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the invention relates to methods for the facile synthesis of graphene , graphene derivatives and nanoparticles , and their use as tribologically - beneficial lubricant additives . the products of the methods of the invention have numerous applications , including but not limited to molecular level coatings for composite reinforcement , heat shielding , ballistic transistors , integrated circuits , reinforced fibers and cables , and nano - polishing agents . cyclic , as used herein , refers to any molecule with at least one five - membered , or larger , ring , where at least half of the atoms forming the ring are carbon atoms . the ring may be aromatic or non - aromatic . tribologically - effective , as used herein , refers to any amount of additive or amounts of multiple additives to a lubricated system sufficient to be tribologically beneficial to such lubricated system . tribologically beneficial , as used herein , refers to any additive that reduces friction in a mechanical system in which it is formed , found or employed . tribological agent , as used herein , refers to a molecule that measurably reduces friction in a mechanical system in which it is formed , found , or employed . bucky - diamond or nano - bucky - diamond , as used herein , refers to any nanoparticle having a nano - diamond core that may comprise non - carbon hetero - atoms , and a fullerenic carbon shell formed around the core . surface - graphitized abrasive nanoparticle ( sgan ), as used herein , refers to any nanosized particle comprising at least one non - carbon hetero - atom enveloped by an outer shell comprising substantially carbon . spheroid , as used herein , refers to a particle that is shaped substantially like a sphere but is not necessarily perfectly round . a matrix material , as used herein , refers to any material forming a continuous phase in a composite of two or more materials . a spinel structure , as used herein , refers to any cubic mineral crystal of the general formula a 2 + b 2 3 + o 4 2 − with the oxide anions ( o ) arranged in a cubic close - packed lattice , the a cations occupying all of the tetrahedral sites , and the b cations occupying all of the octahedral sites in the lattice . an inverse spinel structure , as used herein , refers to any cubic mineral crystal of the general formula a 2 + b 2 3 + o 4 2 − with the oxide anions arranged in a cubic close - packed lattice , the a cations occupying half of the octahedral sites , and the b cations occupying half of the octahedral and all of the tetrahedral sites in the lattice . graphitic carbon , as used herein , refers to any structure having a carbon lattice matrix , including , but not limited to , graphite , graphene , graphene oxide , fullerene , fullerene - like structure , endo - fullerene , nano - onion , nano - peapod , nanotube , nanobud , reduced graphene oxide , lacy carbon , and polycyclic aromatic compounds . carbon lattice matrix , as used herein , refers to , any 2 - dimensional polycyclic carbon structure formed of sp 2 - or sp 3 - hybridized carbon atoms . dynamic furnace , as used herein , refers to a heated nanoparticle synthesis furnace apparatus that employs an agitative , sonic , centrifugal , centripetal , compressive or shearing force , or a combination of these forces , during the synthesis stage of the nanoparticle product formation . ex situ method for synthesis of graphene , graphene oxide , reduced graphene oxide and other graphene derivative structures and nanoparticles . in one aspect , the invention relates to an ex situ method for synthesis of graphene , graphene oxide , reduced graphene oxide , and other graphene derivative structures and nanoparticles . an economical dehydration reaction or reflux pyrolysis can be used to form graphitic carbon from a carbonaceous material carbon source . the methods disclosed are industrially - scalable for industrial production . the carbon source is preferably a sugar containing a 6 - membered ring structure , although many other carbonaceous materials may be subjected to dehydration , pyrolysis , or oxidation and used . the carbon source is subjected to reflux pyrolysis , oxidation / reduction , or acid dehydration to form a graphitic carbon reactant starting material . in other embodiments , the dehydration / oxidation / pyrolysis synthesis step to produce suitable graphitic carbon is bypassed and graphitic carbon itself is used as the reactant starting material . the graphitic carbon can be subjected to refluxing with a liquid solvent , and graphene / graphene oxide ( go ) can be emitted as nanoscopic scales or “ nanoscales ” suspended in vapor / steam . alternatively or additionally , a graphitic carbon source may be subjected to a highly - pressurized liquid or vapor to produce graphene scales without pyrolysis , dehydration , or oxidation step . the resulting graphene / go scales travel in the vapor and are collected either by direct deposition onto a solid substrate in physical contact with the emitted vapor , or by applying the particle - containing vapor to an aqueous solution or liquid used to promote “ hydrophobic self - assembly ” of the scales into larger graphene / go sheets . in one embodiment , the reaction environment is controlled to limit the amount of ambient oxygen ( o 2 ) in the chamber , thereby discouraging combustion of the reactants during heating . in one embodiment , the reaction is carried out without the use of an added solvent . in one embodiment , the produced go is converted to reduced graphene oxide ( rgo ) or graphene sheets suspended in a heated or unheated liquid collection medium . the resulting large hydrophobically self - assembling sheets are easily reduced to rgo or graphene , which may be used in industry to produce a range of useful products , including , but not limited to , protective coatings , and low weight / high strength graphene - reinforced composites , wires , and fibers . turning to the figures , fig1 a depicts a schematic representation of the graphene / go preparation steps in an embodiment of the invention in which a reaction mixture , including an essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material carbon source , is reacted to form graphitic carbon by pyrolysis , dehydration , an oxidation / reduction reaction , or incomplete combustion . in one embodiment , a graphitic carbon starting material is used , eliminating the need for a pyrolysis or dehydration reaction step . in one embodiment , the reaction mixture is refluxed to form a vapor stream . graphene / graphene oxide ( go ) nanoscales are carried away in the resulting vapor stream emitted during heating of the slurry or solution . the graphene / go scales are collected , preferably by bubbling the vapor through a liquid that traps and suspends the scales . alternatively graphene / go scales form on the surface of the liquid when the vapor stream is directed to the surface . in a process referred to herein as “ hydrophobic self - assembly ,” individual graphene / go scales join to form sheets of graphene / go layers at the surface of the liquid . in one embodiment , the carbon source is heated directly by an external heating source in a pyrolysis or dehydration reaction to form graphitic carbon and water . in one embodiment , the carbon source is sucrose . in one embodiment , the resulting formed water serves as a solvent to permit refluxing of the reaction products . in one embodiment , the reaction to form graphitic carbon proceeds as essentially represented in equation 1 : in one embodiment , the carbon source is exposed to an acid in a pyrolysis or dehydration reaction to form graphitic carbon and water . in one embodiment , the carbon source is sucrose and the acid is concentrated sulfuric acid . in one embodiment , the resulting formed water serves as a solvent to permit refluxing of the reaction products . in one embodiment , the reaction product is a graphitic foam . in one embodiment , the reaction product is a graphitic slurry . in one embodiment , the reaction to form graphene proceeds as essentially represented in equation 2 : in one embodiment , the carbon source is reacted with an oxidizer to form graphitic carbon in the form of a graphene oxide . in one embodiment , the reaction to form go proceeds as essentially represented in equation 3 : where the applied heat drives the reaction and the optional additive serves to catalyze the reaction and / or improve the yield of the desired reaction product . a go reaction product is schematically shown as molecule ( 1 ) below : in the above embodiments , the reaction conditions are selected such that the reaction does not lead to complete combustion of the carbon source into carbon dioxide or an incomplete combustion to form carbon monoxide . the reaction conditions are rather designed , preferably by control of the reaction atmosphere , to form graphitic carbon - carbon bonds . in some embodiments , a portion of the carbon source is purposefully combusted to provide the heat required for conversion of another portion of the carbon source to form the desired graphitic bonds . in some embodiments , the reaction occurs under non - ideal combustion conditions , such as pyrolysis or smoldering . pyrolysis , as used herein , refers to the decomposition of a carbon source at an elevated temperature with low oxygen or other oxidizer levels . smoldering , as used herein , refers to a slow , low - temperature , flameless reaction sustained by the heat from oxygen directly reacting with the surface of a solid or liquid fuel . scales or nanoscales , as used herein , refer to discrete sections of graphene or graphene derivative . efforts to improve combustion efficiency have obscured the true value of compounds previously thought of as useless waste , such as the carbonaceous “ phlegm ” of early coal furnaces ( see , for example , coal - tar and ammonia , 5 th ed ., by lunge , d . van nostrand co ., new york , 1916 ), that actually contains graphitic material , including graphene . likewise , modern combustion advances have overlooked the value of many old processes , now deemed outmoded , that are actually capable of adaptation to purposeful maximization of soot particulates formation ultimately into graphene , a graphene derivative , a carbon - encapsulated metallic nanoparticle , or nano - steel . although the formation of pahs in carbonaceous particulates “ soot ” as a product of incomplete combustion is known , the usefulness of such pahs has heretofore been minimal due to their limited size and tendency , as reported in the current art , to typically drift away from the synthesis conditions necessary for continued growth . wiersum et al . (“ the formation of polyaromatic hydrocarbons , fullerenes and soot in combustion : pyrolytic mechanisms and the industrial and environmental connection ”, pp . 143 - 194 in gas phase reactions in organic synthesis , ed . by vallée , gordon and breach science publishers , amsterdam , 1997 ) report a number of different gas phase reactions to form pahs . none of the known gas - phase pah synthesis methods to date produce graphene or any form of planar graphitic carbon greater than 222 carbon atoms in size . in one embodiment , the methods and processes disclosed herein promote pah production through extended exposure to favorable synthesis conditions by collecting and trapping product vapors of the reaction mixture , permitting resulting pahs to grow to sizes exhibiting the general properties of graphene . other embodiments , methods , and processes disclosed herein are designed to specifically promote continued pah growth conditions by their self - assembly in steam - rich or aqueous solution conditions into large graphene sheets . these processes permitting graphene synthesis , either from compounds promoting pah formation alone or from compounds promoting pah formation and carbonaceous or graphitic reactant materials , are scalable to meet industrial production volumes . in one embodiment , one or more compounds that promote the formation or growth of pahs are used in the production of graphene , graphene derivatives , carbon - encapsulated metallic nanoparticles , or nano - steel . these compounds may include , but are not limited to , chemicals that are known intermediates in pah formation and chemicals that form intermediates of pah formation . in one embodiment , the initial reactions occur in a solvent system under reflux conditions to promote the synthesis of pah units that later self - assemble into larger graphene sheets . in some embodiments , the reflux conditions are azeotropic reflux conditions ( see , for example , udeye et al ., “ ethanol heterogeneous azeotropic distillation design and construction ”, internat . j . of phys . sci ., vol . 4 , pp . 101 - 106 , 2009 ; sun et al ., “ zrocl 2 . 8h 2 o : an efficient , cheap and reusable catalyst for the esterification of acrylic acid and other carboxylic acids with equimolar amounts of alcohols ”, molecules , vol . 11 , pp . 263 - 271 , 2006 ). in some reflux conditions , a promoter is added . in some embodiments , the promoter is a form of graphitic carbon . in some embodiments , the promoter is biochar , coal phlegm , nano - coal , an activated form of nano - coal , activated charcoal , graphite particles , soot particulate matter , or another sequestered carbonaceous waste form . a sequestered carbonaceous waste , as used herein , is any carbonaceous waste product of synthesis , pyrolysis , or incomplete combustion , which is typically collected and isolated to prevent conversion into or release as an atmospheric greenhouse gas . in one embodiment , a sequestered carbonaceous waste can be utilized as a carbon source in the reaction mixture , in which instance the added carbon promotes the reaction , in part , by serving as a thermal conductivity - enhancing heat transfer agent ( see , for example , baby et al ., “ enhanced convective heat transfer using graphene dispersed nanofluids ”, nanoscale research letters , vol . 6 , no . 289 , 2011 ). the sequestered carbonaceous waste may be collected from the emissions of any process , including but not limited to the emissions of a diesel truck or the emissions of a coal - fired power plant . in some embodiments , a diesel particulate filter is used to collect the carbonaceous waste as part of a “ diesel emission control strategy .” in other embodiments , a scrubber is used to collect the carbonaceous waste . the california air resources board ( carb ) recently enacted legislation requiring reduced particulate and noxious gas emissions , including from diesel trucks and buses , achieved by the addition of a filter to the exhaust systems of trucks ( see california code of regulations , title 13 , div . 3 , ch . 14 et seq .). in some embodiments , designed as an alternative to so - called “ regenerative ” technologies that combust collected soot and continue to release greenhouse gasses to the environment , a reusable filter is employed . when it is time for a truck driver or other user to replace a dirty particulate filter , instead of disposing of the dirty filter and buying a new filter , the user exchanges the contaminated filter for a clean one . the sequestered carbonaceous waste contained in the used filter is preferably removed from the particulate filter or scrubber and used as a carbon source for graphene or graphene derivative synthesis . the filter or scrubber is preferably reused to collect additional carbonaceous waste from emissions as the process is repeated , as the process seeks to incorporate a large portion of the carbon sequestered into the graphene product rather than into greenhouse gas emissions . in some embodiments , the sequestered carbonaceous waste is harvested from the particulate filter or scrubber by being dissolved in an organic solvent . in other embodiments , the sequestered carbonaceous waste is harvested using water , an aqueous mixture , or steam . pah - promoting compounds for use in processes include , but are not limited to , dimethyl ether , propyne , propadiene , alcohols , including , but not limited to , propargyl alcohol and isopropanol , acetylene , and compounds that promote c 1 to c 5 hydrocarbon radical formation . methyl radicals ( ch 3 .) are known to promote the growth of both pahs ( see shukla et al ., “ role of methyl radicals in the growth of pahs ”, j . am . soc . mass spectrom ., vol . 21 , pp . 534 - 544 , 2010 ) and graphene ( see wellmann et al ., “ growth of graphene layers on hopg via exposure to methyl radicals ”, surface science , vol . 542 , pp . 81 - 93 , 2003 ). dimethyl ether forms methyl radicals and promotes pah formation under gaseous combustion conditions in the presence of another carbon source ( see yoon et al ., “ synergistic effect of mixing dimethyl ether with methane , ethane , propane , and ethylene fuels on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon and soot formation ”, combustion and flame , vol . 154 , pp . 368 - 377 , 2008 ). other hydrocarbon radicals , including , but not limited to , c 2 h ., c 2 h 3 ., c 3 h 3 ., c 4 h 3 ., c 4 h 5 ., and c 5 h 3 ., are also capable of nucleating and growing pahs ( see pope et al ., “ exploring old and new benzene formation pathways in low - pressure premixed flames of aliphatic fuels ”, proceedings of the combustion institute , vol . 28 , pp . 1519 - 1527 , 2000 ). the propargyl radical ( c 3 h 3 ′) has been proposed as a key intermediary for pah formation in a number of kinetic studies ( see mcenally et al ., “ computational and experimental study of soot formation in a coflow , laminar ethylene diffusion flame ”, 27th symposium ( international ) on combustion , pp . 1497 - 1505 , 1998 ; shafir et al ., kinetics and products of the self - reaction of propargyl radicals ”, j . phys . chem . a , vol . 107 , pp . 8893 - 8903 , 2003 ; tang et al ., “ an optimized semidetailed submechanism of benzene formation from propargyl recombination ”, j . phys . chem . a , vol . 110 , pp . 2165 - 2175 , 2006 ). propyne and propadiene also promote pah formation ( see gazi et al ., “ a modelling study of allene and propyne combustion in flames ”, proceedings of the european combustion meeting , 2011 ). acetylene also may play a role in pah nucleation and growth ( see frenlach et al ., “ aromatics growth beyond the first ring and the nucleation of soot particles ”, preprints of the 202 nd acs national meeting , vol . 36 , pp . 1509 - 1516 , 1991 ). fig2 a and 2b show process flow charts for forming various graphene products from either a non - graphitic carbonaceous starting material or a graphitic starting material . referring to fig2 a , when starting with a non - graphitic carbonaceous starting material , the carbonaceous material may be converted to a graphitic material by several different pathways . in one embodiment , the carbonaceous material is combined with an acid and converted by a dehydration reaction , either with or without the addition of heat and refluxing of the reagents . in one embodiment , the carbonaceous material is a sugar . in some embodiments , the sugar is sucrose . in one embodiment , the acid is concentrated sulfuric acid . in one embodiment , the carbonaceous material is heated without a solvent . the carbonaceous material may be heated with or without an additive , which may be an oxidizer , a metal oxide , or a catalyst , optionally followed by collection and condensation of any produced gas or vapor , to form the graphitic material . the use of an oxidizer or metal oxide promotes the formation of go over graphene , whereas in the absence of an oxidizer or metal oxide , graphene forms preferentially over go . in one embodiment , the carbonaceous material is preferably heated to a high temperature , such as by a direct or an indirect flame . in one embodiment , the additive is a metal - containing compound . in one embodiment , the metal is iron . in some embodiments , the additive is a metal oxide . in one embodiment , the additive is ferric oxide . in other embodiments , the additive is ferrocene . in one embodiment , the carbonaceous material is heated in a refluxing solvent to form the graphitic material . the carbonaceous material may be combined with an additive , which may be an oxidizer , a metal oxide , or a catalyst . the use of an oxidizer or metal oxide promotes the formation of go over graphene , whereas in the absence of an oxidizer or metal oxide , graphene forms preferentially over go . in one embodiment , the additive is a metal - containing catalytic compound . in some embodiments , the metal is iron . in one embodiment , the additive is a metal oxide . in one embodiment , the metal oxide is ferric oxide . in some embodiments , the additive is ferrocene . in some embodiments , the solvent includes one or more of an alcohol , water , and a mineral oil . the solvent preferably permits a high - temperature refluxing of the reaction mixture . the solvent also preferably helps to dissolve the reactants , to prevent combustion of the reactants , and to promote vapor production for collection of the product . in some embodiments , the use of a solvent improves the reaction yield and increases the interaction between reagents to promote the formation of the graphene or go products . in one embodiment , when the carbonaceous material is combined with a metal oxide in the reaction mixture , surface - graphitized abrasive nanoparticles ( sgans ), including sgan spheroids , are formed . the sgans can be recovered for any use , such as a nano - polishing agent or as an additive to a lubricant . it is contemplated that recovery of the sgans from the reaction mixture can be accomplished by use of a magnet or externally applied magnetic field . recovery may also be accomplished by centrifugation . in one embodiment , the reaction mixture comprising the sgans can be used as an additive to a lubricant . in one embodiment , a large - scale dc arc - discharge apparatus , a chamber , or a cylinder can be used to promote sgan formation . in some embodiments , the ferric oxide is provided to the system as a powder to promote sgan formation . in one embodiment , the ferric oxide comprises a nanopowder . in one embodiment , a high carbon content vapor can be supplied to the system . in one embodiment , the sgans can be produced in a high shear environment in a “ dynamic furnace ”. the high shear environment of the “ dynamic furnace ” may be provided by any method or combination of methods , including , but not limited to , rotating the tube furnace at high speeds , oscillating or vibrating the furnace at high frequencies , employing sonication , hydrodynamic squeezing , frictional impact with one or more moving parts , and stirring the “ dynamic furnace ” contents at high speeds . in one embodiment , the speed of rotation of the “ dynamic furnace ” can be on the order of about 1 , 000 to 11 , 000 rpm . in one embodiment , the “ dynamic furnace ” additionally can include a surface topography , which may include , but is not limited to , fins , rods , bumps , depressions , holes , asperities , and tunnels , to provide additional shearing forces , thereby increasing the shearing of the reaction mixture . in one embodiment , reaction gases can be supplied to the “ dynamic furnace ” apparatus . in one embodiment , sgan synthesis can occur at elevated temperatures , elevated pressures , or reduced pressures . temperatures in the “ dynamic furnace ” can be on the order of ˜ 200 to ˜ 800 ° f . in one embodiment , the “ dynamic furnace ” comprises an incorporated tube furnace for formation of sgans . an insulating portion can surround two concentric rotatable cylinders . the cylinders can include through - holes that allow material to pass between the area outside an outer cylinder , the area between the two cylinders , and the area inside the inner cylinder . the cylinders can be coaxial and rotatable in opposite directions at high speeds to produce high shearing forces . the dynamic tube furnace can also include a feed line for liquid components and a preheater leading into the main chamber . a separate feed line for gaseous components can also be included . the main chamber may be a single chamber or a two - zone chamber . the inner surface of the outer cylinder or the outer surface of the inner cylinder may include fins , paddles , rods , bumps , or similar structures to provide shearing to the system . in one embodiment , the tube furnace can be designed in the form of a wankel engine to provide the frictional contact , sheering , and squeezing to promote sgan formation . the “ dynamic furnace ” can include a housing , a rotor , an eccentric wheel , and an inner gear meshing with an outer gear . as the rotor travels around in the “ dynamic furnace ” housing , frictional contact , sheering , and squeezing of the fluid between the rotor and the housing can promote sgan formation . in one embodiment , the surfaces of one or more of these structures are electrified or electrifiable . in one embodiment , the electrified surfaces can act as an electrified cathode in the integral tube furnace . in one embodiment , the carbonaceous material is a non - graphitic carbon source , which may include , but is not limited to , a sugar , sucrose , a sugar amphiphile , a graphene - promoting amphiphile , a sugar substitute , a starch , cellulose , an olefin , an acetate , one or more non - graphitic hydrocarbons , an alkane , an alkene , an alkyne , a ketone , toluene , gasoline , diesel fuel , kerosene , coal , coal tar , coke , or any combination of these . in one embodiment , coal and diesel fuel are preferred carbon sources . in one embodiment the coal is a pulverized coal . in one embodiment the coal is a nano - coal , such as the nano - coal sold by nano fuels technology , llc ( reno , nev ., united states ), having particle sizes in the sub - micron range . a sugar amphiphile or a sugar - like amphiphile may be any molecule with a hydrophilic sugar portion and a hydrophobic portion , including , but not limited to those described by fenimore (“ interfacial self - assembly of sugar - based amphiphiles : solid - and liquid - core capsules ”, university of cincinnati ph . d . thesis dated oct . 16 , 2009 ), jadhav et al . (“ sugar - derived phase - selective molecular gelators as model solidifiers for oil spills ”, angew . chem . int . ed ., vol . 49 , pp . 7695 - 7698 , 2010 ), jung et al . (“ self - assembling structures of long - chain sugar - based amphiphiles influenced by the introduction of double bonds ”, chem . eur . j ., vol . 11 , pp . 5538 - 5544 , 2005 ), paleta et al . (“ novel amphiphilic fluoroalkylated derivatives of xylitol , d - glucose and d - galactose for medical applications : hemocompatibility and co - emulsifying properties ”, carbohydrate research , vol . 337 , pp . 2411 - 2418 , 2002 ), germaneau (“ amphiphilic sugar metal carbenes : from fischer type to n - heterocyclic carbenes ( nhcs )”, rheinische friederich - wilhems - universität bonn ph . d . thesis , 2007 ), and ye et al . (“ synthesis of sugar - containing amphiphiles for liquid and supercritical carbon dioxide ”, ind . eng . chem . res ., vol . 39 , pp . 4564 - 4566 , 2000 ). a graphene - promoting amphiphile may be any molecule with a hydrophilic graphene - promoting portion and a hydrophobic portion , including , but not limited to those marketed by dow chemical company ( midland , mich ., united states ) under the trademarks triton ™ or tergitol ™, including , but not limited to , the triton x series of octylphenol ethoxylates and the tergitol np series of nonylphenol ethoxylates . alternatively , a graphitic starting material may be used . the graphitic material may be any material including graphitic carbon , including , but not limited to , natural graphite , synthetic graphite , one or more polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons ( pahs ), graphene , activated carbon , biochar , coal phlegm , one or more benzenoids , naphthalene , or any combination of these . referring to fig2 a , the graphitic material in a solvent is heated . in some embodiments , the solvent includes one or more of an alcohol , water , and a mineral oil . in some embodiments , the mixture is heated to a boiling temperature . in some embodiments , the boiling solvent is refluxed . in one embodiment , liquid graphene product resulting from reflux of the reaction mixture is collected in the reaction vessel itself . the graphene - containing liquid may be applied directly to a material or substrate to form a graphene - reinforced material , a graphene - coated substrate , a go - reinforced material , or a go - coated substrate . alternatively , the graphene - containing liquid may be further heated to form a vapor containing graphene / graphene derivative scales . a graphene / graphene derivative scale , as used herein , is understood to be one to several layers of graphene or graphene oxide carried in the vapor stream of the refluxing solvent or solvent mixture . the layers in the scale may be mostly planar or they may be crinkled or folded in the vapor stream . the length and width dimensions of the layers are preferably significantly larger than the thickness of the layers . referring to fig2 b , the graphene / graphene derivative scale - containing vapor may either be applied to a solid or a liquid . the graphene / graphene derivative scales may be applied to a solid substrate by placing the solid substrate in the vapor stream or by applying the vapor stream to the solid substrate to form a graphene / graphene derivative film coated substrate . any crinkling or folding in the scale layers is preferably reduced upon deposition on the solid substrate . in some embodiments , the deposited scales are annealed after deposition to improve their uniformity . in some embodiments , the deposited scales are annealed by heating of the substrate . in some embodiments , reactive end groups on neighboring deposited scales react with each other to form larger graphene / graphene derivative sheets . in some embodiments , a reducing agent is used to convert go to rgo in the layers . alternatively , the graphene / graphene derivative scale - containing vapor may be applied to an aqueous pool . the vapor may be applied to the surface of the aqueous pool from above or by bubbling through the aqueous pool . in one embodiment , the aqueous pool is a water pool with no additives . if the water pool contains no additives , the graphene / graphene derivative scales hydrophobically self - assemble to graphene / graphene derivative sheets at the water surface . in one embodiment , the deposited scales are annealed at the water surface to improve their uniformity . in one embodiment , reactive end groups on neighboring scales react with each other to form larger graphene / graphene derivative sheets at the water surface . in some embodiments , a reducing agent is used to convert go to rgo in the assembling or assembled layers . the aqueous pool may include one or more surfactants as an additive to aid in the hydrophobic self - assembly of the graphene / graphene derivative scales to the graphene / graphene derivative sheets at the water surface . any crinkling or folding in the scale layers is preferably reduced either by interaction with the surfactant or upon arrival at the water surface . in one embodiment , the deposited scales are annealed at the water surface to improve their uniformity . in one embodiment , reactive end groups on neighboring scales react with each other to form larger graphene / graphene derivative sheets at the water surface . the aqueous pool may include one or more reducing agents to convert go to rgo during the hydrophobic self - assembly of the go scales to rgo sheets at the water surface . in one embodiment , the reducing agent is hydrazine . any crinkling or folding in the scale layers is preferably reduced upon arrival at the water surface . in one embodiment , the deposited scales are annealed at the water surface to improve their uniformity . in one embodiment , reactive end groups on neighboring scales react with each other to form larger graphene / graphene derivative sheets at the water surface . the graphene / graphene derivative sheets may be applied to a solid by contacting the solid to the graphene / graphene derivative sheets at the surface of the water . the solid surface may be dipped in a vertical , horizontal , or angled orientation into the liquid surface . alternatively , the solid surface may be located initially in the water and brought upward to the liquid surface in a vertical , horizontal , or angled orientation or the water may be drained to bring the graphene / graphene derivative sheets to the solid surface . alternatively , some of the water from the aqueous pool is permitted to evaporate slowly , leaving a viscous gelled graphene or graphene jelly in the upper liquid portion of the pool . the carbon source may be in numerous forms , including , but not limited to , liquefied , powdered solid , or granular solid . in one embodiment , the carbon source preferably includes at least one essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material having a chemical structure containing at least one 6 - member carbon - containing ring , such as sucrose , the structure of which is shown as molecule 2 : in one embodiment , the carbon source is of a form having a significant amount of graphitic carbon . the carbon - containing rings in the carbonaceous material , especially any aromatic carbon rings , are believed to be conserved to some degree in the chemical reactions of the growing carbon - ring matrix of the graphene or go products ; that is to say , the 6 - membered carbon ring structure is believed to be retained to some degree in the graphene or go products themselves . the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material may include one or any combination of the following , but is not limited to : a . a molasses or molasses substitute , including , but not limited to sweet sorghum , sugar beet molasses , pomegranate molasses , mulberry molasses , carob molasses , date molasses , grape molasses , backstrap molasses , black treacle , maple syrup or corn syrup , including , but not limited to high - fructose corn syrup ; b . an invert sugar , including , but not limited to , inverted sugar syrup ; c . a deoxy sugar , including , but not limited to deoxyribose , fucose or rhamnose ; d . a monosaccharide , including , but not limited to glucose , fructose , galactose , xylose or ribose ; e . a disaccharide , including , but not limited to sucrose , lactulose , lactose , maltose , trehalose or cellobiose ; f . a polysaccharide , including , but not limited to starch , glycogen , arabinoxylan , cellulose , chitin or pectin ; g . a sugar alcohol , including , but not limited to erythritol , threitol , arabitol , xylitol , ribitol , mannitol , sorbitol , dulcitol , iditol , isomalt , maltitol or lactitol ; or h . an amphiphile , including , but not limited to a sugar amphiphile or a graphene - promoting amphiphile ; 2 . a sugar substitute , including , but not limited to stevia , aspartame , sucralose , neotame , acesulfame potassium , saccharin , or a sugar alcohol ; 3 . a hydrocarbon , including , but not limited to naphthalene , diesel fuel , kerosene , gasoline , or an alkane , including , but not limited to methane , ethane , propane , cyclopropane , butane , isobutane , cyclobutane , pentane , isopentane , neopentane , cyclopentane , hexane , octane , kerosene , isoparaffins , liquid paraffins or paraffin waxes ; 4 . a coal form , including , but not limited to peat , lignite , bituminous coal , sub - bituminous coal , pulverized coal , nano - coal , steam coal , cannel coal , anthracite , charcoal , carbon black , activated charcoal , “ activated nano - coal ” or sugar char ; 5 . an alcohol , including , but not limited to ethanol , methanol , or isopropanol ; or 6 . an oil , including , but not limited to linseed oil , citronella oil , geraniol or mineral oil . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a pyranose , a furanose , a cyclic carbomer , or a benzenoid ( see katritzky et al ., “ aqueous high - temperature chemistry of carbo - and heterocycles . 20 . 1 reactions of some benzenoid hydrocarbons and oxygen - containing derivatives in supercritical water at 460 ° c .”, energy & amp ; fuels , vol . 8 , pp . 487 - 497 , 1994 ), including , but not limited to , oxygen - containing benzenoids . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a sugar . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises sucrose . in one embodiment the sugar comprises a molasses or molasses substitute , which may comprise , but is not limited to , sweet sorghum , sugar beet molasses , pomegranate molasses , mulberry molasses , carob molasses , date molasses , grape molasses , backstrap molasses , black treacle , bee &# 39 ; s honey , maple syrup , or corn syrup , including , but not limited to , high - fructose corn syrup . in some embodiments , the sugar comprises an invert sugar , which may comprise , but is not limited to , inverted sugar syrup . in one embodiment , the sugar comprises a deoxy sugar , which may comprise , but is not limited to , deoxyribose , fucose , or rhamnose . in one embodiment , the sugar comprises a monosaccharide , which may comprise , but is not limited to , glucose , fructose , galactose , xylose , or ribose . in one embodiment , the sugar comprises a disaccharide , which may comprise , but is not limited to , sucrose , lactulose , lactose , maltose , trehalose , cellobiose , or sophorose . in one embodiment , the sugar comprises a polysaccharide , which may comprise , but is not limited to , starch , glycogen , arabinoxylan , cellulose , chitin , or pectin . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a sugar alcohol , which may include , but is not limited to , erythritol , threitol , arabitol , xylitol , ribitol , mannitol , sorbitol , dulcitol , iditol , isomalt , maltitol , or lactitol . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a sugar substitute , which may include , but is not limited to , stevia , aspartame , sucralose , neotame , acesulfame potassium , or saccharin . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a sugar derivative , which may include , but is not limited to , sophoritol , a phenolic glycoside , a steviol glycoside , a saponin , a glycoside , a glucoside , or amygdalin . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a cyclomethicone , which may include , but is not limited to , phenyl trimethicone or cyclopentasiloxane . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a steroid , which may include , but is not limited to , sapogenin or diosgenin . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a cinnamate , which may include , but is not limited to , methyl or ethyl cinnamate . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises cinnamic acid . in one embodiment , the additive comprises cinnamon oil . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a phenylphopanoid , which may include , but is not limited to , cinnamic acid , coumaric acid , caffeic acid , ferulic acid , 5 - hydroxyferulic acid , sinapic acid , cinnamaldehyde , umbelliferone , resveratrol , a monolignol , which may comprise , but is not limited to , coniferyl alcohol , coumaryl alcohol , or sinapyl alcohol , or a phenylpropene , which may comprise , but is not limited to , engenol , chavicol , safrole , or estragole . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a benzoate , which may include , but is not limited to , ferric , benzyl , ethyl , methyl , phenyl , cyclohexanol , 2 - phenyl -, pentaerythritol tetra -, sodium , or potassium benzoate . in one embodiment , the additive includes benzoic acid . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises aminobenzoic acid . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises 2 - hydroxymethyl benzoic acid methyl ester . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material includes ubiquinone . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a carboxylate , including but not limited to trimethyl cis , cis - 1 , 3 , 5 - cyclohexanetricarboxylate . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a benzopyran , which may include , but is not limited to , chromene , isochromene , or a substituted benzopyran . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a naturally - occurring or synthetic flavone or isoflavone , which may include , but is not limited to , flavan - 3 - ol or flavanone . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a salicylate , which may include , but is not limited to , ferric , methyl , ethyl , butyl , cinnamyl , cyclohexyl , ethylhexyl , heptyl , isoamyl , octyl , benzyl , phenyl , p - cresol , o - cresol , m - cresol , or sodium salicylate . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material includes salicylic acid . in one embodiment , the additive includes aminosalicylic acid . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises an antioxidant . in one embodiment , the antioxidant is a cyclic antioxidant . in one embodiment , the antioxidant is a phenolic antioxidant , which may include , but is not limited to , 2 , 6 - di - terti - butylphenol , 2 - tert - butyl - 4 , 6 - dimethylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - tert - butyl - 4 - ethylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - tert - butyl - 4 - n - butylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - tert - butyl - 4 - 1 - buty 1 - phenol , 2 , 6 - di - cyclopentyl - 4 - methylphenol , 2 -( α - methylcyclohexyl )- 4 , 6 - dimethylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - octadecyl - methylphenol , 2 , 4 , 6 - tri - cyclohexylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - tert - butyl - 4 - methoxymethylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - tert - butyl - 4 - methoxyphenol , 2 , 5 - di - tert - butyl - hydroquinone , 2 , 5 - di - tert - amyl - hydroquinone , 2 , 6 - diphenyl - 4 - octadecyloxyphenol , 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -( 6 - tert - butyl - 4 - methylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -( 6 - tert - butyl - 4 - ethylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -[ 4 - methyl - 6 - α - methylcyclohexyl )- phenol ], 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -( 4 - methyl - 6 - cyclohexylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -( 6 - nonyl - 4 - methylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -[ 6 -( α - methylbenzyl )- 4 - nonylphenol ], 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -[ 6 -( α , α - dimethylbenzyl )- 4 - nonylphenol ], 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -( 4 , 6 - di - tert - butylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- ethylidene - bis -( 4 , 6 - di - tert - butylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- ethylidene - bis -( 6 - tert - butyl - 4 - isobutylphenol ), 4 , 4 ′- methylene - bis -( 2 , 6 - di - tert - butylphenol ), 4 , 4 ′- methylene - bis -( 6 - tert - butyl - 2 - methylphenol ), 1 , 1 - bis -( 5 - tert - butyl - 4 - hydroxy - 2 - methylphenyl )- butane , 2 , 6 - di -( 3 - tert - butyl - 5 - methyl - 2 - hydroxybenzyl )- 4 - methylphenol , 1 , 1 , 3 - tris -( 5 - tert - butyl - 4 - hydroxy - 2 - methylphenyl )- butane , and any naturally - occurring plant - based phenolic antioxidant , which may include , but is not limited to , ascorbic acid , a tocopherol , a tocotrienol , rosemarinic acid , and other phenolic acids and flavonoids , such as those found , for example , in grapes , berries , olives , soy , tea leaves , rosemary , basil , oregano , cinnamon , cumin , and turmeric . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises 4 - vinylphenol , anthocyanidin , or chromenylium . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a cyclic amino acid , which may include , but is not limited to , phenylalanine , tryptophan , or tyrosine . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a cyclohexane derivative , which may include , but is not limited to , 1 , 3 - cyclohexadiene or 1 , 4 - cyclohexadiene . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a benzene derivative which may include , but is not limited to , a polyphenol , benzaldehyde , benzotriazole , benzyl 1 - naphthyl carbonate , benzene , ethyl benzene , toluene , styrene , benzonitrile , phenol , phthalic anhydride , phthalic acid , terephthalic acid , p - toluic acid , benzoic acid , aminobenzoic acid , benzyl chloride , isoindole , ethyl phthalyl ethyl glycolate , n - phenyl benzamine , methoxybenzoquinone , benzylacetone , benzylideneacetone , hexyl cinnamaldehyde , 4 - amino - 2 - hydroxytoluene , 3 - aminophenol , or vanillin . in one embodiment , the benzene derivative comprises a benzenediol , which may include 1 , 2 - dihydroxybenzene ( catechol ), 1 , 3 - dihydroxybenzene ( resorcinol ), or 1 , 4 - dihydroxybenzene ( hydroquinone ). in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a naphthoate , including but not limited to methyl 2 - methoxy - 1 - naphthoate or methyl 3 - methoxy - 2 - naphthoate . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises an acrylate , including but not limited to benzyl 2 - propylacrylate or 2 - naphthyl methacrylate . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a phthalate , including but not limited to diallyl phthalate . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a succinate , including but not limited to bis ( 2 - carboxyphenyl ) succinate . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a carpate , including but not limited to methyl o - methylpodocarpate . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a fluorophore , which may include , but is not limited to , fluorescein isothiocyanate , rhodamine , phthalocyanine , or copper phthalocyanine . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a pharmaceutical , which may include , but is not limited to , acetylsalicylic acid , acetaminophen , ibuprofen , or a benzodiazepine . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a phosphate , which may include , but is not limited to , a cresyldiphenyl phosphate , a dicresyl phosphate , a triorthocresyl phosphate , a tricresyl phosphate , a paracresyl phosphate , an orthocresyl phosphate , or a metacresyl phosphate . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a compound that degrades to one or more of the above - mentioned additives under the heat of the operating conditions of the engine or mechanical system , such as certain terpenes or certain natural aromatic or non - aromatic cyclic esters , ketones , or aldehydes , which may include , but is not limited to , methyl salicylate ( wintergreen oil ), cinnamon leaf / bark oil ( cinnamaldehyde ), limonene ( dipentene ), pinene , and camphene . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a commercial edible personal / sexual lubricating composition including a sugar or sugar - substitute amphiphile . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a commercial ultraviolet ray sunscreen formulation , which may include octyl methoxycinnamate ( oxctinoxate ), butyl - methoxydibenzoylmethane ( b - mdm , avobenzone ), octyl - dimethyl - para - aminobenzoic acid ( od - paba ), octocrylene , oxybenzone , alkyl benzoate , diethylhexyl 2 , 6 - naphthalate , phenoxy - ethanol , homosalate , ethylhexyl triazone , 4 - methyl - benzylidene camphor ( 4 - mbc ), or a polysorbate . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a commercial skin cream formulation , which may include , but is not limited to carbomer , ascorbyl palmitate , tocopheryl acetate , ketoconazole , or mineral oil . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a commercial hand sanitizer formulation , which may include carbomer , tocopheryl acetate , or propylene glycol . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a commercial human or animal hair care product , which may include benzophenone , alkyl benzoate , phenoxyethanol , sorbitan oleate , a styrene copolymer , propylene glycol , hydroxyisohexyl - 3 - cyclohexene carboxaldehyde , butylated hydroxytoluene , ketoconazole , petrolatum , mineral oil , or paraffinum liquidum . in one embodiment , the commercial hair care product is a curl activating or relaxing solution , which may include carbomer , hexyl cinnamal , benzyl salicylate , trolamine salicylate , benzyl benzoate , limonene , eugenol , 1 , 3 - bis ( hydroxymethyl )- 5 , 5 - dimethyl - limidazolidine - 2 , 4 - dione ( dmdm hydantoin ), para - aminobenzoic acid ( paba ), 2 - ethylhexyl 4 - dimethylaminobenzoate ( padimate o ), butylphenyl methylpropional , propylparaben , phenolsulfonphthalein ( psp , phenol red ), or a polysorbate . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a commercial hair dye formulation , which may include hydrated iron oxide ( fe ( oh ) 3 ), para - phenylenediamine , ortho -, meta -, or para - aminophenol , 4 - amino - 2 - hydroxytoluene , trideceth - 2 carboxamide mea , phenyl methylpyrazolone , phenoxyethanol , a polyquaternium , hexyl cinnamal , butylphenyl methylpropional , phenolsulfonphthalein ( psp , phenol red ), hydroxyisohexyl 3 - cyclohexene carboxaldehyde , titanium dioxide , or iron oxide . in one embodiment , the essentially non - graphitic carbonaceous material comprises a commercial pesticide , which may include , but is not limited to , ortho - phenylphenol ( opp ), phenylhydroquinone ( phq ) or phenylbenzoquinone ( pbq ). the oxidizer may be in any form , including , but not limited to , gaseous , liquefied , powdered solid , or granular solid . the oxidizer may include one or any combination of the following , but is not limited to potassium nitrate , gaseous oxygen , sodium nitrate , ammonium dichromate , ammonium nitrate , ammonium perchlorate , potassium perchlorate , potassium permanganate , calcium nitrate , hydrogen peroxide , sodium bicarbonate , or mercury thiocyanate . in one embodiment , the reaction mixture includes a solvent . the solvent may include an alcohol , including one or any combination of the following , but is not limited to methanol , ethanol , isopropyl alcohol , n - propanol , or a gelled alcohol formulation , including , but not limited to a jellied , denatured alcohol formulation , such as a formulation including ethanol and methanol as found in sterno ® brand canned heat ( the sterno group , llc , des plaines , ill ., united states ), or a gelled alcohol formulation such as found in hand sanitizers , including formulations containing such thickening agents as polyacrylic acid , or propylene glycol . in one embodiment , the reaction mixture includes one or more catalysts or other additives . the additive or catalyst may include one or any combination of the following , but is not limited to sodium bicarbonate , aluminum bicarbonate , sodium aluminum phosphate , sodium aluminum sulfate , potassium carbonate , potassium phosphate , potassium hydroxide , aluminum hydroxide , magnesium hydroxide , magnesium sulfate , magnesium phosphate , cream of tartar , citric acid , ascorbic acid , sucrase , invertase , ferrocene , or a transition metal oxide catalyst , which may be in a nanopowder form , the catalyst including one or any combination of the following , but not limited to an iron oxide , including iron ( ii ) oxide , iron ( ii , iii ) oxide , iron ( iii ) oxide , iron ( ii ) hydroxide , iron ( iii ) hydroxide , or iron ( iii ) oxide - hydroxide , aluminum oxide , a copper oxide , including , but not limited to copper ( i ) oxide , or copper ( ii ) oxide , a nickel oxide , including , but not limited to nickel ( i ) oxide , or nickel ( ii ) oxide , a titanium oxide , including , but not limited to titanium dioxide , titanium ( i ) oxide , or titanium ( ii ) oxide , or a lead oxide , including , but not limited to lead ( ii ) oxide , lead ( iv ) oxide , lead tetroxide , or a lead sesquioxide . in one embodiment , sucrose and sodium bicarbonate are combined in about a 4 : 1 volume ratio , with ethanol added as a solvent , to form the reaction mixture . in one embodiment , the reactants are mixed with a flammable solvent such as methanol , ethanol , or isopropanol . in some of these embodiments , the carbon source is dissolved in the flammable solvent . in other embodiments , the reactants form a slurry with the solvent . in one embodiment , the reaction is performed in the absence of a solvent . in one embodiment , powdered sugar and sodium bicarbonate powder are combined in a 4 - to - 1 ratio and mixed with a metal oxide catalyst prior to exposure to heat . in one embodiment , the reaction mixture may additionally or alternatively include one or more of sodium bicarbonate , naphthalene , and linseed oil . in one embodiment , sucrose and potassium nitrate are combined in a ratio of about 35 : 65 to form the reaction mixture ( see rocket manual for amateurs by b . r . brinley , ballantine books , new york , n . y ., 1960 , and amateur experimental rocketry , vol . 7 by richard nakka , self - published on cd only , january 2011 ). in one embodiment , the reaction mixture further includes a metal oxide in the range of about 1 % to about 30 %, preferably about 5 %. in one embodiment , powdered sugar and an alcohol , preferably ethanol or isopropanol , are placed in a reaction vessel and mixed to form a paste reaction mixture . the reaction mixture is heated to produce a vapor containing vapor - exfoliated graphene / graphene derivative scale . in some embodiments , the reaction mixture further includes iron oxide in the form of bayferrox ® iron oxide powder pigment ( lanxess , cologne , germany ). in other embodiments , the iron oxide is in the form of high - purity fe 3 o 4 ( 15 - 20 nm ) nanopowder ( u . s . research nanomaterials , inc ., houston , tex ., united states ). in one embodiment , powdered sugar and gelled alcohol , in the form of a conventional hand sanitizer , including water , polyacrylic acid , and ˜ 60 % isopropyl alcohol , are placed in a reaction vessel and mixed together to form a reaction mixture . the reaction mixture is heated to produce a vapor containing vapor - exfoliated graphene / graphene derivative scales . in some embodiments , the reaction mixture further includes iron oxide in the form of bayferrox ® iron oxide powder pigment ( lanxess , cologne , germany ). in other embodiments , the iron oxide is in the form of high - purity fe 3 o 4 ( 15 - 20 nm ) nanopowder ( u . s . research nanomaterials , inc ., houston , tex ., united states ). in one embodiment , a reaction mixture of powdered sugar and an alcohol , preferably ethanol , is heated in a reaction vessel using a hot plate to a temperature lower than in previously - described embodiments using a direct flame . the reaction mixture is heated to a point causing vapor formation containing vapor - exfoliated graphene / graphene derivative scales . in one embodiment , the reaction mixture further includes iron oxide in the form of bayferrox ® iron oxide powder pigment ( lanxess , cologne , germany ). in one embodiment , the iron oxide is in the form of high - purity fe 3 o 4 ( 15 - 20 nm ) nanopowder ( u . s . research nanomaterials , inc ., houston , tex ., united states ). in one embodiment , the iron oxide source is a substrate onto which the other reactants are placed . in one embodiment , the iron oxide source is a rusted iron - based metal part . the reactants are then heated as in one of the previously - described embodiments . in one embodiment , the carbonaceous material is coal or a coal derivative . in one embodiment , the coal is a pulverized coal . in one embodiment , the coal is a nano - coal . in one embodiment , the carbonaceous material is one or more of coal , coke , and coal tar . in one embodiment , the coal or coal derivative is heated in a high boiling point temperature solvent to reflux temperatures . in one embodiment , the process is a poor or improper form of a coal tar distillation or coke oven with reaction gases being re - condensed and dripping back into the reaction mixture . in one embodiment , the carbonaceous material is sucrose . in some embodiments , concentrated sulfuric acid converts the sucrose to graphitic carbon , which may form with a foam morphology from trapped reaction gases , by a dehydration reaction as shown in equation 4 : in one embodiment , an excess of sulfuric acid is used , such that any water vapor or other gases formed during the dehydration reaction are released from the reaction mixture and the graphitic carbon product is not in the form of a foam . in one embodiment , excess heat is provided to the system to promote the release of all reaction gases . in one embodiment , heat is used to convert the sucrose to carbon by a dehydration reaction as shown in equation 5 : in one embodiment , a graphitic carbon source and a liquid are placed in a reaction vessel and mixed together to form a slurry mixture . the graphitic carbon source may be any material including graphitic carbon , including , but not limited to , natural graphite , synthetic graphite , one or more polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons ( pahs ), graphene , activated carbon , biochar , coal phlegm , one or more benzenoids , naphthalene , or any combination of these . in one embodiment , the graphitic carbon source is natural or synthetic graphite . in one embodiment , the graphite is ground into a fine powder . in one embodiment , the graphitic carbon source is an activated carbon . in one embodiment , the liquid includes one or any combination of an alcohol , water , or mineral oil . in one embodiment , the liquid is an acid or a strongly acidic solution . in one embodiment , the alcohol is methanol . the slurry mixture is heated to produce a vapor containing vapor - exfoliated graphene / graphene derivative scales . in one embodiment , the reaction mixture further includes iron oxide in the form of bayferrox ® iron oxide powder pigment ( lanxess , cologne , germany ). in one embodiment , the iron oxide is in the form of high - purity fe 3 o 4 ( 15 - 20 nm ) nanopowder ( u . s . research nanomaterials , inc ., houston , tex ., united states ). in one embodiment , a graphitic carbon product from the dehydration of sucrose and a solvent are placed in a reaction vessel and mixed together to form a slurry mixture . in one embodiment , the solvent may include one or any combination of an alcohol , water , and mineral oil . in one embodiment , the alcohol is methanol , ethanol , or isopropanol . the slurry mixture is heated to produce a vapor containing vapor - exfoliated graphene / graphene derivative scales . in v , the reaction mixture further includes iron oxide in the form of bayferrox ® iron oxide powder pigment ( lanxess , cologne , germany ). in one embodiment , the iron oxide is in the form of high - purity fe 3 o 4 ( 15 - 20 nm ) nanopowder ( u . s . research nanomaterials , inc ., houston , tex ., united states ). in one embodiment , the heat source is a direct open flame . in one embodiment , the heat source is a fuel mixed with the reactants ignited by an ignition source . in one embodiment , the heat source is a hot plate . in one embodiment , an additional reagent is added to promote formation of a reaction gas . in one embodiment , the additional reagent is sodium bicarbonate and the reaction gas is carbon dioxide . in one embodiment , the reactants are heated to autoignition . in one embodiment , the chemical reaction may purposefully occur under pyrolysis conditions . in one embodiment , a reaction may purposefully occur under conditions of insufficient oxygen for combustion or minimal oxygen or within a partial vacuum chamber . in one embodiment , at least some of the reactants are heated during product formation in a controlled low - oxygen atmosphere . in one embodiment , a reaction may purposefully employ an additive to promote incomplete combustion and formation of soot or other products of incomplete combustion or pyrolysis . in one embodiment , the reaction may be carried out quickly by exposing the reaction mixture to the heat of a direct flame . in one embodiment , solid reactants are mixed and heated with a direct flame in a reaction container such as a crucible . although the fuel for the flame may be any fuel within the spirit of the present invention , the fuel in these embodiments is preferably a relatively clean - burning fuel such as methane , ethane , propane , or butane . in one embodiment , the system is externally heated to a temperature just below an autoignition temperature for the system to initiate product formation . in one embodiment , the graphene or go is formed as a product of heating an intumescent . intumescents are commonly used as fire retardants . an intumescent , as used herein , is any carbonaceous material that swells but does not burn when exposed to heat . the intumescent may include one or any combination of the following , but is not limited to dicresyl phosphates , tricresyl phosphates , including , but not limited to paracresyl phosphates , orthocresyl phosphates , or metacresyl phosphates polymer resin precursors , or certain epoxy resins , including , but not limited to thermosetting resins , including , but not limited to phenol - formaldehyde ( pf ) resins , melamine resins , cyanate ester resins , or polycyanurates , polyphenylene ether ( ppo ) resins , ethylene propylene diene monomer ( epdm ) resins , or polyolefin plastomer ( pop ) resins . in one embodiment , heating the intumescent produces a poor heat - conducting light char . in one embodiment , heating the intumescent produces a heavy char . in one embodiment , the resulting char is subjected to solvent attack and reheated to produce the graphene or go product . in one embodiment , the resulting char may then serve as the carbonaceous material for addition to , and reaction with , an oxidizer . in one embodiment , the char may be combined with an oil and heated to produce the graphene or go reaction product . in one embodiment , as outlined supra , the carbonaceous material carbon source added to the reactants , or additive , may include one or any combination of the following , but is not limited to linseed oil , a light paraffinic oil , a naphthalenic compound , a resin , a resin precursor , an alkyd , an alkyd resin , or an alkyd precursor , including , but not limited to , a polyol , including , but not limited to maltitol , xylitol , sorbitol , isomalt , pentaerythritol , ethylene glycol , glycerin or polyester . in one embodiment , the reactants include one or more polyols , one or more acid anhydrides , or one or more unsaturated fatty acid triglycerides . it is envisioned that modifications to the above - described methods may provide for easier collection of the graphene or go and may produce a higher yield . in one embodiment , no liquid or gel mixing medium is used . in one embodiment , the mixing medium is methanol . in one embodiment , the mixing medium is water . in one embodiment , the mixing medium is a solid , semi - solid , or gelatinous flammable material , which may be mixed with the carbon source . in one embodiment , the flammable material is a gel fuel made from denatured alcohol , water , and gel , such as sterno ® brand canned heat ( the sterno group llc , des plaines , ill ., united states ). in one embodiment , the denatured alcohol includes ethanol with one or more additives , which may include one or any combination of the following , but is not limited to methanol , isopropanol , acetone , methyl ethyl ketone , methyl isobutyl ketone , or denatonium . in one embodiment , the gel fuel is made from vinegar , calcium carbonate , and isopropanol . in such embodiments , the gel fuel may be gently heated to become more fluid for mixing with the reactants and then cooled to re - gel . in such an embodiment , a direct flame may be used only initially to ignite the gel fuel and initiate the reaction , with the flame being sustained by the burning of the gel fuel itself . in one embodiment , the vapor - borne graphene or graphene derivative scales are collected by deposition onto a solid surface contacting the vapor - borne scales . in one embodiment , the vapor - borne graphene or graphene derivative scales are collected using clean coal technology . in one embodiment , a scrubber ( see , for example , semrau , “ practical process design of particulate scrubbers ”, chem . eng ., vol . 84 , pp . 87 - 91 , 1977 ), preferably a wet scrubber , is used to collect any vapor - borne graphene or go scales . in one embodiment , flue gases are treated with steam to collect vapor - borne particles including any vapor - borne graphene or go scales . in one embodiment , the vapor - borne graphene or graphene derivative scales are collected by bubbling the produced vapor stream through a liquid . in one embodiment , the liquid is water . in other embodiments , the liquid is an oil , which may include , but is not limited to a vegetable oil or a lubricating oil . in one embodiment , a surfactant is added to the water to promote formation of a uniform layer of graphene or graphene derivative at the surface of the water . in one embodiment , the liquid is heated to promote the formation , via self - assembly , of a uniform layer of graphene or graphene derivative at the surface of the liquid . in one embodiment , the liquid is heated to near its boiling temperature . in one embodiment , additives are used to raise the boiling temperature of the liquid . in one embodiment , ultrasound is applied to the liquid to promote graphene or graphene derivative self - assembly on the liquid surface . in one embodiment , ultraviolet light is applied to the liquid to promote graphene or graphene derivative self - assembly on the liquid surface . in one embodiment , an argon atmosphere above the liquid promotes graphene or graphene derivative self - assembly on the liquid surface . in one embodiment , a reduced pressure is used to promote self - assembly of the graphene or graphene derivative ( see putz et al ., “ evolution of order during vacuum - assisted self - assembly of graphene oxide paper and associated polymer nanocomposites ”, asc nano , vol . 5 , pp . 6601 - 6609 , 2001 ). in one embodiment , the solvent remaining in the reaction flask containing graphitic material after completion of the pyrolysis step is used as a coating to form a composite reinforced by the graphitic material . in one embodiment , the graphitic - containing solvent is applied by dipping the material to be coated into the graphitic - containing solvent . in one embodiment , individual fibers are coated . in other embodiments , a fiber mesh is coated . in one embodiment , multiple layers are deposited to cover up any cracks in the graphitic material , thereby strengthening the coating . in one embodiment , the graphitic - containing solvent is mixed with a structural material to form a graphene - reinforced composite . in one embodiment , the graphitic - containing solvent is combined with pre - impregnated composite fibers ( pre - preg ) to form a graphene - reinforced composite material . in one embodiment , the carbon source for the graphitic material is a resin precursor for the particular resin to be reinforced by the graphitic material . in one embodiment , the aqueous collecting liquid used to accumulate the combustion product vapor is used in a mould to facilitate the fabrication of solid composite materials that make use of the combustion products . in one embodiment , the reaction vapors are collected and channeled directly onto the interior or exterior surface of a mould , without the use of a liquid collection medium . in one embodiment , the reaction vapors are collected and channeled directly onto the surface of a solid substrate . in one embodiment , the solid substrate is a fiber and a graphene - reinforced fiber composite is formed upon deposition . in one embodiment , the fiber is carbon fiber . in one embodiment , the fiber is polymeric . the graphene coating may be applied to the fiber either before or after weaving individual fibers together depending on the application and the desired properties for the graphene - fiber composite . in one embodiment , multiple layers are deposited to cover up cracks in the graphene sheets , thereby strengthening the coating . in one embodiment , the resulting collected vapor is suspended on a liquid that is later drained , evaporated , or otherwise removed , allowing the graphene , go , or rgo sheets to coat the inside of a mould or to be deposited on a solid or liquid substrate already in such mould or introduced into the mould , for the purpose of producing a composite material . in the system of fig3 , a reaction mixture is placed in a reaction vessel 10 . heat is applied to the reaction vessel 10 by a heating element 12 . generated reaction gases and gas - borne product build pressure in the reaction vessel 10 and exit the reaction vessel by a conduit 14 . the reaction gas stream exits the conduit 14 above the surface of liquid 16 . in another embodiment ( not shown ), conduit 14 directs the vapor below the surface of liquid 16 whereupon it bubbles to the surface 18 of the liquid 16 . in one embodiment ( not shown ), a sparger is attached to the end of conduit 14 provides multiple release points to distribute the reaction gas stream bubbles either under or above the surface the liquid . the reaction gases are released into the atmosphere 22 above the liquid surface 18 , while the graphene / graphene derivative product remains in the liquid , primarily accumulating at the liquid surface 18 . alternatively , the conduit 14 may release the reaction gas stream directly into the atmosphere 22 above the liquid surface 18 . in some such embodiments , the reaction gas stream is directed toward the liquid surface 18 by the conduit 14 . a temperature control element 24 may be used to control the temperature of the liquid by providing heat or cooling to promote formation of large graphene oxide sheets by hydrophobic self - assembly at the liquid surface . either the temperature control element 24 or a separate ultrasound element may provide ultrasonic vibration to promote formation of large graphene oxide sheets at the liquid surface . a cover ( not shown ) can be employed to cover liquid 16 to therefore create a closed controllable environment 22 above the liquid 16 . in one embodiment ( not shown ), an increased pressure is maintained in the environment 22 by a pressure source through a valve . in one embodiment , the pressure source is an inert gas , such as argon , to provide an inert environment above the liquid . in one embodiment ( not shown ), a release valve enables the release of excess pressure from the atmosphere 22 . the reaction vessel 10 preferably includes a pressure equalizing valve 34 to relieve excess vacuum formed in the reaction vessel 10 , which prevents liquid from being drawn in to the conduit 14 toward the reaction vessel 10 during refluxing and reaction . in one embodiment , the reaction vessel is a büchner flask apparatus . in one embodiment , the top of the flask is stoppered and tubing is connected to the flask &# 39 ; s hose barb . in one embodiment , the other end of the tubing is placed under a liquid without any kind of sparger at the end of the tubing . in one embodiment , the pressure equalizing valve is connected to a line extending through the stopper on the top of the büchner flask . in one embodiment , the graphene or graphene derivative formed at the surface of the liquid is transferred to a solid substrate by simply contacting such solid substrate with the surface of the liquid , such as by a langmuir - blodgett - type deposition ( see , for example , blodgett , “ films built by depositing successive monomolecular layers on a solid surface ”, j . amer . chem . soc ., vol . 57 , pp . 1007 - 1022 , 1935 ). in one embodiment , the collected go or graphene product is further reduced or otherwise treated to remove remaining impurities from the product . in one embodiment , the go reaction product is converted to reduced graphene oxide ( rgo ). in one embodiment , the go is chemically reduced to rgo , as generically represented in equation 4 : in one embodiment , the go is colloidally dispersed in water or another liquid and chemically reduced to rgo using hydrazine monohydrate ( see stankovich et al ., “ synthesis of graphene - based nanosheets via chemical reduction of exfoliated graphite oxide ”, carbon , vol . 45 , pp . 1558 - 1565 , 2007 , gao et al ., “ hydrazine and thermal reduction of graphene oxide : reaction mechanisms ”, j . phys . chem . c , vol . 114 , pp . 832 - 842 , 2010 ), si et al ., “ synthesis of water soluble graphene ”, nano lett ., vol . 9 , pp . 1679 - 1682 , 2008 ). in another embodiment , the go is chemically reduced to rgo using hydroquinone ( see wang et al ., “ facile synthesis and characterization of graphene nanosheets ”, j . phys . chem . c , vol . 112 , pp . 8192 - 8195 , 2008 ). in another embodiment , the go is chemically reduced to rgo using gaseous hydrogen ( see wu et al ., “ synthesis of high - quality graphene with a pre - determined number of layers ”, carbon , vol . 47 , pp . 493 - 499 , 2009 ). in other embodiments , the go is chemically reduced to rgo using a strongly basic solution ( see fan et al ., “ deoxygenation of exfoliated graphite oxide under alkaline conditions : a green route to graphene preparation ”, adv . mater ., vol . 20 , pp . 4490 - 4493 , 2008 , boehm et al ., “ das adsorptionsverhalten sehr dünner kohlenstoff - folien ”, z . anorg . allg . chem ., vol . 316 , pp . 119 - 127 , 1962 ). in one embodiment , heat or an electrical current is used to reduce the go to rgo . in one embodiment , the go is thermally exfoliated and reduced to rgo upon heating to 1050 ° c . and extrusion to remove generated carbon dioxide ( see mcallister et al ., “ single sheet functionalized graphene by oxidation and thermal expansion of graphite ”, chem . mater ., vol . 19 , pp . 4396 - 4404 , 2007 ). in one embodiment , the go is electrochemically reduced to rgo by placing electrodes at opposite ends of a graphene oxide film on a non - conductive substrate and applying an electrical current ( see zhou et al ., “ controlled synthesis of large - area and patterned electrochemically reduced graphene oxide films ”, chem .- eur . j ., vol . 15 , pp . 6116 - 6120 , 2009 ). in one embodiment , the addition of hydrazine monohydrate to the water , through which the produced graphene oxide is bubbled , followed by heating the aqueous solution to ˜ 80 ° c . converts the graphene oxide product to a self - assembled film of reduced graphene oxide platelets at the air - water interface ( see zhu et al ., “ transparent self - assembled films of reduced graphene oxide platelets ”, appl . phys . lett ., vol . 95 , pp . 103 , 104 - 1 - 103 , 104 - 3 , 2009 ). additional external forces may be applied to the liquid to encourage self - assembly of the rgo platelets , including , but not limited to , ultrasonic vibrations or ultraviolet light . in one embodiment , the above - described products are used in combination with polymer resins to form high - strength composites . the polymer resins are preferably epoxy polymer resins . in some embodiments , the composites further include carbon fibers . in one embodiment , the polymer resin and the graphene / graphene derivative are formed as alternating layers in the composite . in one embodiment , a graphene / graphene derivative layer is deposited as a vapor onto a polymer resin layer . in one embodiment , a graphene / graphene derivative layer is deposited from an aqueous surface onto a polymer resin layer . in one embodiment , a graphene / graphene derivative paste is applied to a polymer resin layer . in one embodiment , the graphene / graphene derivative is formed directly on the polymer resin layer by dehydration of sucrose using concentrated sulfuric acid , where the polymer resin material is highly resistant to sulfuric acid . highly sulfuric acid - resistant polymeric materials include , but are not limited to , polyvinyl chloride ( pvc ), chlorinated pvc ( cpvc ), polyvinylediene fluoride , polytetrafluoroethylene ( ptfe ), poly ( chlorotrifluoroethylene ) ( ctfe ), epoxy resin fiberglass , and ep21ar epoxy ( master bond , inc ., hackensack , n . j ., united states ). in one embodiment , the resin is one of the following or a hybrid - type combination of the following polymer resins ( 1 ) one or more thermoplastic alkyl phenol resins , typically used in the manufacture of tires , ( 2 ) one or more novolac ®- type paraoctylphenol ( pop ) formaldehyde resins , ( 3 ) one or more polytone ®- type para - tertiary butylphenol ( ptbp ) formaldehyde non - heat - reactive tackifying resins , ( 4 ) one or more polyphenylene ether ( ppe ) resins , and ( 5 ) one or more polyphenylene oxide ( ppo ) resins , including , but not limited to , one or more siloxane polyphenylene oxide resins . in one embodiment , the graphene / graphene derivative is mixed with the polymer resin before the resin sets . in one embodiment , carbon fibers are also mixed with the graphene / graphene derivative and un - set polymer resin . the type of polymer resin and the relative levels of graphene / graphene derivative and carbon fiber are preferably selected to provide an appropriate balance of strength and flexibility preferred for a particular specific use or application for the resulting composite product . in one embodiment , the resin for the polymer of the composite is also the carbon source for the graphene / graphene derivative part of the composite . in one embodiment , the graphene / go - reinforced polymer composite is used in structural applications conventionally restricted to metallic materials , such as the frame of a vehicle . in one embodiment , the polymer composite is re - moldable , and hence recyclable from use in one structure to use in another structure . in a method of forming gelled graphene or graphene jelly , an aqueous pool containing graphene / graphene derivative scales was allowed to evaporate over time . in one embodiment , the starting materials for producing the reaction mixture to produce the graphene / graphene derivative scales comprise sucrose , baking powder , ethanol , and iron oxide . in one embodiment , the water in the aqueous pool evaporated very slowly and after a period of about one month at about room temperature , half of an original volume of ˜ 800 ml of fluid remained in the beaker . a gooey gel layer , which could be peeled off , formed at the top of the fluid . under this top layer , there was a cloudy whitish layer about 1½ ″- thick , having the consistency of a thin jelly . although the composition and physical characteristics of these graphene jellies were not further tested , it is expected that these forms of graphene have useful physical and chemical properties . in one embodiment , the aqueous gelled graphene or the aqueous pool with the collected graphene or graphene derivative is used in place of water in the formation of a composite material . in one embodiment , the aqueous gelled graphene or the aqueous pool with the collected graphene or graphene derivative is used in place of water in a cement mixture to form a graphene - reinforced concrete with improved strength relative to convention concrete . in one embodiment , the aqueous gelled graphene or the aqueous pool with the collected graphene or graphene derivative is used in the formation of asphalt concrete to form graphene - reinforced asphalt concrete with improved strength relative to convention asphalt concrete . in one embodiment , carbon dioxide or carbon monoxide is used as a carbon source in the production of graphene , a graphene derivative , a carbon - encapsulated metallic nanoparticle , or nano - steel , thereby potentially removing excess carbon from the environment . carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide are convertible into a number of different products suitable as carbonaceous feedstock for the synthesis methods contained herein , such as synthetic methanol ( see , for example , sakakura et al ., “ transformation of carbon dioxide ”, chem . rev ., vol . 107 , pp . 2365 - 2387 , 2007 , yu et al ., “ copper - and copper - n - heterocyclic carbene - catalyzed c — h activating carboxylation of terminal alkynes with co 2 at ambient conditions ”, pnas , vol . 107 , pp . 20184 - 20189 , 2010 , jiang et al ., “ turning carbon dioxide into fuel ”, phil . trans . r . soc . a , vol . 368 , pp . 3343 - 3364 , 2010 ). in one embodiment , the carbon monoxide or carbon dioxide is first converted into one or more intermediate forms of carbonaceous material , capable of combustion or pyrolysis reactions to incorporate the carbon atom from such gasses into a useful carbon - carbon graphitic bond . in one embodiment , the intermediate in such conversion is an alcohol formed by reaction of carbon dioxide with hydrogen gas . in one embodiment , the carbon dioxide is supplied directly to the reflux mixture for reaction with hydrogen gas generated by refluxing of the reflux mixture , thereby forming the synthetic methanol in situ . in one embodiment incorporating iron oxide , the process operates like a nano - scale bessemer furnace to form nano - steel . referring specifically to fig7 , significant charging is observed all over the sample , especially at the edges of the spheroid . since the sample is charging in general , the probable feature causing this charging is the presence of a non - conductive matter all over the sample . the only possible non - conductive material based on the elemental analysis would be an oxide . thus it is concluded that there is a layer of oxide all over the stub . regarding the charging of the spheroids , as a sharp edge is not observed in the images , the spheroids must contain both conductive and non - conductive matter . the most probable cause for this phenomenon would be elemental iron trapped in a non - conductive carbon - oxide matrix . elemental iron conducts and glows under the sem but the non - conductive carbon - oxide matrix is strong enough to prevent the spheroid structure from breaking up in spite of being non - conductive and not being able to pass on the charge to the oxide layer all over the sample . the inference is that the oxide outer layer is graphene oxide and the conductive material is iron , given that the eds reports the presence of only iron , carbon , and oxygen . if the outer shell of the balls were pure carbon , such as if the structure were graphene or a fullerene , it would have been conductive and no charging of samples would be seen , as is the case for carbon nanotubes or carbon tape materials commonly used as sem accessories . since the outer layer is charging , it must be non - conductive , and so the most likely form of carbon is graphene oxide . also , as mentioned before , the entire stub charges to some extent , as shown in the sem images . therefore , it is also concluded that layers of graphene oxide are present all throughout the sample . in one embodiment , the nano - steel is machined to form a nano - circuit or other nanostructure . in some embodiments , a laser etching nano - beam is used to shape the nano - steel . several tests were run to create and recover graphene and its derivatives , and to produce sgans , according to the invention . in a method of synthesis of sgans , a reaction mixture was heated using a direct flame . bayferrox ® iron oxide powder pigment ( lanxess , cologne , germany ), powdered sugar , and ethanol were placed in a reaction vessel and mixed into a paste to form a reaction mixture . the reaction mixture was heated with the direct flame of a propane torch , and an sem stub was held above the heated reaction mixture in the smoke and / or vapor produced by heating the reaction mixture . the surface of the sem stub was then viewed using a philips ® xl series xl 30 esem - feg ( fei ™ company , hillsboro , oreg ., united states ), using edax ® genesis ™ version 4 . 61 software ( amatek ® inc ., mahwah , n . j ., united states ) and a scandium imaging platform . the resulting electron microscope images of surfaces of the stub are shown in fig4 through 7 . the accompanying elemental analysis by eds for the sampled area ( with the copper and aluminum readings from the stub itself being removed ) showed only carbon , oxygen , and iron in the weight ( wt %) and atomic ( at %) percentages shown in table 1 for the areas in the boxes sampled in fig4 through 7 . fig4 through 6 show spheroid structures with diameters in the range of ˜ 2 - 5 microns , and all of the figures show non - spheroid , irregularly - shaped structures with lengths in the range of ˜ 1 - 5 microns . the sampled areas of the spheroids of fig4 through 5c all show primarily carbon and oxygen with similar low values of iron . referring specifically to fig4 , the edax ® beam is aimed at a large area of a spheroid structure having a diameter of almost 5 μm . referring specifically to fig5 a , the edax ® point beam is aimed at a divot on the surface of a spheroid having a diameter between 2 and 3 μm . referring specifically to fig5 b , the edax ® beam is aimed at a small white area on the surface of the spheroid of fig5 a , with this image clearly showing the spheroid nature of the structure and the presence of surface imperfections . referring specifically to fig5 c , the edax ® beam is aimed on a wider portion of the spheroid of fig5 a . this structure is believed to contain significantly higher internal iron levels than those measured by eds , with the low reading of iron by eds indicating low edax ® beam penetration of the outer shell into the spheroid cortex . the spheroid structures are believed to be multi - layer graphene oxide nano - onions , with the multiple graphene oxide layers shielding the internal iron from detection by eds . fig6 shows the irregular structure of one of the non - spheroid features observed on the surface of the stub . the morphology of these structures is believed to be graphene oxide paper . the brighter areas of this image indicate higher concentrations of iron . the amount of iron in this structure , as measured by eds , is almost ten times greater than what is measured in the spheroid structures . it is believed that the electron beam is able to penetrate this thin graphene oxide paper more than it is able to penetrate into the multi - layer spheroids , so that more iron is reported in this sample . the observed spheroid structures were determined to be highly stable , as focusing of the edax ® beam on the structure for more than 20 minutes had no observable effect on the structure . in some sem images , a square area of shade on the stem was observed , indicating electron excitation and a non - conductive surface , presumably coated with a graphene oxide film . in another method of synthesis of sgans , a reaction mixture was heated using a direct flame . bayferrox ® iron oxide powder pigment ( lanxess , cologne , germany ), powdered sugar , and gelled alcohol , in the form of a common hand sanitizer formulation including water , polyacrylic acid , and ˜ 60 % isopropyl alcohol , were placed in a reaction vessel and mixed together to form a reaction mixture . the reaction mixture was heated with the direct flame of a propane torch and an sem stub was held above the heated reaction mixture in the smoke and / or vapor produced by heating the reaction mixture . the surface of the sem stub was studied using a philips ® xl series xl 30 esem - feg ( fei ™ company , hillsboro , oreg ., united states ), using edax ® genesis ™ version 4 . 61 software ( amatek ® inc ., mahwah , n . j ., united states ) and a scandium imaging platform . the resulting electron microscope images of surfaces of the stub are shown in fig8 through 11 . the accompanying elemental analysis by eds ( with the copper and aluminum readings from the stub itself being removed ) showed only carbon ( 64 . 40 wt %/ 79 . 37 at %), oxygen ( 16 . 95 wt %/ 15 . 68 at %), and iron ( 18 . 65 wt %/ 4 . 94 at %) for the sampled area of fig8 . the observed structures on the sem stub were generally smaller than those observed from the previous synthesis using ethanol rather than gelled alcohol . the number of spheroid structures in relation to flake structures was observed to be much higher than in the synthesis using ethanol . fig1 shows an area of high concentration of spheroid structures . fig1 shows a larger area of the sem stub at a lower magnification . the image shows that a very thin film has been deposited continuously over a large area of the sem stub . for imaging purposes , a gold / palladium coating was vapor - deposited onto the sample . the gold / palladium coating , however , was observed to be much thicker than the graphene oxide vapor coating , leading to the complete masking of any graphene oxide vapor coating detail by the gold / palladium coating . it is also significant to note that the gold / palladium coating shows that the graphene oxide vapor coating was unbroken on the whole stub . in another method of synthesis of sgans , a reaction mixture was heated using a direct flame . bayferrox ® iron oxide powder pigment ( lanxess , cologne , germany ), activated charcoal , methanol , and mineral oil were placed in a reaction vessel and mixed together to form a reaction mixture . the reaction mixture was heated with the direct flame of a propane torch and an sem stub was held above the heated reaction mixture in the smoke and / or vapor formed from heating the reaction mixture . the surface of the sem stub was studied using a philips ® xl series xl 30 esem - feg ( fei ™ company , hillsboro , oreg ., united states ), using edax ® genesis ™ version 4 . 61 software ( amatek ® inc ., mahwah , n . j ., united states ) and a scandium imaging platform . the resulting electron microscope images of surfaces of the stub revealed structures similar in appearance to those from the above - described experiments , including spheroids in the range of 5 - 15 μm in diameter and larger irregular crystalline structures having minimum width dimensions in the range of 10 - 50 μm . the accompanying elemental analysis by eds ( with the copper and aluminum readings from the stub itself being removed ) showed , in addition to carbon , oxygen , and iron , a number of impurities including calcium , copper , sodium , silicon , and lead , all of which can form face - centered cubic ( fcc ) crystals . in another method of synthesis of nanoparticles , a reaction mixture was heated using a hot plate to a lower temperature than in the previously described method using a direct flame . iron oxide powder , powdered sugar , and ethanol were placed in a büchner flask . the top of the flask was stoppered and plastic tubing was connected to the hose barb . the other end of the plastic tubing was placed under water in a beaker of distilled water . the reaction mixture was heated , causing vapor formation , which bubbled through the distilled water . after completion of the reaction , the water was allowed to evaporate slowly in the beaker , with the surface of the water having a gelatinous consistency and with a white residue being deposited on the walls of the beaker above the water surface as the water evaporated . although the white residue was not characterized , it is believed to be made of sgans . in another method of synthesis of nanoparticles , powdered sugar (“ 365 organic powdered sugar ” from whole foods market , lp ( austin , tex ., united states ). ingredients : organic cane sugar , organic tapioca starch ), hand sanitizer (“ instant hand sanitizer ” from greenbrier international , inc . ( chesapeake , va ., united states ). ingredients : ethyl alcohol 62 %, water , triethanolamine glycerin , proplyene glycol , tocopheryl acetate , aloe barbadensis gel , carbomer , fragrance ), isopropanol (“ 99 % isopropyl alcohol ” from meijer distributing inc . ( grand rapids , mich ., united states )), baking powder (“ dr . oetker baking powder ” from dr . oetker canada , ltd . ( mississauga , ontario , canada ). ingredients : sodium acid pyrophosphate , sodium bicarbonate , corn starch ), and mineral oil (“ walgreens mineral oil intestinal lubricant ” from walgreen co . ( deerfield , ill ., united states )) were combined in a flask . the flask was heated with a direct flame to convert the sugar to graphitic carbon . the top of the flask was stoppered and tubing directed the reaction gas stream containing the vapor - exfoliated graphene scales to bubble into a water bath . mineral oil was added to the flask as needed to maintain liquid in the flask . a metal spatula was contacted to the surface of the water bath to collect the reaction product which had formed there after being transported by the vapor stream . a visible film was observed on the metal spatula after the spatula was allowed to dry overnight . although the metal spatula was dipped into the liquid at an angle , reaction product may alternatively be transferred to a solid surface by dipping the solid surface parallel or perpendicular to the liquid surface depending on the solid surface and the desired surface coating . alternatively , the solid surface may be drawn up through the interface from below the liquid surface or by draining the liquid to deposit the product onto the solid surface in the liquid . the coated metal surface was then wiped against a carbon tem grid to transfer some of the graphene coating to the tem grid . the coating on the tem grid was observed using a philips ® tem ( fei ™ company , hillsboro , oreg ., united states ), serial number d609 , and the images in fig1 through 17 were recorded . these structures are similar in composition and morphology to structures referred to as holey carbon or lacey carbon . fig1 shows a fairly large , uniform graphene sheet morphology . fig1 shows a large graphene sheet morphology with a tendril extending to the left of the image . fig1 shows folded multilayer graphene sheets . fig1 and 17 show thin strands of graphene connecting larger sheet areas , with fig1 showing a higher magnification of the multiple layers of such a strand . in addition to the images in fig1 through 17 , portions of the tem grid appeared completely black under the tem , because the deposited layer was too thick for the electron beam to pass through . in several other areas , the film appeared not to be completely dry and the graphene coating was observed to change shape under the electron beam . in a method of forming graphene sheets , activated charcoal , water , mineral oil , and isopropanol were heated in a capped büchner flask . as soon as the mixture began to boil and reflux , a white smoke began to be generated with the vapor . the whitish smoke was carried with the vapor out of the flask through plastic tubing and applied to the surface of an aqueous pool , where an opaque film formed on the surface . after waiting several minutes after the film had formed , portions of the film were transferred to copper tem grids for further study . the copper tem grids were studied using a philips ® tecnai f20 ( s ) tem ( fei ™ company , hillsboro , oreg ., united states ). representative images of the samples are shown in fig1 and 19 . for elemental analysis , the edax ® beam was used to determine the carbon - to - oxygen ratios at eight different points in the sample . the resulting analysis showed that the carbon - to - oxygen ratio in the samples was between 97 . 4 : 2 . 6 atomic % to 99 . 1 : 0 . 9 atomic % with an average of 98 . 4 : 1 . 6 atomic % from the eight samples . in comparison to the experiments with iron oxide in the reaction mixture , in the absence of iron oxide the resulting product was almost pure carbon in the form of graphene . in situ production of tribologically - effective amounts of beneficial carbonaceous deposits in lubricating compositions . embodiments of the invention employ cyclic - carbon containing additives for base lubricants intended to pyrolyze quickly in situ and produce tribologically - effective amounts of beneficial carbonaceous deposits and molecules within an engine or mechanical system . in one embodiment , the additive forms beneficial abrasive graphitic particles in situ in the lubrication composition that serve as nanopolishing agents to nano - polish friction surfaces and remove asperities before the base lubricant begins to degrade significantly . once the friction surfaces are nano - polished to near atomic - level perfection , there are no longer asperities on the friction surfaces to harbor harmful deposits . thus , harmful deposit formation on internal system parts and the need for conventional detergent additives in lubricating compositions are drastically reduced or even eliminated . the additives disclosed herein are not selected to improve or protect the underlying base lubricant . instead , the additives are selected to promote rapid in situ preferential formation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons or other graphitic carbon forms that are tribologically - useful graphitic carbon - containing nanoparticles or microparticles in tribologically - effective amounts . in one embodiment , the additive includes a carbon ring - containing additive consisting of only carbon , hydrogen , and oxygen atoms . in one embodiment , the carbon ring - containing additive is a hydrocarbon . any radicals in the lubricating composition preferably aid in the formation of the useful graphitic carbon particles . in one embodiment , the nanoparticles act as nano - polishing agents to nano - polish friction surfaces to a high smoothness by reduction or removal of asperities , thereby reducing the friction between the wear surfaces . over time , conventional base lubricants tend to lose viscosity , putting friction surfaces at risk for damage . with use of embodiments of the current invention , friction surfaces become increasingly nano - polished , so any thinning of the base lubricant through continued use actually allows the mechanical system to run more efficiently through reduction in the viscosity of the base lubricant . in one embodiment , the base lubricant starts as a heavier weight oil and progressively thins to a lighter weight oil over time as the friction surfaces become nano - polished . in one embodiment , the lubricating composition effectively lubricates despite extended drain or replacement intervals as compared to conventional base lubricants . instead of promoting degradation over time to form compounds that turn into amorphous carbon sludge , at least one of the additives preferentially promotes formation of one or more tribologically - useful graphitic carbon forms described herein . lubricating compositions of the present invention preferably include an additive selected to serve as a sacrificial carbon source for in situ formation of graphitic carbon , while the base lubricant continues to lubricate an operating engine or other mechanical system . the base lubricant may be a petroleum - refined or a synthetic oil , grease or liquid . the additive can be pyrolyzed to form graphitic carbon under the conditions of the operating engine or other mechanical system . in one embodiment , the additive can be pyrolyzed at a temperature of between ˜ 50 ° c . and ˜ 550 ° c . in one embodiment , the additive can be pyrolyzed at a temperature less than ˜ 50 ° c . or a temperature greater than ˜ 550 ° c . in an operating engine , such conditions may be reached locally at friction surfaces or on internal engine , turbo , turbine or gear surfaces . the additive is provided in a tribologically - effective amount such that in situ structures are formed and present in the lubricating composition to initially provide a sufficiently efficacious tribological coating on the friction surfaces of a lubricated system . the amount of additive to be added to the lubricant can be varied according to the desired rate of change of performance of the operating engine or other mechanical system , and the quantity of base lubricant to remain undiluted . addition of a higher amount of additive increases the rate of formation of the in situ structures but will also dilute the base lubricant . an effective amount of additive may therefore comprise from ˜ 10 mg per liter of base lubricant to ˜ 500 g per liter of base lubricant . these amounts are not intended to limit the invention in any manner and can be determined on a case by case basis by the formulator . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases friction in the lubricated system relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases friction in the lubricated system by at least 1 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases friction in the lubricated system by at least 2 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases friction in the lubricated system by at least 3 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases friction in the lubricated system by at least 4 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases friction in the lubricated system by at least 5 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases friction in the lubricated system by at least 10 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , a tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases negative horsepower in the lubricated system relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases measured horsepower in the lubricated system by at least 1 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases measured horsepower in the lubricated system by at least 2 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases measured horsepower in the lubricated system by at least 5 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases measured horsepower in the lubricated system by at least 10 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases measured horsepower in the lubricated system by at least 20 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases measured horsepower in the lubricated system by at least 50 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , a tribologically - effective amount of additive increases torque output in the lubricated system relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases torque output in the lubricated system by at least 1 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases torque output in the lubricated system by at least 2 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases torque output in the lubricated system by at least 5 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases torque output in the lubricated system by at least 10 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases torque output in the lubricated system by at least 20 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive increases torque output in the lubricated system by at least 50 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , a tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases the surface roughness of an internal friction surface in the lubricated system relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases the surface roughness of an internal friction surface in the lubricated system by at least 5 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases the surface roughness of an internal friction surface in the lubricated system by at least 10 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases the surface roughness of an internal friction surface in the lubricated system by at least 20 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases the surface roughness of an internal friction surface in the lubricated system by at least 50 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases the surface roughness of an internal friction surface in the lubricated system by at least 75 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the tribologically - effective amount of additive decreases the surface roughness of an internal friction surface in the lubricated system by at least 90 % relative to lubrication by the conventional lubricant to which it is added . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within 100 operating hours of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within 80 operating hours of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within 60 operating hours of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within 40 operating hours of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within 20 operating hours of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within 10 operating hours of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within 5 operating hours of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within 2 operating hours of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within one operating hour of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within 30 operating minutes of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within 10 operating minutes of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs within 5 operating minutes of the lubricated system after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . in one embodiment , the measurable change in friction , reduction in negative horsepower , or reduction in surface roughness occurs substantially instantaneously after adding the tribologically - effective amount of the additive . lubricating compositions including at least one additive , as described , improve engine performance and nano - polish lubricated metal surfaces . at least one of the additives is chemically modified in situ to form lubricating and nano - polishing particles , which have been observed on lubricated metal surfaces both by scanning electron microscopy ( sem ) and transmission electron microscopy ( tem ). observed spheroid structures on non - friction surfaces are generally in the 1 - 10 micron size range and are determined to be made primarily of carbon , oxygen , and iron . these microparticle structures are separated down to a basic particle no larger than ˜ 3 nm in dimension and hard enough to nano - polish steel surfaces to the measured surface roughness ( r a ) of 3 . 44 nm . for one embodiment , this basic particle has been analytically determined to be an sgan and , more specifically , a metallic sgan . in some embodiments , the metallic sgan is a ferric sgan . the core of the sgan can be a cubic close - packed crystal structure with a face - centered cubic metal . the cubic close - packed crystal can be of a metal oxide of the spinel family , which may include , but is not limited to , magnetite ( fe 3 o 4 ), spinel ( mgal 2 o 4 ), gahnite ( znal 2 o 4 ), hercynite ( feal 2 o 4 ), cuprospinet ( cufe 2 o 4 ), franklinite , galaxite , jacobsite ( mnfe 2 o 4 ), trevorite ( nife 2 o 4 ), ulvöspinet ( tife 2 o 4 ), zinc ferrite , chromite ( fecr 2 o 4 ), and magnesiochromite ( mgcr 2 o 4 ). in other embodiments , the core can be a non - spinel cubic crystal structure . the cubic crystal structure can include at least one iron atom . in some embodiments , the crystal core can be ferric hydroxide in spinel form ( belleville et al ., “ crystallization of ferric hydroxide into spinel by adsorption on colloidal magnetite ”, journal of colloid and interface science , vol . 150 , pp . 453 - 460 , 1992 ). in one embodiment , the crystal core can be fe x cu 1 - x rh 2 se 4 , where 0 & lt ; x ≦ 0 . 3 , in spinel form ( kim et al ., “ magnetic properties of the spinel phase for fe x cu 1 - x rh 2 se 4 ”, j . appl . phys ., vol . 64 , 342190 , 1988 ). in one embodiment , the crystal core forms in situ . in one embodiment , the additive includes a crystal core . in some embodiments , the crystal core can be formed by one or more mechanisms described by dekker (“ chapter 5 : deoxidation in low carbon steel killed with aluminum ” in ph . d . thesis , katholieke universiteit leuven , leuven , pp . 43 - 65 , belgium , 2002 ), botta et al . (“ mechanochemical synthesis of hercynite ”, materials chemistry and physics , vol . 76 , pp . 104 - 109 ), or chen et al . (“ synthesis of hercynite by reaction sintering ”, journal of the european ceramic society , vol . 31 , pp . 259 - 263 , 2011 ). in one embodiment , the shell of the sgan is believed to be a carbon fullerene or fullerene - like structure . in some embodiments , the carbon source is believed to be converted to pahs in situ as disclosed by bohme (“ pah and fullerene ions and ion / molecule reactions in interstellar and circumstellar chemistry ”, chem . rev ., vol . 92 , pp . 1487 - 1508 , 1992 ), mansurov (“ formation of soot from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons as well as fullerenes and carbon nanotubes in the combustion of hydrocarbon ”, journal of engineering physics and thermodynamics , vol . 84 , pp . 125 - 159 , 2011 ), or ravindra et al . (“ atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons : source attribution , emission factors and regulation ”, atmospheric environment , vol . 42 , pp . 2895 - 2921 , 2008 ) to form graphene sheets , wherein the graphene is then converted to a fullerene in the presence of iron by a mechanism such as the one disclosed by chuvilin et al . (“ direct transformation of graphene to fullerene ”, nature chemistry , vol . 2 , pp . 450 - 453 , 2010 ). in one embodiment , the carbon deposits on the surface of an iron particle are believed to be in the form of coke such as disclosed by meima et al . (“ catalyst deactivation phenomena in styrene production ”, applied catalysis a : general , vol . 212 , pp . 239 - 245 , 2001 ). in one embodiment , the sgan is believed to be surface graphitized . in one embodiment , the carbon may be deposited on the surface of an iron particle in the form of a cross - linked styrene sphere , such as the process of friedel - crafts alkylation , cross - linking and polymerization described by barar et al . (“ freidel - crafts cross - linking for polystyrene modification ”, ind . eng . chem . prod . res . dev ., vol . 22 , pp . 