on the focal plane of photographic lens 3. On-chip micro-lens 2 is formed on the light receiving surface of image pickup element 1. Image pickup element 1 produces three excitation values (referred to as an "R output", a "G output" and a "B" output). A signal processing unit 7a processes the R output, G output and B output of image pickup element 1, and produces corresponding image signals. The G output of image pickup element 1 is connected "as is" (that is, "directly") to signal processing unit 7a. The R output and the B output of image pickup element 1 are connected to signal processing unit 7a through variable gain amplifiers 6a and 6b, respectively. A recording unit 7 records the image signals produced by signal processing unit 7a.
A light measurement unit 8a measures the subject brightness (that is, the brightness of a subject (not illustrated)) and is arranged in a position which is illuminated by the light reflected from mirror 5. An exposure calculation unit 8 is connected to light measurement unit 8a. Also, control terminals (not illustrated) of aperture 4 and image pickup element 1 are individually connected to output terminals of exposure calculation unit 8. A color measurement unit 9a measures the color of the ambient light. A white balance control unit 9 is connected to the control terminals of variable gain amplifiers 6a and 6b, and to color measurement unit 9a. In addition, a control unit 10 controls, and is connected to, photographic lens 3, image pickup element 1, signal processing unit 7a, recording unit 7, exposure calculation unit 8, and white balance control unit 9. A release button 10a is also connected to control unit 10. Release button has a half-push position and a full-push position and is pushed by a photographer to either the half-push position or the full-push position to initiate specific camera operations.
In an electronic still camera as illustrated in FIG. 2, when release button 10a is pushed to the half-push position, exposure calculation unit 8 incorporates the light measurement value of the subject brightness based on a measurement by light measurement unit 8a, and calculates the correct aperture value and exposure. Moreover, white balance control unit 9 incorporates the color measurement value of the ambient light based on a measurement by color measurement unit 9a, and controls the gain of variable gain amplifiers 6a and 6b in correspondence with the ratio of the three excitation values (RGB) of the ambient light. In this state, if release button 10a is pushed to the full-push position, mirror 5 flies up, and exposure calculation unit 8 adjusts aperture 4 to the correct aperture value.
The amount of light incident on image pickup element 1 from photographic lens 3 is restricted by aperture 4, and an optical image is focused on the light receiving plane of image pickup element 1. On-chip micro-lens 2 allows image pickup element 1 to raise the light receiving efficiency, and to produce image signals with a high S/N ratio. The white balance of the image signal produced by image pickup lens 1 is adjusted by variable gain amplifiers 6a and 6b. Signal processing unit 7a processes the image signal produced by image pickup lens 1 and adjusted by variable gain amplifiers 6a and 6b. Such processing performed by signal processing unit 7a can include, for example, gamma correction, and gain adjustment. The processed image signal produced by signal processing unit 7a is recorded in record unit 7.
As the exit pupil position of photographic lens 3 approaches image pickup element 1, the optical rays incident on on-chip micro-lens 2 from the side direction become more numerous. Because the light rays incident from the side direction are strongly affected by color aberrations on the axis of on-chip micro-lens 2, the size of spots focused on light receiving unit 1a change for every wavelength of light. For this reason, the amount of light output from light receiving unit 1a varies for every wavelength of light. This variation in the amount of light output from light receiving unit 1a causes the color phase of the light output from light receiving unit 1a to vary.
FIG. 3(A) is a graph indicating the output of an image pickup element versus the distance between the exit pupil position of an associated optical system and the image pickup element. As illustrated by FIG. 3(A), the ratio of the R output of an image pickup element to the G output of the image pickup element becomes large as the exit pupil position approaches (becomes "near") the image pickup element. As a result, an image produced by the image pickup element appears reddish as the exit pupil position approaches the image pickup element. Moreover, the ratio of B output of the image pickup element to the G output of the image pickup element becomes smaller as the exit pupil position approaches the image pickup element. As a result, the blueness of an image produced by the image pickup element becomes thin as the exit pupil position approaches the image pickup element.
In particular, if a zoom lens is used with an image pickup element, the exit pupil position is moved greatly forward and backward following the adjustment of the image angle. Therefore, there is a wide range of fluctuations in the ratio of RGB output from the image pickup element, and the color phase of the image varies greatly. This kind of color phase variation cannot be corrected by an external light white balance adjustment. Therefore, in a conventional imaging device, the color phase of an image produced by an image pickup element undesireably varies in correspondence with the exit pupil position of an associated photographic lens.
Moreover, referring to the imaging device illustrated in FIG. 2, if aperture 4 is set to the open aperture side (that is, near the fully open position), the light rays incident from the side in relation to on-chip micro-lens 2 become numerous. Therefore, there are changes in the color phase of the image produced by the image pickup element.
FIG. 3(B) is a graph indicating the output of an image pickup element versus the aperture value of an aperture controlling the light incident on the image pickup element. As illustrated by FIG. 3(B), the ratio of R output of an image pickup element to the G output of the image pickup element becomes large as the aperture approaches the open aperture side. As a result, the image produced by the image pickup element appears reddish as the aperture approaches the open aperture side. Moreover, the ratio of B output of the image pickup element to the G output of the image pickup element becomes small as the aperture approaches the open aperture side. As a result, the blueness of the image produced by the image pickup element becomes thin as the aperture approaches the open aperture side,
Moreover, if the white balance is manually selected by the photographer, the white balance is often set to the lowest permissible limit. Therefore, the ratio of RGB output in the state of the open aperture changes, and there is an increased probability that the white balance will become unnatural.
In view of the above, it is difficult to accurately reproduce the color phases of the subject because the ratio of RGB output of an image pickup element changes depending on the aperture value.


1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to tools for manipulating pipe, and in particular, to hand-held tools for engaging various portions of irrigation pipe to manipulate the pipe without undue physical strain on the operator.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are many types of irrigation systems known in the prior art. One common system with which the present invention is particularly well suited for use includes a series of pipe joints connected together across an end of a field. The pipe joints each typically have a female bell connector at one end and a male connector at the other end. Several (e.g., 6 to 18) adjustable gate valves are typically spaced along the length of each pipe joint. The pipe joints are typically made of aluminum or plastic and range in size from 20 to 36 feet in length and 6 to 12 inches in diameter, with a 30 foot length and 8 to 10 inch diameter being the most common. The pipe joints typically weigh approximately 50 to 150 pounds, depending on the size and material of the pipe and the amount of sediment accumulated within the pipe.
Irrigating is often the most labor intensive task on an agricultural farm in areas having inadequate rainfall. The irrigation system described above using pipe joints requires the pipe joints to be carried to the field to be irrigated at the beginning of each irrigating season, laid across the end of the field, connected together by inserting the male ends into the female ends of adjacent pipes, and adjusting the flow of water through the adjustable gate valves each time water is applied to the crop. It is often necessary to rotate the pipe after it has been connected together across the end of the field in order to direct the flow of water out of the gate valves to an appropriate angle away from the pipe. In addition, at the end of the season, the pipe usually must be disconnected, picked up, and carried out of the field.
Two of the most physically demanding tasks with the irrigation pipe system described above are turning the pipe to adjust the angle of the water flow after the pipe joints are connected together (especially if the pipe is filled with water), and disconnecting the pipe joints at the end of the irrigating season. The difficulty of these tasks is increased after the pipe settles during the irrigation season (typically one to three months), after sediment accumulates within the pipe, or as vegetative growth is allowed to grow under and around the pipe. A rubber gasket is typically used to seal the connection joints against leakage, thus increasing the force required to rotate and disconnect the pipe joints.
One known prior art system for rotating irrigation pipe has a pair of clamping jaws and a scissor-type handle for engaging the pipe. This system requires the use of two hands to operate the handle to apply a clamping force to the pipe. Thus, in situations where the operator's hands are full of other tools, such as shovels and gate changer tools, the known turning tool is unwieldy and not very useful. This known tool is also relatively complex, making it more difficult and expensive to manufacture.