161 - 166 , 1983 ). in the observed sgans , at least some of the measured iron is expected to be in the form of magnetite , which would make sgans ferrimagnetic . in other embodiments , the sgan or crosslinked styrene spheres may include one or more ferromagnetic , paramagnetic , or superparamagnetic particles . in one embodiment , the sgans are believed to form in situ , agglomerate , and are coated with graphitic carbon in the form of one or any combination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons ( pahs ), graphene , graphene oxide ( go ), microtubule , and fullerene to form larger microparticles . under sheer , these agglomerates are believed to break down into smaller units or shed surface layers but re - agglomerate once removed from the high - sheer environment . the magnetic nature of the sgans or iron - containing crosslinked styrene spheres makes them attractive to each other , to graphitic carbon , and to iron - containing surfaces and iron - containing particles suspended in the lubricating composition . when a ferric sgan or larger aggregate nears a steel friction surface , the particle would then be attracted to the surface and serve both to aid in lubrication and to micro - polish the friction surface . the core supporting the shell of the sgan would provide the strength required to polish steel parts . the disclosed sgans are superior nano - polishers to nanodiamonds . since the core of the sgan is not believed to be chemically bonded to its shell , the shell is believed to be able to spin independently of the core , so as to act as a nano - ball bearing . additionally , the unbound shell of the sgan is believed to be less rigid than nanodiamond and thus more able to diffuse impact forces . in one embodiment , rather than the crystalline metal - containing cores described above , the sgan may have an aromatic carbon ring - containing core . in one embodiment , the aromatic carbon ring - containing core may be a styrene - or styrene derivative - containing core . in one embodiment , the aromatic carbon ring - containing core may form in situ in the lubricating composition by self - assembly of aromatic carbon ring - containing amphiphilic molecules . in one embodiment , the aromatic carbon ring - containing amphiphilic molecules may be styrene or styrene derivative amphiphilic molecules . in one embodiment , the self - assembled core may contain reactive groups that allow the molecules to chemically cross - link to each other once self - assembled . in one embodiment , a fullerene shell may form around the self - assembled core to form a nanoparticle similar to the above - described sgans to form a nano - polishing agent . in addition to the tested additives , many other classes of additives may be used in lubricating compositions to achieve similar results . the additive preferably has a structure with at least one cyclic ring , which may be aromatic or non - aromatic , and at least one functional group extending from the ring or from a chain extending from the ring . in one embodiment , the structure includes fused rings . the additive preferably has a structure including at least one oxygen atom in addition to carbon and hydrogen . in one embodiment , other heteroatoms may be present in the chemical structure , although they may not be required to achieve the desired results and may be disfavored . in one embodiment , the additive is dissolved in the lubricating composition . in one embodiment , the additive is a liquid that is miscible with the lubricant . in one embodiment , the additive includes a particulate . since conventional engine oil filters are designed to filter out substantially all particles greater than ˜ 40 μm in size , about half of the particles ˜ 20 μm in size , and about 10 - 20 % of particles ˜ 10 μm in size , the particulate additives to the engine oil preferably have an average particle size less than ˜ 10 μm to prevent clogging of an oil filter . in one embodiment , substantially all of the particles have a size less than ˜ 10 μm . in one embodiment , the particulate additives have an average particle size less than ˜ 5 μm . in one embodiment , substantially all of the particles have a size less than ˜ 5 μm . in one embodiment , the particulate additives have an average particle size less than ˜ 1 μm . in one embodiment , substantially all of the particles have a size less than ˜ 1 μm . in one embodiment , the additive comprises powdered sugar ( sucrose ). powdered sugars are commercially available in a variety of fineness and are commonly used for baking . 6 × powdered sugars have an average particle size of less than ˜ 200 μm . 10 × powdered sugars have an average particle size of less than ˜ 150 μm . fondant sugars are powdered sugars with an average particle size under ˜ 50 μm . commercially available fondant sugars include “ celebration ” ( british sugar , peterborough , uk , great britan ), a superfine sugar with an average particle size of ˜ 11 μm , “ silk sugar ” ( british sugar , peterborough , united kingdom , great britain ), an ultrafine sugar with an average particle size of ˜ 8 μm , and c & amp ; h baker &# 39 ; s drivert ( c & amp ; h sugar company , inc ., crockett , calif ., united states ) with an average particle size of ˜ 5 - 7 μm . in one embodiment , the powdered sugar has an average particle size less than ˜ 5 μm . in one embodiment , substantially all of the particles have a size less than ˜ 5 μm . in some embodiments , the powdered sugar has an average particle size less than ˜ 1 μm . in one embodiment , substantially all of the particles have a size less than ˜ 1 μm . in one embodiment , the powdered sugar is formed to the predetermined particle size by grinding crystalline sucrose in a dry environment . in one embodiment , the powdered sugar is ground using a known dry micro - milling technique of grinding crystals to micron or sub - micron particle sizes . in one embodiment , the powdered sugar is formed to the predetermined particle size by evaporative techniques such as evaporation of solvent from microdroplets of a dissolved sugar solution or lyophilization ( freeze - drying ) of a dissolved sugar solution . in one embodiment , sugar , preferably micro - powdered or nano - powdered sucrose , is added to a conventional lubricating fluid to serve as the carbon source for in situ formation of graphitic carbon while the lubricating composition lubricates an operating engine . in one embodiment , only sugar is added to a conventional base lubricant . in one embodiment , sugar and marvel mystery oil ( original formula , turtle wax , inc ., westmont , ill ., united states , naphthenic hydrocarbon and terpene source ) are added to a conventional base lubricant . in one embodiment , sugar and mineral oil are added to a conventional base lubricant . in one embodiment , sugar is combined with an oil surfactant to compatibilize the sugar prior to addition to the base lubricant ( see hiteshkumar et al ., “ self - assembly in sugar - oil complex glasses ”, nature materials , 6 , pp . 287 - 290 , 2007 ). in one embodiment , compatibilization of the sugar prevents the sugar from clogging a filter in the lubricated system as a gel or solid . in one embodiment , the oil surfactant is a terpene . in one embodiment , the terpene is limonene . in one embodiment , the sugar and oil surfactant are combined in a ratio less than about 1 : 1 . in one embodiment , the sugar - oil surfactant mixture is in a liquid state at the time of being added to the lubricating fluid . in one embodiment , the sugar is a sugar amphiphile . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a pyranose , a furanose , a cyclic carbomer , or a benzenoid ( see katritzky et al ., “ aqueous high - temperature chemistry of carbo - and heterocycles . 20 . 1 reactions of some benzenoid hydrocarbons and oxygen - containing derivatives in supercritical water at 460 ° c .”, energy & amp ; fuels , vol . 8 , pp . 487 - 497 , 1994 ), including , but not limited to , oxygen - containing benzenoids . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a sugar other than sucrose . in one embodiment the sugar comprises a molasses or molasses substitute , which may comprise , but is not limited to , sweet sorghum , sugar beet molasses , pomegranate molasses , mulberry molasses , carob molasses , date molasses , grape molasses , backstrap molasses , black treacle , bee &# 39 ; s honey , maple syrup , or corn syrup , including , but not limited to , high - fructose corn syrup . in some embodiments , the sugar comprises an invert sugar , which may comprise , but is not limited to , inverted sugar syrup . in one embodiment , the sugar comprises a deoxy sugar , which may comprise , but is not limited to , deoxyribose , fucose , or rhamnose . in one embodiment , the sugar comprises a monosaccharide , which may comprise , but is not limited to , glucose , fructose , galactose , xylose , or ribose . in one embodiment , the sugar comprises a disaccharide , which may comprise , but is not limited to , sucrose , lactulose , lactose , maltose , trehalose , cellobiose , or sophorose . in one embodiment , the sugar comprises a polysaccharide , which may comprise , but is not limited to , starch , glycogen , arabinoxylan , cellulose , chitin , or pectin . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a sugar alcohol , which may include , but is not limited to , erythritol , threitol , arabitol , xylitol , ribitol , mannitol , sorbitol , dulcitol , iditol , isomalt , maltitol , or lactitol . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a sugar substitute , which may include , but is not limited to , stevia , aspartame , sucralose , neotame , acesulfame potassium , or saccharin . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a sugar derivative , which may include , but is not limited to , sophoritol , a phenolic glycoside , a steviol glycoside , a saponin , a glycoside , a glucoside , or amygdalin . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a cyclomethicone , which may include , but is not limited to , phenyl trimethicone or cyclopentasiloxane . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a steroid , which may include , but is not limited to , sapogenin or diosgenin . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a cinnamate , which may include , but is not limited to , methyl or ethyl cinnamate . in one embodiment , the additive comprises cinnamic acid . in one embodiment , the additive comprises cinnamon oil . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a phenylphopanoid , which may include , but is not limited to , cinnamic acid , coumaric acid , caffeic acid , ferulic acid , 5 - hydroxyferulic acid , sinapic acid , cinnamaldehyde , umbelliferone , resveratrol , a monolignol , which may comprise , but is not limited to , coniferyl alcohol , coumaryl alcohol , or sinapyl alcohol , or a phenylpropene , which may comprise , but is not limited to , engenol , chavicol , safrole , or estragole . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a benzoate , which may include , but is not limited to , ferric , benzyl , ethyl , methyl , phenyl , cyclohexanol , 2 - phenyl -, pentaerythritol tetra -, sodium , or potassium benzoate . in one embodiment , the additive includes benzoic acid . in some embodiments , the additive comprises aminobenzoic acid . in one embodiment , the additive comprises 2 - hydroxymethyl benzoic acid methyl ester . in one embodiment , the additive includes ubiquinone . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a carboxylate , including but not limited to trimethyl cis , cis - 1 , 3 , 5 - cyclohexanetricarboxylate . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a benzopyran , which may include , but is not limited to , chromene , isochromene , or a substituted benzopyran . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a naturally - occurring or synthetic flavone or isoflavone , which may include , but is not limited to , flavan - 3 - ol or flavanone . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a salicylate , which may include , but is not limited to , ferric , methyl , ethyl , butyl , cinnamyl , cyclohexyl , ethylhexyl , heptyl , isoamyl , octyl , benzyl , phenyl , p - cresol , o - cresol , m - cresol , or sodium salicylate . in one embodiment , the additive includes salicylic acid . in one embodiment , the additive includes aminosalicylic acid . in one embodiment , the additive comprises an antioxidant . in one embodiment , the antioxidant is a cyclic antioxidant . in one embodiment , the antioxidant is a phenolic antioxidant , which may include , but is not limited to , 2 , 6 - di - terti - butylphenol , 2 - tert - butyl - 4 , 6 - dimethylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - tert - butyl - 4 - ethylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - tert - butyl - 4 - n - butylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - tert - butyl - 4 - 1 - butylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - cyclopentyl - 4 - methylphenol , 2 -( α - methylcyclohexyl )- 4 , 6 - dimethylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - octadecyl - methylphenol , 2 , 4 , 6 - tri - cyclohexylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - tert - butyl - 4 - methoxymethylphenol , 2 , 6 - di - tert - butyl - 4 - methoxyphenol , 2 , 5 - di - tert - butyl - hydroquinone , 2 , 5 - di - tert - amyl - hydroquinone , 2 , 6 - diphenyl - 4 - octadecyloxyphenol , 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -( 6 - tert - butyl - 4 - methylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -( 6 - tert - butyl - 4 - ethylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -[ 4 - methyl - 6 - α - methylcyclohexyl )- phenol ], 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -( 4 - methyl - 6 - cyclohexylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -( 6 - nonyl - 4 - methylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -[ 6 - α - methylbenzyl )- 4 - nonylphenol ], 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis [ 6 -( α , α - dimethylbenzyl )- 4 - nonylphenol ], 2 , 2 ′- methylene - bis -( 4 , 6 - di - tert - butylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- ethylidene - bis -( 4 , 6 - di - tert - butylphenol ), 2 , 2 ′- ethylidene - bis -( 6 - tert - butyl - 4 - isobutylphenol ), 4 , 4 ′- methylene - bis -( 2 , 6 - di - tert - butylphenol ), 4 , 4 ′- methylene - bis -( 6 - tert - butyl - 2 - methylphenol ), 1 , 1 - bis -( 5 - tert - butyl - 4 - hydroxy - 2 - methylphenyl )- butane , 2 , 6 - di -( 3 - tert - butyl - 5 - methyl - 2 - hydroxybenzyl )- 4 - methylphenol , 1 , 1 , 3 - tris -( 5 - tert - butyl - 4 - hydroxy - 2 - methylphenyl )- butane , and any naturally - occurring plant - based phenolic antioxidant , which may include , but is not limited to , ascorbic acid , a tocopherol , a tocotrienol , rosemarinic acid , and other phenolic acids and flavonoids , such as those found , for example , in grapes , berries , olives , soy , tea leaves , rosemary , basil , oregano , cinnamon , cumin , and turmeric . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a cyclic amino acid , which may include , but is not limited to , phenylalanine , tryptophan , or tyrosine . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a cyclohexane derivative , which may include , but is not limited to , 1 , 3 - cyclohexadiene or 1 , 4 - cyclohexadiene . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a benzene derivative which may include , but is not limited to , a polyphenol , benzaldehyde , benzotriazole , benzyl 1 - naphthyl carbonate , benzene , ethyl benzene , toluene , styrene , benzonitrile , phenol , phthalic anhydride , phthalic acid , terephthalic acid , p - toluic acid , benzoic acid , aminobenzoic acid , benzyl chloride , isoindole , ethyl phthalyl ethyl glycolate , n - phenyl benzamine , methoxybenzoquinone , benzylacetone , benzylideneacetone , hexyl cinnamaldehyde , 4 - amino - 2 - hydroxytoluene , 3 - aminophenol , or vanillin . in one embodiment , the benzene derivative additive comprises a benzenediol , which may include 1 , 2 - dihydroxybenzene ( catechol ), 1 , 3 - dihydroxybenzene ( resorcinol ), or 1 , 4 - dihydroxybenzene ( hydroquinone ). in one embodiment , the additive comprises a naphthoate , including but not limited to methyl 2 - methoxy - 1 - naphthoate or methyl 3 - methoxy - 2 - naphthoate . in one embodiment , the additive comprises an acrylate , including but not limited to benzyl 2 - propylacrylate or 2 - naphthyl methacrylate . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a phthalate , including but not limited to diallyl phthalate . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a succinate , including but not limited to bis ( 2 - carboxyphenyl ) succinate . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a carpate , including but not limited to methyl o - methylpodocarpate . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a fluorophore , which may include , but is not limited to , fluorescein isothiocyanate , rhodamine , phthalocyanine , or copper phthalocyanine . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a pharmaceutical , which may include , but is not limited to , acetylsalicylic acid , acetaminophen , ibuprofen , or a benzodiazepine . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a phosphate , which may include , but is not limited to , a cresyldiphenyl phosphate , a dicresyl phosphate , a triorthocresyl phosphate , a tricresyl phosphate , a paracresyl phosphate , an orthocresyl phosphate , or a metacresyl phosphate . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a compound that degrades to one or more of the above - mentioned additives under the heat of the operating conditions of the engine or mechanical system , such as certain terpenes or certain natural aromatic or non - aromatic cyclic esters , ketones , or aldehydes , which may include , but is not limited to , methyl salicylate ( wintergreen oil ), cinnamon leaf / bark oil ( cinnamaldehyde ), limonene ( dipentene ), pinene , and camphene . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a commercial edible personal / sexual lubricating composition including a sugar or sugar - substitute amphiphile . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a commercial ultraviolet ray sunscreen formulation , which may include octyl methoxycinnamate ( oxctinoxate ), butyl - methoxydibenzoylmethane ( b - mdm , avobenzone ), octyl - dimethyl - para - aminobenzoic acid ( od - paba ), octocrylene , oxybenzone , alkyl benzoate , diethylhexyl 2 , 6 - naphthalate , phenoxy - ethanol , homosalate , ethylhexyl triazone , 4 - methyl - benzylidene camphor ( 4 - mbc ), or a polysorbate . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a commercial skin cream formulation , which may include , but is not limited to carbomer , ascorbyl palmitate , tocopheryl acetate , ketoconazole , or mineral oil . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a commercial hand sanitizer formulation , which may include carbomer , tocopheryl acetate , or propylene glycol . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a commercial human or animal hair care product , which may include benzophenone , alkyl benzoate , phenoxyethanol , sorbitan oleate , a styrene copolymer , propylene glycol , hydroxyisohexyl - 3 - cyclohexene carboxaldehyde , butylated hydroxytoluene , ketoconazole , petrolatum , mineral oil , or paraffinum liquidum . in one embodiment , the commercial hair care product is a curl activating or relaxing solution , which may include carbomer , hexyl cinnamal , benzyl salicylate , trolamine salicylate , benzyl benzoate , limonene , eugenol , 1 , 3 - bis ( hydroxymethyl )- 5 , 5 - dimethyl - limidazolidine - 2 , 4 - dione ( dmdm hydantoin ), para - aminobenzoic acid ( paba ), 2 - ethylhexyl 4 - dimethylaminobenzoate ( padimate o ), butylphenyl methylpropional , propylparaben , phenolsulfonphthalein ( psp , phenol red ), or a polysorbate . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a commercial hair dye formulation , which may include hydrated iron oxide ( fe ( oh ) 3 ), para - phenylenediamine , ortho -, meta -, or para - aminophenol , 4 - amino - 2 - hydroxytoluene , trideceth - 2 carboxamide mea , phenyl methyl pyrazolone , phenoxyethanol , a polyquaternium , hexyl cinnamal , butylphenyl methylpropional , phenolsulfonphthalein ( psp , phenol red ), hydroxyisohexyl 3 - cyclohexene carboxaldehyde , titanium dioxide , or iron oxide . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a commercial pesticide , which may include , but is not limited to , ortho - phenylphenol ( opp ), phenylhydroquinone ( phq ) or phenylbenzoquinone ( pbq ). in one embodiment , the additive comprises a compound with a two - dimensional structure , which may include , but is not limited to , lignin , graphene , or graphene oxide . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a carbon form , which may include , but is not limited to , peat , lignite , bituminous coal , sub - bituminous coal , pulverized coal , nano - coal , steam coal , cannel coal , anthracite , charcoal , carbon black , activated charcoal , black liquor , graphite , graphene , graphene oxide , or sugar char . in one embodiment , the carbon form serves as a heat transfer agent in the lubricating composition . in one embodiment , the carbon form comprises a nanopowder . in one embodiment , the carbon form has an increased surface area . in one embodiment , the carbon form comprises a nano - activated charcoal . the nano - activated charcoal may comprise particles of activated charcoal that have been ground from a conventional activated charcoal to nanoparticle size . the activated charcoal may be ground using any conventional method to produce nanometer - sized particles . in one embodiment , the activated charcoal is ground using known wet or dry nano - milling techniques of grinding solids to sub - micron particle sizes . in one embodiment , the nano - activated charcoal has an average particle size less than ˜ 100 nm . in one embodiment , substantially all of the particles have a size less than ˜ 100 nm . in some one embodiment , the nano - activated charcoal has an average particle size less than ˜ 50 nm . in one embodiment , substantially all of the particles have a size less than ˜ 50 nm . in one embodiment , the carbon form comprises graphitic carbon . in one embodiment , the graphitic carbon comprises at least one pah , which may include , but is not limited to , naphthalene , acenaphthylene , acenaphthene , fluorine , phenanthrene , anthracene , fluoranthene , pyrene , benzo [ a ] anthracene , chrysene , benzo [ b ] fluoranthene , benzo [ k ] fluoranthene , benzo [ j ] fluoranthene , benzo [ a ] pyrene , benzo [ e ] pyrene , dibenz [ a , h ] anthracene , benzo [ g , h , i ] perylene , indeno [ 1 , 2 , 3 - c , d ] pyrene , tetracene , coronene , corannulene , pentacene , triphenylene , and ovalene . in one embodiment , the carbon form comprises a biochar or biocoal product of a hydrothermal carbonization process . in one embodiment , the additive provides the same benefits provided by tricresyl phosphate ( tcp ) to the lubricating system . tcp is considered a carcinogen and a factor in aerotoxic syndrome and is being phased out of use in many lubricating systems . in some embodiments , the additive comprises a “ dirty ” or poorly - refined form of mineral oil with high levels of pah contamination . industrially - produced white mineral oil includes very low levels of pahs , which must be essentially completely removed in order to sell the mineral oil as “ usp ” or “ food grade ”. in one embodiment , the separated waste mineral oils from these processes ( having the highest concentrations of pahs ) are used unprocessed and directly as additives or in combination with other additives . the white mineral oil component in this waste product serves as a wetting agent in the lubricating composition and the pahs serve as a heat transfer agent and graphitic carbon source in the formation of sgans and sgan - containing microsphere agglomerates . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a compatibilizer . a compatibilizer , as used herein , refers to a compound that aids in the dispersal of a carbon source in a lubricant or lubricating composition . in some embodiments , the compatibilizer is an amphiphile . in some embodiments , the compatibilizer comprises a surfactant . in some embodiments , the compatibilizer comprises a lipid . in some embodiments , the compatibilizer comprises a polymer . in some embodiments , the compatibilizer also serves as a carbon source . in some embodiments , the compatibilizer comprises a sugar amphiphile . a sugar amphiphile or a sugar - like amphiphile may be any molecule with a hydrophilic sugar portion and a hydrophobic portion , including , but not limited to , those described by fenimore (“ interfacial self - assembly of sugar - based amphiphiles : solid - and liquid - core capsules ”, university of cincinnati ph . d . thesis dated oct . 16 , 2009 ), jadhav et al . (“ sugar - derived phase - selective molecular gelators as model solidifiers for oil spills ”, angew . chem . int . ed ., vol . 49 , pp . 7695 - 7698 , 2010 ), jung et al . (“ self - assembling structures of long - chain sugar - based amphiphiles influenced by the introduction of double bonds ”, chem . eur . j ., vol . 11 , pp . 5538 - 5544 , 2005 ), paleta et al . (“ novel amphiphilic fluoroalkylated derivatives of xylitol , d - glucose and d - galactose for medical applications : hemocompatibility and co - emulsifying properties ”, carbohydrate research , vol . 337 , pp . 2411 - 2418 , 2002 ), germaneau (“ amphiphilic sugar metal carbenes : from fischer type to n - heterocyclic carbenes ( nhcs )”, rheinische friederich - wilhems - universitat bonn ph . d . thesis , 2007 ), and ye et al . (“ synthesis of sugar - containing amphiphiles for liquid and supercritical carbon dioxide ”, ind . eng . chem . res ., vol . 39 , pp . 4564 - 4566 , 2000 ). sugar amphiphiles may also include , but are not limited to , sophorolipids ( zhang et al ., “ synthesis and interfacial properties of sophorolipid derivatives ”, colloids and surfaces a : physicochem . eng . aspects , vol . 240 , pp . 75 - 82 , 2004 ), or rhamnolipids ( christova et al ., “ rhamnolipid biosurfactants produced by renibacterium salmoninarum 27bn during growth on n - hexadecane ”, zeitschrift fur naturforschung teil c biochemie biophysik biologie virologie , vol . 59 , pp . 70 - 74 , 2004 ). in one embodiment , the compatibilizer comprises a non - sugar graphene - promoting amphiphile . a graphene - promoting amphiphile may be any molecule with a hydrophilic graphene - promoting portion and a hydrophobic portion , which may include , but is not limited to , cetyltrimethylammonium bromide or those marketed by dow chemical company ( midland , mich ., united states ) under the trademarks triton ™ or tergitol ™, including , but not limited to , the triton ™ x series of octylphenol ethoxylates and the tergitol ™ np series of nonylphenol ethoxylates . in some embodiments , the graphene - promoting amphiphile is a non - ionic amphiphile . graphene - promoting amphiphiles may also comprise , but are not limited to , glycerol monostearate and nonoxyphenol surfactant . in one embodiment , the compatibilizer is used in combination with a particulate additive . in one embodiment , the compatibilizer promotes solubilization of the particulate additive in the base lubricant . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a metal oxide , which may comprise , but is not limited to , iron oxide , aluminum oxide , copper oxide , nickel oxide , titanium oxide , and lead oxide . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a form of iron . in some lubricating systems , such as many jet engine turbines , little or no iron is inherently present in the system . carbon - encapsulated iron particles formed in situ , however , are believed to provide the nano - polishing ability to lubricating compositions of the invention . therefore , in one embodiment , the lubricating fluid is supplemented with an iron - containing additive . in one embodiment , the iron - containing additive comprises an iron oxide . in one embodiment , the iron oxide is bayferrox ® iron oxide powder pigment ( lanxess , cologne , germany ). in one embodiment , the iron - containing additive comprises an iron oxide nanopowder . in one embodiment , the iron source comprises an iron complex molecule . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a cyclic iron - containing compound , including , but not limited to , ( η 2 - trans - cyclooctene ) 2 fe ( co ) 3 ; ( benzylideneacetone ) iron tricarbonyl , ferric enterochelin , tricarbonylbis [( 1 , 2 - h )- cycloctene ]- iron , iron ( 4 +) cyclooctane - 1 , 2 - diide — carbon monoxide , sodium ferrate ( 1 -); sodium bis ( 3 -( 4 , 5 - dihydro - 4 -(( 2 - hydroxy - 5 - nitrophenyl ) azo )- 3 - methyl - 5 - oxo - 1h - pyrazol - 1 - yl ) benzene - 1 - sulphonamidato ( 2 -)) ferrate ( 1 -); ferritin ; ( cyclo - 1 , 3 - c 4 h 8 — s 2 ) fe ( co ) 4 ; iron 2 , 4 - dinitrobenzene - 1 , 3 - diol ; iron phthalocyanine ; ferrocene ; ferric benzoate ; ferric salicylate ; cyclic ferrates ; or iron protein succinylate . in one embodiment , the additive comprises an acyclic iron - containing compound , including , but not limited to , diiron nonacarbonyl , iron pentacarbonyl , acyclic ferrates , liquid iron , iron oxalate , hydrated iron oxide ( fe ( oh ) 3 ), or an iron - containing nutritional supplement . in one embodiment , the iron - containing nutritional supplement comprises carbonyl iron . in one embodiment , the iron - containing complex is a catecholate - iron complex . in one embodiment , the additive comprises a siderophore , which may include , but is not limited to , 2 , 3 - dihydroxybenzoic acid ( 2 , 3 ′- dhb ), n , n ′, n ″-(( 3s , 7s , 11s )- 2 , 6 , 10 - trioxo - 1 , 5 , 9 - trioxacyclododecane - 3 , 7 , 11 - triyl ) tris ( 2 , 3 - dihydroxybenzamide ) ( enerobactin ), or 2 , 4 - dihydroxybenzoic acid ( 2 , 4 ′- dhb ). in one embodiment , the additive comprises an anthelmintic , including , but not limited to , 2 - deoxy - paraherquamide ( phq ). in one embodiment , the additive comprises an aromatic amino acid precursor , including , but not limited to , ( 3r , 4r )- 3 -[( 1 - carboxyvinyl ) oxy ]- 4 - hydroxycyclohexa - 1 , 5 - diene - 1 - carboxylic acid ( chorismic acid ). in one embodiment , the additive comprises a molecule capable of sequestering iron , which may include , but is not limited to , ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid , 2 - aminophenol ( see pulgarin et al ., “ iron oxide - mediated degradation , photodegradation , and biodegradation of aminophenols ”, langmuir , vol . 11 , pp . 519 - 526 , 1995 and andreozzi et al ., “ iron ( iii ) ( hydr ) oxide - mediated photooxidation of 2 - aminophenol in aqueous solution : a kinetic study ”, water research , vol . 37 , pp . 3682 - 3688 , 2003 ), or tetraphenyl oxo - metalloporphyrins . in one embodiment , the additive comprises nanodiamond intended to serve as the nucleating core of nanoparticles or microparticles incorporating the graphitic carbon formed in situ in the lubricating composition . the ex situ pyrolytic synthesis of sgans and sgan - containing agglomerates also accommodates the use of such molecules in non - lubricating applications . in one embodiment , the particles or agglomerates can be applied to the surface of a material as a coating to strengthen the material or increase the heat shielding or heat absorption of the material . in one embodiment , the coating can be a thermal coating , a drill coating , or a torch - resistant coating . in one embodiment , the material can be a ballistic projectile , which may include , but is not limited to , bullets and missiles . in one embodiment , the material can be an anti - ballistic device , including , but not limited to , military tank armor or personal armor , including , but not limited to , bullet - resistant vests or plates . in one embodiment , the material can be a tool , including , but not limited to , a cutting bit , a tunneling device , an abrasive polish , an abrasive paper , or a boring device . in one embodiment , the material can be a thermal shield , such as a re - entry heat shield panel , a nosecone , or a rocket engine cone for a spacecraft . in one embodiment , the particles or agglomerates can be combined with a material to form a composite material with greater strength or greater heat shielding or heat absorption properties than the base material itself . in some embodiments , the material can be a tire , fireproofing , firefighting equipment , or firefighting apparel . in one embodiment , the sgans or sgan - containing agglomerates of the invention can be used in electrochemical systems . in one embodiment , the sgans or sgan - containing agglomerates of the invention can be used as nano - batteries to hold an electrical charge . several lubricating compositions , including sacrificial carbon sources with structures expected to promote graphitic carbon formation under engine operating conditions , were tested in a series of motor scooters or motorized dirt bikes . these tests were conducted to test the efficacy of the compositions in small internal combustion engines , engines of a size and configuration such that improvements in friction reduction would be sufficiently obvious to a mechanic or operator without employing an external dynamometer to measure the changes . the conventional valvoline ® ( ashland inc ., lexington , ky ., united states ) 10w - 40 motor oil of a poorly functioning 8 , 850 mile 1999 honda elite 80 ( model ch80 ) ( honda de mexico , s . a . de c . v ., guadalajara , jalisco - mexico ) motor scooter was replaced with a lubricating composition of the invention . prior to addition of the lubricating composition , the engine of the motor scooter would barely maintain idle . when tested , the scooter would start , but soon after , would stall . when the motor scooter did operate , the top indicated speed was approximately 30 miles per hour . the lubricating composition tested included several hundred milligrams of whole foods market ( austin , tex ., united states ) organic powdered sugar ( powdered sucrose and tapioca ) mixed with walgreens ( deerfield , ill ., united states ) intestinal lubricant ( usp mineral oil ) mixed into motul ( aubervilliers , france ) 5100 10w - 40 semi - synthetic motor oil . the lubricating composition had an opaque appearance due to the large presence of sugar suspended in the solution . upon addition of the lubricating composition to the motor scooter , the engine was started and was then able to maintain an idle . immediately thereafter , the motor scooter was taken for a performance evaluation test ride . the lubricating composition was found to almost instantly increase the top speed of the motor scooter from 30 to 35 mph indicated . a distinct difference in the sound of the engine was also noted , with the engine sounding much smoother and quieter with use of the lubricating composition . after the test ride , the lubricating composition was drained from the engine when a characteristic epoxy - like smell was noted in the oil . this characteristic epoxy - like odor was expected and is believed to indicate the presence of epoxy - type precursor compounds in the oil , having formed from the incomplete pyrolysis of some of the remaining sugar molecules in the lubricating composition . another lubricating composition tested in the same 1999 honda elite 80 motor scooter ( model ch80 ) ( honda de mexico , s . a . de c . v ., guadalajara , jalisco - mexico ) consisted of one individual serving packet ( one gram ) of sweet &# 39 ; n low ( cumberland packing corp ., brooklyn , n . y ., united states ) zero calorie sweetener ( dextrose , saccharin , cream of tartar , calcium silicate ) in a few milliliters of citrasolv ® ( danbury , conn ., united states ) natural cleaner and degreaser ( d - limonene source ), that was then combined with a valvoline ® ( ashland inc ., lexington , ky ., united states ) 10w - 40 conventional motor oil . the motor scooter operated similarly on the saccharin - containing lubricating composition to the sugar - containing lubricating composition described above . after testing , this lubricating composition was drained from the motor scooter with little visible particulate noted . the drained oil was otherwise unremarkable , save the strong citrus smell from the limonene - containing citrasolv ® cleaner and degreaser . yet another lubricating composition was tested in the same 1999 honda elite 80 ( model ch80 ) ( honda de mexico , s . a . de c . v ., guadalajara , jalisco - mexico ) motor scooter , that included whole foods market ( austin , tex ., united states ) organic powdered sugar ( powdered sucrose and tapioca ) mixed with activated charcoal as an additive to valvoline ® ( ashland inc ., lexington , ky ., united states ) 10w - 40 conventional motor oil . according to the valvoline ® motor oil &# 39 ; s material safety data sheet , the oil has a reported flash point of 204 ° c . ( 399 . 2 ° f .) and a reported boiling point of 299 ° c . ( 570 . 2 ° f .). the normal operating temperature of the air - cooled engine &# 39 ; s cylinder head was measured to be ˜ 80 ° c . ( 176 ° f .). during the test , the engine cowling was modified to completely block all air flow from the cooling fan to the cylinder head . this meant that as the engine ran , the air surrounding the cylinder head was trapped and began to heat - up . the rising temperature of the cylinder head was monitored by a cen - tech ( zhangzhou eastern intelligent meter co . ltd ., zhangzhou , fujian , china ) 96451 non - contact infrared thermometer with laser targeting . the engine was run in this condition until the cylinder head reached a measured temperature of approximately 225 ° c . ( 437 ° f .). at this point in temperature , smoke was observed billowing from the crankcase breather valve and the plastic cowling around the engine was seen to begin melting . while in this condition and at this temperature , the engine was again run wot ( wide - open throttle ) and the engine continued to run without seizing . a short time thereafter , the engine was turned off and allowed to cool down . then the motor scooter was test ridden for a few miles during which it was observed to run perfectly smoothly with no noted degradation in performance . in yet another lubricating composition , ˜ 200 ml of whole foods market , lp ( austin , tex ., united states ) apricot kernel oil ( amygdalin source ) was combined with ˜ 550 ml of valvoline ® ( ashland inc ., lexington , ky ., united states ) 10w - 40 conventional motor oil . this lubricating composition was placed in a 125 mile 2011 jmstar ( shanghai jmstar motorcycle co ., ltd ., shanghai , china ) 150 cubic centimeter displacement gy6 - style engine motor scooter . although no measured increase in indicated top speed of the motor scooter was discernible during the evaluation test ride , the engine sounded qualitatively better and smoother using the lubricating composition , than with the conventional oil alone . in another lubricating composition , several ounces of roddenberry &# 39 ; s cane patch invert sugar cane syrup ( bay valley foods , llc , green bay , wis ., united states ) and ˜ 100 ml of marvel ® mystery oil ( turtle wax , inc ., westmont , ill ., united states , naphthenic carbon source ) were combined with valvoline ® ( ashland inc ., lexington , ky ., united states ) 10w - 40 conventional motor oil . this lubricating composition was placed in a baja motor sports ( phoenix , ariz ., united states ) dirt runner 125 cubic centimeter displacement motorized dirt bike . prior to the test , the dirt bike ran , but not particularly well . once the lubricating composition was added to the engine , the engine sounded qualitatively better and ran smoother than with the conventional lubricant . at the conclusion of the performance evaluation test rides , the oil was drained from the dirt bike &# 39 ; s engine and the anticipated and characteristic epoxy - like smell was again noted , indicating the presence of phenolic resin / epoxy precursors in the lubricant . in another lubricating composition , approximately 50 ml of spectrum usp - grade benzyl benzoate ( spectrum chemical mfg . corp ., new brunswick , n . j ., united states ) was mixed with 50 ml of 5w - 30 g - oil ® ( green earth technologies , celebration , fla ., united states ) ultimate biodegradable green motor oil , a conventional tallow - based motor oil . the approximately 100 ml of lubricating composition was then added to the existing engine oil in a 125 mile 2011 jmstar ( shanghai jmstar motorcycle co ., ltd ., shanghai , china ) 150 cubic centimeter displacement gy6 - style engine motor scooter . this lubricating composition qualitatively seemed to perform the best of all the lubricating compositions tested . a significant change in engine noise was observed after addition of the lubricating composition and the maximum engine rpms were later noted to have increased by 1000 rpm from approximately 10 , 000 rpm to 11 , 000 rpm . in another lubricating composition , approximately 20 drops of aura cacia organic cinnamon leaf oil ( frontier natural products co - op , norway , iowa , united states , methyl cinnamate source ) and approximately 10 ml of walgreens ( deerfield , ill ., united states ) intestinal lubricant ( usp mineral oil ), were combined with ˜ 200 ml of green 5w - 30 g - oil ® ( green earth technologies , celebration , fla ., united states ) ultimate biodegradable green motor oil . this lubricating composition was placed in a baja motor sports ( phoenix , ariz ., united states ) dirt runner 125 cubic centimeter displacement motorized dirt bike . this lubricating composition performed similarly to the previous lubricating composition including benzyl benzoate , yet a pungent cinnamon - like odor was noted while operating . in another lubricating composition , approximately 100 ml of a mixture of spectrum ® usp - grade benzyl benzoate ( spectrum chemical manufacturing corp ., new brunswick , n . j ., united states ), walgreens ( deerfield , ill ., united states ) intestinal lubricant ( usp mineral oil ), and lucas automatic transmission fluid conditioner ( lucas oil products , inc ., corona , calif ., united states , antioxidant source ) was added to the engine base lubricant of a new ( 2 - mile ) 2011 50 cc - engine scooter , model gmw - m2 ( taizhou zhongneng motorcycle company , ltd ., taizhou , china ) with a modified transmission and exhaust system . an almost instant increase in horsepower of the engine was noted and the top speed of the scooter almost instantly increased from 33 to 39 mph , indicated , an 18 % increase . in another lubricating composition , a formulation comprising three quarts of a zddp - containing high grade synthetic motorcycle motor oil mixed with about one quart of a mixture comprising marvel mystery oil original formula , turtle wax , inc ., westmont , ill ., united states ), lucas synthetic oil stabilizer ( lucas oil products , inc ., corona , calif ., united states ), lucas automatic transmission fluid conditioner ( lucas oil products , inc ., corona , calif ., united states ), and zmax ® ( oil - chem research corporation , bedford park , ill ., united states ), in a volume ratio of about 60 : 17 : 70 : 30 was used to replace the existing motor oil in a 1999 yamaha r1 ( yamaha motor co ., ltd ., iwata , japan ) test motorcycle with a 1000 cc engine . engine performance testing with this formulation was accomplished using a dynojet 250i dynamometer ( dynojet research inc ., las vegas , nev ., united states ) to measure the power and torque output at the rear wheel of the test motorcycle both 10 minutes after the oil change and again one week after the oil change . a summary of the dynamometer test results for these two test runs is shown in table 2 ( a ) and table 2 ( b ): as can be seen in table 2 ( a ), an increased output of about 1 horsepower and about 1 ft - lb of torque is observed in the 10 - minute test , in comparison to the horsepower and torque previously measured on the motorcycle using another commercially - available high grade motorcycle motor oil . the effect of the new lubrication composition was even more dramatic after 7 days of use . at the subsequent 1 - week test , an additional increase in registered horsepower and torque output of 3 % to 4 % over the 10 - minute test values was observed . specifically , the registered horsepower increased by about 3 to 5 hp across the entire range of engine speeds tested ( 4500 rpm to about 11 , 000 rpm ). as seen in table 2 ( b ), a horsepower output of 102 . 96 was measured at 7500 rpm during the 10 - minute test , compared to a horsepower output of 107 . 90 measured at 7500 rpm during the subsequent 1 - week test . the maximum torque increased from about 74 . 04 to about 75 . 3 ft - lbs from the 10 - minute test to the 1 - week test . in another lubricating composition , about three to about four ounces of a mixture of marvel mystery oil ( original formula , turtle wax , inc ., westmont , ill ., united states ), lucas synthetic oil stabilizer ( lucas oil products , inc ., corona , calif ., united states ), lucas automatic transmission fluid conditioner ( lucas oil products , inc ., corona , calif ., united states ), zmax ® micro - lubricant ( oil - chem research corporation , bedford park , ill ., united states ), were combined with marvel air tool oil ( turtle wax , inc ., westmont , ill ., united states ), in a volume ratio of about 12 : 3 : 14 : 10 : 9 and then added to the existing engine lubricant in a 2006 audi a4 2 . 0 liter turbo ( audi ag , ingolstadt , germany ) test automobile , producing phenomenal performance and fuel economy results . this additive package , as well as similar additive concentrate formulations , may be added directly to the motor oil already in a vehicle to improve engine performance without the need for replacing the existing motor oil . in yet another lubricating composition , a concentrated additive package not intended to influence the performance of any existing base motor oil or its additives , was accomplished by using about one quart of a mixture of marvel mystery oil ( original formula , turtle wax , inc ., westmont , ill ., united states ), lucas synthetic oil stabilizer ( lucas oil products , inc ., corona , calif ., united states ), lucas automatic transmission fluid conditioner ( lucas oil products , inc ., corona , calif ., united states ), and marvel air tool oil ( turtle wax , inc ., westmont , ill ., united states ), in a volume ratio of about 12 : 3 : 14 : 16 . this concentrated additive package was added to a high - quality , non - zddp - containing , synthetic motor oil and introduced into a 2006 audi a4 2 . 0 liter turbo ( audi ag , ingolstadt , germany ) test automobile , producing phenomenal performance and fuel economy results . this additive package , as well as similar additive concentrate formulations , may be added directly to the motor oil already in a vehicle to improve engine performance without the need for replacing the existing motor oil . subsequently , metal engine components from the audi a4 test automobile ( audi ag , ingolstadt , germany ) were removed and subjected to non - destructive scientific analyses . in this case , a machined steel camshaft cam follower and cam follower retaining ring were removed from the test automobile after 150 , 000 miles of use with various incarnations of the lubricating composition . according to the manufacturer , these parts are made of stainless steel . the results of those analyses follow . the first of the scientific analyses of the engine components was a surface roughness analysis using a newview ™ 7300 white light optical surface profiling interferometer ( zygo ® corporation , middlefield , conn ., united states ). the removed cam follower &# 39 ; s friction and non - friction surfaces were evaluated and compared using the interferometer . the arithmetic mean ( r a ), peak - valley ( pv ), and root - mean - squared ( rms ) average surface roughnesses were determined . the results and findings are summarized in fig2 , fig2 , and table 3 . as can be seen , an almost two order of magnitude improvement in surface smoothness was achieved using formulations of the present invention . average surface roughness ( r a ) was reduced from a minimum starting value of at least r a = 221 . 6 nm to a measured end value of r a = 3 . 44 nm . fig2 shows that the non - wear surface , which did not make repeated close contact with the walls of the cylinder head during operation of the automobile , was measured to have an r a value of 221 . 6 nm , which is typical for such an engine part in a high - quality automobile ( average automobile cam follower tolerances r a = 300 to 400 nm ). the graphical representation in the bottom left quadrant of fig2 shows what can be considered an estimation of the approximate beginning surface roughness measurements for the cam follower section evaluated , that is to say , its estimated relative condition upon assembly into the test automobile &# 39 ; s engine . fig2 , however , shows that the wear surface , which was in constant frictional contact with the walls of the cylinder head during operation of the engine , was measured to have an r a value of 3 . 44 nm , almost two orders of magnitude lower than the measured roughness of the non - wear surface , which indicates the approximate and estimated original state of the cam follower at time of manufacture and assembly of the engine . the original machining asperities observed in fig2 are oriented perpendicularly to the asperities observed in fig2 , indicating that the original machining asperities in the wear surface were completely removed at one point in the polishing process . these data indicate that the wear surface of the cam follower has been super - polished during operation of the engine . while super - polishing of surfaces of materials such as fused silica , silicon , and silicon carbide down to a surface roughness r a value of 0 . 4 nm is possible under highly controlled laboratory circumstances , polished metal surfaces typically have a much higher r a value in the range of hundreds of nanometers . liu et al . ( simtech technical reports , vol . 8 , no . 3 , pp . 142 - 148 , july - september 2007 ) report a two - step super - polishing process capable of producing ( under laboratory conditions ) a stainless steel lens mould insert with a surface roughness r a value of 8 . 5 nm . since two pieces of metal in contact are not capable of producing surfaces of the smoothness observed in fig2 without a polishing agent , the wear surface of the cam follower was tested further to try to determine the polishing agent in the lubricating composition capable of producing a surface as smooth as surface achieved in the test of the invention . the wear surface of a cam follower is typically made of surface - hardened steel , and the nanoparticle polishing agents , one of which is referenced herein as an sgan , in order to be able to polish a surface , is expected to be harder than the surface being polished . the 2 - dimensional surface topology of the wear surface in fig2 shows a number of circular features in the size range of one or two nanometers in diameter , which is on the scale of the expected size of the sgan or other abrasive nanoparticles that would be necessary in order to achieve such a low surface roughness r a value . the non - wear surface from a retaining ring of the cam follower was studied using a philips ® xl series xl 30 esem - feg ( fei ™ company , hillsboro , oreg ., united states ), using edax ® genesis ™ version 4 . 61 software ( amatek ® inc ., mahwah , n . j ., united states ) and a scandium imaging platform . the resulting electron microscope images of surfaces of the retaining ring are shown in fig2 through 41 . the accompanying elemental analysis from energy - dispersive x - ray spectroscopy ( eds ) for the four surfaces showed only carbon , oxygen , and iron in the weight ( wt %) and atomic ( at %) percentages shown in table 4 ( a ) for the areas in the black boxes sampled in fig2 through 25 , respectively , except for fig2 , which showed traces (& lt ; 1 at %) of potassium and chromium . the images show spheroid structures on the non - wear surface with diameters in the range of ˜ 2 - 3 microns . fig2 through 37 show additional sem images of the cam follower retaining ring surface . in fig2 through 37 , the length scale “ mm ” in the figures is actually in micrometers . during the lubrication process , these larger structures are broken down into smaller nanostructures . since the sampled areas from fig2 through 25 showed varying ratios of carbon , oxygen , and iron , subsequent experiments were run to sample different areas of the same structure to determine whether the structures were homogeneous . fig3 a - c , fig3 a - g , and fig4 a - c show the structures with the areas in the black boxes being the sampled areas . fig3 a , 38 b , and 38 c show three different sampled areas from a single large spheroid , that is ˜ 2 microns in diameter . as shown in table 4 ( b ), only carbon , oxygen , and iron were detected . in fig3 a , an average of most of the surface was taken , whereas in fig3 b , a smaller portion of the surface was sampled with similar results . finally , a small protrusion extending from the bottom of the spheroid was sampled as shown in fig3 c . this small protrusion has almost ten times the amount of iron as in the other two sampled areas . fig3 a , 39 b , 39 c , 39 d , 39 e , 39 f , and 39 g show seven different sampled areas of a large , irregular crystalline structure that is more than 13 microns wide . as shown in table 4 ( c ), carbon , oxygen , calcium , and iron were detected in all of the samples except for fig3 e , which had no iron . additionally , chlorine was detected in each of these samples in an amount to bring the totals to 100 %. the ratio of calcium to chlorine ranged from about 1 : 1 to about 6 : 1 . within this range , ratios of calcium to chlorine of about 1 . 5 : 1 , about 2 : 1 , and about 3 : 1 were also observed . the amount of iron detected was fairly minimal in comparison to the fig3 series , except for the 12 . 69 at % for the sampled area of fig3 c . fig4 a , 40 b , and 40 c show three different sampled areas from a single smaller spheroid that is ˜ 1 . 3 microns in diameter . as shown in table 4 ( d ), only carbon , oxygen , and iron were detected . as shown in fig4 a , the spheroid was sampled in the middle with results similar to that of the sampled area of fig3 a , although the iron content was higher and the oxygen content was lower . as shown in fig4 b , the spheroid was sampled at the upper right edge with an iron content almost five times higher than the area shown in fig4 a , similar to what was observed for the area in fig3 c . finally , as shown in fig4 c , the spheroid was sampled at the left edge with an iron content almost twice as high as in the area of fig4 a but much lower than the area of fig4 b . finally , fig4 shows a large sampled area of a large , rhombus - shaped crystalline structure that is between 4 and 5 microns wide . as shown in table 4 ( c ), only carbon , oxygen , and iron were detected . the ratios were similar to those of the low - iron areas of the spheroids , except the iron content was even lower in this case . subsequently , hexane was added to a sample of the used lubrication composition . the mixture was centrifuged , and a sediment fraction and a fluid fraction of the centrifuged mixture were tested with time - of - flight ( tof ) secondary ion mass spectrometry ( sims ) and transmission electron microscopy ( tem ) with an fei ™ cm20 tem with edax ® genesis ™ software . although these tests did not identify any particular structures in the lubricating composition , interestingly , no measurable iron was detected in either the sediment fraction or the fluid fraction of the oil . only carbon , oxygen , and in some cases , zinc , calcium , or chromium were detected in the sample . from these tests , as evidenced by the lack of iron , it became clear that the features observed by sem on the surfaces of the cam follower retaining ring are not present in detectable levels in the fluid itself . a sample of the material on the cam follower surface was obtained for tem observation by gently rubbing the tem mesh grid on the surfaces of the cam follower and then viewing the features on the grid with the tem . representative images of the observed features are shown in fig4 through 49b , revealing a number of different morphologies and structures . the images confirm the presence of graphene or graphene oxide sheets , carbon nanotubes , carbon nanospheroids , carbon nano - onions , and other fullerene structures and precursors . the dark areas in the images are believed to represent higher concentrations of iron , based on elemental analysis . graphene is known to encapsulate iron particles ( see , for example , cao et al ., “ synthesis and characterization of graphene encapsulated iron nanoparticles ”, nanoscience , vol . 12 , no . 1 , pp . 35 - 39 , 2007 ). fig4 shows a relatively flat sheet morphology in the lower part of the image and a more crumpled sheet in the upper part of the image . smaller spheroid structures in the range of ˜ 5 nm to ˜ 50 nm in diameter are also visible on the image . fig4 shows primarily a moderately - crumpled sheet morphology with nanotubular structures near folds of the sheets . fig4 shows a higher magnification of an area with similar morphology to fig4 . in fig4 , spheroid , tubular , and sheet morphologies are visible . fig4 shows some tortuous tubular structures at high magnification . fig4 shows a dark globular mass with an indistinct morphology at high magnification , which may be an aggregation of sgans based on the dark interior of the structure . fig4 shows a large carbon nanotube structure . fig4 shows two carbon nano - onion structures . finally , fig4 a and 49b show a crystalline - looking mass with tubular and spheroid morphologies but no apparent sheet morphology . accordingly , it is to be understood that the embodiments of the invention herein described are merely illustrative of the application of the principles of the invention . reference herein to details of the illustrated embodiments is not intended to limit the scope of the claims , which themselves recite those features regarded as essential to the invention .	2
fig1 a , 1 b , and 1 c illustrate various elements , structurally and functionally , of beverage dispensing apparatus that may comprise applicants &# 39 ; recirculation loop 10 . as stated above , the recirculation loop 10 is designed to help prevent heat loss in the valve and manifold assembly and the elements downstream thereof , including the python and bar gun assembly 13 . this function is achieved through the use of an in line 42 carrying incoming cool fluid ri coming off trunk line 40 entering and passing through valve / manifold assembly 12 and into the bar gun assembly 13 in conjunction with a recirculation channel 30 , which in the illustrated example is in the bar gun assembly 13 , and which joins recirculation in line ri to recirculation out line ro in the bar gun handle as illustrated in fig1 c . ro then exits bar gun assembly 13 , passes through a line situated in python 28 , through valve / manifold assembly 12 , to out line 44 , and into a trunk line return 40 a ( for coolant recirculation ). the embodiment illustrated in fig1 a and 1b is an open system where the recirculating cool fluid is a fluid that may be dispensed through the bar gun . suitable fluids include , but are not limited to : soda water , carbonated water , water , consumable liquefied gases , or consumable gaseous fluids such as carbon dioxide , which when mixed with the other liquids in the bar gun carbonates the dispensed beverage . when referring to consumable liquefied gases and consumable gaseous fluids the applicant is referring to such gases and fluids which are known to be consumable in certain proportions by human beings without harm . additional elements may be seen with reference to fig1 a - 1c . more particularly , in line 42 may take recirculation fluid ri into a splitter 26 having branch 26 a and branch 26 b . recirculation fluid ri will pass through v 1 and as dispensed coolant ; typically carbonated water through v 2 , which are two of a multiplicity of valves 18 . valves 18 may be of the flow control type or adjustable / fixed orifice type , but in any case are valves known in the art to control the flow of fluids therethrough . in conjunction with a multiplicity of valves 18 ( engaged with channels therethrough ) may be shutoff or ball valves 20 as known in the art . it is not necessary that all the coolant passing through in line 42 should pass through the recirculation channel 30 . a bypass line 46 may extend between the in line 42 and the out line 44 . hence , whilst some of the coolant passes through the recirculation channel 30 , some of the coolant passes directly into the out line , without passing through the recirculation channel 30 . the relative proportion of coolant passing through the recirculation channel 30 and the bypass line 46 maybe influenced by the setting of valves v 1 and v 3 , the relative sizes of the in line 42 , out line 44 and bypass line 46 for example . at splitter 26 , recirculation fluid ( coolant ) passing through branch 26 a will be destined to return through v 3 and out line 44 as ro ( recirculation of the fluid out ). when the bar gun is not being used , that is , none of the beverages are being dispensed , then it may be seen that substantially no flow will occur through branch 26 b , valve v 2 , and the line marked “ carb ” ( for carbonated water or soda water ). that is to say , the recirculation loop operates primarily in a mode in which none of the buttons ( actuating valves as known in the art ) of the bar gun are being depressed and no beverage is being dispensed . in such a condition , recirculating fluid ri will circulate in the channels and lines as illustrated up to recirculation channel 30 where it will perform a substantial “ u - turn ” and return as recirculation out or ro through line 44 and into the trunk return line 40 a . the trunk line typically carries chilled carbonated fluid and thus has an out line 40 which services a number of bar gun assemblies 13 ( see fig1 f ) and a return line 40 a engaging a source 1 of carbonated water or soda cooled by a chiller 1 as known in the art and including a recirculation pump 3 as known in the art . valves v 1 and / or v 3 may be adjusted to control the flow rate of recirculation fluid therethrough . indeed , valves v 1 and v 3 may be used , but it is not necessary that they are adjusted — the recirculation fluid may flow through valves v 1 and v 3 with the valves open . indeed , valves v 1 and v 3 may be no more than openings of a specified size to give a desired flow rate with no facility to adjust for adjustment to control the flow rate . valve v 2 , where such a valve is adjustable to control the flow of fluid flowing therethrough , may be adjusted to control said flow of the fluid . a splitter is not necessary to the recirculation loop , line 42 may go directly into the fitting that , in illustration fig1 a , engages branch 26 a and the fitting engaging branch 26 b will receive the product from the trunk line as known in the art . such an arrangement also provides for a closed system where the coolant fluid is not used in the mixing of beverages . such coolant fluid could be ethylene glycol or another known refrigerant . fig1 f illustrates multiple ( four ) flow control / python / bar gun assembly systems 60 a / 60 b / 60 c / 60 d . each is comprised of at least elements 12 / 13 / 28 / 42 / 44 / 46 / v 1 / v 3 . that is to say , coming off the trunk line or coolant main line , the system 60 a / 60 b / 60 c / 60 d comprising a flow control / python / bar gun assembly is typically provided at multiple places . it is seen that adjusting either v 1 or v 3 at 60 a will affect the crossover or bypass coolant fluid going through 46 and back into the main coolant line . specifically , either v 1 or v 3 may be adjusted to choke down or reduce the flow of coolant therethrough and therefore to the recirculation loop of the python and / or bar gun assemblies . then , more of that fluid will go through line 46 and be available as fluid typically a little bit cooler than the fluid that went through the python 28 of 60 a . increasing the flow of fluid through python 28 of 60 a will provide a cooler temperature at the elements downstream of 46 on 60 a , but will provide a slightly higher temperature to downstream elements 60 b / 60 c / 60 d . thus , it is seen that by adjusting either or both of valves v 1 or v 3 at each of the stations , the amount of cool fluid going into the recirculation loops at each station can be controlled and the flow to the recirculation loop can be increased for more coolant or decreased . however , it is also recognized that increased flow at any recirculation loop will slightly decrease the ability for downstream stations ( for example , station 60 b / 60 c / 60 d which are downstream from 60 a ) to cool themselves . a number of the other elements illustrated in fig1 a - 1c are known in the art . locking slides 22 and fittings 24 removably engage a number of typically flexible fluid lines to the valve and manifold assembly 12 . pythons 28 are known in the art and include outer sheath 34 and carry a number of fluid bearing lines therethrough , here four syrup lines and a carb line . however , the python of the present invention is also carrying a line for recirculation fluid ri designated 50 and a line for ro designated 52 as illustrated . lines 50 and 52 originate at the manifold assembly , run through the python , and in one embodiment engage recirculation channel 30 , and in a second embodiment ( fig4 a - 4c ) engage a “ u ” shaped fitting 54 outside of bar gun body 13 a . both a “ u ” shaped fitting 54 and the recirculation channel 30 will signify a structural member or element adapted to reverse the flow of coolant from towards the dispensing nozzle to away from the dispensing nozzle . additional features of applicants &# 39 ; present device are also provided in an effort to achieve a reduction of heat loss to the environment from the fluids in the lines and valves and other elements of the valve and manifold assembly , python and / or bar gun assembly . an additional feature includes the use of insulation including , typically , tubular insulation at least partially within python 28 as illustrated in fig2 a and 2b . that is to say , python 28 may , in addition to having outer sheath 34 , carry insulation 36 , which may be tubular and which may be located within or on the outside of outer sheath 34 ( illustrated is an inner python sheath insulation 36 ). in the manner illustrated , insulation preferably wraps or at least partially wraps the multiplicity of lines within the python , including ri and ro , those lines carrying the recirculated fluid ( coolant ). the sheath 34 may be combined with sheath insulation 36 as a single unit combining flexibility , insulation and an annulus or channel therethrough . as can be seen in fig2 a , python insulation sheath 30 may extend slightly beyond outer sheath 34 ( upstream end ) and may be wrapped with an insulated tape 38 to help protect and further insulate the lines within the python and extending past the python into body 13 a of the bar gun . tape 38 may be an insulation type tape ( preferably adhesive bearing ) and may help prevent chafing of the lines . the insulation 36 may in addition to preventing heat loss may also increase heat transfer between conduits carrying cooled fluid and those carrying uncooled fluid by bringing them into closer proximity . the fluid carrying lines and the insulation 36 , 38 may be so shaped and dimensioned as to squeeze together ( but not crush ) fluid carrying conduits so that heat exchange between adjacent conduits is at least partially by conduction . referring to fig2 c the parts illustrated are essentially the same as shown in fig2 b , except that the recirculation channel 30 is situated in the python proximate the heel 32 of the bar gun assembly . turning to fig3 , it may be seen that manifold insulation 48 may be used in conjunction with any of the other elements of applicants &# 39 ; design . more particularly , fig3 . illustrates the use of manifold insulation at least partially within manifold covers 14 a / 14 b , which covers comprise a manifold housing . manifold insulation 48 may be internal , that is to say , within the housing and may at least partially rest adjacent the multiplicity of lines passing through the manifold from the valve assembly 16 to manifold 14 into python 28 . fig1 d illustrates alternative embodiments for bringing cool recirculation fluid and product ( or multiple products ) to the valve and manifold assembly from a source . the recirculation fluid used will be chilled , before entering the recirculation loop , product dispensed may or may not be . types of insulation that may be used include , but are not limited to , foam , armaflex , fiberglass , flat , tubular tape , etc . where the product dispensed for example syrup is not cooled , this product may be delivered via a fluid line other than trunk line 40 in ways known in the art . fig1 e illustrates an alternative embodiment where a separate supply of product 2 ′ is delivered to the bar gun assembly 13 by a pump 3 ′ from a chiller 1 ′. such an arrangement provides for a closed system as described above . recirculation fluid passing through branch 26 a and v 1 as ri will be destined to return through v 3 and out line 44 as ro ( recirculation of the fluid out ). when the bar gun is not being used , that is , none of the beverages are being dispensed , then it may be seen that substantially no flow will occur through branch 26 b , valve v 2 . in this embodiment , the recirculation loop operates in the same manner whether buttons to dispense beverage are actuated or not , i . e . whether product flows through branch 26 b or not . recirculating fluid ri will circulate in the channels and lines as illustrated up to recirculation channel 30 where it will perform a substantial “ u - turn ” and return as recirculation out or ro through line 44 and into the trunk return line 40 a . in this example , the trunk line typically carries glycol or the like and has an out line 40 which services a number of bar gun assemblies 13 and a return line 40 a engaging a source of glycol 2 cooled by a chiller 1 as known in the art and including a recirculation pump 3 as known in the art . valves v 1 and / or v 3 may be adjusted to control the flow rate of recirculation fluid therethrough . indeed , valves v 1 and v 3 may be used , but are not necessary — the recirculation fluid may flow unvalved . valve v 2 may be adjusted to control flow of the product flowing therethrough . fig4 a , 4 b , and 4 c illustrate an alternate preferred embodiment from that described above and as set forth in the previous figures . in the alternate preferred embodiment , the rerouting or reversal of the incoming fluid ri to the outgoing fluid ro occurs not in bar gun body 13 a , like described above . as can be seen from fig4 a - 4c , u - shape fitting 54 typically engages the removed ends of lines 50 and 52 between the heel 32 of the bar gun assembly and the removed end of the sheath . that is to say , u - shape fitting 54 engages the removed ends 50 a / 52 a in a fluid sealing fashion and when heel 32 is attached , through fasteners to the rear of body 13 a of the bar gun assembly , u - shape fitting 54 is typically located substantially in the space just beyond the end of python 28 and the mounting plate 58 . fig4 c shows the fitting attached , as in use ( but for clarity deletes heel , insulation , and python ). with the u - shape fitting 54 mounted as illustrated in fig4 a - 4c , when assembled the u - shape fitting is covered by heel 32 . u - shape fitting 54 is substantially hollow and incoming fluid from line 50 enters the leg attached to line 50 and passes through body 54 c , and into line 52 . in other words , u - shape fitting 54 recirculates incoming fluid from line 50 to line 52 as outgoing fluid ro . moreover , this recirculation occurs without the recirculation fluid ( typically cool fluid recirculating at times when the bar gun is not in use ) entering body 13 a of the bar gun assembly . moreover , the insulation ( tape , foam or other suitable insulation ) that is illustrated as used with the sheath can be used to at least partially cover u - shape fitting 54 . in this fashion , with the coolant fluid avoiding contact with the bar gun body itself , the problem of bar gun “ sweating ” is avoided . with the embodiment of the previous illustration , wherein the recirculation fluid actually enters body 13 a of the bar gun assembly , there has been some experience where the bar gun assembly is left overnight , for instance , “ sweats ” at the portion of the bar gun that is adjacent the recirculation channel . the use of the u - shape fitting upstream of the bar gun body as illustrated is one method of avoiding the “ sweating ” issue . thus , it is seen that the construction of u - shape fitting 54 having hollow legs 54 a with barbs 54 b at the removed end thereof and having hollow body 54 c would provide for snug fit of ends 50 a and 52 a over barbs 54 b . moreover , it can be seen that slidable , flexible collars 56 may , after the ends of lines 50 and 52 are engaged to legs 54 a , be moved up and to partially engage the outside of ends 50 a and 52 a and , optionally , part of legs 54 a to provide a snug , slip - resistant fitting of lines 50 and 52 to u - shape fitting 54 . in another embodiment of the invention , instead of the u - shape fitting 54 being situated just outside the end of the outer sheath 34 of the python 28 , the u - shape fitting may be situated within the sheath 34 , preferably proximate the end thereof which attaches to the bar gun assembly . although the invention has been described in connection with the preferred embodiment , it is not intended to limit the invention &# 39 ; s particular form set forth , but on the contrary , it is intended to cover such alterations , modifications , and equivalences that may be included in the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims .	1
hereinafter , preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings . in the following description and drawings , the same reference numerals are used to designate the same or similar components , and so repetition of the description on the same or similar components will be omitted . fig1 is a graph for explaining a method for realizing gray levels according to the first embodiment of the present invention . according to the first embodiment of the present invention , one frame for data input to a specific pixel is divided into a plurality of sub - frames , gamma voltages having different levels a , b , c , and d are applied to the pixel during a fixed specific sub - frame ( reference numeral e ), and the pixel is disabled at the end time point of the specific sub - frame . at this time , different gamma voltages applied to the pixel change the reaction degree of liquid crystal reacting during a specific frame . in other words , although the pixel to which voltages having different levels are applied is disabled at the same time point , different reactions of liquid crystal may be obtained . in detail , when gray voltages having levels of “ a ” and “ d ” are applied to the pixel , the reactions of liquid crystal shown by reference numerals 1 and 2 are obtained . accordingly , different gray levels may be realized through different gamma voltages applied to a pixel . fig2 is a graph for illustrating a method for realizing gray levels according to the second embodiment of the present invention . according to the second embodiment of the present invention , one frame for data input to a specific pixel is divided into a plurality of sub - frames e , f , g , h , and i according to time intervals , gamma voltages having the same levels are applied to a pixel during each sub - frame , and the pixel is disabled at a predetermined sub - frame . at this time , although the same gray level voltages are applied to the pixel , the reaction degree of the liquid crystal varies dependent on sub - frames at which the pixel is disabled . for example , when the pixel is disabled at the second sub - frame ( reference numeral f ) as shown by reference numeral 71 or at the third sub - frame ( reference numeral g ) as shown by reference numeral 4 , the reaction degree of liquid crystal is shown by areas corresponding to reference numerals 3 and 4 . accordingly , gray levels may be realized by determining a sub - frame at which a pixel is disabled . fig3 is a graph for explaining a method for realizing gray levels according to the third embodiment of the present invention . the third embodiment of the present invention relates to a method obtained by combining the methods of realizing gray levels described with reference to fig1 and 2 . according to the third embodiment of the present invention , one frame is divided into a plurality of sub - frames ( reference numerals e , f , g , h and i ), gamma voltages ( reference numerals a , b , c , and d ) having mutually different levels are applied to a pixel during each of the sub - frames , and the pixel is disabled at a predetermined sub - frame . herein , the reaction degree of liquid crystal varies depending on the gamma voltages applied to the pixel and types of the sub - frames at which the pixel is disabled . for example , a gamma voltage to be applied to the pixel at the first sub - frame ( reference numeral e ) is selected and the selected gamma voltage is applied to the pixel . herein , gray level voltages for a pixel are planned in such a manner that a gray level voltage corresponding to input data is selected in a look - up table ( lut ). when the pixel is disabled at the second sub - frame ( reference numeral f ), the reaction degree of liquid crystal for each gray level voltage varies depending on the selection of a gray level voltage at the first sub - frame ( reference numeral e ). when the pixel is disabled at the third sub - frame ( reference numeral g ), the reaction degree of liquid crystal varies according to the levels of the gray level voltage . accordingly , if timing required for disabling the pixel is controlled at each of intersections ( reference numeral a ) between gray level voltages and sub - frames , more gray levels may be realized . in detail , if m ( 1 , 2 , 3 , . . . , m ) gamma voltages having different levels and n ( 1 , 2 , 3 , . . . , n ) sub - frames are used , ( m − 1 )( n + 1 ) gray levels may be realized . fig4 is a view for explaining a method for disabling a pixel . in the method for disabling each pixel at each frame , black data is used for each pixel to be disabled . in other words , a sub - frame used for disabling each corresponding pixel is determined in a look - up table and a voltage higher than that of the black data is applied to the last sub - frame for data ( in a case of a tn mode ), thereby reducing reaction time of liquid crystal and allowing the liquid crystal to completely react until the start time point of a next frame . this makes liquid crystal in a reference state , thereby solving the problem of showing different brightness according to start time points of frames even when each pixel is disabled at the same time point and each gamma voltage has the same level . fig5 to 8 are graphs for explaining a method for finely realizing gray levels according to the control of frame time . referring to fig5 , each sub - frame has a data addressing time interval and a blank time interval for the sub - frame duration . herein , it is possible to finely realize gray levels by fixing the data addressing time interval and adjusting the blank time interval . referring to fig6 , in the method for finely realizing gray levels according to the control of frame time , a gamma voltage is applied to a pixel for the sub - frame duration , and the pixel is disabled at the end time point of the sub - frame . herein , gray levels having the reaction degrees of liquid crystal corresponding to areas shown by reference numerals 5 and 6 may be realized by adjusting the blank time interval of each frame . herein , the blank time interval is adjusted by regulating the number of a main clock , and the main clock is planned in such a manner that the number thereof is programmable in a timing controller . referring to fig7 , a frame is divided into four sub - frames ( reference numerals e , f , g , and h ) and two gamma voltages having mutually different levels are applied to a pixel for each sub - frame duration , so that two gamma curves gamma 1 and gamma 2 are formed . herein , a dotted curve represents a reference gamma curve . the two gamma curves have the same gray level ( k ) because the two gamma curves have the same transmissivity at intersections b and c between a sub - frame and the two gamma curves showing the transmissivity of liquid crystal . accordingly , the number of gray levels ( which may be realized ) is reduced by one and becomes six . referring to fig8 , in order to reduce the number of gray levels to be realized as described above and finely control the gray levels , frame time is controlled by adjusting a blank time interval of the third sub - frame ( reference numeral g ). therefore , it is possible to realize a new gray level ( reference numeral k ′) and realize gray levels in more detail by increasing the number of gray levels which can be realized . in a method for realizing gray levels of a lcd device according to the present invention as described above , it is possible to realize ( m − 1 )( n + 1 ) gray levels by interworking m gamma voltages and n sub - frames . a gray level at each intersection is matched with each gray level in a look - up table , and it is possible to more finely realize gray levels by adjusting a blank time interval of each frame or each sub - frame . accordingly , in the present invention , a gamma gray level is given to the digital operation scheme enabling the realization of the gray level through an on / off operation at each sub - frame as operated through a field sequential color scheme , thereby solving problems according to a high speed operation of a driver ic and reducing the size of the driver ic . as described above , according to the present invention , a gamma voltage is combined with a sub - frame in order to realize gray levels , thereby reducing power consumption according to the high - speed operation of a driver ic and the size of the driver ic in realization of the gray levels . although a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described for illustrative purposes , those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications , additions and substitutions are possible , without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims .	6
a mouse hybridoma cell line has been established and given the designation hapc 1555 . the hapc 1555 cell line was deposited under the provisions of the budapest treaty with the american type culture collection ( atcc ), 10801 university boulevard , manassas , va . 20110 - 2209 on nov . 7 , 2000 , and has been given the atcc designation pta - 2658 . the hapc 1555 mouse hybridoma cell line was derived from balb / c mouse spleen cells and myeloma cell line p3x63ag8 - 653 . this cell line produces the monoclonal antibody we have designated as hapc 1555 , and the isotype of the antibody produced is igg i kappa . the cell line can be grown utilizing standard culturing techniques , with rpmi 1640 and 10 % bovine calf serum ( with appropriate antibiotics ) as an acceptable culture and storage medium . large - scale production of the monoclonal antibody hapc 1555 was accomplished by growing cell line hapc 1555 in serum - free medium in roller bottles . purification of hapc 1555 was accomplished by loading filtered media on mep hyper - cel resin ( gibco , brl ), washing with 4 column volumes of tbs and eluting with 50 mm sodium acetate , ph 4 . 0 . after reading the absorbance at 280 nanometers , the peak fractions were pooled and dialyzed against 10 mm mops , 0 . 1 m nacl and frozen for later use . the monoclonal antibody hapc 1555 has been shown to have high specificity with respect to binding to activated protein c (“ apc ”). thus , it can be used in assays to detect apc in a patient sample , using any methodology known in the art which employs specific antibodies for detection of proteins . an example of such an assay is given in example 1 . it is preferred that hapc 1555 be bound to a solid support and incubated with a patient plasma sample suspected of containing apc in a reaction zone . because of the high specificity of hapc 1555 , apc in the patient plasma sample will bind with the immobilized hapc 1555 , and other substances in the reaction zone can be washed away . an appropriate substrate for apc can then be added to the reaction zone to determine if any apc has bound to the hapc 1555 . such reactions are well documented . because the monoclonal antibody hapc 1555 does not interfere with the activity of apc , any direct assay for apc can be used to detect and quantitate apc . there are several comniercially - available kits and systems for this purpose . a suitable chromogenic substrate for the determination of apc is spectrozyme pca , available from american diagnostica ( greenwich , conn .). there are other substrates available which are either chromogenic or fluorogenic which can also be used . the important factor in choosing a substrate is that apc acts upon it to cleave a leaving group that emits a detectable signal . in working with plasma samples , it is desirable to prepare plasma with standard citrate anticoagulant . to the plasma , a reversible inhibitor of apc should be added in order to prevent the covalent inhibition of apc by plasma proteinase inhibitors , for example , alpha - 1 - antitrypsin and protein c inhibitor . a preferred reversible inhibitor of apc is benzamidine , but any reversible active site inhibitor of apc can be used . an excess amount of the inhibitor is used , and this is determined by published values on the possible amount of apc that could be present in a given sample . an appropriate amount of benzamidine to use is about 20 mm . the plasma sample is also desirably prepared with a substance to prevent clotting of recalcified plasma , and heparin is conveniently used for this purpose in an amount to accomplish this purpose . it has been found that 2 units per ml of heparin provides the desired functionality , but other amounts can be used if they also do so . it is also desirable to add a source of calcium ions to the plasma preparation , and calcium chloride is conveniently used for this purpose . calcium levels can vary as long as they are in excess of the citrate anticoagulant . in the assay of the present invention , it is not necessary to dilute the plasma sample to be tested , which is an advantage over other assays reported prior to the present invention . the ability to use the plasma sample without or with minimal dilution provides a rapidity to the analysis of apc , permitting analysis in a matter of just less than an hour to several hours as opposed to up to three weeks for previously reported enzyme capture assay for apc . it is expected that the quantitation of apc can be made known to the clinician very rapidly , therefore permitting selection of appropriate therapy for the patient . the hapc 1555 antibody can also be used for protein purification , as a laboratory reagent where it is desirable to bind apc , and for other utilities for which a specific antibody is appropriate . surface plasmon resonance ( spr ) was used to measure the affinity of binding of hapc 1555 to human activated protein c ( apc ) and human protein c . real time biomolecular interactions between apc / protein c and hapc 1555 were studied using a biacore ™ 1000 biosensor instrument ( biacore international ab , uppsala , sweden ). hapc 1555 was covalently coupled to a carboxymethyl dextran ( cm5 ) sensor chip through its primary amine groups according to the manufacturer &# 39 ; s instructions . binding of apc or protein c to immobilized hapc 1555 was monitored by measuring changes in ru ( 1000 ru corresponds to ≈ 1 ng of bound protein / mm 2 ). unless otherwise stated , all experiments were performed at 25 ° c . at a flow rate of 10 μl / min in 20 mm hepes , ph 7 . 5 , 150 mm nacl , 3 nm cacl 2 , and 0 . 005 % surfactant p - 20 ( biacore grade , biacore international ab , uppsala , sweden ). for each set of experiments , the proteins were introduced onto the surface of a sensor chip that lacked inmmobilized hapc 1555 ( control sensor chip ). the sensograms of the control sensor chip were subtracted from the sensograms of the hapc 1555 - containing flowcells to remove the effects of nonspecific binding to the dextran surface . after each protein injection , the sensor chips were regenerated by the injection of 20 μl of 1m glycine ph 2 . 5 , followed by washing for 3 min with buffer before reinjecting apc for the next cycle . the interaction between apc or protein c and hapc 1555 was monitored by flowing various concentrations of apc ( from 8 . 1 nm to 68 . 5 nm ) or protein c ( from 35 nm to 274 nm ) over a sensor chip containing immobilized hapc 1555 . the overlaid dose - response binding curves for apc and protein c are shown in fig1 a and 1b , respectively . to determine the k d values for the interaction between apc or protein c and hapc 1555 , the maximum rus of the binding isotherms shown in fig1 a and 1b were plotted versus apc or protein c concentration . the k d values were calculated by non - linear regression analysis of the curves . the k d value of apc binding to hapc 1555 was calculated as k d = 6 . 2 ± 0 . 9 nm , whereas the affinity of protein c for hapc 1555 was approximately 10 - fold lower ( k d = 65 ± 3 nm ). each k d value represents the mean and standard deviation of two separate surface plasmon resonance binding studies . in the absence of cacl 2 , there is no binding of apc nor protein c to immobilized hapc 1555 . to localize the hapc 1555 binding domain on apc / protein c , surface plasmon resonance binding studies were performed using two protein c derivates : ( a ) gdpc , i . e ., gla - domainless protein c , and ( b ) e2pd , i . e ., protein c lacking the gla - domain and the first egf domain . as shown in fig2 both derivatives bind to immobilized hapc 1555 , suggesting that the hapc 1555 binding domain on apc / protein c is localized in the protease domain and / or the egf - 2 domain . although the interaction of apc , protein c , gdpc , and e2pd with inmuobilized hapc 1555 requires the presence of cacl 2 , dissociation of bound ligands was not achieved by the addition of 5 mm edta ( fig2 ). the chromogenic activity of 5 mm apc in 20 mm hepes , ph 7 . 5 , 150 mm nacl , 5 mm cacl 2 , 0 . 5 % ( w / v ) gelatin was determined with 0 to 1 mm spectrozyme pca ( american diagnostica , greenwich conn .) in the absence or presence of 400 nm of hapc 1555 . a 50 μl aliquot of reaction solution was mixed with 50 μl of chromogenic substrate on a microtiter plate , and the change in absorbance with time at 405 nm was determined on a vmax microplate reader ( molecular devices corp ., sunnyvale , calif .). all samples were assayed in duplicate . the k m values were calculated by nonlinear regression analysis using the michaelis - menten equation in tablecurve ( jandel scientific , san rafael , calif .). the effect of hapc 1555 on the rate of apc - mediated hydrolysis of spectrozyme pca is shown in fig3 . the results show that the kinetic parameters of apc toward the synthetic substrate are not affected by the presence of hapc 1555 . thus , it is possible to utilize hapc 1555 to quantitate apc levels in human plasma using an enzyme capture assay . initially , 96 - well vinyl microtiter plates ( costar , cat # 2596 ) were coated with 100 μl of hapc 1555 ( 5 μg / ml ) in coating buffer ( 20 mm hepes , ph 7 . 5 , 150 mm nacl , 5 mm cacl 2 ) for 2 hours at 37 ° c . as negative controls , microtiter plate wells were coated with either 5 μg / ml hpc4 monoclonal antibody or 1 % bovine serum albumin ( bsa ) in the same buffer . the plates were then blocked for 1 hour at 37 ° c . or overnight at 4 ° c . with 200 μl of blocking buffer ( coating buffer containing 1 % bsa ). the solutions were gently removed from the plates by vacuum . to generate a standard curve for the quantitative measurement of apc in plasma , increasing amounts of apc ( from 0 to 250 ng / ml ) were spiked into normal pooled plasma containing 20 mm hepes , ph 7 . 5 , 2 units / ml heparin , 20 mm benzamidine , and 10 mm cacl 2 . the spiked plasma ( 100 μl ) were transferred to the plates and incubated at room temperature for 1 hour . the wells were then washed three times with wash buffer ( 20 mm hepes , ph 7 . 5 , 150 mm nacl , 0 . 05 % tween - 20 , and 5 mm cacl 2 ). the chromogenic activity of apc was determined by the addition of 100 μl of spectrozyme pca ( 1 mm ) in 20 mm hepes , ph 7 . 5 , 150 mm nacl , 5 mm cacl 2 . the plates were immediately placed at 37 ° c ., and substrate hydrolysis was monitored at 405 nm over time using a vmax microplate reader ( molecular devices corp , sunnyvale , calif .). all samples were assayed in duplicates or triplicates . the apc enzyme capture assay is usefuil to quantitate apc levels in human plasma . as shown in fig4 the assay is sensitive to plasma apc levels of ≦ 3 ng / ml with an incubation time of 1 hour . substrate hydrolysis was linear for concentrations ranging from 0 to 100 ng / ml at incubation times of up to approximately 6 hours . further , measured apc in plasma did not vary when protein c concentration varied from 0 to 200 % of normal ( data not shown ). the specificity of the hapc 1555 antibody was further confirmed by the results obtained from the plate wells set up as the negative controls . when hpc4 ( an anti - protein c monoclonal antibody ) or bsa was coated on the microtiter wells , the chromogenic activity of the apc - spiked plasma was reduced to background . as further confirmation of the specificity of hapc 1555 , apc - spiked plasma was pre - incubated with 300 nm of hapc 1555 and used instead of plasma samples not subjected to pre - incubation in the assay described above . it was found that use of pre - incubated apc - spiked plasma resulted in a measure of amidolytic activity essentially equivalent to that of background . this indicates that the pre - incubated apc - spiked plasma did not bind to the wells coated with hapc 1555 due to saturation of the binding sites with the hapc 1555 added to the plasma . after washing of the reaction zone , no bound apc was present to exhibit chromogenic activity in the presence of the substrate . the procedure of example 1 can be used to test human plasma for apc . in example 1 , human plasma was spiked with apc , but to assess a clinical specimen for its apc content , a specimen is collected from the patient in standard citrate anticoagulant that also contains 20 mm benzamidine hcl . the blood cells are removed by centrifugation using standard techniques . the plasma is used in the assay after standard preparation ( e . g ., 20 mm hepes , ph 7 . 5 , 2 units / ml heparin and 10 mm cacl 2 ). the plasma sample is then analyzed for apc using an assay such as described in example 1 . a mouse hybridoma cell line useful in the assay of the present invention has been established and given the designation hapc 1555 . the hapc 1555 cell line was deposited under the provisions of the budapest treaty with the american type culture collection ( atcc ), 10801 university boulevard , manassas , va . 20110 - 2209 on nov . 7 , 2000 , and has been given the atcc designation pta - 2658 . the hapc 1555 mouse hybridoma cell line was derived from balb / c mouse spleen cells and myeloma cell line p3x63ag8 - 653 . this cell line produces the monoclonal antibody we have designated as hapc 1555 , and the isotype of the antibody produced is igg i kappa . the cell line can be grown utilizing standard culturing techniques , with rpmi 1640 and 10 % bovine calf serum ( with appropriate antibiotics ) as an acceptable culture and storage medium .	2
while the invention may be susceptible to embodiment in different forms , there are shown in the drawings , and will be described in detail herein , 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 as illustrated and described herein . as stated above , the basis of mda is the economic event data sheet ( eeds ). a first basic feature of the present invention is the use of categories called “ mit ”, “ transaction object ”, “ transaction subject ”, “ uom ”, and “ value ” as economic event attributes . although these attributes are typically present in primary documentation forms of the regular ( traditional ) accounting , the inventive mda model is substantially distinct therefrom by providing an essentially different registration method of these attributes . as depicted on fig1 , eeds with the dimension tables collectively form a basic logical structure of data organization in mda . the following elements are shown in fig1 : eeds ( 10 ); and the dimension tables of eeds : dimension table ( 30 ) “ mit ”, dimension table ( 40 ) “ transaction subject ”, dimension table ( 50 ) “ transaction object ”, and dimension table ( 20 ) “ uom ”. according to a user &# 39 ; s requirements , there may be indicated not only the date , but also the posting time . table ( 30 ) can have a hierarchical structure , wherein the dates are grouped in periods : week , decade , month , accounting period , year , and others . table ( 40 ) may contain : transaction details by subject units and subject details ( address , registration numbers and so on ), relation to accounting area and other information , relative to transaction subject . table ( 50 ) can contain properties of transaction object , such as : an inventory number , physical and other characteristics ( for example , start - up date , registration date , maintenance date ; membership of the object in various asset groups : fixed assets , raw materials , unfinished goods , cash assets and others ). uom table ( 20 ) can be used for registration of existing transaction units of measurement : natural , monetary , and others . as noted above , the basic logic structure of data organization in mda is of the “ star ” type . nonetheless , the extension of properties , registered in the dimension tables , often results in formation of hierarchical structures in the dimension tables . in this case , the logical structure of data organization in mda represents a “ snowflake ” schema for arrangement of tables in a multidimensional database . the second major development in mda is a method of double entry implementation . the double entry , known in the accounting for 500 years , is implemented in a new way in mda . the double entry is implemented as a tool for registering changes that occurred as a result of the business transaction . mda allows one to register all the changes of attribute values occurred as a result of the business transaction and the volume ( amount ) of these changes . another distinct feature of mda is a specific form of the double entry record : it does not include the debit and credit , but instead uses a positive and a negative numeric value of the transaction amount , which positive and negative values are equal by modulus . fig2 . shows the general structure of eeds ( 70 ) taking into consideration the double entry characteristic of mda . each business transaction in eeds reflects two states of an accounting item . the first state is “ from ” ( 80 ); the second state is “ to ” ( 90 ). the first state “ from ” precedes the business transaction and completes as a result of the business transaction , while its transaction numeric value is always negative ( 100 ). the second state “ to ” ( 90 ) is a result of the business transaction and its transaction numeric value of is always positive ( 110 ). an arrow ( 85 ) marks the transition from one state to the other as a result of the business transaction . a transaction number ( transaction n ), mit ( 120 ) and ( 130 ) are equal for all the lines , within one registered business transaction . the values of the “ from ” and “ to ” states ( positive and negative ) are described for the accounting of the economic events . for the registration of planned ( scheduled ) events the number “ value ” will have the opposite sign . the sign can also be opposite for other extensions of the possibilities of mda , which is beyond the modern understanding of accounting . in case if this is envisaged by the accounting rules , the description of both the “ from ” and “ to ” states can include several lines of data sheet for one transaction , analogously to the multiple account correspondence in the traditional accountancy . the total value of measure of “ from ” “ to ” lines should be equal to zero regardless of the number of lines , describing the transaction . the order of “ from ” and “ to ” lines does not matter . in practice , it is convenient to follow one chosen order of the registration . the multidimensional data organization technically allows placing lines “ from ” and “ to ” of one operation not next to , but mixed up with the lines of other transactions , though this option complicates the understanding and the data verification of eeds . in the general structure of the eeds ( 70 ) the changes that occurred as a result of the business transaction are displayed in the attribute value of transaction subject ( 135 ) or in the attribute value of transaction object ( 155 ) or in both attributes ( 135 ) and ( 155 ). the change of transaction subject ( 135 ) attribute marks the change of asset ownership . in this case the subject of the transaction “ a ” ( 140 ) does not match the transaction “ b ” ( 150 ). the change of “ transaction object ” ( 155 ) attribute marks the change in asset . in this case the object of transaction “ x ” ( 160 ) will not correspond to the object of transaction “ y ” ( 170 ). a movement of assets between units of registration ( company divisions ) within one company can be registered by the mda tools . in this case the data sheet can be extended by including in eeds an additional business transaction characteristic “ transaction subject unit ”. when the unit is changed , the “ transaction subject unit ” values of the field for lines “ from ” ( 80 ) and “ to ” ( 90 ) will differ . the third significant development of mda is a method for producing the accounting balance sheet . for obtaining the balance sheet in the multidimensional data model , it is needed to single out one characteristic , whereas a subdivision based on this characteristic should form two parts of the balance equation . according to the present invention , such characteristic is chosen to be an attribute of transaction subject dimension table , named an “ accounting area ” and assuming one of two possible values . one of the values is assigned to a single subject or multiple subjects of transaction ( in case of accounting in aggregated structures ) and separates this subject ( subjects ) from calculations with agents , owners , and financial results . the two possible values of this characteristic form a dichotomic dividing of the business transactions and allow for producing a balance sheet . to provide such characteristic , eeds is extended by the “ accounting area ” attribute . fig3 shows the structure of extension ( 190 ) of the data sheet ( 200 ) by the “ accounting area ” attribute ( 185 ) of the dimensional table “ transaction subject ” ( 180 . the result of the extension of eeds ( 210 ) is shown in fig4 . the balance sheet is formed on the basis of the dichotomy of the accounting area : the internal area objects form the balance sheet assets , the external area objects form the liabilities and owner &# 39 ; s equity . separate pivot tables are created to reflect the balance sheet assets and liabilities . an example of the balance sheet , produced with the olap tools , is shown in fig6 . the basis of obtaining the balance sheet is eeds with extensions ( fig5 ). in this example , the accounting is performed on behalf of company 0 ( 350 ). for this company , a value of internal area ( 330 ) of the accounting area attribute is indicated . the rest of business transactions subjects receive a value of external area ( 340 ) of the accounting area attribute . the balance sheet form allows managing the depreciation separately ( 360 ). the liabilities of the balance sheet are subdivided into two main parts depending upon a value of the “ relations ” attribute . these are parts of “ ownership ” ( 370 ) and “ counterpart ” ( 380 ). this subdivision allows for separating the shareholder &# 39 ; s equity of company 0 , marked as “ ownership ” relations , from settlements with counterparts and with fiscal authorities . a characteristic of the produced balance sheet is that the accounts receivable ( 385 ) are located in the liabilities of the balance sheet . another characteristic of the balance sheet consists in that the assets part ( and in the total ) of the balance sheet contains positive numbers , whereas the liabilities part ( and in the total ) of the balance sheet contains negative numbers ( other than accounts receivable ). the accounts receivable ( 385 ) are placed in the liabilities part and have a positive value . standard balance sheet forms are produced as a result of primitive transactions : by carrying forward the accounts receivable into the assets part and changing the sign of liabilities items . the balance sheet total for assets is positive ( 390 ), the balance sheet total for the liabilities is negative ( 400 ). the total sum of the assets and liabilities is equal to zero . the results of assets and liabilities of balance sheet are equal in absolute numbers ( modulus ). all the significant properties of business transactions are reflected in the attribute values . however , it is possible to add a field with a textual comment or textual description of the transaction to eeds . additional fields may be needed for connections of accounting with planning , business project management , etc . mda has a typical multidimensional data structure that can be implemented in a relational database in the form of relational tables . this multidimensional data structure can also be implemented with other types of databases that have necessary functionalities . a user inputs a basic data volume into the data sheet . it is possible to use a special interface and other methods that simplify the input . data for dimension tables are specified initially , or when registering a new property , not encountered previously . the user gets data directly from the data sheet . the user can determine the report method either by prepared report templates or by an interface of the universal data processing olap . in the prepared report forms ( report templates ) special formatting elements can be employed , such as particular fonts , highlighting , different types of grid lines etc , as well as additional arithmetic operations upon the data . a disadvantage of the prepared report forms ( report templates ) is the necessity to update the forms and to check them out if there are changes in the dimension tables . it should be however emphasized that the preferable main tool of mda is the olap technology that provides for maximum freedom in data processing within the multidimensional data model . the user can set up his / her own definitions for data input and can define extensions of the database structure . mda makes it possible to obtain a structure replicating the subdivision of data into traditional bookkeeping accounts . however , such replicating would generally make no sense , because the multidimensional structure can register not only all the analytical properties , implied in the bookkeeping accounts , but many other functionalities described above . in case of spreading the mda practice , the bookkeeping accounts might become obsolete . the normative base and national accounting standards might be reviewed taking into consideration the characteristics of mda . as shown above , the advantages of this invention are as follows : 1 . according to characteristics of the olap processing , all accounting reports can be created dynamically upon a user &# 39 ; s request . 2 . as opposed to the traditional accountancy , the multidimensional data structure allows adding new structured information to each transaction record , enabling the accountant to create analytical tools that significantly exceed the analytical capacities of current reporting practice . 3 . intellectual analysis of data can be done within the limits of inputted information . 4 . the use of positive and negative measurement values in different lines allows for visual control of the accuracy of records , as it is done in the accounting postings on debit of one account and on credit of another account . 5 . the use of olap as a report generator ensures the accuracy of results and the equality of total amounts in the balance sheets . the bookkeeping accounts are derived dynamically from the multidimensional data structure . 6 . simplicity . the use of universal tools for creation of pivot tables , various filters and selections covers most of the needs in accounting data analysis without further programming by computer programmers .	6