The common method of disconnecting the pipe joints at the end of the irrigation season is to grip the bell end of the pipe with the operator's hands (preferably wearing gloves to avoid cuts and abrasions) and twisting and pulling until the adjacent pipe connection comes apart. This method is, of course, very strenuous on the irrigator, often resulting in lower back pain, sore hands, and physical exhaustion. In addition, the irrigator is limited as to the amount of force he can apply without his hands slipping from the pipe.
Thus, there is a need for devices to reduce the physical exertion required for these tasks without the disadvantages of the prior art described above.


In client-server environments, remote desktop clients were designed to be used on client devices with display modules that are at least as equally large as display modules at the host server. Even if there is no display device at the host server, there is an assumption that the image that represents the data for display, generated at the client device, is generated for a display module that is of desktop size (e.g. >12″). However, challenges arise when the remote desktop client is installed at a client device having a display module that is smaller than the assumed size. For example, mobile devices generally have very small display modules (e.g. less than 3″), and generating an image to represent data meant for display on a much larger display module is challenging.
One solution is to enable a mobile device with a small display module to generate a portion of the data for display, in essence creating a peep bole into the larger host desktop window. Moving the peep hole around can be painful since navigating a large area with a trackball or thumbwheel is awkward. For example, a user may be reading a document (or contents of a window). The user starts at the top left corner and moves the peep hole from left to right for example by moving a cursor. At the end of the row/window the user must scroll across to the left margin and down one row/line. Getting to the new location is hence awkward.
One approach to this is provided in “Advancing interaction: ZoneZoom: Map navigation for smartphones with recursive view segmentation” by Robbins, D. C., Cutrell, E., Sarin, R., & Horvitz, E. (2004), and published in the proceedings of the working conference on advanced visual interfaces (AVI '04), (Gallipoli, May 2004), ACM press, 231-234. In this approach an information space is segmented into nine sub-segments, each of which is mapped to a key on the number keypad of a smartphone having a display module. The sub-segments can be chosen by the author of the information space or dynamically generated at run-time. To view a sub-segment, a user presses the appropriate button on the keypad to take advantage of “spring-loaded” view shifting, which allows users to jump between views of defined sub-segments. However, this approach is awkward if the user is unclear about what he/she wishes to view and may have to hunt between sub-segments to find the appropriate view.


The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing silver halide emulsion, particularly to a method of manufacturing a silver halide emulsion low in fog, excellent in graininess, low in aging fog, and excellent in aging stability.
In the area of silver halide photographic light-sensitive materials, various approaches are being made in pursuit of a much higher speed. As one of such approaches, there is proposed to use core/shell type silver halide grains different in chemical components or physical properties between the inner portion and the other portion, generally, silver halide grains different in silver halide composition (hereinafter referred to as a core/shell type emulsion). In using such core/shell type emulsions for the purpose of enhancing the sensitivity, it is proposed to make up the light-sensitive layer into a multilayered structure in which the upper layer (a layer on the light-irradiated side) is a high speed layer.
In general, core/shell type emulsion grains have a structure in which the inner silver halide composition of the grains differs from the silver halide composition of the other portion of the grains; and, present inventors have found the fact that a core/shell type emulsion comprising grains of this structure having a high iodide content phase (a portion in which the iodide content is higher than that in the other portion) gives a fog high than that comprising grains having no high iodide content phase. Such an increased fog causes a large deterioration in graininess and a substantial desensitization with respect to a sensitivity-fog ratio.
Particularly, use of a core/shell type emulsion in a multilayered light-sensitive material involves risks to increase fog or aging fog and impair the shelf-life.


1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, generally, to medical devices. More particularly, the invention relates to implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs).
2. Background Information
In the past, various ICD devices and methods have been used or proposed. However, these devices and methods have significant limitations and shortcomings. Existing ICD's are primarily designed for chronic applications in that they produce enough shocks to treat a chronic condition wherein the patient is expected to have numerous episodes of sudden cardiac death (SCD) over an extended period. Typical defibrillators are capable of delivering from 150 to 350 full output shocks of 27 to 40 joules each (depending on the model and manufacturer). In order to deliver that many high energy shocks, the device must have sufficient battery capacity to cover the required delivered energy as well as system losses (about 30% is lost in the DC to DC converter). This necessarily adds bulk and weight to the device.
Presently, most patients undergoing ICD implantation have exhibited at least one episode of fibrillation (SCI) and survived due for example to early CPR, trans-chest defibrillation and other care. Since one episode is typically a clear indication of high risk of having another one, an ICD is indicated. Other patients exhibit very early indications for being at high risk for SCD and an ICD is implanted prophylactically. Overall, about 40% of patients who have ICD's implanted do not have another episode during the next four years. However, these patients still need protection and typically another ICD must be implanted after the battery dies in three to five years, even though no shocks are delivered by the device.
Patients who are not shocked by their ICD have unnecessarily had a large device capable of hundreds of shocks implanted. Large devices are uncomfortable and present an increased risk of infections, erosions, and certain psychological problems. A smaller device with a smaller battery (and possibly fewer functions) would serve these patients better. Such a device would have only a sufficient number of shocks available to save the patient from initial SCD episodes, whereupon the patient would immediately have a larger device with more shock capacity implanted. This type of device would be implanted in those patients who were considered at high risk, but have not yet had an episode (and may never have one) and in patients who have had a conventional large device which needs replacement, but who have not had a shock during the last several years. The concept of a prophylactic ICD is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,439,482.
It may seem obvious to a casual observer that to make a device with fewer shocks, one only need to use a smaller battery. That has not been the case, however, owing to other requirements of the battery. The battery must be capable of charging the output capacitor to its maximum output (27 to 40 joules) in a period of 6 to 10 seconds after detection of fibrillation. This typically requires from 0.7 to 1.0 amp of current during the charging period. With conventional batteries used in ICD's, Lithium Vanadium Pentoxide9 for example, the minimum size battery that meets the charging criteria has sufficient capacity for about 150 or more shocks. Thus, it has not been possible to make a limited shock device with a small battery. Virtually every battery's chemistry has this capacity/power relationship.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved ICD which overcomes the limitations and shortcomings of the prior art, particularly those related to the limitations of prior art battery systems.


It is known to use power combiners comprising electrical conductors to bring together multiple high-frequency signal sources and/or to split a high-frequency signal. A power combiner that includes a second electrical conductor that is spaced apart from a first electrical conductor is known from EP 1 699 107 A1, in which the first electrical conductor is capacitively and inductively coupled to the second electrical conductor. Both the first electrical conductor and the second electrical conductor can include multiple windings to increase the inductive coupling between the conductors, in accordance with EP 1 699 107 A1.
Other power combiners are known, for example, from U.S. Pat. No. 8,044,749 B1, DE 103 42 611 A1, and US 2014/0085019 A1.


Compound archery bows typically have a bowstring, on which an arrow may be nocked, along with one or more portions of cable other than the bowstring extending between the limbs of the bow. Such cable portions, sometimes referred to as “power cables”, are generally located at least partly within or close to an operating plane of the bowstring. The power cables thus interfere with shooting arrows.
In order to provide adequate room for the arrow, it is conventional practice to mount a cable guard on the bow to engage the central portions of the power cables and to displace them laterally a sufficient distance to one side of the operating plane of the bowstring to avoid interference with an arrow. One drawback associated with conventional cable guards is that, in displacing the center of a power cable laterally from its straight line position, they introduce a lateral component to the force exerted by the power cable against the limbs. This lateral torque not only decreases the accuracy of arrow flight, but also causes twisting of the limbs, cams, wheels and/or handle, and thereby contributes adversely to shortening their useful life. Conventional cable guards also cause the power cables to feed on and off of the cams and wheels at an angle. This may sometimes lead to the power cables becoming dislodged from the cams and/or wheels.