an inventive solution is presented to the need for a method for resource security in a dbms . in an exemplary embodiment , a table load module , called rhdcsrtt , comprises security information for resources in a ca idms ™ dbms . the rhdcsrtt module is created by assembling a series of assembler macros , called # secrtt macros , along with corresponding data section definitions . a # secrtt macro with type initial is the first macro assembled into the rhdcsrtt module , and a # secrtt macro with type final is the last macro in the module . the remaining macros have type entry or occurrence . each # secrtt macro , other than those of type initial and final , corresponds to a specific resource and contains parameters to describe or define the specific resource , including how it should be secured , e . g ., not secured , internally secured , or externally secured . other parameters can be coded for each macro to provide more detailed information for execution time security checking . these parameters can include resource type , resource class name , and external name such as activity , application name , database name , data definition name , environment , resource external name , resource external type , schema , ssname , system , version , etc . fig1 illustrates the flow of the process for creating the table load module rhdcsrtt . in step s 1 , the # secrtt macro with type initial is created . this macro includes environmental parameters , system and user profile information or parameters , and default information including the total number of resources in the load module . in step s 2 , the macro is converted into a corresponding data section definition ( dsect ) that will be assembled into the rhdcsrtt module . in one embodiment , the dsect created from the # secrtt macro with type initial is called secrtthd , and the dsect indicates that the header is initial and the offset is 30 . next , # secrtt macros for all resources are created . in step s 3 , the macro type is set , e . g ., type = entry or type = occurrence , along with the resource name and its parameters . in one embodiment , the # secrtt macro is known as a security resource type table entry ( secrtted ). in step s 4 , a dsect for the # secrtt macro is created . the program checks for additional resources in step s 5 . if more resources exist ( s 5 = yes ), processing continues at step s 3 . otherwise ( s 5 = no ), in step s 6 the # secrtt macro with type final is created , along with its dsect . in step s 7 , all of the dsects created from the # secrtt macros are assembled into the rhdcsrtt module . the simplest description of the rhdcsrtt module is that the readable source , i . e . # secrtt macros , is converted into a collection of hexadecimal strings with characters 0 through 9 then a through f in any combination . this basically describes the appearance of a load module such as rhdcsrtt . after its creation , the rhdcsrtt module can be read using its dsects . a dsect can be thought of as a map that can be superimposed over the hexadecimal characters of the rhdcsrtt module to decipher the meaning of the characters . as discussed above , the dsects are generated into the rhdcsrtt load module from the # secrtt source . each dsect is similar to a data record . when a resource needs to be added or changed , the program or routine of the present invention reads the rhdcsrtt module &# 39 ; s strings of hexadecimal characters and converts them back to the series of # secrtt macros from which they were generated . the regenerated source code can then be modified and re - assembled to recreate a new load module with the required changes . fig2 illustrates the flow of the process for regenerating source code from the table load module rhdcsrtt . in step s 8 , the rhdcsrtt module is loaded . in step s 9 , the header or first dsect in rhdcsrtt is read and the total number of resources defined in the rhdcsrtt module is retrieved . as discussed above , this first dsect is secrtthd , which corresponds to # secrtt type = initial . in step s 10 , the resource number is set to one ( 1 ). in step s 11 , the next dsect , secrtted having type = entry or type = occurrence ( or occur ) is read . in step s 12 , the program checks each entry in the dsect for the parameters available for the resource type of the dsect , and each parameter that is found is stored in another dsect created to hold the parameters and flags . the resource number is incremented by one in step s 13 and if the incremented resource number is less than the total number of resources ( s 14 = yes ), then processing continues at step s 11 . otherwise ( s 14 = no ), all of the dsects in the load module have been processed . the process concludes in step s 15 , when the # secrtt with type = final is read . the regenerated source code obtained from the process can be modified to add new resources and / or to change the security parameter ( s ) of one or more existing resources . this modified source code can then be re - assembled to recreate a new load module reflecting the desired changes . the ( re -) assembly can be performed as described and shown in fig1 . in one embodiment , the inventive routine to process the load module is embedded in a ca idms ™ module , e . g . in the # look macro from which idmslook and rhdclook are assembled . the routine loads the rhdcsrtt module simply by coding the syntax look rhdcsrtt online in idm s ™ from enter next task code , or in batch by specifying in the sysipt dd rhdcsrtt . read the header secrtthd dsect noting what parameters were coded for the # secrtt type = initial statement . this statement corresponds to the secrtthd dsect . this dsect stores additional information such as the number of occurrences of secrtted dsect for each # secrtt type = entry or # secrtt type = occur statement . the secrtthd dsect is immediately followed by a series of secrtted dsect &# 39 ; s . store the parameters coded on # secrtt type = initial from secrtthd to the srtdsect dsect which is working storage for the routine . if “ envname =” was coded write a “,” after “# secrtt type = initial ” followed by an “ x ” in column 72 and write “ envname =” on the next line of output . if “ sgnretn =” was coded write “,” followed by “ x ” in column 72 . if “ sysprof =” was coded write “,” followed by an “ x ” in column 72 . write “ sysprof =” parameter on the following line . write “(” after “ sysprof =” followed by the option that was coded which could be “ off ”, “ null ”, “ user ”, “ group ”, “ system ” or an actual “ profile name ”. if “ on ” was coded write after the option coded for “ sysprof =” then write “ on )” else write “)” if usrprof = was coded write “,” followed by “ x ” in column 72 . write “ usrprof =” parameter on the following line . write “(” after “ usrprof =” followed by the option that was coded which could be “ off ”, “ null ”, “ group ”, “ system ” or an actual “ profile name ”. if “ on ” was coded write after the option coded for “ usrprof =” then write else write “)” if “ dfltsgn = yes ” was coded write followed by “ x ” in column 72 . if “ dfltuid =” was coded write “,” followed by “ x ” in column 72 . write “ dfltuid =” parameter on the following line . if “(” was coded after dfltuid then a parameter list of vtamnode and / or ptermid and / or ltermid was coded . if “ extruid =” was coded write “.” followed by “ x ” in column 72 . if “ svcnum =” was coded write “.” followed by “ x ” in column 72 . the program then goes through a repeated cycle ( loop ) based on the number of secrtted entries in secrtthd . if “ secby =” was coded write “,” followed by “ x ” in column 72 then if “ extcls =” was coded write “.” followed by “ x ” in column 72 . if “ extname =” was coded write “.” followed by “ x ” in column 72 . write the parameters that were coded separated by commas and end with “)”. if “ extcls =” was coded write “.” followed by “ x ” in column 72 . if “ extname =” was coded write “.” followed by “ x ” in column 72 . write the parameters that were coded separated by commas and end with “)”. various aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied as a program , software , or computer instructions embodied in a computer or machine usable or readable medium , which causes the computer or machine to perform the steps of the method when executed on the computer , processor , and / or machine . the terms “ computer system ” and “ computer network ” as may be used in the present application may include a variety of combinations of fixed and / or portable computer hardware , software , peripherals , and storage devices . the computer system may include a plurality of individual components that are networked or otherwise linked to perform collaboratively , or may include one or more stand - alone components . the hardware and software components of the computer system of the present application may include and may be included within fixed and portable devices such as desktop , laptop , and / or server . a module may be a component of a device , software , program , or system that implements some “ functionality ”, which can be embodied as software , hardware , firmware , electronic circuitry , or etc . the embodiments described above are illustrative examples and it should not be construed that the present invention is limited to these particular embodiments . thus , various changes and modifications may be effected by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims .	6
referring to fig1 - 14 , which show illustrative embodiments of the heater in accordance with the present invention , the heater has ceramic substrate 1 and resistive heating elements 2 . in this embodiment , substrate 1 provides physical support for resistive heating elements 2 . the ceramic substrate 1 , while being rigid enough to physically support the resistive heating elements 2 , can also be made flexible enough to facilitate easy handling and resist fracture during the manufacturing process . ceramic substrate 1 is thermally stable at elevated temperatures and will not deform or become chemically reactive at the temperatures that are encountered when resistive heating element 2 is active . each of the heating segments may be switchably connected to a power source in a manner which would allow current from the power source to be directed through a given resistive heating element 2 to heat it . this switching of power to a particular segment could be directly controlled by the smoker or triggered by control circuitry . the interconnections between resistive elements 2 and an electrical power source and the control circuitry may be made by conventional wires attached to each of the segments or by using wiring embedded in socket 6 . in either case , contact is made to conductor bus bar 4 and contacts 3 . if it is desired to reduce the contact resistance between contacts 3 and the wires or the conductive elements of socket 6 , metal coating 5 , which is a thin film (. sup .˜ 200 å ) of a relatively inert metal such as gold , may be deposited onto the surface of contacts 12 by , for instance , sputter coating , evaporation , electroplating or other conventional techniques . the resistivity of an individual resistive heating element 2 must be such that when current flows through the segment a temperature sufficient to induce the tobacco flavor - generating medium to produce an aerosol or vapor is achieved . typically this temperature is between about 100 ° c . and 600 ° c ., preferably between 250 °- 500 ° c . and most preferably between about 350 °- 450 ° c . the resistivity cannot be so high as to be incompatible with available batteries , nor can it be so low that the power consumption requirement of the segment exceeds the capacity of the source . typically , resistive heating elements 2 having resistances between 0 . 2 and 5 . 0 ω preferably between 0 . 5 and 1 . 5 ω and most preferably between 0 . 8 and 1 . 2 ω , can achieve such operating temperatures when connected across a potential of between 2 . 4 and 9 . 6 volts . throughout their range of operating temperatures , resistive heating elements 2 must be chemically non - reactive with the tobacco flavor - generating medium being heated , so as not to adversely affect the flavor or content of the aerosol or vapor produced by the tobacco flavor - generating medium . in a smoking article in which a flavor dot of tobacco or tobacco - derived material is heated without combustion of the tobacco or tobacco - derived material to release tobacco flavors , the flavor dot must be heated to a temperature of at least 300 ° c . and more preferably in the range of 500 °- 600 ° c . a heater for such a smoking article should be able to reach a peak temperature , within 0 . 5 to 2 . 0 seconds , and more preferably within 1 second . because a smoker expects multiple releases of tobacco flavor each heater includes a plurality of resistive heating elements 2 , only one of which is energized at a time . the size and power requirements of the heater are dictated by the size of the smoking article , because the heater and its power source must fit within the smoking article . in general , each resistive heating element 2 should provide a uniform temperature distribution across its surface with only minimal thermal gradients . similarly , each resistive heating element 2 should provide a uniform voltage drop and current flow between its power contacts . each resistive heating element 2 should be thermally isolated by substrate 1 from other resistive heating elements 2 . the heater should be designed to minimize heat loss to substrate 1 , which acts as a thermal sink , by employing a high electrical resistance , low thermal conductivity material for substrate 1 . contacts 3 at which power is supplied to the heater should have significantly lower resistances than the heating elements , so that contacts 3 do not heat needlessly . substrate 1 acts as a base member to hold a plurality of resistive heating elements 2 , conductive interconnections , and the contact terminals through which power is supplied to each of heating elements 2 . substrate 1 should be strong , thermally stable , and electrically insulating . a ceramic substrate material provides strength as well as excellent thermal and electrical insulation for the discrete resistive heating elements 2 . typical examples of suitable ceramic substrates are alumina , zirconia ( partially or fully stabilized either with yttria , calcia or magnesia ), magnesia , yttria , corderite , mullite , forsterite , or steatite . ceramics have advantage over other substrate materials such as metals and polymers . for instance , metallic substrates generally must be both thermally and electrically insulated from the heating zones , because the high thermal conductivity of metals absorbs the heat generated by a heating element too rapidly during energization . most metallic substrates also require electrical insulation because of their electrical conductivity . in contrast , most polymeric films are dielectrics requiring little electrical insulation . however , polymeric films require thermal insulation because they lack thermal stability above approximately 350 ° c . ceramic substrates are available in the form of fired ceramic sheets or green tape . the resistive and conductive elements can be printed directly onto a fired ceramic sheet substrate , with no additional processing steps required to strengthen the substrate . fired ceramic sheets comprising 96 % al 2 o 3 are available from kyocera corporation , at 5 - 22 kitainoue - cho , higashino , yamashina - ku , kyoto 67 , japan . green tapes are available from dupont corporation of wilmington , delaware . the properties of kyocera sheets and dupont green tape that are 10 mils thick are shown below . ______________________________________ thermal heat density conductivity capacitytype ( g - cm . sup .- 3 ) ( w - m . sup .- 1 k . sup .- 1 ) ( cal - g . sup .- 1 k . sup .- 1 ) ______________________________________kyocera 3 . 80 21 . 0 0 . 19dupont 3 . 08 2 . 0 0 . 21______________________________________ green tapes may be used for the continuous manufacturing of a large number of heaters simultaneously , and are available in rolls . the substrate is preferably sintered before the resistive and conductive elements are formed . ceramic substrates that may be sintered at low temperatures are preferred , because low temperature sintering reduces energy consumption . acceptable substrates include specialty alumina tapes such as 851a2 tape manufactured by dupont corporation of wilmington , del ., which is cast on a mylar backing . this borosilicate tape contains between 10 - 30 % al 2 o 3 with the remaining portion comprising compounds of al , b , ca , mg , k , na , sio 2 , and pb and requires a sintering temperature of about 850 ° c . in contrast , alumina tapes manufactured by ceramtec corporation of salt lake city , utah at 90 % and 96 % loadings require sintering temperatures in the range of 1400 ° to 1700 ° c ., typically around 1550 ° c . for a pure ceramic substrate , sintering is generally carried out in an oxygen rich environment . however , if heating elements are printed on the green tape prior to sintering , an atmosphere that is overly rich in oxygen could oxidize the elements excessively . in the case of alumina , sintering can be carried out either in an oxygen rich atmosphere or in a hydrogen atmosphere . for green tape , firing is preferably carried out in a 1 : 2 mixture of air and nitrogen . some oxygen is required to ensure complete combustion of carbonaceous compounds , although this is primarily of importance with respect to conductive pastes , since the incomplete burning of these compounds might result in an excessive resistivity . excessive oxidation may also cause the resistivity of a conductive paste to become too high during sintering . the thermal conductivity of the substrate should be tailored to match that of resistive heating elements 2 to prevent the elements from peeling off of substrate 1 during use due to a mismatch in thermal expansion coefficients . alumina is a preferred substrate material , because its thermal conductivity and strength can be varied by adjusting the alumina loading in the green tape . the thermal conductivity of alumina in the temperature range 20 ° c . to 400 ° c . is shown below . ______________________________________ conductivity ( w / cm . sup . 2 ) temperature , ° c . 99 . 9 % 96 % 90 % 85 % ______________________________________ 20 0 . 39 0 . 24 0 . 16 0 . 14100 0 . 28 0 . 19 0 . 13 0 . 12400 0 . 13 0 . 10 0 . 08 0 . 06______________________________________ the thermal conductivities of mullite and corderite are similar to alumina whereas the thermal conductivity of zirconia is lower . in contrast , ceramic materials like si 3 n 4 , sic , tic , tac , and tib 2 , exhibit higher thermal conductivities than alumina . thermal stability of the substrate is an important consideration . the vapor pressure of the substrate material should be very low at temperatures of up to 900 ° c . although the heater is designed to operate below about 600 ° to 700 ° c ., momentarily higher temperatures during energization of the heater should not result in oxidation of resistive heating elements 2 ( including oxidation due to dielectric breakdown ). oxidation which would increase the vapor pressure of the substrate , can be expected from carbides and nitrides of ti , mo , si , and possibly zirconium . a preferred embodiment according to the invention includes an alumina substrate having a thickness of about 1 mil ( 25 μm ) and generally not greater than 10 mils ( 250 μm ). substrates thinner than 5 mils ( 125 μm ) tend to be too fragile . a substrate thickness greater than 30 mils ( 750 μm ) is not necessary and may occupy too much space or may not be sufficiently flexible to avoid cracking during the manufacturing process . as shown in fig1 and 12 , substrate 1 may be provided with slots between adjoining heating elements 2 and heating elements 10 , 11 , 12 , and 13 to increase thermal isolation between each of the heating elements . the presence of slots further reduces thermal conduction away from the heating elements , so that for a given applied current , the maximum temperature that is attained by an element is increased . the configuration shown in fig1 , in which the slots in substrate 1 extend completely through one end of substrate 1 , allows the resistive heating element to which power is being applied to expand freely . since the heating elements that are not being powered remain in an unexpanded state , stresses may develop in the absence of this feature when powering only one of the heating elements . as shown in fig1 , it is also possible to mount two sets of heating elements back - to - back on spacer 7 , which may be formed from the same material as substrate 1 . as shown in fig1 , a circularly shaped heater may also be provided with openings 8 . in the circular heater configuration , openings 8 allow the free passage of the tobacco flavored aerosol through the body of the smoking article in addition to providing thermal isolation between the heating elements 2 . slots may be formed in green tape substrates by cutting with a blade prior to sintering . after cutting the slots in green tape , the tape may be sintered in a belt furnace that provides a temperature profile such as shown in fig1 . slots may be formed in fired ceramic sheet substrates by using a co 2 laser . the heater should operate with low voltage batteries and generate heat through resistive heating to a maximum temperature in the range of 400 ° to 650 ° c . within a span of 2 seconds . the power needed to raise the temperature of the heater to its peak should be in the range of 10 to 20 watts . the power requirements of the heater determine the number of heating elements that a fully charged set of batteries set can energize . in a preferred embodiment , the batteries supply approximately 10 watts operating at 5 volts . therefore , the desired resistance of a heater operating under the power constraint set by the batteries can be determined as follows : ## equ1 ## from the above equations it can be seen that a 30 % reduction in voltage reduces the power that a 2 . 5 ω resistance draws by 50 % to 5 w . for a resistance of 1 . 2 ω , a voltage of 3 . 46 v suffices to produce the desired power of 10 w . the example above demonstrates that the electrical resistance of resistive heating elements 2 must not change significantly during heating . conventional resistive heater materials such as graphite , ni -- cr alloys , metallic strips , mosi 2 , zro 2 , and lanthanum chromate are generally not suitable because their low electrical resistivities may require excessive power to reach a temperature of 600 ° c . acceptable heater materials include metallic or organometallic inks . a typical resistive ink comprises 10 - 30 % ag , 30 - 60 % pd , and 10 - 30 % compounds of al , b , ca , mg , zn , ba , sio 2 , and tio 2 . a typical conductive ink comprises greater than 60 % ag , 0 . 1 - 1 % pt and compounds of al , b , bi , ca , mg , zn , cu , na , sio 2 , pb and ru . a preferred embodiment uses 7125d ink available from dupont electronics , wilmington , del . other acceptable inks are available from electro - scientific industries , mount laurel , n . j . resistive heating elements 2 generally have a thickness in the range of 0 . 2 mil ( 5 μm ) to 5 mil ( 125 μm ), widths in the range of 1 . 0 mm to 2 . 0 mm , and lengths in the range of 10 mm to 16 mm . in a preferred embodiment , shown in fig1 resistive heating elements 2 are 1 - 4 mils ( 25 - 100 μm ) thick , 1 . 3 mm wide and about 13 mm long , and are separated by slots approximately 0 . 5 mm wide . the illustrative embodiments shown in fig1 - 14 have various advantages which may be particularly useful for specific applications . for instance , as shown in fig5 the heater may be constructed so that both surfaces of the substrate are used , which allows a larger number of heating elements to be provided . as shown in fig2 a smoking article may contain socket 6 for making the necessary electrical connections for use of a heater , although other techniques may also be used to make the necessary lead connections , such as conventional wire bonding . one skilled in the art will appreciate that the resistive and conductive layers can be applied to the substrate in several ways , including techniques such as sputtering , physical vapor deposition , chemical vapor deposition , thermal spraying , and dc magnetron sputtering . however , most require the use of fairly expensive instruments , and involve processing the material in a vacuum . a preferred technique for high - speed production of heaters is screen - printing , which allows resistive and conductive materials to be screen - printed to desired thicknesses on green tape . the screen - printing process involves forcing a viscous thick film paste through a stencil screen to form a pattern on the substrate . the screen may be constructed of a stainless steel wire mesh or cloth , polyester or nylon filaments , or metallized polyester filaments . the mesh size may be tailored to the properties of the paste to be used . the resistive paste , which can consist of a combination of metals , non - metals , metal oxide and glass , is commercially available from dupont corporation of wilmington , del . in a variety of resistivity values . the sheet resistance of the paste increases with the loading concentrations of oxides and glass relative to the metals in the paste . the thick film paste exhibits high viscosity , but its viscosity decreases sharply upon application of a shearing force , such as that applied to the paste when a rubber squeegee blade forces the paste through the screen . thus , upon the application of force , the paste flows rapidly through the screen and prints a pattern on the substrate . viscosity increases again when the force is withdrawn so that the paste retains its pattern . the viscosity of the thick film paste may be adjusted by the addition of solvents or thinners such as pine oil , terpinol , butyl carbitol acetate or dibutylphthalate . temporary binding materials such as polyvinyl acetate , ethyl cellulose or carboxy methyl cellulose ( cmc ) may be used to increase the cohesion of the paste during screen printing and sintering . a permanent binder , such as glass , fuses the printed material to the substrate and remains after sintering . after printing , the paste is allowed to settle for approximately 10 minutes . the paste may then be dried in a 120 °- 150 ° c . oven for about 10 - 15 minutes before firing or may be dried during the firing process . the paste is typically fired using the same temperature profile that is used for the ceramic firing stage , shown in fig1 . in this step temporary organic binders are removed from the films by decomposition and oxidation , when the temperature is generally at 200 °- 500 ° c . at temperatures from 500 °- 700 ° c ., the permanent binder within the resistive ( or conductive ) thick - film paste , which is glass frit in a preferred embodiment , melts and wets the surface of the substrate and the particles within the paste . during the sintering stage , the temperature is raised to 850 ° c ., which causes the particles to become interlocked with the glass frit and the substrate . although adequate results may be achieved by printing the second layer after drying the first layer , the most consistent results are achieved by performing the reprinting step after firing the first resistive layer . the conductive elements , including the lead terminals for energizing the heaters , are screen printed next . the thickness of the conductive layer is generally in the range of 0 . 2 mils ( 5 μm ) to 5 mils ( 125 μm ). the thick film paste used to print conductive elements may incorporate silver , gold , platinum , palladium , copper , tungsten or combinations of these metals , together with solvents and binders . at this point , the printed tape may be cut , for instance by a laser , into individual heaters each having a plurality of resistive heating elements 2 . this cutting step may also be performed after sintering the conductive paste . the heater is placed on a support , preferably graphite or another high temperature insulator that can withstand a subsequent heating step , where a second cutting operation further trims the heater to its final size , which is preferably less than the 8 mm diameter of conventional smoking articles . the trimming operation can be carried out by a laser or by a punch . after trimming , the conductive layer may be fired using the temperature profile of fig1 . the conductive paste reacts similarly to the resistive paste during firing , although the final resistance is much lower . the firing step also forms good ohmic contacts between the resistive and conductive elements . although in the heater fabrication process illustrated above , the ceramic , resistive paste , and conductive paste were fired in three separate firing stages , it is also possible , in accordance with the invention , to easily modify the process . for instance , the conductive paste could be fired before the resistive paste , or the resistive and conductive pastes could be fired simultaneously . the present invention may be more readily understood by reference to fig1 - 18 , which detail the measured performance of heaters constructed in accordance with the invention . for instance , fig1 shows the temperature attained by a heating element versus time as a result of applying a 5 . 0 v potential for 1 . 0 s across a heating element heaving a 1 . 21 ω resistance . the heater temperature , which was measured by a thermocouple , rises to a maximum of approximately 400 ° c . after the potential is removed , the temperature decays . fig1 shows the effect of creating slots in the substrate between heating elements . the 1 . 25 ω resistance of the heater used for the measurements of fig1 is essentially the same as the resistance of the heater used for the measurements of fig1 . however , the greater thermal isolation that results from providing slots in the substrate between heating elements causes the temperature of the heater to rise to an approximately 700 ° c . maximum . thus , by reducing thermal diffusion away from a heated resistive heating element , the temperature rise is produced more efficiently . because the heater provides a temperature that is sufficiently high to create a tobacco aerosol for significantly longer than the non - slotted heater , even when drawing the same amount of battery power , battery life can be greatly extended by using slots . referring to fig1 and 18 , when current is applied to heating element 10 , temperature response 20 is produced . due to thermal diffusion , the temperature of adjacent heater 11 is also raised ( see thermal response 21 ). thermal responses 22 and 23 show the effect of heat diffusing to heating element 12 and heating element 13 . although adjacent heating elements are not entirely thermally isolated from each other , they are isolated enough that the tobacco flavor - generating medium of adjacent elements will not be affected inadvertently when one of the heating elements is powered . one skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention can be practiced by other than the described embodiments , which are presented for purposes of illustration and not of limitation , and the present invention is limited only by the claims which follow .	0
a reactive power control system that provides an optimum control of the reactive power compensation in a wind farm is described below . several drawings will be referenced only as illustration for the better understanding of the description . furthermore , the same reference numbers will be used in the drawings and in the description to refer to the same or like elements . an exemplary topology of the wind farm with the reactive power control system is shown in fig6 . this system is comprised of a plurality of wind turbines ( 600 a through 600 e ) and two subsystems : the wind farm central control ( wfcc ) ( 100 ), shown in fig1 - 4 , which might be located in the substation or point of common coupling ( pcc ) ( 601 ), and the wind turbine relative control ( wtrc ) ( 500 ), shown in fig5 , which is carried out in at least one of the wind - turbines in the wind farm ( see 500 a through 500 e in fig6 ). the objective of this system is to follow a given setpoint of reactive power for the wind - farm as a whole while at the same time keeping account of the possible reactive power reserve that can be delivered in the short term . moreover , this reserve of maximum reactive power can be managed by the wfcc ( 100 ). the wind farm reactive power setpoint ( sp_q ) and the wind farm reactive power reserve setpoint ( sp_qres ) can be received either from the utility ( sp_q utility and sp_q resutility ) or generated by the wind farm central control ( sp_q wfcc and sp_q reswfcc ) according to several criteria predefined in an optimization algorithm ( 101 ). for instance , the power setpoint ( sp_q wfcc ) and reactive power reserve setpoint ( sp_q reswfcc ) can be generated by the optimization algorithm ( 101 ) based on , for example , production optimization , power reserve , grid voltage stability and economic profit optimization . in one embodiment , illustrated in fig1 , for example , the wfcc ( 100 ) receives various information ( 106 ) used to optimize the reactive power setpoint . such information ( 106 ) includes relevant tariff information from the utility , e . g . kwh - kvarh tariff depending on the time , short term demand , bonus because of reactive power reserve , grid capacity , production optimization information , grid voltage stability information , profit optimization information , etc . in addition , the wfcc ( 100 ) receives measurements of the actual real ( av_p ) and reactive ( av_q ) power . the wfcc ( 100 ) includes an optimization algorithm ( 101 ) which is based on economic profit optimization . this algorithm takes into account the aforementioned inputs to generate the reactive power setpoint ( sp_q wfcc ) and the reactive power reserve setpoint ( sp_q reswfcc , shown in fig3 ) in order to maximize the economic profit of the wind farm . in one embodiment , these criteria could require prioritizing either the reactive power production or the management of a reactive power reserve over the real power production in order to contribute to the electrical grid stability or maximize the economic profit of the wind farm . referring to fig1 , the reactive power setpoint sp_q managed by the wfcc ( 100 ) is regulated by a pid controller ( 104 ) or a more complex structure , by using a value av_q which represents the instantaneous reactive power measurement of the wind farm . a selector 102 selects one of two values , s p — q wfcc and s p — q utility , that are input to the selector and outputs that selected value as the reactive power setpoint sp_q . in one embodiment the selector ( 102 ) outputs s p — q wfcc unless a s p — q utility is received . a subtractor ( 103 ) subtracts the instantaneous reactive power value ( av_q ) from the reactive power setpoint value ( sp_q ) to produce an error value ( ε_q ). the output of the wfcc controller will be a percentage ( sp_ % q max ) to be applied to the maximum instantaneous reactive power that each wind turbine can produce ( q wt — max ). this relative reactive power command ( sp_ % q max ) is fed to a limiter ( 105 ) which establishes the maximum and minimum allowed percentage . these limits may be either fixed or dynamically adjusted in order to enhance the lifetime of the wind turbine components . furthermore , these limits can be used in the anti wind - up logic of the controller . the aforementioned value q_wt — max , which is shown in fig5 , will be calculated continuously by each wind turbine according to the local conditions , e . g ., ambient temperature , grid conditions , etc . finally , all the wind turbines will receive a unique command . thus , the wind farm communication network requirements are not very strict . in some cases , the total commanded reactive power sp_q can not be met by the wfcc ( 100 ). in one embodiment , this situation may occur if the value of sp_q is higher than the value of av_q during a specified time and the set point sp_ % q max has reached the thresholds ( maximum or minimum values ) imposed by the aforementioned limiter block ( 105 ). then , in an optional embodiment , shown in fig2 , it is possible to prioritize the reactive power production over the real power generation . hereinafter , this option will be referred as reactive power priority ( rpp ). in this case , in which real power production can be decreased to allow a higher production of reactive power , the difference between sp_q and av_q , namely , the error value ( ε_q ) which is generated by subtractor 103 , is input to a pid controller ( 201 ) or a more complex structure , which may include a non - linear gain . a selector ( 202 ) selects either the output of pid controller ( 201 ) or a value representing 100 % in response to the rpp value output from the optimization algorithm ( 101 ). in the case where rpp is enabled , the selector ( 202 ) selects the output of pid controller ( 201 ). the value the selector 202 selects is output as a unique command (% p wt rated ) that is distributed to all the wind turbines . each wind turbine will reduce its maximum power output in accordance to its rated power and the commanded percentage (% p wt rated ). otherwise , if rpp is not enabled , % p wt rated will be 100 %. referring to fig3 , a reactive power reserve regulation can be selected . in this case , the reactive reserve priority ( rrp ) mode is selected . in one embodiment , the reactive power reserve setpoint ( sp_q res ) is output by a selector 301 which selects as the output either sp_q reswfcc or sp_q resutility . in one embodiment the selector ( 301 ) outputs sp_q reswfcc unless a sp_q resutility is received . the reactive power reserve setpoint ( sp_q res ) is regulated by a pid controller ( 305 ) or a more complex structure , by using an estimation of the instantaneous reactive power reserve of the wind farm ( av_q res ). the value of av_q res is worked out by means of a function block ( 302 ) according to the following formula : in the case where the reactive power regulation is not being carried out by the wfcc or the value of sp_q is negligible , the value of av_q res can be calculated as : wherein qwt_max i is the maximum instantaneous reactive power that each wind turbine can produce , where i indicates a particular one of the wind turbines in the wind farm . in this particular case , each wind turbine must continuously communicate to the wfcc its reactive power capacity . subtractor 303 outputs the difference between sp_qres and av_qres , shown as error value _ε_q res , which is input to a pid controller ( 305 ) or a more complex structure , which may include a non - linear gain unit ( 304 ). the optimization algorithm 101 outputs an active rrp value if the reactive reserve priority ( rrp ) is enabled . a selector ( 306 ), in response to an active rrp value , selects the output of such controller to output a % p wt rated value that is distributed as a unique command to all the wind turbines . otherwise , if rrp is not enabled , the selector selects the value of 100 % for the value of % p wt rated . each wind turbine will reduce its maximum power output in accordance to its rated power and the commanded percentage (% p wt rated ). this is an operational mode wherein the reactive power reserve is prioritized over the real power production . the reactive power regulation and reactive power reserve regulation operational modes can be enabled or disabled by the wfcc . these modes are not exclusive , but can be combined in an arbitrary way . for example , fig4 shows the case where both operational modes are activated and the reactive power priority ( rpp ) is enabled . here , a minimum value selector ( 401 ) will determine whether the output of the selector 202 or the output of selector 306 is commanded as % p wt rated to the wind turbines based on whichever one is smaller . referring to fig5 , a wind turbine relative control ( wtrc ) ( 500 ) system includes a reactive power capacity electrical system ( 501 ) and a voltage limit surveillance unit 502 . the wtrc ( 500 ) system receives relative power commands ( sp_ % qmax and % p wt rated ) from the wfcc . these commands , which are expressed in relative terms as percentages instead of using physical absolute units , are fed to the wind turbine power regulation system . the wind turbine relative control ( wtrc ) is continuously calculating its reactive power capacity ( qwt_max ) and generates the reactive power setpoint to the power control unit by multiplying ( 512 ) it by the relative reactive power command ( sp_ % qmax ). in such a way , the final conversion of the reactive power setpoint to physical units is carried out in the individual wind turbines . thereby , the wfcc is decoupled from the wind turbines &# 39 ; technology allowing the use of wind turbines from different manufacturers . qwt_max is the maximum reactive power that the wind turbine can deliver while keeping safety conditions within specified operational limits . therefore , it includes both the electrical system and the grid conditions . in one embodiment , the calculation of the reactive power capacity of the electrical system ( 501 ), qwt_max_ele_sys , is carried out by using multivariable functions ( 503 ). said functions may have as inputs real power , temperatures ( temp wt ) and voltages ( av_pwt , av_vwt ). in a preferred embodiment , the multivariable functions ( 503 ) are calculated for the main components ( generator , power converter , electrical cabinet , etc ) of the electrical system . these functions are not independent of the sign of sp_qmax . that is , there might be different maximum and minimum limits depending on if the reactive power is consumed or produced by the generator . grid conditions are taken into account by a voltage limit surveillance algorithm unit ( 502 ). in a preferred embodiment , measured grid voltage ( av_vwt ) is compared , using comparators ( 504 ) and ( 505 ), with the voltage operational limits of the wind turbine . measured grid voltage is both compared ( 504 ) with the upper limit ( vmax - av_vwt ), and compared ( 505 ) with the lower limit ( av_vwt - vmin ). these differences are input , respectively , to pid controller ( 506 ) and pid controller ( 507 ) or more complex structures which output can limit the output , such as limiters ( 508 and 509 ). the sign of sp_ % qmax is input to a selector ( 510 ). in the case where the sign sp_ % qmax is positive , the selector ( 510 ) selects the output of limiter ( 508 ) ( supply of reactive power to the grid ). in the case where the sign of sp_ % qmax is negative , the selector ( 510 ) selects the output of limiter ( 509 ) ( consumption of reactive power from the grid ). the output of selector ( 510 ), gv , is a percentage factor to be applied in a multiplier block ( 511 ) to the aforementioned reactive power capacity of the electrical system ( qwt_max_ele_sys ). the output of multiplier block ( 511 ) is multiplied by the sp_ % qmax value in another multiplier block ( 512 ) to obtain the reactive power setpoint ( sp_qwt ) to the power control unit . according to a non - limiting example , a wind farm of two wind turbines ( wt_a and wt_b ) is considered . the wfcc sends sp_ % qmax = 0 . 75 ( 75 %) to each wind turbine . wt_a is producing 3mw and according to its local conditions has calculated a reactive power capacity of qwt_max = 1mvar . wt_b is producing 2 . 4mw and according to its local conditions has calculated a reactive power capacity of qwt_max = 2mvar . the reactive power setpoint applied to the power control unit of wt_a is sp_qwt = qwt_max · sp_ % qmax = 1mvar · 0 . 75 = 750 kvar . the reactive power setpoint applied to the power control unit of wt_b is sp_qwt = qwt_max · sp_ % qmax = 2mvar · 0 . 75 = 1500 kvar . the wind turbine relative control ( wtrc ) ( 500 ) system receives % p wt rated from the wfcc ( 100 ). usually , this command is 100 % but can be decreased in the case where the reactive power reserve or reactive power production is prioritized over real power generation . the wtrc calculates the maximum real power production limit by multiplying the % p wt rated by the rated power of the wind turbine in multiplier ( 513 ) shown in fig5 . this limit is input to the power control algorithm of the wind turbine . the wind turbine will follow its normal operation if its real power setpoint ( sp_p ) is lower than the calculated maximum real power production limit . otherwise , the real power setpoint will be limited to the maximum real power production limit in the power control algorithm of the wind turbine . numerous modifications may be made to the exemplary embodiments of the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the embodiments of the present invention as defined in the following claims .	7
preferred embodiments of the present invention can be described by reference to the figures . the natural interrelated mechanisms involved in the deposition of semen in the vagina by the natural means of copulation can be described by reference to the diagram in fig1 . erection of the penis 2 is generally a necessary prerequisite for penetration of the vagina . the stimuli for this reflex may involve either peripheral nerve receptors on or around the penis or mental stimulation . the stimuli are in the form of electrical signals . these signals are transmitted via routes 4 and 6 , respectively , to central connections located in the sacral part of the spinal cord as shown at 8 . from these central connections electrical signals are transmitted via the pelvic splanchnic nerves ( the nervi ergentes ) 9 to the penis . the pelvic splanchnic nerves provide electrical signals to the penis arteries ( including the dorsal artery 10 shown in fig1 and 2 and a very large number of smaller arteries inside the penis ). these electrical signals result in a dilation of the arteries permitting an increase of blood flow into the penis which in turn increases the blood pressure which has the effect of partially restricting the veins 11 ( including the dorsal veins shown in fig1 and 2 ) taking blood out of the penis . as a result there is a rapid filling of blood spaces in the corpora cavernosa 12 and corpus spongiosum 13 areas of the penis . the net effect is erection . fig2 shows a cross section view of the penis including the corpora cavernosa 12 and corpus spongiosum 13 . also shown are the two limbs of the dorsal artery 10 and the dorsal nerve 9 , side by side at the top of the penis , the dorsal veins 11 and the urethra 14 . emission is the movement of spermatozoa and secretions from the testes and other accessory glands into the urethra . this is entirely a reflex process . the afferent side of the reflex arc is initiated by touch receptors in the genital area such as receptors in the penis glans 15 . in coming electrical signals travel via the pudendal nerves 17 to central relays in the upper lumbar segments 18 of the spinal cord . from there electrical signals travel via the pelvic plexus nerves 19 to stimulate parasympathetic fibres which in turn stimulate the ductus deferens 20 to slowly pump sperm and the seminal vesicles 22 to slowly pump siminal fluid into the urethra . ejaculation is the propulsion of semen out of the urethra . the same afferent paths are involved . central connections are located in the lower lumbar and upper sacral segments of the spinal cords . efferent stimuli are conveyed by parasympathetic fibres of the pelvic splanchnic nerves 9 and by somatic motor fibres 23 in the pudendal nerves 17 . ejaculation is caused by the rhythmic contraction of the bulbocavernosus muscles 24 , while the internal vesicle sphincter 26 closes to prevent retrograde ejaculation into the bladder 28 . fig3 is a block diagram of a device which the inventors call a potency package . a preferred prototype embodiment comprises a modified commercial pacemaker model 600av manufactured by seimens . the device is designed to be installed under the patient &# 39 ; s abdominal muscle rectus , but it could be installed in several other convenient places . the unit comprises battery 40 , programable signal circuit 42 , infrared detector 44 and pulse generator 46 . the unit is controlled with an external control unit shown in block diagram for in fig4 . the unit comprises a start button and an interrupt button . a preferred sequence of pulses which should provide good results for many patients is shown in fig1 . the package can be reprogrammed to change any of the parameters shown in fig1 which are pulse height , pulse width , frequency , duration and sequence . the best program for each individual patient can only be determined by testing . these parameters such as number of pulses group , voltage , pace , pulse duration are well within the ranges available with the above seimens device . these parameters and any others within the range of the device can be programmed into it with commercially available pacemaker programmer such as model # 3cmhk 850 supplied by mifi . the programmer transmits programming information via a pulsating magnetic field generated in the programmer to an electromagnetic detector in programmable signal circuit 42 . this device shown in fig3 comprises one electrode 48 . the electrode should preferably be run from under the just patient &# 39 ; s abdominal muscle rectus at position 30 , under the abdominal skin tissue to location 34 as shown in fig5 and there connect with the pelvic splanchnic nerves 9 . the pelvic splanchnic nerve is located about one centimeter under the skin at the location shown on fig5 . the procedure can be accomplished in a medical doctors office or hospital , under local anesthesia . the nerve is located by a 5 cm incision at location 34 . the nerve may be clamped between electrode leads as shown in fig6 a and 6b . ( persons skilled in the art will recognize that many other surgical techniques for connecting electrodes to nerve tissue could be used .) the recommended electronic pulse series is shown in fig5 . if this series does not produce the desired effect , the doctor can vary the parameters . if an erection is produced by any of the tests , then the doctor continues the process and installs the potency package as described above . if the doctor is unable to produce an erection , he may choose not to proceed with the operation . a second preferred embodiment of our potency package is shown in fig7 . this embodiment is just like the first embodiment except the potency package comprises a second pulse generator 47 which is programmed to simulate emission . a second electrode 49 from the device is connected to the pudendal nerves 17 at location 36 as shown in fig9 . location 36 is also shown on fig1 . this nerve can most easily be reached by making a 1 cm incision of the skin in the pubic area just at the location shown at 36 in fig1 . then make an incision of the rectal muscle ligament and reach the nerve - vessel - ductus deferens bundle . make a 0 . 5 cm incision in the cover of the bundle and attach the electrode to the pelvic plexus nerve . the place of attachment is also shown in fig9 at 36 . as above , if the doctor is uncertain if the patient is a good candidate for the procedure , applicants recommend that a patient be tested prior to installation of the device to determine if the emission can be stimulated the particular patient . applicants recommend that initially the potency package be programmed to produce the pulse trains shown in fig1 in this embodiment the device , shown in fig1 contains a chamber 60 for storage within the body of a suitable drug such as papaverine , a small electronic pump 62 and a very thin tube 64 for delivering the drug to the penis . the tube is run under the skin of the abdomen to the upper part of the penis . the tube then branches into 3 branches , one each to the two corpora cavernosa and one for the corpus spongiosium . as with the two previously described embodiments , the delivery of the drug is initiated by an electronic signal transmitted by a hand held transmitter within the control of the patient . for this embodiment the two electronic circuits are programmed as described for the second preferred embodiment as described above . the potency package is programmed to deliver the drug at time zero . drug delivery chambers consists of a plastic refillable containers which is placed into hermetic chamber 62 . the bottom of the chamber is a piston with a coil and electromagnet step driver . as the first step of the erection stimulation is a vasoactive drug delivered by sending an electrical potential to the driver . the driver pulls the coil into the electromagnet up to a definite distance squeezing the drug into the tube attached to the plastic container with one end and implanted into cavernous bodies of the penis at the other end of the tube . the other drug chambers for various health condition correction are built similarly . they are refillable as well by injection through the skin with a syringe injector . the potency package components can be standard off - the - shelf components . the components include : a lithium battery lbsar 5 made by saratof with a lifetime of 5 to 8 years , a pulse generator clg 445 made by mifi , a receiver / transmitter mc145027 made by motorola and ir remote control receiver u338m made by aeg corporation , a fast ir photodiode detector s1133 - 11 made by hamamatsu , ir remote control transmitter u327m made by aeg corporation , stepping motor 155 nl micro slide made by toshiba corporation , silicon tubing catheter t5715 made by dow corning silasastic and elastomer q7 - 4750 silicon pack made by dow corning silastic . the surgery to provide implantation is described with respect of the sixth embodiment which includes electrodes for erection and for emission and a thin tube for drug delivery to the penis . the potency package should be surgically implanted by a trained physician . the operation is very similar to the implantation of a heart pacemaker . a skin dissection is performed on the alba line below the umbilical . the peritoneal cavity is dissected and the path to the retroperitoneal is opened on the level of l4 - s2 . the electrodes are passed from the retroperitoneal to the subcutaneous layer of the frontal abdominal wall , where they are connected with the stimulator . using micro surgical techniques , the carbonic electrode 28 is sewn to the parasimpatic nerve fiber and carbonic electrode 30 is sewn to the simpatic nerve fiber . the electrodes are passed from the retroperitoneal to the subcutaneous layer of the frontal abdominal wall where they are connected with the chambers 10 and 12 of the potency package . the tube carrying the drug is connected to the corpora cavernosa so as to deliver this drug to directly to the penis . the potency package is implanted subcutaneously to the frontal abdominal wall either to the right or to the left above the umbilical . the package has no contact with the operational wound . the wound is sewn layerly . many other embodiments of the present invention are provided by various combinations of the above described embodiments . a forth embodiment would provide for emission stimulation only , a fifth is drug only . ______________________________________vasoactive agent average dose per injection______________________________________papaverine 15 mgphentolamine 0 . 5 mgprostaglandin e1 20 μgvasoactive intestinal polypeptide 5 μg______________________________________ additional embodiments are provided by providing more than one drug . for example a drug such as nitroglycerine could be provided to be released into the blood stream to provide protection of patients against heart attack during sex . the following table shows some drugs recommended for the correction of health conditions which are the most common appeared during sex intercourse . additional embodiments are provided by using many different drugs which are known to induce erection . also , there are many electronic pulse sequences which would work well to produce erection , emission and ejaculation for many different patients in addition to the sequences described above . electrodes may also be provided to stimulate the penal muscles . medical doctors will recognize that electrodes can be connected at many locations other than the ones shown . to correct the arterial circulatory problem of impotence the arterial anastamosis should be performed at the same time as potency pack implantation . anastomosis between inferior hypogastric artery and the central and dorsal artery and dorsal vein of penis is preferable . to correct the diabetic circulatory problem of impotence the arterial anastamosis should be done as distal to the penile glans as possible and same time as potency pack implantation . anastomosis between the hypogastric artery and dorsal artery end - to - end or end - to - side . penile veins of diabetic patients could usually provide blood flow and their surgical correction is not required in most cases . the teachings of the present invention can be applied to many animals other than man . it should be especially valuable for use with breeding animals such as prize bulls . it could also be used in the breeding programs of captured members of endangered species of wild animals . while the above description contains many specificities , the reader should not construe these as limitations on the scope of the invention , buy merely as exemplifications of preferred embodiments thereof . those skilled in the art will envision many other possible variations are within its scope like pacemaker implantation in other location than under the rectal muscle of abdomen , design different types of electrodes and pacemakers , to use different voltage , amplitude , pulse group , repetition rate , pulse duration , remote control with more or less functions , fully automatic preprogrammed pacemaker without external control , etc . persons skilled in art will recognize that the teachings of this invention can be applied to treat frigidity in women by clitoris erection stimulation . in this case an electronic device is provided with two electrodes : one provides for erection of the clitoris and the other for pudendal muscle contraction around the vaginal entrance . other elements in the women &# 39 ; s device might provide for an electrode for urethra muscle contraction for urine incontinence correction during sexual intercourse . accordingly the reader is requested to determine the scope of the invention by the appended claims and their legal equivalents , and not by the examples which have been given .	0
referring to fig1 - 8 , a body support for suntanning 10 according to the present invention is an elongate structure , for instance wedge - shaped as illustrated , formed to provide a comfortable back and side rest for a sunbather assuming a position orienting his or her body to tan side portions and constructed to be portable , easily handled and conveniently configured with an enclosable compartment for storing and transporting small items . the flat bottom , or base , 12 rests on a generally horizontal foundation 14 , typically the sand of a beach or the grass or pavement surrounding a pool , but including the platforms or carpeted floors of tanning salons , the decks of ships or boats , or any suitably flat surface . the back 16 of support 10 is flat and forms a perpendicular abutment with the back edge 18 of base 12 . ends 20 and 22 are parallel generally isosceles right triangles , perpendicular to both base 12 and back 16 , similar but not necessarily congruent in shape . a non - planar support surface 24 extends between the ends , base and back completing the generally wedge - shaped body support and forming approximately 45 ° angles with the base and back . the specific contour of support surface 24 is ergonomically designed to provide comfortable support to the back and sides of a sunbather 26 assuming a posture between the prone and supine positions , particularly the sides of the body and limbs , to allow better orientation with respect to the sun of these typically difficult to tan body portions . as best illustrated in fig3 and 6 , support surface 24 includes first and second expanded sections , or portions , 32 and 34 , respectively , enlarged in both width and depth with respect to three more constricted or narrowed sections or portions 36 , 38 and 40 . as shown in fig7 the first narrowed portion 36 , adjacent end 20 supports the sunbather &# 39 ; s head . adjacent expanded portion 32 cradles the small of the neck and the rather long gentle swail of the second narrowed portion 38 is proportioned to correspond to the shape of the back . the second expanded portion 34 rises to support the small of the back or waist and the surface then recedes to the third narrowed portion 40 conforming to and supporting the lower body or buttocks of the sunbather . the exact dimensions of this contoured support surface can vary with body type and size but a representative set of dimensions found to provide comfortable support for a wide range of users is shown in table 1 . longitudinal distances are measured from head support end 30 along the structure elongate axis to the maximum or minimum width of each sequentially adjacent support section as designated by lettered arrows shown in fig6 and the contour of support surface 24 at each position is defined by the length of the legs 42 of the isosceles triangular cross - sections , as shown in fig5 . ______________________________________ longitudinal cross - sectional distance widthportion ( inches ) ( inches ) ______________________________________a : head 0 . 0 9 . 1b : neck 4 . 2 10 . 7c : back 11 . 8 7 . 7d : small of back 23 . 0 9 . 8 or waiste : lower body 29 . 0 8 . 7 or buttocks______________________________________ in addition to varying the depth and separation of the contours of support surface 24 , the triangular ends need not have equal length arms , thus the slant or angle assumed by the surface can be varied to values greater or less than 45 °, generally between about 30 ° and 60 °, to suit conditions and personal comfort . moreover , the cross - section of the body support for suntanning need not be specifically triangular , rather any sufficiently strong yet lightweight structure having at least one surface inclined with respect to the foundation and contoured to provide uniform body support would fall within the scope of this invention . a first slot 44 formed in the back surface 16 and a second slot 45 formed in the bottom or base 12 are proportioned to form carrying handles by which the suntanning body support can be easily grasped for transporting . a hollow compartment 46 is also formed within the structure with access provided by a removable panel 48 cut into the back surface 16 . the compartment sides have insets 50 to position and support panel 48 and access indentations 52 beveled into the back surface adjacent the ends of panel 48 to facilitate placement and removal of the panel . compartment 46 is sized to provide storage for such items as suntan lotion , towels , reading material , beverage containers and dark glasses that are frequently used during tanning sessions . in one preferred embodiment the body support for suntanning of the present invention is formed of 3 / 4 &# 34 ; thick polystyrene foam , or the like , for instance arcel ™, a copolymer of expanded polystyrene and expanded polyethylene , manufactured by the arco chemical company . such a material selection enhances the utility of the storage compartment as an insulated beverage cooler . alternatively , any sufficiently strong lightweight material , preferably water and sun resistant , can be used as can a solid body with a preformed interior compartment rather than walls . dependent upon the circumstances and the preferences of the sunbather , the support can be made of rigid , flexible or cushioned material to maximize individual comfort , or may conveniently have cushioning material 49 applied over the rigid contoured support surface , as shown in fig7 . in use , a sunbather loads his or her desired sunbathing accoutrements into compartment 46 , secures access panel 48 into insets 50 , grasps the body support by a handle 44 or 45 , and transports the support to the selected sun session site . the various required notions are removed for handy access and the support is aligned with the elongate axis generally perpendicular to the path of the sun and with the angled support side directed roughly toward the source of radiation . the sunbather then assumes a comfortable posture intermediate prone and supine with a first side of his or her head , neck , back , small of the back or waist and lower torso or buttocks resting against the corresponding portions of the support and the opposite sides exposed to the direct tanning rays . periodic reversals of the radiated side ultimately produce the desired even tan , equally distributed over all the desired body surfaces . having described preferred embodiments of a new and improved body support for suntanning according to the present invention , it is believed that other modifications , variations and changes will be suggested to persons skilled in the art in view of the teachings contained herein and that all such variations , modifications and changes fall within the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims .	0
the present invention is a method for recycling occ comprising the following process : ( b ) a process wherein the reject portion containing fines separated in the said floatation treatment process is treated with polysaccharide hydrolase ; and ( c ) a process wherein the long fiber portion from the said floatation process is refined . hereunder is given a detailed explanation of each process of the present invention . this invention is highly characterized by using floatation treatment applied commonly in the deinking process of printedwaste for separation of occ fines . the floatation treatment in a deinking process is conducted in order to separate the ink particles with different fiber and surface properties from the stock . although various kinds of deinking agents must be added for this flotation in deinking process to decrease the flotation of wood fiber and promote desorption of ink particles and formation and stabilization of foams , the flotation process for occ according to the present invention is fundamentally different from the flotation in a deinking process , in that it is conducted for the separation purpose only on the basis of size of fibers which has the same surface property without any chemical additives under relative low flow rate and air flux condition . this is the excellence of the present invention . the flotation treatment according to the present invention is carried out preferably under the condition of 0 . 5 - 2 . 0 % occ concentration , a temperature range of 20 - 55 ° c ., a flow rate of 10 - 50 l / min , and an air flux of 5 - 20 l / min , and fines cannot be separated effectively if the flotation treatment is carried out outside the above limiting ranges . meanwhile , if the reject separated in a concentrated state in flotation treatment is left in the stock , it induces serious drainage load and increases the contamination of the process water and the amount of waste . this problem is prevented in this invention by selective enzymatic treatment to the reject separated from the said flotation stage . in the polysaccharide hydrolase treatment according to this invention , fines originating from natural corn starch adhesive of corrugated part inside occ and wood fines are hydrolyzed . since this hydrolase treatment is partially applied only to the concentrated reject portion , it is very effective in comparison with the conventional enzymatic method applied to the whole stock and has advantage of saving the treatment cost due to the decrease of enzyme input amount . additionally , since the drainage property is remarkably enhanced as a result of hydrolase treatment , there is no need of additional input of drainage - promoting chemical additives . therefore , the deteriorating the formation of base paper of corrugated board due to the use of drainage - promoting chemical additives does not matter any more , and the contamination of the process water can also be prevented . mixed enzyme of amylase , cellulase and hemicellulase are used as polysaccharide hydrolase in this invention and the treatment is preferred to be in the temperature range of 20 - 55 ° c . amylase is used to decompose natural corn starch adhesive and preferred to be treated in the range of 0 . 01 - 0 . 06 weight % with respect to the reject portion in the flotation process . cellulase and hemicellulase are used to decompose the fines originating from wood fiber and preferred to be treated in the range of 0 . 01 - 0 . 1 weight % with respect to the reject portion in the said flotation process . in enzymatic treatment , if the amount of enzyme is too small the starch adhesives and fines can not be decomposed effectively , and if it is too large the fines elimination effect by enzymatic treatment is not to be offset by the enzyme input costs . also , in this invention , the refining is conducted selectively to the long fiber portion . the same is conducted for the purpose of recovering the flexibility of fiber which is at a very inflexible state due to the hornification caused by repeated recycling treatment . in the refining process of this invention , the floatated long fiber portion is concentrated to the range of 2 - 6 % consistency and then refined under a temperature condition of 20 - 70 ° c . in case the refining is performed outside the said limiting ranges , effective refining of fiber is impossible due to excessive cutting of fiber and etc .. meanwhile , if the stock which did not go through the flotation process is refined , the drainage time of the stock increases rapidly so that sufficient mechanical treatment becomes impossible . however , in the case of the flotation process according to this invention , the drainage property is not lowered so that sufficient pulverization is possible , whose result is that the strength of base paper for corrugated board is not decreased . as explained above , in this invention the hydrolysis effect is maximized by the selective polysaccharide hydrolysis of the reject portion only separated from the flotation process of occ . also the strength is increased without lowering the drainage property by selective refining of the long fiber portion with the fines separated . so it is especially useful for the recycling of korean old corrugated contained ( kocc ). the following specific examples are intended to be illustrative of the invention and should not be construed as limiting the scope of this invention as defined by the appended claims . after picking the bottom stock of testliner from the headbox in the production line of two - ply base paper for corrugated board , 17 % of the reject was separated by 2 - minute flotation treatment under the condition of 1 % concentration , 45 ° c . of temperature , 30 l / min of flow rate and 15 l / min of air flux using e - type laboratory flotation cell ( voith , germany ). in order to decompose fiber fines and adhesive starch of the separated reject which was concentrated to 3 %, 0 . 05 weight % of cellulase and hemicellulase enzyme complex separated and refined from trichoderma longibrachiatum ( pergalase fl - 60 , genencor , finland ) and 0 . 03 weight % of α - amylase family enzyme separated and refined from bacillus licheniformis ( termamyl ls , novo , denmark ; 1 , 4 - α - d - glucan - glucano - hydrolase ) was added and ripened with slow agitation for 1 hour at 45 ° c . subsequently , the stock was prepared by mixing the fines hydrolyzed by the enzymes with long fiber portion , and then the handsheet was prepared with a basis weight of 150 g / m 2 according to tappi standard test method t - 205 om - 88 . flotation and polysaccharide hydrolase treatment was performed in the same manner as in example 1 . subsequently , the flotated long fiber portion was concentrated to 4 %, and refined 2 times at 45 ° c . using disk refiner ( daeil khigong co ., korea ). and then , the refined stock was diluted again to 1 % concentration with white water taken from the concentration process , and mixed with hydrolyzed fines and handsheeted with a basis weight of 150 g / m 2 according to tappi standard test method t - 205 om - 88 . after picking the bottom stock of testliner from the headbox in the production line of two - ply base paper for corrugated board , the same was handsheeted with a basis weight of 150 g / m 2 according to tappi standard test method t - 205 om - 88 . after picking the bottom stock of testliner from the headbox in the production line of two - ply base paper for corrugated board , the same was concentrated to 4 %, and refined 2 times at 45 ° c . using disk refiner ( daeil khigong co ., korea ). subsequently , the refined stock was diluted again to 1 % concentration with white water taken from the concentration process , and then , the same was handsheeted with a basis weight of 150 g / m 2 according to tappi standard test method t - 205 om - 88 . in order to confirm the various physical property changes of occ caused by the hydrolase treatment to the fines separated by flotation treatment , the drainage time in the papermaking process was compared with example 1 and comparative example 1 . burst strength and compression strength of the handsheet were also measured according to tappi standard test methods t - 403 om - 85 and t - 818 om - 87 , respectively . the results are given in table 1 . also , in order to confirm the various physical property changes of occ caused by the refining to the long fiber portion treatment , drainage time in the papermaking process was compared with example 2 and comparative example 2 . burst strength and compression strength of the handsheet were also measured according to tappi standard test methods t - 403 om - 85 and t - 818 om - 87 , respectively . the results are given in table 2 . table 1______________________________________ example 1 comparative example 1______________________________________drainage time ( sec ) 149 . 8 196 . 6compression strength ( n ) 125 . 1 118 . 5burst strength ( kpa · m . sup . 7 / g 1 . 82 1 . 80______________________________________ table 2______________________________________ example 2 comparative example 2______________________________________drainage time ( sec ) 197 . 9 245 . 3compression strength ( n ) 143 . 6 137 . 5burst strength ( kpa · m . sup . 2 / g ) 2 . 35 2 . 22______________________________________ as can be confirmed in table 1 and 2 , the selective polysaccharide hydrolase treatment to reject separated by flotation treatment of kocc had the effect of reducing drainage time more than 23 %, and saved the enzyme input cost more than 80 %, in comparison with the conventional enzyme treatment . the reason of this reduction in drainage time is that fines of corn starch adhesive and wood fiber present in occ pulp and hindering drainage were cleared by flotation treatment and then eliminated by effective enzymatic hydrolysis . meanwhile , example 1 wherein long fiber content increased relatively since the content of the fines inducing drainage load of occ decreased by the floatation treatment according to the recycling method of this invention . the result shows increased strength of used papermaking stock in comparison with comparative example 1 , however the extent of the increase was insignificant , and the strength could not be sufficiently enhanced by enzyme treatment only . on the contrary , it was confirmed that when examining the measured values of example 2 and comparative example 2 , wherein the refining was conducted to enhance the strength of handsheet , the compression strength and burst strength increased by more than 20 % and 30 %, respectively , in comparison with those of example 1 and comparative example 1 . especially example 2 comprising preceding flotation treatment followed by polysaccharide hydrolase treatment for the reject portions had the effect of saving refining power more than 20 % and improving drainage property and strength . in addition , it was confirmed from the drainage time measurement results of comparative example 2 that if flotation and hydrolase treatments are not preceded , the refining induces rapid increase of drainage time and then it cannot be applied to the actual papermaking process . as stated in detail and proved above , the present invention provides a recycling method of occ by flotation treatment and followed by selective treatment of enzyme and refining . the recycling method of occ of the present invention has the following advantages compared with the conventional recycling method : ( a ) the drainage property is improved by separating and removing the fines in kocc without adding any chemical additives ; and ( b ) the strength is enhanced by refining for the fractionated long fiber portion only ; and ( d ) the imported occ and unbleached kraft pulp required for the manufacture of high - strength base paper for corrugated board could be replaced by kocc .	3
the following description relates to a specific and non - limiting example of the above - described principles , where an asl correction was experimentally investigated for correcting dsc mri cbf images . this particular method can be referred to as cad - cbf for combined asl and dsc cbf . to summarize the following , we have compared the cad - cbf method to gold - standard xenon computed tomography ( xect ) in 20 patients with cerebrovascular disease using a range of tmax threshold levels . cad - cbf demonstrated quantitative accuracy as good as the asl technique but with improved correlation in voxels with long tmax . the ratio of mri - based cbf to xect cbf ( coefficient of variation [ cov ]) was 90 ± 30 % ( 33 %) for cad - cbf ; 43 ± 21 % ( 47 %) for dsc ; and 91 ± 31 % ( 34 %) for asl ( tmax threshold 3 s ). these findings suggest that combining asl and dsc perfusion measurements improves quantitative cbf measurements in patients with cerebrovascular disease . bolus dynamic susceptibility contrast ( dsc ) perfusion - weighted imaging ( pwi ) and arterial spin labeling ( asl ) are two methods of measuring cerebral blood flow ( cbf ) using mri , each with different strengths and weaknesses . asl cbf levels are reliable in regions with rapidly arriving flow , but suffer from reduced snr , cbf underestimation , and artifacts in regions with long arterial arrival times . in theory , dsc - based cbf measurements are unaffected by long arrival times if fourier - based or delay - invariant block - circulant singular value decomposition deconvolution methods are used . however , absolute quantitation is challenging for many reasons , including uncertainties regarding the arterial input function ( aif ) partial volume amount , the effect of vessel orientation on contrast relaxivity , the nonlinear relationship between transverse relaxivity and contrast concentration , clipping of aif signal due to high tracer concentrations , and susceptibility - based voxel shifting . for these reasons , both techniques have yet to be fully embraced by the neuroimaging community for evaluating patients with cerebrovascular disease . this study describes a calibration method that uses asl cbf measurements in regions with short transit delays ( as measured by the aif - normalized time - to - peak of the residue function [ tmax ]) to provide a patient - specific correction factor ( cf ) for dsc cbf measurements . we have termed this method “ combined asl and dsc cbf ,” or cad - cbf . we hypothesize that in patients with cerebrovascular disease , the cad - cbf method will have less bias and is more precise with respect to a gold - standard cbf method . we also hypothesize that application of such a correction factor will improve cbf measurements in long arterial arrival time regions compared with asl . to test this , we have evaluated 20 patients with known cerebrovascular disease who received xenon ct ( xect ) and mr perfusion imaging . xect is a gold - standard perfusion measurement which uses a diffusible tracer ( xenon gas ) that is inhaled by the patient , and which permits cbf measurement using the autoradiographic (“ kety - schmidt ”) method . the study was approved by the institutional review board and was hipaa compliant . patients were enrolled if they had symptoms concerning for cerebral ischemia ( acute , subacute , or chronic ) or transient ischemic attack , and were willing to undergo the xect cbf study . to be included in the study , the stable xect and mri studies had to occur within a 48 hr period . 20 patients met the inclusion criteria ( 11 men , 9 women ; mean age 53 yrs , range 25 - 74 yrs ). their clinical indications were as follows : 13 moyamoya disease , 4 acute ischemic stroke , 3 transient ischemic attacks ( tia ); of these , 5 had unilateral internal carotid occlusion , while 2 had bilateral internal carotid artery occlusion . the root - mean - squared time difference between the xect and mri studies was 27 hrs . in 11 of 20 patients ( 55 %), xect was acquired before mri . computed tomography ( ct ) was performed using a ge lightspeed 8 detector scanner ( ge healthcare , waukesha , wis ., usa ) integrated with a stable xenon enhancer system ( diversified diagnostic products , inc ., houston , tex ., usa ). the xect protocol interrogated 4 contiguous slices ( axial mode , slice thickness 10 mm , fov 25 cm , 80 kvp , 240 ma ) beginning at the level of the basal ganglia , aligned with the superior orbitomeatal axis . 8 sets of images were acquired at 45 s intervals , and the total time for the xect examination was 6 min . the first 2 time points were acquired while the patient breathed room air , and the remaining 6 time points were acquired with the patient breathing 28 % xenon ( xe ) gas , 20 % oxygen , remainder air through a snug facemask . an end - tidal gas analyzer recorded expired xe concentration , which was associated with the alveolar xe concentration . the alveolar xe concentration was assumed to correspond to the arterial xe concentration , a reasonable approximation except in patients with severe respiratory disease and abnormal alveolar - to - arterial gradient . cbf was calculated using the kety - schmidt method by the manufacturer &# 39 ; s dedicated commercial software ( diversified diagnostic products , inc ., houston , tex ., usa ). the output was cbf maps with in - plane spatial resolution on the order of 2 - 3 mm . all mri scans were performed at 1 . 5t ( signa lx / i , ge medical systems , waukesha , wis ., usa ). anatomic imaging was performed in addition to the perfusion measurements , and always included fluid - attenuated inversion recovery ( flair ) and diffusion - weighted imaging ( dwi ) with a b - value of 1000 s / mm 2 . dsc was performed using gradient - echo ( gre ) echo planar imaging ( epi ) during passage of 0 . 1 mmol / kg of either gadopentetate dimeglumine ( magnevist , berlex laboratories , wayne , n . j .) or gadodiamide ( omniscan , ge healthcare , waukesha , wis .) delivered using a power injector at 4 cc / s . image readout was performed using a multishot , multiecho grappa epi sequence with an acceleration factor of 3 and tr / te of 1225 /( 17 , 30 , 52 ) ms . 12 - 15 axial slices of 5 mm thickness separated by 1 . 5 mm interslice gap covered the entire supratentorial brain . in - plane resolution was 2 . 6 mm ( matrix 96 × 96 , fov 240 mm ). the dsc images required 2 min to acquire . again , the slices were aligned with the superior orbitomeatal axis . automated aif and venous output function ( vof ) detection and deconvolution with block - circulant singular value decomposition ( svd ) were performed , using a regularization threshold of 15 % of the maximum singular value , to create maps of cbf , cerebral blood volume ( cbv ), mean transit time ( mtt ), and aif - corrected time - to - peak of the residue function ( tmax ). transverse relaxivity change ( δr 2 ) was calculated using a weighted least - squares fit of the signal intensity from the three acquired echoes . a nonlinear relationship between blood tracer concentration and transverse relaxivity was assumed for tissue , according to the literature . for the tissue signal , a linear relationship between the change in transverse relaxation rate , δr 2 , and gadolinium concentration , c ( t ), was used : where a relaxivity of r 2 = 0 . 044 ( ms mm ) − 1 was assumed for gadolinium at 1 . 5 t . for the aif , a quadratic relationship between relaxivity and concentration was used : δ r 2 *( t )= ac ( t )+ bc ( t ) 2 ( 2 ) where a = 7 . 6 × 10 − 3 ( ms mm ) − 1 and b = 574 × 10 − 6 ( ms mm 2 ) − 1 for 1 . 5 t gre . pulsed continuous asl was performed using a labeling period ( tl ) of 1500 ms , followed by a 2000 ms post - label delay ( w ). readout was accomplished with a 3 dimensional ( 3d ) background suppressed fast - spin - echo ( fse ) stack - of - spirals method . multi - arm spiral imaging was used , with 8 arms and 512 data points acquired on each arm ( bandwidth ± 62 . 5 khz ), yielding in - plane spatial resolution of 3 mm . forty 4 - mm thick slices in the axial plane were acquired without intraslice gaps . because the spirals are interleaved , both echo time ( te ) ( 2 . 5 ms ) and total readout time ( 4 ms ) could be kept quite short , resulting in excellent performance in high susceptibility regions . repetition time ( tr ) was approximately 5 . 5 s . a high level of background suppression was achieved by the use of 4 separate inversion pulses placed after the labeling pulse during the post - label delay period ( at 1 . 49 s , 0 . 68 s , 0 . 25 s , and 0 . 06 s before readout ). the sequence required 6 min to acquire , which included proton density images required for cbf quantitation . post - processing was performed using an automated reconstruction script that returned cbf images directly to the scanner console within 1 min . cbf ( in ml / 100 g / min ) was calculated in each voxel using the following equation : where λ is the brain : blood partition coefficient ( 0 . 9 ml / g ), w is the post - label delay ( 1 . 5 s ), t 1blood is the t 1 of arterial blood at 1 . 5 t ( 1 . 4 s ), α is the labeling efficiency ( 0 . 85 ), tl is the labeling duration ( 1 . 5 s ), δs is the asl difference signal ( i . e . label - control image ), and s 0 is the proton density signal intensity . the term ( 1 − exp (− 2 . 0 s / 1 . 2 s )) in the numerator reflects the presence of a saturation pulse that is applied in the proton - density images and allows conversion between measured mr signal ( s 0 ) and the unperturbed longitudinal gray matter magnetization . to determine an asl - based global correction factor ( cf ), we determined the location of all voxels with relatively rapid arterial arrival time as measured by the dsc tmax maps . multiple different tmax thresholds ( tmax thresh ) were examined , ranging from & lt ; 1 . 5 s to & lt ; 6 s at 0 . 5 s intervals , as well as an infinite tmax ( i . e ., all voxels were used for determining the cf ). we found that shorter tmax thresh ( i . e ., less than 1 . 5 s ) did not reliably include voxels in all patients for the subsequent calculations . while in practice , it is reasonable to choose only voxels with the shortest tmax , we examined these other conditions to evaluate the sensitivity to tmax threshold choice and any potential tradeoffs . after 3d rigid body registration of asl and dsc , the mean cbf calculated from only the voxels that met the tmax criteria were calculated for both the asl and dsc , yielding a patient - specific correction factor : which is the mean of voxels r in which tmax & lt ;= tmax thresh . this dimensionless scaling factor was then multiplied with the dsc cbf map to determine the “ corrected ” hybrid asl - dsc cbf , which we term cbf cad : fig1 is a schematic of the steps taken during this process . rigid body rotation based on mutual information using spm5 ( wellcome department of imaging neuroscience , university college of london ) was used to co - register the mr and xect images . typically , flair anatomical images were co - registered to the 4 contiguous xect slices , and this transformation was then applied to the dsc and asl cbf maps . each slice was then divided into 1 cc cubic regions of interest ( rois ) using a “ battleship grid ” consisting of contiguous square regions - of - interest . this yielded a large number of voxels with equal spatial resolution ( about 400 voxels per patient ) that were free of any possible roi selection bias . voxels belonging to the ventricles and cortical sulcal csf were excluded by thresholding the diffusion - weighted images manually . in each patient , scatter plots of the individual dsc and asl cbf maps with xect were created , yielding slope , intercept , and correlation coefficient ( r ). the global mean cbf was calculated by averaging the (˜ 400 ) individual roi measurements described above in each patient . the mri - based cbf measurements were normalized by the xect cbf value using the cbf ratio : where all values are global means . ideally , this value should be 1 , which would represent exact correspondence ( i . e ., no bias ) between the two techniques . to determine the precision of the cbf between patients , the coefficient of variation ( cov ), or normalized between - patients standard deviation , was used : where the overbar represents the mean of all n patients . lower cov represents a more precise measurement . a cov of 0 % means that each mri - based cbf measurement corresponds to the xect cbf measurements to the level of a patient - independent scaling factor . cbv was also calculated from the dsc maps before correction , using the ratio of the integrated tissue and vof concentration - time curve ; post - correction cbv maps were created by multiplying the pre - correction dsc images by the same correction factor described above . linear regression was performed comparing the mean xect - based and mri - based cbf measurements between patients . all post - processing was performed using matlab 7 . 3 ( mathworks inc ., natick , mass ., usa ). stata release 9 . 2 ( statacorp llp , college station , tex .) was used for all statistical calculations . all values are reported as mean ± sd . p & lt ; 0 . 05 was considered significant . fig2 a - d demonstrate the effect of varying tmax thresh . more specifically , these figures show the effect of tmax threshold on ( a ) the mean correction factor , ( b ) the percentage of total voxels satisfying the inclusion criteria , ( c ) the coefficient of variation of the cbf ratio , and ( d ) measured cbf . here the dashed lines relate to dsc results , the circles relate to cad - cbf results , and the squares relate to xect results . in short , we found that the precise threshold was not critical : within the range from 2 to 6 s , the mean cf ranged between 2 . 28 ± 1 . 32 and 2 . 53 ± 1 . 37 . without any thresholding based on the tmax lesions ( i . e ., using all co - localized voxels in the asl and dsc scans ), cf was 2 . 48 ± 1 . 32 . however , the cf in individual patients varied significantly , consistent with the idea that this is a patient - specific factor ; for example , using a tmax threshold of 3 s , the range of the cf in the different patients ranged from a low of 1 . 02 to a high of 6 . 71 . as the threshold increases , more voxels are included in each patient for the calculation of cf ( fig2 b ), with about 50 % of voxels included for tmax between 3 and 4 s . based on the improved precision and low bias , we believe that a tmax of about 3 s ( i . e ., in a range from 2 s to 4 s ) represented the best operational choice for tmax thresh in this patient population . table 1 below presents the mean cbf data for xect , uncorrected dsc , asl , and the combined method for a range of tmax thresh , including non - thresholded ( i . e ., tmax thresh = infinity ). cbf measured using the cad approach had a bias roughly equivalent to the asl method , but the precision of the measurement , as reflected by the cov improved , decreasing to 32 % from 47 % for tmax thresh of 3 s . fig3 shows a comparison of asl ( triangles ), uncorrected dsc ( squares ), and cad ( circles ) mean global cbf compared with gold - standard xect cbf . data points shown are mean cbf values , which include all imaged tissue , and are a mixture of gray and white matter for each patient . note the improved bias in the measurement of the asl and cad cbf methods compared with the uncorrected dsc method . the correlation of both the asl and the cad cbf maps was 0 . 23 ( p & lt ; 0 . 05 ), while the correlation of the uncorrected dsc cbf images was 0 . 04 ( p = ns ). fig4 a - b show a comparison of correlation between the mri techniques and xect cbf in regions with long arterial arrival delays ( tmax & gt ;= 7 . 5 s ) before ( fig4 a ) and after ( fig4 b ) asl - based correction in all patients ( n = 289 regions ). the solid line on fig4 a is the dsc fit . the solid line on fig4 b is the cad - cbf fit . the dashed lines on fig4 a - b show the asl fit . tmax thresh was 3 s . note the improved correlation of cad - cbf ( r = 0 . 64 ) over either the asl ( r = 0 . 32 ) or the dsc uncorrected ( r = 0 . 44 ) method alone . in individual patients , both asl and uncorrected dsc had similar correlation for all voxels ( r = 0 . 34 ± 0 . 16 for asl , r = 0 . 39 ± 0 . 13 for dsc ). multiplication of the dsc images by a global correction factor will not improve correlation of individual cbf roi measurements in individual patients ; however , when rois from all patients are combined , there was a significantly improved correlation of the cbf cad maps ( r = 0 . 32 for cad - cbf , r = 0 . 30 for asl , r = 0 . 26 for dsc ; n = 6496 voxels , p & lt ; 0 . 05 for all values being different from each other ). this effect was particularly evident when considering only voxels with long tmax ( one example is shown as fig4 a - b , for tmax thresh of 3 s , examining only voxels with tmax & gt ; 7 . 5 s ). in these regions , the correlation of combined maps is higher than that of the asl cbf maps . while we did not have a gold - standard for evaluating cbv , we note that the correction factor above can be applied to these maps , and can be compared with literature values . the mean cbv in the brain increased from 1 . 63 ± 0 . 79 % ( pre - correction ) to 3 . 50 ± 1 . 42 % ( post - correction ) for a tmax thresh of 3 s . asl has been shown to accurately measure quantitative cbf in normal volunteers , but it has not been validated in a patient population with a wide variety of cerebrovascular disease and extensive collateral flow . in particular , cbf errors are known to occur in regions with prolonged arterial arrival times , which may lead to cbf under - or overestimation , depending on the precise relationship between arterial arrival time and the sequence &# 39 ; s post - label delay time , as well as whether vessel suppression techniques are used . this can lead to a confusing picture and for this reason , many have doubted whether asl could play a role in the diagnosis and management of patients with severe cerebrovascular disease , particularly acute stroke patients . some of these problems can be mitigated by the use of asl sequences with multiple post - label delay times . improved estimation of cbf in the setting of variable delay can be accomplished by non - linear fitting of the asl difference signal data to a generalized kinetic model or by using a “ model - free ” approach , in which the difference between non - vessel suppressed and vessel suppressed images acts as an aif . however , this method cannot be used for regions supplied by very slow collateral pathways , in which no asl difference signal is observed even for the longest post - label delays . also , multiple post - label delay asl sequences necessarily have either reduced snr for individual time points or an overall increase in scan time . dsc cbf methods yield robust relative cbf maps , especially if delay - invariant deconvolution methods are performed . however , prior studies have shown that the inter - subject variability with dsc cbf measurements is significant , which has been attributed to a host of factors , including aif partial volume , vessel orientation sensitivity , aif clipping due to signal saturation , non - linear contrast relaxivity , susceptibility - induced voxel location shifting , and differences in large vessel / small vessel hematocrit , such that absolute cbf quantitation is challenging in individual patients . while degradation of the aif shape and regularization will contribute to quantitation errors , we hypothesize that the major contribution to cbf quantitation errors emanates from scaling issues due to the aforementioned effects on the aif . both dsc and asl , when used in isolation , thus have difficulties measuring quantitative cbf in patients with cerebrovascular disease . however , the strength of each measurement can be leveraged using a combined asl - dsc approach , we have termed cad - cbf . asl quantitation is robust in regions with normal arrival times ; dsc can be used to identify precisely these voxels , e . g ., by using the timing information that can be obtained from tmax maps . thus , a patient - specific cf can be determined by equating the mean cbf obtained from each method only in voxels with tmax below a prespecified threshold . it is important to note that the precise cf is dependent upon any corrections that have been applied to scale the dsc data ( e . g . brain density factor , relaxivity and relaxation rate look up table , and small / large vessel hct correction ) and therefore would likely vary depending on the exact implementation and post - processing steps used calculate absolute cbf . the method is only predicated on the assumption that the relative cbf maps produced by dsc are accurate , or at minimum , are more accurate than asl . the cf value is applied to the entire dsc cbf data set , taking advantage of the better relative cbf properties of dsc in regions with long delay times , where asl suffers from t 1 - based label decay and arterial transit artifacts ( e . g . incomplete arterial bolus arrival to the capillaries ). this general approach is flexible , and a similar cf can also be derived from and applied to spin - echo ( se ) dsc sequences . in fact , this may be preferable , given that gre - epi is sensitive to large blood vessels ( which should not be included in the perfusion measurement , as this would , in theory , lead to a “ flow through artifact ”). asl and se - dsc also share the characteristic of being most sensitive to perfusion at the microvascular level . this may explain the remaining small underestimation of cbf by about 10 % in the combined cbf maps . the use of a patient - specific cf also obviates the need for determining the magnitude of the aif , which is fundamentally problematic for se acquisitions . this , in turn , would enable truly quantitative measurements of both microvascular cbf and cbv . we found that the specific choice of tmax thresh was not critical . this may seem non - intuitive , but we believe is due to the relatively small number of voxels with long tmax in most patients with cerebrovascular disease . thus we found that good results were achieved even without using a threshold ( i . e ., determining the cf based on all the voxels within the co - localized dsc and asl volumes ); such an approach might be feasible in most patients , and could reduce computational time and errors from noise in the tmax maps . however , we believe the current approach is most prudent , given that the cf is likely to be sensitive to tmax thresh for patients with large and / or bilateral lesions , such as those seen in moyamoya disease or carotid terminus occlusions . we believe that the optimal level for tmax thresh is around 3 s , as this resulted in the lowest intersubject variability accompanied by reasonably low bias compared with gold standard xect cbf . also , at this threshold , 41 . 1 ± 14 . 3 % of voxels are used in the calculation , thus minimizing issues with noise that could occur with shorter tmax thresh . the combined asl - dsc method yields a better estimate of gold - standard cbf compared with either asl or dsc used alone . specifically , the cad - cbf method has a bias and precision equal to or better than that for asl , with improved correlation in voxels with long tmax . the correlation of all voxels in all patients was also significantly increased using the combined method , though the overall difference was slight and may not be clinically relevant . however , this improvement was more pronounced in voxels with long tmax ( see fig4 a - b ), as expected , given the challenges of asl imaging in such regions . finally , while we could not compare the corrected cbv values with a gold - standard , the use of the correction factor did increase the mean whole - brain cbv ( 3 . 5 ± 1 . 4 %) to the level of literature values ( 3 . 8 ± 0 . 7 %) as measured by c 15 o pet . the method does require that two perfusion studies be obtained , adding either 2 or 6 minutes to the protocol , depending on which sequence one considers to have added . the asl sequence used in the current study obtains 3 nex to increase snr . this was done because we ask our clinicians to examine both asl and dsc hemodynamic studies , and only 1 average for the asl study results in poor image quality . however , for the purposes of measuring the cf , it is likely that fewer nex are required , since the cf is derived from mean values calculated in a large roi ( usually about half of the total imaged volume ); this would lead to a reduction in imaging time and could be incorporated into a “ pre - scan ” module of the dsc measurement . for the same reason , larger voxels can be used . the added snr affords the use of parallel imaging which would further reduce scan time . we have demonstrated a method that we have termed cad - cbf based on combined dsc and asl imaging methods , which has reduced bias and precision when compared to gold - standard xect cbf . a patient - specific scaling factor is derived from equating the cbf levels on the asl and dsc images in regions with short arterial arrival times . correlation between cad - cbf method and xect cbf is improved , particularly in regions with long arterial arrival times . we believe the approach supports the use of both asl and dsc in patients with cerebrovascular disease . for scaling purposes we anticipate that an asl scan with a coarser resolution than used in this study would be sufficient . thus , a much more time - efficient asl method could be used that would minimize the additional time needed for this calibration measurement .	6
the first embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to fig1 to 3 . in this first embodiment , the present invention is applied to a document processing system in which a font server ( letter data controller ) 101 is connected to a plurality of work stations 102 , 103 , 104 , and to a printer 105 via a communication circuit 106 forming a transmission path for data . the font server 101 will be discussed in more detail later . each of the work stations 102 , 103 , 104 and the printer 105 may be conventional , and contain a font cache to store letter data temporarily . the work stations permit documents to be created , and edited , and the work stations can then cause the documents to be printed by the printer 105 . the operation of the system of fig1 will now be described . users create documents , or edit documents already made , using the work stations 102 , 103 , 104 . when it is necessary to display letter data on the display of a given work station 102 , 103 , 104 , the first step is to check whether or not the letter data to be displayed is present in the font cache of that work station . if that data exists , the letter data may be immediately displayed using the information in that cache . if the data is not present , a signal 107 is sent from the work station to the font server through the communication circuit 106 . the font server 101 then transmits the request letter data or data in which the requested data has been converted , to the work station 102 through the communication circuit 106 . this is indicated by arrow 108 . the work station 102 can then out put the letter data using the letter data received , and at the same time can store that letter data in the font cache in case that letter data is needed again . to print that document , a command signal to control the printer is transferred to the printer by converting the document data in the work stations , or by transmitting the document data itself to the printer 105 as illustrated by step 111 . when the printer has been requested to print a document it first checks whether or not the letter data corresponding to the characters of that document are present in its font cache . if the data is present , the printer 105 can print the characters using the letter data . if not , the printer 105 signals , via the communication circuit 106 , to the font server 101 , as illustrated by arrow 110 . the font server 101 transmits the requested letter data , or data in which the required character is converted , to the printer 105 , as indicated by arrow 109 . the printer outputs the characters using the received letter data and at the same time stores that letter data in its font cache . it should be borne in mind that the font server 101 stores letter data in a plurality of font files , and there are normally different fonts in those font files . thus , dot font and vector fonts ( stroke fonts , outline fonts , meta fonts ) are stored in the font server 101 . the work stations 102 , 103 , 104 and / or the printer 105 request letter data from the font server 101 by designating the type of letter ( e . g . gothic or other forms as appropriate , the size of the letter , the shape of the letter , etc ). the font server 101 then retrieves the appropriate font data , and normally converts vector fonts to dot fonts , and transmits the converted data to the work stations 102 , 103 , 104 , printer 105 . the system of fig1 may be used in a different way , however , when the letter data to be used by the work stations , 102 , 103 , 104 and the printer 105 is at least partially predetermined ( e . g . because it is known that part of the letter data is commonly used ). in this case , the font server 101 may automatically output that predetermined letter data to the communications network 106 , for storage in the cache memories of the work stations 102 , 103 , 104 and the printer 105 . that stored font data may then be used . in a further variation , the stations and / or printer may signal to the font server 101 if the font file is to be transmitted , again that font file being transmitted and stored in the cache memory . it should be remembered that it is not necessary that the whole of the font file be transmitted . in cases where it is known that only a limited number of characters is to be used from a font file ( either generally throughout the network or at a given work station or printer ) it is then possible for the font server 101 to transmit only a part of the letter data in any given font file , for example transmitting only the most commonly used japanese characters . the structure of the font server 101 will now be described in more detail with reference to fig2 . as illustrated , the font server 101 has a network control device 201 which connects the font server 101 to the communication network 106 . the font server 101 also has a letter data converter 202 , a main control device 203 , and a letter data storage device 204 which are interconnedted via a bus 205 . the letter data storage device 204 stores letter data in a plurality of font files , e . g ., in dot font format , stroke font format , and outline format . normally , the letter data storage device will store letter date in vector format , because although that format requires a long time for letter display , it permits the letters to be expanded as desired , and their shapes changed . the letter data storage device stores a large quantity of letter data and may be , e . g ., a hard disc . the main control device 203 and the network control device 201 may be conventional . as can be seen from fig2 the letter data controller has a data conversion device 202a and a data compression device 202b . the function of the letter data conversion device 202a is to convert the letter data to a suitable form for transmission , e . g ., to convert vector data to dot data . the function of the data compression device 202b is to compress the letter data , e . g ., by known data compression techniques involving the selection of key components of the data . such compression speeds up data transmission . when the network control device 201 receives a command requesting letter data via the network 106 , the main control device 203 selects the requested letter data from the letter data storage device 204 , and transmits the data either directly to the network control device for sending to the network 106 , or transmits the letter data to the letter data converter 202 . the letter data converter 202 converts the letter data in accordance with predetermined procedures , and then the converted letter data is output into the network 106 . although as mentioned above , the work stations 102 , 103 , 104 and the printer 105 may be conventional , fig3 illustrates the relevant structure of the printer . referring to fig3 a network control device 301 receives data from the network 106 , of transmits data to the network 106 , a main control device 302 controls the whole printer . an image storage device 303 stores data fop printing output data in the form of a bit map , and that bit map is transmitted to a printing device 304 which prints characters onto paper 305 using the data stored in the image storage device 303 . a font data control device 306 makes dot format data from the requested font by controlling the font cache of font conversion derive . the font conversion device is shown at 307 , and converts font data other than dot font data which has been received by network control device 301 into dot font data stored as temporary fonts 308 , 309 , 310 , and 311 in font cache 312 . that font cache is controlled by a font cache control table 313 . when the network control device 301 receives a letter output command from e . g . a work station , the main control device 302 analyzes the command , determines the type , shape , size and sort of letter to be output , and requests the font data control device 306 to obtain the character from the appropriate dot font . using the cache control table 313 , the font data control device 306 checks whether the requested font has been converted into dot font format and is stored in the font cache 312 . if the requested font is stored in the font cache 312 , the image is printed using dot font . however , if the requested font is not stored in the cache 312 , a signal is sent to the font server 101 to signal for the transmission of the appropriate letter data . to achieve this , a command is transferred to the network control device 310 , which sends a signal by the network 106 . the font data sent through the network 106 is stored in the font cache 312 , if necessary , with that data being converted by the font conversion device to a dot font format . the main control device 302 transmits the received dot font to the designated territory of the image storage device 303 . after the appropriate number of characters have been transferred to that device 303 , the printer 304 prints the characters using the data stored . this structure illustrates how letter data can be centrally controlled , and transmitted to an appropriate device that is to use that data ( in this case the printer ) for use . as was mentioned earlier , it is not necessary that the font server be a separately identifiable component of the system , but its functions may be carried out by a part of a standard main - frame computer . fig4 illustrates such an arrangement . in fig4 a main - frame computer 401 is connected to a plurality of work stations 403 , 404 , 405 , and to a printer . letter data is stored in a letter data storage device 402 . the work stations 403 , 404 , 405 , and the printer 406 may be conventional ones , as discussed earlier . in operation , new text is created , or already existing text is edited , using the work stations 403 , 404 , 405 . during that time , or when it is necessary to display letter data on a display of the work station , it is first checked whether or not the appropriate letter data exists in a font cache inside the appropriate work station 403 , 404 , 405 . if that data exists , the letter may be immediately output . if not a signal is sent to the main - frame computer 401 , which obtains the necessary data from the letter data storage device 402 and then transmits that data to the work station 403 , 404 , 405 , or printer 406 as appropriate . that letter data is then stored in the corresponding cache , and can then be output when needed . similarly , text created or edited at a work station 403 , 404 , 405 can be transmitted to the printer 406 for printing , with again the printer checking if the letter data is stored in the appropriate font cache , and if not signaling to the main - frame computer 401 to transmit the appropriate letter data to the printer 406 . thus , all the functions of the font server are carried out by the computer 401 and letter data storage device 402 . the processing necessary to achieve functions of the font server are achieved by suitable programming of a computer 401 . as was described above , the font server may compress the data as well as converting it to a suitable dot format , as was described with reference to fig2 . fig5 illustrates two cases in which this system has been used . in fig5 the font server converts from an appropriate font ( e . g . an outline font ), to a dot font , and then the dot font data is compressed . this is carried out , e . g ., by the data conversion device 202a and data compression device 202b in fig2 . in this converted and compressed form , the letter data is transmitted to a work station . the two cases then illustrated in fig5 show what may then happen . in the first case , discussed with reference to work station 501 , the converted and compressed data is immediately expanded when it is received by the work station so that the complete dot font data is re - created . in this form the data is stored in dot font format . in the second case , illustrated with reference to work station 502 , the data from the font server 101 is stored in compressed form , and then expanded to dot font format only when it needs to be used . as can be imagined , the second case needs less memory space . fig6 illustrates another alternative , in which the font server 101 converts all the various stored fonts to , e . g ., an outline font format , and data is transmitted in outline font format to the work stations . again , there are two possibilities for subsequent processing . in the first case illustrated with reference to work station 601 , the outline font transmitted is converted to dot font format , and stored in that form . in the second case , illustrated with reference to work station 602 , the out line font data is stored in that form , and is only expanded and converted to dot font when it is to be used . although fig5 and 6 have been described with reference to transmittal of data to work stations , the same procedures can apply for transmission to the printer . similar conversion and expansion options may also be used in the main - frame computer based system of fig4 . in this case , there is a further possibility . when information is transmitted from the work stations 403 , 404 , 405 , to the printer 406 for printing , it may first be converted to &# 34 ; page description language &# 34 ;, which is primarily used for graphics . this conversion to page description language may occur at the work station or at the computer 401 . thus , in conclusion , the present invention makes use of a font server to transmit letter data to work stations , printers , etc . it provides a centralized store for that letter data , and permits only that letter data that is to be used by the work stations , printer etc to be stored at distributed locations . thus , the present invention permits the following advantages to be achieved : 1 . it is unnecessary to store all the font data at a plurality of locations within the system , and therefore savings in memory space can be made . 2 . as the same letter data can be transmitted to a plurality of letter output devices in this system , the same output results can be obtained even if different printers , work stations , etc ., are used . 3 . as letter data are centrally stored and controlled , any letter data conversion can be central also , thereby simplifying changes between font formats . 4 . as letter data is centrally controlled , if letter data is to be changed it is only necessary to change that letter data at one location , not at several locations .	6