There exist a number of prior art systems, other than cable guards, for preventing the power cables from interfering with the shooting of arrows from compound bows. Examples include U.S. Pat. No. 5,623,915 to Kulacek and No. 6,729,320 to Terry, and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/968,459 to Evans.
The inventor has determined a need for further systems which do not require cable guards to prevent power cables from interfering with the flight of arrows.


Hydrocodone and hydromorphone are widely used semisynthetic narcotic analgesics possessing also useful antitussive properties. Hydrocodone is also an important intermediate for the synthesis of other opioid analgesics, e.g. dihydrocodeine.
Hydrocodone has been prepared by reduction of codeinone (Arch. Pharm (1920), 258, 295; J. Am Chem. Soc (1950), 72, 3247, U.S. Pat. No. 5,571,685) or thebaine (DE Pat. No. 441,613). However, since codeinone is obtained by oxidation of codeine in low to moderate yields, and thebaine is a relatively scarce alkaloid, these methods have little practical value.
A number of methods describe convenient one-pot isomerization of codeine to hydrocodone and morphine to hydromorphone in the presence of noble metal catalysts (examples may be found in “The Chemistry of the Morphine Alkaloids” by Bentley, K. W.; U.S. Pat. No. 2,544,291; U.S. Pat. No. 5,847,142, WO Pat. No. 0134608). Unfortunately these processes require large amounts of expensive metals of the platinum group, or call for exotic organometallic catalysts. Also isomerization is complicated by uncontrollable side reactions, requiring introduction of laborious purification procedures, and resulting in substantial yield loss.
Hydrocodone and hydromorphone have been prepared by Oppenauer oxidation of dihydrocodeine or dihydromorphine correspondingly (U.S. Pat. No. 2,649,454; U.S. Pat. No. 2,654,756; Synth. Commun. (2000), 30, 3195). The starting materials for the oxidation, dihydrocodeine or dihydromorphine, may be synthesized by hydrogenation of morphine or codeine. Hydrogenation is typically performed in solvents, such as aqueous acetic acid (J. Org. Chem. (1950), 15, 1105), ethyl acetate (Synth. Commun. (2000), 30, 3195), or ethanol (Ann. (1923), 433, 269), that are not compatible with the reaction media for Oppenauer oxidation. This makes necessary solvent removal and isolation of the products of hydrogenation, and, compared to the convenient one-pot syntheses discussed above, adds additional steps to the process of hydrocodone or hydromorphone preparation.
A need thus remains for an efficient, economical, and practical process for the production of hydrocodone, hydromorphone and related compounds.


1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the design of integrated circuits and more particularly to sense amplifiers.
2. Description of the Background Art
Many systems on an integrated circuit are designed to respond differently depending upon whether their input voltages are considered HIGH or LOW. Sometimes, an input voltage must be modified to conform to the HIGH or LOW state (e.g., during the period when the input voltage transitions between states). Sense amplifiers are circuits that detect a small voltage differential and increase or decrease the voltage to a level required by the system. An example of a system that utilizes sense amplifiers is a computer memory circuit. Information stored in the memory cells of a memory chip using sense amplifiers can be retrieved much faster than from a memory chip without sense amplifiers.
As shown in FIG. 1, a common static random access memory (SRAM) configuration generally designated 100 includes an array 105 of memory cells 110. Each memory cell 110 is connected to a word line 115, a bit line B 120, and a complement of the bit line, B 145. The memory cells 110 connected to each of the word lines 115 define a memory cell array row 125, and the memory cells connected to each of the bit line B 120 and a corresponding complement of the bit line B 145 define a memory cell array column 130. Each memory cell 110 stores information in the form of a voltage charge representing a logic value of LOW or HIGH. A voltage level equal to V.sub.DD represents the logic value of HIGH and V.sub.SS represents the logic value of LOW.
Bit lines B 120 and B 145 are connected to an equalization and precharge circuit 150. The precharge component of the equalization and precharge circuit 150 initially charges bit lines B 120 and B 145 to the voltage level of V.sub.DD. The equalization component of the equalization and precharge circuit 150 ensures that the voltages on bit lines B 120, .nu..sub.B, and B 145, .nu..sub.B, are initially at the same level.
The word lines 115 are connected to a row decoder 155. When a memory cell 110' is accessed, the row decoder 155 selects and changes the voltage of a word line 115' corresponding to memory cell 110'. A changed voltage signal (e.g., LOW to HIGH) from the word line 115' allows memory cell 110' to communicate with bits lines B 120' and B 145'. If memory cell 110' stores a logic value of HIGH, then .nu..sub.B will remain at HIGH and .nu..sub.B will decrease to LOW. If memory cell 110' stores a logic value of LOW, then .nu..sub.B will decrease to LOW and .nu..sub.B will remain at HIGH.
Bit lines B 120 and B 145 are connected to a sense amplifier 160 which detects and amplifies the difference in voltage between .nu..sub.B and .nu..sub.B. Depending on the difference between .nu..sub.B and .nu..sub.B, the sense amplifier 160 will output either V.sub.DD or V.sub.SS.
Connected to the sense amplifier 160 is a column decoder 165. The column decoder 165, like the row decoder 155, includes a combination of logic circuits that select a logic signal from either one or a set of the memory cell array columns 130 for final output from SRAM 100.
The prior art described above suffers from a number of limitations. To store more information on a single memory chip, smaller memory cells are used. Smaller memory cells, however, use smaller transistors, which have less driving capability, resulting in a longer time for .nu..sub.B and .nu..sub.B to reach distinct HIGH or LOW voltage levels. To reduce the time required to read a memory cell, sense amplifiers are used to quickly detect the small voltage difference between .nu..sub.B and .nu..sub.B without having to wait for .nu..sub.B and .nu..sub.B to reach definite HIGH or LOW voltage levels. However, when .nu..sub.B and .nu..sub.B reach definite HIGH or LOW voltage levels before the operation of the sense amplifier, the operation of the sense amplifier is not required and consumes unnecessary power.
What is needed is a sense amplifier design that overcomes the shortfalls of the sense amplifier designs known in the art.


The present invention relates to a programmable electronic calculator and, more particularly, to a programmable electronic calculator which includes a plurality of tape recorders as outer memories.
A programmable electronic calculator or a portable, personal computer has been developed, which includes a tape recorder as an outer memory for storing a program or data. The programmable electronic calculator includes a control system for driving the tape recorder in order to conduct the read operation and/or the write operation of the program and the data into and from the tape recorder.
However, in the conventional programmable electronic calculator, the programmable electronic calculator does not store the command for controlling the tape drive except for the read operation and/or the write operation of the program or the data.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a programmable electronic calculator which includes a control system for driving a tape recorder which is connected to the programmable electronic calculator as an outer memory.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a tape drive control system in a programmable electronic calculator, which independently drives a plurality of tape recorders connected to the programmable electronic calculator.
Other objects and further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. It should be understood however, that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.
To achieve the above objects, pursuant to an embodiment of the present invention, at least two tape recorders are connected to the programmable electronic calculator.
The programmable electronic calculator stores commands for driving the tape recorders, which are applied to the tape recorders via an interface circuit. A first tape recorder functions as an outer memory of the programmable electronic calculator for storing a program or data processed by the programmable electronic calculator. A second tape recorder functions as a reproduction device for providing audible guidance for the respective steps of the operation, if required.