referring now to the drawings in detail , wherein like numerals designate like elements , or parts , there is depicted in fig1 a percussive drill bit 12 of the first embodiment , which comprises of a solid metal elongated shaft , or shank , 14 adapted for connection at its distal end to a drill string and a source of fluid pressure ( not shown ), conveniently high pressure air , sufficient to activate the drill bit . the proximal or working end has an enlarged head portion 16 presenting a generally planar working face 18 . symmetrically arrayed about the periphery of sidewall 19 of head 16 are curvilinear - shaped undercuts , 20 , which define a peripheral passageway 22 , between the recessed shoulder portion 24 of head 16 and the peripheral beveled edge 26 of the bit working face 18 . arrayed alternately with undercuts 20 in the head sidewall , and aligned in cater - corner fashion , are larger semi - cutting flow exit troughs 28 , which bridge between the working face 18 and the sidewall 19 of head 16 . mounted in a somewhat organized pattern across the drill working face 18 are a plurality of &# 34 ; buttons &# 34 ; 30 , usually carbide tipped inserts , most of which are axially oriented so as to provide direct drilling contact with an opposing bore hole surface . the inner buttons are encompassed by a circular array of peripheral , or gage buttons , like 32 , which engage the bore hole surface , but at an inclined posture relative to the bore hole sidewall . disposed on either side of the geometric axis of the drill bit face are a pair of exhaust ports , 34 and 36 , representing the outer terminals of two linear bores ( not shown ) that are included within the shank with the main exhaust fluid supply bores and connecting with the main exhaust fluid supply bore to the bit head 16 . these linear bores communicate with a larger axial bore , the configuration and function of which ( exhaust fluid supply ) will be described in relation to the sectional views of fig3 and 4 . in fig2 the generally cylindrical drill bit head 18 is shown as encased in the bore hole 38 . it will be seen that ( of the four ) peripheral exhaust flow channels 22a to 22d are preferably aligned in diametrically opposing fashion , and so to present an aggregate cross - sectional area ( four main ports ) for exhaust fluid supply into the working face 18 . this flow area is several times greater than the cross - sectional flow area of the two central ports 34 and 36 . the four somewhat larger exit troughs 28 , also have cross - sections at their peripheral ends 29 , that are somewhat larger than the combined exhaust flow channels 22 and central exhaust ports 34 , 36 . this variance in the flow areas facilitates the escape of cuttings - loaded exhaust fluid from the working face 18 . a plurality of inwardly pointing directional arrows 39 - 43 ( fig2 ), indicate how , under typical drilling conditions , entering exhaust fluid sweeps across the working face , generally inwardly , and thus largely avoids abrasive contact with the peripheral beveled edge 26 , sidewall 19 , and game button 32 . the directional flow across the working face 18 permits only minimal overflow of the inner array of aligned buttons 30 . all of the exhaust fluid introduced across the working face 18 then exits via the inclined troughs 28 to the head periphery through the trough ends 29 . to recapitulate the pathways of the exhaust fluid in flushing the bit face , reference should be made to fig3 . exhaust fluid flows down via central bore hole 44 which itself dead ends well short of working face 18 on the head 16 . two linear passages 48 and 50 extend axially between the central bore end 46 and the exit , or exhaust ports 34 , 36 , permitting fluid flow to the working face . also two generally radially aligned secondary passages 52 , 54 , both of which are preferably forwardly inclined , are coupled between the proximal closed end 46 of central bore 44 and to the machined channels 22 in the peripheral sidewall 19 of bit head 16 . channels 22 communicate between the proximal working face headroom 60 and the rearwardly - located annular channel 56 , that is cut back in the distal sidewall of the bit head . the axially aligned cutting bits 30 span the receding gap 60 between working face 18 and bore hole facade 62 during drilling . in the alternate sectional view of fig4 the configuration of cuttings flow exhaust troughs 28 is better seen . they communicate directly with the rearward , annular channels 56 in the shank for facilitating transport of exhaust fluid and debris uphole to the surface . in this view , central bore 44 is fully isolated accessing the bit face only via the passageways 48 , 50 , 52 , 54 , exhaust flow channels 22 and exhaust ports 34 , 36 of fig3 . in the third sectional view of the drill bit ( fig5 ), the erosion - vulnerable inclined gage buttons 32 are noted as making an essentially abrasive contact between the drill bit peripheral edge 26 and the bore hole 62 perimeter . such contact requires inlet exhaust fluid to enter the working gap 60 of bit face 18 mostly via the intervening peripheral channels 22 and the central exhaust ports 34 , 36 . the cuttings - loaded exhaust fluid then exits through the four cater - cornered troughs 28 . referring now to fig6 an alternate method of delivering the exhaust fluid to the working face 18 through the central exhaust ports 34 , 36 is to arrange the central passages 48 , 50 in a manner such that there exists a divergent angle between the passages 48 , 50 from the end 46 of the central bore 44 and the working face 18 of the drill head 16 . this divergence adds to the flow of the exhaust fluid across the working face 18 which will lengthen the service time of the drill inserts by reducing the abrasive force . as to materials of construction , the bit inserts are customarily of tungsten carbide , as is well - known in the art . the drill bit and shank are of steel . as to the configuration of the internally located flow inlet passages , radial bores 52 , 54 are necessarily inclined toward the working face to an appreciable degree . the most acute angle , measured relative to the shank axis , is preferable to insure optimum inlet fluid flow and sweep efficiency across the working face periphery . the acute angle of radial passages 52 , 54 is the maximal consistent with intercepting the peripheral channels behind the working face and between the carbide tipped bit inserts . concurrently , at its distal ( inner ) end , the radial passages must be fashioned so as to avoid a weakened wall between the passage itself and the greatly reduced diameter of the drill shank somewhat rearward of the working face . comparative tests have shown that a drill bit fabricated in accordance with the present invention can offer appreciable practical advantages over a conventional dhd hammer drill fitted with a bit exhausting to the periphery . in preliminary trials of drills under simulated operating conditions , it was noted that erosion and wear of bits have been substantially reduced , in some instances increasing the service life of the gage buttons more than 50 % compared to using state of the art bits .	4
reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments , examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings , wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout . fig1 represents schematically a key agreement according to ieee802 . 11i , in a network standardized according to ieee802 . 1x . hereby can be seen that it is a system limited to single hops , as the hop is reduced to one intermediate station , namely the shown access point ap , which serves to bridge a subscriber terminal t and a so - called radius server rs or to establish a wireless data transmission between the radius server rs and the subscriber terminal ( terminal ) t . in addition can be seen that in a first step s 1 using the so - called “ extensible authentication protocol ” eap an authentication takes place over the shown network arranged according to iee802 . 1x , which serves to agree a shared key , which is called a “ pairwise master key ” ( pmk ) or in short master key . in a second step s 2 , the agreed master key pmk is now conveyed to the access point ap , so that in the subsequent steps s 3 to s 6 the access point ap , in a so - called handshake ( exchange of information ) generates a necessary key for a transmission session for the communication between terminal t and access point ap . to this end , in the third step s 3 a random sequence is generated in access point ap and transmitted to the terminal t , which , in the fourth step s 4 , likewise generates a random sequence and using the random sequence of access point ap transmits this in encrypted form to access point ap , so that in the fifth step s 5 , in conjunction with the master key , a valid key , designated the group key , can be generated in access point ap for the connection between access point ap and terminal t and conveyed encrypted to terminal t with its random sequence and terminal t and access point ap both have the information available that enables a so - called “ pairwise transient key ” ( ptk ) to be generated , which ptk is valid for the duration of the session . the successful conclusion of this generation culminates in its acknowledgement in the sixth step s 6 with a confirmation message encrypted with the ptk sent to the access point ap . in a seventh step s 7 , the data transmission between radius server rs and terminal t , which is now secured by encryption , can now take place . for the transmission according to an embodiment , which is based on a network arranged according to ieee802 . 11 , the data is divided into packets , like the one represented in fig2 , which has a payload data portion n , and at least one first control data portion mh , which is necessary to effect the multi - hop method , and a second control data portion ih , which is formed in accordance with ieee802 . 11 . further , in fig3 there is a schematic representation of the security hierarchy on which the embodiment is based . as shown , data encryption starts from the first level ei , which is characterized by a master key ( pairwise master key — pmk ), from which by a subsequent generation of random numbers ( pseudo random number generator )— pnrg ) in the second level e 2 results a group key ( pairwise transient key — ptk ), which can be 512 bits long according to tkip or 384 bits long according to aes - ccmp , from which as can be seen in the fourth level e 4 , one part of which is used respectively for the encryption of specific types of data , e . g . 128 bits for eapol encryption fi , 128 bits for eapol mic f2 and 128 bits for data encryption f 3 . finally fig4 shows a flow chart produced on the basis of the method using the above mentioned system . it can be seen that at a first point in time t 1 a connection set up to a target node d is initiated from a source node s . thereby in the embodiment a reactive routing protocol such as , for example aodv , is assumed , implicitly and without limiting general application . the connection set up starts with a route request message being broadcast to find a suitable adjacent node to forward to d . the message is forwarded by the intermediate node i to the target node d . keys derived from the master key gmk available for group communication are used to encrypt these messages . subsequent to that , at a second point in time t 2 , target node d reports back to the source node s that a route was found . node d sends this message directly to node i node i forwards the message directly to node s . thereby the route found is switched to active and can then be used for data traffic . the encryption of the messages at the point in time t 2 is implemented as follows : the message from node d to node i is encrypted using a key derived from the master key pmk ( i , d ) to be used for the communication between d and i . the message forwarded from node i to node s is encrypted using a key derived from the master key pmk ( i , s ) to be used for the communication between i and s . at a third point in time t 3 , it is then possible to have a secure data connection between the source node s and target node d via which , with the mechanisms described in ieee 802 . 11i and with the aid of an aaa server accessible from the multi - hop network , a master key pmk ( s , d ) is agreed between source node s and target node d . a common example that is used in ieee 802 . iii for the agreement of master keys is a radius server and communication over eap , 802 . 1x . this master key pmk ( s , d ) to be used for communication between s and d , is used at a fourth point in time t 4 as follows : data packets for transmitting between source node s and target node d include , among other things , header information which must be used by each forwarding node ( in the example node i ) for the targeted forwarding of the data in a multi - hop network . the data portion of the data packets must first be able to be read again in the target node d . for that reason , the header information for the transmission from s to i is encrypted using a key derived from the key pmk ( s , i ), decrypted in intermediate node i and encrypted using a key derived from key pmk ( i , d ) for forwarding to target node d . the data portion of the data packet is encrypted in source node s using the key derived from the master key pmk ( s , d ) agreed at the third point in time t 3 between s and d . thus for the forwarding of the data packet from node i to target node d there is no need for cryptographic operations on the data portion of the data packet in node i . the data portion can be forwarded transparently and without changes to the target node d , where it is decrypted using a key derived from the master key pmk ( s , d ). the system also includes permanent or removable storage , such as magnetic and optical discs , ram , rom , etc . on which the process and data structures of the present invention can be stored and distributed . the processes can also be distributed via , for example , downloading over a network such as the internet . the system can output the results to a display device , printer , readily accessible memory or another computer on a network . a description has been provided with particular reference to preferred embodiments thereof and examples , but it will be understood that variations and modifications can be effected within the spirit and scope of the claims which may include the phrase “ at least one of a , b and c ” as an alternative expression that means one or more of a , b and c may be used , contrary to the holding in superguide v . directv , 358 f3d 870 , 69 uspq2d 1865 ( fed . cir . 2004 ).	7
the present invention provides an oral pharmaceutical composition which contains an effective amount of nalbuphine , nalbuphine derivatives , or pharmaceutically acceptable nalbuphine salts thereof . a nalbuphine monoester prodrug has the following generic chemical formula ( ii ): in which r is r ′ co , wherien r ′ is a straight or branched alkyl group of 2 - 36 carbon atoms or a phenyl group . ( yoa - pu et al ., u . s . pat . no . 5 , 750 , 534 ). the preferred nalbuphine monoester prodrugs which include , but are not limited to , nalbuphine propionate , nalbuphine pivalate , nalbuphine enanthate , nalbuphine decanoate , nalbuphine behenate , nalbuphine erucicate , nalbuphine arachidate , and nalbuphine benzoate . a nalbuphine polyester prodrug has the following generic chemical formula ( iii ): wherein n is an integer from 2 to 4 and wherein r is a saturated or unsaturated , substituted or unsubstituted , aliphatic or aromatic group having 1 to 40 carbon atoms . ( hu et al ., u . s . pat . no . 6 , 225 , 321 ). the preferred nalbuphine polyester prodrugs include adipoyl dinalbuphine ester , sebacoyl dinalbuphine ester , 1 , 3 - cyclohexane diacid dinalbuphine ester , docosanodic dinalbuphine ester , 3 , 3 - dimethylglutaric diacid dinalbuphine ester , trinalbuphine trimesoyl ester , 1 , 3 , 5 - cyclohexane triacid trinalbuphine ester , pyromellitoyl tetranalbuphine ester . the most favorable nalbuphine polyester prodrug is sebacoyl dinalbuphine ester ( sdn ). the pharmaceutical composition of the present invention contains three major components : ( 1 ) an active ingredient ; ( 2 ) an oily substance ; and ( 3 ) a solubility - assisting agent . the active ingredient of the pharmaceutical composition includes nalbuphine , nalbuphine monoester , and nalbuphine polyester , or a pharmaceutically acceptable salts of nalbuphine , nalbuphine monoester , and nalbuphine polyester . the preferred active ingredient is nalbuphine polyester . among nalbuphine polyester , the most favorable one is sebacoyl dinalbuphine ester . the amount of nalbuphine or nalbuphine ester prodrug used in the pharmaceutical composition of the present invention is about 1 % to 15 % by weight of the composition . the preferred concentration of sebacoyl dinalbuphine ester in the pharmaceutical composition of the present invention is 100 mg / ml . the oily substance in the pharmaceutical composition of the present invention includes a vegetable oil . the vegetable oil used in the present invention include , but are not limited to , sesame oil , soybean oil , peanut oil , or an ethyl ester of sesame oil , soybean oil , or peanut oil . the preferred oily substance is sesame oil . the pharmaceutical composition contains about 30 % to 90 % by weight of vegetable oil . the solubility - assisting agent of the pharmaceutical composition is benzyl benzoate . the pharmaceutical composition contains about 5 % to 50 % by weight of the solubility - assisting agent . each and every one of these nalbuphine and / or nalbuphine ester prodrugs as listed above has been tested for suitability as an orally administered pharmaceutical composition for use in animals and humans . the efficacy and bioavailability of these nalbuphine ester prodrugs have been studied . the results indicate that the addition of the solubility - assisting agent to the nalbuphine and / or nalbuphine ester prodrugs and an oily substance substantially improves the bioavailability and half - life of nalbuphine in blood . among the nalbuphine active ingredient , sebacoyl dinalbuphine ester ( sdn ) appears to be the best in terms of longer half - life and greater bioavailability rate . the studies using sdn as an example are therefore provided below . please note that the following examples are illustrative only , and should not be viewed as limiting the scope of the present invention . reasonable variations , such as those occur to reasonable artisan , can be made herein without departing from the scope of the present invention . the pharmaceutical composition of the present invention is prepared as follows : 1 . mixing 5 . 5 ml sesame oil with 4 . 5 ml benzyl benzoate and stirring well to form an oily mixture . 2 . adding 1 g of sdn to 10 ml of the oily mixture with further stirring to produce a homogeneous pharmaceutical composition containing about 100 mg sdn per ml of the oily mixture . to assess the effects of various pharmaceutical compositions of the present invention on beagles . the compositions were orally administered into beagles , and the concentration of nalbuphine in vivo was monitored in the animals as follows : 1 . three pharmaceutical compositions were tested in this study , which include : ( 1 ) the pharmaceutical composition described in example 1 ( the “ complete sdn ” group ); ( 2 ) pure sebacoyl dinalbuphine ester powder without any oily substance or solubility - assisting agent ( the “ sdn powder ” group ); and ( 3 ) sebacoyl dinalbuphine ester with verapamil ( which is used as an oily substance ) ( the “ sdn + verapamil ” group ). 2 , in each study group , the pharmaceutical composition that contained 30 mg / kg of sdn were orally given to beagles . 3 . blood samples were taken from the forearm vein at 0 . 167 , 0 . 33 , 0 . 5 , 0 . 75 , 1 , 1 . 5 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 6 , 8 , 12 , 15 , 24 , 30 , and 48 hours after the oral administration . 4 . the blood samples were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography ( hplc ) to determine the pharmacokinetics ( including the half - life and bioavailability of nalbuphine ) in vivo . as shown in fig1 the concentration of nalbuphine in the three groups peaked about 1 - 2 hours after oral administration of the pharmaceutical compositions . among the three groups , both the complete sdn group and the sdn + verapamil group had about the same concentration of nalbuphine in plasma 1 - 3 hours after the oral uptake of sdn . the concentration of nalbuphine in the sdn powder was much less than the other two groups . however , the concentration of nalbuphine in the sdn powder and the sdn + verapamil group decreased substantially whereas the concentration of nalbuphine in the complete sdn group still maintained at high percentage . verapamil is α -[ 3 -[[ 2 -( 3 , 4 - dimethoxyphenyl ) ethyl ] methylamino ] propyl ]- 3 , 4 - dimethoxy - α -( 1 - methylethyl )- benzeneacetonitrile . it is a viscous , pale yellow oil . verapamil is a well - known cytochrome p 450 3a ( cyp 3a ) inhibitor . cyp 3a is known to be responsible for metabolism of a large number of drugs in vivo , thus , reducing the bioavailability of drugs . the drugs that are know to be affected by cyp 3a include nifedipine , macrofide antibiotics such as erythromycin and troleandomycin , cyclosporin , fk506 , teffenadine , tamoxifen , lidocaine , midazolam , triazolam , dapsone , diltiazem , lovastatin , quinidine , ethylestradiol , testosterone , and alfentanil . a cyp 3a inhibitor can be used to inhibit the enzymatic activity of cyp 3a and thus improve the bioavailability of the drugs . assuming that the bioavailability of nalbupine is also affected by cyp 3a , an inclusion of verapamil ( the cyp 3a inhibitor ), together with sdn , should further improve the bioavailability of nalbupine ( if there is an synergistic effect between verapamil and sdn ). the results in fig1 suggest that without the solubility - assisting agent ( benzyl benzoate ), the addition of verapamil did not improve the bioavailability of nalbupine . table 1 shows the results of the pharmacokinetic studies of the three pharmaceutical compositions . as shown in table 1 , the nalbuphine half - life ( t 1 / 2 ) in the complete sdn group is 23 . 9 ± 3 . 0 hours , which was about 3 times longer than that of the sdn powder group and about 2 . 5 times longer than that of the sdn + verapamil group . the bioavailability of nalbuphine , as determined by auc ( area under curve ) and by % of decrease (% bioavailability ) also shows that the complete group is far much better than the rest of the two group ( auc - 171 [ complete group ] vs . 39 [ sdn powder group ] or 83 [ sdn + verapamil group ]; % bioavailability : 67 % [ complete group ] vs . 14 . 6 [ sdn powder group ] or 30 . 0 [ sdn + verapamil group ]). the results of fig1 and table 1 show that the addition of an oily substance to sdn greatly improve the half - life and bioavailability of nalbuphine in plasma ( as comparing the sdn powder group and sdn + verapamil group ). but the half - life and bioavailability rate of nalbuphine is far much greater when benzyl benzoate as a solubility - assisting agent is added to sdn with oil ( as comparing the complete sdn group with the sdn powder group and sdn + verapamil group ). while the invention has been described by way of examples and in terms of the preferred embodiments , it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments . on the contrary , it is intended to cover various modifications as would be apparent to those skilled in the art . therefore , the scope of the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications .	0
the present invention claims a method for increasing stability in process salt solutions of mining systems by adding to the solution an effective amount of polyol , distributing the polyol through the solution ; and stabilizing the salt in the process solution . the invention further involves the use of a pregnant liquor from the bayer process . the method for improving aluminate stability in pregnant liquor comprising adding to the pregnant liquor an effective amount of polyol , distributing the polyol through the pregnant liquor ; and stabilizing the aluminate in the pregnant liquor . the invention as claimed wherein the polyol contains 5 to 30 milli equivalents of hydroxyl units per gram of active polymer , preferably 8 to 18 milli equivalents of hydroxyl units per gram of active polymer . the invention wherein the polyol is linear , branched , hyperbranched or dendrimeric . the polyol of the claimed invention is synthesized by an addition polymerization or a condensation polymerization preferably from 25 to 12 , 000 monomeric units and most preferably from 42 to 7 , 200 monomeric units . the claimed invention further includes a polyol which maybe is synthesized from a single monomer or a combination of multiple monomers wherein the monomers can be organized randomly or in discrete blocks or groups and the polyol has a molecular weight of 500 up to 1 , 000 , 000 . the invention wherein the polyol is a linear polyglycerol , branched polyglycerol , hyper - branched polyglycerol , dendrimeric polyglycerol , a linear polysorbitol , branched polysorbitol , hyper - branched polysorbitol or a dendrimeric polysorbitol . the invention when used in the bayer process is effective when the pregnant bayer liquor has no less than 0 . 1 ppm , preferably the pregnant bayer liquor is at 0 . 1 to 100 ppm and most preferably the pregnant bayer liquor is at 5 to 50 ppm . the foregoing may be better understood by reference to the following examples , which are intended to illustrate methods for carrying out the invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention . it should be understood that various changes and modifications to the presently preferred embodiments described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art . such changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and without diminishing its intended advantages . it is therefore intended that such changes and modifications be covered by the appended claims . tests were conducted to examine the effect of polysaccharide derivatives ( a , b , c , d ), pva derivative ( e ) and polyglycerol ( f ) on the control of liquor stability ( alumina loss and scaling rate ). the tests utilized bayer pregnant liquor prepared via dissolving a certain amount of aluminum trihydrates into spent liquor to obtain the desired starting a / c ( aluminum to caustic ratio ). liquor stabilization reagents were pre - dosed into 250 ml nalgene bottles . then 200 ml prepared liquor was decanted into each of the bottles , which were subsequently rotated at 80 ° c . in a water bath for approximately 29 hours . at specific time intervals over this test period , 10 ml of liquor was sampled from each bottle and analyzed for a / c . the results ( table 1 ) showing a / c breakpoints were obtained . as shown in table 1 , it is apparent that the a / c of the blank ( without polymer addition ) dropped dramatically within the 20 hr period . the liquors dosed with pva derivative ( e ) behaved slightly better than the blank . however , the a , b , c , d and f dosed samples can hold a / c for 20 hours . in addition , the addition of 10 ppm a , 10 ppm c , 20 ppm d and 54 ppm f can keep the a / c constant over the whole 29 hr period . but for the 10 ppm b dosed sample , the a / c start to drop after 20 hours . tests were conducted to examine the effect of polysaccharide derivatives ( a and c ), different polyglycerols ( f , g and h ) and polydextrose j on the control of liquor stability ( alumina loss and scaling rate ). the tests utilized bayer pregnant liquor prepared via dissolving a certain amount of aluminum trihydrate into spent liquor to obtain the desired starting a / c ( aluminum to caustic ratio ). liquor stabilization reagents were pre - dosed into 250 ml nalgene bottles . then 200 ml prepared liquor was decanted into each of the bottles , which were subsequently rotated at 55 ° c . in a water bath for approximately 27 hours . at specific time intervals over this test period , 10 mls of liquor was sampled from each bottle and analyzed for a / c . as shown in table 2 , the a / c of the blank ( without polymer addition ) dropped significantly within a 27 hr period . the liquor dosed with 10 . 43 ppm a behaved similarly to the blank . the a / c of j dosed liquor dropped slightly after 22 hrs . however , the addition of c , c , f and h can keep the a / c constant over the whole 27 hr period . tests were conducted to examine the effect of dosage of polyglycerols ( f , g and h ) on the control of liquor stability ( alumina loss and scaling rate ). the tests utilized bayer pregnant liquor prepared via dissolving a certain amount of aluminum trihydrate into spent liquor to obtain the desired starting a / c ( aluminum to caustic ratio ). liquor stabilization reagents were pre - dosed into 250 ml nalgene bottles . then 200 ml prepared liquor was decanted into each of the bottles , which were subsequently rotated at 55 ° c . in a water bath for approximately 28 hours . at specific time intervals over this test period , 10 mls of liquor was sampled from each bottle and analyzed for a / c . as shown in table 3 , the a / c of the blank ( without polymer addition ) dropped significantly within a 28 hr period . the liquors dosed with 10 . 43 ppm a , 0 . 54 ppm g and 0 . 54 ppm h behaved similarly to the blank . for h , the performance was slightly improved with an increase of dosage from 0 . 54 ppm to 2 . 16 ppm . for g dosed liquors , a / c was increased as dosage increased . moreover , the addition of 0 . 54 , 2 . 16 and 5 . 4 ppm f can keep the a / c constant over 25 hr period . further tests were conducted to examine the effect of bauxite addition on the liquor stability ( ls ) control with polyglycerols using bauxite spent liquor as initial liquor . the tests utilized bayer pregnant liquor prepared via dissolving a certain amount of aluminum trihydrate into spent liquor to obtain the desired starting a / c ( aluminum to caustic ratio ). liquor stabilization reagents were pre - dosed into 250 ml nalgene bottles . then 200 ml prepared liquor was decanted into each of the bottles , which were subsequently rotated at 70 ° c . in a water bath . after 30 minutes , 0 . 1 g bauxite powder was added into each bottle . at specific time intervals over this test period , 10 mls of liquor was sampled from each bottle and analyzed for a / c . as the results shown in table 4 , for the liquor with 0 . 5 g / l bauxite , the a / c of the blank ( without polymer addition ) dropped significantly within a 16 hr period . the liquors dosed with a , g , i and h behaved similarly to the blank . for f dosed liquor , at 70 ° c ., a / c stay constant over 20 hrs . further tests were conducted to examine the effect of bauxite addition on the liquor stability ( ls ) control with polyglycerols using bauxite spent liquor as initial liquor . the tests utilized bayer pregnant liquor prepared via dissolving a certain amount of aluminum trihydrate into spent liquor to obtain the desired starting a / c ( aluminum to caustic ratio ). liquor stabilization reagents were pre - dosed into 250 ml nalgene bottles . then 200 ml prepared liquor was decanted into each of the bottles , which were subsequently rotated at 55 ° c . in a water bath . after 30 minutes , 0 . 1 g bauxite powder was added into each bottle . at specific time intervals over this test period , 10 mls of liquor was sampled from each bottle and analyzed for a / c . as the results shown in table 5 , for the liquor with 0 . 5 g / l bauxite , the a / c of the 10 . 8 ppm f dosed liquor started to drop after 4 . 5 hrs . as the increase of f dosage from 10 . 8 ppm to 21 . 6 ppm , the liquor was stabilized over the whole 8 . 75 hr period . further tests were conducted to examine the effect of bauxite addition on the liquor stability ( ls ) control with polyglycerols using bauxite spent liquor as initial liquor . the tests utilized bayer pregnant liquor prepared via dissolving a certain amount of aluminum trihydrate into spent liquor to obtain the desired starting a / c ( aluminum to caustic ratio ). liquor stabilization reagents were pre - dosed into 250 ml nalgene bottles . then 200 ml prepared liquor was decanted into each of the bottles , which were subsequently rotated at 70 ° c . in a water bath . after 30 minutes , 0 . 4 g bauxite powder was added into each bottle . at specific time intervals over this test period , 10 mls of liquor was sampled from each bottle and analyzed for a / c . as the results show in table 6 , for the blank liquor with 2 g / l bauxite , the liquor starts to break immediately after solid addition . the addition of a , g , i and h cannot hold the a / c from dropping . but the 21 . 6 ppm f dosed liquor can hold a / c up to 4 . 5 hours . further tests were conducted to examine the effect of solid loading on the liquor stability ( ls ) control with polyglycerols using bauxite spent liquor as initial liquor . the tests utilized bayer pregnant liquor prepared via dissolving a certain amount of aluminium trihydrate into spent liquor to obtain the desired starting a / c ( aluminum to caustic ratio ). liquor stabilization reagents were pre - dosed into 250 ml nalgene bottles . then 200 ml prepared liquor was decanted into each of the bottles , which were subsequently rotated at 70 ° c . in a water bath . after 30 minutes , 0 . 01 g bauxite powder was added into each bottle . at specific time intervals over this test period , 10 mls of liquor was sampled from each bottle and analyzed for a / c . as the results show in table 7 , for the liquor with 0 . 05 g / l bauxite , the a / c of the blank ( without polymer addition ) dropped significantly within a 24 hr period . for f dosed liquor , at 70 ° c ., a / c stays constant over 24 hrs . however , the a / c of the 10 . 5 ppm a , g , i and h ( 10 ppm and 20 ppm ) dosed liquor started to drop after 16 hrs . as the dosage of a and g increases from 10 . 8 ppm to 21 . 6 ppm , the liquor was stabilized over an 18 hr period . further tests were conducted to examine the effect of molecular weight of partially branched polyglycerols on the liquor stability ( ls ) control using bauxite spent liquor as initial liquor . the tests utilized bayer pregnant liquor prepared via dissolving a certain amount of aluminum trihydrate into spent liquor to obtain the desired starting a / c ( aluminum to caustic ratio ). liquor stabilization reagents were pre - dosed into 250 ml nalgene bottles . then 200 ml prepared liquor was decanted into each of the bottles , which were subsequently rotated at 70 ° c . in a water bath . after 30 minutes , 0 . 01 g bauxite powder was added into each bottle . at specific time intervals over this test period , 10 mls of liquor was sampled from each bottle and analyzed for a / c . as the results show in table 8 , the a / c of the blank ( without polymer addition ) dropped significantly within a 24 hr period . in addition , the stabilization efficiency of polyglycerols was increased as the increase of molecular weight ( from 200 of k to 100 , 000 of o ) and reached a plateau between o and p . further tests were conducted to examine the effect of molecular weight of hyperbranched polyglycerols on the liquor stability ( ls ) control with polyglycerols using bauxite spent liquor as initial liquor . the tests utilized bayer pregnant liquor prepared via dissolving a certain amount of aluminum trihydrate into spent liquor to obtain the desired starting a / c ( aluminum to caustic ratio ). liquor stabilization reagents were pre - dosed into 250 ml nalgene bottles . then 200 ml prepared liquor was decanted into each of the bottles , which were subsequently rotated at 70 ° c . in a water bath . after 30 minutes , 0 . 01 g bauxite powder was added into each bottle . at specific time intervals over this test period , 10 mls of liquor was sampled from each bottle and analyzed for a / c . as the results show in table 9 , for the blank liquor with 0 . 05 g / l bauxite , the a / c dropped significantly within a 24 hr period . compared to a , the addition of hyperbranched polyglycerols with mw of 1000 - 50 , 000 ( u , v ) significantly improved the liquor stability at a much lower dosage . moreover , for the high mw hyperbranched polyglycerols ( q , s , r , t , mw : 50 , 000 - 1 , 000 , 000 ), they performed better than a at the same dosage .	2
the following is a description of exemplifying embodiments in accordance with the present invention . this description is not to be taken in a limiting sense , but is made merely for the purpose of describing the general principles of the invention . thus , although particular types of heart stimulators will be described , such as biventricular pacemakers with or without atrial sensing and / or stimulation , the invention is also applicable to other types of cardiac stimulators , such as univentricular or dual chamber pacemakers , implantable cardioverter defibrillators ( icd &# 39 ; s ), etc . with reference first to fig1 , there is shown a stimulation device 10 in electrical communication with a patient &# 39 ; s heart 1 via two leads 20 and 30 suitable for delivering multi - chamber stimulation ( and possible shock therapy ). the heart illustrated portions of the heart 1 include the right atrium ra , the right ventricle rv , the left atrium la , the left ventricle lv , cardiac walls 2 , the ventricular septum 4 , the valve plane 6 , and the apex 8 . the valve plane 6 refers to the annulus fibrosis plane separating the ventricles from the atria and containing all four heart valves , i . e . the aortic , pulmonary , mitral , and tricuspid valves . in order to sense right ventricular cardiac signals and to provide stimulation therapy to the right ventricle rv , the stimulation device 10 is coupled to an implantable right ventricular lead 20 having a ventricular tip electrode 22 , a ventricular annular or ring electrode 24 , and a cardiac wall movement sensor 21 . the ring electrode 24 is arranged for sensing electrical activity , intrinsic or evoked , in the right ventricle rv . the right ventricular tip electrode 22 is arranged to be implanted in the endocardium of the right ventricle , e . g . near the apex 8 of the heart . thereby , the tip electrode 22 becomes attached to the cardiac wall and follows the cardiac wall movements , which movements can be sensed by the sensor 21 arranged near the tip electrode . in this example , the sensor is fixedly mounted in a distal header portion of the lead 20 , in which the tip electrode 22 is also fixedly mounted . furthermore in this example , the sensor is in the form of an accelerometer . however , other arrangements sensor types are contemplated for the cardiac wall motion sensor 21 . in order to sense left ventricular cardiac signals and to provide pacing therapy for the left ventricle lv , the stimulation device 10 is coupled to a “ coronary sinus ” lead 30 designed for placement via the coronary sinus in veins located distally thereof , so as to place a distal electrode adjacent to the left ventricle . also , additional electrode ( s ) ( not shown ) could thereby be positioned adjacent to the left atrium . the coronary sinus lead 30 is designed to receive ventricular cardiac signals from the cardiac stimulator 10 and to deliver left ventricular lv pacing therapy using at least a left ventricular tip electrode 32 to the heart 1 . in the illustrated example the lv lead 30 comprises an annular ring electrode 34 for sensing electrical activity related to the left ventricle lv of the heart . furthermore , a cardiac wall movement sensor 31 is arranged at the tip electrode 32 for sensing left ventricular lv cardiac wall movements . turning briefly to fig2 and 3 , two alternative embodiments for placement of cardiac leads , cardiac electrodes and sensors for sensing cardiac wall movements related to longitudinal valve plane movements are illustrated . in fig2 , the rv and lv leads 20 , 30 have been supplemented with a right atrial ra lead 80 . the lead comprises an ra tip electrode 82 positioned in the patient &# 39 ; s right atrial appendage for delivering electrical stimuli to the right atrium , and an ra ring electrode 84 for sensing and conducting cardiac signals from the right atrium to the cardiac stimulator . a cardiac wall motion sensor is provided at the ra tip electrode 82 for sensing cardiac wall movements of the ra wall . furthermore , the lv lead 30 is provided with an additional cardiac wall movement sensor 33 arranged at the valve plane 6 , as well as an additional stimulating electrode , of the ring type , arranged distally of the movement sensor 33 . thereby , cardiac wall movements related to longitudinal valve plane movements at a plurality of locations , i . e . three or four , may be sensed and conducted via the cardiac leads 20 , 30 , 80 to the cardiac stimulator . furthermore , fig3 illustrates yet another example of lead , electrode and sensor placements . here , the rv , ra and lv leads 20 , 30 and 80 have been supplemented by , an external epicardial lead 90 connected to the implantable stimulator 10 . the epicardial lead 90 may be arranged for delivering stimulation pulses to the left ventricle lv of the heart , but is in this example only arranged for sensing cardiac wall movements related to longitudinal valve plane movements and comprises a cardiac wall motion sensor 91 . thus , even though the lv lead 30 terminates and the stimulation electrode 32 for stimulation of the left ventricle arranged at a position near the valve plane 6 of the heart , local wall movements occurring in the lv cardiac wall further down towards the apex 8 may still be sensed . although three examples have been illustrated in fig1 - 3 , the invention is not restricted to the illustrated examples of lead , electrode and sensor placement . for example , several epicardial electrodes and / or wall motion sensors could be used , wall motion sensors could be arranged at plural positions in the ventricles only , all wall motion sensors could be arranged in the same ventricle , plural atrial wall sensors could be used , etc . also , in the illustrated examples , the wall motion sensors are of accelerometer type . however , other types of sensors for sensing and measuring wall movements related to longitudinal valve plane movements are to be comprised in the scope of the present application . further examples of sensor placements will be presented in relation to the further embodiments that will be described below . turning now to fig4 , the heart stimulator 10 of fig1 is shown in a block diagram form . for illustrative purposes , reference is made to fig1 for the elements of the leads that are intended for positioning in or at the heart . the heart stimulator 10 is connected to a heart 1 in order to sense heart signals and emit stimulation pulses to the heart 1 . a first tip electrode 22 is anchored in the right ventricle rv of the heart 1 and connected , via a first electrode conductor in the lead 20 , to a first pulse generator 26 in the heart stimulator 2 . a first ring electrode 24 is connected near the first tip electrode 22 and , via a second electrode conductor in the first lead 20 , to the first pulse generator 26 . a stimulation pulse to the right ventricle can be delivered to heart tissue by the first pulse generator via the first lead 20 and the first tip electrode 22 . the stimulation pulse is then returned , via the first ring electrode 24 and the first lead 20 , to the first pulse generator 26 . alternately , the stimulation pulse can be delivered via the first tip electrode 22 and an indifferent electrode 12 which , in this instance , consists of the enclosure of the heart stimulator 10 but can also consist of a separate electrode located somewhere in the body . the indifferent electrode 12 is connected to the first pulse generator 26 via an electrode conductor 14 in order to return stimulation pulses from the right ventricle . a first detector 28 is connected in parallel across the output terminal of the first pulse generator 26 in order to sense right ventricular activity in the heart . in corresponding manner , a second tip electrode 32 is positioned in a vein distally of the coronary sinus and , thus , connected to the left ventricle lv of the heart 1 , and , via a conductor in the second lead 30 , to a second pulse generator 36 . a second ring electrode 34 is located near the second tip electrode 32 and connected , via a further conductor in the second electrode lead 30 , to the second pulse generator 36 . delivery of a stimulation pulse to the ventricle can be bipolar via the second tip electrode 32 and the second ring electrode 34 , or unipolar via the second tip electrode 32 and the indifferent electrode 12 . a second detector 38 is connected in parallel across the output terminal of the second pulse generator 36 in order to sense left ventricular activity in the heart . the pulse generators 26 and 36 and the detectors 28 and 38 are controlled by a control unit 40 which regulates the stimulation pulses with respect to amplitude , duration and stimulation interval , the sensitivity of the detectors 28 and 38 etc . a physician using an extracorporeal programmer 56 can , via a telemetry unit 54 , communicate with the heart stimulator 10 and thereby obtain information on identified conditions and also reprogram the different functions of the heart stimulator 10 . fig4 further shows a first embodiment of an analysis device . the analysis device 50 is connected via the first electrode lead 20 to a first cardiac wall motion sensor 21 for sensing cardiac wall movements related to longitudinal valve plane movements , and via the second electrode lead 30 to a second cardiac wall motion sensor 31 for sensing cardiac wall movements related to longitudinal valve plane movements . the analysis device 50 includes a measurement unit 52 which is capable of selectively receiving signals from any of the sensors , and which filters and amplifies the incoming signals in an appropriate manner . the output signal from the measurement unit 52 , which is proportional to the measurement signal , is then sent to a buffer 54 and to a differentiating circuit 56 . buffering is performed so that the differentiated signal is in phase with the proportional signal when they are sent to a calculator unit 58 . the calculator unit 58 calculates a synchronization or synchrony value or signal based on the output signals from the respective sensors . the calculated synchronization signal 58 is sent to a comparator 60 for comparison with a threshold value , for instance indicative of when insufficient cardiac synchrony is present . the output signal from the comparator comprises information of whether the synchronization signal passes the threshold value , or one of the threshold values for embodiments where a number of threshold values are utilized , and is forwarded to a microprocessor 62 which communicates with the control unit 40 . if , e . g ., an asynchrony is identified , the control device 40 can institute therapeutic treatment with stimulation pulses in order to restore cardiac synchrony . the microprocessor 62 further controls the measurement unit 52 with respect to the measurement signal to be sent to the analysis device 50 and can also control the comparator 60 , for example for varying threshold values in response to altered pacing therapy or due to altered settings by the physician . with reference now to fig5 , there is shown an alternative analysis device 51 . this alternative analysis device 51 basically comprises the same or similar elements as described in relation to the measurement unit analysis device 50 of fig4 . however , the alternative analysis device 51 is arranged for receiving output signals from three cardiac wall motion sensors via conductors 70 , 72 and 74 , the analysis device thus being arranged to provide a synchronization signal indicative of cardiac synchrony between three different locations of the heart . furthermore , a fourth conductor 76 provides an iegm signal for the measurement unit . the iegm signal may provide an indication related to when the output signals of the sensors may be used for determining cardiac synchrony for a particular portion of the heart cycle . thus , the iegm signal may for instance be used by the analysis device 50 , or rather by the differentiating circuit 54 and the calculator unit 58 , as an aid in discriminating between the systolic and the diastolic phases of the heart cycle . thereby , the analysis device can for instance be configured to process only sensor output signals provided during the diastolic phase . then , there will be no risk of misinterpreting an asynchrony that may be present in the systolic phase as an asynchrony in the diastolic phase . turning now to fig6 - 6 c and 7 a - 7 c , there will be shown in schematic form the presence and determination of cardiac synchrony and asynchrony , respectively . in fig6 a , 6 b , 7 a , and 7 b , a heart is schematically illustrated with three cardiac wall motion sensors a , b and c positioned in the left ventricle lv of the heart . in fig6 a , the position of the sensors , i . e . the cardiac wall portions in which the sensors are arranged , are illustrated at an instant when the myocardium is fully dilated , in particular during the diastolic phase of the heart cycle . thus , the sensors and the wall portions thereof are in a respective position obtained from the longitudinal or long - axis valve plane movements as a result of myocardial relaxation . in fig6 b , an instant when the myocardium is at a state of myocardial contraction is illustrated , in particular during the systolic phase of the heart cycle . thus , the movement of the sensors and the wall portions into the contracted positions have ceased and they are in a respective position obtained from the longitudinal valve plane movements as a result of myocardial contraction . the output signals of the sensors are illustrated in fig6 c , and it can be seen that the movements sensed by the three sensors are substantially simultaneous throughout the heart cycle . therefore , the processing circuitry , or analysis device , of the cardiac stimulator determines that there is cardiac synchrony . as a consequence , no further actions related to change in pacing therapy is performed . it should be noted that the determination of cardiac synchrony can be determined for the entire heart cycle , for the systolic phase , the diastolic phase , the transitions between diastolic and systolic phase , and vice versa , or any other time interval of the heart cycle that may be of particular interest for the determination of cardiac synchrony . in fig7 a , the position of the sensors and the respective cardiac wall portions thereof correspond to that of fig6 a at an instant when the myocardium is fully dilated . thus , the sensor positions are derived from the longitudinal valve plane movements resulting from myocardial relaxation . however , at the particular instant illustrated in fig7 b , only sensor b , and the cardiac wall portion to which sensor b is attached , has reached the position derived from the longitudinal valve plane movements obtained in the fully contracted state of the myocardium . hence , there is lack in synchrony between the longitudinal valve plane movements for the cardiac wall portions at which the sensor a , b and c are attached , respectively . this lack in synchrony also appears in the output signals a , b and c of the cardiac wall motion sensors a , b and c , respectively . thus , upon performing a synchronicity analysis for the output signals , for instance in the systolic phase of the heart cycle , it can be determined that cardiac asynchrony is present and that suitable measures should be taken . such measures could include restoring the cardiac synchrony or to derive an alarm signal indicative of the cardiac asynchrony . turning now to fig8 a - 8 c , there is shown a further example of the occurrence and detection of cardiac asynchrony related to longitudinal valve plane movements . in fig8 a , the positions of the cardiac wall motion sensors a , b and c at an instant where the myocardium has assumed a contracted state is shown . in fig8 b , a post - systolic contraction psc occurs in the cardiac wall portion where sensor a is arranged for sensing cardiac wall movements derived from longitudinal valve plane movements . consequently , sensor a is subjected to a longitudinal movement at an instant when sensors b and c remain substantially stationary during diastole . this appears in the combined sensor signal outputs a , b and c , and can be detected and determined as an asynchrony in the diastolic phase by the analysis device 50 of the stimulator 10 . in the signal diagram of fig8 c , the portion comprising the signal output during the psc is encircled . thus , as a result of the determined asynchrony , appropriate adjustment of the pacing therapy may be executed in order to restore the cardiac synchrony . in fig6 a through 8 b , substantially only one example of the positioning of cardiac wall motion sensors for sensing movements related to the longitudinal movements of the valve plane is provided . however , there are a vast number of sensor positioning alternatives that are contemplated within the scope of the present application . in fact , any placement of sensors for measuring cardiac wall motions occurring during the heart cycle may be used , as long as there is in fact movements of the particular portion to which the sensor is located and attached in relation to the longitudinal movements of the valve plane during the heart cycle , or any portion thereof . thus , the present application is not limited to a particular number of wall motion sensors , or to particular positioning thereof . turning to fig9 a - 9 d , further examples of wall motion sensors are provided . in these examples , the sensors a , b and c are arranged at the same ventricle , i . e . for measuring cardiac wall movements at several locations in the left ventricle lv of the heart . fig9 a is intended to illustrate the orientation of the valve plane , which is indicated by numeral 6 in fig1 . in the example illustrated in fig9 b , the sensors are positioned in the actual valve plane , which of course is suitable for detecting valve plane movements . then , the sensors could in one alternative be positioned in the actual annulus fibrosis tissue , or epicardially outside the annulus fibrosis plane . in fig9 c and 9 d , two alternative examples of sensor positionings are presented . in fig9 c , the sensors a , b and c have been positioned at equal distances from the valve plane , thus forming a sensor plane parallel to the valve plane . thereby , the sensors are assumed to be subjected to movements related to the longitudinal valve plane movements of substantially the same distance during the heart cycle , which may be beneficial when calculating and determining synchrony and possible sudden or expected appearance of asynchrony in the valve plane movements . in the example shown in fig9 d , the sensors are positioned at different levels at one ventricle along the longitudinal axis , or long - axis , of the heart . in this example , the physician has positioned the sensors at selected regions of interest , for instance regions suffering from a conductive disorder or having hibernating tissue which is expected or suspected to become active during remodulation of the heart due to progressing stimulation therapy . turning now to fig1 a to 10 d , further examples of sensor positioning are illustrated . in the examples , the sensors are arranged in or at both ventricles of the heart . first , fig1 a illustrates the valve plane and the longitudinal direction of the heart . then , fig1 b illustrates the example where the cardiac wall motion sensors are positioned and arranged to sense longitudinal cardiac wall movements of the valve plane . the benefits thereof would of course be similar to the placement in the same ventricle as illustrated in fig9 b . furthermore , in the same manner as mentioned above in relation to fig9 b , the sensors could in one alternative be positioned in the actual annulus fibrosis tissue , or epicardially outside the annulus fibrosis plane . suitably , the right ventricular sensor a is arranged endocardially in the valve plane , and the left ventricular sensor c is arranged epicardially . the sensor b arranged at the septum 4 could be arranged epicardially either directly or via a coronary vein , or endocardially , via the right atrium and ventricle . possibly , the rv sensor a arranged at the valve plane could be replaced for an ra sensor arranged in or at the valve plane , e . g . in the annulus fibrosis tissue . in fig1 c , the sensors a , b and c have been positioned in or at the right and the left ventricle , respectively , at equal distances from the valve plane , thus forming a sensor plane parallel to the valve plane . thereby , similar to the example shown in fig9 c , the sensors are assumed to be subjected to movements of substantially the same distance during the heart cycle , which may be beneficial when calculating and determining synchrony and possible sudden or expected appearance of asynchrony in the longitudinal valve plane movements . in the example illustrated in fig1 d , the sensors are positioned at different levels , in or at the right and the left ventricle , along the longitudinal axis of the heart . in this example , similar to the example shown in fig9 d , the physician has positioned the sensors at selected regions of interest , for instance regions suffering from a conductive disorder or having hibernating tissue which is expected or suspected to become active during remodulation of the heart due to progressing stimulation therapy . when the signal output from the sensors a , b and c is received by the analysis device 50 , a calculation of a synchronization index or signal is performed , which can be used for determining synchrony of the heart . in fig1 a , the output signals a , b and c , stemming from the sensors a , b and c , respectively , indicative of cardiac wall movements are illustrated in a diagram . in the portion of the diagram illustrating sensor output signal a , the sensor output signal b has been added as shown by the dotted line . similarly , the sensor output signal c has been added to the portion of the diagram illustrating sensor output signal b . in this example , the difference between the sensor output signals a and b and the difference between the sensor output signals is calculated . this is performed by simply subtracting sensor output signal b from a and sensor output signal c from b . the resulting difference signals are shown in fig1 b . these signals could be further added to each other in order to arrive at the synchronization index or signal . alternatively , the difference signals could be used separately in order to provide dual synchronization indices or signals . furthermore , statistical calculations could be applied to the difference signal ( s ) to arrive at a suitable value indicative of the level of synchronization . fig1 a and 12 b illustrate a further example of deriving one or more synchronization indices or signals . here , the upper and lower portions of the diagram in fig1 a illustrates two signals obtained from two sensor output signals , respectively . one signal is indicated with a solid line , and the other one with a dotted line , respectively . these pairs of sensor output signals are cross - correlated in order to arrive at a cross - correlation result which is used as said synchronization indices or signals . in the illustrated example , two cross - correlation results in the form of synchronization index a and synchronization index b are obtained . the synchronization signals can then be compared with a threshold value , which is illustrated in fig1 b with the dotted straight line , and appropriate measures be taken when the synchronization signal exceeds the threshold level . when the monitoring of cardiac synchronization has revealed that a cardiac asynchrony has arisen , or that a reduction of cardiac synchrony has occurred , the parameters for timing of stimulation pulse delivery may be changed in order to restore or improve the cardiac synchrony . such an indication could in exemplifying embodiments of the invention be used for triggering a change in the stimulation therapy . such a change could for example refer to an adjustment in the vv - interval , e . g . for a biventricular heart stimulator ; a change in the av - interval , e . g . for a dual chamber or an av - sequential heart stimulator ; or combinations thereof . thereby , the cardiac synchrony can be monitored during remodulation of the patient &# 39 ; s heart , and the pacing therapy can be adjusted in adaptation to the remodulation of the heart . for heart stimulators in which the pacing therapy may be automatically adjusted by the heart stimulator in order to optimize or maximize cardiac output , a synchronized and elongated diastolic phase may be given priority over the optimization of cardiac output . for instance , in patients suffering from ischemic heart disease , it may be more important to ensure synchronized diastole and , thereby , adequate coronary flow at all times rather than maximized cardiac output . in further embodiments , the indication of cardiac asynchrony could be used for triggering an alarm signal to the patient . this alarm signal could be intended for prompting the patient to seek medical assistance for care or follow - up . it should be noted that the sensors may be subjected to pressures , movements and / or accelerations that are not derived from or related to the intrinsic movements of the myocardium and the cardiac walls thereof . for instance , accelerations derived from extra - cardiac movements of the patient , such as from running , vibrations in the patient environment , thoracic movements etc . however , output signal contributions deriving from intrinsic movements of the myocardial tissue can easily be discriminated from signal contributions from such extra - cardiac movements since the latter have a substantially identical impact on the respective sensor . furthermore , by designing the sensors to be sensitive for certain frequency ranges , the majority of the extra - cardiac signal contributions may be omitted . furthermore , band - pass filtering of the sensor outputs may also be used for discriminating or filter out the signal contribution from extra - cardiac movements . although modifications and changes may be suggested by those skilled in the art , it is the intention of the inventors to embody within the patent warranted heron all changes and modifications as reasonably and properly come within the scope of their contribution to the art .	0
more particularly according to the present invention , the pressure under discussion is always absolute pressure . and by &# 34 ; water present in the reaction mixture &# 34 ; is intended the water which is formed during the polycondensation of the short - chain acid ( s ) with hexamethylenediamine , plus , if appropriate , the water initially introduced with the constituents of the reaction mixture . the amount of water which may be introduced at the outset is not critical and can vary over wide limits . by &# 34 ; copolyamide of the required viscosity &# 34 ; is intended a copolyamide which has a sufficiently high melt viscosity as to be capable of being injection - molded or extruded in a convenient manner . more precisely , it is intended to define a copolyamide having a melt viscosity ( measured under conditions which are defined hereinafter ) of at least 1 , 500 poises and preferably of from 3 , 000 to 60 , 000 poises . as regards the loss of hexamethylenediamine , referred to above , this can arise , for example , when the apparatus employed does not incorporate a distillation column ; under these conditions , for a given apparatus and for given charges , simple methods may be used to determine the amount of hexamethylenediamine entrained during each operation and , consequently , the excess of this reactant to be introduced into the starting reaction mixture to preserve the equivalence between the amino groups and the carboxy groups which react . in general , when a loss of hexamethylenediamine occurs , it is moderate , and it has been found that the use of amounts of this reactant which result in the ratios r 1 and r 2 having values ranging from a number greater than 1 to 1 . 3 are suitable . it is obvious that &# 34 ; short - chain acid ( s )&# 34 ; is intended to denote adipic acid by itself or mixed with at least one other short - chain dicarboxylic acid of a saturated alicyclic or aromatic nature . more precisely , alicyclic and / or aromatic dicarboxylic acids which are within the scope of the present invention are compounds containing at most 12 carbon atoms ; 1 , 4 - cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid , isophthalic acid , and terephthalic acid are representative of suitable diacids of this type . the proportion of adipic acid in the mixture of short - chain diacids which may be employed usually represents at least 70 mole %. it is believed that during the homogenization step employed in the above - mentioned french patent , the amino and carboxy groups , which no longer undergo an amidification reaction at this time , are used to form breaks in the block oligomers of adipic acid with hexamethylenediamine and / or oligomers of dimer acid with hexamethylenediamine and that , as a result , a homogeneous random prepolymer is formed . it is also believed that in the process according to the present invention , the prepolymer formed in step ( a ) is in the form of a homogeneous preformed polyhexamethylene amide structure whose homogeneity , surprisingly , is not altered by the subsequent addition of dimer acid whose oligomers with hexamethylenediamine are , however , incompatible with those of the preformed polyhexamethylene amide . the dimer acids employed are obtained by polymerization of compounds containing 80 to 100 % by weight of monomeric fatty acid ( s ) containing from 16 to 20 carbon atoms and 20 to 0 % by weight of monomeric fatty acid ( s ) containing from 8 to 15 carbon atoms and / or from 21 to 24 carbon atoms . by &# 34 ; monomeric fatty acids &# 34 ; are intended saturated or unsaturated , straight or branched chain aliphatic monoacids . among the straight - chain or branched saturated monomeric fatty acids , representative are : caprylic , pelargonic , capric , lauric , myristic , palmitic and isopalmitic , stearic , arachidic , behenic and lignoceric acids . among the straight - chain or branched monomeric fatty acids containing ethylenic unsaturation ( s ), representative are : 3 - octenoic , 11 - dodecenoic , oleic , lauroleic , myristoleic , palmitoleic , gadoleic , cetoleic , linoleic , linolenic , eicosatetraenoic and chaulmoogric acids . some acids containing acetylenic unsaturation may also result in polymeric acids , but they do not occur naturally in quantities of interest and as a result their economic interest is very low . the polymeric fatty acids obtained by thermal polymerization , in the presence of catalysts such as peroxides or lewis acids if appropriate , may be fractioned , for example , by conventional vacuum distillation or solvent extraction methods . they can also be hydrogenated to reduce their degree of unsaturation and thus to reduce their coloration . the dimer acids which are preferably used in the present invention are fractionated polymeric fatty acids , the difunctional acid fraction of which is greater than 94 % by weight , the monofunctional acid fraction is less than 1 % by weight and still more preferably does not exceed 0 . 5 % by weight , the fraction of acid having a functionality greater than 2 is less than 5 % by weight and still more preferably does not exceed 3 % by weight . still more preferably , the dimer acids employed are those species obtained by fractionation ( resulting in the fractions indicated above ) of polymeric fatty acids which have additionally been subjected to hydrogenation . the dimer acids which are most especially suitable are those species obtained by fractionation of a hydrogenated composition originating from the catalytic polymerization of monomeric fatty acid ( s ) containing 18 carbon atoms . in this respect , because of their ready availability of supply and their relatively easy polymerization , oleic , linoleic and linolenic acids , taken by themselves or in pairs or preferably in the form of a ternary mixture , are the starting materials which are most especially preferred for the preparation of the polymeric fatty acids . concerning the strong organic or inorganic oxyacid ( alpha ) which is employed as catalyst , use is made , as indicated above , of an oxygen - containing mono - or polyacid in which at least one of the acid groups thereof has an ionization constant pka in water at 25 ° c . which does not exceed 4 . ( 1 ) among the inorganic oxyacids : sulfurous , sulfuric , hypophosphorous , phosphorous , orthophosphoric or pyrophosphoric acids ; ( i ) the organosulfonic acids of the formula r 1 -- so 3 h ( i ), in which r 1 denotes : a straight - chain or branched alkyl radical containing from 1 to 6 carbon atoms ; a phenyl radical optionally substituted by 1 to 3 alkyl radicals containing from 1 to 3 carbon atoms ; a phenylalkyl radical containing from 1 to 3 carbon atoms in the alkyl moiety and in which the benzene nucleus may optionally be substituted by 1 to 3 alkyl radicals containing from 1 to 3 carbon atoms , or a naphthyl radical optionally substituted by 1 to 4 alkyl radicals containing from 1 to 3 carbon atoms ; ( ii ) the organophosphonic acids of the formula r 2 -- p ( o )( oh ) 2 ( ii ), in which r 2 denotes an alkyl radical , a phenyl radical or a phenylalkyl radical , each of these radicals having the definition given above for r 1 ; ( iii ) the organophosphinic acids of the formula r 3 r 4 -- p ( o )( oh ) ( iii ), in which r 3 and r 4 , which are identical or different , each denote : a straight - chain alkyl radical containing from 1 to 3 carbon atoms ; a phenyl radical or a phenylalkyl radical , each of the latter two radicals having the definition given above for r 1 ; ( iv ) the organophosphonous acids of the formula r 5 h -- p ( o )( oh ) ( iv ), in which r 5 denotes : a straight - chain or branched alkyl radical containing from 1 to 4 carbon atoms ( the branching being excluded for an alkyl radical containing 4 carbon atoms ); a phenyl radical or a phenylalkyl radical , each of the latter two radicals having the definition given above for r 1 . as a strong acid ( alpha ), it is preferred to use the acids derived from phosphorus , and more particularly the hypophosphorous , phosphorous , orthophosphoric , pyrophosphoric , methylphosphonic , phenylphosphonic , benzylphosphonic , dimethylphosphinic , diphenylphosphinic , methylphenylphosphinic , dibenzylphosphinic , methylphosphonous , phenylphosphonous or benzylphosphonous acids . where the acid salt ( beta ) is concerned , use is generally made of alkali or alkaline earth metal salts derived from inorganic or organic oxyacids ( alpha ). salts which are completely soluble in the reaction mixture are preferably used as the salt ( beta ). among these preferred salts ( beta ), the sodium and potassium salts derived from the particular suitable types of inorganic or organic oxyacids ( alpha ), referred to above , are very suitable . the salts ( beta ) which are especially suitable are sodium and potassium salts originating from the preferred phosphorus - derived acids referred to by name above . the proportions of strong acid ( alpha ) or salt ( beta ), expressed as a weight percentage relative to the final copolyamide , generally range from 0 . 01 to 1 %, and preferably from 0 . 01 to 0 . 5 %. in addition to a catalytic action during the polycondensation reaction , the strong acids ( alpha ) or their salts ( beta ), and especially the phosphorus - derived compounds of this type , have the advantage of providing the final copolyamide with some protection against degradation due to light . if good operation of the process according to the present invention is to be ensured , care will be taken to observe the corresponding proportions of the various constituents employed as perfectly as possible . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , in step ( a ) the short - chain diacid ( s ) is ( or are ) used in the form of its ( or of their ) salt ( s ) with hexamethylenediamine [ variant ( ii )]. in order to ensure , on the other hand , stoichiometry in the production of the salt ( s ) of short - chain acid ( s ) with hexamethylenediamine and , on the other hand , the stoichiometry or the intended stoichiometric excess between free hexamethylenediamine and the dimer acid , the operation may be carried out by precise weighing of the reactants ( the assay of which is known accurately at the time of use ). the stoichiometry of the salt ( s ) of the short - chain acid ( s ) can be monitored by measuring the ph of specimen solutions produced by diluting the salt ( s ) in a suitable solvent . it is also possible to monitor the stoichiometry or the intended stoichiometric excess in the amidification reaction between the free amino groups in the prepolymer and the dimer acid , by control of the viscosity which may be advantageously assessed by in situ measurement of the resistant torque of mechanical stirring of the polycondensation mixture in step ( b ). to carry out the process according to the invention , hexamethylenediamine may be used in solid form , in melt form , or in the form of an aqueous solution . the salt ( s ) of short - chain acid ( s ) and hexamethylenediamine may also be used in solid form , in melt form or in the form of an aqueous solution . concerning step ( a ) of the process according to the invention , the operation is preferably carried out in a closed system under an autogenous water vapor pressure which is above atmospheric pressure and does not exceed 2 mpa . it will be appreciated that the autogenous water vapor pressure which is required to conduct the distillation is produced by gradual heating , for example , over a period of time ranging from 10 minutes to 2 hours , up to a temperature ranging from 150 ° to 220 ° c . as regards step ( b ) of the process according to the present invention , which follows step ( a ), carried out in the preferred manner as indicated above , this operation is preferably carried out by linking the following steps : ( 1 ) either all of the dimer acid , or a part of the dimer acid representing , for example , 70 to 95 % of the total amount to be introduced into the polymer , is added gradually , for example , over a period of time ranging from 10 minutes to 2 hours , while the pressure is at the same time reduced from the initial prepolymerization value down to the value of atmospheric pressure , while the temperature of the reaction mixture is also raised for the same period of time to a value above the temperature reached at the end of step ( a ) and lying in the range of from 250 ° to 280 ° c ., ( 2 ) when the aforesaid addition of dimer acid is completed , after stirring of the reaction mixture has continued , if appropriate , at the aforementioned temperature and at atmospheric pressure for a period of time ranging , for example , from 10 minutes to 1 hour , a reduced pressure not exceeding 200 · 10 2 pa is then gradually established over a period of time ranging , for example , from 5 minutes to 1 hour ; and ( 3 ) when the reduced pressure has been established , the remainder of the dimer acid is added where applicable and the polycondensation is completed by continuing to stir the mixture at the aforementioned temperature which lies in the range of from 250 ° to 280 ° c ., at the reduced pressure indicated above , for a period of time ranging , for example , from 10 minutes to 1 hour , while simultaneously ensuring a distillation of residual water . in the case where step ( a ) is carried out under an autogenous pressure above atmospheric pressure , it may be advantageous , when this pressure is close ( or equal ) to the maximum value of the pressure indicated above in the present description , to carry out , before introducing all or part of the dimer acid , a slight pressure reduction which reduces the autogenous water vapor pressure to a value p 1 which is from 5 to 30 % lower than the prepolymerization pressure . it should then be understood , within the scope of the preferred application of the step ( b ) referred to above , that all or part of the dimer acid is added gradually while the pressure is reduced at the same time , no longer from the initial prepolymerization value , but from the value p 1 down to the value of atmospheric pressure . it is possible to add to the mixture for preparing the copolyamides according to this invention , without inconvenience , one or more additives such as especially : stabilizers or inhibitors of degradation due to oxidation , to ultraviolet , to light or heat ; lubricants ; colorants ; nucleating agents ; antifoaming agents and inorganic fillers . the process according to the invention enables production of homogenous copolyamides which have good thermal resistance and mechanical strength due to their high melting points and an improved flexibility at the same time . being perfectly homogeneous , they have improved transparency properties and may be used in the usual injection - molding , extrusion or spinning methods to provide shaped articles : components , films or fibers of very high uniformity . in order to further illustrate the present invention and the advantages thereof , the following specific examples are given , it being understood that same are intended only as illustrative and in nowise limitative . a number of controls were carried out in these examples . similarly , various properties were measured . the operating methods and / or the standards according to which these controls and measurements were carried out are indicated below . the polymers were characterized by melting characteristics such as the melting endotherms em and the crystallization exotherms ec . these determinations were carried out using a specimen subjected to temperature variations of 10 ° c ./ minute both upwards and downwards . in this manner , a differential microcalorimetry curve was determined , on which it was possible to observe the melting ( tm ) and crystallization on cooling ( tc ) points . this was measured at 260 ° c . under a variable shear gradient ( indicated in the examples below ) with the aid of a davenport rheometer . the results are expressed in poises . the method described below made it possible to estimate both types of end groups on a single test sample and with a single acidimetric titration . the polyamide was dissolved with stirring in a mixture of trifluoroethanol and chloroform at ambient temperature . after it had dissolved , a 0 . 05n aqueous alcoholic solution of tetrabutylammonium hydroxide was added and a potentiometric titration was finally carried out using a standardized solution of 0 . 05n hydrochloric acid under a stream of nitrogen . the use of the potentiometric curve exhibiting two potential steps enabled the two types of end groups to be determined . these were determined at 25 ° c . on specimens conditioned at an rh of 0 according to the french standard nf t 51 034 ( in an instron - type tensometer at a traction speed of 10 mm / min ). conditioning at an rh of 0 : the specimens were placed over silica gel in a desiccator and were dried for 24 hours at ambient temperature at 0 . 66 to 1 . 33 · 10 2 pa before the measurements were carried out . this was determined at several temperatures (- 20 ° c ., 0 ° c ., + 20 ° c ., + 40 ° c ., + 60 ° c .) with an automatic torsion pendulum at a frequency on the order of 1 hertz in accordance with the standard iso r 537 . the specimens were conditioned at an rh of 0 . the results are expressed in mpa . in the following examples , wherever reference is made to the dimer acid employed , the compound used was that marketed by unichema chemie under the trademark pripol 1010 , in which the difunctional acid fraction was greater than 95 % by weight . this difunctional acid fraction consisted of a mixture of isomers containing 36 carbon atoms , in which the predominant species was a saturated compound of the formula : ## str1 ## the monofunctional acid fraction ( the weight proportion of which will be detailed later ) consisted substantially of oleic acid ; as for the fraction of acid with a functionality greater than 2 ( the weight proportion of which will also be detailed later ), this consisted substantially of a mixture of isomeric trimers containing 54 carbon atoms ; the mean molecular weight of this dimer acid was on the order of 571 . the operation was carried out in a 7 . 5 liter stainless steel autoclave fitted with mechanical stirring , a heating system and a system which made it possible to operate at a pressure above atmospheric pressure , or at a pressure below atmospheric pressure . the following charges were introduced into the apparatus at ambient temperature : ( i ) hexamethylenediamine salt of adipic acid , in dry solid form : 2 , 086 . 7 g ( 7 . 955 moles ); ( iii ) aqueous solution containing 32 . 5 % by weight of hexamethylenediamine : 746 . 5 g ( 2 . 088 moles ); ( iv ) aqueous solution containing 50 % by weight of hypophosphorous acid : 6 g ; and ( v ) silicone antifoam marketed by rhone - poulenc specialites chimiques under the trademark rhodorsil si 454 : 0 . 3 g . stirring was commenced and five nitrogen purges were carried out by pressurization to 7 · 10 5 pa , followed by pressure release . the temperature of the stirred mixture was gradually raised to 217 ° c . over 1 hour , 15 minutes , while the autogenous pressure was maintained ; this reached 1 . 8 mpa . water was distilled off under pressure over 2 hours to attain a mixture temperature of 250 ° c . the pressure was released down to 1 . 5 mpa while the temperature was maintained at 250 ° c . 885 g ( 1 . 567 moles ) of fatty acid dimer marketed by unichema chemie under the trademark pripol 1010 , having a monomer content of 0 . 03 % by weight and a trimer content of 3 % by weight were then added to the stirred mixture by steady pouring over 1 hour , 35 minutes ; during the time when the dimer acid was being added , the autoclave pressure was gradually reduced to atmospheric pressure and the temperature of the mixture was gradually raised to 270 ° c . a pressure of 133 · 10 2 pa was then gradually established over 40 minutes , while the mixture was maintained at 270 ° c . when the reduced pressure had been established , an additional 90 g ( 0 . 158 mole ) of dimer acid were added by steady pouring . the polycondensation was completed by continuing to stir the mixture for 30 minutes at 270 ° c . under 133 · 10 2 pa . stirring was stopped , and then a nitrogen pressure of 5 · 10 5 pa was established in the autoclave and the polymer was drawn off . the latter , extruded from the autoclave in lace form , was cooled by passing same through a cold water bath , and it was then granulated and dried . the polymer obtained was perfectly transparent and consequently homogeneous . it had the following characteristics , measured on dry granules : the operation was carried out in a 7 . 5 liter stainless steel autoclave equipped as stated in example 1 . the following charges were introduced into the apparatus at ambient temperature : ( i ) hexamethylenediamine salt of adipic acid , in dry solid form : 1 , 043 . 3 g ( 3 . 978 moles ); ( ii ) aqueous solution containing 32 . 15 % by weight of hexamethylenediamine : 1 , 424 g ( 3 . 939 moles ); ( iii ) aqueous solution containing 50 % by weight of hypophosphorous acid : 6 g ; and stirring was commenced and five nitrogen purges were carried out by pressurization to 1 mpa , followed by pressure release . the temperature of the stirred mixture was raised gradually to 217 ° c . over 1 hour , while autogenous pressure was maintained . this reached 1 . 8 mpa . water was distilled off under pressure over 1 hour , such that the mixture attained a temperature of 230 ° c . pressure was reduced to 1 . 5 mpa while the temperature was maintained at 230 ° c . 1 , 566 g ( 2 . 743 moles ) of pripol 1010 fatty acid dimer described earlier in example 1 were then added to the stirred mixture by steady pouring over 1 hours , 30 minutes ; during the time when the dimer acid was being added , the autoclave pressure was gradually reduced to atmospheric pressure and the temperature of the mixture was gradually raised to 260 ° c . the mixture was stirred for 30 minutes at 260 ° c . at atmospheric pressure . a pressure of 133 · 10 2 pa was then established gradually over 30 minutes while the mixture was maintained at 260 ° c . when the reduced pressure had been established , an additional 220 g ( 0 . 385 mole ) of dimer acid were added by steady pouring . the polycondensation was completed by continuing to stir the mixture for 30 minutes at 260 ° c . under 133 · 10 2 pa . stirring was stopped , and then a nitrogen pressure of 5 · 10 5 pa was established in the autoclave and the polymer was drawn off . the latter , extruded from the autoclave in lace form , was cooled by passing same through a cold water bath and it was then granulated and dried . the polymer obtained was perfectly transparent and consequently homogeneous . it had the following characteristics , measured on dry granules : by way of a comparative test , the above example was reproduced , but this time without the use of catalyst ( hypophosphorous acid ); the reactant charges were as follows : ( i ) hexamethylenediamine salt of adipic acid , in dry solid form : 1 , 043 . 3 g ( 3 . 978 moles ), ( ii ) aqueous solution containing 32 . 15 % by weight of hexamethylenediamine : 1 , 244 . 8 g ( 3 . 450 moles ), the polymer obtained was perfectly transparent and consequently homogeneous . but the end group contents which were obtained , namely : were high , and this result is indicative of a slowing down of the polycondensation in the absence of hypophosphorous acid . it was noted , furthermore , that the melt viscosity , measured at 260 ° c ., under a gradient γ = 10 s - 1 , was low , being on the order of 900 poises . while the invention has been described in terms of various preferred embodiments , the skilled artisan will appreciate that various modifications , substitutions , omissions , and changes may be made without departing from the spirit thereof . accordingly , it is intended that the scope of the present invention be limited solely by the scope of the following claims , including equivalents thereof .	2
the present invention puts forward changes in the processing approach that result in a reduced fabrication cost , complexity , and processing time . it was found surprisingly that transparent polycrystalline sintered magnesium - aluminate spinel ceramic , displaying almost full density and very high light transmission level , can be obtained from commercial oxide powders in a one - heating - step process . field assisted sintering technology ( fast ) was applied in processing magnesium and aluminum oxides , mixed with lithium fluoride , in a process employing a simple but unexpectedly efficient temperature regimen , while obtaining sintered spinel materials having high transparency in the whole range of visible light ( see , for example , fig1 ). all the required effects , converting the oxides powder to a transparent body , were integrated essentially into a single - thermal treatment process , saving time and energy . in contrast to known processes used for manufacturing transparent sintered spinel ceramics , via more complex techniques , using at least two different two processes . the herewith described approach is capable to provide by one heating process a transparent spinel body out of two oxides . in one aspect of the invention , a transparent polycrystalline sintered spinel is produced from a binary mechanical mixture comprising oxide powders displaying less than 5 micrometer size . said polycrystalline sintered body is produced in a one - step thermal process using field assisted sintering technology ( fast ). no traces of either the sintering aid ( added to accelerate the densification process ) or carbon inclusions were detectable in the product obtained in the novel process . in the present invention , a composition comprising conventional mgo and al 2 o 3 powders are thoroughly mixed in a 1 : 1 molar ratio in the presence of 0 . 5 to 2 . 0 wt % of lif additive , for example 1 wt %. the additive may be added in powder form or as an aqueous solution . the powder is inserted in the graphite die of the fast apparatus described herewith . the thermal processing makes use of the fast . the present technology relies on the concomitant application of elevated temperature , axial pressure , and passage of very intense direct or pulsed electrical current , importantly combined with a quick temperature increase . the powder sample is enclosed in a graphite die . the heat released by the current raises the temperature in the graphite dies enclosing the sample , and / or within samples that display some electrical conductivity . it has been alleged but not proved that when a pulsed current is applied , plasma generation may occur between the powder particles that may involve surface activation and promote consolidation . whatever the exact mechanism , sintering is promoted and full densification achieved at lower temperatures and within shorter time than in a conventional sintering process . known processes usually employ heating regimens comprising temperatures 1700 ° c . and higher . when employing lower temperatures , dense samples may be sometimes obtained but with no or low transparency . the present invention comprises a maximal temperature of only about 1600 ° c . ambient atmosphere is removed from the heating chamber and replaced by ar before the onset of heating and a dynamic vacuum of 10 − 2 torr is maintained during the heat treatment . as mentioned previously , the graphite die containing the sample also acts as the heating element . thus the fast atmosphere contains , beside ar , also carbon oxides co / co 2 which are formed during the interaction of carbon with the residual oxygen . the reversible reaction : takes place in the later stages of the densification process . the reaction ( eq . 1 ) is endothermic , shifts to the left with increasing temperature and to the opposite direction with increasing total pressure of the gaseous components . it is supposed that when spinel , undergoing densification under the ar — co — co2 atmosphere reaches about 80 % relative density , the pressure within the closing pores starts to increase at a relatively low temperature . with further consolidation , the volume of the pores decreases significantly with concomitant increase of the total pressure within the pores . following the reaction shown in eq . 1 , carbon starts to precipitate in lif - free spinel , most likely on the free surface of the pores . the precipitation of free carbon on the free surface of the pore system is probably further enhanced by the high current , and by plasma - induced reactions that take place at the spinel inner and external free surfaces within the fast apparatus . the precipitation of carbon stands behind the gray color of the specimens and the formation of dark spots . the lack of optical transmittance according to the above assumption is linked to the carbon precipitation from the residual gaseous atmosphere , containing carbon species . sessile drop experiments have shown that the wetting angle of liquid lif on the spinel substrate is close to zero and leads to full spreading of the molten phase . sessile drop experiments , called wetting experiments , enable to determine the extent of wetting a solid by the liquid . the criterion is the so - called wetting angle , which when & lt ; 90 deg . indicates that wetting may take place . moreover , liquid lif also wets and actually cleans spinel surfaces coated with a thin carbon deposit . thus , liquid lif may easily infiltrate the porous spinel preformed and spread completely over the pore surfaces . the beneficial effect of the lif additive on the transparency of spinel is due to its propensity to fully cover the free spinel surfaces in the pore system as long as the latter is still open . the lif additive melts at about 850 ° c . and , therefore , it is imperative to avoid closing the pores at that temperature . this is achieved by the high heating rate 100 ± 30 ° c ./ min in the fast apparatus . liquid lif easily infiltrates the porous spinel preform and spreads over the pore surfaces , even surfaces contaminated with carbon . at higher temperature , extensive lif evaporation takes place in the 1100 - 1200 ° c . range and the partial pressure of the gaseous lif dwarfs that of the residual carbon containing gases and expels the latter , thereby eliminating the source of carbon precipitation . finally , on account of its high vapor pressure , lif also evaporates in the course of last stages of the densification process , leaving a gas - free pore network free of any carbon containing residues and resulting in a nearly fully dense , carbon - free and lif - free , spinel . pressure is applied gradually starting at when the temperature reaches 1600 ± 20 ° c ., and leads to full densification of the spinel perform . after appropriate and conventional polishing procedures , the discs display good transparency values for a thickness up to 5 mm . the present invention provides a method of producing a polycrystalline transparent spinel sintered body ( hereafter transparent spinel body ) comprising essentially a one - step thermal processing of a mixture of magnesium oxide ( mgo ) and aluminum oxide ( al 2 o 3 ) powders supplemented by a sintering additive , wherein said powders may have a grain size in a wide range , for example , from 0 . 2 to 2 μm was used for mgo , and from 0 . 3 to 0 . 7 μm for al 2 o 3 . and wherein lithium fluoride ( lif ) is used as sintering additive . lif is preferably added in an amount of 0 . 5 to 2 wt % and most preferably at an amount of 1 wt %, as a powder , liquid or a distinct layer of said mixture . the axial pressure in a preferred arrangement is applied gradually , starting from the ambient pressure , after reaching a temperature of about 1600 ± 20 ° c . ; the pressure should reach at least 50 mpa , for example 80 mpa , at a preferable rate of 8 ± 2 mpa / min . after a holding time of about 60 min at the maximal temperature and maximal pressure , the samples are cooled to the ambient temperature . the invention will be further described and illustrated in the following examples . a transparent magnesia - aluminate spinel sintered body , was fabricated and its properties tested . the body was manufactured using a mixture of commercially available alumina magnesia powders . the alumina powder had less then 10 parts per million by weight of oxides of any of the following elements na , si , fe , ca , mg , ga , cr , ni , ti , cu , zn , zr . the alumina powder had an average 0 . 5 micrometer grain size and 8 m 2 / g surface area . the magnesia powder contained less the 2500 parts per million of na , less then 100 parts per million of cl and ca , and less then 10 parts per million of no 3 , so 4 , n , pb , as , cu , fe , k , mn , zn , ba and sr . the magnesia powder consisted of 5 micrometers size agglomerates of smaller particles and 40 m 2 / g surface area . a molar ratio of 1 : 1 of the said magnesia and alumina were mixed in a polypropylene container using a vibration mixer with no spheres . sintering additive , 1 wt % lif , was added while mixing with the oxide premixture . the powder was loaded into a graphite die of the said sps apparatus and was cold pressed at 8 mpa in the apparatus itself . the temperature was raised to 400 ° c . for 5 minutes ( as required by the standard operation of the sps apparatus ), and then raised to 1600 ° c . at a rate of 100 ° c ./ min . after 10 minutes of holding at 1600 ° c . the pressure was slowly raised to 80 mpa . the total “ soak ” time at 1600 ° c . was two hours . after cooling , the body was polished by grinding on increasingly fine sic papers followed by polishing with diamond - paste , in order to achieve the least amount of reflectance due to surface roughness . the same powder and the same mixture procedures , as described in example 1 , were used . next , the powder was loaded into a graphite die of the said sps apparatus and was cold pressed at 6 mpa in the apparatus itself . the temperature was raised to 400 ° c . for 5 minutes ( as required by the standard operation of the sps apparatus ), and then raised to 1600 ° c . at a rate of 100 ° c ./ min . after the temperature had reached 1600 ° c . the applied pressure was slowly raised to 80 mpa at a rate of 5 mpa / min . the total “ soak ” time at 1600 ° c . was 60 minutes . after cooling , the sample was polished by applying an initial grinding stage of sic on increasingly fine sic papers followed by polishing with diamond - paste , in order to achieve the least amount of reflectance due to surface roughness . while this invention has been described in terms of some specific examples , many modifications and variations are possible . it is therefore understood that within the scope of the appended claims , the invention may be realized otherwise than as specifically described .	2
it has now been found that hepatitis a antigen usable in an immune adherence hemagglutination assay and for the preparation of hepatitis a vaccine is obtained from the stools of patients in the acute phase of hepatitis a disease . according to the present invention the stools are homogenized mechanically in an aqueous medium such as a physiological salt solution , e . g . saline or phosphate buffered saline ( pbs ). the homogenate is centrifuged to separate solids and the supernate is assayed for hepatitis a content according to the method described in the copending patent application of william j . miller and william j . mcaleer filed dec . 9 , 1974 as ser . no . 531 , 020 . extracts having antigen titers of 1 : 4 or greater are usable as hepatitis a antigen in the foregoing assay . the antigen extracts can be further purified by extraction with ether at lowered temperatures with recovery of the aqueous layer . the antigen can further be heated to reduce non - specific activity of the antigen preparation . anitgen preparations obtained as described above , with or without ether and heat treatments , have been found to have hepatitis a antigen activity because they give positive immune adherence reactions with human sera known to contain hepatitis a antibody , and negative immune adherence reactions with human sera known to be devoid of hepatitis a antibody . the antigen extract can also be used in the preparation of immunizing antigen , i . e ., vaccine . for this purpose the stools are extracted and centrifuged as described above and the extracts having immune adherence hepatitis a antigen titer of 1 : 4 or greater are treated with ultrasound . the sonicated extract is centrifuged . sediment is recovered with the aid of ultra - sound and resuspended in pbs . the suspension is filtered and the filtrate applied to a cesium chloride gradient having a density range of from about 1 . 1 to about 1 . 4 grams / cm 3 and centrifuged . fractions containing viral antigen ( with densities in the region of from about 1 . 32 to about 1 . 36 g / cm 3 ) are collected and dialyzed against distilled water . the antigen preparation is then extracted with an equal volume of ethyl ether at about 4 ° c . for from about 10 to about 30 hours . the aqueous phase is recovered , acidified to a ph of from about 2 to about 4 and allowed to stand at ambient temperature for a period of from about 1 hour to about 5 hours . the ph is then re - adjusted to approximately 7 . 0 . the resulting antigen is then heated to from about 50 to about 65 ° c . for from about 0 . 5 to about 2 hours . the antigen preparation is clarified by centrifugation at about 2500 rpm for about 15 minutes . the supernate is reacted with 1 : 4000 formalin at about 37 ° c for about 72 hours . the excess formaldehyde is neutralized with sodium bisulfite . the resulting preparation consists of the immunizing antigen ( vaccine ). the disclosure of the above - mentioned copending patent application ser . no . 531 , 020 filed dec . 9 , 1974 is hereby incorporated by reference . the following examples illustrate the present invention without , however , limiting the same thereto . all temperatures are expressed in degrees celsius unless otherwise indicated . one gram of feces collected from a patient on the day that clinical symptoms of hepatitis a are first manifested is homogenized in a 10 ml ten broeck tissue homogenizer in 4 ml of physiological saline . the slurry is clarified in a 5 ml sw65 tube at 10 , 000 rpm for 30 minutes and the pellet is discarded . the 3 . 5 ml extract is tested for the presence of hepatitis a antigen by the immune adherence assay described in copending application ser . no . 531 , 020 , and is found to have a hepatitis a antigen level of 1 : 8 . the extract is confirmed for the presence of antigen by its location in cscl at a density of 1 . 34 , its reversal in the reverse passive hemagglutination assay by convalescent marmoset serum and by immune electron microscopy . one gram of the feces yields 16 ml of test solution antigen at the immune adherence use - level concentration which is sufficient antigen to perform 600 single well assays . a 100 g fecal sample from this patient supplies sufficient antigen to perform 60 , 000 single well hepatitis a assays . human stools are collected within the period of 7 days before to 7 days after clinical onset of illness in a group of hepatitis a patients . the stools are extracted by mechanical means ( ten broeck homogenizer or sorvall omni - mixer ) to yield 20 % ( w / w ) homogenates in phosphate - buffered saline . the homogenate is centrifuged at 10 , 000 rpm for 30 minutes in a beckman type 30 angle head rotor . the supernatants are retained and assayed for hepatitis a antigen content by the immune adherence ( ia ) assay . extracts giving antigen titers of 1 : 4 or greater are usable as hepatitis a antigen . about 1 in 5 to 1 in 10 stools examined by the above criteria yield usable antigen extracts . a part of the antigen preparation is further processed by overnight extraction with an equal volume of ether at 0 ° c with recovery of the aqueous layer . another part of the antigen is heated at 56 ° c for 1 hour . some of the antigen extracted with ether is also subjected to this heat treatment . these processes help to reduce non - specific activity of the antigen preparations . antigen preparations as above , both with and without ether and heat treatment , have been found to have specific hepatitis a antigen activity , because they give positive ia reactions with human sera known to contain hepatitis a antibody , and negative ia reactions with human sera known to be devoid of hepatitis a antibody . human stools collected within the period of 7 days before to 7 days after clinical onset of illness in hepatitis a patients are extracted and homogenized and centrifuged as described in example 2 . one hundred milliliters of pooled extracts with ia hepatitis a antigen titer of 1 : 4 or greater are treated with ultrasound ( model w185 , heat systems - ultrasonics , with bell cup ) at full power for 1 minute . the sonicated extract is centrifuged at 75 , 000 × g for 3 hours . sediment is recovered with the aid of ultrasound and resuspended to 20 ml . this material is filtered through a 0 . 45 μ millipore filter ( pretreated with veal infusion broth ) with a pre - filter . the filtrate is then applied to cesium chloride gradients ( 36 ml volume , density 1 . 1 to 1 . 4 gm / cm 3 ) and centrifuged in a sw27 beckman rotor for 18 hours at 27 , 000 rpm . fractions containing viral antigen ( cuts with densities in the region of 1 . 32 - 1 . 36 gm / cm 3 ) are collected and dialyzed against distilled water . the volume of the preparation of this stage is 60 ml . the antigen preparation is then extracted with an equal volume of ethyl ether at 4 ° c for 18 hours . the aqueous phase is recovered . the antigen preparation is next acidified to ph 3 . 0 for a period of 3 hours at room temperature . the ph is then re - adjusted to approximately 7 . 0 . the resulting antigen is heated to 60 ° c for 1 hour . the antigen preparation is spun at 2500 rpm - 15 minutes to clarify , and the supernatant is retained . at this stage the antigen preparation is reacted with 1 : 4000 formalin at 37 ° c for 72 hours . excess formaldehyde is neutralized with bisulphite . the resulting preparation constitutes the immunizing antigen ( vaccine ). by subcutaneous injection of this material into guinea pigs and marmosets ( 4 × 1 ml , subcutaneous , at days 0 , 13 , 27 and 59 ) both species of animals develop hepatitis a antibody ( measured by ia ). the marmosets do not develop hepatitis a when subsequently challenged with a known infectious dose of hepatitis a .	0
referring now to the drawings in detail , and firstly to fig1 thereof , it will be seen that a washing material 2 is fed from a supply roll 1 via an elastic hollow member 7 loaded with pressure medium and arranged on a printing cylinder 6 to be cleaned . the washing material is transported by means of a periodically driven transporting roller 8 , which cooperates with a counter pressure roller 9 , from the hollow member 7 to a cutting device 10 . the supply roll is arranged in two opposite plates 4 with the aid of a shaft butt 11 ( fig4 ) which is provided with a brake and a shaft butt 12 in which a locking device 13 is employed . the hollow member 7 which is loaded with pressure medium as mentioned above is positioned between two plates 4 . the hollow member 7 is comprised in the exemplified embodiment of a base member 14 and two clamping strips 15 to which an elastic material 16 is secured at the front side of the base member 14 so that escape of the pressure medium from the hollow body or member 7 is impossible . as shown in fig5 a scanning device 5 is arranged in plates 4 . furthermore , a bearing pin 19 is also positioned in plates 4 . two opposite plates 4 are held together by means of traverses 17 , 18 . traverse 18 is provided at two sides with a locking device which can be actuated by means of a lever 20 . the counter pressure roller 9 is positioned in the plates 4 so that it is biased against the transporting roller 8 by a compression spring 21 . the function unit which is limited by the plates 4 is identified in the description as a washing unit or washing beam . fig2 shows a cleaning device without the washing unit . the side walls 22 of the device are provided each with a bearing shell 23 and a mounting 24 and are connected with walls 32 , 33 ( fig3 ) of the printing press by means of bolts 26 . the above mentioned cutting device 10 , a spraying hopper 29 with spraying tubes 25 , a cutting or terminal strip 31 , a washing material - container 34 and the transporting roller 8 are all positioned between the side walls 22 . the transporting roller 8 has axial extensions by means of which as clearly shown in fig3 this roller is rigidly secured to respective inner rings of two opposite direction - of - rotation - switching couplings 27 and 28 . the outer ring of the direction - of - rotation switching coupling 28 is rigidly connected to the wall 32 of the printing press whereas the outer ring of the direction - of - rotation switching coupling 27 is connected via a crank 36 and a link or joint 37 with a work cylinder 35 which is hinged in the wall 33 of the printing press and is pivotally supported in and operatively connected to the side wall 32 . a gear 38 is rigidly secured to one axial extension of the transporting roller 8 , this gear being rigidly connected ( when the washing unit is inserted in the cleaning device ) with the axle of the counter pressure roller 9 and is in cooperation with a counter gear not shown herein . the mode of operation of the cleaning device of this invention is as follows : after the washing unit has been provided with the supply roll 1 outside the printing machine ( fig5 ) this unit is inserted with its bearing pins 19 into bearing shells 23 of the side walls 22 , then it is pivoted about these pins to the position immediately against the cylinder 6 and is locked in this position by levers 20 and by means of the non - illustrated but any suitable conventional locking device and the mounting 24 . thereby the counter gear rigidly mounted to the axle of the counter pressure roller 9 is automatically brought into engagement with the gear 38 so that the washing material 2 is pressed by the spring - biased pressure roller 9 against the transporting roller 8 and the connection to the pressure medium feeding is established . furthermore , the connection between the scanning device 5 and an end switch is also extablished automatically so that the control is possible via the washing material supply on the supply roll 1 . during the washing process the washing liquid or water is sprayed from the spraying tubes 25 onto the upper surface of the printing cylinder 6 . thereafter or simultaneously therewith the hollow member 7 is periodically filled with a pressure medium and thereby brings the washing cloth or material 2 in contact with the upper surface of the cylinder 6 . the washing material 2 is rolled from the supply roll 1 in accordance with a contamination degree of the printing cylinder 6 in respective intervals and is fed to the hollow member 7 and further between the counter pressure roller 9 and transporting roller 8 , which is driven in the transport direction by the work cylinder 35 . after the completion of the cleaning process the circular blade 30 is fed by the non - shown but any suitable conventional means along the strip 31 so that the contaminated portion of the washing cloth is cut off . then the separated washing cloth which falls into the container 34 is removed from the latter . after the washing material of the supply roll 1 is used up the washing unit is removed from the side walls 22 and a new supply roll is installed into the unit , which roll is held by the shaft butts 11 and 12 . the brake positioned on the shaft butt 11 is adjusted so that the washing material 2 is continually transported without any problems . the supply roll 1 is axially fixed on the shaft butt 12 by the locking device 13 of any suitable design . in order to ensure a better access to the cylinder 6 the side walls 22 can be pivoted away about an axis parallel to the cylinder 6 , this axis being formed by the two opposite bolts 26 . the control of the whole device is obtained by a non - shown but any suitable conventional means . the succession of individual operation steps , their timing and adjustment as well as their number can be defined by various programs which can be selected in accordance with operation requirements . it will be understood that each of the elements described above , or two or more together , may also find a useful application in other types of devices for cleaning cylinders of a printing machine differing from the types described above . while the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in a device for cleaning cylinders of a printing machine , it is not intended to be limited to the details shown , since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention . without further analysis , the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can , by applying current knowledge , readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that , from the standpoint of prior art , fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention .	1
in brief , articles are decontaminated by the present invention by using either a variable pressure solvent spray , or by using high frequency ultrasonic agitation in a solvent bath . decontamination is performed in a sealed cleaning chamber , whereby the operator and the surrounding areas are protected from the spread of contaminants . contaminants removed during the cleaning process are transported by the solvent to the systems &# 39 ; s solvent reservoir . contaminants in the solvent are then removed and isolated by filtration and / or distillation for safe disposal . the cleaning chamber is designed to allow flexibility as to the cleaning process utilized , the region of the chamber in which cleaning is performed , and the chamber volume available for cleaning . the chamber is divided into an upper and lower region by a removable grating . when using the solvent spray cleaning process , the operator rests the article being decontaminated on the grating in the upper portion of the chamber . the operator then reaches into the chamber and manipulates a manually operable spray gun to direct the spray against the article . where the operator is threatened with excessive exposure from radiation or other hazards , a spray manifold may be incorporated to spray the contaminated item remotely . the mechanical action of the spray and the chemical action of the solvent act remove the contaminants from the surface of the object . the solvent flushes the contaminants from the surface of the object , then falls through the grating to the floor of the chamber . the floor of the chamber is sloped toward one end where a large opening is provided for draining the solvent directly to the solvent reservoir . a cooling coil is installed below the opening in the chamber ( between the chamber and solvent reservoir ) so that all solvent drained from the chamber by gravity , must pass through this coil before returning to the solvent reservoir . the ultrasonic cleaning tank rests on the floor of the cleaning chamber , in the lower region below the grating . to use the ultrasonic cleaning tank , the operator will normally remove only the section of grating directly above the tank . articles to be cleaned are loaded through the cleaning chamber door and stacked on the grating adjacent to the tank . as they are cleaned , they are placed on the grating on the opposite side of the tank for drying . in this manner , large numbers of items may be cleaned in the ultrasonic tank without continuously reloading through the chamber door . the ultrasonic cleaning function allows for the cleaning of articles too delicate or intricate for cleaning by the solvent spray process . ultrasonic cleaning utilizes the scrubbing action of imploding liquid vapor bubbles to loosen and remove contaminants from an article . the ultrasonic cleaning tank is filled with solvent by means of the same manually operated spray gun used in the solvent spray process . the tank is equipped with a drain so that it may be periodically emptied and refilled with fresh solvent . approximately 16 cubic feet of space is available for cleaning volume inside the cleaning chamber . however , the operator may remove the grating and ultrasonic cleaning tank from the chamber to provide another 2 . 5 cubic feet for purposes of cleaning larger objects . a transducer for the ultrasonic cleaning tank is removable from the chamber by unplugging it from a receptacle mounted on the chamber &# 39 ; s rear wall . solvent drained from the cleaning chamber int the solvent reservoir is continuously pumped from the reservoir by a low pressure pump through a filter , and returned to the reservoir . this process removes particulate contaminants from the solvent . the filter ( s ) may also be replaced or operated in series with adsorbers which remove soluable contaminants by physical and / or chemical adsorption . the low pressure pump also communicates filtered and / or adsorbed solvent to a high pressure pump . the high pressure pump , in turn , communicates solvent to the cleaning chamber for the solvent spray cleaning process and / or for the purpose of filling the ultrasonic cleaning tank . this process assures that only clean solvent will contact of the contaminated articles . the small latent heat of vaporization and low boiling point of the solvent allows decontaminated articles to be dried rapidly . after decontamination is complete ( using either solvent spray or ultrasonics ), the operator starts a drying fan . air is circulated into the cleaning chamber via ports at the top of the chamber through the chamber ( where it evaporates residual liquid solvent ) across the cooling coil , and back to the inlet of the fan . the cooling coil condenses solvent vapors from the recirculating air , communicates the liquid solvent to the solvent reservoir , and leaves the air with additional capacity to transport solvent vapor . the present invention is also adapted to operate external cleaning chambers . this enables specialty cleaning chambers to be built to accommodate articles for decontaminating that are too large or cumbersome for the cleaning chamber . when operating external equipment , solvent is communicated via high pressure hose to the external chamber for spraying . the expended solvent is collected and pumped back to the solvent reservoir on the apparatus via a portable hose , where it is filtered and processed in the usual manner before being reused . fittings are provided so that drying air may also be recirculated from the external chamber to the apparatus and back to the external chamber by employing flexible air ducts . when solvent is first sprayed into the cleaning chamber of the apparatus , a pressure surge is created by the partial vaporization of the solvent . this pressure is relieved by passing the vapor / air mixture across the condensing coil , through a high efficiency particulate air ( hepa ) filter to remove potential vapor / air suspended particulate contaminants , and then an activated carbon vapor trap that removes solvent vapors . this initial venting is automatic and causes a major portion of the system &# 39 ; s air to be communicated outside the machine in a safe and contamination - free fashion . the remaining atmosphere is largely solvent vapor which condenses rapidly due to the condensing coil and absence of air . this condensation creates a negative atmospheric pressure relative to the outside atmosphere . the frictional resistance through the hepa filter and carbon column impede the complete equalization of atmospheric pressure between the invention and the outside environment . this slight negative pressure is beneficial since it aids in preventing the escape of solvent vapors and contaminants from the apparatus . referring now to the drawings , the apparatus of the present invention is illustrated perspectively in fig1 and 2 , showing therein front and rear views respectively . fig3 is schematically illustrative of the system disclosed herein . such illustrations are adapted to depict the present decontamination apparatus and are shown for purposes of convenience in understanding the operation and function of the invention . the system includes a cleaning chamber 11 which is adapted to contain the articles to be cleaned . the cleaning chamber 11 includes a cabinet 13 with a door 15 hingedly connected thereto . a gasket 17 is provided to form a gas tight seal between cabinet 13 and door 15 when cleaning chamber 11 is closed . hinges 12 are slotted and bolted to cabinet 13 so that adjustments may be made as gasket 17 compressibly changes with use . a plurality of latches 19 are provided for securely latching door 15 in the closed position . door 15 includes a window 14 through which an operator may view the interior cleaning chamber 11 when door 15 is closed . window 14 has mounted thereto a pair of glove port rings 20 to which are attached a pair of impermeable gloves 20a , by which the operator may manipulate articles within the cleaning chamber 11 from the exterior of the chamber 11 so as to keep the chamber 11 sealed during the cleaning process . the interior of cabinet 13 includes a bottom 16 which slopes downwardly toward drain opening 21 . mounted in drain opening 21 is trap 18 adapted to capture macroscopic objects removed in the cleaning process , and which , if allowed to leave chamber 11 via drain 21 , might damage cooling coil 31 or solvent pump 34 . drain opening 21 allows solvent to pass from cleaning chamber 11 through vertical duct 21a directly into solvent reservoir 35 . resting on cabinet bottom 16 is ultrasonic cleaning tank 25 . supported in ultrasonic cleaning tank 25 is an ultrasonic transducer 26 , such transducer 26 being operatively connected to ultrasonic generator 27 by cable 28 . to provide additional cleaning volume within cleaning chamber 11 , ultrasonic transducer 26 and tank 25 may be removed from cabinet 31 through door 15 . in order to accomplish such removal , cable 28 must be unplugged from receptacle 29 which is liquid and vapor tight so as to prevent the escape of cleaning solvent from cleaning chamber 11 . grating 22 is provided in cleaning chamber 11 and is mounted above the region in which ultrasonic cleaning tank 25 is located . objects to be decontaminated are passed into the cleaning chamber 11 through door 15 , which is then latched and sealed shut by clamps 19 . the operator has the choice of decontaminating objects by either solvent spray , or by ultrasonic cavitation . if the operator chooses solvent spray , the object is rested on grating 22 and the operator reaches into the cleaning chamber 11 through gloves 20 to manipulate solvent spray gun 24 to direct the high pressure solvent spray 23 against the object . the hydraulic pressure of the solvent spray may be adjusted by changing the nozzle 45 or the high pressure pump unloader valve 42 . hydraulic pressures ranging between 0 psig and 2150 psig are achieveable with this system . the operator has the additional advantage of being able to manipulate the object while spraying . due to the solvent &# 39 ; s proper ties , the spraying process generates vapors of the solvent . by performing the spraying inside sealed cleaning chamber 11 , none of the solvent nor contaminants escape to the outside environment during the cleaning process . grating 22 is provided in three removable sections , so that if the operator chooses to decontaminate by ultrasonic cavitation he removes only the section of grating 22 above tank 25 . the operator then reaches into cleaning chamber 11 through the gloves 20 and immerses the object into tank 25 to perform the ultrasonic decontamination . by performing the ultrasonic decontamination inside sealed cleaning chamber 11 , none of the solvent vapors generated by the process can escape to the outside environment . the apparatus herein has the capability to decontaminate by using either of two processes . in the solvent spray process , solvent sprayed by spray gun 24 against the article inside cleaning chamber 11 passes through grating 22 onto chamber bottom 16 , carrying with it contaminants removed from the article being cleaned . the solvent / contaminant mixture flows through drain 21 at a rate at least as great as that at which solvent is sprayed into chamber 11 . the solvent / contaminant mixture flows through cooling coil 31 . the cooling coil 31 serves to maintain the solvent in the apparatus at a temperature substantially below its boiling point , thus minimizing the amount of solvent vapors generated during the decontamination process . cooling coil 31 is operated by conventional refrigeration equipment 30 . it is then collected by pan 79 and communicated to solvent reservoir 35 via drain pipe 80 . the combination of pan 79 and drain pipe 80 also serves as a vapor shield for solvent reservoir 35 in that the surface area of solvent in the reservoir being exposed to the system &# 39 ; s air flow is limited to the cross sectional area of drain pipe 80 as opposed to the entire surface area of the reservoir . this minimizes the formation of solvent vapors when the fan is operating and consequently reduces condensing requirements as well as accelerates the drying cycle . the mounting of cleaning chamber cabinet 13 directly atop solvent reservoir 35 accomplishes two objectives , to wit : the economic utilization of space and the elimination of piping between the two components . solvent reservoir 35 is a tank having a capacity of approximately 35 gallons . its v - bottom construction causes particulate contaminants to settle toward solvent reservoir recess 32 . solvent reservoir 35 is covered by insulation 81 and its outside walls to minimize heat gain of the solvent from the outside environment . a pump 34 is provided to withdraw solvent and contaminants from recess 32 , through pickup tube 33 . the discharge from pump 34 is connected to a circulating conduit 38 , which is connected through a filter 37 back to solvent reservoir 35 . filter 37 is adapted to remove particulate matter suspended in the solvent down to and including 0 . 2 microns . filter 37 may also be substituted with absorber 37a or operated in series with absorber 37a for removal of soluable contaminants . pump 34 is a high volume , low pressure pump . the volume delivered by pump 34 is sufficient to recirculate the entire capacity of solvent reservoir through filter 37 at least once every minute . accordingly , the solvent in solvent reservoir 35 is continuously decontaminated so that the level of contamination therein is kept quite low . the contaminants are collected in filter 37 and / or absorber 37a which can be changed as necessary . conduit 45 is provided so that filter 37 can be drained for purposes of changing said filter . high pressure pump 39 is supplied with solvent from recirculation conduit 38 by a supply conduit 36 . supply conduit 36 is connected to recirculation conduit 38 downstream from filter 37 , whereby the solvent supply to high pressure pump 39 has been filtered and / or absorbed , and is therefore clean when used for the decontamination of articles . since pump 39 pumps a volume substantially smaller than that pumped by pump 34 , pump 39 is always supplied with a positive pressure with which to satisfy its requirements . pump 39 is a positive displacement pump which has been designed to pump solvent at any and all hydraulic pressures between 0 psig and 2150 psig through conduit 41 to cleaning chamber 11 . unloader valve 42 is provided in conduit 41 so that when spray gun 24 is not operated , the pressure solvent from pump 39 is diverted to solvent reservoir 35 through conduit 43 . conduit 41 is connected to conduit 44 located inside cleaning chamber 11 . conduit 44 is a flexible hose with sufficient strength to withstand the hydraulic pressure delivered by pump 39 . the purpose of using flexible hose is to allow the operator to manipulate spray gun 24 . spray gun 24 is equipped with nozzle 78 that has an orifice of small diameter . when solvent is pumped through conduit 44 , a high pressure is generated because of the restriction created by the orifice . said solvent emerges from nozzle 45 as high pressure spray 23 , which can be directed against the object to be decontaminated . nozzle 45 can be interchanged with other nozzles that have varying orifice diameters to achieve a range of pressures in solvent spray 23 . this allows the operator to select a lower pressure for cleaning delicate objects , or a higher pressure for cleaning objects that have more tightly adhered contaminants . in the ultrasonic decontamination process , ultrasonic cleaning tank 25 is filled with solvent by spray gun 24 . articles are decontaminated through this process by immersing them in tank 25 and energizing ultrasonic generator 27 . at the completion of cleaning , the operator opens valve 46 and drains the solvent / contaminant mixture from tank 25 through conduit 47 . said solvent / contaminant mixture flows through drain 21 into solvent reservoir 35 . when the ultrasonic cleaning process is to be used again , the operator closes valve 46 and pumps more solvent into said tank through spray gun 24 . by this process , cleaning tank 25 is replenished with decontaminated solvent . after articles have been decontaminated , by either solvent spraying or ultrasonics , they must be dried of solvent for the purpose of preventing removal of solvent liquids from cleaning chamber 11 . fan 55 serves in the capacity of drying articles by pulling solvent vapor / air mixtures out of cleaning chamber 11 through drain 21 and across cooling coil 31 . cooling coil 31 condenses the solvent vapor components out of said mixture , which then drain into solvent reservoir 35 . the remaining components are recirculated through conduit 53 and discharged into plenum 51 . the plenum 51 is equipped with multiple openings 52 that communicate directly with cleaning chamber 11 . plenum 51 is conformed to distribute the discharge of fan 55 evenly across cleaning chamber 52 . when using the solvent cleaning process , a large internal pressure surge is created by solvent spray 23 . this pressure surge is relieved through conduit 73 , which is connected to a column of activated charcoal ( carbon ) 76 . carbon column 76 removes solvent vapors that would otherwise be released to the environment . the gases then fed through conduit 74 to high efficiency particulate air ( hepa ) filter 77 , that remove 99 . 97 % of all suspended particulate contaminants measuring 0 . 3 microns and larger , whereupon the gas which is now clean air , is vented to the atmosphere . after the initial surge of pressure , substantially all of the air in cleaning chamber 11 is removed , and the atmosphere within cleaning chamber 11 consists primarily of solvent vapors . the solvent condenses quickly , causing a relative negative pressure to be created within cleaning chamber 11 . air is prevented from re - entering cleaning chamber 11 and equalizing the pressure inside by the resistance of filter 77 and carbon column 76 . the relative negative pressure inside cleaning chamber 11 provides a safety feature in that it prevents leaks of contaminants from the interior of the chamber . after a period of operation , the level of dissolved , rather than suspended , contaminants in the solvent may increase to a level such that when the objects are dried after cleaning , a film of contaminants is left thereupon . in order to remove the dissolved contaminants from the solvent , a still 40 is provided . still 40 has the capacity to distill at one time the entire volume of solvent in the system . still 40 comprises generally a vessel having a false bottom 54 which forms a cavity 56 . cavity 56 is filled with a heat transfer oil and has disposed therein a plurality of heating elements 57 . heating elements 57 are designed to heat the heat transfer oil to a desired temperature at or above the boiling point of the solvent . still 40 is covered by insulation 81 , which minimizes heat loss during distillation . still 40 is connected to recirculation conduit 38 by a conduit 48 , which has therein electrically operated valve 49 . when it is desired to distill the solvent , valve 49 is opened automatically and valve 50 is shut . pump 34 is started to pump the entire contents of solvent reservoir 35 and filter 37 into still 40 . heating elements 57 are then actuated to be at the oil bath and thereby heat the solvent contained within still 40 . when the temperature within still 40 reaches the boiling point of the solvent , that temperature is maintained according to the laws of the thermodynamics until substantially all of the solvent has been evaporated , whereupon the temperature begins to rise . when the temperature reaches a preselected setpoint above the boiling point of the solvent , thermostat 58 automatically deenergizes heaters 57 . the solvent vapor from still 40 is removed by conduit 59 , which is connected to solvent reservoir 35 . the solvent vapors from still 40 are condensed by cooling coil 31 to form pure liquid solvent , and return to solvent reservoir 35 . cleaning chamber 11 is also equipped with a means for lighting the interior of said chamber so that the operator may better view the articles being decontaminated . light housing 60 is mounted atop cabinet 13 . two fluorescent light bulbs 63 are provided in said housing , which shine through transparent window 65 and an opening 65a provided in the top of cabinet 13 . gasket 61 is provided to seal window 65 against cabinet 13 for the purpose of preventing leakage of solvent and contaminants from cleaning chamber 11 . fluorescent light bulbs 63 can be accessed for changing through the top of light housing 60 without having to disturb gasket 61 or cabinet 13 . cleaning chamber 11 is also equipped with two electrical switches , which are mounted on the inside wall of said chamber . electrical switch 62 is designed to start and stop ultrasonic generator 27 . electrical switch 64 is operated to start and stop high pressure pump 39 . electrical switches 62 and 64 are located inside cleaning chamber 11 to allow the operator to conveniently operate equipment necessary to perform decontamination . these switches are sealed to preclude leakage of solvent and contaminants from cleaning chamber 11 . control panel 72 is mounted on the machine as shown in fig1 . various switches and alarm lights are mounted on said panel . the preferred embodiment is equipped to allow the solvent spray process to be performed in special equipment remote from the cleaning chamber 11 . said special equipment may be adapted to clean objects that are too large or cumbersome to be cleaned inside cleaning chamber 11 , and may take the form of very large cleaning chambers , or special chambers equipped to handle long tubular objects such as pipe or hose . when remote equipment is used , the apparatus functions in the same manner as described previously herein , except hose from the remote equipment is connected to special fitting 68 ( fig2 ) provided for such purpose . special fitting 68 operates in such a manner that is automatically remains shut when remote equipment ( not shown ) is not being used . solvent from high pressure pump 39 is thereby diverted to the remote equipment for the purpose of decontaminating articles . solvent sprayed in the remote equipment and the contaminants thereby collected are returned by means of a pump located within the remote equipment . solvent is returned from the remote equipment by means of flexible conduit that connects to fitting 66 located on cabinet 13 . the returned solvent / contaminant mixture flows through drain 21 and is processed in the same manner as described before herein . drying ventilation may also be provided when remote equipment is operated . conduit for fresh air to the remote equipment is connected at fitting 67 , located on plenum 57 . doors 70 are provided to shut and seal openings 52 in cleaning chamber 11 , causing exhaust air from fan 55 to be diverted to the remote equipment . air is returned from the remote equipment by means of conduit connected to fitting 69 . the return air / vapor mixture flows through drain 21 and thereby processed in the same manner as described before herein . components of the apparatus as described herein are mounted on frame 75 , which is constructed of rugged steel of sufficient strength to support the weight of said components . frame 75 is supported by casters 71 , so that the apparatus can be rolled from one location to another as necessary . casters 75 can be locked as necessary to prevent them from rolling . the apparatus as described herein measures approximately 36 &# 34 ; wide and 70 &# 34 ; long , and the volume of cleaning chamber 11 is approximately 18 . 4 cubic feet . the arrangexent of components on the apparatus is judicious and economical so as to provide a compact apparatus that is easily maneuvered about on casters 71 . the 36 inch width of the apparatus enables it to pass through standard door openings . the primary thurst in achieving compactness is by the judicious location of solvent reservoir 35 and still 40 . cleaning chamber 11 is disposed vertically so that glove ports 20 and gloves 20a are at the comfortable height for arms on an average operator . the space below cleaning chamber 11 is then used to locate solvent tank 35 , still 40 , and refrigeration package 30 . by locating solvent tank 35 below cleaning chamber drain 21 , solvent can communicate from cleaning chamber 11 without utilizing conduits . the function and arrangexent of cooling coil 31 is particularly unique . the judicious location of cooling coil 31 in the region between cleaning chamber 11 and solvent reservoir 35 enables it to perform four separate functions without the need of complex piping and valving arrangements : 1 . it communicates closely with solvent drained from cleaning chamber 11 to solvent reservoir 35 , thus keeping the solvent cool . 2 . it is located in the flow path of the air / vapor mixture recycled through cleaning chamber 11 during drying , and thereby condenses vapors from the mixture . 3 . it condenses vapors passing from still 40 to solvent reservoir 35 during the distillation process . 4 . it condenses solvent vapor normally given off by solvent stored in solvent reservoir 35 due to solvent vapor pressure . the location and diversity of utilization of cooling coil 31 also accomplishes economical use of space . the judicious location of cooling coil 21 precludes the need for a cooling coil for each separate function , thus minimizing space requirements . the location also eliminates the need for a separate housing , and piping to such housing , further minimizing space requirements . it is to be understood that the present invention is not to be taken as being limited to the accompanying drawings and specification . while a particular embodiment of the present invention has been herein illustrated and described , it is not intended to limit the invention to such disclosure , but changes and modifications may be made therein and thereto . it is also to be understood that the phraseology and terminology herein employed are for purposes of description and not of limitation , since the scope of the present invention is denoted in the appended claims .	1
improved throttle control 10 of the present invention , as shown in the drawings , includes the metal bracket 12 having a generally triangular shape as best seen in fig1 mounting flange 14 extending at right angles to the main portion of bracket 12 , stop tab 16 which extends at right angles to the main portion of bracket 12 in the opposite direction from flange 14 and throttle cable sheath engaging means 18 which includes the two fingers 20 , extending at right angles to bracket 12 , which are spaced to tightly engage the end of throttle cable sheath 22 . it should be noted that any suitable means may be provided to secure cable sheath 22 to bracket 12 , such as , for example , a rolled clip which is integral with the bracket or secured thereto and through which sheath is inserted and thereafter secured therein by staking . control 10 also includes throttle operating lever 24 which is pivotally connected to bracket 12 by rivet 26 , which extends through lever mounting opening 24a , bracket mounting opening 12a and detent pad mounting opening 28a , plastic detent pad 28 which is positioned between lever 24 and bracket 12 and biasing means 30 , shown as a spring washer or wave washer , to provide a biasing force urging lever 24 against plastic detent pad 28 . lever 24 includes operating arm 32 and cable arm 34 having opening 34a to which throttle cable 36 is connected providing the lever with cable connecting means . the outer end of operating arm 32 includes a suitable handle or knob 38 to be grasped by the operator when moving lever 24 . as seen in fig2 and 3 , rivet 26 is a shoulder type rivet including head 40 , large shank 42 , reduced shank 44 with shoulder 46 between the two shanks 42 and 44 and recessed forming end 48 . as seen in fig2 the distance from the inner surface of rivet head 40 to shoulder 46 ( the length of large shank 42 ) is preselected so that lever 24 , plastic detent pad 28 and biasing means 30 are positioned on that portion of rivet shank 42 so that biasing means 30 exerts the preselected biasing force on lever 24 against plastic detent pad 28 . as shown in fig3 and 5 , plastic detent pad 28 is generally segmentally shaped and includes opening 50 through which rivet 26 extends with annular ridge 52 surrounding opening 50 and in engagement with lever 24 and arcuate ridge 54 on the outer portion of pad 28 and on the side facing lever 24 . lever 24 includes detent 56 projecting from lever 24 and spaced from the pivot axis the same distance as arcuate ridge 54 so that it engages ridge 54 throughout the full range of its movement . arcuate ridge 54 includes radial groove 58 which when detent 56 on lever 24 is positioned therein defines the desired full throttle position of lever 24 . projections 60 extend from the opposite side of pad 28 and are positioned in openings 62 extending through bracket 12 to assist in the positioning of pad 28 on bracket 12 . projections 60 are sized with respect to opening 62 so that when they are pressed into openings 62 pad 28 will remain in its desired position on bracket 12 unless it is positively removed . detent pad 28 is made of a plastic material such as nylon , polytetrafluoroethylene , polypropylene , acetal , or polyethylene and may include suitable fillers , such as mineral fibers , glass fibers and other filler materials which , when embedded in the plastic material , impart to the material of pad 28 the surface characteristics and resistant to environment desired or needed in its application . plastic detent pad 64 , as shown in fig6 is a modified pad in comparison to pad 28 in that it includes all of the components of pad 28 including annular ridge 66 , arcuate ridge 68 , mounting opening 70 and projections 72 which fit into the openings 62 of bracket 12 . the substantial difference in the configuration of pad 64 is that arcuate ridge 68 includes two radial notches or grooves 74 and 76 which represent the full speed engine position of lever 24 and the engine idle speed position of lever 24 . further , it should be noted that there is additional travel available for movement of lever 24 beyond groove 74 to the full choke position and for movement of lever 24 beyond groove 76 to the engine stop position . the end of sheath 22 which extends beyond fingers 20 of sheath engaging means 18 provides a stop for lever 24 at the stop position when cable arm 34 engages the end of sheath 22 and tab 16 provides a stop which operating arm 32 engages at full choke position . throttle control levers contemplated generally by the present invention are preferred to have a minimum force of five pounds and a maximum force of fifteen pounds needed to be exerted thereon for movement . also , in such applications it is desired that there be a suitable means , such as groove 74 shown in fig6 at the full speed throttle position with movement of the throttle control beyond such position being possible to move the throttle to the full choke position . an additional means , such as groove 76 shown in fig6 at an engine idle position is advantageous with additional movement beyond such stop being available to move the throttle control lever to the engine stop position . another possible feature which is available with the structure of the present invention is to provide recesses or grooves in the arcuate ridge of the detent pad which have shapes other than the truncated v shape shown in the drawings and particularly in fig7 . for example , if it is desired to require additional force to move the lever beyond its groove , the shape of the groove is changed as shown in fig8 . groove 80 in arcuate ridge 82 of detent pad 84 includes tapered surface 86 , flat bottom portion 88 and vertical wall 90 . when lever detent 92 of control lever 94 is engaged within groove 80 as shown , it is relatively easy to move it toward and over tapered surface 86 but in contrast it is relatively hard to move it toward and past vertical wall 90 . with wall 90 being vertical and detent having a vertical surface , the movement of lever 94 may require a side loading by the operator to move it past wall 90 . variations of the contour of the grooves in which the lever detent engages for preselected control position can be used to control the force or difficulty required to move the lever beyond such position . while the drawings illustrate one and two recesses in arcuate ridges 54 and 68 , respectively , in some applications , the arcuate ridge may have no recesses . an example of such application is a case in which the lever control is used to control a transmission which has its position locating means included in its mechanism . such locating means may include two , three or more preselected lever positions which are easily felt by the operator . the improved lever control of the present invention provides advantages which result from its unique structure . this control provides a means of having the resistance to the movement between the lever and its mounting bracket at a larger radius from the pivot axis of the lever and between a metal lever and a plastic detent pad . this provides the advantages of making the lever resistance of the control substantially the same all of the time and independent of use or abuse by the operator and the vagaries of the environment in which it has to operate . the control also offers the feature that it is simple to change the resistance to the movement of the lever and when changed such resistance is substantially constant . the change can be accomplished by the substitution of a different spring or wave washer . also , variations of the thickness of the plastic detent pad can increase or decrease the resistance since an increase of the pad thickness causes the lever to have to deflect slightly more than with a thinner pad . the critical factor in determining such force is to control the distance between the shoulders which engage the wave spring and the back side of the bracket . variation of this distance controls the force exerted by wave spring and thus the force with which lever detent engages the arcuate ridge of the detent pad . thus , a different type of rivet could be used than a shoulder rivet so long as the distance which determines the preloading of wave spring is controlled to provide the desired resistance to the movement of the control lever . with the single or multiple notches or positioning recesses in the arcuate ridge on the detent pad , the full speed position and sometimes the idle position of a throttle lever are preset which simplifies the assembly of the throttle control to the engine . an additional advantage of the present invention is that the throttle lever has a positive and quality feel which is sufficiently easy for anyone to operate but has adequate resistance so that the throttle lever does not move when movement is not desired . an additional advantage of the preferred form of the present invention is achieved with the snap on feature of the pad to the bracket so that it is properly positioned during assembly and riveting . an additional advantage of the present invention is that the friction contact area between the lever projection and the detent pad is minimal and acts as a wiper , cleaning foreign material from the detent pad arcuate surface and maintaining the frictional parameters between the detent pad arcuate surface and the lever projection . while the preferred form of the present invention discloses a lever control having a metal bracket , a metal lever and a detent pad of a plastic material with an arcuate ridge engaged by a projection , it is contemplated that the advantages of the present invention may be obtained by a structure in which only a lever and a bracket are used and either the arcuate surface or the lever projection is of a plastic material and the other is metal . a further modification which is contemplated is that the detent pad may have a uniform thickness without the annular ridge and the arcuate ridge but with such uniform thickness the area immediately surrounding the pivoting mechanism serves as the annular ridge and the surface of the pad which is engaged by the throttle detent serves as the arcuate ridge which may include one , two or multiple recesses or no recesses depending upon its intended application as hereinbefore explained . a further contemplated modification would be to use suitably selected plastic materials , usually expected to be different materials but possibly the same material , for both the bracket and the lever . it is believed to be within the contemplation of the present invention to include and teach structures and to cover such structures which have a mere reversal of parts . examples of some of the part reversal is that the lever may include a plastic projection while the arcuate surface engaged by the lever projection is a metal surface or a suitable plastic surface coacting with the plastic lever projection to provide the desired resistance to lever movement . the improved throttle control 110 shown in fig9 is identical with throttle control 10 previously described except that bracket 112 does not include the mounting openings 62 for mounting pad 28 thereon but does include recesses 111 , 113 and 115 which provide the stop , normal and full choke positions for lever 124 . projection 156 on lever 124 is position to engage bracket 112 in the arcuate area 112a on its surface so that projection 156 will come into engagement with recesses 111 , 113 and 115 as it is pivoted about its mounting opening 124a . additionally , plastic detent pad is not included in this form of the invention as projection 156 may be provided with plastic insert 156a which engages arcuate area 112a so that there is no metal - to - metal engagement between lever projection 156 and arcuate bracket area 112a . this structure provides a suitable structure which does not have the disadvantages of the prior art devices and which provides the biasing of the lever 24 against the bracket area 112a so that there are preselected operating positions such as mentioned .	8
referring more specifically to the drawings , fig1 is a partially exploded view of a four - way catv subscriber tap utilizing the present invention . in fig1 a unitary housing 10 which can be cast of a zinc alloy , for example , is provided . a pair of oppositely disposed threaded extensions 11 and 12 extend on either side of housing 10 to allow for the insertion of the sections of a coaxial cable to which the tap is coupled . a seizure post holder 13 which can be machined or molded , for example , from a resilient dielectric material is located in a recessed portion within housing 10 and axially aligned with extensions 11 and 12 . seizure post holder 13 , shown in greater detail in fig2 is held loosely in position by means of guides 14 in the recessed portion of housing 10 . also forming a portion of unitary housing 10 are threaded screw posts 15 which project from the base of the housing and facilitate the mounting of the printed circuit board of fig3 . coaxial terminals 16 are mounted in and extend through the base of housing 10 . the center conductors of terminals 16 extend upward from the base also to facilitate connection to the printed circuit board . the threaded portions of terminals 16 extend downwardly from the base of housing 10 and are not shown in the drawing . a circular groove 17 extends around the outer periphery of housing 10 to facilitate the placement and mounting of a cover . also integral to housing 10 is a mounting tab 18 which is provided with a guide post 19 and screw hold 20 for a mounting clamp not shown . shown in their exploded disassembled position on the right are a cylindrical guide clamp 21 with concave indentations on either end ; a serrated ferrule 22 ; a crimp nut 23 ; and o - ring seal 24 ; closure nut 25 and coaxial cable 26 . coaxial cable 26 further consists of a solid outer conductor 27 and solid inner conductor 28 separated by a suitable low loss dielectric medium as is well known in the art . an identical combination of elements comprise the assembly on the right hand portion of body 10 . the operation of the present invention will be better understood after the remaining figures are considered . in this connection , fig2 is a pictorial representation of the seizure post holder 13 showing the details thereof . as mentioned previously , seizure post holder 13 is preferably fabricated of delrin or other suitable resilient dielectric material . seizure post holder 13 comprises two bifurcated clamping portions separated by a narrow waist 30 which when assembled is mated to guides 14 . each of the clamping portions comprise a pair of tines 31 , 32 and 31 &# 39 ;, 32 &# 39 ; through which is formed a transverse , generally circular aperture 33 , 33 &# 39 ; which accommodates the posts to be secured . a pair of second flex aperture are formed through each of the clamping portions of seizure post holder 13 to reduce the section in those regions to provide for improved flexibility . a longitudinally extending circular aperture 34 is formed between the tines to accommodate the inner conductors of coaxial cable sections 26 . a bevel 35 of partial conical shape is formed at the ends of seizure post holder 13 . the angle of bevel 35 is substantially the same as the internal concave indentations in guide clamps 21 . in fig3 there is shown a pictorial view of a printed circuit board 40 on which is mounted the various electrical components of the subscriber tap . for the sake of clarity , the components are not shown . apertures 41 are provided through the printed circuit board 40 to accommodate the mounting screws also not shown . another set of apertures are provided in the printed circuit board to accommodate the center conductors of coaxial terminals 16 . a pair of seizure posts 42 extend downwardly from printed circuit board 40 . these seizure posts , which can be fabricated of brass or other suitable resilient conductive material are also bifurcated or split to form a pair of tines . apertures 43 of generally circular shape ar provided in posts 42 between the tines to accommodate inner conductors 28 of coaxial cables 26 . the diameters of posts 42 are substantially the same as the diameters of apertures 33 of seizure post holder 13 . due to the resiliancy of the seizure posts 42 and the seizure post holder 13 and their construction , it is apparent that the dimensional tolerances here need not be precise . seizure posts 42 serve in a multiple capacity . first , the posts serve as the electrically conductive medium for coupling radio frequency wave energy to and from inner conductor 28 of coaxial cable 26 to the components on the circuit board . secondly , the seizure posts can serve to couple low frequency or direct current energy to and from the coaxial cable such as for powering purposes . the posts also serve the primary mechanical means for retaining the inner conductor 28 of coaxial cable 27 although , as will be seen , some of the clamping action is provided by seizure post holder 13 . in its assembled state , the printed circuit board 40 with its components mounted thereon is mated with housing 10 so that seizure posts 42 extend into apertures 33 in seizure post holder 13 . the board is further secured by screws , not shown , extending through apertures 41 into screw posts 15 . the center conductors of the coaxial terminals 16 are soldered to the printed circuit in the region of their respective apertures . seizure posts 42 are also connected to the components of the subscriber tap by means of the printed circuitry on printed circuit board 40 . a plan view in broken - away cross section of the assembled subscriber tap is shown in fig4 . after the printed circuit board 40 is mounted on body 10 , a weathertight substantially dome - shaped cover 50 is positioned on the body 10 . cover 50 is provided with a flange 51 which fits within circular groove 17 . generally , a gasket or other suitable seal can be provided within groove 17 to further improve the weather - tight cover seating . when pressed into groove 17 , the flange 51 on cover 50 seats itself in the manner of a &# 34 ; belleville spring &# 34 ; and is thus clamped in position . in assembling the subscriber tap of fig4 the outer conductors 27 and dielectric material of coaxial cables 26 are trimmed back so that the inner conductors 28 extend through the central apertures of guide clamps 21 , aperture 34 of seizure post holder 13 and apertures 43 in posts 42 . when crimp nut 23 is tightened , its axial motion forces the bevelled ends of serrated ferrule 22 to clamp and securely hold the outer conductor 27 of coaxial cable 26 . the tightening of the crimp nut also forces the tines of seizure post holder 13 together thereby clamping the inner conductor 28 of coaxial cable 26 in place . the o - ring 24 and closure nut 25 provide a weather - tight seal for the completed assembly . electrical continuity to the outer conductor 27 of coaxial cable 26 is provided through serrated ferrule 22 , which is of conductive material , and the extensions 11 or 12 on housing 10 . as previously mentioned , electrical continuity between the inner conductor 28 and the printed circuitry is provided through seizure posts 42 . in all cases it is understood that the above - described embodiment is merely illustrative of but one of the many possible specific embodiments which can represent applications of the principles of the present invention . numerous and varied other arrangements can be readily devised in accordance with these principles by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . what is claimed is :	7
referring now to the drawings and first more particularly to fig1 a tinted contact lens of the present invention is indicated in its entirety by the reference numeral 20 . the contact lens 20 comprises a contact lens substrate 22 and an iris - simulating design , generally indicated at 24 , on the lens substrate . the contact lens substrate 22 is preferably a conventional clear contact lens . the lens substrate 22 may be a corrective or non - corrective lens . the iris simulating design 24 is generally annular in shape and is sized to cover or enhance a wearer &# 39 ; s iris . the iris simulating design 24 may be opaque to partially or completely mask the wearer &# 39 ; s iris or may be at least somewhat translucent so that some of the wearer &# 39 ; s iris may show through the design . it is to be understood that the term “ tinted ” is intended to encompass both iris simulating designs of translucent and / or opaque pigmentations . preferably , the iris - simulating design 24 is multi - colored and is more preferably comprised of four or more separate colors . a pad printing process is preferably used to print the iris - simulating design 24 on the lens substrate 22 . as described in greater detail below , four or more separate design portions ( each preferably of a different color ) are serially printed on the lens substrate 22 during the printing process . the design portions ( colorant patterns ) combine to form the multi - colored iris - simulating pattern 44 . generally speaking , two sub - processes are used for making the tinted contact lens 20 . the first sub - process is formation of a plurality of depressions 32 , 34 , 36 , 38 ( fig2 a - d ) in one or more printing plates ( cliché s ) 30 . the second sub - process is using the cliché ( s ) 30 in a pad printing process to transfer ink ( or some other suitable fluent colorant ) from the depressions to the lens substrate 22 ( fig1 ). preferably , the ink is of a type well known in the tinted contact lens industry having binding properties enabling it to adhere to the lens substrate via a polymerization process . the ink may be opaque or translucent after being transferred to the lens substrate . the first sub - process is generally indicated at 40 in the flow - chart of fig3 . in the first step , represented by box 42 , an iris image is digitized into a computer . digitizing the iris image may be accomplished by scanning a photograph or rendering of a human iris into the computer , or by use of a digital camera , or by using appropriate software to create an image by the computer itself . it is to be understood that the methods of digitizing an iris image mentioned herein are merely exemplary , and other methods of digitizing an iris image may be employed without departing from the scope of this invention . the digitized iris image may also comprise a hybrid image formed from different aspects of two or more iris images . the computer is preferably any commercially available computer having a suitable processor such as an intel pentium - 3 ® processor . as represented by box 44 , the colors of the digitized iris image are separated into selectively distinctive layers by use of commercially available software , such as adobe illustrator ® or adobe photoshop ®. in practice , the iris image is comprised of thousands of tiny colored regions and the colors of the regions may encompass thousands of different colors . the iris image is preferably analyzed by a designer for determining where color separations are to be made . preferably the image is separated into four , five , six , seven , eight , nine , ten , eleven , twelve , or more distinct color regions . each color region is preferably mapped via a raster - based image editor , such as adobe photoshop ®. each color region is then converted to grayscale and then converted to a halftone pattern ( box 46 ). each halftone pattern is then passed through a vector - based computer drawing program , such as adobe illustrator ®. with the use of the drawing program , the halftone pattern ( or digitized image portion ) is adjusted and sized for export , preferably as an encapsulated postscript file , to a laser control unit of a suitable laser ( indicated by box 48 ). each digitized image portion comprises the combination of all of the tiny regions of the digitized iris image assigned to one of the selected color ranges . preferably , the laser is a yttrium aluminum garnet ( yag ) laser , such as an electrox ® scriba ii , commercially available from electrox usa , indianapolis , ind . the laser control unit is preferably operated with suitable software , such as that commercially available from electrox usa . the cliché 30 ( e . g ., fig2 a ) is then aligned with the yag laser . referring to box 50 , the laser is then operated with appropriate aperture and power settings to meet the pattern width and depth requirements suitable to form the depressions 32 , 34 , 36 , 38 in the portions of the cliché 30 . by adjusting the various power settings and / or incorporating multiple passes to the patterns , an operator is able to use the laser to vaporize finite layers of the plate conforming to the exact depression shapes desired . preferably , the laser is operated using baselines of 2 kilohertz , aperture of 3 . 8 mm , yielding { fraction ( 5 / 1000 )} particle beam , power at 70 watts , and speed frequency of 8 hits per second . the laser forms each depression in an iris portion pattern to correspond to each digitized image portion . in other words , the digitized image portions combine to represent the digitized iris image , and the iris portion patterns of the depressions combine to represent the iris image to be printed on the contact lens substrate . as discussed above , fig2 a - d show depressions 32 , 34 , 36 , 38 formed in cliché portions . it is to be understood that the cliché portions may be portions of a single cliché or may be portions of multiple clichés . in other words , the depressions may all be formed in a single cliché 30 or may each be in a separate cliché without departing from the scope of this invention . use of a laser to form a depression in a cliché has several advantages over forming a depression by photo etching . to begin with , a depression formed with a laser is capable of greater resolution than a depression formed with a photo etching process . in particular , the resolution capabilities with the laser process is more than 9 times greater than that of the photo etching process . the corrosive nature of the photo etching process applied at higher resolution tends to completely obscure and break down the pattern &# 39 ; s definition . the resolution limitation of the photo etching process creates barriers to achieve resolutions requiring increased color variations for multicolored contact lenses . by using a laser process to overcome the limitations in pattern resolution , a broader range of blending colors may be employed to create a tinted contact lens that provides a more natural appearance . another advantage of forming a depression with a laser rather than photo etching is elimination of the need to use toxic and hazardous chemicals , such as ferric nitrate , hydrochloric acid , and nitric acid . these chemicals increase chances of work related accidents or health issues . these chemicals are also hazardous to the environment and require epa regulatory compliance for removal and disposal . also , the unpredictability inherent in the photo etching process makes it difficult to produce depressions of desired depth . the desired depth of a typical depression used in a pad printing process to tint a contact lens is 17 - 25 microns . depth variances with a photo etching process are generally ± 3 - 5 microns . if the photo etching process does not achieve the desired depth , the pattern rendered is useless ; the plate must be resurfaced and re - lapped and the complete process repeated . conversely , if the pattern achieves too much depth ( which is the tendency in the industry ), the evaporation of the excess ink thinners / retardant and polymers are released into the air , thereby decreasing air quality . use of the laser process also increases the speed in which depressions may be formed in the cliché . in particular , the labor required to prepare a typical pattern in the cliché via a photo etching process is 3 - 6 man - hours . the labor to prepare such a pattern via the laser method of the present invention is less than one man - hour . thus , use of the laser process results in a depression of greater resolution , reduces health risks and decreases cost of manufacture . the second sub - process ( i . e ., transfer of ink from a depression in the cliché to the lens substrate 22 ) is schematically shown in fig4 a - e . in fig4 a , the cliché 30 is shown having a depression 32 flooded with ink 60 . a doctor blade 62 is swept across the cliché 30 to wipe the ink 60 from the cliché in a manner so that the ink is in only the depression . as shown in fig4 b , a conventional pad - printing pad 64 is aligned with the depression 32 and pressed against the cliché 30 to pick up the ink in the depression . the pad 64 is then brought into registration ( fig4 c ) with a contact lens substrate 22 held on a lens holder 66 and then pressed ( fig4 d ) against the lens substrate to deposit the ink on the substrate in a pattern which constitutes a first design portion 70 of the iris simulating design ( fig1 ). the pad 64 is then released from the lens substrate 22 and the ink is allowed to dry . the first design portion 70 printed on the lens substrate 22 in this manner preferably has substantially the same shape as the pattern of the depression 32 . although not shown , additional design portions are then serially printed on the lens substrate 22 by transferring ink from depressions 34 ( fig2 b ), 36 ( fig2 c ), 38 ( fig2 d ) in substantially the same manner as transferred from depression 32 . preferably , different ink colors are used for each printing pattern . the design portions ( colorant patterns ) combine to form the multi - colored iris - simulating pattern 44 . although the iris - simulating pattern 44 has been described as being formed by the combination of four different colorant patterns printed on the contact lens substrate 22 , it is to be understood that more or fewer colorant patterns may be combined to form an iris - simulating pattern ( e . g ., three , five , six , seven , eight , nine , ten , eleven , twelve , or more colorant patterns ) without departing from the scope of this invention . preferably , however , four to twelve colorant patterns are printed on the lens substrate to form the iris simulating pattern . also preferably , each colorant pattern is a different color . in view of the above , it will be seen that the several objects of the invention are achieved and other advantageous results attained . as various changes could be made in the above constructions and methods without departing from the scope of the invention , it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense .	1
while the present invention is described herein with reference to illustrative embodiments for particular applications , it should be understood that the invention is not limited thereto . those having ordinary skill in the art and access to the teachings provided herein will recognize additional modifications , applications , and embodiments within the scope thereof and additional fields in which the present invention would be of significant utility . fig1 is a diagram of a first exemplary network printing system 10 constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention that includes components installed on devices and printers connected to a common network 20 . for clarity , various well - known components , such as computer operating systems , power supplies , processors , and so on , have been omitted from fig1 and 2 , however those skilled in the art with access to the present teachings will know which components to implement and how to implement them to meet the needs of a given application . in the present embodiment , the devices connected to the network 20 include an internet appliance 12 and a handheld computer 14 . the printers connected to the network include a first printer 16 and a second printer 18 . the handheld computer 14 includes a user - interface 22 that communicates with a thin client 24 . the thin client 24 is wirelessly connected to the network 20 via a wireless modem 26 . the second printer 18 includes a document pull module 28 that may communicate with the thin client 24 via the network 20 . for the purposes of the present discussion , a ‘ thin client ’ is any computer or software package whose capabilities are limited to those required for a given implementation or application and that is adapted to communicate via a network with another computer , such as a server , from which files and data are received . in many applications , the thin client 24 will be implemented as low - cost communications module , such as a browser , devoid of compact disk controllers , printer drivers , or other software not required by the present invention . in these applications , the thin client 24 is ‘ thin ’ since it includes only those capabilities and functionality essential to a given application or implementation of the present invention . those skilled in the art will appreciate that the thin client 24 may be implemented as any software or hardware module that can communicate over a network via a modem or other network connection without departing from the scope of the present invention . for example , the thin client 24 may be implemented as a full - featured server or browser complete with plug - ins and other modules that are not required for the purposes of the present invention without departing from the scope thereof . the handheld computer 14 and the second printer 18 are shown for illustrative purposes . the thin client 24 running on the handheld computer 14 is shown in more detail running on the internet appliance 12 . the document pull module 28 running on the second printer 18 is shown in more detail running on the first printer 16 . the user - interface 22 running on the internet appliance 12 may selectively access a document 30 to be printed and may access a printer selector module 40 and a message broadcaster 34 running on the thin client 24 . the thin client 24 also includes a file transfer module 32 that may access memory associated with the document 30 . the file transfer module 32 also communicates with the message broadcaster 34 . the message broadcaster 34 communicates with a message receiver 36 . the message receiver 36 provides output to a printer list 38 , which is accessible by the printer selector 40 . the printer selector 40 is user - configurable via the user - interface 22 . the first printer 16 includes an embedded web server 54 that runs the document pull module 28 . the document pull module 28 includes a message transceiver 42 and a document request generator 44 . the message transceiver 42 is connected to the network 20 and communicates with the document request generator 44 and a master driver 46 running on the first printer 16 . the master printer driver 46 also communicates with the document request generator 44 and a printer controller 48 . the printer controller 48 communicates with a printing system 50 that includes mechanical and electrical components required to provide printed output 52 . in operation , the handheld computer 14 prints a document via the first printer 16 or the second printer 18 . the user sends a print command to the thin client 24 via the user interface 22 . the thin client 24 then broadcasts a printer - querying message via the wireless modem 26 and the network 20 , to the printers 16 and 18 that are connected to the network 20 . the document pull module 28 running on each printer 16 and 18 then broadcasts a printer - availability reply message in response to the printer - querying message . the printer - availability reply message indicates that associated printer 16 or 18 is available to print . the user selects , via the user - interface 22 and / or the thin client 24 , from among the available printers in the printer list 38 that have sent printer - availability reply messages . alternatively , the thin client 24 automatically selects an available printer in response to a predetermined configuration as discussed more fully below . when an available printer has been selected via the handheld computer 14 , a printer - selected message is sent to the selected printer . the associated document pull module 28 then sends a request - for - document message to the thin client 24 to pull the document from the client to print the document . the thin client 24 then transfers the requested document to the selected printer via one of various network file transfer methods , such as http ( hypertext transfer protocol ) post or ftp ( file transfer protocol ) methods . the selected printer then prints the desired document . printing operations implemented via the internet appliance 12 are similar to printing operations implemented via the handheld computer 14 . when a user of the internet appliance 12 decides to print the document 30 , the user activates the message broadcaster 34 of the thin client 24 via the user - interface 22 . the message broadcaster 34 generates the printer - querying message , which is broadcast to the first printer 16 and the second printer 18 . the message receiver is activated 36 in response to an activation signal from the message broadcaster 34 or is always active when the internet appliance 12 is connected to the network 20 . the document pull modules 28 running on the first printer 16 and the second printer 18 respond to the printer - querying message from the internet appliance 12 with a printer - availability reply message . the printer - availability reply message is generated by the document request generator 44 and forwarded to the internet appliance 12 via the message transceiver 42 and the network 20 . the printer - availability reply message includes printer status information , such as the number of printers in the current print queue . the document request generator 44 communicates with the master driver 46 and the printer controller 48 to obtain the printer status information for incorporation into the printer - availability reply message . the message receiver 36 runs on the thin client 24 of the internet appliance 12 and receives printer - availability reply messages from available ( online ) printers 16 and 18 that are connected to the network 20 . the message receiver 36 builds the printer list 38 based on the printer - availability reply messages . the printer list 38 is a list of all printers 16 , 18 responding to the printer - querying message with a printer - availability reply message . the printer selector 40 then selects the most desirable printer from the printer list 38 based on predetermined selection criteria . the predetermined selection criteria and associated selection process may be configured via the user - interface 22 . the predetermined selection criteria may depend on printer availability status , printer type , printer location , and other information , which may be encoded in the printer - availability reply message or obtained via other mechanisms ( not shown ). the other mechanisms may include printer databases having records that may be selectively accessed based on header codes received via the printer - availability reply messages . assume that the first printer 16 is selected as the desired printer via the printer selector 40 and / or the user . software associated with the user - interface 22 then forwards a printer - selected message to the selected printer 16 indicating that the printer 16 has been selected to print a the document 30 . if the selected printer 16 is still able to accommodate the document as determined by the document request generator 44 with reference to printer availability information from the master driver 46 , the document request generator 44 generates a request - for - document message . the request - for - document message is then forwarded to the internet appliance 12 and received by the message receiver 36 before being forwarded to the user - interface 22 via the message broadcaster 34 . the user - interface 22 then sends the document 30 to the file transfer module 32 , which transfers the document 30 to the message transceiver 42 of the document pull module 28 via the message broadcaster 34 and the network 20 . the message transceiver 42 then transfers the document 30 to the master driver 46 , which employs the printer controller 48 and the printing system 50 to print the document 30 , providing the printed output 52 in response thereto . the exact details of the various messages , including the printer - querying message , the printer - availability reply message , and the request - for - document message , are application - specific and may be determined by one skilled in the art without undue experimentation to meet the needs of a given application . for example , in some applications , the printer - availability reply message may include additional information , such as the size of the printer queue , printer capabilities , gps ( global positioning system ) coordinates of the printer , and so on . this additional information may be employed by the printer selector 40 and the user via the user - interface 22 to select the most desirable printer for a given application . those skilled in the art will also appreciate that the relative orientation and connections between various modules may be altered , and more or fewer modules may be included without departing from the scope of the present invention . for example , the embedded web server 54 may be implemented in a device not running on the first printer 16 . alternatively , the embedded web server 54 may be omitted , and the document pull module may run as software installed on the printer controller 48 . fig2 is a diagram of a second exemplary network printing system 60 , which includes components installed on network devices and includes an intermediate printing module running on a server 70 connected to the network . the network devices include the internet appliance 15 , a third printer 62 , and a fourth printer 66 . the printers 62 and 66 include corresponding printer controllers 64 and 68 . the document pull module 28 and a master driver 46 run on the server 70 . in operation , the server 70 acts as an intermediate device to facilitate remote printing to network printers 62 and 66 via devices , such as the internet appliance 15 connected to the network 20 . a user of the internet appliance 15 decides to print the document 30 , activating the message broadcaster 34 . the message broadcaster 34 then broadcasts a printer - querying message to the document pull module 28 running on the server 70 . the document pull module 28 may then poll the various printers 62 and 66 to determine availability status , such as whether the printers 62 and 66 are connected to the network 20 . alternatively , the server 70 may maintain a database ( not shown ) with information about printers that are connected to the network 20 . the database may be manually updated . the information about printers connected to the network 20 is forwarded from the service request generator 44 to the internet appliance 15 in response to the receipt of the printer - querying message by the document pull modu 1 e 18 . the forwarded information is sent to the internet appliance 15 via the message transceiver 42 , which is running on the document pull module 28 of the server 70 . the message receiver 36 of the internet appliance 15 receives the printer - availability reply message ( s ) and forms the printer list 38 based on the printer - availability reply message ( s ). the user and / or printer selector 40 then selects one or more desirable printers from the printer list 38 . subsequently , a printer - selected message is forwarded to the document pull module 28 specifying the selected printer . the document pull module 28 may then check the status of the selected printer via polling or other techniques . the document pull - module then replies with a request - for - document message , requesting the document 30 from the internet appliance 15 . the internet appliance 15 then transfers the document 30 to the document pull module 28 . implementing a document request and pulling the document 30 from the internet appliance 15 helps ensure that only available printers are assigned print jobs . the document 30 is routed to an appropriate driver on the server 70 corresponding to the selected printer . the appropriate driver is implemented via the master driver 46 . the master driver 46 then forwards appropriate control signals and data to the selected printer to print the document . the printer controller 64 or 68 of the selected printer processes the control signals and data corresponding to the document 30 and then prints the document in response thereto . the printer controllers 64 and 68 are responsive to appropriate printer driver commands received from associated printer drivers . the master driver 46 includes appropriate drivers required to print via the printers 62 and 66 . the master driver 46 may include a driver database ( not shown ) that maintains different drivers for different printers connected to the network 20 . the appropriate driver is employed from the master driver 46 to control the selected printer via commands and information sent to the printer controller 64 or 68 of the selected printer via the message transceiver 42 and network 20 . those skilled in the art will appreciate that the internet appliance 15 may print to plural printers simultaneously or in parallel without departing from the scope of the present invention . furthermore , the internet appliance 15 may be replaced with another type of device , such as a desktop computer , without departing from the scope of the present invention . fig3 is a flow diagram of a method 70 according to the teachings of the present invention and adapted for use with the network printing systems 10 and 60 of fig1 and 2 , respectively . with reference to fig1 , 2 , and 3 , in an initial step 72 , a user of a device , such as the handheld computer 14 or the internet appliance 12 wishes to print a document via one or more of the printers 16 , 18 , 62 , and / or 66 . in a subsequent print - command step 74 , the user enters a print command via the user interface 22 . the print command triggers generation of a print request broadcast message called the printer - querying message . the printer - querying message is broadcast over the network 20 directly to the printers 16 and 18 or to associated printer drivers of the printers 62 and 66 , such as the master driver 46 of fig2 . in a subsequent printer - availability step 76 , messaging software , such as the document pull module 28 , determines printer availability in response to the receipt of the printer - querying message and then sends a printer - availability reply message back to the device in response thereto . in a subsequent list - generating step 78 , the thin client 24 generates a list 38 of available printers based on printer - availability reply messages received from printers connected to the network . in a following user - selection step 80 , the user selects a desirable printer from the list 38 of available printers via the user - interface 22 and / or the printer selector module 40 . in a subsequent printer - notification step 82 , the thin client 24 generates and forwards printer - selected message to the selected printer . the printer - selected message indicates to the selected printer that the printer has been selected to print the document 30 . in a subsequent request - for - document step 84 , messaging software 28 running on the selected printer 16 , 18 , 62 , or 66 or running on an intermediate device , such as the server 70 of fig2 , sends a request ( request - for - document message ) to the thin client 24 requesting that the document 30 be transferred to the selected printer 16 , 18 , 62 , or 66 or corresponding driver 46 for printing . in a final printing step 86 , the device 12 or 14 transfers the document 30 to the selected printer 16 , 18 , 62 , or 66 or corresponding driver 46 in response to the receipt of the request - for - document message . the selected printer 16 , 18 , 62 , or 66 then prints the document via the appropriate driver 46 , and the method 70 is complete . while the present invention has been described above with regard to selecting a single printer , in another embodiment a plurality of printers can be selected . in this embodiment , printer notification messages may be sent to one or more of the available printers . fig4 is a ping - pong diagram summarizing messaging occurring between the internet appliance 12 , the document pull module 28 , and printers or master drivers 46 of fig1 and 2 . the document pull module 18 facilitates pulling the document from the internet appliance 12 in response to a printer - querying message broadcast from the internet appliance 12 . the messaging sequence 90 implements a document pull ( instead of a conventional push ) from the internet appliance 12 to the master driver 46 via the document pull module 18 in response to printer - querying and printer - selected messages sent to the document pull module 18 via the internet appliance 12 . only printers or associated printer drivers that are online , i . e ., on and available to print , can pull from the internet appliance 12 . consequently , print jobs are less likely to be placed on a queue or sent to a printer that is offline or not functioning properly . those skilled in the art will appreciate that for some applications , the terms printer driver and printer may be employed interchangeably . thus , the present invention has been described herein with reference to a particular embodiment for a particular application . those having ordinary skill in the art and access to the present teachings will recognize additional modifications , applications , and embodiments within the scope thereof . it is therefore intended by the appended claims to cover any and all such applications , modifications and embodiments within the scope of the present invention .	6
relative placement information generates a structure of the instances and controls the placement of the instances . the resulting annotated netlist is used for physical optimization , during which the placement , routing , and optimization tool preserves the structure . fig1 shows the overall flow for using relative placement . relative placement usually is applied to datapaths and registers , but relative placement can be applied to any cells in a circuit design , controlling the exact relative placement topology of gate - level logic groups and defining the circuit layout . at 110 , a mapped netlist ( a structural interconnection of library cells ) is read . at 140 , a netlist annotator adds annotations of the relative placement constraints to the mapped netlist . the relative placement constraints may have come from an automatic rule creator 120 , which generates automatically created relative placement rules 125 . also , the relative placement constraints may have come from the circuit designer / custom tool 130 , which generates relative placement rules created by the circuit designer 135 . based on the mapped netlist 110 and the relative placement rules , the netlist annotator 140 generates a netlist annotated with relative placement rules 145 . the netlist annotator 140 , which may be gui - based or text - based provides a way create relative placement structures for the placement , routing , and optimization tool 150 . in a gui - based annotator , the relative placement can be specified by drag - and - drop of circuit elements into positions relative to other circuit elements . clicking multiple circuit elements and assigning an identifier such as a color , a pattern , or a name can define multiple groups with respective relative placement rules . with a text - based annotator , relative column and row positions can be specified of instances with respect to each other . these placement constraints create relative placement structures that are preserved during placement and legalization . whether gui - based or text - based , the cells in each structure group are placed as a single entity . the placement , routing , and optimization tool 150 receives the netlist annotated with relative placement rules 145 and generates the placed , routed , and optimized netlist obeying relative placement rules 155 . the optimization includes , for example , orientation optimization . fig2 shows an exemplary process flow of a placement , routing , and optimization tool . at 201 , an annotated netlist is preprocessed for the relative placement annotation . data structures are created to carry relative placement information . at 202 , the sizes of relative placement blocks and aspect ratios are estimated by applying relative placement rules for each relative placement block . any hierarchical relative placement blocks are estimated also . at 204 , each of the estimated relative placement blocks is modeled for coarse placement purposes , for example as a macro with pin locations visible but the internal cells hidden from the coarse placer . at 206 , the relative placement blocks are placed within the context of entire design , including the cells which have the relative placement rules simultaneously along with the cells which do not have relative placement rules . among the relative placement blocks of cells , the blocks are placed one at a time . at 208 , if needed another incremental placement is done for area recovery of sparse relative placement blocks . one block at a time is fixed based on the locations returned by the coarse placer . individual relative placement instances are fixed before such area recovery . at 210 , individual instances of cells are readjusted within each relative placement block , based on new locations determined by the placer according to the optimization constraints . user constraints are respected for each relative placement block . at 212 , the nearest legal locations for all the relative placement cells are found , and the relative placement cells fixed there . any overlaps of relative placement blocks are resolved by checking each of the already fixed blocks and making sure that the moved blocks do not overlap with them . if overlaps occurs , the moved blocks are moved with minimal movement as the cost . at 214 , detailed placement is done for the non - relative placement cells , considering the fact that cells with relative placement are already fixed . at 216 , all relative placement cells are unfixed . if optimization and relative placement constraints are met , then the tool can stop , finish writing out the placed and routed netlist , and exit the placement and optimization process . at 218 , physical optimization is done for all the instances , including relative placement instances , to meet timing or any other user specified goals . this could focus on the most critical objectives such as timing , respecting design rules , congestion , wire length etc . the optimization includes , for example , orientation optimization . at 220 , relative placement constraints are reapplied , and locations readjusted based on optimization results . thus , the relative placement constraints specified in the annotated netlist are preserved . the process then loops back to 212 . the above process can be rearranged , for example by combining , adding , removing , or modifying steps . for example , 212 - 216 can be rearranged , depending on the design , and 208 and 210 can be combined into one step . various embodiments that implement relative placement provide one or more of the following benefits : 1 ) provides a method to maintain structured placement for legacy or intellectual property ( ip ) designs using a placement , routing , and optimization tool . 3 ) for complex designs , a typical design can have many engineers working on it and many blocks . hierarchical relative placement enables placing those blocks together relative to each other more easily . any number of levels of hierarchies are allowed . 4 ) reduces the placement search space in critical areas of the design resulting in greater predictability of qor ( wire length , timing , power ) and congestion . various embodiments that implement relative placement require one or more of the following considerations : 1 ) when the placement , routing , and optimization tool estimates that the size of a relative placement block is not suitable to the given floorplan , the placement , routing , and optimization tool can fail in placement . to maintain relative placement information precisely , there should be enough space for relative placement blocks without overlapping placement obstructions in the design floorplan . 2 ) if the design contains multiheight cells and exact relative placement ( perfect alignment of the cells on one or more sides of the row or column ) is used , the current relative placement implementation might not get perfect alignment in every case . 3 ) there is no limit on the number of cells in a relative placement group . however , if the design has many relative placement groups , at times coarse placement returns overlapping group locations , resulting in misalignment . in these cases , a warning appears after coarse placement . the following is a specific exemplary implementation of the discussed process flow . many of the examples which follow are implemented with a text - based shell . the text - based examples are provided for in an exemplary synopsys ™ design environment for the purposes of illustration . the examples are also applicable to a gui - based environment , in which the text - based commands are replaced or complemented with a mouse - driven interface . 1 . in a design environment that permits a user to decide whether or not to use relative placement , relative placement is enabled . relative placement is enabled by entering “ xg mode ”, performed by entering the shell command : psyn_shell - xg - t & gt ; set physopt_enable_rp_in_xg_mode “ true ” 2 . the gate - level netlist is prepared and read it in to the placement , routing , and optimization tool , using the read_milkyway or read_db command . the netlist annotator annotates the netlist with the relative placement information , and generates a placed netlist containing the data . 4 . preserve the relative placement information in the annotated netlist . use set_size_only to preserve relative placement information for cells that contain it . for example , enter 5 . set the block utilization of the relative placement block . the block utilization is how densely a block is packed . a value of 1 indicates no gap between columns . it could vary between 0 and less than or equal to 1 . enter 8 . analyze the design using the placement , routing , and optimization tool gui . 9 . if the relative placement result is not acceptable , modify the relative placement file and run this procedure again . if the relative placement is acceptable , then perform optimization , by running physopt . the following is a sample script for running a relative placement flow . a design can contain both structured and unstructured items ( leaf cells , keepouts , hierarchical groups ). control of which cells are to be structured is accomplished by including the cells to be structured in a relative placement group . determining which portions of the module need to be structured is beneficial . providing relative placement information for cells that would have been placed better by allowing the placement , routing , and optimization tool to place the cells can produce poor results . some designs are appropriate for structured placement ( for example , datapaths ), whereas others are more appropriate for usual placement by the placement , routing , and optimization tool . relative placement requires a gate - level netlist . the format can be any format read by the placement , routing , and optimization tool . the basic functionality for relative placement is carried out by way of dedicated tcl commands used within the placement , routing , and optimization tool . the commands create groups and add leaf cells , hierarchy , and keepouts to the groups . in addition , a script of annotated information can be generated , edited , and reapplied to the design , and relative placement groups can be removed . in addition to these dedicated commands , physical synthesis commands are available . the relative placement information for an instance is attached to the instance . during optimization , relative placement cells can be optimized or removed . when an instance with relative placement information is removed during optimization , relative placement information attached to the instance is also removed . to prevent relative placement cells from being removed during optimization , apply set 13 size_only to true on leaf cells to preserve relative placement information for cells that contain it . if relative placement cells are upsized or downsized , the relative placement cell alignment is maintained for placement . the placement of relative placement cells is constrained by defining placement bounds . to do this , use the create_bounds command . both soft bounds and hard bounds are supported for relative placement cells and both rectangular bounds and rectilinear bounds are supported . note : in relative placement , only move bounds ( with fixed coordinates ) are supported for relative placement cells . group bounds are not supported . in other embodiments , group bounds are supported in relative placement . specify individual cell names as provided in an add_to_rp_group command with the create_bounds command . for example , enter psyn_shell - xg - t & gt ; create_bounds - coordinates { 100 100 200 200 } u 1 u 2 u 3 u 4 if some cells of a relative placement group are specified to be inside a bound and some cells are not specified to be inside the bound , cells that are not constrained by the bound are placed as loose cells . this can lead to legally correct but possibly poor placement qor . the tool can be directed to ignore relative placement information annotated to the design , for example , when to confirm that relative placement is helpful to qor . to do this , set the variable physopt_ignore_structure to true ( default is false ). setting this variable to true causes the placement , routing , and optimization tool not to do structured placement for any relative placement groups in the design . when the tool is directed to ignore relative placement information , the parts of the relative placement groups are placed as if the group has no relative placement information . relative placement annotation can be removed from an annotated database for one or more relative placement groups . to do this , use the remove_rp_group command . note : when a relative placement group is removed , the memory it occupies is freed to be reused by this same process . however , memory is not returned to the operating system until exit from psyn_shell . to remove the relative placement group named grp_ripple and confirm its removal , enter remove the group to be changed , then create a new group that incorporates the changes . generate a script ( using write_rp_group ) and edit the information in the generated script . a relative placement group is an association of cells , other groups , and keepouts . during placement and legalization , the group structure is preserved and the cells in the group are placed as a single entity . to create a group , use the create_rp_group command . the group is placed as a single entity , as shown in fig3 . in fig3 , floorplan 302 is shown . the group 306 includes cells 310 and obstructions 312 . the group can be moved 308 as a single unit . the floorplan 302 also has ram 304 which is fixed in place . fig4 shows the positions for columns and rows in relative placement data 400 . columns count from column 0 ( the leftmost column ). rows count from row 0 ( the bottom row ). the width of a column is the width of the widest cell in that column . the height of a row is determined by the height of the tallest cell in that row . in fig4 , positions 0 3 ( column 0 , row 3 ) and 4 1 ( column 4 , row 1 ) are not used and therefore are not specified . position 1 2 occupies ( straddles ) columns 1 and 2 in row 2 . position 4 3 in column 4 straddles rows 3 and 4 . straddling is described in “ creating relative placement structures containing multiple column or row positions ”. a new group is empty . to add leaf cells , hierarchy ( other groups ), and keepouts to the group , use the add_to_rp_group command . relative placement groups are persistently stored using the write_milkyway command and read using the read_milkyway command . the create_rp_group command returns a collection handle ( identifier ) to the relative placement groups that are created . if no objects were created , the empty string is returned . to create the group named rp 1 for designa having 1 column and 3 rows , enter a group cannot be renamed directly . to rename a group , remove the group and create a new group that duplicates the removed group but has the new name . alternatively , generate a script ( using write_rp_group ) and edit the name in the generated script . in other embodiments , the group can be renamed directly . to add leaf cells , hierarchy groups , and keepouts to relative placement groups ( created using create_rp_group ), use the add_to_rp_group command . when adding an item to a relative placement group , the following points can apply : the relative placement group in which the item is added must exist . in another embodiment , a default group is created . switches identify whether the item added is a leaf cell (- leaf ), hierarchical group (- hierarchy ), or a keepout (- keepout ). the syntaxes for adding leaf cells , hierarchy groups , and keepouts differ . table 3 provides a quick look up of the options allowed for each syntax . if an item already exists in the group at the given column and row location or if the item to be inserted is already positioned , an error message appears . the command returns a collection handle ( identifier ) to the relative placement groups in which the objects are added . if no objects are created , the empty string is returned . use appropriate options as shown previously in the syntaxes to add items to a relative placement group . the options used depend on the item to be added to the group . table 3 provides a quick look up for the options available for each add_to_rp_group syntax . table 3 provides a quick lookup of the options available for the add_to_rp_group syntaxes . hierarchical relative placement allows relative placement groups to be embedded within other relative placement groups . the embedded groups then are handled similarly to leaf cells . to add hierarchical groups , use the add_to_rp_group command with its - hierarchy or - hierarchy and - instance switches , depending on the type of hierarchical group wanted . hierarchical relative placement simplified expression of relative placement constraints . with hierarchical relative placement , providing relative placement information multiple times is unnecessary for a recurring pattern . various embodiments that implement hierarchical relative placement provide one or more of the following benefits : 1 ) allows organization of relative placement in a manner that is easier to maintain and understand . for example , the relative placement group can bed created to parallel verilog or vhdl organization . 2 ) allows reuse of a repeating placement pattern , for example , an adder . 3 ) can reduce the number of lines of relative placement information to be written . hierarchical relative placement in different ways , depending on whether the relative placement group is used in the same design or in different designs : applies to a relative placement group in the same design as the group in which it is included . an included group is used one time in the same design . applies to a relative placement group that is not from the design in which it is instantiated . an instantiated relative placement group can be used multiple times and in multiple places up to the number of times the design of the group is instantiated in the netlist . the syntaxes for creating the hierarchical group definitions for inclusion and for instantiation are the same except the use of - instance switch for instantiation . to specify that a group is a hierarchically included group , specify hierarchy by using the - hierarchy switch with the add_to_rp_group command . when a group is included in a parent group , it is as if the group is directly embedded within the parent group . an included group can be used in another group of the same design one time . however , the new group that contains the included group can be further included in another group in the same design or instantiated in another group of a different design . see the syntax provided in “ syntax for adding a hierarchical group ” and the options summary provided in table 3 . to include the relative placement group named rp 3 as a hierarchical group for inclusion in group rp 4 , enter the script in the following example defines the input for a hierarchical relative placement definition for inclusion . groups rp 1 , rp 2 , rp 3 , and rp 4 are all defined as being part of design top ( shown in bold ). the contents of groups rp 1 , rp 2 , and rp 3 are treated as leaf cells when they are included in group rp 4 . groups rp 1 , rp 2 , and rp 3 are each defined as having two columns and one row . group rp 4 , in which groups rp 1 , rp 2 , and rp 3 are included ( each group used one time ), is defined as having one column and three rows . each included group is defined as a hierarchical subgroup ( group rp 1 as subgroup rp 1 , group rp 2 as subgroup rp 2 , and group rp 3 as subgroup rp 3 ). group rp 4 can be further included as a hierarchical subgroup in another group in the same design . the construction of the resulting hierarchical relative placement structure is shown in fig5 . groups rp 1 , rp 2 , and rp 3 are from the same design , top_design . they are included in group rp 4 , which can be further included one time in top_design . specify that a group is a hierarchically instantiated group by specifying hierarchy plus an instance name with the add_to_rp_group command . instantiating a group is a useful way to replicate relative placement information across multiple instances of a design and to create relative placement relationships between those instances . an instantiated group can be used multiple times and in multiple places . for example , various embodiments use hierarchy instantiation for one or more of these cases : 1 ) multiple relative placement layouts are to be used for different instances of a design . 