Most of the automobiles that are in use today have the engine bay located at the front of the vehicle. Typically an internal structural cross-member bridges the front of the bay and supports a radiator that is a part of the engine's cooling system. When the vehicle is equipped with air conditioning, a condenser mounts in front of the radiator. The radiator and condenser are cooled by air that passes through them, the air either being forced through the radiator and condenser by ram air effect when the vehicle is in forward motion, and/or by being drawn through the radiator and condenser by a fan or fans located directly behind the radiator and condenser. As a result, the engine bay is ventilated by air that has been heated by the radiator and condenser. Before this air leaves the engine bay, it is further heated by the heat emitted directly by the engine. Consequently, elevated temperatures can occur in the engine bay and at other locations that are exposed to heated air from the engine bay. These elevated temperatures may be sufficiently high to create thermally induced problems in certain areas or components of an automotive vehicle.
Commonly assigned, allowed U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/357,509, filed May 25, 1989, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,979,584, in the name of Herbert N. Charles, discloses a new and unique arrangement for ventilating an engine bay to reduce temperatures. The invention of that patent application involves the use of a ducted fan system to draw cooling air through the radiator and condenser and to convey the hot effluent from the radiator and condenser through a conduit that empties to a location that is outside the engine bay so that the engine bay is not ventilated by the hot effluent. Apertures are provided in the structural cross-member that supports the radiator/condenser heat exchange structure so that the engine bay can be ventilated by ambient ram air when the vehicle is in forward motion. Accordingly, an arrangement of that type provides a means for obtaining significant temperature reductions in the engine bay in comparison to conventional installations where the engine bay is ventilated by hot effluent from radiator/condenser heat exchange structure.
It has now been discovered that a ducted fan system like that just described can be used to further enhance the ventilation of the engine bay by the incorporation of an ejector into the ducted fan system at a location downstream of the fan. The effluent from the radiator/condenser heat exchange structure is conducted through the ejector, and the ejector is effective, under certain conditions of operation of the ducted fan, to cause the effluent that passes through the ejector to create a relatively lower pressure zone where the pressure is less than that of a relatively higher pressure zone of the engine bay or of a location adjacent the engine bay that is exposed to heat from the engine bay. The relatively lower pressure zone of the ejector is placed in communication with the relatively higher pressure zone of the engine bay, or adjacent location, for example by means of a ventilating conduit that extends from the relatively higher pressure zone of the engine bay or adjacent location and tees into the ducted fan system at the relatively lower pressure zone of the ejector. As a result, a flow is induced in the ventilating conduit, and that flow draws air from the relatively higher pressure zone of the engine bay or adjacent location into the ejector where the flow entrains with the effluent passing through the ducted fan system to be ultimately discharged from the ducted air system along with the effluent to a location outside the engine bay where the discharge of the effluent is acceptable. It is contemplated that a suitably designed ejector and ventilating conduit can induce in the ventilating conduit flows of as much as about 10% to 15% of the effluent flow without appreciable loss of efficiency in the operation of the ducted fan system. Consequently, the invention now makes it possible to enhance the ventilation of the engine bay, and especially to enhance the ventilation of hot spots in the engine bay or adjacent locations that are exposed to heat from the engine bay.
Certain components of an automobile that are typically within the engine compartment, fuel lines and batteries for instance, may be located where there is insufficient ventilation to provide acceptable cooling for these components. If such is the case, the present invention can provide a very effective solution which comprises designing an ejector into the ducted fan system, and running a ventilating conduit from the hot spot to the ejector. The solution is especially advantageous because the ejector and the ventilating conduit contain no moving parts. The ejector can be fabricated by conventional plastic molding techniques, and the ventilating conduit can be fabricated in any of a number of conventional ways, such as using flexible or rigid hose or tubing. One of the disclosed embodiments of the invention contemplates an especially efficient use of both materials and available space within the engine bay by integrating the ejector with the ducted fan scroll.
The foregoing features, advantages and benefits of the invention, along with additional ones, will appear in the ensuing description and claims which should be considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The drawings disclose a presently preferred embodiment of the invention according to the best mode contemplated at the present time in carrying out the invention.