2 ) despite one layout , relative placement is to be specified between instances of that layout or between instances and other cells and groups . the syntax for instantiation is the same as the syntax for inclusion but provides the - instance switch in addition to the - hierarchy switch . the - instance switch specifies the hierarchical cell upon which to instantiate the given hierarchical relative placement group . the instance is within the design of the group to which it is added and is an instance of the same design of the group being added hierarchically . when uniquified , instantiated groups are dropped unless they are required for the newly uniquified group ; that is , each instantiation will go to one uniquified design . see the syntax provided in “ syntax for adding a hierarchical group ” and the options summary provided in table 3 . to instantiate the relative placement group named rp 1 using a hierarchical cell instance named i 1 in the relative placement group named rp 2 , enter the script in the example below provides a definition for hierarchical relative placement for instantiation . group rp 1 is in the design pair_design ( shown in bold ) and defines leaf cells u 1 and u 2 as the group . group rp 2 is in the design mid_design ( shown in bold ) and instantiates three instances of group rp 1 from pair_design , named i 1 , i 2 , and i 3 . each instance is defined as a subgroup plus an instance name and each is treated as a leaf cell . instances i 1 , i 2 , and i 3 are hierarchical cells instantiating the design pair_design . groups rp 1 is defined as having two columns and one row and contains leaf cells u 1 and u 2 . group rp 2 , in which group rp 1 is instantiated three times , is defined as having one column and three rows . each instantiated group is defined as a hierarchical subgroup containing a named instance . group rp 2 is treated as a leaf cell , and can be used multiple times if it is further instantiated . the construction of the resulting hierarchical relative placement block is shown in fig6 . group rp 1 belongs to the design pair_design . it is instantiated three times in group rp 2 , which can be further instantiated in different designs . after using ungroup , hierarchical relative placement instantiation is converted to hierarchical relative placement inclusion because the design is flattened and all the groups are now of the same design . instantiation of hierarchical modules no longer exists . relative placement groups affected by an ungroup command are renamed to show the path to the group before flattening followed by a slash (/) and the original group name . if this results in a name collision , a numbered suffix is added to create a unique name . for example , rp 2 rp 1 ( i 3 ) 0 2 becomes rp 2 i 3 / rp 1 0 2 after ungrouping . using the hierarchical block shown in fig6 , the relative placement definition is now as shown in the example below . after ungroup - flatten - all , the resulting ungrouped hierarchical placement block is as shown in fig7 . the uniquify command can change each instantiation of hierarchical relative placement structure . hard keepouts can be specified within relative placement blocks . to do this , use the add_to_rp_group command with its - keepout switch . when defining keepouts , the one or more of the following points can apply : keepouts are not objects . a name is to be provided for reference . in other embodiments , object keepouts are created . the unit of width for a keepout is the number of placement sites . if the width is not specified , the default width is the width of the widest cell in that column . the unit of height for a keepout is one row . if the height is not specified , the default height is the height of the tallest cell in that row . see the syntax provided in “ syntax for adding a keepout ” and the options summary provided in table 3 . to create the hard keepout named gap 1 shown in fig8 , enter fig8 shows a relative placement block containing keepouts 800 ( named gap 1 . . . gap 5 in this example ). the input to define the keepouts 800 is provided in the example below , following the figure . the script in the example below provides the definition for the relative placement block containing keepouts shown in fig8 . a cell can occupy multiple column positions or multiple row positions , which is known as straddling . to define straddling , use the inclusion hierarchical relative placement syntax ( see “ defining hierarchical groups for inclusion ”). when a group is an included group , it can be used once in the design in which it is defined . however , the new group in which it is included can be included or instantiated in another group . fig9 shows a relative placement group in which cells straddle columns ( instance u 2 901 ) and rows ( instance u 7 902 ). the script in the example below provides the definition for the relative placement block shown in fig9 . to construct the hierarchy needed for straddling , the leaf cell groups are defined for rp 1 , rp 2 ( the cell that straddles columns 0 and 1 ), and rp 3 , then define group rp 4 to contain groups rp 1 , rp 2 , and rp 3 . finally , rp 5 is defined to contain group rp 4 and leaf cell u 7 ( the cell that straddles rows 0 , 1 , and 2 ). fig1 shows the construction of the hierarchy defined in the example above . by default , the placement , routing , and optimization tool does orientation optimization ( automatic orientation ) for cells in relative placement groups but orientation can be specified for cells on a per - cell basis , use a mix of user - specified orientation and automatic orientation , or disable orientation on cells in relative placement groups . you cannot specify orientation for a group . in some embodiments , specifying orientation for a group specifies that orientation for all cells of the group . if an orientation is not specified for a cell , by default , the tool uses either orientation optimization or the default orientation for the cell . orientation optimization can flip a cell from its default orientation to improve wire length . to specify orientation for leaf cells , use the add_to_rp_group command with its - orientation switch and the syntax for defining a leaf cell . in addition , direct the placement , routing , and optimization tool is to be directed regarding orientation optimization . when specifying orientation , one or more of the following points can apply : if an orientation that is not valid is specified , that orientation is ignored and a valid orientation is used . specifying both pin alignment and orientation in the same invocation might be contradictory . although every attempt is made to honor such a request , honoring both might not be possible . in this case , the orientation specification takes precedence over the pin alignment specification . if orientation is not specified for a cell and automatic orientation is done , pin alignment is honored . orientation optimization can flip a cell to improve relative placement wire length , thereby improving qor for the design . orientation optimization is enabled by default . the physopt_rp_enable_orient_opt variable controls whether orientation optimization is enabled ( default true ). orientation optimization is enabled or disabled according to whether to specify the orientation for some cells or disable orientation optimization . orientation can be specified for some cells in a group and automatic orientation allowed for the other cells . to do this , ensure that the physopt_rp_enable_orient_opt variable is set to true ( the default ). this ensures that orientations specified are respected and automatic orientation is done for the other cells . orientation optimization can be disabled by setting physopt_rp_enable_orient_opt to false ( default is true ), for example , when pin alignment is to have precedence . when this variable is set to false , the specified orientation is respected if the orientation is valid . if no user - specified orientation exists , a default valid orientation is chosen . both orientation and pin alignment can be specified in the same invocation but doing this might be contradictory . when used with pin alignment , in various embodiments the priorities for orientation are as follows , in this order : if orientation is not specified for a cell and orientation optimization is done , pin alignment is honored . fig1 shows orientation optimization used with pin alignment , in particular pin a 1100 . in such a case , both orientation and pin alignment are honored . ( not all leaf cells listed in the example that follows the figure are shown in the figure .) the example below provides the definition for the relative placement shown in fig1 . specified relative placement groups can be written to a named file , creating a tcl - format script for recreating relative placement groups and their items on the same design . to do this , use the write_rp_group command . the command returns a collection handle ( identifier ) of relative placement groups written out . if no objects were written , the empty string is returned . to save all the relative placement groups to disk , remove the information columns can be aligned by pins instead of by the lower - left corner ( the default ). this capability increases the probability of straight routes and can result in less congestion , lower power , and lower routing resources by eliminating vias . to align a group by pins , use the create_rp_group command with its - pin_align_name switch . when aligning by pins , one or more of the following points can apply : when specifing a pin name , the tool determines the location for that pin in cells in the column , then aligns the column based on the pin locations . if cells in a column do not have the pin specified , the column is aligned as follows : if some cells in a column do not have the pins specified , those cells are aligned with a default position ( e . g ., the lower - left corner ) and an information message appears . if no cells in a column have the pins specified , the cells are aligned with a default position ( e . g ., the lower - left corner ) and a warning appears . both pin alignment and orientation can be specified in the same invocation but doing this might be contradictory . although every attempt is made to honor such a request , honoring both might not be possible . in this case , the orientation specification takes precedence over the pin alignment specification . fig1 shows a relative placement group aligned by pins . the script in the example below defines the relative placement group shown in fig1 , which is aligned by pin a 1201 . a column can be aligned within a placement group by a specified pin and align cells within the column by a different pin as shown in fig1 , with pin a 1301 and pin b 1302 . the alignment pin name specified for particular cells in the column overrides the alignment pin name specified for the group . a set of cells can be specified to align over specified pins . for example , pins a and b can be aligned in a group by specifying a different pin alignment name for some cells . the script in the example below defines the relative placement group shown in fig1 . in the example , the group misc 1 is aligned by pin a and instances i 5 and i 6 within the group are aligned by pin b , overriding the group pin alignment name a for those instances . example definition to align a group and leaf cells by pins fig1 shows a relative placement block that contains a group aligned by pins , in particular pin clk 1401 — the column named bank 1 ( col 0 ). it is included in the group named final . group final can also be used further for instantiation or inclusion in another group . the script in the example below provides the definition for the relative placement block shown in fig1 . example definition for hierarchical relative placement block with column aligned by pins a single relative placement block can be anchored at a location specified . anchoring allows controlled placement of the relative placement block with respect to other relative placement blocks , macros , or to the edges and origin of the core area . to anchor a relative placement group , use the create_rp_group command with its - x_offset and - y_offset switches . when specifying an anchor point , one or more of the following points can apply : provide anchor points for top level groups . anchor points are allowed at the top level . both the x - and y - coordinates or either the x - or y - coordinate can be specified . specifying one coordinate as fixed allows the unspecified coordinate to slide . the offset is an integer , in microns , relative to the chip &# 39 ; s origin . if an anchor point outside the design boundary is specified , relative placement alignment for the block fails , a warning appears , and the cells are clustered inside the boundary . if an anchor point is specified for a group that is not a top - level group or that causes placement that is not valid , a warning appears and relative placement continues . fig1 shows a relative placement block anchored at both the x - coordinate and the y - coordinate . the script in the example below provides the definition for anchoring relative placement block misc 1 in block 1 at both x - coordinate 100 and y - coordinate 100 . ( in both the figure and the example , not all rows are shown .) fig1 shows 12 relative placement blocks aligned and anchored vertically at four coordinates . blocks 1 , 2 , and 3 1601 have - x_offset 100 . blocks 4 , 5 , and 6 1602 have - x_offset 200 . blocks 7 , 8 , and 9 1603 have - x_offset 300 . blocks 10 , 11 , and 12 1604 have - x_offset 400 . the script in the example below defines the locations of the 12 vertically aligned and anchored relative placement blocks shown in fig1 . for brevity , not every group is listed in the example . using compression to remove empty space in a relative placement group by default , construction for relative placement aligns cells from their bottom - left corner . compression removes empty space in rows to create a more compact structure . the compressed columns are no longer aligned and utilization is higher in the area of the compressed cells . if compression is needed , use hierarchical relative placement to construct the pattern , using the syntax for hierarchical inclusion . fig1 shows the same cells aligned without compression 1701 and with compression 1702 . the cells are bottom - left aligned . alternatively , compression can be accomplished by using bit - stack placement . set the variable physopt_bit_stacked_placement to true ( the default is false ). setting this variable to true causes the empty space to be removed , compressing the group as shown in fig1 . the columns are no longer aligned and utilization is higher . during placement , relative placement groups can avoid placement keepouts ( obstructions ) that are defined in the pdef file or created by a the placement , routing , and optimization tool keepout command ( create_placement_keepout , create_wiring_keepout ). a relative placement group can be broken into pieces that straddle obstructions . fig1 shows the placement of relative placement cells in a design containing keepouts 1801 that were either defined in the pdef file or created by a the placement , routing , and optimization tool keepout command . rows 0 and 2 and column 5 are placed to avoid the keepouts but relative placement alignment is maintained . use the following transformations to convert existing rp_reader text files to tcl syntax to use within the placement , routing , and optimization tool : insert the - design switch before the design name when creating a relative placement group insert the - column and - row switches in front of those values insert the - width and - height switches in front of those values alternatively , the following command can be used that runs a script to do the conversion : the following tables show the rp_reader file format elements for groups , leaf cells , hierarchy groups , and keepouts . fig1 is a simplified block diagram of a computer system 1910 suitable for use with embodiments of the technology . computer system 1910 typically includes at least one processor 1914 which communicates with a number of peripheral devices via bus subsystem 1912 . these peripheral devices may include a storage subsystem 1924 , comprising a memory subsystem 1926 and a file storage subsystem 1928 , user interface input devices 1922 , user interface output devices 1920 , and a network interface subsystem 1916 . the input and output devices allow user interaction with computer system 1910 . network interface subsystem 1916 provides an interface to outside networks , including an interface to communication network 1918 , and is coupled via communication network 1918 to corresponding interface devices in other computer systems . communication network 1918 may comprise many interconnected computer systems and communication links . these communication links may be wireline links , optical links , wireless links , or any other mechanisms for communication of information . while in one embodiment , communication network 1918 is the internet , in other embodiments , communication network 1918 may be any suitable computer network . user interface input devices 1922 may include a keyboard , pointing devices such as a mouse , trackball , touchpad , or graphics tablet , a scanner , a touchscreen incorporated into the display , audio input devices such as voice recognition systems , microphones , and other types of input devices . in general , use of the term “ input device ” is intended to include all possible types of devices and ways to input information into computer system 1910 or onto computer network 1918 . user interface output devices 1920 may include a display subsystem , a printer , a fax machine , or non - visual displays such as audio output devices . the display subsystem may include a cathode ray tube ( crt ), a flat - panel device such as a liquid crystal display ( lcd ), a projection device , or some other mechanism for creating a visible image . the display subsystem may also provide non - visual display such as via audio output devices . in general , use of the term “ output device ” is intended to include all possible types of devices and ways to output information from computer system 1910 to the user or to another machine or computer system . storage subsystem 1924 stores the basic programming and data constructs that provide the functionality of certain embodiments . for example , the various modules implementing the functionality of certain embodiments may be stored in storage subsystem 1924 . these software modules are generally executed by processor 1914 . memory subsystem 1926 typically includes a number of memories including a main random access memory ( ram ) 1930 for storage of instructions and data during program execution and a read only memory ( rom ) 1932 in which fixed instructions are stored . file storage subsystem 1928 provides persistent storage for program and data files , and may include a hard disk drive , a floppy disk drive along with associated removable media , a cd - rom drive , an optical drive , or removable media cartridges . the databases and modules implementing the functionality of certain embodiments may be stored by file storage subsystem 1928 . bus subsystem 1912 provides a mechanism for letting the various components and subsystems of computer system 1910 communicate with each other as intended . although bus subsystem 1912 is shown schematically as a single bus , alternative embodiments of the bus subsystem may use multiple busses . computer readable medium 1940 can be a medium associated with file storage subsystem 1928 , and / or with network interface 1916 . the computer readable medium can be a hard disk , a floppy disk , a cd - rom , an optical medium , removable media cartridge , or electromagnetic wave . the computer readable medium 1940 is shown storing a circuit design 1980 created with the described technology . also shown is a circuit 1990 created with the described technology . computer system 1910 itself can be of varying types including a personal computer , a portable computer , a workstation , a computer terminal , a network computer , a television , a mainframe , or any other data processing system or user device . due to the ever - changing nature of computers and networks , the description of computer system 1910 depicted in fig1 is intended only as a specific example for purposes of illustrating the preferred embodiments . many other configurations of computer system 1910 are possible having more or less components than the computer system depicted in fig1 . relative placement rules can be generated the rtl - level . rp takes advantage of inherent structure at the rtl - level of behavioral description , in addition to at the netlist cell level . when relative placement rules can be generated at the rtl - level , the rp constraints are not required to be specific to the netlist , as the rp constraints are not required to be tied to the instance names of the cells in the netlist . thus , every time a new netlist is synthesized , and the netlist has different instance names from a previously synthesized netlist despite functionally identical designs , the rp constraints are not invalidated and need not be re - written to reference new cell instance names . this process is easily repeatable . rp constraints at the rtl - level are portable even when a new netlist is created through additional synthesis . when relative placement rules can be generated at the rtl - level , then corresponding rp constraints at the cell instance level do not have to be written . this saves time , because writing rp constraints at the cell instance level is a very detailed and tedious task . this technology focuses on rp specification on high level rtl constructs and subsequent automatic cell level rp generation from the specification . it frees the user from writing the cell level rp constraints and rewriting them when the design is re - synthesized . the solution also has the full implementation flow support from rtl synthesis to place and route . in one example design flow , an rtl hardware description is processed by a synthesis tool such as synopsys design compiler into a netlist . the synthesis tool automatically creates rtl - level rp rules . when the synthesis tool creates the netlist , the corresponding netlist - level rp rules are automatically created based on the rtl - level rp rules . a place and route and optimization tool such as synopsys ic compiler then generates the placed , routed , and optimized design from the netlist and the netlist - level rp rules . generated netlist - level rp rules are automatically updated reflecting name changes on composing cells when design hierarchy is being ungrouped , uniquified , change_named or change_linked . the rp constraints are propagated to synthesis and place and route tools such as dct and icc . the application of automatic relative placement to clock trees helps to prevent overdesign from adding too many levels of buffers to the clock network , and helps to prevent oversizing the drivers of the buffers . because overdesign is reduced , the clock tree can handle higher fanouts from the clock drivers for relative placement . fig2 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process of the placement , routing , and optimization tool with clock tree synthesis clustering being performed during placement . the process flow of fig2 is similar to the process of fig2 , and adds clock tree synthesis clustering during placement . in 2002 , coarse placement is performed on the netlist . in 2004 , during placement , clock tree synthesis is applied to cluster leaf - level clock flip - flops . in 2006 , during placement , relative placement groups are automatically defined based on the results from the clock tree synthesis clustering of leaf - level clock flip - flops . there are four cases shown — the four combinations of netlists with and integrated clock gating , and clock tree buffers added or not added . in 2006 a , the netlist is without integrated clock gating , and buffers are added before each of the relative placement groups . clock buffers amplify clock signals degraded by interconnect impedance , and isolate clock nets from upstream load impedance of the clock tree . because buffers are added , the nets are broken between the clock and the relative placement groups . in 2006 b , the netlist is without integrated clock gating , and buffers are not added before each of the relative placement groups . because buffers are not added , the nets are not broken between the clock and the relative placement groups . in 2006 c , the netlist is with integrated clock gating , and integrated clock gating is added in each of the relative placement groups . in 2006 d , the netlist is with integrated clock gating , and integrated clock gating is not added in each of the relative placement groups , such that the integrated clock gating is freely movable by the placer . in 2009 , incremental placement of relative placement blocks , and detailed placement of non - relative placement cells , is performed . in 2018 , physical optimization of cells is performed . in 2020 , relative placement constraints are applied . in 2030 , clock tree synthesis is applied to build the complete clock tree ( s ). fig2 is a flow diagram illustrating another exemplary process of the placement , routing , and optimization tool with clock tree synthesis clustering being performed during placement . in 2101 , the annotated netlist is preprocessed for relative placement annotation . data structures are created to carry relative placement information . in 2102 , clock drivers such as integrated clock gating are scanned in the netlist ( or user input received for a given clock net , clock pin , or clock name ), etc ., and clock sinks for a given clock object ( integrated clock gating , clock pin , clock name , clock pin , etc .) are collected for post - initial placement . in 2104 , user clock tree synthesis constraints are read in , such as clock tree references . clock tree constraints are specified early for relative placement , rather than waiting for post - placement full clock tree synthesis . clock tree constraints are listed as follows , with a description of constraint . none , one , or more of the clock tree constraints can be in effect . the scope of each constraint can be global or per clock . various constraints specify : clock trees that the options apply to ; maximum capacitance constraint ; maximum fanout constraint ; maximum transition time constraint ; maximum skew goal ; minimum insertion delay goal ; maximum number of clock tree levels ; preferred layers for clock tree routing ; nondefault routing rule used for clock tree routing ; whether default routing rules are used for the clock tree levels closest to the clock sink ; whether to enable / disable boundary cell insertion ; whether to cluster based on minimum wire length ; whether to cluster based on on - chip variation ; whether to enable / disable logic - level balancing ; whether to enable / disable buffer relocation during optimization ; whether to enable / disable buffer sizing during optimization ; whether to enable / disable delay insertion during optimization ; whether to enable / disable gate relocation during optimization ; whether to enable / disable gate sizing during optimization ; the clock configuration file to read ; and the name of the clock configuration file that is written after clock tree synthesis . in 2106 , clock tree synthesis clustering is performed . prior to clustering , pre - existing relative placement cells , invalid relative placement objects etc . are filtered out of list of flip - flops to be clustered . responsive to calling the compile clock tree clustering algorithm , the clock tree synthesis clusters are returned . multiple cluster handling includes checking all elements in a cluster to verify that they belong to the same hierarchy . if all elements do not belong to the same hierarchy , then a relative placement group is not created from the cluster . in 2108 , clusters from the clock tree synthesis clustering are processed , and relative placement groups are formed form the clusters ; geometric compression is performed ; and the shapes of relative placement groups is automatically determined . example geometric compression details follow . existing rp elements are filtered from collection . sorting is performed based on x location of each cell ( alternatively , y location ). the number of rows and columns is automatically determined based on the total number of elements . an example of this determination follows : maxrows = f ( rpshape , userinput ); formfactor = f ( macflops , maxrows ); numrows = f ( formfactor , numflops ); numcols = f ( numflops , clockdriver , numrows ). finally , elements are sorted within each column based on y location of each cell ( alternatively , x location ). in 2110 , integrated clock gating is added , or clock drivers are added to the clusters from clock tree synthesis clustering . nets are broken as needed to make such additions of the integrated clock gating and the clock drivers . for example , if a buffer needs to be inserted , then the net is broken , the buffer is created , and the buffer is connected . in another example , clock drivers of correct size are chosen and inserted . in 2112 , relative placement options are set for each relative placement group . examples of relative placement options are bottom left alignment ( alternatively bottom right , top right , top left ), pin alignment ( such as clock pin ), orientation ( such as to minimize wire crossing within a relative placement group ), x offset and / or y offset ( in case of anchored locations , anchor of rp group derived based on initial locations of flip - flops and icg , and center of gravity used to determine x and / or y offsets ), routing and optimization options , move values for rp groups ( how much a group can move while doing overlap removal , etc . in 2114 , the coarse placement is refined . in the next pass of coarse placement , the relative placement groups are placed . relative placement groups are legalized respecting all automatically generated or manually specified relative placement constraints . in 2116 , optimization occurs . in 2118 , size is fixed / marked for the relative placement groups for clock tree synthesis . in 2120 , the full clock tree synthesis is performed . while the present invention is disclosed by reference to the embodiments and examples detailed above , it is to be understood that these examples are intended in an illustrative rather than in a limiting sense . it is contemplated that modifications and combinations will readily occur to those skilled in the art , which modifications and combinations will be within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the following claims .	6
in vitro testing is an absolutely essential part of the process of discovering new compounds for use in fighting the ravages of cancer . without screening , the process of obtaining new candidate drugs would be even more complex and expensive . however , to understand this process , and recognize the outstanding results demonstrated by some of the compositions disclosed herein , one must understand the procedures , the nomenclature , and the data analysis involved . a brief description of the appropriate terminology follows : ed 50 ( p388 ) and gi 50 ( htcl ) identify the drug dose which reduces the percent tumor / cell growth to 50 %. there is no mathematical difference between ed 50 and gi 50 , both of which are calculated using the same formula . the only difference is historical usage . tgi , means &# 34 ; total growth inhibition &# 34 ;, and identifies the drug dose needed to yield zero percent growth , i . e . there are just as many cells at the end of the experiment as were present at the beginning . whether just as many cells were killed as were produced ( steady state ), or no growth occurred ( total inhibition ) cannot be distinguished . lc 50 , means &# 34 ; lethal concentration 50 %&# 34 ;, and identifies the drug concentration which reduces to one - half of the cells originally present at the beginning of the experiment . each drug is tested at five ( 5 ) doses : 100 - 10 - 1 - 0 . 1 - 0 . 01 -- μg / ml . percent growths are calculated for each dose . the two ( or three ) doses with growth values above , below , ( or near to ) 50 % growth are used to calculate the ed 50 / gi 50 values using a linear regression computation . if no dose yields a growth value under 50 %, the results are expressed as : ed 50 & gt ;( highest dose ). if no dose yields growth higher than 50 % growth , then ed 50 & lt ;( lowest dose ). similar calculations are performed for the tgi at 0 % growth , and at - 50 % growth for the lc 50 . at the start of each experiment , cells from the in vitro cell cultures are inoculated into the appropriate tubes or microtiter plates . one set of control tubes / plates is immediately counted to determine the number of cells at the start of the experiment . this is the &# 34 ; baseline count &# 34 ;, or &# 34 ; tzero reading &# 34 ;. at the end of the experiment ( 48 hrs later ), a second set of control tubes / plates is analyzed to determine the &# 34 ; control growth &# 34 ; value . the growth ( or death ) of cells relative to the initial quantity of cells is used to define the &# 34 ; percent of growth .&# 34 ; ______________________________________ example : baseline count 20 control count 200 ( 10 - fold growth ) ______________________________________ 100 % growth = control growth 100 % growth = 200 50 % growth = tzero + 50 % growth = 110 ## str4 ## 0 % growth = tzero 0 % growth = 20 - 50 % growth = tzero / 2 - 50 % growth = 10______________________________________ now that the relevant definitions and data analysis techniques have been disclosed , this disclosure can now turn to the particular compounds disclosed herein . the synthesis of potentially useful peptides presents one of the most essential and promising sources for new types of anticancer and immunosuppressant drugs . the dolastatins , an unprecedented series of linear and cyclic antineoplastic and / or cytostatic peptides isolated from indian ocean sea hare dolabella auricularia represent excellent leads for synthetic modification . the very productive sea hare dolabella auricularia has produced a number of structurally distinct peptides with excellent antineoplastic activity . presently dolastatin 10 , a linear pentapeptide , represents the most important member and is a potentially useful antineoplastic agent . dolastatin 10 shows one of the best antineoplastic activity profiles against various cancer screens presently known . recently the total synthesis and absolute configuration of this structurally unique and biologically active peptide was discovered . this compound has been tested in vivo and demonstrated significant activity , as shown below . ______________________________________experimental anticancer activity of dolastatin 10 inmurine in vivo systems , t / c ( μg / kg ) ______________________________________ b16 melanomap388 lymphocytic 238 and 40 % cures ( 11 . 11 ) leukemia 182 ( 6 . 67 ) toxic ( 13 . 0 ) 205 ( 4 . 0 ) and 17 % cures ( 6 . 5 ) 171 ( 3 . 4 ) and 17 % cures ( 3 . 25 ) 142 ( 1 . 44 ) 137 ( 1 . 63 ) m5076 ovary sarcomal1210 lymphocytic toxic ( 26 ) leukemia 166 ( 13 ) 152 ( 13 ) 142 ( 6 . 5 ) 135 ( 6 . 5 ) 151 ( 3 . 25 ) 139 ( 3 . 25 ) lox human melanoma xenograph120 ( 1 . 63 ) ( nude mouse ) toxic ( 52 ) 301 and 67 % cures ( 26 ) 301 and 50 % cures ( 13 ) 206 and 33 % cures ( 6 . 5 ) 170 and 17 % cures ( 3 . 25 ) lox in separate experiments 340 and 50 % cures ( 43 ) 181 and 33 % cures ( 26 ) 192 ( 15 ) 138 and 17 % cures ( 9 . 0 ) human mammary xenograph nude mouse toxic ( 26 ) 137 ( 13 ) 178 ( 6 . 25 ) ovcar - 3 human ovary xenograph nude mouse 300 ( 40 ) mx - 1 human mammaryxenograft ( tumor regression ) 14 ( 52 ) 50 ( 26 ) 61 ( 13 ) 69 ( 6 . 25 ) ______________________________________ t / c = test control , both bearing tumor , expressed in time of survival . t / c - 100 = % life extension . dolastatin 10 has also been tested against a minipanel from the nci primary screen . these results appear below , showing the amount of dolastatin 10 required to attain gi 50 in μg / ml , against the cell lines set forth below . ## equ1 ## similarly , compounds 12 , 14 , 16a , 16b and 16c of the present invention have also been tested against an nci in vitro mini panel . for each of six cell lines , gi 50 , tgi , and lc 50 amounts were also calculated for each of the compounds . each compound was also tested against the ps - 388 cell line and for this test an ed 50 was calculated . the protocols followed , for the nci minipanel are , except for the number of cell lines , those established by m . r . boyd ph . d ., and well known to those of ordinary skill in the art . the procedure followed for the test against ps - 388 leukemia is the same that was followed in the superseded nci p - 388 screening test , which is also well known to those having ordinary skill in the art . table 1__________________________________________________________________________the human cancer cell - line and p - 388 mouse - leukemia data for thecompounds 12 and 14 . cell type cell line 12 14__________________________________________________________________________gi - 50 ( μg / ml ) ovarian ovcar - 3 0 . 0000000091 0 . 000067 cns sf - 295 0 . 000000025 0 . 00025 renal a498 0 . 000000058 0 . 00027 lung - nsc nci - h460 0 . 0000000058 0 . 00012 colon km20l2 0 . 0000000072 0 . 000034 melanoma sk - mel - 5 0 . 0000000048 0 . 000044tgi ( μg / ml ) ovarian ovcar - 3 0 . 000000060 0 . 00067 cns sf - 295 0 . 00000025 & gt ; 1 renal a498 0 . 017 0 . 035 lung - nsc nci - h460 0 . 000000065 0 . 00013 colon km20l2 0 . 0000001 0 . 0013 melanoma sk - mel - 5 0 . 00000015 0 . 022lc - 50 ( μg / ml ) ovarian ovcar - 3 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1 cns sf - 295 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1 renal a498 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1 lung - nsc nci - h460 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1 colon km20l2 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1 melanoma sk - mel - 5 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1ed - 50 ( μg / ml ) mouse leukemia ps - 388 0 . 0000248 0 . 00032__________________________________________________________________________ table 2__________________________________________________________________________the human cancer cell - line and p - 388 mouse - leukemia datafor the compounds 16a - c . cell type cell line 16a 16b 16c__________________________________________________________________________gi - 50 ( μg / ml ) ovarian ovcar - 3 0 . 00052 0 . 0031 0 . 0005 cns sf - 295 0 . 00033 0 . 0054 0 . 0011 renal a498 & lt ; 0 . 0001 0 . 025 0 . 0019 lung - nsc nci - h460 0 . 00034 0 . 0042 0 . 00071 colon km20l2 0 . 00033 0 . 0017 0 . 00092 melanoma sk - nw - 5 0 . 00066 0 . 0027 0 . 00058tgi ( μg / ml ) ovarian ovcar - 3 0 . 0011 0 . 04 0 . 0039 cns sf - 295 0 . 021 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 0 . 01 renal a498 0 . 18 0 . 55 & gt ; 0 . 01 lung - nsc ncl - h460 0 . 0011 0 . 058 0 . 0051 colon km20l2 0 . 013 0 . 13 0 . 0066 melanoma sk - nw - 5 0 . 031 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 0 . 01lc - 50 ( μg / ml ) ovarian ovcar - 3 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 0 . 01 cns sf - 295 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 0 . 01 renal a498 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 0 . 01 lung - nsc nci - h460 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 0 . 01 colon km20l2 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 0 . 01 melanoma sk - nm - 5 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 1 & gt ; 0 . 01ed - 50 ( μg / ml ) mouse leukemia ps - 388 0 . 021 0 . 029 0 . 00227__________________________________________________________________________ in the process of synthesizing the compounds disclosed in this application , certain general procedures are followed . these general procedures are as set forth below . the synthesis of n - z - ile - dil - obu t ( 3 ) was accomplished as follows : to a solution of the hydrochloride salt of dolaisoleuine t - butyl ester ( 2 , 1 mm ) and n - z -( l )- isoleucine ( 1 , 1 . 1 mm ) in dry dichloromethane ( 10 ml ), cooled to ice - bath temperature ( 0 °- 5 ° c .) was added diisopropylethylamine ( 3 mm ) followed by brop ( 2 mm ) and the resulting solution was stirred at the same temperature for 2 hours . the solvents were removed under reduced pressure and the residue was chromatographed on a silica gel column using 1 : 3 acetone - hexane as the solvent to obtain the required dipeptide as an oily substance ( 3 , 40 %); r f 0 . 34 ( 1 : 4 acetone - hexane );[ α ] d 25 - 7 . 5 ° ( c 1 . 19 , chcl 3 ); ir ( neat ): 3393 , 3374 , 3295 , 2967 , 2934 , 2878 , 1724 , 1638 , 1528 , 1501 , 1456 , 1412 , 1383 , 1368 , 1296 , 1250 , 1229 , 1153 , 1099 , 1038 , 1028 , 980 , 959 , 845 , 777 , 739 , 698 and 619 cm - 1 ; 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 300 mhz ): 7 . 25 ( m , 5h , arh ), 5 . 37 ( d , j = 9 . 5 hz , 1h , nh ), 4 . 99 ( s , 2h , arch 2 ), 4 . 60 ( m , 1h , dil n -- ch ), 4 . 43 ( dd , j = 6 . 8 and 9 . 5 hz , 1h , ile c a h ) , 3 . 79 ( m , 1h , ch -- ome ), 3 . 24 ( s , 3 h , ome ), 2 . 34 ( brd , j = 15 . 5 hz , 1h , hch -- co ), 2 . 20 ( dd , j = 9 . 3 and 15 . 5 hz , 1h , hch -- co ), 1 . 50 - 0 . 9 ( m , 6h , 2 × ch 2 , 2 × ch ), 1 . 35 ( s , 9h , t - bu ), 0 . 88 ( d , j = 8 . 1 hz , 3h , ch -- ch 3 ), 0 . 86 ( d , j = 7 . 2 hz , 3h , ch -- ch 3 ), 0 . 78 ( t , j = 7 . 4 hz , 3h , ch 2 -- ch 3 ) and 0 . 73 ( t , j = 7 . 6 hz , 3h , ch 2 -- ch 3 ); eims ( m / z ): 506 ( m . sup . + , 0 . 1 ), 433 ( 0 . 8 ), 393 ( 0 . 7 ), 347 ( 12 ), 279 ( 2 ), 276 ( 3 ), 248 ( 1 ), 239 ( 2 ), 236 ( 1 ), 230 ( 1 ), 220 ( 6 ), 190 ( 4 ), 186 ( 6 ), 177 ( 3 ), 176 ( 18 ), 172 ( 3 ), 171 ( 1 ), 155 ( 2 ), 154 ( 6 ), 146 ( 9 ), 143 ( 3 ), 141 ( 1 ), 130 ( 1 ), 128 ( 4 ), 108 ( 4 ), 107 ( 4 ), 103 ( 6 ), 101 ( 10 ), 100 ( 100 ), 99 ( 2 ), 98 ( 2 ), 97 ( 1 ), 96 ( 1 ), 95 ( 1 ), 92 ( 9 ), 91 ( 78 ) and 57 ( 18 %). the synthesis of dov - ile - dil - obu t ( 5 ) was accomplished as follows : a solution of z - ile - dil - obu t ( 3 , 0 . 2 mm ) was dissolved in anhydrous methanol ( 2 ml ) and cyclohexene ( 2 ml ) was added in an argon atmosphere . to the solution was added 10 % pd - c ( 0 . 05g ) and the mixture was heated at reflux for 10 - 15 minutes . the catalyst was removed by filtering through a layer of celite , the solvent removed under reduced pressure , and the residue dried in high vacuum for 2 hours . to a solution of the above free base and n , n - dimethyl - ( l )- valine ( 4 , 0 . 2 mm ) in dry dichloromethane ( 2 ml ) was added triethylamine ( 0 . 8 mm ) followed by decp ( 0 . 22 mm ) at 0 °- 5 ° c . under argon atmosphere . after stirring at the same temperature for 2 hours , the solvent was removed and the residue chromatographed on a silica gel column with 1 : 3 acetone - hexane as solvent to give the required tripeptide t - butyl ester as a colorless solid ( 5 , 65 %); m . p . 64 °- 65 ° c . ; r f 0 . 27 ( 1 : 4 acetone - hexane ); [ α ] d 25 - 40 ° ( c 0 . 12 , chcl 3 ); ir ( thin film ): 3302 , 2967 , 2934 , 2878 , 1732 , 1661 , 1622 , 1526 , 1485 , 1462 , 1454 , 1416 , 1383 , 1368 , 1300 , 1283 , 1258 , 1200 , 1153 , 1101 , 1037 and 619 cm - 1 ; 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 300 mhz ): 6 . 78 ( d , j = 8 . 7 hz , 1h , nh ), 4 . 79 ( dd , j = 7 . 2 and 9 . 3 hz , 1h , ile c . sup . a -- h ), 4 . 7 ( m , 1h , dil chn ), 3 . 86 ( m , 1h , ch -- ome ), 3 . 33 ( s , 3h , ome ), 2 . 99 ( s , 3h , dil n -- me ), 2 . 2 - 2 . 5 ( m , 2h , ch 2 -- co ), 2 . 21 ( s , 6h , nme 2 ), 2 . 05 ( m , 1h , dov c a -- h ), 1 . 2 - 1 . 8 ( m , 7h , 2 × ch 2 , 3 × ch ), 1 . 43 , 1 . 54 ( s , 9h , t - bu ) and 0 . 75 - 0 . 99 ( m , 18h , 6 × ch 3 ); eims ( m / z ): 499 ( m + , 0 . 3 ), 456 ( 0 . 6 ), 241 ( 3 ), 186 ( 1 ), 128 ( 1 ), 125 ( 1 ), 103 ( 2 ), 101 ( 10 ), 100 ( 100 ), 99 ( 1 ), 98 ( 1 ), 91 ( 2 ), 86 ( 2 ), 85 ( 3 ), 84 ( 2 ), and 57 ( 8 %). the synthesis of t - boc - dolaproine esters / amides was accomplished as follows : to a solution of t - boc - dolaproine ( 6 , 1 mm ) in dry dimethylformamide ( 5 ml ) was added the alkyl iodide ( 7 , 1 . 2 mm ) and sodium bicarbonate ( 2 mm ) and the resulting solution was stirred at room temperature for 24 hours . dichloromethane ( 50 ml ) was added and the organic phase was with water ( 2 × 25 ml ) and dried . removal of the solvent in vacuo left behind a residue which was chromatographed on a silica gel column with suitable solvent systems to obtain the required esters . to a solution of t - boc - dolaproine ( 6 , 1 mm ) and the amine ( 7c ) in dry dichloromethane ( 5 ml ), cooled to ice - bath temperature under argon atmosphere , was added triethylamine ( 2 mm ) and diethylcyanophosphonate ( 1 . 1 mm ). the resulting solution was stirred at the same temperature for 1 . 5 hours . removal of the solvent in vacuo left a residue which was chromatographed on a silica gel column with suitable solvent system to obtain the required amide . the t - boc - dap pentyl ester ( 8a ) is prepared by reacting t - boc - dolaproine ( 6 ) with pentyl iodide ( 7a ) following the general procedure c which gave a residue which was purified on a silica gel column with 1 : 3 acetone - hexane as the eluent to obtain the required octyl ester as a colorless liquid ( 8a , 50 %); r f 0 . 52 ( 1 : 4 acetone - hexane ); [ α ] d 25 - 46 . 8 ° ( c 0 . 37 , chcl 3 ); ir ( neat ): 2959 , 2932 , 2876 , 1734 , 1697 , 1460 , 1397 , 1366 , 1341 , 1283 , 1258 , 1167 , 1136 , 1098 and 772 cm - 1 ; 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 300 mhz ): 3 . 5 - 4 . 1 ( m , 4h , n -- ch , ch -- ome , och 2 ), 3 . 40 ( s , 3h , ome ), 3 . 2 ( m , 2h , n -- ch 2 ), 2 . 45 ( m , 1h , ch -- co ), 1 . 55 - 2 . 0 ( m , 4h , 2 × dap ch 2 ), 1 . 46 , 1 . 56 ( s , 9h , t - bu ), 1 . 32 ( m , 6h , 3 × ch 2 ), 1 . 21 ( d , j = 6 . 8 hz , 3h , ch 3 ) and 0 . 88 ( t , j = 6 . 9 hz , 3h , ch 2 -- ch 3 ); eims ( m / z ): 325 ( m + - meoh , 4 ), 284 ( 1 ), 225 ( 1 ), 171 ( 3 ), 170 ( 27 ), 169 ( 2 ), 168 ( 1 ), 158 ( 1 ), 154 ( 1 ), 138 ( 5 ), 136 ( 1 ), 126 ( 1 ), 118 ( 1 ), 117 ( 10 ), 115 ( 7 ), 114 ( 95 ), 113 ( 1 ), 110 ( 4 ), 103 ( 2 ), 86 ( 2 ), 85 ( 4 ), 83 ( 1 ), 82 ( 3 ), 70 ( 100 ) and 57 ( 66 %). the t - boc - dap octyl ester ( 8b ) is prepared by reacting t - boc - dolaproine ( 6 ) with octyl iodide ( 7b ) following general procedure c which gave a residue which was purified on a silica gel column with 1 : 3 acetone - hexane as the eluent to obtain the required octyl ester as a colorless liquid ( 8b , 63 %); r f 0 . 56 ( 1 : 4 acetone - hexane ); [ α ] d 25 - 39 . 5 ° ( c 0 . 76 , chcl 3 ); ir ( neat ): 2957 , 2930 , 2874 , 2859 , 1734 , 1698 , 1458 , 1395 , 1366 , 1341 , 1256 , 1167 , 1136 , 1099 and 772 cm - 1 ; 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 300 mhz ): 3 . 5 - 4 . 1 ( m , 4h , n -- ch , ch -- ome , och 2 ), 3 . 40 ( s , 3h , ome ), 3 . 21 ( m , 2h , n -- ch 2 ), 2 . 45 ( m , 1h , ch -- co ), 1 . 55 - 2 . 0 ( m , 4h , 2 × dap ch 2 ), 1 . 46 , 1 . 60 ( s , 9h , t - bu ), 1 . 24 ( m , 15h , 6 × ch 2 , ch -- ch 3 ) and 0 . 85 ( t , j = 6 . 9 hz , 3h , ch 2 -- ch 3 ); eims ( m / z ): 367 ( m + - meoh , 4 ), 326 ( 2 ), 298 ( 1 ), 267 ( 2 ), 170 ( 33 ), 169 ( 2 ), 158 ( 2 ), 154 ( 2 ), 138 ( 5 ), 136 ( 1 ), 126 ( 2 ), 118 ( 1 ), 117 ( 8 ), 116 ( 10 ), 115 ( 8 ), 114 ( 100 ), 113 ( 2 ), 103 ( 2 ), 86 ( 2 ), 85 ( 4 ), 83 ( 2 ), 82 ( 3 ), 70 ( 78 ) and 57 ( 56 %). the t - boc - dap - hexylamide ( 8c ) is prepared by reacting t - boc - dolaproine ( 6 ) with hexylamine ( 7c ) following general procedure d which gave a residue which was purified on a silica gel column with 1 : 4 acetone - hexane as the eluent to obtain the required hexyl amide as a colorless liquid ( 8c , 90 %); r f 0 . 25 ( 1 : 4 acetone - hexane ); [ α ] d 25 - 47 . 1 ° ( c 0 . 21 , chcl 3 ); ir ( neat ): 3308 , 2965 , 2932 , 2874 , 1695 , 1670 , 1649 , 1549 , 1456 , 1400 , 1366 , 1286 , 1256 , 1227 , 1171 , 1105 , 1063 , 668 , 773 and 725 cm - 1 ; 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 300 mhz ): 6 . 26 , 5 . 65 ( brs , 1h , nh ), 3 . 3 - 3 . 9 ( m , 2h , n -- ch , ch -- ome ), 3 . 41 ( s , 3h , ome ), 3 . 20 ( m , 4h , 2 × n -- ch 2 ), 2 . 35 ( m , 1h , ch -- co ), 1 . 55 - 2 . 0 ( m , 4h , 2 × dap ch 2 ), 1 . 46 , 1 . 61 ( s , 9h , t - bu ), 1 . 26 ( m , 11 h , 4 × ch 2 , ch -- ch 3 ) and 0 . 85 ( t , j = 7 . 0 hz , 3h , ch 2 -- ch 3 ); eims ( m / z ): 338 ( m + - meoh ), 297 , 269 , 238 , 210 , 201 , 186 , 170 , 154 , 138 , 114 , 111 , 91 , 70 ( 100 %) and 57 . the synthesis of the tripeptide trifluoroacetate salt ( 9 ) was accomplished as follows : to a solution of the tripeptide t - butyl ester ( 5 , 0 . 1 mm ) in dichloromethane ( 2 ml ) cooled to ice - bath temperature was added trifluoroacetic acid ( 2 ml ) under argon atmosphere and the solution was stirred at the same temperature for 1 hour . the solvents were then removed under reduced pressure , the residue was dissolved in toluene and solvent again removed under reduced pressure . the residue was dried in vacuo to obtain the tripeptide trifluoroacetate salt ( 10 ) as a light yellow sticky mass . the synthesis of the dap ester / amide trifluoroacetate salts ( 10a - c ) was accomplished as follows : to a solution of t - boc - dap ester / amide ( 8a - c , 0 . 1mm ) in dichloromethane ( 2 ml ) cooled to ice - bath temperature was added trifluoroacetic acid ( 2 ml ) under an argon atmosphere and the solution was stirred at the same temperature for 1 hour . the solvents were removed under reduced pressure , the residue was dissolved in toluene and solvent again removed under reduced pressure . the residue was dried in vacuo to obtain a light yellow sticky mass of the respective dap ester / amide trifluoroacetate salts ( 10a - c ). the synthesis of the tetrapeptide esters / amides ( 12 , 14 , 16a - c ) were accomplished as follows : to a solution of dipeptide or dap - ester / amide tfa salt ( 11 , 13 , 10a - c , 0 . 1mm ) and the tripeptide tfa salt ( 9 , 15 , 0 . 1 mm ) in dry dichloromethane ( 2 ml ), cooled to ice - bath temperature ( 0 - 5 c ) was added triethylamine ( 4 mm ) followed by diethyl cyanophosphonate ( 1 . 1 mm ). the solution was stirred at the same temperature for 1 - 2 hours . the solvent was removed under reduced pressure and the residue chromatographed on a silica gel column using the solvents noted below to obtain the respective pentapeptides or tetrapeptide esters / amide ( 12 , 14 ,& amp ; 16a - c ). compound 12 was synthesized as follows : coupling of the dipeptide tfa salt ( 11 ) with the tripeptide tfa salt ( 9 ) following the general procedure g which gave , following purification on a silica gel column with acetone - hexane ( 3 : 2 ) as the eluent , the required pentapeptide as a colorless solid ( 12 , 55 %); m . p . 103 °- 107 ° c . ; r f 0 . 55 ( acetone - hexane 3 : 2 ); [ α ] d 25 - 67 . 5 ° ( c 0 . 08 , chcl 3 ); ir ( thin film ): 3295 , 2965 , 2934 , 2878 , 1620 , 1535 , 1499 , 1452 , 1418 , 1381 , 1202 , 1136 and 1099 cm - 1 ; eims ( m / z ): 798 ( m + , 2 ), 756 ( 2 ), 755 ( 4 ), 707 ( 1 ), 496 ( 1 ), 495 ( 5 ), 459 ( 1 ), 458 ( 2 ), 303 ( 1 ), 242 ( 1 ), 241 ( 80 , 231 ( 1 ), 214 ( 1 ), 213 ( 3 ), 205 ( 1 ), 198 ( 1 ), 189 ( 1 ), 188 ( 10 ), 187 ( 1 ), 186 ( 10 ), 170 ( 4 ), 169 ( 2 ), 168 ( 2 ), 155 ( 1 ), 154 ( 6 ), 140 ( 2 ), 138 ( 3 ), 128 ( 4 ), 114 ( 1 ), 113 ( 3 ), 112 ( 2 ), 110 ( 1 ), 102 ( 26 ) and 101 ( 100 %). compound 14 was synthesized as follows : coupling of the dipeptide tfa salt ( 13 ) with the tripeptide tfa salt ( 9 ) following the general procedure g which gave after purification on a silica gel column with acetone - hexane ( 3 : 2 ) as the eluent the required pentapeptide as a colorless thick liquid ( 14 , 86 % ); r f 0 . 55 ( acetone - hexane 3 : 2 ); [ α ] d 25 - 45 ° ( c 0 . 06 , chcl 3 ); ir ( thin film ): 3314 , 3300 , 2967 , 2934 , 1744 , 1640 , 1628 , 1545 , 1441 , 1414 , 1381 , 1277 , 1202 , 1167 , 1098 , 1038 and 984 cm - 1 ; eims ( m / z ): 757 ( m + , 1 ), 715 ( 2 ), 714 ( 6 ), 496 ( 1 ), 495 ( 5 ), 417 ( 1 ), 241 ( 4 ), 213 ( 1 ), 186 ( 4 ), 170 ( 2 ), 154 ( 2 ), 138 ( 1 ), 128 ( 2 ), 127 ( 2 ), 102 ( 10 ) and 101 ( 100 %). compound dov - val - dil - dap pentyl ester ( 16a ) was synthesized as follows : coupling of the dap pentyl ester tfa salt ( 10a ) with the tripeptide tfa salt ( 15 ) following the general procedure g and purification using chromatography on a silica gel column with hexane - acetone ( 3 : 2 ) as eluent gave the required tetrapeptide ester as a colorless thick liquid ( 16a , 30 %); r f 0 . 39 ( hexane - acetone 3 : 2 ); [ α ] d 25 - 69 . 1 ° ( c 0 . 23 , chcl 3 ); ir ( thin film ): 3312 , 3295 , 2961 , 2934 , 2876 , 1728 , 1640 , 1452 , 1412 , 1389 , 1262 , 1200 , 1169 , 1132 , 1098 and 1038 cm - 1 ; eims ( m / z ): 668 ( m + , 1 ), 625 ( 2 ), 482 ( 3 ), 227 ( 3 ), 154 ( 2 ), 128 ( 2 ), 102 ( 9 ) and 101 ( 100 %). compound dov - val - dil - dap octyl ester ( 16b ) was synthesized as follows : coupling of the dap pentyl ester tfa salt ( 10b ) with the tripeptide tfa salt ( 15 ) following the general procedure g and purification using chromatography on a silica gel column with hexane - acetone ( 1 : 1 ) as eluent gave the required tetrapeptide ester as a colorless thick liquid ( 16b , 99 %); r f 0 . 23 ( hexane - acetone 3 : 1 ); [ α ] d 25 - 51 . 3 ° ( c 0 . 08 , chcl 3 ); ir ( thin film ): 3295 , 2961 , 2932 , 2876 , 2834 , 1730 , 1643 , 1622 , 1526 , 1454 , 1416 , 1385 , 1343 , 1304 , 1262 , 1200 , 1173 , 1134 , 1099 , 1038 and 721 cm - 1 ; eims ( m / z ): 710 ( m + , 0 . 7 ), 667 ( 2 ), 481 ( 3 ), 227 ( 4 ), 199 ( 1 ), 186 ( 4 ), 184 ( 0 . 9 ), 155 ( 1 ), 154 ( 2 ), 128 ( 2 ), 117 ( 1 ), 102 ( 10 ) and 101 ( 100 %). compound dov - val - dil - dap hexylamide ( 16c ) was synthesized as follows : coupling of the dap - hexylamide tfa salt ( 10c ) with the tripeptide tfa salt ( 15 ) following the general procedure g and purification using chromatography on a silica gel column with hexane - acetone ( 3 : 2 ) as eluent gave the required tetrapeptide amide as a colorless thick liquid ( 16c , 65 %); r f 0 . 23 ( hexane - acetone 3 : 2 ); [ α ] d 25 - 48 . 8 ° ( c 0 . 5 , chcl 3 ); ir ( thin film ): 3308 , 3295 , 2961 , 2930 , 2876 , 1620 , 1545 , 1535 , 1452 , 1416 , 1383 , 1200 , 1167 , 1134 and 1099 cm - 1 ; eims ( m / z ): 681 ( m + ), 666 , 650 , 638 , 525 , 481 , 449 , 412 , 355 , 341 , 269 , 253 , 227 , 214 , 199 , 186 , 170 , 154 , 128 , 114 , 102 and 101 ( 100 %). to further aid in the understanding of the present invention , and not by way of limitation the following examples are presented . reaction of t - boc - dolaproine ( 6 ) with pentyl iodide ( 7a ) following the general procedure c which gave a residue which was purified on a silica gel column with 1 : 3 acetone - hexane as the eluent to obtain the required octyl ester as a colorless liquid ( 8a , 50 %); r f 0 . 52 ( 1 : 4 acetone - hexane ); [ α ] d 25 - 46 . 8 ° ( c 0 . 37 , chcl 3 ); ir ( neat ): 2959 , 2932 , 2876 , 1734 , 1697 , 1460 , 1397 , 1366 , 1341 , 1283 , 1258 , 1167 , 1136 , 1098 and 772 cm - 1 ; 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 300 mhz ): 3 . 5 - 4 . 1 ( m , 4h , n -- ch , ch -- ome , och 2 ), 3 . 40 ( s , 3h , ome ), 3 . 2 ( m , 2h , n -- ch 2 ), 2 . 45 ( m , 1h , ch -- co ), 1 . 55 - 2 . 0 ( m , 4h , 2 × dap ch 2 ), 1 . 46 , 1 . 56 ( s , 9h , t - bu ), 1 . 32 ( m , 6h , 3 × ch 2 ), 1 . 21 ( d , j = 6 . 8 hz , 3h , ch 3 ) and 0 . 88 ( t , j = 6 . 9 hz , 3h , ch 2 -- ch 3 ); eims ( m / z ): 325 ( m + - meoh , 4 ), 284 ( 1 ), 225 ( 1 ), 171 ( 3 ), 170 ( 27 ), 169 ( 2 ), 168 ( 1 ), 158 ( 1 ), 154 ( 1 ), 138 ( 5 ), 136 ( 1 ), 126 ( 1 ), 118 ( 1 ), 117 ( 10 ), 115 ( 7 ), 114 ( 95 ), 113 ( 1 ), 110 ( 4 ), 103 ( 2 ), 86 ( 2 ), 85 ( 4 ), 83 ( 1 ), 82 ( 3 ), 70 ( 100 ) and 57 ( 66 %). reaction of t - boc - dolaproine ( 6 ) with octyl iodide ( 7b ) following general procedure c which gave a residue which was purified on a silica gel column with 1 : 3 acetone - hexane as the eluent to obtain the required octyl ester as a colorless liquid ( 8b , 63 %); r f 0 . 56 ( 1 : 4 acetone - hexane ); [ α ] d 25 - 39 . 5 ° ( c 0 . 76 , chcl 3 ); ir ( neat ): 2957 , 2930 , 2874 , 2859 , 1734 , 1698 , 1458 , 1395 , 1366 , 1341 , 1256 , 1167 , 1136 , 1099 and 772 cm - 1 ; 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 300 mhz ): 3 . 5 - 4 . 1 ( m , 4h , n -- ch , ch -- ome , och 2 ), 3 . 40 ( s , 3h , ome ), 3 . 21 ( m , 2h , n -- ch 2 ), 2 . 45 ( m , 1h , ch -- co ), 1 . 55 - 2 . 0 ( m , 4h , 2 × dap ch 2 ), 1 . 46 , 1 . 60 ( s , 9h , t - bu ), 1 . 24 ( m , 15h , 6 × ch 2 , ch -- ch 3 ) and 0 . 85 ( t , j = 6 . 9 hz , 3h , ch 2 -- ch 3 ); eims ( m / z ): 367 ( m + - meoh , 4 ), 326 ( 2 ), 298 ( 1 ), 267 ( 2 ), 170 ( 33 ), 169 ( 2 ), 158 ( 2 ), 154 ( 2 ), 138 ( 5 ), 136 ( 1 ), 126 ( 2 ), 118 ( 1 ), 117 ( 8 ), 116 ( 10 ), 115 ( 8 ), 114 ( 100 ), 113 ( 2 ), 103 ( 2 ), 86 ( 2 ), 85 ( 4 ), 83 ( 2 ), 82 ( 3 ), 70 ( 78 ) and 57 ( 56 %). reaction of t - boc - dolaproine ( 6 ) with hexylamine ( 7c ) following general procedure d which gave a residue which was purified on a silica gel column with 1 : 4 acetone - hexane as the eluent to obtain the required hexyl amide as a colorless liquid ( 8c , 90 %); r f 0 . 25 ( 1 : 4 acetone - hexane ); [ α ] d 25 - 47 . 1 ° ( c 0 . 21 , chcl 3 ); ir ( neat ): 3308 , 2965 , 2932 , 2874 , 1695 , 1670 , 1649 , 1549 , 1456 , 1400 , 1366 , 1286 , 1256 , 1227 , 1171 , 1105 , 1063 , 668 , 773 and 725 cm - 1 ; 1 h nmr ( cdcl 3 , 300 mhz ): 6 . 26 , 5 . 65 ( brs , 1h , nh ), 3 . 3 - 3 . 9 ( m , 2h , n -- ch , ch -- ome ), 3 . 41 ( s , 3h , ome ), 3 . 20 ( m , 4h , 2 × n -- ch 2 ), 2 . 35 ( m , 1h , ch -- co ), 1 . 55 - 2 . 0 ( m , 4h , 2 × dap ch 2 ), 1 . 46 , 1 . 61 ( s , 9h , t - bu ), 1 . 26 ( m , 11h , 4 × ch 2 , ch -- ch 3 ) and 0 . 85 ( t , j = 7 . 0 hz , 3h , ch 2 -- ch 3 ); eims ( m / z ): 338 ( m + - meoh ), 297 , 269 , 238 , 210 , 201 , 186 , 170 , 154 , 138 , 114 , 111 , 91 , 70 ( 100 %) and 57 . coupling of the dipeptide tfa salt ( 11 ) with the tripeptide tfa salt ( 9 ) following the general procedure g which gave , following purification on a silica gel column with acetone - hexane ( 3 : 2 ) as the eluent , the required pentapeptide as a colorless solid ( 12 , 55 %); m . p . 103 °- 107 ° c . ; r f 0 . 55 ( acetone - hexane 3 : 2 ); [ α ] d 25 - 67 . 5 ° ( c 0 . 08 , chcl 3 ); ir ( thin film ): 3295 , 2965 , 2934 , 2878 , 1620 , 1535 , 1499 , 1452 , 1418 , 1381 , 1202 , 1136 and 1099 cm - 1 ; eims ( m / z ): 798 ( m + , 2 ), 756 ( 2 ), 755 ( 4 ), 707 ( 1 ), 496 ( 1 ), 495 ( 5 ), 459 ( 1 ), 458 ( 2 ), 303 ( 1 ), 242 ( 1 ), 241 ( 80 , 231 ( 1 ), 214 ( 1 ), 213 ( 3 ), 205 ( 1 ), 198 ( 1 ), 189 ( 1 ), 188 ( 10 ), 187 ( 1 ), 186 ( 10 ), 170 ( 4 ), 169 ( 2 ), 168 ( 2 ), 155 ( 1 ), 154 ( 6 ), 140 ( 2 ), 138 ( 3 ), 128 ( 4 ), 114 ( 1 ), 113 ( 3 ), 112 ( 2 ), 110 ( 1 ), 102 ( 26 ) and 101 ( 100 %). coupling of the dipeptide tfa salt ( 13 ) with the tripeptide tfa salt ( 9 ) following the general procedure g which gave after purification on a silica gel column with acetone - hexane ( 3 : 2 ) as the eluent the required pentapeptide as a colorless thick liquid ( 14 , 86 %); r f 0 . 55 ( acetone - hexane 3 : 2 ); [ α ] d 25 - 45 ° ( c 0 . 06 , chcl 3 ); ir ( thin film ): 3314 , 3300 , 2967 , 2934 , 1744 , 1640 , 1628 , 1545 , 1441 , 1414 , 1381 , 1277 , 1202 , 1167 , 1098 , 1038 and 984 cm - 1 ; eims ( m / z ): 757 ( m + , 1 ), 715 ( 2 ), 714 ( 6 ), 496 ( 1 ), 495 ( 5 ), 417 ( 1 ), 241 ( 4 ), 213 ( 1 ), 186 ( 4 ), 170 ( 2 ), 154 ( 2 ), 138 ( 1 ), 128 ( 2 ), 127 ( 2 ), 102 ( 10 ) and 101 ( 100 %). coupling of the dap pentyl ester tfa salt ( 10a ) with the tripeptide tfa salt ( 15 ) following the general procedure g and purification using chromatography on a silica gel column with hexane - acetone ( 3 : 2 ) as eluent gave the required tetrapeptide ester as a colorless thick liquid ( 16a , 30 %); r f 0 . 39 ( hexane - acetone 3 : 2 ); [ α ] d 25 - 69 . 1 ° ( c 0 . 23 , chcl 3 ); ir ( thin film ): 3312 , 3295 , 2961 , 2934 , 2876 , 1728 , 1640 , 1452 , 1412 , 1389 , 1262 , 1200 , 1169 , 1132 , 1098 and 1038 cm - 1 ; eims ( m / z ): 668 ( m + , 1 ), 625 ( 2 ), 482 ( 3 ), 227 ( 3 ), 154 ( 2 ), 128 ( 2 ), 102 ( 9 ) and 101 ( 100 %). coupling of the dap pentyl ester tfa salt ( 10b ) with the tripeptide tfa salt ( 15 ) following the general procedure g and purification using chromatography on a silica gel column with hexane - acetone ( 1 : 1 ) as eluent gave the required tetrapeptide ester as a colorless thick liquid ( 16b , 99 %); r f 0 . 23 ( hexane - acetone 3 : 1 ); [ α ] d 25 - 51 . 3 ° ( c 0 . 08 , chcl 3 ); ir ( thin film ): 3295 , 2961 , 2932 , 2876 , 2834 , 1730 , 1643 , 1622 , 1526 , 1454 , 1416 , 1385 , 1343 , 1304 , 1262 , 1200 , 1173 , 1134 , 1099 , 1038 and 721 cm - 1 ; eims ( m / z ): 710 ( m + , 0 . 7 ), 667 ( 2 ), 481 ( 3 ), 227 ( 4 ), 199 ( 1 ), 186 ( 4 ), 184 ( 0 . 9 ), 155 ( 1 ), 154 ( 2 ), 128 ( 2 ), 117 ( 1 ), 102 ( 10 ) and 101 ( 100 %). coupling of the dap - hexylamide tfa salt ( 10c ) with the tripeptide tfa salt ( 15 ) following the general procedure g and purification using chromatography on a silica gel column with hexane - acetone ( 3 : 2 ) as eluent gave the required tetrapeptide amide as a colorless thick liquid ( 16c , 65 %); r f 0 . 23 ( hexane - acetone 3 : 2 ); [ α ] d 25 - 48 . 8 ° ( c 0 . 5 , chcl 3 ); ir ( thin film ): 3308 , 3295 , 2961 , 2930 , 2876 , 1620 , 1545 , 1535 , 1452 , 1416 , 1383 , 1200 , 1167 , 1134 and 1099 cm - 1 ; eims ( m / z ): 681 ( m + ), 666 , 650 , 638 , 525 , 481 , 449 , 412 , 355 , 341 , 269 , 253 , 227 , 214 , 199 , 186 , 170 , 154 , 128 , 114 , 102 and 101 ( 100 %). from the foregoing , it is readily apparent that a useful embodiment of the present invention has been herein described and illustrated which fulfills all of the aforestated objectives in a remarkably unexpected fashion . it is of course understood that such modifications , alterations and adaptations as may readily occur to the artisan confronted with this disclosure are intended within the spirit of this disclosure which is limited only by the scope of the claims appended hereto .	2
for the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention , reference will now be made to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings and described in the following written specification . it is understood that no limitation to the scope of the invention is thereby intended . it is further understood that the present invention includes any alterations and modifications to the illustrated embodiments and includes further applications of the principles of the invention as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which this invention pertains . a bail arm assembly 50 is shown in fig3 which includes an adjustable arm coupling 52 connecting the lower arm 15 to the upper arm 18 . it is understood that the lower and upper arms may be similar to the bail arm components shown in fig1 and 2 , or any other bail arm construction used for retractable / extendable tarping system . in one embodiment , the adjustable arm coupling 52 includes an upper component 54 and a lower component 55 that are pivotably and adjustably engaged , as explained in more detail herein . in one aspect , the two components 54 , 55 may be identically configured for ready interchangeability when installing the arm coupling in a bail arm assembly . the two components 54 , 55 include an elongated body 57 , 67 that is adapted for a close - fit engagement within the hollow passage 72 , 74 in a respective lower or upper bail arm 15 , 18 . it can be appreciated that the elongated bodies 57 , 67 exhibit a profile or cross - sectional shape that may generally conforms to the profile or cross - sectional shape of the hollow passage 74 . this conformity helps seat the body 57 , 67 within the bail arm component 28 , 30 and prevents relative rotation between the parts . the cross - sectional shape of the elongated bodies 57 , 67 may be modified to reduce the amount of material while retaining sufficient strength to endure the bail arm loads without compromise . thus , as shown in the cross - sectional view of fig4 , the body 57 may incorporate a hollowed portion 57 a on opposite sides of the body to reduce the material requirements . the elongated bodies are fastened to the corresponding bail arm component by appropriate fasteners 77 , which may be , for instance , sheet metal screws . returning to fig3 , the components 54 , 55 include head portions 58 , 68 that are configured for adjustable mating engagement . in one embodiment , the head portions define an engagement face 59 , 69 adapted for selective adjustable engagement at various discrete relative angular orientations . in one specific embodiment the engagement faces 59 , 69 may incorporate a series of radial splines or teeth 59 a adapted for interdigitating engagement , as shown in fig6 . the head portion may incorporate an angle indicator with visible indicia indicative of the relative angle defined by the engagement of the two components 54 , 55 . once the two components are oriented at a desired angle , as shown in fig7 , the upper and lower components 54 , 55 can be clamped together using a clamping assembly 75 . the clamping assembly extends through a corresponding bore 58 a , 68 a in the two components . in one embodiment the clamping assembly 75 may include a carriage bolt , washer and nut , as shown in fig3 . one or both of the bores 58 a , 68 a may be configured with a square cross - section to mate with a corresponding square cross - section on the carriage bolt of the clamping assembly 75 . tightening the clamping assembly fixes the interdigitating engagement between the engagement surfaces 59 , 69 . the clamping assembly may be spring biased so that when the assembly 75 is loosened the two components are pushed slightly apart so that the engagement faces are clear of each other to permit relative rotation of the components . as shown in fig4 , one of the bores 58 a may include a countersink within which the head of the carriage bolt of the assembly 75 may reside . the engagement faces 59 , 69 are configured to permit discrete gross or fine angular adjustments . in the present embodiment , the teeth or radial splines 59 a ( fig6 ) are configured and arranged to provide a five degree ( 5 °) resolution , meaning that the relative angle between bail arms components can be adjusted at five degree increments . in one specific embodiment , the angles can range from 180 ° in which the bail arms 15 , 18 are in a straight line , plus or minus 102 . 5 ° upward or downward . in other words , the head portions 58 , 68 may be configured for a 205 ° range of relative angular motion between the components . as shown in fig3 , 6 , the inter - engagement features on the engagement faces 59 , 69 may extend a full 360 °, even though the relative range of motion may be limited to 205 °. the full 360 ° engagement feature ensures a firm engagement between the bail arm members so that the relative angular positions do not slip when the bail arm is under load . in one embodiment , 72 teeth or splines are arranged around the circumference of the engagement faces 59 , 69 . the teeth or splines can have a height of about 5 / 16 in . as shown in fig4 , the head portion 58 , 68 of the components 54 , 55 are sized so that when the two head portions are inter - engaged at the engagement faces 59 , 69 the overall width is approximately equal to the width of the corresponding elongated bodies 57 , 67 . thus , in one embodiment the head portions 58 , 68 each have a width of about ⅞ in . while the elongated bodies have a width of about 1 23 / 32 in ., which is slightly less than the combined width of the inter - engaged head portions . the head portions are thus sized to provide a smooth transition with a corresponding bail arm , as shown in fig7 . the adjustable arm coupling 52 may be formed from a material strong enough to withstand the static and vibrational loads of the typical bail arm assembly . for instance , the upper and lower components 54 , 55 of the coupling may be formed of the same material as the bail arms 15 , 18 , such as aluminum or stainless steel . the components may be extruded , forged or cast , with appropriate machining . alternatively , the components may be cast from a hard polymer or plastic material . the angle indicia on the angle indicators 60 , 70 may be formed in the head portions 58 , 68 or may be independently applied , such as a sticker or label . while the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description , the same should be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character . it is understood that only the preferred embodiments have been presented and that all changes , modifications and further applications that come within the spirit of the invention are desired to be protected .	1
turning to the drawings in detail in which like numerals indicate the same or similar elements in each of the several views , fig1 schematically depicts an optical amplifier configuration 10 which will be used to demonstrate the principles of the modular optical amplifier system of the present invention . optical amplifier 10 comprises first and second stages 20 and 60 selected from optical waveguides doped with a material which can produce optical gain in the waveguide . such materials include rare earth dopants such as erbium , neodymium , praseodymium , ytterbium , or mixtures thereof . pumping of the doped waveguide at a specific pump wavelength causes population inversion among the electron energy levels of the dopant , producing optical amplification of the wavelength division multiplexed optical signals . for doped fiber amplifiers employing erbium as the dopant , a wavelength band between approximately 1500 nm and approximately 1590 nm provides gain to optical signals when the doped fiber is pumped . to supply the amplifier stages with pump energy , connecting elements 30 and 70 are provided . these are typically wavelength selective multiplexers which permit pump radiation to enter the doped fiber sections without allowing transmission channel radiation to pass into the pump . the connecting elements optically communicate with optical pumps ( not shown ). the optical pumps are generally selected from 980 and 1480 nm laser sources . in one embodiment , a 980 nm laser is used to pump the first stage of the amplifier while a 1480 nm laser is used to pump the second stage of the amplifier . to increase the gain in the second stage of the amplifier , light from the 980 pump can be used to pump both the first and second stages of the amplifier while the 1480 pump is simultaneously used to pump the second stage of the amplifier . optical isolators 40a , 40b and 40c are respectively positioned before the first stage , between the first and second amplifier stages , and following the second stage of the optical amplifier . optical isolators prevent backscattered radiation from travelling upstream in the optical system . optical isolators positioned between the stages of multiple - stage optical amplifiers improve amplifier performance by preventing second stage amplified spontaneous emission ( ase ) from reaching the first stage of the optical amplifier . note that each &# 34 ; x &# 34 ; depicted along the fiber transmission path indicates an optical splice or other interconnection element between adjacent amplifier constituents . optionally , optical taps 50a and 50b are positioned before the first amplifier stage and following the second amplifier stage for monitoring amplifier performance . optical tap 15b is further divided into two optical streams by 50 : 50 optical splitter 90 . when the optical amplifier is employed in an optical communication system which employs an optical service channel , the optical service channel may be optionally inserted and removed between the two amplifier stages through the use of four - port wavelength division multiplexer 80 the amplifier stages are interconnected through interconnection element 80 , selected to be a four - port wavelength division multiplexer . multiplexer 80 includes at least one wavelength selective member 82 , such as a multilayer interference filter , for selecting one or more optical service channels to enter and exit the communication system . for the amplifier of fig1 a service channel wavelength of 1625 nm is selected . this wavelength is outside the gain band of the erbium - doped optical fiber , ensuring survival of the service channel in the event of an optical pump failure . further description of the positioning of service channel add / drop elements between the stages of an optical amplifier are described in commonly - assigned u . s . pat . no . 5 , 532 , 864 , incorporated by reference above . additionally or alternatively , an add - drop multiplexer , such as that disclosed in co - pending , commonly assigned u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 784 , 909 , ( attorney docket no . 119mab ), may be optionally positioned between the stages of the optical amplifier . as depicted in fig1 each optical amplifier stage is positioned in a separate cassette . to further simplify amplifier manufacture , the components located between the two amplifier stages are themselves positioned in a separate cassette . although the three - cassette implementation decreases the complexity of individual amplifier cassettes , the only requirement of the modular amplifiers constructed in accordance with the present invention is that each amplifier stage be housed in a separate cassette . consequently , it is understood that the components positioned between the amplifier stages can be located in either of the two amplifier stage cassettes or divided between the two cassettes . it is further understood that the optical amplifier schematically depicted in fig1 is merely exemplary . further descriptions of optical amplifiers suitable for construction in accordance with the modular cassette system of the present invention are found in commonly - assigned , copending u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 554 , 976 ( attorney docket no . 106mab ), gowar , ed . optical communication systems , bjarklev , optical fiber amplifiers : design and system applications , ( artech house , norwood , mass . ), c . 1993 , and desurvire , erbium - doped fiber amplifiers , ( john wiley & amp ; sons , inc ., n . y . ), c . 1994 , the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference . fig2 depicts an optical amplifier module 100 for assembling the optical amplifier of fig1 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . amplifier module 100 includes first , second , and third amplifier cassettes 120 , 180 , and 160 which respectively house first amplifier stage 20 , interstage components 80 , 40b , and second amplifier stage 60 . amplifier module 100 is retained in a compact , vertically - stacked arrangement by fasteners 170 which engage through holes positioned in the corners of each cassette ( best seen in fig3 ). fig3 depicts the amplifier module of fig2 with parts separated ( but without optical fiber and optical components ) to illustrate cassette construction and interengagement with adjacent cassettes . as seen in fig3 each cassette includes a flat , tray - like base 111a , b , c , for receiving optical components and optical fiber . cassette walls 112a , b , c define an interior curved surface which corresponds to a permissible bend radius for the optical fiber employed in the amplifier . a pair of retaining walls 123a , b , and c in each cassette ( top walls are shown in fig3 bottom wall 123c is depicted in cassette 160 ) define an outer track for fiber retention against the interior cassette walls and additionally serve to separate the fiber from other optical components within the cassette . fiber retaining clips 115a , b , c extend from the cassette walls to assist in fiber guidance and organization within the cassette . fiber guiding projections 116a , b , and c extend from the base of the cassette for directing the fiber toward the fiber retaining clips to further aid in fiber organization within the cassette , particularly for fibers which extend to or from optical components placed within the cassette . to maintain fiber placement between the fiber guiding projections , resilient fiber retainers such as sponges ( not shown ) may be placed between the fiber guiding projections to hold the fiber between the projections . the configuration of the optical cassettes permits fiber to be wound within the cassette or , alternatively , pre - spooled fiber may be placed within the cassette and under the fiber retaining clips . it is noted that although fiber projections 116 and retaining walls 123 are shown as being integrally formed with the cassette these elements can alternatively be detachable from the cassette base such that retaining / guiding elements can be attached to the cassette base during assembly of the optical device within the cassette . for example , guiding projections 116 could be snap - fit into mating holes or recesses within the cassette base or could be glued to the cassette base . such detachable guiding / retaining projections may be desirable for example when using pre - wound fiber which is assembled simultaneously with the projections against the cassette base . wall channels 117a , b , c permit optical fibers from one cassette to pass to adjacent cassettes without the necessity of guiding fiber perpendicularly into through - holes within base plate . a second set of wall channels 117a , b , and c ( best seen in fig4 - 6 ) is provided in the opposing cassette wall . wall channels 117 intersect through - holes 122 ( best seen in fig4 - 6 ) formed in cassette base 111 . through this configuration , discussed below , optical fiber guided into wall channels 117 passes in the through - holes 122 of the cassette base , permitting simple interconnection of fiber from adjacent cassette levels . note that the vertical and horizontal configuration of the amplifier cassettes permits a sufficiently large bend radius for the fiber in both the vertical and horizontal directions . the edges of both the through - holes and the wall channels are rounded , preventing damage to the fibers which pass through the channels . cassette walls 112 further include projections 113a , b , c and recesses 114 a , b , c which interengage with adjacent cassette recesses and projections to interlock cassettes . projections 113 include a central through hole for receiving a threaded fastener . optionally , engagement / alignment pins ( not shown ) may be provided on the cassette base to interengage with recesses 114 to further assist in interlocking adjacent cassettes . through this cassette interengagement , the base of one cassette forms a top wall for the adjacent cassette . a cassette cover plate 118 forms the final wall of the top cassette following assembly of the vertically - stacked array . it is important to note that although the amplifier cassettes are vertically stacked in the exemplary embodiment , the cassettes can be mounted horizontally , with each cassette being provided with a cover plate . since the cassette layout is frequently dictated by overall optical system space constraints , the use of modular amplifier cassettes advantageously promotes overall design flexibility for an optical system and permits a variety of amplifier sizes and shapes . additionally each cassette may correspond to a particular function within an optical system ( e . g ., stand - alone gain block , add - drop multiplexer , pre - amplifier , etc .) allowing custom system configurations with minimal re - tooling . it is noted that although the cassettes are depicted as having a rectangular shape other shapes are possible including square , circular , triangular , etc . the organization of individual cassette components will be described with reference to fig4 , and 6 which depict top views of the amplifier stage cassettes and the inter - stage component cassette . fig4 depicts optical cassette 120 which includes first amplifier stage 20 as well as optical tap 50a , optical isolator 40a , and pump interconnection element 30 . to enable system component modularity , optical connectors , rather than optical splices , are provided for interconnecting the optical amplifier with an optical transmission line and for interconnecting the optical amplifier with optical pumps . to this end , pigtail fibers 51 and 52 extending from 2 % optical tap 50a and pigtail fiber 31 extending from 980 / 1550 wdm optical coupler 30 are connectorized prior to placement within amplifier cassette 120 . optical tap pigtail fiber 51 is provided with an fc / upc connector 53 , commercially available from seiko instruments , for connection with the optical system transmission path . pigtail fiber 52 is provided with an sc / apc connector 54 , commercially available from molex , for connection with an optical monitor . 980 / 1550 wdm optical coupler pigtail fiber 31 is provided with a diamond e2000 connector 32 , commercially available from diamond corp ., for connection with a 980 optical pump . the 980 nm optical pump is housed in an optical package separate from the optical amplifier to enhance system modularity and to permit easy service and replacement of the pump laser when required . the connectorized optical components are placed on cassette base 111a and retained in position through the use of a resilient adhesive such as rtv . alternatively , the optical components can be held against the cassette base through the use of mechanical fasteners integrally formed with the cassette base or received into retaining slots formed in the base . the connectorized component pigtails are positioned outside the amplifier cassette by placing the pigtail fibers 51 , 52 , and 31 through fiber ports 119a . excess pigtail fiber is looped around the interior cassette wall and passed under fiber retaining clips 115a . if insufficient fiber length is available for a complete fiber loop around the perimeter , the pigtail fiber is routed through central fiber guiding projections 121a and through guiding projections 116 to form an s - shaped fiber path each curve of which does not exceed the permissible bend radius of the optical fiber . fibers are optionally retained between the guiding projections with resilient retainers such as anti - static sponges . it is noted that the various retaining means in the cassette ( and in the vertical assembly of adjacent cassettes ) enable only vertical and horizontal routing combinations having a 2 . 5 inch bend radius , a permissible bend radius for the fiber employed . in this manner , all fiber routing will result only in acceptable fiber curvature , ensuring proper operation of the resultant devices . to create the optical amplifier of fig1 the pigtail fiber 55 of 2 % tap 50a and the pigtail fiber 41 of optical isolator 40a are spliced together . similarly , pigtail fiber 42 of optical isolator 40a is spliced to pigtail fiber 32 of 980 / 1550 wdm optical coupler 30 . the remaining pigtail fiber 33 of 980 / 1550 optical coupler 30 is spliced to the erbium fiber 20 which comprises the first stage of the optical amplifier . for clarity of presentation , erbium fiber 20 is not depicted in fig4 but is shown in fig7 a - 7c where the assembly of cassettes 120 , 160 , and 180 is depicted . the unspliced end of the erbium fiber 20 is routed through one of wall channels 117a for later splicing to the pigtail fiber of optical isolator 40b . it is noted that during construction of the optical cassette , the strength and optical power transmission of each optical splice ( or other optical connection ) is tested before moving on to the next optical splice in order to permit resplicing ( if necessary ) prior to connection with a further optical component . in this manner , the overall splice loss and power transmission for each optical cassette is determined prior to its assembly with other cassettes or into a device system . the determination of individual cassette performance permits uncomplicated troubleshooting within the individual cassette and facilitates rework of unacceptable cassettes before they are fabricated into a larger system . fig5 depicts amplifier cassette 180 for housing optical components positioned between the stages of the optical amplifier . as with amplifier cassette 120 , optical components are connectorized or to positioning within the optical cassette . to this end , pigtail fibers 81 and 82 of 1550 / 1625 wdm coupler 80 are respectively provided with bsc connectors 83 and 84 , commercially available from molex . these connectors will couple the optical signal to and from a service channel modem for receiving and transmitting the optical service channel . as with the connectorized pigtail fibers in the first amplifier cassette , pigtail fibers 81 and 82 are retained in fiber port 119b to permit connector placement outside the amplifier cassette . optical isolator 40b includes pigtail fiber 45 for splicing to the erbium fiber from the first amplifier cassette ( not depicted in this fig . for clarity of presentation . the interconnection of the erbium fiber comprising the first and second stages and its routing between cassettes is depicted in fig7 a - 7c ). a second isolator pigtail fiber 46 is routed around the optical cassette and spliced to 1550 / 1625 wdm coupler pigtail fiber 85 . the last wdm pigtail fiber 86 will be spliced to the erbium fiber which forms the second stage of the optical amplifier . fig6 depicts the third optical amplifier cassette 160 . amplifier cassette 160 houses 1480 / 1550 wdm optical coupler 70 , isolator 40c , 2 % optical tap 50b and 50 : 50 optical splitter 90 . as in the previous cassettes , each component is secured to the cassette base through adhesives . wdm optical coupler 70 includes pigtail fiber 71 for splicing to erbium fiber 60 ( not shown ) which forms the second stage of the optical amplifier . pump energy from a 1480 pump ( not shown ) enters coupler 70 through second pigtail fiber 73 which is provided with diamond connector 75 . the amplified optical signal exits the 1480 / 1550 optical coupler through third pigtail fiber 72 which is spliced to input pigtail fiber 48 of isolator 40c . the output pigtail fiber 49 of isolator 40c is spliced to pigtail fiber 57 of optical tap 50b . the majority of the optical signal is output by the optical tap onto tap output pigtail 58 which is provided with fc connector 65 for interconnection with the primary optical transmission path of an optical system . the 2 % portion of the optical signal is output onto optical tap output pigtail 59 which is spliced to pigtail fiber 91 of optical splitter 90 . first splitter output pigtail 92 is provided with sc connector 93 for interconnection with an optical monitor for analyzing the amplifier performance . second splitter output pigtail 94 is provided with fc connector 96 for routing a portion of the amplifier output signal to an external signal monitor ( e . g ., a customer spectrum analyzer or power monitor ). as discussed previously , the individual optical cassettes of fig4 - 6 can be assembled vertically to form a stacked cassette arrangement . the interconnection of the optical fibers between adjacent cassettes will be discussed with reference to this vertical assembly , depicted in fig7 a - 7c . however , it is understood that the interconnection of the fibers between the cassettes applies equally to cassettes formed into adjacent horizontal arrays ( with cassette covers provided for each individual cassette ). fig7 a shows the interconnection of the erbium fiber from the first cassette ( cassette 120 ) to the second cassette . erbium fiber 20 is spliced to pigtail fiber 33 of 980 / 1550 coupler 30 ( not shown in fig7 a for clarity ) at a first end and is spliced to pigtail fiber 45 of optical isolator 40b . the erbium fiber and the pigtail fiber are respectively routed through channels 117a and 117b of cassettes 120 and 180 where they pass into through - holes 122 . sufficient slack fiber is provided to allow the vertical assembly of the cassettes . in fig7 b , cassette 180 is stacked upon cassette 120 . as can be seen from the relative position of the pigtail fiber from isolator 40b in cassette 180 , the cassettes are rotated during the stacking operation . this rotation relieves the stress produced in the fiber during the splicing operation . the slack fiber is taken up during the rotation to form at least a portion of a fiber loop within the second cassette . following rotation and stacking , the fiber which straddles the two cassettes rises at an acute angle through the passage formed by through - holes 122 . this gradual rise of the fiber between adjacent cassettes is best seen in fig8 . it is important to note that the intersection of wall channels 117 and through holes 122 permits the low - angle rise whereas through - holes alone subject interconnecting fiber to high angles as it passes between levels . fig7 c depicts the addition of cassette 160 to the vertically - stacked array and the routing of the first and second stages of erbium fiber within the array . erbium fiber 60 is spliced to pigtail fiber 71 of 1480 / 1550 wdm optical coupler in cassette 160 ( not shown for clarity ); the unspliced end is routed through channel 117c where it is spliced to the pigtail fiber 86 from 1550 / 1625 wdm optical coupler 80 . as with the assembly of cassettes 120 and 180 , the assembly of cassettes 180 and 160 involves the rotation of the cassette 160 relative to cassette 180 to relieve the built in stress and take up the fiber slack . following the vertical assembly of cassettes 120 , 180 , and 160 , the fibers pass through a vertical channel formed by vertically - stacked through holes 122 , as shown in fig8 . although the fibers passed through channels 117 during assembly , they are now completely retained internally within the interior vertical channel . the gradual rise of the fibers is within the permissible bend radius ; thus the cassette design ensures both horizontal and vertical conformance with bend radius standards . after the vertical assembly of the cassettes , cover 118 is placed over cassette 180 and fasteners are inserted into the through - holes of wall projections 113 to retain the vertical cassette assembly . to permit the optical amplifier module 100 to be mounted in standard telecommunications racks and to provide a fixture for the various optical connectors , circuit board 200 is provided as depicted in fig9 and 10 . as shown in fig9 two amplifier modules 100 are mounted on circuit board 200 . each amplifier module amplifies signal traffic in a particular direction , west - east or east - west , within an optical communication system . circuit board 200 interconnects with front cover 210 through which fc connectors 53 , 65 , and 96 project for respectively passing the wdm signal input , the amplified wdm signal output , and the optical monitoring wdm signal portion output . diamond connectors 32 and 75 also project through the front cover for respectively interconnecting with the 980 and 1480 optical pumps . on the optical backplane , optical connectors 83 and 84 are mounted for interconnection with a service channel modem . fig1 depicts the reverse side of circuit board 200 . as seen in fig1 , optical connectors 93 and 54 are pass through circuit board apertures 220 and 230 . these connectors , which interconnect with optical taps 50a and 50b , are mounted adjacent optical monitors for measuring amplifier performance . while the foregoing invention has been described in terms of the embodiments discussed above , numerous variations are possible . for example , the individual optical cassettes used to create a two - stage amplifier can also be used to create amplifiers having three or more stages . the compact design of the individual amplifier stages provides great flexibility in the cassette mounting in standard telecommunication rack systems , whether stacked in a horizontal or vertical array . each individual cassette may correspond to a functional module within an optical system an can therefore be used individually at any given point in a system . the fiber optic cassettes can be used for various purposes besides optical amplifiers . such applications include add / drop multiplexers , splice organizers , service channel insertion / removal modules , circulator - based optical subsystems , optical circuits , and the like . accordingly , modifications and changes such as those suggested above , but not limited thereto , are considered to be within the scope of following claims .	7
referring now in detail to the accompanying drawings , the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described . referring to fig1 , a rail 1 includes a body portion 3 and a detent portion 5 . the body 3 of the rail 1 is elongated , flat and generally rectangular in cross - section . the detent portion 5 is formed adjacent only one end of the body 3 . the rail 1 of the present invention can be formed of any material that can provide the necessary rigidity to a windshield wiper blade , while permitting the windshield wiper blade to conform to the curvature of the windshield of a vehicle . it is preferred that the rail 1 of the present invention be constructed from stainless steel ; however , other materials will be readily understood to one having ordinary skill in the art . referring to fig1 a , the detent portion 5 includes a pair of cut - outs 7 , which form a pair of hooks 9 on each side of the detent portion 5 . referring to fig3 - 5 of the present invention , a rail 1 is received in a windshield wiper blade 13 of a windshield wiper assembly on each of opposite sides thereof . the windshield wiper blade 13 can also be referred to as a squeegee or rubber squeegee . specifically , the rails 1 are received in slots 15 formed in sides of the windshield wiper blade 13 . a claw 17 of the windshield wiper assembly is received in the detent portions 5 of each of the rails 1 . specifically , the outer openings 7 in each of the detent portions 5 of the rails 1 receive the claw 17 of the windshield wiper assembly , while the inner hooks 9 of the detent portion in each of the rails 1 cooperate with each other to secure the windshield wiper blade 13 therebetween . referring to fig2 a and 3 of the present invention , the rails 1 according to the first construction of the first embodiment of the present invention include hooks 9 extending outwardly from a top of the detent portion 5 and hooks 9 extending from a bottom of the detent portion 5 . when the rails 1 are mounted to the windshield wiper blade 13 , the top hooks 9 in one rail 1 are oriented to extend toward a center of the windshield wiper assembly and the top hooks 9 in the opposite rail 1 are oriented to extend away from the center of the windshield wiper assembly . in view of this , when the claw 15 is received within the cut - outs 7 , the hooks 9 in each of the rails 1 cooperate with each other to secure the windshield wiper blade 13 therebetween . referring to fig3 , the windshield wiper blade 13 is made of a flexible material . in view of this , when the claw 17 is secured within the detent portions 5 of the rails 1 , the material of the windshield wiper blade 13 flexes and the hooks 9 push into the material of the windshield wiper blade 13 to secure the windshield wiper blade 13 to the windshield wiper assembly in a secure manner . in view of this , the windshield wiper blade 13 is prevented from sliding with respect to the claw 17 and therefore the windshield wiper assembly . it should be noted that it is preferred that the hooks 9 of the opposite rails 1 overlap each other with the material of the windshield wiper blade 13 being located therebetween . in fig3 , the hooks are not illustrated in overlapping manner ; however , it is preferred that each of the hooks 9 of the rails 1 cross over the center line 19 , so that the hooks 9 overlap each other . this provides a more secure attachment of the rails 1 to the windshield wiper blade 13 . referring to fig3 , the material of the windshield wiper blade 3 bulges at 21 to permit the hooks 9 to overlap with each other when the rails are secured by the claw 17 . since the opposite rails 1 include hooks that are displaced vertically from each other , rather than aligned with each other , the material of the windshield wiper blade 13 is allowed to be displaced to form the bulges 21 . this bulging of the windshield wiper blade 13 further secures the rails 1 to the windshield wiper blade 13 . referring again to fig1 of the present invention , a central portion of the detent portion 1 is formed to have a width which is greater than a width of the body 3 . in view of this , when the claw 17 is mounted within the cut - outs 7 of the detent portion 5 of the rails 1 , a force applied to rails 1 is increased , such that the rails 1 are pushed further inward toward the center of the windshield wiper assembly . it should be understood that increasing the width of the central portion in conjunction with decreasing the width of the claw 17 will control the amount of overlap , if any , of the hooks 9 of the cooperating rails 1 . referring to fig2 b of the present invention , the second construction of the first embodiment of the present invention will be described . fig2 b is a cross - section along the lines 2 - 2 of fig1 a and illustrates the second construction of the first embodiment of the present invention , which includes a top portion of the detent portion 5 having a thickness which is decreased across an entire width . in view of this , the hooks 9 on one side of the rail 1 are thicker than the hooks 9 on the opposite side of the rail 1 . accordingly , when the rails 1 according to the second construction of the first embodiment of the present invention are mounted to the windshield wiper blade 13 , the thicker hooks 9 on one rail cooperate with the thinner hooks of the opposite rail to secure the material of the windshield wiper blade 13 therebetween . the second construction of the first embodiment of the present invention has not been illustrated in use with the windshield wiper blade 13 ; however , the operation can easily be understood from a review of fig3 . of course , as would be understood to one having ordinary skill in the art , when the rails 1 of fig2 b are mounted to the windshield wiper blade 13 , the pair of rails 1 are oriented so that the hooks 9 on one side of the detent portion 5 of a first of the pair of rails 1 extend outwardly from a top of the first rail 1 to engage the windshield wiper claw 17 and the hooks 9 on one side of the detent portion 5 of a second of the pair of rails 1 extend outwardly from a bottom of the second rail 1 to engage the windshield wiper claw 17 . in this way , as mentioned above , the thicker hooks 9 on one rail 1 cooperate with the thinner hooks 9 of the opposite rail 1 to secure the material of the windshield wiper blade 13 therebetween . referring to fig2 c of the present invention , the third construction of the first embodiment of the present invention is illustrated . fig2 c is also a cross - section along the line 2 - 2 of fig1 a . referring to fig2 c , the cross - section of the detent portion 5 of the rail 1 is the same as the second construction of the first embodiment of fig2 b , except that the hooks 9 on one side have been bent upwardly and the hooks 9 on the opposite side have been bent downwardly . referring to fig4 of the present invention , the third construction of the first embodiment of the present invention is illustrated schematically in use . specifically , the rails 1 are mounted in the slots 15 of the windshield wiper blade 13 . the rail 1 on one side of the windshield wiper blade 13 is mounted such that the hooks having an upward bend extend toward the center line 19 , while the rail 1 on the opposite side is mounted such that the hooks having a downward bend extend toward the center line 19 . in view of this , when the claw 17 is received within the openings 7 in each of the rails 1 , the inner hooks of the rails 1 overlap each other and secure the windshield wiper blade 13 therebetween the rail 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention is manufactured by forming a generally rectangular base member . a portion of the base member is stamped to decrease the thickness of the base member and therefore form the base portion 3 and the decreased thickness portion which will be used for the detent portion 5 . in fig2 a , the stamping is carried out by a top die and a bottom die ( not shown ) that have raised portions to form the decreased thickness portion to have the cross - sectional shape illustrated in fig2 a . specifically , the stamping is carried out to form a decreased thickness portion 23 on the bottom on one side of the detent portion 5 and a decreased thickness portion 25 on the top on the opposite side of the detent portion 5 . as an alternative , the bottom die can be flat and the top die can have raised portions to form the decreased thickness portion into the shape illustrated in fig2 b . specifically , the stamping is carried out to form a decreased thickness portion 23 on one side of the detent portion 5 which is thinner than a decreased thickness portion 25 on the opposite side of the detent portion 5 . the next step in the manufacture of the rail 1 is to cut out portions of the decreased thickness portions 23 , 25 on each side of the detent portion 5 to form the cut - outs 7 . in fig2 a and 2b , the cut - outs are formed without bending the hooks 9 , while in fig2 c , the cut - outs are formed at the same time as the hooks on one side of the rail 1 bent upwardly and the hooks 9 on the opposite side are bent downwardly . the cutting and bending in the third construction of the first embodiment of fig2 c can easily be performed by a die having a cutting portion and a bending portion ( not shown ). referring to fig5 , the first construction of the first embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in perspective view along with a windshield wiper blade 13 . as identified by the arrow , the rail 1 is inserted into the slot 15 on each side of the windshield wiper blade 13 . the inner hooks 9 of the illustrated rail 1 ( the other rail is not shown ) engage a bottom of the inner wall of the slot 15 , since the inner hooks 9 extend from a bottom of the detent portion 5 . as can be understood , the rail on the opposite side would have the inner hooks 9 extending from the top side of the detent portion 5 so that the inner rails 9 of the two rails cooperate with each other to secure the windshield wiper blade 13 therebetween . this arrangement is clearly illustrated in fig3 . after the rails 1 are inserted into the slots 15 , the claw 17 is secured within the outer cut - outs in each of the rails 1 . this forces the inner hooks 9 to overlap with each other to strongly secure the windshield wiper blade 13 to the rails 1 to prevent sliding of the windshield wiper blade 13 . referring to fig6 - 10 , a second embodiment of the present invention will be described . the second embodiment is similar to the operation of the second construction of the first embodiment of the present invention that is illustrated in fig2 b . the same reference numerals have been used in fig6 - 10 to identify the same or similar elements . therefore , only the differences between the first and second embodiments will be described in detail . referring to fig9 , a cross - section along the lines 9 - 9 of fig6 a is illustrated . cut - outs 7 are formed on each side of the detent portion 5 . however , four hooks 9 are formed on the inside ( the side intended to face the windshield wiper blade 13 ) of each rails 1 and two hooks are formed on the outside ( the side intended to face the claw 17 ) of each of the rails 1 ( see fig8 ). in addition , a top portion of the detent portion 5 has a thickness , which is decreased across an entire width . however , the hooks 9 on one side of the rail 1 are the same thickness as the hooks 9 on the opposite side of the rail 1 . when the rails 1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention are mounted to the windshield wiper blade 13 , the hooks 9 on one rail cooperate with the hooks of the opposite rail to secure the material of the windshield wiper blade 13 therebetween . the operation of the second embodiment of the present invention can be understood from a review of fig1 . specifically , when the rails 1 of the second embodiment are mounted to the windshield wiper blade 13 , the pair of rails 1 are oriented so that the hooks 9 on one side of the detent portion 5 of a first of the pair of rails 1 extend outwardly from a top of the first rail 1 to engage the windshield wiper claw 17 and the hooks 9 on one side of the detent portion 5 of a second of the pair of rails 1 extend outwardly from a bottom of the second rail 1 to engage the windshield wiper claw 17 . in this way , as mentioned above , the four hooks 9 on one rail 1 cooperate with the four hooks 9 of the opposite rail 1 to secure the material of the windshield wiper blade 13 therebetween . in addition , the two hooks 9 of each of the rails 1 extend outwardly to cooperate with the windshield wiper claw 17 . the second embodiment of the present invention is advantageous , since four hooks 9 on each rail 1 are provide facing the windshield wiper blade . this construction improves the holding strength of the rails 1 , since four hooks engage the windshield wiper blade 13 . the invention being thus described , it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways . such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention , and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the following claims .	1
[ 0011 ] fig1 and fig2 depict two block diagrams of an apparatus and corresponding method for managing and routing data streams to one or more output ports having one or more output links . as depicted in fig1 an output port 102 includes a plurality of output links 104 , 106 , and 108 . each of the output links 104 , 106 , and 108 includes an integer counter 110 , 112 , and 114 associated therewith . each of the integer counters is incremented in response to a predetermined event associated with transmission of data to the respective link . each of the integer counters 110 , 112 , and 114 have a corresponding sample logic module 116 , 118 , and 120 associated therewith . the sampling logic periodically samples the integer counter and latches the integer count contained therein . the integer count is provided to a calculation logic 122 . the calculation logic 122 uses the data rate information from each link to determine the link usage parameters associated with the particular link . in particular , the link calculation logic 122 determines a mean data rate value , a data rate error value , and a deviation error value for the corresponding link . as will be explained in more detail below , the calculation logic 122 provides one or more of these determined link usage parameters to a port routing logic 124 that is used to route an incoming data stream 101 to a particular link . the sampling logic 116 , 118 , and 120 are used to periodically sample the integer counter 110 , 112 , and 114 associated therewith at a particular sample rate . in general the data stream is divided into a series of consecutive time slots , wherein the integer counter is sampled at substantially the same point within each timeslot . the selection of a timeslot size is a system specific parametric and is determined by the counter size , the size of a data input memory data buffer , and the data rate . in general , the data input memory buffer is able to absorb some variation in the data throughput rate , such that the timeslot size and sample period should be selected to avoid deviations in data rate that are unable to be absorbed by the buffer . the calculation logic 122 first determines an error value for timeslot “ n ” that is equal to the quantity of data transferred in the timeslot minus the historical mean data rate value , i . e ., the mean data rate value as determined in the previous timeslot . the current mean data rate value is equal to the mean data rate value of the previous timeslot minus the error value of the current timeslot times a first predetermined multiplier . the current deviation data rate value is equal to the deviation value of the previous timeslot plus the product of a second predetermined multiplier multiplied by the difference of the absolute value of the error value of the current timeslot minus the deviation value of the previous timeslot . these equations are illustrated below . d n = d n − 1 + g *(\| err n \| d n − 1 ) ( 3 ) where n is the current time slot and n — 1 is the previous time slot , and h and g are typically negative powers of two . in general h is greater than g . in a preferred embodiment h is equal to ¼ th and g is equal to ⅛ th . accordingly , the preferred embodiment of the system is able to advantageously provide data in a more timely fashion than current systems that use floating point calculations by using integer calculations . each link therefore has associated therewith an estimated mean and an estimated deviation of the data rate through the link that may be used by a data stream management system . in particular , a data stream management system can include routing logic that receives a data stream as an input and provides a portion of that data stream to a predetermined port or link , wherein the port or link is selected as a function of the current mean data rate value and the current deviation data rate value of the available port or link . in particular , a bandwidth metric for each port or link may be determined by adding the current mean data rate value to the product of a third predetermined multiplier , “ k ”, and the current deviation data rate value . this is equivalent to expressing the data rate value within a selected confidence interval , such that for a particular value of k , the probability that the mean data rate value will be within that range is predetermined . for example , for k = 1 the mean data rate value will be within plus or minus one deviation of the calculated value with a probability of approximately 0 . 7 . for k = 2 , the probability that the mean data rate value will be within the particular confidence interval that is plus or minus two deviations of the mean data rate value with a probability that is approximately 0 . 95 , and for k = 3 , the probability that the data rate mean value will be within the confidence interval that is plus or minus three deviations of the mean data rate value with a probability that is 0 . 99 . thus , the bandwidth metric calculated above can be used as an estimate of the traffic carried on a particular link within specific confidence intervals . using the above calculated metric , load balancing may be performed by the data stream management system . in particular , data rate estimators , i . e ., the mean data rate value and a deviation data rate value are calculated for each link and the utilized bandwidth metric described above is calculated for each link as well . when a data stream is received by the routing logic , the routing logic is provided with the utilized bandwidth metrics calculated for each of the links connected thereto . the routing logic is configured and arranged such that the incoming data stream is routed to the link having the lowest utilized bandwidth metric as calculated using the methods described above . in this way the incoming data stream is provided to the link having the most available bandwidth out of the selection of links . in one embodiment , a value of k = 3 is used to provide a confidence interval as described above of approximately 0 . 9973 . selecting a higher confidence interval , i . e ., selecting a larger value of k , allows for a higher probability that the particular link will be able to handle the bandwidth and data rate of the switched traffic and that there is a lower probability that the particular link will be blocked or otherwise overtaxed and result in the loss of data . in the event that two links have the same value of the bandwidth metric calculated above , a predetermined criteria can be used to select which of the two links receives the data stream . [ 0017 ] fig2 depicts another embodiment of the presently described data stream management system 200 in which data rate parameters are determined for one or more output ports each of which includes a plurality of links associated therewith . the data rate parameters calculated for each output port are used to route additional data streams to a particular output port but not necessarily to an individual link within that port . in particular , as depicted in fig2 the plurality of output ports 202 , 204 , and 206 each include a link routing module 208 , 210 , and 212 respectively , and a plurality of links associated with each output port and coupled to the respective link routing module . in particular , port 202 includes links 201 , 203 , and 205 , port 204 includes links 207 , 209 , and 211 , and port 206 includes links 213 , 215 , and 217 . each port 202 , 204 , and 206 has associated therewith an integer counter 214 , 216 , and 218 respectively that receives an incoming data stream 218 from port routing logic 228 . each counter 214 , 216 , and 218 has associated therewith sampling logic 220 , 222 , and 224 respectively . the integer counters each respond to a predetermined event associated with a transmission of data by incrementing its internal counter . the sampling logic is configured and arranged to periodically sample the corresponding integer counter and to provide this data count to a calculation logic 226 . the calculation logic 226 determines parameters associated with each output port and provides this data to the port routing logic 228 . in particular , the calculation module 226 determines the aggregate port parameters using equations 1 , 2 , and 3 above . in one embodiment , the calculation logic module 226 also computes the bandwidth metric as described above for each port . the calculation module then subtracts the bandwidth metric for each port from the total available bandwidth of that port and provides this difference for each port to the port routing logic 228 . the port routing logic 228 receives an incoming data stream and switches this incoming data stream to the port having the largest difference value calculated above . in this way , the port routing logic 228 switches the incoming data stream to the output port having the largest available bandwidth . by selecting k sufficiently large in the formula above for the bandwidth metric , i . e ., 3 or 4 , a large confidence interval of the upper and lower values of the data is established . thus , there will be a high probability that the average data rate for the corresponding port will be within the upper and lower values determined by the end points of the confidence interval . accordingly , a higher probability can assure that the particular output port will not need extra bandwidth above that which has been already allocated . therefore based on the upper and lower end points determined above , lower priority data may be transmitted through a port that has been reserved for higher priority data with a high probability that the port will not be overtaxed with the concomitant loss of data and blockage . in this way , telecom and data service providers may utilize these data links for other , lower priority traffic . this allows the telecom and data service providers an opportunity to increase the revenue available from these data links by utilizing more of the available bandwidth with a high degree of confidence that the lower priority data added to the link will not result in the blockage and potential loss of higher priority data . [ 0020 ] fig3 depicts a flow chart illustrating a method for generating a plurality of metrics indicative of link utilization via integer operations for use in load balancing . in particular , a plurality of output ports receives a corresponding plurality of data streams , as depicted in step 300 . each data stream is transmitted from the corresponding output port , as depicted in step 302 . for each of the plurality of output ports , an integer counter associated with the respective output port is incremented in response to the transmission of the data stream from the output port , as depicted in step 304 . for each of the plurality of output ports , the respective integer counters is periodically sampled and a value indicative of the quantity of data transmitted through the respective output port is obtained , as depicted in step 306 . for each of the plurality of output ports , the metric is calculated from a current error value , a current mean value , and a current deviation value as discussed above and as depicted in step 308 . more specifically , the current error value is equal to the quantity of data transmitted through the respective output port in the last sampling period minus a historical mean value of the data transmitted through the respective output port over one or more sampling periods . the current mean value is equal to the historical mean value of the data transmitted through the respective output port over one or more sampling periods plus the product of a first predetermined multiplier times the current error value of the respective output port . the current deviation value is equal to a historical deviation value , which is the deviation value over one or more sampling periods , plus the product of a second predetermined multiplier multiplied by the difference of the absolute value of the current error value for the respective output port minus the historical deviation value for the respective output port . based on the metrics for the respective ports , a determination may be made as to which output port the next incoming data stream is to be routed , as depicted in step 310 . [ 0021 ] fig4 depicts a flow chart illustrating a method for generating at least one metric indicative of the link utilization via integer operations for assigning unused transmission bandwidth . in particular a data stream is received by an output port , as depicted in step 400 . the data stream is transmitted from the output port , as depicted in step 402 . an integer counter associated with the output port is incremented in response to the transmission of the data stream from the output port , as depicted in step 404 . the integer counter is sampled and a value indicative of the quantity of data transmitted through the output port during the sampling period is obtained , as depicted in step 406 . a metric is generated for the output port , based on a current error value , a current mean value , and a current deviation value , as depicted in step 408 . the current error value is equal to the quantity of data transmitted through the output port in the last sampling period minus a historical mean value of the data transmitted through the port over one or more sampling periods . the current mean value is equal to the historical mean value of the data transmitted through the output port over one or more sampling periods plus the product of a first predetermined multiplier times the current error value . the current deviation value is equal to a historical deviation value , which is the deviation value of the output port over one or more sampling periods , plus the product of a second predetermined multiplier multiplied by the difference of the absolute value of the current error value minus the historical deviation value . the metric indicative of link utilization is generated as discussed above . based on the link utilization metric , a determination is made as discussed above , whether lower priority data traffic is to be transmitted via the output port . those of ordinary skill in the art should further appreciate that variations to and modifications of the above described methods and apparatus for data stream management system and method can be made . accordingly , the invention should not be viewed as limited except by the scope and spirit of the appended claims .	7
fig1 schematically illustrates an example gas turbine engine 20 that includes a fan section 22 , a compressor section 24 , a combustor section 26 and a turbine section 28 . alternative engines might include an augmenter section ( not shown ) among other systems or features . the fan section 22 drives air along a bypass flow path b while the compressor section 24 draws air in along a core flow path c where air is compressed and communicated to a combustor section 26 . in the combustor section 26 , air is mixed with fuel and ignited to generate a high pressure exhaust gas stream that expands through the turbine section 28 where energy is extracted and utilized to drive the fan section 22 and the compressor section 24 . although the disclosed non - limiting embodiment depicts a turbofan gas turbine engine , it should be understood that the concepts described herein are not limited to use with turbofans as the teachings may be applied to other types of turbine engines ; for example a turbine engine including a three - spool architecture in which three spools concentrically rotate about a common axis and where a low spool enables a low pressure turbine to drive a fan via a gearbox , an intermediate spool that enables an intermediate pressure turbine to drive a first compressor of the compressor section , and a high spool that enables a high pressure turbine to drive a high pressure compressor of the compressor section . the example engine 20 generally includes a low speed spool 30 and a high speed spool 32 mounted for rotation about an engine central longitudinal axis a relative to an engine static structure 36 via several bearing systems 38 . it should be understood that various bearing systems 38 at various locations may alternatively or additionally be provided . the low speed spool 30 generally includes an inner shaft 40 that connects a fan having fan blades 42 and a low pressure ( or first ) compressor section 44 to a low pressure ( or first ) turbine section 46 . the inner shaft 40 drives the fan blades 42 through a speed change device , such as a geared architecture 48 , to drive the fan blades 42 at a lower speed than the low speed spool 30 . the high - speed spool 32 includes an outer shaft 50 that interconnects a high pressure ( or second ) compressor section 52 and a high pressure ( or second ) turbine section 54 . the inner shaft 40 and the outer shaft 50 are concentric and rotate via the bearing systems 38 about the engine central longitudinal axis a . a combustor 56 is arranged between the high pressure compressor 52 and the high pressure turbine 54 . in one example , the high pressure turbine 54 includes at least two stages to provide a double stage high pressure turbine 54 . in another example , the high pressure turbine 54 includes only a single stage . as used herein , a “ high pressure ” compressor or turbine experiences a higher pressure than a corresponding “ low pressure ” compressor or turbine . the example low pressure turbine 46 has a pressure ratio that is greater than about 5 . the pressure ratio of the example low pressure turbine 46 is measured prior to an inlet of the low pressure turbine 46 as related to the pressure measured at the outlet of the low pressure turbine 46 prior to an exhaust nozzle . a mid - turbine frame 57 of the engine static structure 36 is arranged generally between the high pressure turbine 54 and the low pressure turbine 46 . the mid - turbine frame 57 further supports bearing systems 38 in the turbine section 28 as well as setting airflow entering the low pressure turbine 46 . the core airflow c is compressed by the low pressure compressor 44 then by the high pressure compressor 52 mixed with fuel and ignited in the combustor 56 to produce high speed exhaust gases that are then expanded through the high pressure turbine 54 and low pressure turbine 46 . the mid - turbine frame 57 includes vanes 59 , which are in the core airflow path and function as an inlet guide vane for the low pressure turbine 46 . utilizing the vane 59 of the mid - turbine frame 57 as the inlet guide vane for low pressure turbine 46 decreases the length of the low pressure turbine 46 without increasing the axial length of the mid - turbine frame 57 . reducing or eliminating the number of vanes in the low pressure turbine 46 shortens the axial length of the turbine section 28 . thus , the compactness of the gas turbine engine 20 is increased and a higher power density may be achieved . the disclosed gas turbine engine 20 in one example is a high - bypass geared aircraft engine . in a further example , the gas turbine engine 20 includes a bypass ratio greater than about six ( 6 ), with an example embodiment being greater than about ten ( 10 ). the example geared architecture 48 is an epicyclical gear train , such as a planetary gear system , star gear system or other known gear system , with a gear reduction ratio of greater than about 2 . 3 . in one disclosed embodiment , the gas turbine engine 20 includes a bypass ratio greater than about ten ( 10 : 1 ) and the fan diameter is significantly larger than an outer diameter of the low pressure compressor 44 . it should be understood , however , that the above parameters are only exemplary of one embodiment of a gas turbine engine including a geared architecture and that the present disclosure is applicable to other gas turbine engines . a significant amount of thrust is provided by the bypass flow b due to the high bypass ratio . the fan section 22 of the engine 20 is designed for a particular flight condition — typically cruise at about 0 . 8 mach and about 35 , 000 feet . the flight condition of 0 . 8 mach and 35 , 000 ft ., with the engine at its best fuel consumption — also known as “ bucket cruise thrust specific fuel consumption (‘ tsfc ’)”— is the industry standard parameter of pound - mass ( lbm ) of fuel per hour being burned divided by pound - force ( lbf ) of thrust the engine produces at that minimum point . “ low fan pressure ratio ” is the pressure ratio across the fan blade alone , without a fan exit guide vane (“ fegv ”) system . the low fan pressure ratio as disclosed herein according to one non - limiting embodiment is less than about 1 . 50 . in another non - limiting embodiment the low fan pressure ratio is less than about 1 . 45 . “ low corrected fan tip speed ” is the actual fan tip speed in ft / sec divided by an industry standard temperature correction of [( tram ° r )/( 518 . 7 ° r )] 0 . 5 . the “ low corrected fan tip speed ”, as disclosed herein according to one non - limiting embodiment , is less than about 1150 ft / second . the fan section 22 is shown in more detail in fig2 a - 2c . the fan section 22 includes multiple circumferentially arranged fan blades 42 . platforms 60 , or spacers , are arranged between adjacent fan blades 42 and may be integral with or discrete from the fan blades 42 . referring to fig2 a and 2b , the fan blades 42 are mounted to a fan hub 62 . a nose cone 64 is arranged forward of the fan blades 42 to provide an aerodynamic inner flowpath through the fan section 22 along with the platforms 60 . the nose cone 64 is provided by a spinner 66 and a cap 70 . the nose cone 66 is secured to the fan hub 62 , via a lock ring 96 ( fig2 b ), by fasteners 68 . the cap 70 is secured to the spinner 66 by fasteners 72 . a one - piece nose cone may also be used in which the cap 70 is integrated with the spinner 66 . referring to fig2 b , the platform 60 includes first and second flanges 74 , 76 secured to corresponding attachment features on the fan hub 62 respectively by fasteners 78 , 80 . the fasteners 68 , 72 , 78 , 80 are schematically depicted in fig2 a and 2b by simple , thickened lines for clarity . the arrangement shown in fig2 b is exemplary , and other platform configurations may be used , if desired . referring to fig2 c , each fan blade 42 has an airfoil 82 . each platform 60 has an outer surface 84 , which together form a ring with the other platforms 60 , spaced about axis a to provide an aerodynamic inner flow path surface . though close fitting , a circumferential gap 86 exists between each platform outer surface 84 and an adjacent fan blade 42 . each gap 86 is blocked with a seal 88 to minimize a loss of airflow through the gas turbine engine 10 . as shown in fig3 , a single lock ring 96 is used to axially retain the fan blades to the fan hub 62 . the spinner 66 is secured directly to the lock ring 96 using first and second fastening elements 100 , 108 . in the example shown , an integral flange 110 of the spinner 66 is secured to the lock ring 96 . a separate bracket may be used if desired . access to the second fastening element 108 is provided through a cavity 109 of the spinner 66 with the cap 70 ( illustrated in fig2 a ) removed . referring to fig4 a and 4b , the fan hub 62 includes an annular recess 92 that receives the lock ring 96 in a locked position . an unlocked position is illustrated in fig4 a . circumferentially spaced apart hub tabs 94 are provided on the fan hub 62 . in the unlocked position , circumferentially spaced ring tabs 98 are received in the gaps provided between the hub tabs 94 to permit the lock ring 96 to be slid into the annular recess 92 . the lock ring 96 is rotated from this unlocked position to at least partially align the hub tabs 94 and the ring tabs 98 , which prevents axial movement of the lock ring 96 with respect to the fan hub 62 . in this position , a back side of the lock ring 96 abuts the roots 99 of the fan blades 42 , as shown in fig4 b . with continuing reference to fig4 b , the first fastening element 100 , which is a bolt in the example , extends through a hole 106 in the lock ring 96 . as best shown in fig5 , a back side of the lock ring 96 includes a locating feature 104 , such a notch , which cooperates with a head 102 of the first fastening element 100 to prevent rotation of the first fastening element 100 during tightening of the second fastening element 108 . returning to fig4 b , the flange 110 includes an inner diameter 124 , which cooperates with an annular shoulder 122 of the fan hub 62 to precisely locate the spinner 66 relative to the fan hub on the common axis a . the spinner could be radially located with respect to the lock ring 96 , if desired . a corresponding aperture 112 in the flange 110 receives the first fastening element 100 . the flange 110 is secured to the first fastening element 100 by tightening of the second fastening element 108 , which is a nut in the example . multiple circumferentially arranged locating elements , in this example , pins 118 are used to circumferentially lock the lock ring 96 with respect to the fan hub 62 , as shown in fig6 . first and second slots 114 , 116 , which are arcuate in shape in one example , are respectively provided in the lock ring 96 and the fan hub 62 to receive discrete pins 118 in an interference fit relationship . in the example , the pins 118 prevent rotational movement of the lock ring 96 relative the fan hub 62 . an end of each pin 120 is generally flush with respect to a front face of the lock ring 96 , as best shown in fig7 . the flange 110 abuts the ends 120 to prevent the pins 118 from backing out of the first and second slots 114 , 116 . although an example embodiment has been disclosed , a worker of ordinary skill in this art would recognize that certain modifications would come within the scope of the claims . for that reason , the following claims should be studied to determine their true scope and content .	5
fig1 a illustrates a general partial fragmentary schematic view of a gas turbofan engine 10 suspended from an engine pylon 12 within an engine nacelle assembly n as is typical of an aircraft designed for subsonic operation . the turbofan engine 10 includes a core engine within a core nacelle c that houses a low spool 14 and high spool 24 . the low spool 14 includes a low pressure compressor 16 and low pressure turbine 18 . the low spool 14 drives a fan section 20 connected to the low spool 14 either directly or through a gear train 25 . the high spool 24 includes a high pressure compressor 26 and high pressure turbine 28 . a combustor 30 is arranged between the high pressure compressor 26 and high pressure turbine 28 . the low and high spools 14 , 24 rotate about an engine axis of rotation a . the engine 10 in one non - limiting embodiment is a high - bypass geared architecture aircraft engine . in one disclosed , non - limiting embodiment , the engine 10 bypass ratio is greater than about six ( 6 ), with an example embodiment being greater than about ten ( 10 ), the gear train 25 is an epicyclic gear train such as a planetary gear system or other gear system with a gear reduction ratio of greater than about 2 . 3 and the low pressure turbine 18 has a pressure ratio that is greater than about 5 . in one disclosed embodiment , the engine 10 bypass ratio is greater than ten ( 10 : 1 ), the turbofan diameter is significantly larger than that of the low pressure compressor 16 , and the low pressure turbine 18 has a pressure ratio that is greater than 5 : 1 . the gear train 25 may be an epicycle gear train such as a planetary gear system or other gear system with a gear reduction ratio of greater than about 2 . 5 : 1 . it should be understood , however , that the above parameters are only exemplary of one embodiment of a geared architecture engine and that the present invention is applicable to other gas turbine engines including direct drive turbofans . airflow enters the fan nacelle f which at least partially surrounds the core nacelle c . the fan section 20 communicates airflow into the core nacelle c to the low pressure compressor 16 . core airflow compressed by the low pressure compressor 16 and the high pressure compressor 26 is mixed with the fuel in the combustor 30 where is ignited , and burned . the resultant high pressure combustor products are expanded through the high pressure turbine 28 and low pressure turbine 18 . the turbines 28 , 18 are rotationally coupled to the compressors 26 , 16 respectively to drive the compressors 26 , 16 in response to the expansion of the combustor product . the low pressure turbine 18 also drives the fan section 20 through gear train 25 . a core engine exhaust e exits the core nacelle c through a core nozzle 43 defined between the core nacelle c and a tail cone 33 . with reference to fig1 b , the low pressure turbine 18 includes a low number of stages , which , in the illustrated non - limiting embodiment , includes three turbine stages , 18 a , 18 b , 18 c . the gear train 22 operationally effectuates the significantly reduced number of stages within the low pressure turbine 18 . the three turbine stages , 18 a , 18 b , 18 c facilitate a lightweight and operationally efficient engine architecture . it should be appreciated that a low number of stages contemplates , for example , three to six ( 3 - 6 ) stages . low pressure turbine 18 pressure ratio is pressure measured prior to inlet of low pressure turbine 18 as related to the pressure at the outlet of the low pressure turbine 18 prior to exhaust nozzle . thrust is a function of density , velocity , and area . one or more of these parameters can be manipulated to vary the amount and direction of thrust provided by the bypass flow b . the variable area fan nozzle (“ vafn ”) 42 operates to effectively vary the area of the fan nozzle exit area 44 to selectively adjust the pressure ratio of the bypass flow b in response to a controller c . low pressure ratio turbofans are desirable for their high propulsive efficiency . however , low pressure ratio fans may be inherently susceptible to fan stability / flutter problems at low power and low flight speeds . the vafn 42 allows the engine to change to a more favorable fan operating line at low power , avoiding the instability region , and still provide the relatively smaller nozzle area necessary to obtain a high - efficiency fan operating line at cruise . a significant amount of thrust is provided by the bypass flow b due to the high bypass ratio . the fan section 20 of the engine 10 is designed for a particular flight condition — typically cruise at about 0 . 8 mach and about 35 , 000 feet . the flight condition of 0 . 8 mach and 35 , 000 ft , with the engine at its best fuel consumption — also known as “ bucket cruise thrust specific fuel consumption (‘ tsfct ’)”— is the industry standard parameter of lbm of fuel being burned divided by lbf of thrust the engine produces at that minimum point . “ low fan pressure ratio ” is the pressure ratio across the fan blade alone , without the fan exit guide vane (“ fegv ”) system 36 . the low fan pressure ratio as disclosed herein according to one non - limiting embodiment is less than about 1 . 45 . “ low corrected fan tip speed ” is the actual fan tip speed in ft / sec divided by an industry standard temperature correction of [( tambient deg r )/ 518 . 7 )̂ 0 . 5 ]. the “ low corrected fan tip speed ” as disclosed herein according to one non - limiting embodiment is less than about 1150 ft / second . as the fan blades within the fan section 20 are efficiently designed at a particular fixed stagger angle for an efficient cruise condition , the vafn 42 is operated to effectively vary the fan nozzle exit area 44 to adjust fan bypass air flow such that the angle of attack or incidence on the fan blades is maintained close to the design incidence for efficient engine operation at other flight conditions , such as landing and takeoff to thus provide optimized engine operation over a range of flight conditions with respect to performance and other operational parameters such as noise levels . the engine static structure 44 generally has sub - structures including a case structure often referred to as the engine backbone . the engine static structure 44 generally includes a fan case 46 , an intermediate case ( imc ) 48 , a high pressure compressor case 50 , a combustor case 52 a , a high pressure turbine case 52 b , a thrust case 52 c , a low pressure turbine case 54 , and a turbine exhaust case 56 ( fig1 b ). alternatively , the combustor case 52 a , the high pressure turbine case 52 b and the thrust case 52 c may be combined into a single case . it should be understood that this is an exemplary configuration and any number of cases may be utilized . the fan section 20 includes a fan rotor 32 with a plurality of circumferentially spaced radially outwardly extending fan blades 34 . the fan blades 34 are surrounded by the fan case 46 . the core engine case structure is secured to the fan case 46 at the imc 48 which includes a multiple of circumferentially spaced radially extending struts 40 which radially span the core engine case structure and the fan case 20 . the engine static structure 44 further supports a bearing system upon which the turbines 28 , 18 , compressors 26 , 16 and fan rotor 32 rotate . a # 1 fan dual bearing 60 which rotationally supports the fan rotor 32 is axially located generally within the fan case 46 . the # 1 fan dual bearing 60 is preloaded to react fan thrust forward and aft ( in case of surge ). a # 2 lpc bearing 62 which rotationally supports the low spool 14 is axially located generally within the intermediate case ( imc ) 48 . the # 2 lpc bearing 62 reacts thrust . a # 3 fan dual bearing 64 which rotationally supports the high spool 24 and also reacts thrust . the # 3 fan bearing 64 is also axially located generally within the imc 48 just forward of the high pressure compressor case 50 . a # 4 bearing 66 which rotationally supports a rear segment of the low spool 14 reacts only radial loads . the # 4 bearing 66 is axially located generally within the thrust case 52 c in an aft section thereof . a # 5 bearing 68 rotationally supports the rear segment of the low spool 14 and reacts only radial loads . the # 5 bearing 68 is axially located generally within the thrust case 52 c just aft of the # 4 bearing 66 . it should be understood that this is an exemplary configuration and any number of bearings may be utilized . the # 4 bearing 66 and the # 5 bearing 68 are supported within a mid - turbine frame ( mtf ) 70 to straddle radially extending structural struts 72 which are preloaded in tension ( fig1 c - 1d ). the mtf 70 provides aft structural support within the thrust case 52 c for the # 4 bearing 66 and the # 5 bearing 68 which rotatably support the spools 14 , 24 . a dual rotor engine such as that disclosed in the illustrated embodiment typically includes a forward frame and a rear frame that support the main rotor bearings . the intermediate case ( imc ) 48 also includes the radially extending struts 40 which are generally radially aligned with the # 2 lpc bearing 62 ( fig1 b ). it should be understood that various engines with various case and frame structures will benefit from the present invention . the turbofan gas turbine engine 10 is mounted to aircraft structure such as an aircraft wing through a mount system 80 attachable by the pylon 12 . the mount system 80 includes a forward mount 82 and an aft mount 84 ( fig2 a ). the forward mount 82 is secured to the imc 48 and the aft mount 84 is secured to the mtf 70 at the thrust case 52 c . the forward mount 82 and the aft mount 84 are arranged in a plane containing the axis a of the turbofan gas turbine 10 . this eliminates the thrust links from the intermediate case , which frees up valuable space beneath the core nacelle and minimizes imc 48 distortion . referring to fig2 a - 2c , the mount system 80 reacts the engine thrust at the aft end of the engine 10 . the term “ reacts ” as utilized in this disclosure is defined as absorbing a load and dissipating the load to another location of the gas turbine engine 10 . the forward mount 82 supports vertical loads and side loads . the forward mount 82 in one non - limiting embodiment includes a shackle arrangement which mounts to the imc 48 at two points 86 a , 86 b . the forward mount 82 is generally a plate - like member which is oriented transverse to the plane which contains engine axis a . fasteners are oriented through the forward mount 82 to engage the intermediate case ( imc ) 48 generally parallel to the engine axis a . in this illustrated non - limiting embodiment , the forward mount 82 is secured to the imc 40 . in another non - limiting embodiment , the forward mount 82 is secured to a portion of the core engine , such as the high - pressure compressor case 50 of the gas turbine engine 10 ( see fig3 ). one of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure would be able to select an appropriate mounting location for the forward mount 82 . referring to fig4 a , the aft mount 84 generally includes a first a - arm 88 a , a second a - arm 88 b , a rear mount platform 90 , a whiffle tree assembly 92 and a drag link 94 . the rear mount platform 90 is attached directly to aircraft structure such as the pylon 12 . the first a - arm 88 a and the second a - arm 88 b mount between the thrust case 52 c at case bosses 96 which interact with the mtf 70 ( fig4 b - 4c ), the rear mount platform 90 and the whiffle tree assembly 92 . it should be understood that the first a - arm 88 a and the second a - arm 88 b may alternatively mount to other areas of the engine 10 such as the high pressure turbine case or other cases . it should also be understood that other frame arrangements may alternatively be used with any engine case arrangement . referring to fig4 d , the first a - arm 88 a and the second a - arm 88 b are rigid generally triangular arrangements , each having a first link arm 89 a , a second link arm 89 b and a third link arm 89 c . the first link arm 89 a is between the case boss 96 and the rear mount platform 90 . the second link arm 89 b is between the case bosses 96 and the whiffle tree assembly 92 . the third link arm 89 c is between the whiffle tree assembly 92 rear mount platform 90 . the first a - arm 88 a and the second a - arm 88 b primarily support the vertical weight load of the engine 10 and transmit thrust loads from the engine to the rear mount platform 90 . the first a - arm 88 a and the second a - arm 88 b of the aft mount 84 force the resultant thrust vector at the engine casing to be reacted along the engine axis a which minimizes tip clearance losses due to engine loading at the aft mount 84 . this minimizes blade tip clearance requirements and thereby improves engine performance . the whiffle tree assembly 92 includes a whiffle link 98 which supports a central ball joint 100 , a first sliding ball joint 102 a and a second sliding ball joint 102 b ( fig4 e ). it should be understood that various bushings , vibration isolators and such like may additionally be utilized herewith . the central ball joint 100 is attached directly to aircraft structure such as the pylon 12 . the first sliding ball joint 102 a is attached to the first a - arm 88 a and the second sliding ball joint 102 b is mounted to the first a - arm 88 a . the first and second sliding ball joint 102 a , 102 b permit sliding movement of the first and second a - arm 88 a , 88 b ( illustrated by arrow s in fig5 a and 5b ) to assure that only a vertical load is reacted by the whiffle tree assembly 92 . that is , the whiffle tree assembly 92 allows all engine thrust loads to be equalized transmitted to the engine pylon 12 through the rear mount platform 90 by the sliding movement and equalize the thrust load that results from the dual thrust link configuration . the whiffle link 98 operates as an equalizing link for vertical loads due to the first sliding ball joint 102 a and the second sliding ball joint 102 b . as the whiffle link 98 rotates about the central ball joint 100 thrust forces are equalized in the axial direction . the whiffle tree assembly 92 experiences loading only due to vertical loads , and is thus less susceptible to failure than conventional thrust - loaded designs . the drag link 94 includes a ball joint 104 a mounted to the thrust case 52 c and ball joint 104 b mounted to the rear mount platform 90 ( fig4 b - 4c ). the drag link 94 operates to react torque . the aft mount 84 transmits engine loads directly to the thrust case 52 c and the mtf 70 . thrust , vertical , side , and torque loads are transmitted directly from the mtf 70 which reduces the number of structural members as compared to current in - practice designs . the mount system 80 is compact , and occupies space within the core nacelle volume as compared to turbine exhaust case - mounted configurations , which occupy space outside of the core nacelle which may require additional or relatively larger aerodynamic fairings and increase aerodynamic drag and fuel consumption . the mount system 80 eliminates the heretofore required thrust links from the imc , which frees up valuable space adjacent the imc 48 and the high pressure compressor case 50 within the core nacelle c . it should be understood that relative positional terms such as “ forward ,” “ aft ,” “ upper ,” “ lower ,” “ above ,” “ below ,” and the like are with reference to the normal operational attitude of the vehicle and should not be considered otherwise limiting . fig6 shows an embodiment 200 , wherein there is a fan drive turbine 208 driving a shaft 206 to in turn drive a fan rotor 202 . a gear reduction 204 may be positioned between the fan drive turbine 208 and the fan rotor 202 . this gear reduction 204 may be structured and operate like the gear reduction disclosed above . a compressor rotor 210 is driven by an intermediate pressure turbine 212 , and a second stage compressor rotor 214 is driven by a turbine rotor 216 . a combustion section 218 is positioned intermediate the compressor rotor 214 and the turbine section 216 . fig7 shows yet another embodiment 300 wherein a fan rotor 302 and a first stage compressor 304 rotate at a common speed . the gear reduction 306 ( which may be structured as disclosed above ) is intermediate the compressor rotor 304 and a shaft 308 which is driven by a low pressure turbine section . the foregoing description is exemplary rather than defined by the limitations within . many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings . the disclosed embodiments of this invention have been disclosed , however , one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that certain modifications would come within the scope of this invention . it is , therefore , to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims , the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described . for that reason the following claims should be studied to determine the true scope and content of this invention .	5
as shown by fig1 to 3 , a preferred embodiment of the contact carrier 9 may include a frame 1 having gearwheels 2 , 2a , 2b , 2c which are mounted eccentrically on the sides of the frame 1 . in its central region , the contact carrier 9 has a plurality of contacts 3 on its underside , the contacts being arranged resiliently in the vertical direction . on its front end in the push - in direction r of the contact carrier 9 , the contact carrier 9 may be provided with two rollers 4 which are connected to one another by means of an axle 5 and which are respectively mounted on two forward - extending parts of the frame 1 . their axle therefore extends at right angles to the push - in direction r . cylindrical attachments 13 may in each case be provided laterally over the gearwheels 2 , 2a , 2b , 2c , in a manner such that they project outwardly and are connected concentrically to the gearwheels 2 , 2a , 2b , 2c . center rings 7 are provided on the top side of the contact carrier 9 to enable correct placement of a printed circuit board supporting the contact pins 3 . referring now to fig4 the cylindrical attachments 13 of the gearwheels 2 , 2a , 2b , 2c may run on guideways 15 which are arranged horizontally in the reading unit . the teeth 11 of the gearwheels 2 , 2a , 2b , 2c may roll on one or two correspondingly toothed tracks 10 , which are located above and laterally adjacent to guideway 15 . the two tracks 10 , shown for example in fig5 and 6 , extend in the push - in direction r and are separated in accordance with the axial distance between the gearwheel pairs 2 , 2b ; 2a , 2c serve as guide parts for the contact carrier 9 . due to the eccentric mounting ( eccentric axle 6 ) of the gearwheels 2 , 2a , 2b , 2c on the frame 1 as well as the concentric arrangement of the cylindrical attachments 13 on the gearwheels 2 , 2a , 2b , 2c , the contact carrier 9 moves vertically as a function of the distance moved by the frame 1 in a horizontal direction . when the eccentric axle 6 is located at its lowest point relative to the frame as shown in fig4 the contact carrier 9 is lowered , and hence so are the contacts 3 . similarly , when the eccentric axle 6 is located at its highest point relative to the frame 1 , the contact carrier 9 is lifted . this movement is illustrated in fig7 through 9 . the pitch line of the teeth 11 of the track 10 is designated by reference numeral 32 in these figures . in its initial position , shown at the far right of fig7 the contact carrier 9 is located in a central position . the eccentric axles 6 of the gearwheels 2 , 2a , 2b , 2c are located in their rear position referring to the push - in direction r . when the code card 8 is introduced into the reading unit it makes contact with two rollers 4 . the code card 8 may be pulled in , for example , in a known manner such as by means of a friction drive . once the code card 8 makes contact with the rollers 4 , the contact carrier 9 will be pushed along by the motion of the card in the push - in direction r . the gearwheels 2 , 2a , 2b , 2c , which are illustrated by broken lines in fig7 roll in the clockwise direction in the track 10 . in the illustrated embodiment , the contact carrier 9 describes an epicycloid path b as illustrated in fig8 ( note however that the direction of movement illustrated in fig8 is opposite that illustrated in fig7 ). referring further to fig7 and 8 , the point 33 represents a position of the axle ( not shown ) when the code card 8 first makes contact with the rollers 4 . at this point the contact carrier 9 is in a vertically central position . during the further progression of the code card , as shown in the middle portion of fig7 the contact carrier 9 is lowered further until the spring - loaded contacts 3 begin to make contact with a contact - making area ( not shown ) of a code card 8 . this position is identified in fig8 by reference numeral 30 . the effective contact - making length is designated in fig8 by l k . this is the region in which it is ensured that contact is established between the contact area of the code card and the contacts 3 so that the code card 8 can be read . during further progression as shown in the left - most portion of fig7 the contact carrier 9 begins to be lifted from the code card 8 , the contacts 3 relinquishing contact with the contact - making area on the code card at the point designated in fig8 by position 31 . the total distance of movement of the frame l tot is covered when the eccentric axles 6 of the gearwheels 2 , 2a , 2b , 2c have reached top dead center . at this point in time , the contact carrier 9 has been lifted to an extent such that the code card 8 may be transported further in the push - in direction r , for example by sliding under the rollers 4 . since the rollers 4 will roll on the code card , virtually no wear occurs on the code card 8 . alternatively , if the code card 8 is to be returned rather than retained , it may be driven from the central position in accordance with fig7 in a direction opposite that of the push - in direction r . the contact carrier 9 is pulled back into its initial position , for example , by means of spring forces . for the purpose of reliably initiating the reading operation , a switch 20 as shown in fig9 may be provided on the frame 1 . the switch may be located on the frame 1 so as to be activated when the contacts 3 are securely placed on the code card 8 within the contact - making range l k . only then will the reading operation be initiated . the disclosed embodiment thus serves to vary the position of the contact relative to a code card received horizontally by the code card reader as a function of distance of horizontal movement of said code card received by the device . it will be appreciated by those having ordinary skill in the art that the invention may be practiced in the form of other code card reading devices which include alternative means for varying the position of the contact relative to a code card received horizontally by the code card reader as a function of distance of horizontal movement of said code card received by the device . the entirety of german application 196 08 403 . 2 , filed mar . 5 , 1996 , is expressly incorporated herein by reference .	6
referring first to fig1 prior art nozzle of the type described in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 772 , 964 is shown . a nozzle body 10 has a solvent / sample inlet tube 20 which receives a flow of material sample dissolved in a solvent , in the flow direction indicated by arrow 22 . the material is passed through a capillary tube 24 and is emitted from the capillary tube 24 through its end 25 . the capillary tube is typically sized between 50 and 300 micro - meters , and is typically 30 cm . in length . as the material leaves the end of the capillary tube it is broken into droplets by the flow of the pressurized air through the nozzle body 10 , and therefore becomes atomized at the tip 25 of the capillary tube 24 . the orifice in the nozzle outlet 30 surrounding the capillary tip 25 forms the resulting jet of atomized droplets into a narrow conical spray pattern . the sprayed material is deposited in a narrow pattern on a collection foil 40 which has previously been coated with matrix reagent , and which is translated in a direction into and out of the paper while the material is being sprayed . between spray tracks , the foil 40 is repositioned in the direction of arrow 42 , so the next subsequent spray track is deposited along a track parallel to the first track . this activity is continued until the foil is covered with the desired number of tracks for subsequent processing , and it is then removed and a new foil placed under the nozzle body 10 . a source of air or other gas such as nitrogen is fed into a preheater 44 , where it is heated to a predetermined temperature and then passed into the interior of spray body 10 through inlet 50 . the temperature of the preheated gas is controlled by a temperature controller 60 , which monitors the temperature of the heated gas immediately above the nozzle outlet 30 . a block heater 62 is mounted in the body 10 , and its temperature is also controlled by the controller 60 , so that the temperature of the sprayed material is very closely controlled . [ 0010 ] fig2 shows a simplified diagram of the present invention , with the improvements over the prior art nozzle of fig1 . the nozzle of fig2 is designed to spray matrix and solvent , whereas the nozzle of fig1 is designed to spray a solvent and sample . the nozzle of fig2 also has a block heater in the nozzle body comparable to heater 62 ( see fig1 ) which serves the purpose of “ buffering ” or smoothing the gas temperature . a nozzle body 100 has an interior chamber 102 and a number of inlet and outlet openings . an inlet 120 is connected to receive a flow of matrix reagent via inlet tube 121 , in a flow direction shown by arrow 122 . the material is passed into a capillary tube 124 which passes through chamber 102 and , at least along part of its distance , is coiled along a helical path . capillary tube 124 has an outlet end 125 through which the matrix reagent is ejected . a second inlet 144 into nozzle body 100 receives a flow of heated gas through a gas heater 145 , in the flow direction shown by arrow 146 . this heated gas flows through the chamber 102 and out the nozzle body outlet 130 , where it shears off droplets of the matrix reagent being ejected through end 125 and forms the ejected reagent into an atomized spray having a conical pattern . the heated gas also heats the chamber 102 and the capillary tube 124 , as well as the matrix reagent flowing through the capillary tube 124 . a further source of independently controllable gas is passed through a heater 150 in the flow direction shown by arrow 151 . this heated gas is passed through conduits 152 and 153 to a pair of respective spray jets 154 and 155 , placed on respective sides of the spray nozzle outlet . these spray jets are angled obliquely to the axis of the emitted spray , and are positioned to impinge on the conical spray pattern emitted from the nozzle , and to deform the pattern into a flattened , elongated pattern . the flattened , elongated matrix pattern is then deposited on a collector foil for subsequent use as described herein . the air jets 154 and 155 are , in the preferred embodiment , angled at 45 degrees relative to the axis of the emitted conical spray from the capillary tube 124 , and are positioned several centimeters above the foil collection material . an oval pattern , approximately 30 mm wide along its major axis and 8 mm wide along its minor axis is deposited on the foil . the thickness of the applied spray pattern is not perfectly uniform ; the deposit is heaviest at the center and tapers off at the edges . thickness uniformity is increased by making two or three overlapping passes . in one experiment , a material sample comprised of a matrix of a - cyano cinnamic acid and a solvent of 70 % acetonitrile and 30 % ethanol was sprayed through the nozzle . the gas passing through inlet 144 was maintained at a pressure of 5 psi , and a temperature of 45 ° c . ; the gas passing through conduits 152 and 153 was maintained at a pressure of 35 psi and a temperature of 30 ° c . the flow rate of the material sample through the capillary tube 124 was controlled at 1 milliliter per minute ( ml / min ), and the collection foil was moved at 50 mm / min . this experiment produced a continuous adherent film of uniform distribution on the foil collector , and the coating rate was greatly improved over the prior art . the nozzle tip is designed such that the capillary tip is centered within an orifice in the nozzle tip . the sheath gas flows concentric to the capillary tube outlet , and its relatively high velocity shears emergent liquid off the capillary tip , producing a fine nebulized spray of small diameter droplets . the sensible heat of the sheath gas provides evaporative energy for the liquid spray droplets . this is a sensitive control parameter , as we have observed changes in deposition characteristics by simply changing sheath gas temperature by as little as 1 ° c . sheath gas temperature may be sensed and controlled via a temperature probe situated in the nozzle tip . experimentation has shown that successful spray coating is achieved when almost , but not quite all , of the matrix reagent evaporates before the matrix reagent impacts the foil . the matrix chemicals are low molecular weight readily crystallizable solutes , and are unlike polymeric paints applied in spray applications , because a solution of matrix reagent will not appreciably increase viscosity as solvent is evaporated . it will remain a low viscosity solution right up to saturation ; and as such will tend to run under the pneumatic forces of the sheath gas stream impinging on the foil surface , except that the hot sheath gas , properly applied , will evaporate most of the solvent during the droplet &# 39 ; s flight to the foil . therefore , careful adjustment of sheath gas temperature is a critical success factor in the deposition of uniform , coherent and adherent matrix coatings . electron micrographs of the matrix coating applied with the present invention reveal a mat of microscopic , irregularly shaped granules of matrix . the granules are discrete , but are adhered to one another . it is believed that the following process steps occur during matrix deposition : 1 ) droplets of matrix solution are formed while still in the lower section of the capillary ; some , but not all , of the solvent is evaporated , and the droplets are liquid concentrates of matrix . 2 ) as the droplets leave the nozzle tip , the solvent continues to evaporate , resulting in still higher concentration of the matrix in each droplet . 3 ) at some point the droplets become saturated , and matrix solid precipitates within the droplets ; although the matrix chemicals are inherently crystalline , the very short time of evaporation precludes orderly crystal growth . 4 ) the droplets impact the foil surface as a series of “ paste ” or “ mud ” particles ; the small amount of remaining solvent promotes adhesion of the “ mudball ” to the foil surface and / or previously deposited matrix particles . 5 ) over the period of several seconds , all residual solvent evaporates , leaving a coating of co - adhered , microscopic , matrix granules . the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof ; and it is , therefore , desired that the present embodiment be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive , reference being made to the appended claims rather than to the foregoing description to indicate the scope of the invention .	1
this invention relates to a solid state measuring device for use in the electrical and electronic fields to determine and measure various parameters of a . c . power lines . these parametrs include : power factor , phase angle , true power , apparent power , a . c . voltage , a . c . current , and phase lead / lag . the invention is so designed that it can be used to measure the above parameters directly without physically breaking into the power lines . because of the exclusive use of modern state of the art type integrated circuits , the invention is physically small in size and weight . this feature renders it excellent for field use , as well as permanent installations . the invention is simple and straight forward to operate . a person with the most basic knowledge of electricity is capable of using it . the invention accomplishes the measurements of the above stated parameters by taking a sample of the a . c . line voltage by means of a voltage probe and a sample of the line current by means of a clamp type current probe . the output of the current probe is a voltage proportional to the current . the outputs of the voltage and current probes are applied to appropriate circuits in the invention to generate the desired output parameters . the circuits used to generate the desired parameters are so configured as to electronically represent the mathematical equations used to define and calculate the desired parameters . the invention consists of the following components : the voltage squaring circuit 3 ; the current squaring circuit 4 ; the voltage compensated low pass active filter 5 ; the current compensated low pass active filter 6 : the analog summing amplifier 9 : the scaled multiplier 14 : the phase lead / lag detector 11 : and the calibrated output indicator 12 . multi - gang rotary switch 7a , 8a , 10a , 34a , 36a is used as a function select switch . since this invention is a multi - function device , each individual function will be described separately . the order of descriptions will be as follows : to perform any of the above measurements the voltage probe is connected across the a . c . line to be measured and the clamp type current probe is connected around one of the a . c . lines . no interruption of power or disconnection of the a . c . line under test is necessary to perform any of the above mentioned measurements . the voltage input at 1 will be defined as em v cos ( wt ) ( equation 1 ), and the current input at 2 will be defined as em i cos ( wt + p ) ( equation 2 ). the wave form for em v cos ( wt ) is 15 and the wave form for em i cos ( wt + p ) is 16 . with the multi - gang rotary switch 7a , 8a , 10a , 34a , 35a , 36a placed in the 7b , 8b , 10b , 34b , 35b , 36b position respectively , the multi - function ac power meter is configured as a power factor meter . the input voltage 1 and input current 2 , are connected to squaring circuits 3 and 4 respectively . the squaring circuits transform the incoming signals from sinewaves to squarewaves . waveforms 17 and 18 illustrate the outputs of the squaring circuits 3 and 4 . the purpose of the squaring circuits is to nominalize the amplitudes of the incoming voltage and current waveforms 15 and 16 and present a constant amplitude signal to the appropriate compensated low pass active filters 5 and 6 . note that even though the input voltage and input current waves 15 and 16 are transformed into square waves 18 and 19 respectively , the zero - crossing points are not affected . this is extremely important in maintaining the original phase relationship of the input signals . the compensated low pass active filters 5 and 6 have a cutoff frequency equal to the a . c . line frequency and thus remove all the harmonic components of the applied squarewaves and present at their respective outputs 7b and 8b constant equal amplitude reconstituted sinewaves 18 , 19 , of the applied input voltage and input current wave forms 15 and 16 with the original phase angle difference 25 . the outputs of the compensated low pass active filters are applied to the analog summing amplifier . for power factor measurements the analog summing amplifier 9 is configured as a phase detector and calibrated output amplifier . the output of the phase detector will be e o = e v e i cos ( wt ) cos ( wt + p ) ( equation 3 ) where e v cos ( wt ) is the voltage wave 18 and e i cos ( wt + p ) 19 is the current wave . since e v = e i = e because of the signal processing described above equation 3 reduces to e o = e 2 cos ( wt ) cos ( wt + p )( equation 4 ). by trigometric identity equation 4 becomes e o = e 2 [ cos ( p )+ cos ( 2wt + p )] ( equation 5 ). the input of the calibrated output amplifier is filtered to remove the 2nd harmonic component of equation 5 and the resulting output applied to the calibrated output indicator 12 will be e d . c . = e 2 cos ( p ) ( equation 6 ) wherein the difference angle αθ25 is p . this output 21 , 22 is directly proportional to the cosine of the difference angle between the voltage intput 15 and the current input 16 and is the power factor . with the multi - gang rotary switch 7a , 8a , 10a , 34a , 35a , 36a , placed in the 7c , 8c , 10c , 34c , 35c , 36c positions respectively , the multi - function a . c . power meter is configured as a phase angle meter . in this configuration the compensated low pass active filters 5 , 6 , are bypassed , and the analog summing amplifier is connected as an summing amplifier . refer to fig1 . ## equ1 ## t26 is defined as the period of time the leading edge of the voltage waveform 17 at the output of the voltage squaring circuit 3 , to the end of one complete cycle . equation 7 and equation 8 by integration reduce to e v = 0 . 5t ( equation 9 ) and e i =( 0 . 5t - t 1 ) t ( equation 10 ). the inputs , equation 9 and equation 10 , to the analog summing amplifier 9 are algebraically added and the output of the analog summing amplifier is e o = e v e i = 0 . 5t 2 ( 0 . 5t - t 1 ) ( equation 11 ). in this mode of operation the output of the analog summing amplifier 23 , 24 will vary linearly from 0 ° to 90 ° as t , 27 varies from 0 to 0 . 5t . the output of the analog summing amplifier 9 is applied to the calibrated output indicator . with the multi - gang rotary switch 7a , 8a , 10a , 34a , 35a , 36a , placed in the 7d , 8d , 10d , 34d , 35d , 36d positions respectively , the multi - function a . c . power meter is configured as an a . c . watt meter and will measure true power . in this mode of operation , the analog summing amplifier 9 is configured as an phase detector and calibrated output amplifier mode , the same as for power factor measurements . the analog summing amplifier 9 is disconnected from the calibrated output indicator 12 and connected 13 to the scaled multiplier 14 . the scaled multiplier 14 is an analog multiplier , which multiplies its inputs and gives a d . c . level output proportional to the product of the inputs . refer to fig3 . the inputs to the scaled multiplier 14 come from the voltage input 1 and the current input 2 . these inputs 1 , 2 , are individually scaled by scaling circuits 28 30 , depending on their respective amplitudes and then rectified and filtered 29 , 31 . the resulting signals applied to the multiplier section 32 of the scaled multiplier 14 are k 1 e v and k 2 e i where k 1 and k 2 are the respective scaling factors . the output of the multipler section 32 will be e out = k 1 k 2 e v e i ( equation12 ). this signal is applied to the gain controlled output amplifier 33 of the scaled multiplier . the gain of this amplifier is linearly proportional to an applied voltage at its gain control input 13 . the output of the analog summing amplifier is applied to this point . the final output of the scaling multiplier will then be e out = k 1 k 2 e v e i cos ( p ) ( equation 13 ). equation 13 is by definition an expression for true power . the output 39 of the scaled multiplier 14 is applied to the calibrated output indicator 12 . with the multi - gang rotary switch 7a , 8a , 10a , 34a , 35a , 36a , placed in the 7e , 8e , 10e , 34e , 35e , 36e positions respectively , the multi - function a . c . power meter is configured as an apparent power meter . in this configuration both the inputs 7a , 8a , and the outputs 10a of the analog summing amplifier 9 are disconnected completely from the rest of the circuit . the scaled multiplier 14 , functions identically as it does for measuring true power except that the gain control line 13 is set at unity gain . the output of the scaled multiplier will then be e out = k 1 k 2 e v e i ( equation 14 ). this equation is by definition the expression for apparent power , voltage times current ( va ). the output 39 of the scaled multiplier 14 is applied to the calibrated output indicator . with the multi - gang rotary switch 7a , 8a , 10a , 34a , 35a , 36a , placed in the 7f , 8f , 10f , 34f , 35f , 36f position , the multi - function a . c . power meter is configured as an a . c . voltmeter . in this configuration the current input 2 to its respective scaling circuit 30 in the scaled multiplier 14 is disconnected an a fixed reference voltage 37 is applied to the scaling circuit input 35a . the gain control input 38 is set for unity gain . the output of the scaled multiplier will then be e out = k 1 k 3 e v where k 3 is a constant ( equation 15 ). this output is directly proportional to the input voltage and is applied to the calibrated output indicator . with the multi - gang rotary switch 7a , 8a , 10a , 34a , 35a , 36a , placed in the 7g , 8g , 10g , 34g , 35g , 36g position , the multi - function a . c . power meter is configured as an a . c . current meter . in this configuration the voltage input 1 is disconnected from its respective scaling circuit 28 in the scaled multiplier 14 and fixed reference voltage 37 is applied to the scaling circuit input 36a . the gain control input 28 is set for unity gain . the output of the scaled multiplier will then be e out = k 2 k 3 e i ( equation 16 ). this output is directly proportional to the input current and is applied to the calibrated output indicator . the phase lead / lag detector 11 , which functions in all modes of operation consists of 2 resettable mono - stables inter - connected in such a way as to have only one of the mono - stables triggerable depending on the relationship of the phase between the input voltage and input current . fig . no . 4 is a simplified block diagram of the phase lead / lag detector 11 . fig . no . 5 is a simplified truth table for the phase lead / lag detector . mono - stable 51 is used as an enable / disable command and is only triggerable in an inphase condition . the inputs 40 , 41 to the phase lead / lag detector 11 , come from the voltage squaring circuit 3 and the current squaring circuit 4 respectively . the mono - stables 42 and 43 are configured in such a way that they will trigger on the leading edge of an input signal . in a phase lead condition mono - stable 42 will trigger and its q output 44 will go to an &# 34 ; i &# 34 ; state . this output which is coupled to the calibrated output indicator signifying a phase lead condition . the q output 46 will go to a &# 34 ; o &# 34 ; state and is coupled to the reset input of mono - stable 43 inhibiting it . in a phase lag condition mono - stable 43 will trigger and its q output 45 will go to an &# 34 ; i &# 34 ; state . this output which is coupled to the calibrated output indicator signifying a phase lag condition . the q output 47 will go to a &# 34 ; o &# 34 ; state and is coupled to the reset input of mono - stable 42 inhibiting it . in out - of - phase conditions mono - stable 51 has it s q output 52 in the &# 34 ; o &# 34 ; state ; this output is coupled to both mono - stables 42 and 43 an puts them in the enable state . in an in - phase condition , the leading edge outputs of squaring circuits 3 and 4 arrives at capacitors 48 and 49 at the same time . capacitors 48 and 49 differentiate the outputs of squaring circuits 3 and 4 and apply the differentiated pulses to nand gate 50 . since in an in - phase condition both pulses arrive at the nand gate simultaneously , the output of the nand gate will momentarily go from an &# 34 ; i &# 34 ; state to an &# 34 ; o &# 34 ; state . this will trigger mono - stable 51 and it s q output will go to an &# 34 ; i &# 34 ; state disabling mono - stables 42 and 43 . the q outputs 44 , 45 of mono - stables 42 and 43 will remain in an &# 34 ; o &# 34 ; state and the calibrated output indicator will indicate an in - phase condition . the calibrated output indicator 12 consists of an output indicator which depending on the function selected , will display the value of the parameter under test . the output indicator can be either a calibrated analog meter movement or as a calibrated digital readout . phase lead / lag is indicated by &# 34 ;+&# 34 ; or &# 34 ;-&# 34 ; readouts . from the foregoing technical description of the multifunction a . c . power meter it can be seen that this invention is a novel and unique device capable of directly measuring all parameters associated with a . c . power and a . c . power lines . these include power factor , phase angle , true power , apparent power , a . c . voltage , a . c . current and phase lead / lag . the invention requires no external calibration and is simple to use . while the foregoing illustrates a particular embodiment of the invention , it will be understood that many modifications may be made without departing from the spirit thereof .	6
fig1 and 2 were discussed previously with reference to the prior related art . a display in accordance with a preferred embodiment has the capability of displaying information as multi - dimensional , visual information . in addition the display can also convey audio or tactile information to present for example , surround sound location , environmental feel and even such qualities as heat or texture . fig3 displays a relevance field versus topic space mapping as a table in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . multi - dimensional as used in this document refers to information spans at least two axes providing an ordering in as many dimensions as there are axes . thus , two - dimensional organization refers to two axes providing a two dimensional ordering . three - dimensional organization refers to three axes providing a three dimensional ordering . four - dimensional organization refers to four axes providing a four dimensional ordering . five - dimensional organization refers to five axes providing a five dimensional ordering . and so on . a field of relevance as used in this document refers to axes in a multi - dimensional organization . two or more fields of relevance may be either interdependent or independent . a topic refers to any entity that may appear on a display or is associated with content that appears on the display , which may be either a single location or a collection of locations in a multi - dimensional organization . content entities may further be related to topics that provide an organizational mechanism for information . the term mapping as used in this document refers to translating a particular dimension to a particular content entity to provide organization and navigational features for the content . the first row 100 of the table in accordance with a preferred embodiment contains headings for the various columns of the table 102 , 104 , 106 , 108 and 110 . cell 102 contains a heading for a field of relevance also labeled as field 1 . cell 104 contains a heading for a field of relevance also labeled as field 2 . cell 106 contains a heading for a field of relevance also labeled as field 3 . cell 108 contains a heading for a field of relevance also labeled as field 4 . cell 108 contains a heading for a topic also labeled as topic description . in accordance with a preferred embodiment , there may be fewer fields of relevance evidenced by fewer columns in such a table . there may be more fields of relevance evidenced as more columns in such a table . all the topics may be present in a single table similar to this , or at least two tables , with different fields of relevance , may be used to map some or all of the topics to these different collections of fields of relevance or the number of fields of relevance in these different tables may vary from one table to another . what has been described above as columns can be implemented as rows and what has been described above as rows may instead be implemented as columns . in other alternative embodiments , what has been described as a row may be implemented as an instance of a data structure or object class . in other alternative preferred embodiments of the invention , what has been described as a row may be implemented as a linked list , with the entire table being further implemented as a linked list of linked lists . in accordance with a preferred embodiment , the cells of a specific column of the table are associated with a field of relevance . cells of a specific column can be organized as a specific collection of acceptable values in certain preferred embodiments of the invention . the acceptable value collection may be implemented as a binary set . examples of such preferred embodiment implementations include but are not limited to { 0 , 1 }, { true , false } or finite set of discrete elements in certain further preferred embodiments of the invention . examples of such preferred embodiment implementations include but are not limited to { red , green , blue } or { canada , france , mexico , uk , us }. alternatively , the acceptable value collection may be implemented as a set of numeric elements . examples of such preferred embodiment implementations include but are not limited to a specific numeric notation , such as bit length of integers or a specific floating pointing notation . the acceptable value collection may be further implemented as a set , which is a specified numeric range , in certain further preferred embodiments of the invention . examples of such preferred embodiment implementations include but are not limited to a percentages ( which may be represented as integers , fixed point or floating point numbers ) or a specific floating pointing range [− 1 . 234 to π / 4 ]. the acceptable value collection may be implemented as a set of elements , each element being a specific numeric range , in certain further preferred embodiments of the invention . examples of such preferred embodiment implementations include but are not limited to sets of percentage ranges with elements such as [ 0 % to 10 %] and [ 15 % to 100 %] as well as numeric ranges with elements such as [− 5 to + 3 . 12159 ] and [ all numbers at least as big as 10 . 512 ] and [ all numbers not larger than − 1234 ]. fig4 displays an independent salience weighting mechanism in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . a field of relevance field 1 , denoted by 102 , has an associated slider represented by line 154 with endpoints 150 and 156 . slider 154 uses points 152 and 153 representing a range of relevance in certain preferred embodiments . in certain preferred embodiments , point 153 is not visible and point 152 then represents a specific relevance value . field of relevance field 2 , denoted by 104 , has an associated slider represented by line 160 with endpoints 158 and 164 . slider 160 setting 162 is shown at the endpoint 164 . in certain further preferred embodiments , additional interface controls , such as arrow buttons are implemented to extending the range of the slider on one or both ends of the line 160 . field of relevance field 3 , denoted by 106 , has an associated slider represented by line 170 with endpoints 166 and 172 . slider 170 setting 168 is between endpoints 166 and 172 . in certain preferred embodiments , the setting 168 may visit a limited collection of values , sometime as little as two values . field of relevance field 4 , denoted by 108 , has an associated slider represented by line 178 with endpoints 174 and 180 . slider 178 setting 176 is approximately at endpoint 174 . in certain further preferred embodiments , additional interface controls , such as arrow buttons are implemented to extending the range of the slider on one or both ends of the line 178 . fig5 a displays an interdependent salience weighting of two relevance fields 190 in accordance with a preferred embodiment . the points 192 , 194 , 195 and 196 represent particular data associated with a field of interest . fig5 a illustrates that data split between two vertices can be represented on a line . the closer to one end of the line or another is an indication of how strong the influence of the end &# 39 ; s characteristics play in the datum being represented . points 192 and 196 represent the endpoints of the range of relevance between the two fields of relevance in certain preferred embodiments . points 194 and 195 represent a range of relevance in certain preferred embodiments . in certain preferred embodiments , point 195 is not visible and point 194 then represents a specific ratio of relevance between the two relevance fields . fig5 b displays an independent salience weighting of two relevance fields in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . the first relevance field is plotted on the x axis 200 and the second relevance field is plotted on the y axis 198 . the intersection of a particular relevance field in the y axis 204 and a relevance field in the x axis 206 is shown at point 202 which represents the interdependent salience weighting . fig6 a displays an interdependent salience weighting of three relevance fields in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . the three relevance fields represent a way of plotting three vectors 240 , 242 and 244 which determine a unique area 230 determined by the points 232 , 234 and 236 that form a triangle . certain unique areas within the relevant field are also defined 238 . data split between three vertices can be represented in a triangle as shown in fig6 a . data points located at the vertex 232 , 234 and 236 are wholly related to one variable and not at all to the other two . moreover , data points located on one edge may be influenced by two of the vertices but not at all by the third , and data points located with the space of the triangle 238 would be to varying degrees influenced by all three of the vertices 232 , 234 and 236 . finally a data point located at the center of the triangle , would be equally influenced by the three vertices 232 , 234 and 236 . fig6 b displays an independent salience weighting of three relevance fields represented as a three dimensional plot in accordance with a preferred embodiment . a first relevance field is plotted on the x axis 254 , a second relevance field is plotted on the y axis 250 and a third relevance field is plotted on the z axis 252 . a particular set of defining vectors 260 , 262 and 258 uniquely define a volume 256 representing a particular independent salience weighting in accordance with a preferred embodiment , where the defining vectors 260 , 262 and 258 are seen as ranges on the respective coordinate axes . fig7 a displays an interdependent salience weighting of four relevance fields using a triangle and a slider in accordance with a preferred embodiment . three relevance fields are plotted as a triangle as described with reference to fig6 a . then , a slider 270 represented as a line segment with endpoints 272 and 274 is used to provide a fourth relevance field and when a point such as 276 is selected on the slider bar , it uniquely defines the area 238 in the triangle . area 238 may be regarded as the product of ranges of interdependent fields of relevance in certain preferred embodiments . fig7 b displays an independent salience weighting of four relevance fields using a tetrahedron in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . in this figure , three triangles 230 , 242 and 280 are combined with two points 298 and 300 just below the face of the triangle 242 to uniquely define an enclosed region 290 . region 290 in certain preferred embodiments may be chosen to be a rectangular prism or “ cube ”. region 290 in certain preferred embodiments may be chosen to be a tetrahedron . adding a fourth vertex naturally results in a tetrahedron as illustrated in fig7 b where the rules of a three sided form would be multiplied by four ( one set of three for each side ), and thickened by the three dimensional space residing within the tetrahedron , the space providing a space for varying degrees of influence by all four vertices . a problem arises in trying to fit this model onto a two dimensional display device using opaque representations such as photographic or video still images . to begin to solve this problem , the model was simplified by eliminating the inner space where all four vertices interact and by placing data at discrete locations between vertices . effectively , a surface is defined on which data points can be located and modeling this surface as a virtually three dimensional object . a camera , represented by the screen display , is placed at the center of the object looking out at the surface and the observer is given a means for moving around the outside of the object to view all the sides of the surface . this allows the user to navigate around the space , select and focus on data points of interest residing on the virtual display surface and observe the object in detail . the model utilizes the limited placement of data points , so for example , a point located on the vertex , a point halfway between two vertices and a point midway between three vertices . the resultant form is one in which each potential datum placement location forms a flat side of a fourteen sided object as illustrated in fig8 a and fig8 b . on these flat sides sit the opaque representations . the space of a vertex is represented by a hexagon , the space between two vertices is a square and the space between three is again a hexagon . fig8 a illustrates a truncated octahedron composed of planar faces as used in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . the surfaces that make up the truncated octahedron are shaped much like a soccer ball , and when they are cut to transform a three - dimensional object into a two - dimensional object , the resultant surface is illustrated in fig8 b . fig8 b displays the planar faces of the truncated octahedron of fig8 a in accordance with a preferred embodiment . fig9 displays the system block diagram of an apparatus in accordance with an embodiment of the invention supporting the making , displaying , traversal and playing of a multi - dimensional topic space . the apparatus includes an external interface circuit 500 , writeable content store 502 , digital controller 504 , display circuit 518 and selector circuit 522 and speaker circuit 524 . digital controller 504 embodiments include but are not limited to one or more of the following : general purpose microprocessors , dsps , parallel processors , embedded controllers and special purpose system controllers . general purpose microprocessors include but are not limited to various word width cisc and risc . dsps include but are not limited to various word width computers employing instruction sets allowing at least one add / subtract operation as well as at least one operation comparable to multiplication to be performed in a single instruction cycle . parallel processors include but are not limited to simd , mimd , and hybrid simd / mimd organizations of either uniform or non - uniform processors . digital controller 504 embodiments further include but are not limited to one or more microprocessors or dsps along with additional circuitry performing specialized data processing . digital controller 504 embodiments may further include but are not limited to capabilities for mpeg stream partitioning and / or decoding , copy protection processing , decryption , authentication and block data error detection and correction . digital controller 504 embodiments may further include but are not limited to various implementations as plas , cplds , fpgas , asics and assps . digital controller 504 embodiments may further include but are not limited to local memory resources in the form of ram and / or nonvolatile memory and may further include but are not limited to various forms of ram and one or more caching banks of ram . digital controller 504 embodiments of the invention may further include but are not limited to one or more of memory caches physically proximate to and possibly contained within the digital controller 504 embodiments package or packages . memory caching may include but is not limited to separate caching of memory and data . memory caching may further include but is not limited to multiple layers of cache structures . distinct processors within the digital controller 504 embodiments of the invention may further possess distinct caches as well as further localized memory which may in turn include ram and / or nonvolatile memory . digital controller 504 embodiments of the invention nonvolatile memory may further include but is not limited to boot roms and flash memory circuits which may further emulate disk drives with a form of file management system . the external interface circuit 500 is coupled to digital controller 504 as shown by arrow 508 . one external interface circuit 500 embodiment of the invention incorporates a rf tuner including but not limited to demodulators and / or modulators for various broadcast protocols such as fm , fdma , tdma , various spread spectrum protocols , wavelength division multiple access and wavelet division multiple access . embodiments of external interface circuit 500 rf tuners may employ wireline or wireless physical transport layers . embodiments of external interface circuit 500 , wireline physical transports include but are not limited to twisted pair , coaxial cable and various optical fiber mechanisms . embodiments of external interface circuit 500 , wireless physical transports include but are not limited to contemporary broadcast television , hdtv , as well as various radio frequency , microwave and infra red implementations which incorporate an antenna , sensor or array of antennas or sensors . certain preferred embodiments of external interface circuit 500 include but are not limited to modems . embodiments of external interface circuit 500 , modems include but are not limited to telephone line modems incorporating various transceiver rates which may not be the same for reception as for transmission , as well as various dsl , adsl , xdsl , isbn , ethernet , token ring and atm interfaces . embodiments of external interface circuit 500 , modem physical transport layers include but are not limited to wire line and wireless transport layers . embodiments of external interface circuit 500 , modem wire line physical transport layers include but are not limited to telephone lines , twisted pair wire lines , coaxial cabling and various optical fiber technologies . embodiments of external interface circuit 500 , modem wireless transport layers include but are not limited to directional and non - directional radio , microwave , infrared and optical schemes . embodiments of external interface circuit 500 may access external content located at a substantial distance , often embodied within a server supporting a network of user systems via interconnections embodiments of external interface circuit 500 . such networks may further support tcp / ip thereby enabling support for the internet . such networks may further support one or more intranets . such networks may further support one or more extranets . embodiments of external interface circuit 500 may include but are not limited to video input devices , often possessing external interfaces including video frame capturing circuitry . embodiments of external interface circuit 500 may further include image processing circuitry further supporting mpeg compatible compression and / or decompression of the captured video stream . coupling 508 can be implemented as a set of connections directly between external interface circuit 500 and digital controller 504 in certain preferred embodiments of the invention . this coupling 508 can also be implemented as a shared set of connections with other circuitry in other preferred embodiments of the invention . further preferred embodiments include effecting these couplings as transactions on the shared set of connections . further preferred embodiments of the invention include these shared connections forming a bus possessing a bus protocol . further preferred embodiments of the invention include the bus supporting a digital bus protocol . other preferred embodiments of the invention include the bus supporting and encoded digital signaling within an essentially analog protocol , including but not limited to protocols such as firewire ( p1394 ) and other optical fiber communications protocols . the external interface circuit 500 is also coupled to writeable content store 502 as shown by arrow 512 . coupling 512 may be effected by a dedicated interconnection in certain preferred embodiments of the invention . coupling 512 may be further effected by a shared interconnection with other couplings , such as coupling 508 in certain further preferred embodiments . the writeable content store 502 is coupled to a digital controller 504 as shown by arrow 510 . this coupling 510 may be a direct interface to digital controller 504 as a collection of electrical connections to electrical contacts between the package of digital controller 504 and writeable content store 502 . in certain other preferred embodiments of the invention , the coupling 510 may be effected by a high speed communications line including but not limited to fiber channel or atm - sonet between digital controller 504 and writeable content store 502 . the writeable content store 502 is coupled to a display circuit 518 as shown by arrow 514 . this coupling 514 in certain preferred embodiments of the invention may be a direct interface between display circuit 518 and writeable content store 502 . in certain other preferred embodiments of the invention , the coupling 514 may be effected by a high speed communications line including but not limited to fiber channel or atm - sonet between display circuit 518 and writeable content store 502 . display circuit 518 is coupled to digital controller 504 as shown by arrow 516 . this coupling 516 in certain preferred embodiments of the invention may be a direct interface between display circuit 518 and writeable content store 502 . in certain other preferred embodiments of the invention , the coupling 516 may be effected by a high speed communications line including but not limited to fiber channel or atm - sonet between display circuit 518 and writeable content store 502 . display circuit 518 embodiments may further include but are not limited to capabilities for mpeg stream partitioning and / or decoding , copy protection processing , decryption , authentication and block data error detection and correction . selector circuit 522 is coupled to digital controller 504 by arrow 520 . this coupling 516 in certain preferred embodiments of the invention may be a direct interface between display circuit 518 and writeable content store 502 . in certain other preferred embodiments of the invention , the coupling may be effected by a communications line protocol including but not limited to rs - 232 , usb or rs - 485 between display circuit 518 and writeable content store 502 . note that in certain preferred embodiments of the invention , display circuit 518 includes but is not limited to format translation capabilities . in further preferred embodiments of the invention , the format translation capabilities further include and are not limited to mpeg stream decompression capabilities . in other further preferred embodiments of the invention , the format translation capabilities include wavelet algorithmic decompression capabilities . in other further preferred embodiments of the invention , the format translation capabilities include fractal algorithm decompression capabilities . further preferred embodiments of the invention include but are not limited to 3 - d displays as well as multiple perspective displays of higher dimensional continuous content . speaker circuit 524 is coupled to digital controller 504 as shown by arrow 526 . in certain preferred embodiments of the invention , coupling 526 is implemented as a separate physical interface such as wires directly coupling speaker circuit 524 to digital controller 504 . in other preferred embodiments of the invention , coupling 526 is implemented as a collection of at least one kind of bus transaction on a shared bus . in further preferred embodiments of the invention , the shared bus is a usb bus . in other further preferred embodiments of the invention , the shared bus is an isa bus . in certain preferred embodiments of the invention , speaker circuit 524 may share coupling 514 to topic space content store 502 with display circuit 518 . in certain preferred embodiments , this shared coupling may be implemented as a shared bus with addressable devices . note that further preferred embodiments include but are not limited to audio presentation circuitry . further preferred embodiments include but are not limited to force feedback tactile interfaces . fig1 a is a user &# 39 ; s view of a display in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . box 600 depicts a region of display 12 further partitioned into regions 602 , 604 , 606 , 608 , 610 , 612 , 614 and 616 corresponding to faces 402 , 404 , 406 , 400 , 414 , 416 , 420 and 418 of fig8 b , respectively . the user has selected a focal point and orientation in which these faces are visible at the relative proportions projected as displayed . fig1 b is another user &# 39 ; s view of a display in accordance with an embodiment of the invention . box 600 depicts a region of display 12 further partitioned into regions 602 , 604 , 608 , 612 , 614 and 616 corresponding to faces 402 , 404 , 400 , 416 , 420 and 418 of fig8 b , respectively . the user has selected a focal point and orientation in which these faces are visible at the relative proportions projected as displayed . in comparing this figure with fig1 a , it can be seen that the orientation has essentially not changed from the previous figure , but the focal point has moved closer to the face 402 of fig8 b as shown in the enlargement of region 602 . alternatively , the change in view may be effected by narrowing the field of view in certain preferred embodiments . fig1 a is a three dimensional cube diagram in accordance with a preferred embodiment . the cube contains points 700 , 702 , 704 , 706 , 708 , 710 , 712 and 714 . these points are connected by lines 750 , 752 , 754 , 756 , 758 , 760 , 762 , 764 , 766 , 768 and 770 . fig1 b is a three dimensional cube diagram superimposed on another three dimensional cube diagram displaced 772 from the first cube diagram in a fourth dimension in accordance with a preferred embodiment . the first cube contains points 700 , 702 , 704 , 706 , 708 , 710 , 712 and 714 . the second cube contains points 716 , 718 , 720 , 722 , 724 , 726 , 728 and 730 which have been displaced from points 700 , 702 , 704 , 706 , 708 , 710 , 712 and 714 , respectively of the first cube in a fourth dimensional direction 772 . fig1 is a four dimensional cube diagram formed by the translation of the first three dimensional cube diagram to the displaced second three dimensional cube diagram as used for user navigation in accordance with a preferred embodiment . the first cube contains points 700 , 702 , 704 , 706 , 708 , 710 , 712 and 714 . the second cube contains points 716 , 718 , 720 , 722 , 724 , 726 , 728 and 730 which have been displaced in parallel from points 700 , 702 , 704 , 706 , 708 , 710 , 712 and 714 , respectively of the first cube in a fourth dimensional direction 772 . displacement 772 connects points 700 and 716 along a fourth dimension . displacement 774 connects points 702 and 718 along this fourth dimension . displacement 776 connects points 704 and 720 along this fourth dimension . displacement 778 connects points 706 and 722 along this fourth dimension . displacement 780 connects points 708 and 724 along this fourth dimension . displacement 782 connects points 710 and 726 along this fourth dimension . displacement 784 connects points 712 and 728 along this fourth dimension . displacement 786 connects points 714 and 730 along this fourth dimension . the points of the first three - dimensional cube are connected by lines 750 , 752 , 754 , 756 , 758 , 760 , 762 , 764 , 766 , 768 and 770 . the points of the second three - dimensional cube are connected by lines 800 , 802 , 804 , 806 , 808 , 810 , 812 , 814 , 816 , 818 and 820 . the parallel displacements along this fourth dimension provide the remaining lines of the four - dimensional cube , namely displacements 772 , 774 , 776 , 778 , 780 , 782 , 784 and 786 . note that in certain embodiments , the dimensions of the topic space are not related to physical dimensions , such a length , width , depth or temporal displacement . they often refer to other entities , such as coloration , scores on specific tests , etc . fig1 is a tabular graph of points of the four dimensional cube of fig1 and the locations of those points in the four dimensional space in accordance with a preferred embodiment . associated with each point is a location , denoted by four numerals . each numeral component of a location is either ‘ 0 ’ or ‘ 1 ’. the first cube contains points 700 , 702 , 704 , 706 , 708 , 710 , 712 and 714 which share a first location component of ‘ 0 ’. the second cube contains points 716 , 718 , 720 , 722 , 724 , 726 , 728 and 730 which have been displaced from points 700 , 702 , 704 , 706 , 708 , 710 , 712 and 714 , which share a first location component of ‘ 1 ’. the choice of these designations is in accordance with a preferred embodiment chosen to minimize notational and conceptual complexity . the four dimensional cube is the cube occupying the range from 0 to 1 in each of the four dimensions . the original is point 700 , with location ‘ 0000 ’. the four coordinate axes are associated with lines through origin 700 to 702 , 704 , 706 and 716 . fig1 is a tabular graph of the two dimensional faces of the four dimensional cube , their identification numbers and the named points and their locations in each two dimensional face in accordance with a preferred embodiment . examining fig1 shows that the four dimensional cube can be seen to contain 24 two - dimensional faces , known hereafter as faces . these faces will be identified by the numbers : 900 , 902 , 904 , 906 , 918 , 910 , 912 , 914 , 916 , 918 , 920 , 922 , 924 , 926 , 928 , 930 , 932 , 934 , 936 , 938 , 940 , 942 , 944 and 946 . each face is determined by four points of the four dimensional cube . the four points determining a face vary in only two of the location components across all four of these points . the provided table shows the four points , both in terms of the point identifiers and also in terms of the location notation presented in fig1 . face 900 is determined by points 700 , 702 , 704 and 708 . face 902 is determined by points 700 , 702 , 706 and 714 . face 904 is determined by points 700 , 704 , 706 and 710 . face 906 is determined by points 706 , 710 , 712 and 714 . face 908 is determined by points 704 , 710 , 712 and 708 . face 910 is determined by points 702 , 714 , 712 and 708 . face 912 is determined by points 716 , 718 , 720 and 724 . face 914 is determined by points 716 , 718 , 722 and 730 . face 916 is determined by points 716 , 720 , 722 and 726 . face 918 is determined by points 722 , 726 , 728 and 730 . face 920 is determined by points 720 , 726 , 728 and 724 . face 922 is determined by points 718 , 730 , 728 and 724 . face 924 is determined by points 700 , 716 , 718 and 702 . face 926 is determined by points 700 , 716 , 722 and 706 . face 928 is determined by points 702 , 718 , 730 and 714 . face 930 is determined by points 706 , 714 , 730 and 722 . face 932 is determined by points 704 , 720 , 724 and 708 . face 934 is determined by points 704 , 720 , 710 and 726 . face 936 is determined by points 708 , 724 , 728 and 712 . face 938 is determined by points 726 , 712 , 728 and 710 . face 940 is determined by points 700 , 716 , 704 and 720 . face 942 is determined by points 706 , 722 , 710 and 726 . face 944 is determined by points 702 , 718 , 708 and 724 . face 946 is determined by points 714 , 730 , 712 and 728 . the contents of the four - dimensional cube can be examined by presenting the projections of those contents upon one or more of these faces . such a representation is two - dimensional , since the projections onto each face must be two - dimensional . fig1 a is a diagram of a user interface showing the two dimensional faces of the four dimensional cube of fig1 , topic space parameter controls , focal location and orientation controls in accordance with a preferred embodiment . regions 1000 , 1002 , 1004 , 1006 , 1018 , 1010 , 1012 , 1014 , 1016 , 1018 , 1020 , 1022 , 1024 , 1026 , 1028 , 1030 , 1032 , 1034 , 1036 , 1038 , 1040 , 1042 , 1044 and 1046 are used to display the four - dimensional cube contents onto faces 900 , 902 , 904 , 906 , 918 , 910 , 912 , 914 , 916 , 918 , 920 , 922 , 924 , 926 , 928 , 930 , 932 , 934 , 936 , 938 , 940 , 942 , 944 and 946 . identifier 1048 will hereafter represent the collection of displayed face projections , which will be considered to be all of the regions 1000 , 1002 , 1004 , 1006 , 1018 , 1010 , 1012 , 1014 , 1016 , 1018 , 1020 , 1022 , 1024 , 1026 , 1028 , 1030 , 1032 , 1034 , 1036 , 1038 , 1040 , 1042 , 1044 and 1046 . note that in certain preferred embodiments , each of the regions corresponds to a distinct face projection of the four dimensional cube . in certain other embodiments , there are fewer than 24 regions , so that less than all the face projections are displayed . in certain other embodiments , one or more of the regions may display the same face . in certain further embodiments , there are more than the displayed 24 regions , with the contents of certain regions being identical , except perhaps for being rotated or flipped . in certain preferred embodiments , the regions are not all the same size . sliders 1050 , 1052 , 1054 and 1056 control the range of each coordinate axis of the topic space four - dimensional cube as diagrammed and discussed in fig1 a , 11 b , 12 , 13 and 14 above . slider 1050 contains a selection range 1060 . slider 1052 contains a selection range 1062 . slider 1054 contains a selection range 1064 . slider 1056 contains a selection range 1066 . sliders 1070 , 1072 , 1074 and 1076 control the focal point with regards to the four - dimensional cube as diagrammed and discussed in fig1 a , 11 b , 12 , 13 and 14 above . slider 1070 contains setting 1080 . slider 1072 contains setting 1082 . slider 1074 contains setting 1084 . slider 1076 contains setting 1086 . dials 1090 , 1092 , 1094 and 1096 control and display the current orientation of the focal point with regards to the four - dimensional cube as diagrammed and discussed in fig1 a , 11 b , 12 , 13 and 14 above . fig1 b is a diagram of a user interface showing the display region 1048 of two - dimensional faces , topic space parameter controls , focal location and orientation controls in accordance with another preferred embodiment . sliders 1050 , 1052 , 1054 and 1056 controlling the range of each coordinate axis of the topic space four - dimensional cube are distributed along each side of display regions 1048 . sliders 1070 , 1072 , 1074 and 1076 each controlling one coordinate setting of the focal point of the four - dimensional cube are distributed along each side of display regions 1048 . dials 1090 , 1092 , 1094 and 1096 control and display the current orientation of the focal point with regards to the four - dimensional cube are distributed in each of the comers of the display regions 1048 . fig1 c is a detail diagram showing a portion of the display region 1048 in which four exemplary two - dimensional faces , 1000 , 1002 , 1012 and 1014 are displayed in accordance with a preferred embodiment . region 1000 presents the projection upon face 900 , as determined by points 700 , 702 , 704 and 708 . region 1002 presents the projection upon face 902 , as determined by points 700 , 702 , 706 and 714 . region 1012 presents the projection upon face 912 , as determined by points 716 , 718 , 720 and 724 . region 1014 presents the projection upon face 914 , as determined by points 716 , 718 , 722 and 730 . note that each region is oriented in its display by the comer placement of each determining point in certain preferred embodiments . certain further preferred embodiments use a location notation such as found fig1 to denote the determining points of a region &# 39 ; s face . these point notations may appear outside their associated region in certain preferred embodiment . in certain further preferred embodiments , these locations are denoted by graphical symbols . in certain preferred embodiments , adjacent regions may share a pair of common points , thus share a common line segment . fig1 is a diagram showing several transformations of selected content as displayed in response to changes in focal location and / or orientation in accordance with a preferred embodiment . by way of example , three content representations a , b and c are presented in the presentations 1100 , 1102 , 1104 , 1106 , 1108 , 1110 and 1112 . lines 1120 , 1122 , 1124 , 1126 , 1128 , 1130 , 1134 , 1136 , 1138 , 1140 , 1142 and 1144 represent display transitions effected by motion of the focal point determined by the system . a user or software agent may effect such focal point motion in certain preferred embodiments . transition 1120 is between display combination 1100 and 1102 . display combination 1100 shows a large displayed content region a , with smaller regions b and c . display combination 1102 shows displayed content regions a and c comparable in size and slightly overlapping , with region b being smaller and non - overlapping . suppose that display combination 1100 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward the display region c . the system would display combination 1102 by way of transition 1120 . suppose instead that display combination 1102 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward the display region a . the system would display combination 1100 by way of transition 1120 . note that this symmetry of moving a pointing device toward something and a particular transition occurs , move it in the opposite direction and the reverse transition occurs will be assumed from hereon in the discussion of this and other figures . this has been done to simplify the discussion and is not meant to communicate a lack of symmetry between the motion of the focal point and the displayed contents . transition 1122 is between display combination 1102 and 1106 . transition 1124 is between display combination 1100 and 1106 . display combination 1106 shows displayed content regions a , b and c where the three regions are approximately the same size and all of them overlap . suppose that display combination 1100 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward midpoint between display region b and c . the system would display combination 1106 by way of transition 1124 . suppose instead that display combination 1102 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward the display region b . the system would display combination 1106 by way of transition 1122 . transition 1126 is between display combination 1102 and 1104 . transition 1128 is between display combination 1106 and 1104 . display combination 1104 shows a large displayed content region c , with smaller regions b and a . suppose that display combination 1102 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward display region c . the system would display combination 1104 by way of transition 1126 . suppose instead that display combination 1106 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward the display region c . the system would display combination 1104 by way of transition 1128 . transition 1130 is between display combination 1104 and 1108 . transition 1134 is between display combination 1106 and 1108 . display combination 1108 shows displayed content regions b and c approximately the same size and overlapping with displayed content region a smaller and non - overlapping . suppose that display combination 1106 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse downward near the midpoint between display regions b and c . the system would display combination 1108 by way of transition 1134 . suppose instead that display combination 1104 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward the display region b . the system would display combination 1108 by way of transition 1130 . transition 1136 is between display combination 1108 and 1112 . transition 1138 is between display combination 1106 and 1112 . display combination 1112 shows displayed content region b larger in size and overlapping with displayed content regions a and c , which are smaller and overlap with b . suppose that display combination 1106 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward display region b . the system would display combination 1112 by way of transition 1138 . suppose instead that display combination 1108 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward the display region b . the system would display combination 1112 by way of transition 1136 . transition 1142 is between display combination 1106 and 1110 . transition 1140 is between display combination 1112 and 1110 . display combination 1110 shows displayed content regions a and b comparable in size and slightly overlapping , with region c being smaller and non - overlapping . suppose display combination 1106 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward the midpoint between display regions a and b . the system would display combination 1110 by way of transition 1142 . suppose instead that display combination 1112 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward the display region a . the system would display combination 1110 by way of transition 1140 . transition 1144 is between display combination 1100 and 1110 . suppose that display combination 1100 is presented , and that a user moves a pointing device such as a mouse toward display region b . the system would display combination 1110 by way of transition 1144 . fig1 a is a diagram depicting the display of several content representations in accordance with a preferred embodiment . display region 1210 contains regions 1200 , 1202 , 1204 , 1206 and 1208 . content 1200 is approximately the same size as 1202 , 1204 , 1206 and 1208 . note that the sides of content 1200 are not parallel to the sides of 1202 , 1204 , 1206 and 1208 . regions 1200 , 1202 , 1204 , 1206 and 1208 show diverse forms of content . region 1200 may present objects which may each expand into their own presentations . region 1202 may represent a multimedia sequence in motion . region 1204 may represent a program interface , such as a user interface to a simulation environment or video game . region 1206 may represent a text window , which may automatically be scrolling . region 1208 may represent a still frame , such as a map of san francisco . suppose the user directs a pointing device to move the focal point closer to the content 1200 . fig1 b is a diagram further depicting a transformation of several content representations in accordance with a preferred embodiment , which results from moving the focal point closer to content 1200 . note that content region 1200 has grown significantly larger than regions 1202 , 1204 , 1206 and 1208 . fig1 a is a diagram showing interrelationships between content 1302 and a map 1300 in accordance with a preferred embodiment . a preferred embodiment alternatively displays map 1300 and content 1302 . the map 1300 influences the traversal and display of content 1302 as represented by arrow 1306 . arrow 1304 represents the referencing of the map 1300 by movement and manipulation of content 1302 . fig1 b is a diagram showing interrelationships between content 1302 and a map 1300 in accordance with another preferred embodiment , where map 1300 and content 1302 are displayed simultaneously . boundary 1308 between the displayed content region 1302 and the displayed map region 1300 may be further shown with additional attributes in certain preferred embodiments . fig1 c is a diagram showing interrelationships between content 1302 and a map 1300 in accordance with another preferred embodiment , where content 1302 is displayed within map 1300 . boundary 1308 between the displayed content region 1302 and the displayed map region 1300 may be further shown with additional attributes in certain preferred embodiments . fig1 d is a diagram showing interrelationships between content 1302 and a hidden map 1310 in accordance with another preferred embodiment . the hidden map 1310 interacts with displayed content 1302 in a fashion transparent to a user as represented by the ‘+’ sign 1312 . a selector device 1314 may be used to direct the system to present content 1302 based upon the hidden map 1310 across a transport mechanism 1316 . alternatively , a system agent may direct the system to present content 1302 based on the hidden map 1310 . fig1 is a diagram showing the relationship between content in a multi - dimensional topic space and the traversal of content by a viewer over time . content presentations a , b , c and d each take place of a perceptible interval of time for a user . during each presentation , any moment in a presentation may vary in relevance to the presented material the other content presentations . by way of example , a presentation sequence on thomas jefferson may at certain times be close in relevance to the subject of patents , and at other moments in the presentation , be close to the subject of religion , slavery , architecture or languages . this diagram shows by way of example how four illustrative content presentations might be annotated and display such relationships . line 1400 shows the time line for a user viewing presentation a , with a user progressing forward in time by progressing from left to right along line 1400 . line 1402 shows the time line for a user viewing presentation b , with a user progressing forward in time by progressing from left to right along line 1402 . line 1404 shows the time line for a user viewing presentation c , with a user progressing forward in time by progressing from left to right along line 1404 . line 1406 shows the time line for a user viewing presentation d , with a user progressing forward in time by progressing from left to right along line 1406 . box 1410 represents a given moment 1412 for a user viewing presentation a with presentations b and c being close to presentation a as shown in box 1414 . box 1420 represents a given moment 1422 for a user viewing presentation a with only presentation b being close to presentation a as shown in box 1424 . box 1430 represents a given moment 1432 for a user viewing presentation a with only presentation d being close to presentation a as shown in box 1434 . box 1440 represents a given moment 1442 for a user viewing presentation a with presentations d and b being close to presentation a as shown in box 1444 . in certain preferred embodiments , more than one content region would be essentially displayed at the same time . in certain other preferred embodiments , the relations of where content is displayed within the display content boxes may be governed by the geometry inherent in a multi - dimensional space such as displayed and discussed in fig8 a , 8 b , 10 a and 10 b . in certain other preferred embodiments , the relations of where content is displayed within the display content boxes may be governed by the geometry inherent in a multi - dimensional space such as displayed and discussed in fig1 a , 11 b , 12 as well as fig1 , 14 , 15 a , 15 b and 1 sc . fig2 is a flowchart of a method of displaying , traversing , and displaying content in a multi - dimensional topic space in accordance with a preferred embodiment . operation 1500 starts the method , which in certain preferred embodiments , incorporates temporary allocation of required system resources for the operations to follow . arrow 1502 is the first iteration point of this flowchart , directing execution toward operation 1504 , which determines topics in the field of relevance . operation 1504 will be discussed in greater detail during the discussion of fig2 a and 21b . operation 1505 determines content related to the topics determined by operation 1504 . operation 1506 causes the retrieval of content representations . this operation effects transfers between external interface circuit 500 , topic space content store 502 , controlled by digital controller 504 . operation 1508 maps the retrieved content representations into topic space and displays the results . operation 1508 will be discussed in greater detail during the discussion of fig2 . arrow 1510 directs execution to operation 1512 , which determines whether there has been a change in the field of view . in certain preferred embodiments , such changes may be determined by action of a selector device such as 1314 in fig1 d . in certain other preferred embodiments , changes in the field of view may be determined by sliders such as shown in fig4 a and 7 a . in certain other preferred embodiments , changes in the field of view may be determined by sliders such as 1070 , 1072 , 1074 and 1076 as well as dials 1090 , 1092 , 1094 and 1096 as shown in fig1 a and 15b . in certain other preferred embodiments , changes in the field of view may be determined by one or more system agents . if there has been no change in the field of view , arrow 1514 directs execution to operation 1516 , which determines whether content has been selected . such selection may be determined by the use of a selection device 1314 in fig1 d , or by a system agent . if no content has been selected , arrows 1518 and 1510 direct execution to iterate by executing operation 1512 again . if operation 1516 determines that some content has been selected , arrow 1520 directs execution to operation 1522 , which displays the selected content . this operation may present content including but not limited to motion video , audio sequences and programs executing to portray interactions , such as simulations . if operation 1512 determined a change of field of view has occurred , arrows 1526 , 1524 and 1502 direct execution to operation 1504 , discussed above . in certain preferred embodiments , arrows 1524 and 1502 direct execution to operation 1504 before completion of operation 1522 . in certain other preferred embodiments , operations 1512 and / or 1516 may occur essentially concurrently with operation 1522 . in certain preferred embodiments , more than one content may be displayed at essentially the same time . fig2 a is a detailed flowchart showing a preferred determination of content related to topics with reference to operation 1504 in fig2 in accordance with a further preferred embodiment supporting a projection method of mapping the retrieved content representations into topic space and displaying the results . operation 1602 determines the orientation and zoom level from the focal point . the zoom level is inversely proportional to the distance between a face and the focal point . this determination can be performed by monitoring sliders and / or dials of a user interface as shown in fig1 a or 15 b . operation 1604 calculates the field of view given the zoom level and orientation . the field of view will intersect with some , or all , of the bounding surface of the topic space such as the results shown in fig8 a , 8 b , 10 a and 10 b or alternatively as shown in fig1 , 15 a and 15 c . operation 1606 calculates the visual surface area based upon the field of view , zoom level and orientation such as shown in fig8 a , 8 b , 10 a and 10 b or alternatively as shown in fig1 , 15 a and 15 c . operation 1608 determines which topics and subtopics are present in the visible surface area . fig1 , 17 a , 17 b and 19 provide examples of the results of such determinations . fig2 b is another detailed flowchart showing a preferred determination of content related to topics with reference to operation 1504 in fig2 in accordance with an alternative further preferred embodiment supporting a volumetric projection method of mapping the retrieved content representations into topic space and displaying the results . this approach is particularly useful when the topic space contents contains a large number of items . operation 1620 determines the location , orientation , zoom level , depth of field and focus . these parameters operate similarly to comparable imaging parameters in cameras in certain preferred embodiments . in other preferred embodiments , the depth of field and focus can work to chop out rather than fade or blur anything not within a given range of a parameter including but not limited to radial distance from the focus . this determination can be performed by monitoring sliders and / or dials of a user interface as shown in fig1 a or 15 b . operation 1622 calculates the field of view given the location , orientation , zoom level , depth of field and focus . operation 1624 calculates the visible spatial boundary area determined by field of view , depth of field and focus . the field of view will intersect with some , or all , of the bounding surface of the topic space such as shown in fig8 a , 8 b , 10 a and 10 b or alternatively as shown in fig1 , 15 a and 15 c . operation 1626 determines which topics and subtopics are present in the visible boundary area . fig1 , 17 a , 17 b and 19 provide examples of such determinations . fig2 is a detailed flowchart mapping a representation of content in topic space and display with reference to operation 1508 in fig2 in accordance with a further preferred embodiment . operation 1640 determines salience of found content objects to currently present topics and subtopics . found content objects may represent the coordinate axes in certain preferred embodiments . examples of these embodiments may be seen in fig4 a , 5 b , 6 b , 11 a and 12 . found content objects may represent interdependent relationships in certain alternative embodiments as shown in fig6 a , 7 a and 7 b . operation 1642 calculates the spatial location of each content object on relative position to spatial location of each element topic and subtopic and operation 1644 displays each content object representation . examples of the results of these operations are seen in fig7 b , 16 , 17 a and 17 b . fig2 a is a diagram showing a topic space with a focal point and three topics , each possessing a voice in accordance with a preferred embodiment . the topic space 1700 is an interrelated topic space with topical objects 1704 , 1706 and 1708 . the focal point 1702 is a distance from each of the topic objects 1704 , 1706 and 1708 . each voice can be considered to be playing a different melodic component , so that the user virtually located at focal point 1702 experiences proximity and direction based upon the mixing of the voices of the content objects in proportions relative to the respective distances from topics 1704 , 1706 and 1708 . fig2 b is a block diagram showing one channel of the displayed ( generated ) audio content as a function of focal point and the voices of displayed topics in accordance with fig2 a in a preferred embodiment . box 1710 generates the voice for topic object 1704 as signal 1720 which is amplified by 1730 based upon control signal 1750 from box 1760 to create signal 1740 . box 1712 generates the voice for topic object 1706 as signal 1722 which is amplified by 1732 based upon control signal 1752 from box 1760 to create signal 1742 . box 1714 generates the voice for topic object 1708 as signal 1724 which is amplified by 1734 based upon control signal 1754 from box 1760 to create signal 1744 . node 1762 effectively adds signals 1740 , 1742 and 1744 to generate signal 1764 which then drives output speaker 1766 . note that node 1762 may further incorporate power amplification in certain preferred embodiments . in certain other preferred embodiments , signal 1720 , 1722 and 1724 are combined prior to amplification . the invention is implemented on an interactive video composition tool built in macromedia director on a powerpc processor utilizing a macos operating system . the topic space was modeled in strata studio pro and rendered into a quicktime virtual reality scene with hot - spots using apple &# 39 ; s quicktime vr software development toolkit extensions to the macintosh programmers workshop application . pan and zoom controls are provided to facilitate direct manipulation navigation and a set of four topic focusing toggle buttons are provided for specifying interest in the presence of individual vectors or intersections of the vectors which can be set by a user to rotate and zoom the view to focus on that surface of the topicspace . a status bar is also provided to indicate and detail the current topic focus . one of ordinary skill in the art will readily comprehend that a vrml version of the system could place a user in the center of a volumetric representation and provide the illusion of the display occurring around the user . as the video which is annotated with topics distributed in the space is played , the user &# 39 ; s point of view traverses the space coordinated with the track of the video . an alternative embodiment consists of a series of software filters set by check boxes or state buttons with resultant intersections displayed in a dedicated window pane . this technique requires a targeted search and a separate visualization step to allow a user to navigate through the information . because the range of potential advantage extends across a variety of applications for a variety of media types , operating system and development system vendors will incorporate this functional capability into products to provide application developers access to these powerful tools . while various embodiments have been described above , it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only , and not limitation . thus , the breadth and scope of a preferred embodiment should not be limited by any of the above described exemplary embodiments , but should be defined only in accordance with the following claims and their equivalents .	6
for the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention , reference will now be made to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings and specific language will be used to describe the same . it will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended , such alterations and further modifications in the illustrated device , and such further applications of the principles of the invention as illustrated therein being contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates . referring to fig1 , there is shown a schematic top diagram of a geothermal system connected to a building . the building or house 20 is constructed on lot 21 having side boundaries on 22 and 23 along with end boundaries 24 and 25 . a driveway extends from the building to the street or road . six separate geothermal lines 26 - 31 extend beneath ground level and fan out from a pit 32 . each geothermal line 26 - 31 is formed by digging a blind hole into the ground with a separate geothermal tube positioned within each hole forming the geothermal lines 26 - 31 . the tubes within the holes are then connected together funneling into an outlet tube 34 and an inlet tube 35 leading to a conventional heat exchanger 36 located within or adjacent building 20 . pit 32 is formed by rolling back a 4 × 6 foot area of sod using conventional tools , such as , a backfill blade on an excavator . pit 32 is then dug to a depth of five feet and provides a starting point for the six holes leading to the six geothermal lines 26 - 31 . as each hole is dug , pit 32 provides a storage area for the removed dirt and water in a confined area and also allows material to drain back into each bored hole as needed to pack around u - shaped tubes inserted into the six bored holes . while the drawings show a total of six geothermal lines , it is to be understood that the present invention includes less than or more than six lines depending upon the amount of heat exchange required for building 20 . typically , each line must be approximately 150 feet in length to provide one ton of air conditioning . in order to minimize the horizontal space occupied by the lines , the bored holes are drilled downward at an angle relative to horizontal . for example , in fig2 , line 26 includes a bored hole 36 at an approximate angle 17 of 19 degrees relative to a horizontal line 18 . by extending the bored holes down at an acute angle relative to the horizontal , the length of the hole may be optimized given the limitation of the horizontal distance between the boundary lines 24 and 25 of the lot upon which the facility is located . in many cases , rock formations are located beneath ground level 33 . for example , in the event a rock formation or rock layer exists 100 feet below ground level , then if the bored holes are drilled only in a vertical direction , difficulty is incurred for drilling of a 150 foot hole as the drill bit drills through the rock . thus , by orienting the bored hole at an acute angle relative to horizontal , difficulties may be avoided from a rock formation while also maximizing the length of the hole relative to the boundaries of the lot . in the event the bored holes extend beyond the lot boundary line , then covenants may limit the sizing of the length of the hole . the method of the present invention therefore includes the step of orienting the drill rod with attached drill bit at an acute angle relative to horizontal as the hole is drilled in the ground . in order to determine angle 17 , the desired length of the bored hole must first be selected with the acute angle then being calculated given the desired length and either the horizontal distance , permissible by the lot boundaries , of the desired bored hole or the vertical distance , permissible by the depth of rock formations , beneath ground to which the hole is to extend . since pit 32 is only four to six feet across and five feet deep , it is necessary to start boring the hole at a distance from the pit in order to orient the hole at a 19 degree angle relative to horizontal . thus , the drill bit is rotated into the ground at location 86 ( fig2 ) apart from the hole creating a 19 degree hole 85 which enters the pit side wall 87 at location 88 . the drill bit continues to rotate and moves into the pit engaging the bottom wall of the pit creating entrance 55 of hole 36 also oriented at a 19 degree angle relative to the horizontal . it is desirable that hole 55 be created in the bottom wall of the pit in order to allow the material from the hole to exit the hole into the pit and eventually move back into the hole once the heat exchange tube is located in the hole . referring to fig3 , drill rod 42 has one end 41 attached to a conventional hole boring machine 39 such as available from vermeer corporation of pella , iowa . machine 39 has a rotatable output releasably connected to end 41 of rod 42 with the opposite end 43 of the rod connected to a conventional drill bit end portion 38 . in the preferred embodiment shown in fig3 , rod 42 and drill bit end portion 38 are rotated by machine 39 through the bottom of pit 32 ( fig2 ) creating a hole approximately four inches in diameter at a 19 degree angle depending upon the conditions of the ground . each line is sized for approximately one ton of cooling / heating for the geothermal system installed . the entrance 55 of the hole 36 associated with line 26 is provided at the bottom of pit 32 . likewise , each hole created for lines 27 - 31 has a separate entrance . once a hole is created , the drill rod 42 and drill bit 38 are removed from the hole . drill bit 38 is then unthreaded from rod 42 and a drill end portion 37 having a cone shaped closed end 46 ( fig4 ) is mounted to rod 42 . bit 38 and end portion 37 have an internally threaded socket into which the external threaded male end of rod 42 extends . a hooked shaped arm 56 has a proximal end 53 mounted to end portion 37 and forms an open end 52 facing away from rod 42 . arm 56 is used to pull the u - shaped tube 45 ( fig4 ) into the hole once the hole has been bored and the drill rod 42 with end portion 37 is inserted into the hole . after end 46 reaches the blind end of the hole , the rod 42 with end portion 37 is pulled outward leaving the u - shaped tube 45 within the hole . the u - shaped coolant tube 45 is mounted to the arm 56 by any number of fastening means . for example , a cable 47 is extended through the space between tube portion 48 and tube portion 49 of tube 45 . the cable is extended around arm 56 between the space existing between arm 56 and the main body of end portion 37 . a conventional cable clamp 50 then joins the opposite ends of cable 47 securing the u - shaped tube 45 to rod 42 by hooking the tube 45 to arm 56 . so long as rod 42 and end 46 move downward into the bored hole , the arm 56 is operable to pull tube 45 into the hole . once the drill rod 42 is moved in a direction opposite to arrow 51 , cable 47 moves through open end 52 of arm 56 thereby disengaging cable 47 and tube 45 from the arm leaving in place , within the hole , tube 45 while the drill rod and drill end portion are completely removed from the bored hole . excellent results have been obtained by using a 3 / 16 inch braided cable for cable 47 . the width of the cone shaped end 46 must be smaller than the diameter of drill bit end portion 38 so that the bored hole is sufficiently large relative to cone shaped end 46 to prevent interference of end 46 with tube 45 as end 46 is pulled outward from the hole . the opposite end portions 48 and 49 ( fig2 ) of tube 45 extend outward through the entrance 55 of the bored hole and are connected to lines 34 and 35 , in turn , connected to heat exchanger 36 ( fig1 ). the opposite end portions 45 and 49 are connected together by joint coupler 54 . thus , the heat exchange medium is circulated through outlet tube 34 in the direction of arrow 51 , through the tube portion 49 and then back through coupler 54 through tube portion 48 in the direction opposite of arrow 51 to tube 35 , in turn , connected to the heat exchanger . in a similar fashion , a hole is bored for line 27 and then line 28 etc . until all of the bored holes are completed as just described with the drill rod and drill bit then being withdrawn sequentially from each bored hole with a separate u - shaped tube connected to arm 56 and inserted into each bored hole thereby forming geothermal lines 26 - 31 . as each u - shaped tube is inserted in the particular bored hole , the water and dirt within the pit is allowed to flow back into the bored hole . once the inlet tube portion and outlet tube portion of each of the six u - shaped tubes 45 are connected respectively to tubes 34 and 35 , pit 32 may be filled with the sod being replaced . each of the bored holes forming lines 26 - 31 has a bottom blind end against which each coupler 54 may rest . a universal coupler is used to join the end portions 49 to line 34 and end portions 48 to line 35 . an alternate embodiment for installing a geothermal closed loop employs the tool shown in fig5 and 6 . the tool allows for the u - shaped tube to be installed into the bored hole at the same time the hole is being created thereby eliminating one of the steps of the previously described method . further , the drill bit is not removed from the drill rod . thus , drill rod 42 ( fig5 ) has one end 43 connected to drill end main body 95 whereas the opposite end 41 is connected to boring machine 39 . a bearing 70 has an inner race 71 ( fig6 ) fixedly secured to the drill end main body 95 to prevent relative motion between race 71 and the drill rod and drill end main body . the bearing includes an outer race 72 which freely rotates on race 71 . bearing 70 employs conventional bearing construction techniques and is commercially available . fixedly mounted to the outer race 72 of bearing 70 is arm 56 having its proximal end 53 fixedly secured to race 72 . cable 47 mounts the u - shaped tube 45 to arm 56 in an identical manner as previously described . thus , with rod 42 and drill end main body 95 rotating , outer race 72 will remain stationary thereby allowing tube 45 to be in a non - rotating condition . a ¾ inch hose 76 has a proximal end 77 mounted by a conventional clamp 78 to the outer race 72 . the opposite end 79 of hose 77 extends outward from the entrance 55 of the hole and it is connected to a conventional pump to facilitate extraction of water and dirt from the hole as the hole is being bored and to also allow the pump to force the water and dirt back into the bored hole as the drill rod and drill bit are removed . each hole is drilled by rotating rod 42 and drill bit main body 95 while at the same time carrying the u - shaped tube 45 into the bored hole being created . end 98 of drill bit main body 95 is fixedly attached to a conventional flat drill bit 94 to rotate therewith . the blind holes are formed in a manner identical as previously described . for example , bored hole 36 has an entrance 55 located at the bottom of pit 32 and is angularly positioned relative to the horizontal at angle 17 . the length of the bored hole and the acute angle 17 are calculated as previously described . drill bit 94 advances into the ground creating the bored hole with the u - shaped tube 45 pulled into the hole behind the drill bit at the same time that the hole is being bored . once drill bit 94 reaches the desired length of the bored hole creating a blind hole end , the drill bit and drill rod are pulled in a direction opposite of arrow 51 thereby allowing the u - shaped tube to remain in the bored hole since cable 47 disengages arm 56 . drill bit 94 ( fig7 ) has a flat blade boring head operable to bore a hole having a diameter equal to the length 95 of the blade . thus , the hole is sized to allow for movement of tubes 45 and 76 into the hole as it is bored . when withdrawing the blade from the hole it may be necessary to rotate the blade until the blade is past the tube 45 which remains in the hole . since hose 76 is fixedly fastened to the outer bearing race 72 , the hose is withdrawn from the bored hole along with the drill rod and drill bit . commercially available monitors are available for locating and for determining the depth and horizontal distance the drill bit extends . likewise , the angular position of the drill bit about its longitudinal axis may also be determined by such monitors . for example , digital controls , inc ., kent , wash . distributes a directional drill locating system under the model , name and number digitrack f2 . the digitrack f2 directional drill locating systems includes a sensor mountable within the drill rod that is operable to transfer back to a remote monitor the roll , pitch , signal strength , temperature and real time as well as indicate the horizontal distance of the drill bit from the monitor and the depth beneath the ground . the drill rod , drill bit and hose are extracted from the bored hole while the slurry water mixture is pumped back into the bored hole ensuring the void in the soil is completely filled . while the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description , the same is to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character , it being understood that only the preferred embodiments has been shown and described and that all changes and modifications that come within the spirit of the invention are desired to be protected .	8
a proposed intraocular lens variant is depicted in fig1 . the lens has a plano - convex shape formed by two external refractive surfaces , one of which is represented by a sphere ( 1 ), and the other one is represented by a plane ( 2 ) with a diffractive structure microrelief in the form of rings superimposed all over its surface , the radii of these rings coinciding with the radii of the fresnel zones ( 3 ). inside the lens there is one ( 4 ) or two refractive surfaces ( 4 , 5 ) represented by spheres . the external refractive surface , represented by a sphere , creates the main optical power by refraction phenomena . the additional optical power is provided by diffraction on the diffractive structure microrelief ( 3 ) and refraction on one or two internal surfaces ( 4 , 5 ). the microrelief is superimposed on the plane surface of the lens ( 2 ) in such a way that ring - type diffractive zones are formed on its surface ( fig2 ): the central zone ( 9 ) having the radius n and the ring - type concentric zones ( 10 ) with the radii r2 , . . . rk . the fresnel zones &# 39 ; radii depicted in fig2 have been calculated with the help of computer modelling , taking into account the spherical aberration of the optical system of the eye , in such a way that the prescribed optical power of the diffractive structure is ensured within the interval of 8 to 12 diopters . the statistical average for the human eye refraction is 20 - 22 d ( diopters ). the optical power of the diffractive part being 8 to 12 d makes it possible to decrease the thickness of the lens approximately by half . the diffractive structure , similar to the one depicted in fig2 , provides for additional optical power of 10 diopters on condition that the radius of the first ring - type fresnel zone r1 = 0 . 25 mm . the number and positioning of the diffraction zones depend on the needed value of the additional optical power that the lens needs to provide , the diameter of the lens , the light wave length , and the degree of influence on the spherical aberration of the optical system of the eye . the proposed lens variant depicted in fig2 and the variant depicted in fig3 differ from each other in the ways of minimizing the influence on the diffraction image of the spherical aberration of the optical system of the eye . the lens proposed in fig2 has the diffractive structure superimposed on almost its entire plane surface . the elimination of the spherical aberration &# 39 ; s influence is achieved , in this case , by selecting , with the help of computer modelling , a special law regulating the dependency of the diffractive relief rings &# 39 ; radii on the rings &# 39 ; numbers . the lens proposed in fig3 has the diffractive structure superimposed on just the central part of the plane surface of the lens . this kind of the proposed lens design makes it possible to minimize the spherical aberration &# 39 ; s influence on the diffraction image . this is illustrated by fig4 , which shows the dependencies of the rings &# 39 ; radii on their numbers , calculated both according to the formula rk = r1 √ k ( curve 1 ) and with the help of computer modelling , taking into account the spherical aberration ( curve 2 ). in fig4 it is evident that in the central part of the lens , where the spherical aberration is small , both of the curves almost coincide ; if the diffractive relief ( 3 ) is superimposed only on the central part of the plane surface of the lens , then the spherical aberration &# 39 ; s influence on the diffraction image will be insignificant . the design in fig3 actualizes this very way of minimizing the spherical aberration &# 39 ; s influence on the diffraction image . one of the variants of the proposed lens has the right - angled profile of the diffractive structure ( fig5 ). a lens with the right - angled profile of the diffractive structure without any additional refractive surfaces provides three diffraction maximums — the plus first - order diffraction maximum (+ 1 ), the zeroth - order diffraction maximum ( 0 ), and the minus first - order diffraction maximum (− 1 ). another variant of the proposed lens has the triangle profile of the diffractive structure ( fig6 ). a lens with the triangle profile of the diffractive structure without any additional refractive surfaces provides two diffraction maximums — the plus first - order diffraction maximum (+ 1 ) and the zeroth - order diffraction maximum ( 0 ). the power distribution among the diffraction maximums may vary . the power distribution is influenced by the depth of the diffractive structure microrelief hmax ( fig6 ). the depth of the right - angled diffractive structure microrelief is determined with the help of computer modelling in such a way that the intensity of the plus first - order (+ 1 ) diffraction maximum and of the minus first - order (− 1 ) diffraction maximum be at their maximum levels , and the intensity of the zeroth - order ( 0 ) diffraction maximum be equal to zero . with the depth of the right - angled profile microrelief calculated according to the formula micrometers ( n1 is the refraction index of the lens zone that has the diffractive structure on it , n is the refraction index of ocular fluid equal to 1 . 336 ), the minus first - order (− 1 ) diffraction maximum is located beyond the retina and is not involved in the image formation , the intensity of the zeroth - order ( 0 ) diffraction maximum with the calculated microrelief depth equals zero , so this maximum does not influence the quality of the image formed by the lens either , only the plus first - order (+ 1 ) diffraction maximum participates in forming the image on the retina . for the proposed lens the microrelief depth constitutes 1 . 65 micrometers . the depth of the triangle profile of the diffractive structure microrelief for the proposed lens is calculated according to the formula micrometers { n1 the refraction index of the lens zone , which has the diffractive structure on it , n is the refraction index of ocular fluid equal to 1 . 336 ) ( fig6 ). with the calculated microrelief depth , the intensity of the zeroth - order ( 0 ) diffraction maximum equals zero , and this maximum does not influence the quality of the image formed by the lens ; practically all of the power is concentrated within the plus first - order (+ 1 ) diffraction maximum actually forming the image on the retina . for the proposed lens the triangle profile microrelief depth constitutes 3 . 3 micrometers . in one of its variants ( fig5 ) the proposed lens has one additional internal refractive surface ( 4 ), which divides the lens volume into two zones ( 6 ) and ( 7 ) made of materials with different refraction coefficients m , n2 , with a right - angled profile microrelief on the plane surface of the lens . in this case each diffraction maximum bifurcates due to the additional refractive surface in the central part of the lens . one part of the light flux going though the central part of the lens goes through two spherical refractive surfaces and forms diffraction maximums in one set of places on the longitudinal axis l . the other part of the light flux , going through the peripheral part of the lens , encounters on its way only one external spherical refractive surface and forms diffraction maximums in another set of places on the longitudinal axis l . thus , this lens variant provides bifocal vision by using the plus first - order (+ 1 ) bifurcated diffraction maximum . for example , the axial light intensity distribution for this variant , received with the help of computer modelling of the optical system of the eye , is depicted in fig7 . in particular , in fig7 one can see that on the retina ( the retina coordinate is 23 . 5 mm as related to the frontal surface of the cornea ) there is one of the two diffraction maximums of the plus first - order (+ 1 ) that provides a sharp image of distant objects . the zeroth - order maximum is completely suppressed by the microrelief depth that has been selected . the two minus first - order (− 1 ) maximums are far beyond the retina and beyond the drawing in fig7 . further , in fig7 one can see that the plus first - order diffraction maximum is divided into two approximately equal intensity maximums . this division is conditioned by the influence of the additional internal refractive surface ( 4 ), because of which both the central and the peripheral parts of this lens focus light in two different points on the optical axis . the second maximum provides the near vision ( at a 30 - 33 cm distance ). in the other variant ( fig1 ) the proposed lens has two additional internal refractive surfaces ( 4 , 5 ) that divide the lens volume into three zones ( 6 , 7 , 8 ) made of materials with different refraction coefficients n2 , n3 , with the right - angled profile microrelief on the plane surface of the lens . this variant of the lens provides trifocal vision due to the fact that the plus first - order (+ 1 ) diffraction maximum is divided into three approximately equal intensity maximums . this division is conditioned by the influence of the two additional internal refractive surfaces ( 4 , 5 ), because of which both the middle and the peripheral parts of this lens focus light in three different points on the optical axis bifocal and trifocal vision can also be provided by the proposed lens variants with the triangle profile of the diffraction relief . a lens , similar to the one in fig5 , but with a triangle relief of the diffraction profile , provides bifocal vision by the bifurcated plus first - order (+ 1 ) diffraction maximum , too . this bifurcation is conditioned by the influence of the additional internal refractive surface ( 4 ), because of which both the central and the peripheral parts of this lens focus light in two different points on the optical axis . the zeroth - order diffraction maximum is completely suppressed in this case , due to the selected depth of the triangle profile diffraction relief grooves . in the other variant , the proposed lens ( fig6 ) has two additional internal refractive surfaces ( 4 , 5 ) that divide the lens volume into three zones ( 6 , 7 , 8 ) made of materials with different refraction coefficients n , n2 , n3 , with the triangle profile microrelief on the plane surface of the lens . this variant of the lens provides trifocal vision due to the fact that the plus first - order (+ 1 ) diffraction maximum is divided into three approximately equal intensity maximums . this division is conditioned by the influence of the two additional internal refractive surfaces ( 4 , 5 ), because of which both the middle and the peripheral parts of this lens focus light in three different points on the optical axis . the zeroth - order diffraction maximum is completely suppressed in this case , due to the selected depth of the diffraction profile microrelief . in general , independent from the embodiment of fig6 and independent from the microrelief structure , the curvature c 1 ( i . e ., radius of curvature ) of the first internal refractive surface 5 may be larger than the curvature c 2 ( i . e ., radius of curvature ) of the second internal refractive surface 4 . that is , in either case the curvature in the plane of the drawing of fig6 as shown ( paper plane ) is perpendicular to the external front surface of the lens 2 . this may hold especially in a region at or close to the optical axis ( i . e ., longitudinal axis l ) of the lens or at height of central zone 9 . in some instances , depending on the desired optical properties of the lens , the curvature c 2 of an internal refractive surface may be smaller than the curvature c 1 . in general , this relation may be given referring to each pair of surfaces being adjacent in the longitudinal axis , if the lens comprises more than one internal zone . the proposed lens contains one additional refractive surface in the central part of the lens , which is represented by the spherical segment with the diameter d 1 within the range of 2 . 0 to 2 . 2 mm , further changing into a plane ( fig8 ). in humans the pupil diameter depends on the intensity of light entering the eye — the higher the intensity of light , the smaller is the diameter of the pupil . in a healthy human eye the minimum diameter of the pupil is approximately 3 . 0 mm , the maximum diameter is approximately 6 . 0 mm . if d 1 & gt ; 3 . 0 mm , then in bright light ( minimum pupil diameter ) the human being will not be able to see objects clearly either at long or at short distances , depending on the implanted iol type . the solution in the proposed lens lies in the fact that d 1 is within the range of 2 . 0 to 2 . 2 mm . with d 1 ≈ 2 . 0 mm and in bright light ( pupil diameter ˜ 3 mm ) the light energy entering the eye is approximately equally divided between the two foci . in the other variant ( fig9 ) the proposed lens contains two additional refractive surfaces , the first of which , counting from the lens &# 39 ; external surface with the diffractive structure , is located in the central part and is represented by the spherical segment with the diameter d 2 within the range of 1 . 7 to 1 . 8 mm , further changing into — a plane , and the second additional surface in the central part is represented by the spherical segment with the diameter d 3 within the range of 2 . 4 to 2 . 5 mm , further changing into a plane ( fig9 ). the method of manufacture of the proposed multifocal intraocular lens ( fig6 ) with two external refractive surfaces , on one of which there has been superimposed a diffractive structure in the form of rings , the radii of which coincide with the radii of the fresnel zones , and between its external refractive surfaces additional refractive surfaces have been inserted , that divide the lens volume into zones manufactured from materials having different refraction coefficients , comprises formation of the optical part by using different photocurable materials with refraction indices n , n2 , n3 , their casting , uv treatment , and removal of the uncured material , all of this being done consecutively in several stages using quartz casting mold assemblies . the quartz casting molds comprise interchangeable halves , on the work surface of one of which there is a relief presetting the external refractive surface , and on the other off which there is a diffractive structure in the form of rings , the radii of which coincide with the radii of the fresnel zones . the other halves have work surfaces , on which the internal refractive surfaces of the lens are formed that have spherical holes with the diameter either d 1 or d 2 or d 3 further changing into planes . additionally , on the work surface of the form half there is a pattern corresponding to the haptic part of the lens . the first stage is the formation of the lens component representing the lens zone ( 8 ) restricted by the external refractive surface ( 1 ) and the first internal refractive surface ( 5 ) made of a photocurable material with the refraction index n3 . the casting mold is assembled from two halves , the first of which presets the form of the external refractive surface of the lens ( 1 ), and the second one of which presets the form of the first internal refractive surface of the lens ( 5 ). the material is photocured by uv light , the two halves of the casting mold are divided in such a way that the resultant component stays on that half , which forms the external refractive surface of the lens ( 1 ), the uncured material is removed from the surface ( 5 ) of the resultant component with the help of an appropriate solvent — isopropyl alcohol , for instance , and the component is dried until the solvent is gone . the second stage is the formation of the lens component representing the lens zone ( 7 ) restricted by the first internal refractive surface ( 5 ) and the second internal refractive surface ( 4 ), made of a photocurable material with the refraction index n2 . the manufacturer takes the half of the casting mold with the lens zone formed on it during the first stage ( 8 ), casts the photocurable material with the refraction index n2 and closes it with the other half that presets the form of the second internal refractive surface of the lens ( 4 ). the material is photocured by uv light , the two halves of the casting mold are divided in such a way that the resultant component — zone ( 7 )— stays on that half of the mold on which a zone has already been formed ( 8 ), the uncured material is removed from the surface ( 4 ) of the resultant component with the help of an appropriate solvent — isopropyl alcohol , for instance ,— and is dried until the solvent is gone . the third stage is the formation of the lens component representing the lens zone (. 6 ); restricted by the external refractive surface with the diffractive structure in the form of rings , the radii of which coincide with the radii of the fresnel zones ( 2 ). the manufacturer takes the half of the casting mold with the lens zone formed on it during the first stage ( 8 ) and the lens zone formed on it during the second stage ( 7 ), casts the photocurable material with the refraction index n3 and closes it with the half of the form that contains the diffractive structure in the form of rings , the radii of which coincide with the radii of the fresnel zones . the material is photocured by uv light , the two halves of the casting mold are divided in such away that all the resultant components — zone ( 8 ), zone ( 7 ), zone ( 6 )— stay on that half of the mold , which was used during the first stage , the uncured material is removed from the surface ( 2 ) of the resultant lens with the help of an appropriate solvent — isopropyl alcohol , for instance ,— and is dried until the solvent is gone . after that the resultant lens goes through additional uv treatment , then the resultant lens is placed into a closed container with isopropyl alcohol at a temperature of no lower than − 20 ° c . and is held there for no longer than 24 hours , then it goes through thermal vacuum drying at a temperature no higher than 70 ° c . for no longer than 6 hours . the elements of the lens support can be formed during any one of the three stages of making the lens , either from the corresponding zone material ( 6 , 7 , 8 ) with the refraction index n1 , n2 , n3 , respectively ( as a monolith ), or from different - materials ( for example , polymethylmethacrylate or polypropylene ). this method makes it possible to produce thin multifocal lenses that provide high visual function . it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes could be made to the embodiments described above without departing from the broad inventive concept thereof . it is understood , therefore , that this invention is not limited to the particular embodiments disclosed , but it is intended to cover modifications within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims .	0
a preferred embodiment of the invention comprises computer - executable instructions which implement a simulator - independent environment for use in design verification . the simulator - independent environment provides a platform for running a test case on any simulator which is supported . fig1 shows a high - level functional block diagram of an embodiment . the model 103 represents a hdl description of a logic design . an hdl description can describe the function of a design at varying levels of abstraction , prior to its actual physical implementation in silicon . the model 103 is input to simulator 102 . simulator 102 interprets the hdl descriptions in the model 103 to simulate the behavior of a hardware device corresponding thereto , in response to a test stimulus which is input from a test case generator 101 via the simulator - independent environment ( sie ) 100 . the stimulus generated by test case generator ( tcg ) 101 typically takes the form of a generic , high - level request for access to the model which is applied by a bus functional model ( bfm ) in a specific bus protocol , to verify that the model can communicate in that bus protocol . a verification test comprising the application of a sequence of such stimuli typically produces , as output , results data representing the response of the simulated design which is compared to expected results , to determine whether the design functions as expected . the design may subsequently be revised to improve performance or de - bug errors . the sie 100 comprises computer - executable instructions for enabling the bfm to apply a stimulus to the model 103 on behalf of the tcg 101 without having to provide any simulator - specific information . a more detailed representation of the sie 100 is shown in fig2 . the sie 100 comprises a simulator supervisor 201 which configures the sie 100 by initializing other components of the sie 100 , using configuration , control and support functions 204 . the sie 100 further comprises simulator - independent clocks 202 which enable bfms 200 to run at any clock speed used by the simulator 102 , as described in greater detail hereinafter . the bfms 200 use the simulator - independent interface ( sii ) 203 to perform requests to the simulator 102 on behalf of the tcg 101 and to feed back information to the tcg 101 , thereby isolating the tcg 101 from the specific simulator used in the verification and allowing a developer of bfms to concentrate on a specific bus protocol used by the bfm without being concerned about specific simulator details . bfms are used at both the unit level of testing and in tests of soc designs comprising core combinations to generate specific processor bus cycles to emulate the behavior of a processor which will eventually interface with the designs under test . there are a plurality of bfm types , each corresponding to either a master or slave of a hardware bus which may be internal or external to the design . a p - bus ( processor - bus ) master bfm , a dcr ( device control register ) master bfm ( for soc designs having a dcr bus , such as those using power pc ® architected processors ), and a plb ( processor local bus ) slave bfm are three examples . in a typical verification methodology , bfms are not portable across different simulator types , since the bfms are usually written in a simulator - specific hdl ( e . g ., verilog or vhdl ) at a behavioral rtl ( register transfer language ) level of abstraction . ( generally , an rtl style of behavioral description describes an input / output relationship for a design in terms of dataflow operations on signal and register values .) in contrast , the bfms 200 according to the present invention may be designed without consideration for simulator - specific detail , as described hereinafter . in a preferred embodiment , the computer - executable instructions which implement the sie 100 are written in a high - level object - oriented language such as c ++. however , the programming structures and functionality disclosed herein for practicing the invention may find specific implementations in a variety of forms using other programming languages , which implementations are considered to be within the abilities of a programmer of ordinary skill in the art after having reviewed the specification . object - oriented programming techniques involve the creation and use of independent software entities known as “ objects ”. each object typically comprises a grouping of data generally referred to as “ attributes ” and software routines for manipulating the data known as “ member functions ”. a “ class ” refers generally to a grouping of related objects . a class serves as a general template from which particular objects are said to be “ instantiated ” by a “ constructor ” for a particular application . typically , a programmer conceives classes and objects so as to provide an interface to users which “ abstracts ” details of functionality . that is , software which invokes a class or object need only be aware of a general property or functionality of that class or object to utilize it , while the details of implementation are transparent to the invoking software . as shown in fig3 classes and objects may be conceived of in terms of hierarchical relationships . fig3 represents a simulator class hierarchy of the sii 203 including a base or parent simulator class 300 . derived or child classes 301 - 303 ( i . e ., classes lower in the hierarchy ), for example , may correspond to distinct simulator types , such as event , cycle or instruction set simulators . each derived class may include member objects representing distinct simulators ; thus , simulator objects 1 , 2 , 3 ( ref . no . s 304 - 306 ) represent three distinct simulators . the simulator classes and member objects exemplified above are arbitrary and not limited to three . examples of distinct commercially - available simulators include the model technology , inc . ( mti ) verilog programming language interface ( pli ) simulator , the mti foreign language interface ( fli ) simulator , and the ibm cycle simulator . under a concept in object - oriented methodology known as inheritance , a derived class or object includes the attributes of its base class or classes . thus , for example , simulator classes 301 - 303 are said to “ inherit ” simulator class 300 . an inherited class is a member object of its derived class . thus , simulator class 300 is a member object of each of simulator classes 301 - 303 . the simulator class 300 is one aspect of the sie 100 which abstracts the simulator - specific detail from a bfm . a bfm can call generic member functions in the simulator class 300 to access a model 103 for purposes of applying a stimulus on behalf of the tcg 101 , while the simulator - specific details of implementation are carried out by a simulator object such as 304 - 306 . a high - level flow diagram of a stimulus generated by a tcg 101 and applied by a bfm which uses a specific simulator object to access a model 103 during a simulation session is illustrated in fig4 . the tcg 101 generates a stimulus 400 (“ s ”) by issuing a request ( in the form of a function call , for example , in a c ++ implementation , to perform a dcr access , memory - mapped i / o , or a memory access ) to the bfms 200 . the particular bfm 200 which is responsible for driving signals to the particular model 103 for which the stimulus 400 is intended invokes an access function in the simulator object 304 corresponding to the specific simulator being used ( in this case , for example , simulator object 1 corresponding to simulator class 1 ). the simulator object 304 obtains simulator - specific information 401 for the bfm needed to service the request from the tcg , from objects built in the sii 203 during an initialization process for the simulation session . the simulator - specific information 401 is correlated with high - level symbols used by the sie 100 to refer to design elements being simulated . most commercially - available simulators include an application program interface ( api ), for enabling communication between the simulator 102 and a high - level programming language such as c ++. examples include the programming language interface ( pli ) for verilog simulators , and the foreign language interface ( fli ) for vhdl simulators . such an api is represented in fig4 by api 102 a . the simulator object 304 passes the simulator - specific information corresponding to the stimulus 400 to the api 102 a , which uses the information to access the corresponding element in the model 103 to apply the stimulus . typically , the model will change its state in response , and the tcg or bfm may request the new state from the simulator . in an embodiment , additional hierarchical structures in the sie 100 implement the simulator - specific information 401 . as shown in fig5 these include a model facility class hierarchy . “ model ” refers to a design under test such as model 103 . “ facility ” refers to a design element within the model as it is defined within a particular simulator 102 for purposes of simulating a corresponding hardware element . thus , “ facility ” may refer , for example , to a logic input or output signal of the model , a register , or a hdl “ entity ”, i . e ., a portion of hdl code identifying and defining a design at some level or levels of abstraction . a facility may exist at some hierarchical level within the model . as noted above , hdl code describing a logic design typically comprises entities . entities may be arranged hierarchically , with a top - level entity being logically connected to a set of lower - level entities , each of those lower - level entities being logically connected to still lower - level entities , and so on down to a gate level of description . a facility has various attributes which are simulator - specific , including the facility &# 39 ; s data type ( e . g ., register , net , enumeration , etc . ), the kind of facility ( e . g ., signal or variable ), and how it is to be written ( e . g ., as a temporary or stuck value ). model facility classes of the sie 100 , as exemplified in fig5 are used to abstract the simulator - specific information associated with corresponding facilities in a simulator model , such as model 103 . the model facility classes include integer facility class 502 and character facility class 506 . the integer facility class inherits the integer class 500 and the facility class 501 , and the character facility class inherits the character class 504 and the facility class 501 . integer facility objects such as 503 correspond to facilities in a model on which a test case needs to perform arithmetic operations without being concerned with non - binary values . character facility objects such as 507 represent model facilities which take on binary and non - binary values . other facility objects ( not shown ) supported by the sie 100 include long integer facility objects , floating point facility objects , and string facility objects . long integer facility objects correspond to model facilities used in arithmetic and logical operations greater than 32 bits . floating point facility objects correspond to floating point model facilities , and string facility objects correspond to string model facilities . the above - described classes are passed to a simulator object when obtaining simulator - specific information for a bfm as described above , and the simulator object converts them to a specific simulator &# 39 ; s api . for example , in the case of accessing an integer facility in the model , the instantiated simulator object will use the facility class portion and a value from the integer class inherited by the integer facility class 502 to perform the necessary conversion . “ alias ” files in the sie 100 associate high - level programming language symbols used by the sie , e . g ., simple character strings , with corresponding model facilities . in particular , hierarchical facilities in a model may be associated with a character string in the high - level programming language . this allows re - compilation of the sie code to be avoided in case of hierarchical name changes in the model . the alias file also can be used to specify how the facility is represented in the corresponding high - level code , for example , as an integer facility . the alias files are used to initialize the facility objects described above with the simulator - specific information , including a facility &# 39 ; s “ handle ” or identifier , its length in bits , and other simulator - specific information as noted above during an initialization process for a simulation session on a specific simulator . the facility objects are used by a simulator object to respond to a stimulus as described in connection with fig4 . fig6 illustrates the initialization process . the process includes constructing a bfm 200 for applying a bus protocol to a facility or facilities in a model 103 . during construction of the bfm , an alias file object 601 is invoked which reads the alias file 600 and creates a corresponding model facility object 603 , which is passed to a simulator object 304 . a specialization portion of the simulator object invokes functions in the simulator api 102 a to initialize the model facility object 603 with simulator - specific information . this model facility object is then added to a facility table 602 . after the facility table is built , the bfm 200 is initialized with references to the model facility objects which enable the bfm to use the references throughout a simulation session without having to look up model facility objects in the facility table . in view of the above description , an implementation of the application of a stimulus discussed earlier in connection with fig4 may be described more particularly as follows , referring to fig7 : the simulator class 300 includes generic member functions for accessing facilities in the model 103 being simulated by simulator 102 , termed herein for purposes of illustration “ write facility ” and “ read facility ”, for example . these member functions can be passed different types of facility objects as described above , e . g ., integer facility objects , character facility objects , long integer facility objects , etc . the simulator supervisor 201 obtains the specific simulator type being used in a simulation session during initialization , and instantiates the corresponding simulator object from corresponding simulator class , which defines how “ write facility ” and “ read facility ” are implemented for that specific simulator . the simulator supervisor passes the bfms 200 only the generic simulator class 300 ; due to the abstraction provided by the simulator class and object , the bfm need only call “ write facility ” or “ read facility ” without needing to provide any details of implementation . the tcg 101 issues a stimulus 400 in the form of a request to bfm 200 to access a facility in the model 103 , for example , to read from or write to the facility . the particular bfm which is configured to drive the facility being accessed services the request by passing a model facility object 603 corresponding to the request to the simulator object 304 corresponding to the specific simulator being used for the simulation session ( in this example , simulator object 1 ). the bfm uses the references 700 obtained from the facility table 602 built during the initialization process to obtain the model facility object corresponding to the request . as described above , the model facility object 603 contains information including the handle , length and simulator - specific information relating to the facility being accessed . the simulator object uses the information in the model facility object to invoke the appropriate access function in the specific simulator &# 39 ; s api 102 a . the api accesses the facility in the model 103 to service the request . during a simulation session , multiple models or different portions of a model are typically required to be simulated at different clock speeds . the simulator - independent clocks 202 ( fig2 ) represent software structures which simplify bfm development and execution by abstracting clocking details using a base clock - triggered model ( ctm ) class to include all bfms . as illustrated in fig8 bfms 200 are all members or specializations of the ctm class 800 . member bfms , the p - bus master bfm 200 . 1 , dcr master bfm 200 . 2 , and plb slave bfm 200 . 3 mentioned above are shown as examples , although the member bfms of the ctm class are not limited to these . “ clock - triggered ” refers to bus protocol , i . e ., whether bus operations are performed on a rising edge or a falling edge of the clock . the ctm class includes functions relating to both of these protocols , which are referred to herein as “ run rising edge ” and / or “ run falling edge ” functions , respectively . each member bfm object includes its own version of one or both of these functions . the ctm further includes a parameter table ( not shown ) and code to initialize the parameter table via a configuration file class ( not shown ). the parameter table is used to uniquely configure the bfms . using a base ctm class which includes the clock - triggered functions described above allows the use of “ polymorphism ” by a clock model object , as described hereinafter , to invoke a linked bfm without having to know what kind of bfm it is . polymorphism refers to a concept in object - oriented programming in which a generic interface may be provided to a group of related functions . additionally , because as a member object of the ctm class the bfm inherits the attributes of the ctm class , a bfm developer can utilize the all of the features of the ctm class , and yet not be concerned with any of its details . the foregoing simplifies bfm development by providing for clocking details to be abstracted from a developer of a bfm . when the sie 100 is initialized for a simulation session as discussed in connection with fig6 above , the simulator supervisor 201 instantiates clock model objects , and then instantiates bfm objects , passing each bfm object a parameter which creates a pointer , via the ctm class , that links the bfm with a clock model object representing a clock speed at which the bfm is to execute . linking via the generic ctm class interface allows the use of polymorphism by the clock model objects as described above . the clock model objects correspond with a range of user - specified clock frequencies at which a model or models are to be driven during a simulation session . multiple bfms of the same type may be linked to different clock model objects . the linking permits a clock model object to invoke a linked bfm using functions in the clock model object that correspond to a clock edge function in the bfms . to invoke its attached bfms , a clock model object may use a table containing pointers to all bfm objects that are linked to that particular clock model object . the foregoing is illustrated conceptually in fig9 . simulator 102 generates distinct clock frequencies 1 through n for purposes of simulating the behavior of design components of a model 103 running at these distinct clock speeds . clock model objects 1 - n correspond to the distinct clock frequencies 1 - n . the clock model objects are each linked to one or more bfms 200 . multiple bfms of the same type ( e . g . bfm type 1 ) may be linked to different clock model objects . a bfm may include a set of functions each representing a state of the bus being modeled . during a simulation cycle performed by the simulator in which the bfm is executed , a bus state function monitors the state of the bus and decides whether to perform some work required of it or to change its state . a change of state may be implemented by a function jump table using a bus state variable as its index , to effect a jump to a function representing a different bus state . in the overall flow of execution of simulation cycles using the simulator - independent clock structures as described above , once the sie 100 has been initialized , control begins in the simulator 102 . the simulator begins to execute simulation cycles to simulate the response of a model being stimulated by a test case generator . the simulator generates different clock speeds to drive different portions of the model . when the simulator generates a clock edge in a clocking sequence at a frequency corresponding to a particular clock model object , the simulator turns over control to the sie 100 for execution of the bfms linked to that clock model object . fig1 illustrates an example of the foregoing . for simplicity , a single clock frequency 1 is illustrated , which is represented by clock model object 1 , although typically each simulation cycle involves executing all the bfms active in the session at their respective clock speeds , which are linked to a plurality of clock model objects as shown in fig9 . fig1 shows simulator 102 invoking clock model object 900 corresponding to clock frequency 1 of the simulator . the clock model object 900 invoked by the simulator includes functions corresponding one - to - one with the “ run rising edge ” and “ run falling edge ” functions in the base ctm class . in the example of fig1 , the clock model object is invoked by the clock rising edge . the clock model , using pointers obtained via the base ctm class 800 to all of its linked bfms 200 , serially invokes each of its linked bfms using its “ run rising edge ” function . each of the invoked bfms 200 executes its own specialized version of a “ run rising edge ” function , which includes invoking its current bus state function , e . g ., one of bus state functions 1003 . the invoked bus state function may then perform some work required of it by a stimulus from the tcg 101 , which typically entails reading model facilities in the design and deciding whether to drive other model facilities or enter another state . after doing any required work , the invoked bfm returns control to the clock model so that the other linked bfms are executed . once all bfms linked to all clock models invoked by the simulator have executed , control is returned by the sie 100 to the simulator 102 . it may be appreciated from the foregoing that the simulator - independent environment according to the present invention allows a test case generator to apply test cases to a model without having to be concerned with any simulator - specific detail . test cases can be written in a high - level language , using , for example , simple character strings to refer to corresponding design elements in a model . the simulator - independent environment allow the tests case to be run on any simulator supported by the environment . further , the simulator - independent clocking mechanisms described above enables a general bfm , i . e ., a bfm which is not specific to an hdl or a simulator , to be configured to run at any clock speed , simply by being associated with the appropriate clock model object as described above . fig1 illustrates a general purpose computer system which can be used to practice the invention . the system includes a computer 1100 comprising a memory 1101 and a processor 1102 which may be embodied , for example , in a workstation . the system further includes a user interface 1103 comprising a display device 1104 and user - input devices such as a keyboard 1105 and mouse 1106 for purposes of , for example , initiating and controlling a simulation session and observing simulation status and results . the sie 100 , as noted above , may be implemented as computer - executable instructions which may be stored on a computer - usable medium such as disk 1107 , tape 1108 or cd - rom 1109 . the instructions may be read from a computer - usable medium as noted into the memory 1101 and executed by the processor 1102 to effect the advantageous features of the invention . the simulator 102 may be any of a variety of commercially - available simulators , including event simulators , cycle simulators and instruction set simulators . the simulator may run on the same workstation 1100 as the sie 100 . the processor 1102 would execute the simulator ( simulation software ) 102 , which would use the input simulatable model 103 to simulate the behavior of a corresponding hardware device in response to instructions executed by the tcg 101 . the foregoing description of the invention illustrates and describes the present invention . additionally , the disclosure shows and describes only the preferred embodiments of the invention , but it is to be understood that the invention is capable of use in various other combinations , modifications , and environments and is capable of changes or modifications within the scope of the inventive concept as expressed herein , commensurate with the above teachings , and / or the skill or knowledge of the relevant art . the embodiments described hereinabove are further intended to explain best modes known of practicing the invention and to enable others skilled in the art to utilize the invention in such , or other , embodiments and with the various modifications required by the particular applications or uses of the invention . accordingly , the description is not intended to limit the invention to the form disclosed herein . also , it is intended that the appended claims be construed to include alternative embodiments .	6
hereinafter , a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings . fig2 is an embodiment of a dll circuit according to the present invention . the clock buffers 211 and 212 are internal buffers that receive external clocks / clk and clk . the clock signal / clk ( pronounced as “ clock bar ” or as “ clock complement ”) is an inverted form of the clock signal , clk . the clock signals / clk and clk , which have passed through the clock buffers 211 and 212 respectively , are indicated by internal clock signals fclkt 2 and rclkt 2 . unlike fig1 , it should be noted that the clock buffers 211 and 212 in fig2 are controlled by an inverted signal ckeb of a clock enable signal cke . the signal ckeb is a low level or logic zero when a memory device is in normal operation mode . the signal ckeb is a high level or logic 1 , when the memory device is in a power - down mode . for reference , the clock buffers 211 and 212 are disabled when the device enters into power - down mode . a delay circuit or delay line 213 receives the internal clock signal fclkt 2 at an input end of the delay line 213 in order to delay the internal clock signal fclkt 2 for a predetermined period of time . the delay circuit / delay line 214 receives the internal clock signal rclkt 2 at an input end of the delay line 214 and delays the internal clock signal rclkt 2 for a predetermined period of time . for reference , the delay times in the delay lines 113 and 114 are varied by a delay line controller 217 as will be described later . a replica delay unit 215 receives an output signal from the delay line 214 and provides a fixed delay time that nearly coincides with the sum of a delay time t 1 of the clock buffer 211 and a delay time t 2 of a dll driver 218 . a phase comparator 216 compares the phase of the internal clock signal rclkt 2 , which is an output signal of the buffer 212 , with a phase of an output signal fb_clk of the replica delay unit 215 . the delay line controller 217 controls the delay time of the delay lines 213 and 214 in response to the output signal of the phase comparator 216 . dll drivers 218 and 219 receive the output signals of the delay lines 213 and 214 . the dll drivers also output the internal dll signals fclk_dll and rclk_dll . the controller 220 receives a signal ckeb and a signal fb_clk and outputs a signal cke_dll to the phase comparator 216 to control operation of the phase comparator 216 . when a signal ckeb for entering the power - down mode is applied at a high level , the controller 220 outputs the signal cke_dll to the phase comparator at a low level to block operation of the phase comparator 216 ( refer to fig3 ). that is , unlike conventional cases , the phase comparator 216 according to the present invention is disabled by the controller 220 upon entering into the power - down mode . an example of the controller 220 depicted in fig2 is illustrated in fig3 . fig3 is an example of a controller suggested in this invention . as illustrated in the drawing , a controller is comprised of a d flip - flop 31 and a nor gate 32 . the input terminal ( in ) of d flip - flop 31 receives the signal ckeb , and the clock terminal ( clk ) receives the signal fb_clk . the nor gate 32 receives the signal ckeb and an output signal cked_d of the d flip - flop 31 , and an output signal cke_dll of the nor gate 32 controls operation of the phase comparator 216 shown in fig2 . for reference , the phase comparator 216 is disabled when the output signal cke_dll of the nor gate 32 is a low level . hereinafter , an operation of the embodiment suggested in fig2 will be divided for explanation into normal operation mode and power - down mode . first , the operation of a dll circuit in normal operation mode will be described . in normal operation mode , the signal ckeb is low level and therefore the clock buffers 211 and 212 are in enable state and the controller 220 is in disable state . since the controller 220 is in disable state , the operation of a circuit of fig2 is same as the operation of a typical dll circuit . in other words , internal clock signals fclkt 2 and rclkt 2 output from the clock buffers 211 and 212 pass through the delay lines 213 and 214 respectively to be applied to dll drivers 218 and 219 . an output signal of the delay line 214 is also applied to the replica delay unit 215 . the phase comparator 216 compares a phase difference between an output signal fb_clk of the replica delay unit 215 and an output signal rclkt 2 of the clock buffer 212 . the delay line controller 217 controls the delay times of the delay lines 213 and 214 in response to an output signal of the phase comparator 216 . the above - mentioned operation will be repeated until the phases of the signals rclkt 2 and fb_clk applied to the phase comparator 216 coincide with each other within error range . next , the operation of a dll circuit in power - down mode will be described . upon entering the power - down mode , an inverted signal ckeb of the clock enable signal is changed to a high level . in this case , the clock buffers 211 and 212 are disabled by the signal ckeb . when both clock buffers 211 and 212 are in a disable state , the power consumed in a dll circuit of fig2 can be reduced . upon entering into the power - down mode , since the signal ckeb is at a high level , an output signal cke_dll of the controller 220 is at a low level ( refer to fig3 .) when the signal cke_dll is low level , the phase comparator 216 will be in the disabled state . unlike conventional cases , therefore , the power consumption of the phase comparator 216 can be also reduced . next , upon exiting from power - down mode , an inverted signal ckeb of the clock enable signal is changed to a low level . therefore , the clock buffers 211 and 212 will be changed from disable state to enable state . concerning this , the phase comparator 216 of this invention will operate after a predetermined period of time passes since the signal ckeb of low level is applied ( in this regard , the operation is greatly different from the prior art ). concerning this it will be more specifically described in detail . in conventional cases , upon exiting from power - down mode , the phase comparator operates immediately , thereby causing a malfunction . this malfunction is generated because an abnormal signal fb_clk is applied . in the invention disclosed and claimed herein , however , phase comparator operation 216 is controlled by the controller 220 . concerning this , as illustrated in fig3 , an embodiment of the controller will be described . as described above , since an output signal cke_dll of the controller 32 maintains low level just prior to exiting from power - down mode , the phase comparator 216 is in disable state . upon exiting from the power - down mode , the signal ckeb is changed to a low level . an output signal ckeb_d of the d flip - flop 31 will be changed to low level after a signal fb_clk is applied to a clock terminal . therefore , after an output signal rclkt 2 of the clock buffer 212 , which is enabled upon exiting from power - down mode , passes through the delay line 214 and the replica delay unit 215 to be applied to a clock terminal of the d flip - flop 31 , the output signal ckeb_d of d flip - flop 31 becomes low level . as a result , an output signal cke_dll of the controller becomes high level after the signal rclkt 2 passes through the delay line 214 and the replica delay unit 215 to be applied to a clock terminal of d flip - flop 31 . as described above , when the output signal cke_dll of the controller becomes high level , the phase comparator is enabled to operate . therefore , a malfunction caused by operating the phase comparator upon exiting from power - down mode can be prevented . fig4 is another embodiment of a dll circuit according to the present invention . as can be seen in fig4 , there is provided a controller 420 for controlling a delay line controller 417 . clock buffers 411 and 412 are internal buffers for receiving external clocks / clk and clk . the clock buffers 411 and 412 also receive the signals ckeb . the clock signal / clk is an inverted signal of the clock signal clk . the clock signals / clk and clk which have passed through the clock buffers 411 and 412 respectively are indicated by internal clock signals fclkt 2 and rclkt 2 . as illustrated in fig2 , it should be noted that the clock buffers 411 and 412 in fig4 are controlled by an inverted signal ckeb of a clock enable signal cke . the signal ckeb is low level when a memory device is in normal operation mode , and the signal ckeb is high level when it is in power - down mode . for reference , the clock buffers 411 and 412 become disable state upon entering into power - down mode . a first delay line 413 receives the internal clock signal fclkt 2 at the input end of the delay line 413 in order to delay the signal fclkt 2 for a predetermined period of time . a second delay line 414 receives the internal clock signal rclkt 2 at the input end of the delay line 414 to delay the rclkt 2 signal for a predetermined period of time . for reference , the delay times in the delay lines 413 and 414 are varied by a delay line controller 417 as will be described later . a replica delay unit 415 receives an output signal of the delay line 414 . the replica delay unit 415 is a delay unit having a fixed delay time , which nearly coincides with the sum of a delay time t 1 of the clock buffer 411 and a delay time t 2 of a dll driver 418 . a phase comparator 416 compares a phase of the internal clock signal rclkt 2 , which is an output signal of the buffer 412 , with a phase of an output signal fb_clk of the replica delay unit 415 . the delay line controller 417 controls the delay time of the delay lines 413 and 414 in response to the output signal of the phase comparator 416 . dll drivers 418 and 419 receive the output signals of the delay lines 413 and 414 to output internal dll signals fclk_dll and rclk_dll . the controller 420 receives a signal ckeb and a signal fb_clk and outputs a signal cke_dll for controlling an operation of the delay line controller 417 . when a signal ckeb for noftifying power - down mode entry is applied at high level , the controller 220 outputs the signal cke_dll at low level to block an operation of the delay line controller 417 . in the embodiment illustrated in fig4 , a wrong phase detection result is output from the phase comparator 416 upon exiting from a power - down mode as in the prior to be applied to the delay line controller . however , for the delay line controller 417 according to the present invention , the delay line controller 417 is enabled after the signal fb_clk is normally applied . therefore , the possibility of generating a malfunction as in the prior art is reduced or eliminated . fig5 is an embodiment of a controller illustrated in fig4 . the controller of fig5 includes latches 51 , 52 and 53 , inverters 54 and 56 , a nor gate 55 , and transmission switches 57 a , 57 b and 57 c . when a signal fb_clk , which is a delay signal of an internal clock signal rclkt 2 , is changed to high level for the first time after exiting from power - down mode , a clock signal ckeb will be stored in latch 51 . when a signal fb_clk is changed to low level after a half cycle of the internal clock signal rclkt 2 , the signal ckeb stored in latch 51 will be stored in or shifted to latch 52 . next , when the signal fb_clk is changed again to high level after a half cycle of the internal clock signal rclkt 2 , the signal ckeb stored in the latch 52 passes into latch 53 and an inverter 54 to be applied to a nor gate 55 . an output signal of the inverter 54 is “ ckeb_d .” the nor gate 55 receives the signal ckeb and the output signal ckeb_d of the inverter 54 , and the delay line controller 417 will be enabled when an output signal cke_dll of the nor gate 55 is high level . as a result , it is seen that the delay line controller is enabled after one cycle of a clock signal clk or / clk . as seen in fig4 and 5 , a malfunction of the dll circuit can be prevented by delaying a timing of operating a delay line controller upon exiting from power - down mode . according to the present invention , in power - down mode , the power consumed in a dll circuit can be reduced , and furthermore a malfunction of the dll circuit which may be generated upon exiting from power - down mode can be prevented in advance . the embodiments described above and depicted in the figures are merely examples of the invention . the true scope of which is defined and determined by the appurtenant claims .	7
fig1 shows a block diagram of a plant 1 according to the disclosure for the recycling of pet , to obtain a recycled product which is suited for the production of containers usable in the food industry . however , the disclosure can also be used for those plants that provide recycled pet for a non - sterile application , or it may be employed for the recycling of other plastics . plant 1 according to the disclosure comprises a conventional grinder , not illustrated in fig1 , in which pet products are ground to material shred or so - called flakes . a washing plant for removing label residues or dirt is not shown in fig1 either . plant 1 according to fig1 first comprises , for example , a sifter 2 of the washing device , by means of which visible impurities are removed . at the outlet of the sifter 2 a switching device is located , e . g . in the form of a first material flow switch 3 conducting the material flow into a first process line a , which is shown by a dashed line , and into a second process line b , which is shown by a continuous line . in the exemplary embodiment shown , the first process line a comprises the plant components for the production of a first recycling product , preferably pellets . the plant components of process line a , which are passed through in the order specified below , are a sifter 4 for fines , a sieve 5 for removing the fines , a color sorter 6 for sorting out discolored or false color flakes , and a silo 7 for collecting the cleaned and washed flakes , followed , for example via another material flow switch 18 , by a decontamination stage 8 . in the exemplary embodiment shown , the decontamination stage 8 is formed of a first heating screw 9 , a second heating screw 10 and a vacuum reactor 11 . the flakes are heated in the heating screws . next , residual contents are extracted in the vacuum reactor 11 . the vacuum reactor 11 is associated with a switching device , e . g . in the form of another material switch 12 explained in more detail below , leading into an extruder 13 for the production of pellets . in the extruder 13 the flakes are plasticized by the supply of heat and brought into a shape from which pellets may be formed . these pellets subsequently run through a cooler 14 , and are transported by another material flow switch 15 either into packaging containers 16 , or as bulk cargo into transport containers 17 , or are directly introduced into a further processing machine ( not illustrated in fig1 ), e . g . an injection molding machine for the production of preforms for beverage bottles . the second process line b comprises the plant components for the production of a second recycling product , preferably flakes , and employs the plurality of the plant components of process line a , however , with some of the plant components being run through in a different order . the non - illustrated grinder and the sifter / washing device 2 are run through in the same order as in process line a . the material flow switch 3 is set in such a way that the flakes leaving the sifter 2 are immediately transported into the silo 7 , and from there into the decontamination device 8 comprising the first heating screw 9 , the second heating screw 10 and the vacuum reactor 11 . the decontamination process is carried out analogously to the pellet production process in process line a . then , the material flow switch 12 is set to make the flakes run through the sifter 4 , the sieve 5 , and the color sorter 6 so that flakes that were possibly discolored during the heating can be sorted out . from the color sorter 6 the flakes are transported via a bypass route 12 a , bypassing extruder 13 and cooler 14 , directly to the material switch 15 , which distributes the flakes to the containers 16 , 17 or to the injection molding machine . fig2 schematically shows the material switch 12 associated with the vacuum reactor 11 . the vacuum container 11 comprises a vacuum bottom 11 a , which has two outlet openings 18 and 19 spaced away from each other . both outlets 18 , 19 are designed as bulk material feeders and can be locked , for example , by a slide or a blind cover accessible through an access opening . the outlet 18 leads into process line a , i . e . to the extruder 13 , for example through a conduit 20 . the outlet 19 leads into process line b for flakes , and is connected , e . g . by a chute 21 , to the sifter 4 for fines . the controller of the plant 1 is configured such that the user merely has to preselect a specific process line a or b so as to start the desired process . where necessary , a manual switching may be required , e . g . at material flow switch 12 , for opening and closing special access openings and for inserting and removing blind covers . moreover , the controller ensures that plant components such as the sifter 4 , the sieve 5 , the color sorter 6 and the decontamination device 8 are operated in accordance with the production process for the first recycling product ( pellets ) or the second recycling product ( flakes ) with different parameters , adapted to the selected process . such parameters are , for example , the conveying speed in a continuous or discontinuous operation , holding times , temperatures such as drying temperatures or temperatures of conveyor members , parameters of sorters or the like . the switching operations will be explained in more detail below by means of examples . the plant is operated in the flake process and is to be switched to the pellet process . the following operations take place : 2 . the vacuum reactor 11 no longer delivers flakes and breaks the vacuum . 3 . the sifter / washing device 2 interrupts the transport to the decontamination device 8 . 4 . after the vacuum in the vacuum reactor 11 was broken ( which is signaled to the user ), the material flow switch 12 is switched over . to this end , the access opening at the pellet process outlet has to be opened and the blind cover for the material flow has to be removed . after that , process line a is open , and this access opening is closed again . next , the access opening at the flake process outlet is opened , and the outlet is closed with the blind cover . thus , product line b is locked . the access opening of the flake process is now closed again . 5 . the sifter 4 for fines , the sieve 5 for fines and the color sorter 6 continue to operate until they are empty . 6 . the other material switches 3 and 15 are switched over . 7 . after the sifter 4 , the sieve 5 and the color sorter 6 have been emptied , the parameter sets for the operating state of the first process line a for pellets are automatically loaded into the plant components used for both product lines . 8 . the controller is being signaled as soon as all manual alterations are concluded . 9 . the sifter / washing device continues the transport to the decontamination module 8 . 10 . the production process for pellets is now initiated , and the alteration is concluded . the controller detects which one of the production processes is in operation , and it is capable without any further intervention to automatically switch the relevant parameter set required therefor and change over the switch position for the different product lines . the plant is operated in the pellet production process and is to be switched to the flake production process . the following operations are necessary : 2 . the vacuum reactor 11 no longer delivers pellets and breaks the vacuum . 3 . the sifter / washing device interrupts the transport to the decontamination module 8 . 4 . after the vacuum in the vacuum reactor 11 was broken ( which is signaled to the user ), the vacuum bottom 11 is converted . to this end , the access opening at the flake process outlet has to be opened and the blind cover for the material flow has to be removed . after that , product line b is open , and this access opening is closed again . next , the access opening at the pellet process outlet is opened , and the outlet is closed with the blind cover . thus , process line a is locked . the access opening of the pellet process is now closed again . 5 . the sifter 4 for fines , the sieve 5 for fines and the color sorter 6 continue to operate until they are empty . 6 . the material switches 3 and 15 are switched over . 7 . after the sifter 4 , the sieve 5 and the color sorter 6 have been emptied , the parameter sets for the production process for flakes are automatically loaded into the plant components used for both product lines a and b . 8 . the controller is being signaled as soon as all manual alterations are concluded . 9 . the sifter / washing device continues the transport to the decontamination module 8 . 10 . the production process for flakes is now initiated , and the alteration is concluded . the controller detects the currently used production process , and it is capable without any further intervention to automatically switch the relevant parameter set and change over the switch position for the different product lines a , b . according to a modification of the exemplary embodiments described and illustrated above , the product lines may , on the one hand , be provided with different plant components according to requirements and , on the other hand , also be designed for the production of other recycling products . further , the switching can be accomplished fully automatically by the process controller , also in the region of the material switch at the vacuum reactor , with two controllable outlets of the vacuum reactor being optionally provided .	1
with reference now to the drawings , and in particular to fig1 - 4 thereof , a new adjustable horse bit embodying the principles and concepts of the present invention and generally designated by the reference numeral 10 will be described . the adjustable horse bit 10 comprises a mouthpiece 12 which may be inserted into a mouth of a horse 14 , as depicted in fig3 . threadably connected to respectively opposed ends of the mouthpiece 12 are a pair of bit adjustment assemblies 16 , 18 which allow a width of the mouthpiece to be adjusted thereby . the bit adjustment assemblies 16 , 18 allow the mouthpiece 12 to be adjusted to fit into narrow mouths , wide mouths , and various widths therebetween . the adjustable horse bit 10 may be adjusted to provide an appropriate fit within a mouth of any particular animal and re - adjusted as the animal grows . more specifically , it will be noted that the adjustable horse bit 10 comprises a pair of center eyelets 20 , 22 which are interlocked together as shown in fig1 . a pair of center shanks 24 , 26 are fixedly secured to respective center eyelets 20 , 22 and are each provided with unillustrated threaded apertures therein . the bit adjustment assemblies 16 , 18 are received within the threaded apertures of the center shanks 24 , 26 , respectively , and are further received within unillustrated threaded apertures present in a pair of outer shanks 28 , 30 , as illustrated in fig2 . the outer shanks 28 , 30 are integrally or otherwise connected to a pair of outer eyelets 32 , 34 which are operable to capture a pair of strap anchors , illustrated in the first embodiment as bridle rings 36 , 38 , therein , respectively . the bridle rings 36 , 38 are substantially 0 - shaped , but it is within the intent and purview of present invention to include bridle rings of various shapes , including such bridle rings which are d - shaped . the bit adjustment assemblies 16 , 18 are substantially identical in function and design and therefore only one bit adjustment assembly 16 will be described in detail . fig4 illustrates the bit adjustment assembly 16 and it can be seen from this drawing that the bit adjustment assembly comprises a rod 40 which includes both threads having a first direction 42 and threads having a second direction 44 integrally present thereon at respectively opposed ends . a pair of nuts 46 , 48 , having appropriate unillustrated threads present therein , are engaged to the threads having a first direction 42 and the threads having a second direction 44 of the rod 40 , respectively . the bit adjustment assembly 16 serves to connect the center shank 24 of the mouthpiece 12 to the outer shank 28 of the outer eyelet 32 and may be adjusted to change the distance between the center shank and the outer shank , thereby varying a width of the horse bit 10 . the nuts 46 , 48 may be utilized to secure the bit adjustment assembly 16 in an appropriate position . a second embodiment of the present invention as generally designated by the reference numeral 50 is illustrated in fig5 - 8 . the second embodiment 50 is comprised of a mouthpiece 52 having a center shank 54 which includes an offset port area 56 integrally present therein . the center shank 54 includes threaded apertures at respectively opposed ends thereof which are operable to receive a portion of the bit adjustment assemblies 16 , 18 . a pair of connectors 58 , 60 , also having threaded apertures therein , are engaged to the bit adjustment assemblies 16 , 18 , respectively , as best shown in fig8 . a pair of strap anchors , illustrated in the second embodiment as a pair of side arms 62 , 64 , are captured upon respective connectors 58 , 60 by a pair of spherical nuts 66 , 68 which engage threads 70 present on each of the connectors as illustrated for one of such connectors 58 in fig8 . each of the side arms 62 , 64 has a plurality of apertures 72 therethrough which facilitate a connection of reins and other straps to the adjustable horse bit 50 . the bit adjustment assemblies 16 , 18 of the second embodiment 50 are substantially identical to those present in the first embodiment 10 . the horse bit 50 may be adjusted through a rotation of the bit adjustment assembly 16 to accommodate various widths of horses &# 39 ; mouths . an appropriate position may be secured by a tightening of the nuts 46 , 48 in a well understood manner . as to a further discussion of the manner of usage and operation of the present invention , the same should be apparent from the above description . accordingly , no further discussion relating to the manner of usage and operation will be provided . with respect to the above description then , it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention , to include variations in size , materials , shape , form , function and manner of operation , assembly and use , are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art , and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention . therefore , the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention . further , since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art , it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described , and accordingly , all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to , falling within the scope of the invention .	1
at the outset , it should be clearly understood that like reference numerals are intended to identify the same structural elements , portions or surfaces , consistently throughout the several drawing figures , as such elements , portions or surfaces may be further described or explained by the entire written specification , of which this detailed description is an integral part . unless otherwise indicated , the drawings are intended to be read ( e . g ., cross - hatching , arrangement of parts , proportion , degree , etc .) together with the specification , and are to be considered a portion of the entire written description of this invention . as used in the following description , the terms “ horizontal ”, “ vertical ”, “ left ”, “ right ”, “ up ” and “ down ”, as well as adjectival and adverbial derivatives thereof ( e . g ., “ horizontally ”, “ rightwardly ”, “ upwardly ”, etc . ), simply refer to the orientation of the illustrated structure as the particular drawing figure faces the reader . similarly , the terms “ inwardly ” and “ outwardly ” generally refer to the orientation of a surface relative to its axis of elongation , or axis of rotation , as appropriate . referring now to the drawings and , more particularly , to fig1 and 2 thereof , this invention provides an improved ozone applicator cup , of which the presently preferred embodiment is generally indicated at 15 . cup 15 is shown as broadly including a body 16 and a liner 17 . body 16 and liner 17 are generally cylindrically shaped members . fig4 shows body 16 of cup 15 . fig5 is a sectional view of body 16 shown in fig4 , taking generally on line 5 — 5 of fig4 . referring to fig5 , body 16 is a specially configured member elongated along axis x — x and is bounded by a rightwardly - facing annular vertical surface 18 , a rightwardly and outwardly - facing frusto - conical surface 19 , an outwardly - facing horizontal cylindrical surface 20 , a leftwardly - facing annular vertical surface 21 , an inwardly - facing horizontal cylindrical surface 22 , a rightwardly - facing annular vertical surface 23 , an inwardly - facing horizontal cylindrical surface 24 , a leftwardly - facing annular vertical surface 25 , and an inwardly - facing horizontal cylindrical surface 26 , joined at its right marginal end to the inner marginal end of surface 18 . surface 26 generally defines cup chamber 28 . fig6 shows liner 17 of cup 15 . fig8 is a sectional view of liner 17 , taken generally on line 8 — 8 of fig7 . referring to fig8 , liner 17 is a specially - configured solid member elongated along axis x — x , and is bounded by a rightwardly - facing annular vertical surface 29 , an outwardly - facing horizontal cylindrical surface 30 , a leftwardly - facing annular vertical surface 31 , an inwardly - facing horizontal cylindrical surface 32 , a rightwardly - facing annular vertical surface 33 , an inwardly - facing horizontal cylindrical surface 34 , a leftwardly - facing annular vertical surface 35 , and an inwardly - facing horizontal cylindrical surface 36 , joined at its right marginal end to the inner marginal end of surface 29 . as shown in fig1 – 2 , liner 17 is encased in the bottom portion of body 16 . in particular , liner 17 fits within the recess defined by surfaces 23 , 24 and 25 of body 16 . thus , surface 29 of liner 17 abuts surface 25 of body 16 , surface 30 of liner 17 abuts surface 24 of body 16 , and surface 31 of liner 17 abuts surface 23 of body 16 . thus , when fully formed , the diameter of cylindrical surface 32 and the diameter of cylindrical surface 22 are the same . also , the diameter of cylindrical surface 36 is approximately the same as the diameter of the cylindrical surface 26 . cup 15 is manufactured using a two - part molding process in a controlled and clean environmental . the first step of the process is to form liner 17 . liner 17 is formed by conventional injection molding . the injection mold is a 32 - cavity , hot runner spi 102 production mold . thus , each cycle produces 32 liners and the plastic remains molten right up to injection into the part . spi refers to the society of plastics industry , inc . classifications . a class 102 mold generally has a cycle life of less than one million cycles and a minimum base hardness of 280 bhn . the material used to form liner 17 is a plastic material . it has a good abrasion resistance and overmold adhesion to polypropylene and good compression set . in the preferred - embodiment , it has the following characteristics : specific gravity 0 . 89 ref . astm d792 , 23 / 23 ° c . shore a hardness 68 ref . astm d2240 , 10 sec . tensile strength ( psi ) 952 ref . astm d412 - die c , 2 hrs , 23 ° c . elongation (%) 639 ref . astm d412 - die c , 2 hrs , 23 ° c . modulus @ 300 % ( psi ) 551 ref . astm d412 - die c , 2 hrs , 23 ° c . viscosity @ 11170 / sec ( pa - sec ) 6 . 4 200 ° c . as a result , it will not unduly deform when fit onto the outlet of a handpiece for an ozone delivery device . the versalloy xl 9070x - 1 product sold by gls corporation , of 833 ridgeview dr ., mchenry , ill . 60050 may be employed in the preferred embodiment . the second step is the overmold of body 16 . liner 17 is insert molded with body 16 being formed over it ( overmolded ). in the preferred embodiment , the injection mold is a 16 - cavity , hot runner spi 102 production mold with interchangeable 16 - cavity sets for each of the desired sizes . a snap core pin protrudes up from the bottom of the cavity to simulate the outlet of the handpiece and has the same features as the particular handpiece with which the cup will be used . the liner is positioned on the pin and then overmolded with body 16 . using this type of overmolding , the physical characteristics of liner 17 and body 16 can be different . accordingly , liner 17 is designed with features , such as higher resiliency to deformation , to allow for an appropriate fit of cup 15 onto a handpiece , while body 16 is designed with features , such as higher pliability and softness , to allow for cup 15 to create a seal around a tooth surface to expose the subject area to gas circulated in chamber 28 . the material used to form overmolded body 16 is a thermoplastic rubber compound . in the preferred embodiment , it has the following characteristics : specific gravity 0 . 86 ref . astm d792 , 23 / 23 ° c . shore a hardness 3 ref . astm d2240 , 10 sec . tensile strength ( psi ) 300 ref . astm d412 - die c , 2 hrs , 23 ° c . elongation (%) 1 , 516 ref . astm d412 - die c , 2 hrs , 23 ° c . modulus @ 300 % ( psi ) 25 ref . astm d412 - die c , 2 hrs , 23 ° c . viscosity @ 11170 / sec ( pa - sec ) 2 . 3 200 ° c . color clear the versaflex cl2000x compound sold by gls corporation , of 833 ridgeview dr ., mchenry , ill . 60050 may be employed in the preferred embodiment . with respect to both liner 17 and body 16 , a color concentrate may be added , with different colors identifying different part sizes . the present invention contemplates that many changes and modifications may be made . for example , the particular dimensions of the preferred embodiment may be altered as may be the cross - sectional geometry . for example , body 16 and liner 17 may have an oval geometry rather than a cylindrical geometry , or surface 26 may be tapered with a leftwardly and inwardly - facing frusto - conical surface . therefore , while the presently - preferred form of the cup has been shown and described , and several modifications thereof discussed , persons skilled in this art will readily appreciate that various additional changes and modifications made be made without departing from the spirit of the invention .	0
fig1 is a schematic bottom view of a typical , mass - produced , commerciallyavailable , residential smoke alarm 20 , powered by a 9 - volt battery 22 , and comprising a detector circuit board 24 , onto which are affixed an alarm horn 26 , and a co sensor and converter circuit module 28 , which replaces the original smoke detector ( not shown ). battery 22 and circuit board 24 are affixed onto a detector base 30 . a detector cover 32 is attached to base 30 by means of a hinge 34 which permits it to be swung open as shown or swung shut with the aid of latches 36 . a test button 38 and an optionalindicator light 40 serve to verify the functionality of the co alarm . as shown in the magnified cross - sectional view of fig2 module 28 comprises a co sensor 42 that is electrically connected to a circuit board44 through pins 46 , 46 &# 39 ; and 46 &# 34 ;. pin 46 is connected inside sensor 42 to the sensing electrode 48 , whereas pins 46 &# 39 ; and 46 &# 34 ; are connected to the reference electrode 50 and the counter electrode 52 , respectively . sensingelectrode 48 , comprising a layer of platinum black mixed with a hydrophobicpolytetrafluoroethylene binder , is contacting a gas - permeable electrolyte - impermeable porous polytetrafluoroethylene membrane 54 on its upper side 55 and a separator 56 on its lower side 57 . separator 56 , made of an electrically insulating , highly porous , hydrophilic material , is contacted at its lower surface 59 by the reference and counter electrodes 50 and 52 , both of which also comprise platinum black . the electrically insulating property of the separator material prevents electronic conductivity between the three electrodes 48 , 50 , and 52 within sensor 42 . however , thanks to the hydrophilicity of its pores , separator 56 is soaked with the cell electrolyte 58 , thereby assuring good ionic conductivity between these electrodes . a part of separator 56 , not shown in cross - section , extends to the base 61 of the electrolyte chamber 60 , thereby assuring that the separator remains soaked , through a wicking action , even when the electrolyte level drops well below the surface 59 . the operation of sensor 42 is based on the electrochemical oxidation of co at the sensing electrode 48 . to prevent false alarms due to other oxidizable compounds that may be generated from cooking , such as nitric oxide , nitrogen dioxide , alcohols or aldehydes , a chemical filter 62 that reacts with such possibly interfering compounds , is interposed between theambient air and the gas - permeable membrane 54 . this assures that sensor 42 responds solely to co . filter 62 may comprise a mixture of charcoal or activated carbon , potassium permanganate , and / or other adsorbents and reactants that can eliminate unwanted gases from entering the sensor . manyexamples are found in the art of filters and chemical reagents on charcoal cloth or filter paper that can remove chemical contaminants and enhance the air - cleaning properties of this type of filter . the electrolyte 58 is contained in a tightly sealed case 64 , made of polypropylene or other electrically insulating , readily machinable or moldable , electrolyte - impervious material . it is of utmost importance thatcase 64 with membrane 54 form an absolutely leakproof enclosure , as the electrolyte 58 may comprise highly corrosive sulfuric acid , so that any likelihood of electrolyte leakage would render sensor 42 unsuitable for residential use . to eliminate any possibility of corrosive electrolyte leakage , an alternative sensor 42 &# 39 ; is shown in the magnified cross - sectional view of fig3 . in this embodiment of the invention , a single counter electrode 51 , also referred to as auxiliary electrode , faces the sensing electrode 48 &# 39 ;. pins 47 and 47 &# 39 ; are connected within sensor 42 &# 39 ; to electrodes 48 &# 39 ; and51 and externally to circuit board 44 &# 39 ;. furthermore , an ionically conductive sheet 66 , made of polytetrafluoroethylene sulfonic acid ( nafion )---- a room - temperature solid electrolyte ---- replaces the separator56 of fig2 . however , in order to remain ionically conductive , the nafion must be wetted with water . therefore , chamber 60 &# 39 ; is filled with distilledwater 68 , and sheet 66 extends all the way down to the bottom 61 &# 39 ; of chamber 60 &# 39 ; to insure wetting of the nafion , through a wicking action , even when the bulk of the water 68 fails to make direct contact with the auxiliary electrode 51 . to prevent excessive loss of water through evaporation , the sealed case 64 &# 39 ; has an air access opening 70 that is much narrower than that provided for the porous membrane 54 of fig2 . consequently , the areas of the sensing electrode 48 &# 39 ; and of the chemical filter 62 &# 39 ; are much smaller than those of the corresponding components 48 and 62 of fig2 . alternative amperometric co sensors may be obvious to those skilled in the art . such sensors can be constructed with nonaqueous , preferably gelled , electrolytes , or with other noble metal and metallo - organic catalysts or with other auxiliary or reference electrodes . the board 44 or 44 &# 39 ; of fig2 or 3 includes the circuit shown in fig4 . also shown in fig4 are the electrodes 48 , 50 and 52 for the sensor of fig2 or 48 &# 39 ; and 51 for that of fig3 and the corresponding pin connections 46 and 46 &# 39 ;- 46 &# 34 ; or 47 and 47 &# 39 ;. this circuit has been designed for adequate performance with a minimum number and minimum cost of parts , thus greatly simplifying the practical commercial manufacture . the typicalcircuit used to operate amperometric gas sensors is much more complex and is used to maintain a constant potential between the reference and workingelectrodes . a carbon monoxide sensor whose working and reference electrodescontain platinum black may be operated at an applied bias potential of 0 volts between the sensing electrode 48 and the reference electrode 50 . thecircuit of fig4 accomplishes the same purpose , because the reference electrode of the sensor is connected directly to ground , and the working electrode is held at a voltage very close to ground by the dynamic operation of the circuit . hence the potential of the working electrode , relative to the reference electrode , is very near zero . when co is oxidized at the sensing electrode 48 ( or 48 &# 39 ;), a negative current is generated in the direction of pin 46 ( or 47 ), the inverting input 86 of the operational amplifier 81 , and the resistors 82 , 83 , and 84 . the integrated - circuit operational amplifier 81 is configured as a current - to - voltage converter . the three resistors r1 ( 82 ), r2 ( 83 ), and r3 ( 84 ) constitute a feedback circuit . they are connected in such a way as to emulate a single resistor of much higher resistance . this makes it possible to avoid the use of high - value variable resistance components that are expensive and unstable . the positive voltage v o that appearsat the output 82 of the operational amplifier is proportional to the current i s from the sensor 42 ( or 42 &# 39 ;) according to the relationship : for the preferred resistance values that are indicated in fig4 r 1 = 500 , 000 ohms , r 2 ≦ 10 , 000 ohms , and r 3 = 1 , 000 ohms , equation 1 yields v 0 ≦ 5 . 51 volts for i s = 1 μa . since the current output of amperometric co sensors is usually in the range of 0 . 1 - 1 μa / ppmv co , the amplification obtained with the circuit of fig4 can be seen to be fully adequate for residential alarm purposes . of course , minor modifications to the circuit would be obvious to accommodate sensors whose output falls outside the range of 0 . 1 - 1 μa / ppmv . the output v 0 , relative to ground , can be measured with a volt meter for testing purposes or it can be carried to the input ( pin 15 of mc 14467 - 1 ) of a smoke detector circuit , such as that shown in fig6 . other necessary connections of the operational amplifier must be made for correct operation . the circuit is powered by a 9 - volt dry cell through connections 88 and 89 . the non - inverting amplifier input 87 must be connected to ground . it is important that the operational amplifier 81 be of a type in which the input voltages can closely approach the voltage of the negative battery or power supply terminal ( which is ground in this instance ). the part no . tlc271 ( supplied by texas instruments , austin , tex .) is an example of this type of operational amplifier . a preferred layout of the circuit components of fig4 on board 44 ( of fig . 1 ) or 44 &# 39 ; ( of fig3 ) is shown in fig5 . the adjustable resistor 83 is placed near the rim of the board for easy access to its adjusting screw 93 . three tiny receptacles 96 , 96 &# 39 ;, and 96 &# 34 ; are provided for insertion of sensor pins 46 ( or 47 ), 46 &# 39 ; ( or 47 &# 39 ;), and 46 &# 34 ; ( or none ), respectively . terminals 91 and 92 affixed to an insulating support 116 are provided for checking the output of the converter module . terminals 98 and 99 affixed to an insulating support 115 are provided for connections to the positive and negative terminals , respectively , of a 9 - volt dry cell that usually serves to power a residential smoke alarm system . holes 111 , 112 , 113 , and114 are provided for the board to be held in place bolts or screws . also provided is a terminal 100 for connection to pin 15 of the integrated circuit ( motorola ) mc14467 - 1 of fig6 . in fig6 the output of the simple circuit of fig4 is connected to the input of the integrated circuit mc14467 - 1 at pin 15 . guard rings are connected to pins 14 and 16 so that small currents can be measured withoutelectrical interference . thus co sensors of lower output than those given in the following example 1 can be designed and used with this circuit . other parts of the circuit of fig6 are already known to provide low battery indication and audio or visual alarm functions . the resistance values r 4 and r 5 of the respective resistors 102 and 104 in fig . 6 are chosen to be suitable for the particular application , with 500 kω - 1 mω being typical values . further , direct connections of the analog signal ( bypassing the guard rings ( 105 &# 39 ;, 105 , and 106 ) illustrated in fig6 ) to pin 15 is possible . also , a simple jumper or switch can be used to silence the alarm during qa / qc testing and setup andthis modification is a procedure of convenience that can be easily used by those skilled in the art . of course , other circuits are known in the art that can provide simple operation and alarm capability and other conveniences such as those described above . those described above were selected because they provide a device that is easily calibrated , maintenance free , and relatively inexpensive and they require few modifications to existing technology to achieve a significant new capability . the following example illustrates the performance of a typical module of this invention : the output voltage of a sensor module of the type shown and described in conjunction with fig2 and 4 was measured at 0 ° c ., 25 ° c . and 40 ° c . upon exposure to air and to 20 ppmv of co . the results are summarized in table 1 . table 1______________________________________effect of temperature on the background and outputvoltages of a co sensor moduletemperature output voltage ( v ) upon exposure to (° c .) pure air 20 ppmv co______________________________________0 0 . 22 3 . 7225 0 . 35 5 . 2040 0 . 55 6 . 50______________________________________ therefore , according to table 1 , regardless of the ambient temperature , a triggering voltage of 3 . 5 v will set off an alarm when the co concentration is in the range of 10 - 20 ppmv but not when the co concentration is below that range . the same module was provided with a chemical filter comprising activated charcoal ( made by cabot carbon corporation ) and its measured response to various potentially interfering gas mixtures was found to be as listed in table 2 . table 2______________________________________responses of co module to potential interferencesinterference concentration response ( v ) ______________________________________laboratory air -- 0 . 35hydrogen sulfide 100 0 . 62sulfur dioxide 100 0 . 20ammonia 100 0 . 45alcohol 100 0 . 85gasoline 500 0 . 81carbon dioxide 1 , 000 0 . 33natural gas 10 , 000 4 . 67cigarette smoke -- 8 . 16______________________________________ according to table 2 , only cigarette smoke generated directly next to the sensor module or natural gas in the dangerously high concentration of 1 % ( not far from the 5 % explosion threshold ) would generate a triggering voltage in excess of 3 . 5 v . in an alternative embodiment of the invention , the circuits of fig4 and 6 may be combined into a single module . there will now be obvious to those skilled in the art many modification or variations of the afore - disclosed embodiments which , however , shall remainwithin the scope of the invention if defined by the following claims .	6
referring now to fig1 a typical exercise machine 10 is illustrated , which may be a recumbent bicycle - type exercise machine in which an individual 12 is located on a seat 14 on frame 16 which houses a braking device for pedals 18 that revolve around a shaft 20 . the pedals are coupled to a wheel 22 mounted for rotation in the housing , with wheel 22 being braked as illustrated in fig2 by a braking system 30 which includes an eddy current brake 32 including electromagnetically actuated coils 34 to either side of a flat aluminum disc 36 which is mounted for rotation about a shaft 37 . in the illustrated embodiment , a spin up 8 : 1 reduction system is illustrated in which there is an 8 to 1 difference in diameter between pulley 38 and wheel 22 . note the linkage between the two is via a belt drive 40 . in the embodiment shown , the aluminum disc has a diameter 42 of 14 inches , whereas each electromagnet is maintained at a distance of 12 inches from shaft 37 as illustrated by arrow 45 . the eddy current brake 32 is under control of a control unit 44 which is supplied with a . c . as illustrated at 46 . this control is settable from instrument cluster 48 in fig1 so as to provide a constant braking torque to disc 36 and thus pedals 18 for constant current . because the disc is made out of aluminum , as will be demonstrated in fig5 and 6 , the torque applied to disc 36 is flat over the operating speed range of the disc . what this means is that for a pedaling speed range of 40 to 100 rpm , the corresponding speed of the disc is between 320 and 800 rpm . as will be demonstrated for almost all constant current settings , there is very little change in torque versus speed . thus , unlike prior art systems in which there is either a linear or hyperbolic relationship between speed and torque , in the subject system it has been found that the torque is relatively flat over the operating speeds of interest due to the use of aluminum for the disc . this provides user 12 of fig1 with an exceptional amount of consistency of applied torque regardless of the pedaling speed . this in turn makes adjustment of the braking force for exercise much easier and more predictable than in prior art eddy current devices . moreover , measurement of the actual work done is more accurately predictable from the power consumed in the braking system so that critical medical measurements can be made for exercise devices utilizing the eddy current brake in combination with the rotating aluminum disc . brake away torque is virtually non - existent in aluminum disc systems and , because the aluminum disc is non - magnetic , there is no residual magnetism for which compensation is necessary . also it is a feature of the subject invention that any aluminum moving member may be utilized in the subject eddy current brake , regardless of shape . moreover , because the pole pieces of the opposed magnets which sandwich the aluminum disc are to either side of the disc , as opposed to being positioned at its periphery , and since thermal expansion occurs in the radial direction only , the spacing between the pole pieces and the disc surface is maintained relatively constant regardless of the amount of heating accompanying the exercise . one of the features of the subject system is illustrated in fig3 in which the electromagnets which sandwich disc 36 have a three pole e - shaped yoke configuration to magnify the eddy current effect by 3 times over a single pole piece yoke . in this embodiment three pole pieces 50 , 52 , and 54 , respectively north , south , and north , are opposed by opposite polarity pole pieces 56 , 58 , and 60 , with the e - shaped yoke oriented such that a line through the ends of the pole pieces is perpendicular to the radius of the disc for maximum braking torque . it will be noted that each of the electromagnets includes an energizing coil 62 and 64 respectively , each of which is energized through the supply of current from a controlled current supply 66 which has a . c . power 68 applied thereto and which is settable as illustrated . disc 36 is rotated about a shaft which is mechanically coupled as illustrated at 70 to an exercise device 72 . because of the triple pole configuration of the yoke for each electromagnet , for a given amount of current , the eddy current effect is magnified by 3 times over that associated with a single pole electromagnet . the purpose of utilizing the triple pole configuration is in part to reduce the amount of power necessary to provide the predetermined braking force . however , a more important reason for the utilization of the triple pole magnet is to permit the utilization of the aluminum disc and the advantages which flow therefrom . it can therefore be seen that the eddy current effect takes place over a larger portion of the aluminum disc than heretofor performed . the result in that the amount of torque is multiplied over the utilization of a single pole . as illustrated in fig4 one type of prior art eddy current system , that shown in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 442 , 131 issued to jay leyton of may 6 , 1969 , describes the extreme dependence of torque on speed . while in this patent it is said that it is preferable to operate the system at a linear portion of the curve , there is still an increase in torque of for an increase in pedal speed . thus , rather than providing a constant torque for all usable pedal speeds , the leyton device describes an increase in torque with pedal speed , albeit quasi - linear . in contradistinction to this prior art torque versus speed characteristic , in the subject system for a single reduction ratio of 8 ; 1 the response of the torque is relatively flat for increased current settings . one plausible reason for the flatness of the torque versus speed characteristic is the lower electrical conductivity of the aluminum itself . this same flat response is illustrated in fig6 for a double reduction system in which the total reduction is 21 . 8 : 1 , with a 10 inch diameter disc and magnets located on 8 inch diameters to either side of the disc . note that the speeds of the discs are as indicated and correspond to a normal pedaling range of between 40 and 100 rpm . while the subject invention has been described in connection with a rotary aluminum disc powered via bicycle type exercise apparatus , it will be appreciated that other types of exercise apparatus are within the scope of this invention , assuming that the exercise apparatus requires a constant torque braking system . having above indicated a preferred embodiment of the present invention , it will occur to those skilled in the art that modifications and alternatives can be practiced within the spirit of the invention . it is accordingly intended to define the scope of the invention only as indicated in the following claims :	8
embodiments of the present invention provide a method , system and computer program product for dynamic optimization of dram controller page policy . in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention , a state can be assigned to each page opened in a bank managed by a memory controller in a memory module . the state can change for each page depending upon whether a page hit or page miss condition arises in the managing memory controller . thereafter , the state can transition and the page can be closed or remain open as dictated by the state and rules for leaving open or closing pages having particular ones of the states . in this way , the controller page policy can be granularly tuned according to dynamic conditions sensed for the pages of the bank . in further illustration , fig1 is a schematic illustration of a memory management data processing system configured for dynamic optimization of dram controller page policy . the memory management data processing system can include a memory module 100 including one or more memories 110 , such as drams . each of the memories 110 can include a set of memory arrays 160 and corresponding sense amplifiers 170 . address decoding logic 150 further can be provided to receive a row select instruction 150 a and a column select instruction 150 b to retrieve a page of data from a specified one of the memory arrays 160 into a corresponding one of sense amplifiers 170 . a memory controller 120 can be configured to manage the movement of data to and from the memory 110 of the memory module 100 . in this regard , data latched in the sense amplifiers 170 further can be shepherded into a data - in buffer 140 a by the memory controller 120 for processing a read operation from the memory module 100 , or into a data - out buffer 140 b by the memory controller 120 for processing a write operation in the memory module 100 . importantly , whether or not a pre - charge signal is provided subsequent to latching a page in the sense amplifiers 170 and the choice of address hashing scheme utilized during read and write operations can depend on the page policy applied by the memory controller 120 . in this regard , open page policy manager 130 can be coupled to the memory controller 120 and can alternately provide for degrees of an open page mode in performing read operations , and write operations in the memory 110 depending upon a tendency of locality detected for a given page of memory . the tendency can be recorded in a locality tendency state 180 b applied to a page 180 a in a bank 180 latched by a corresponding one of the sense amplifiers 170 . specifically , the locality tendency state state 180 b can range from an open state , a weakly open state , a strongly open state and a closed state , and the locality tendency state state 180 b can transition from state to state depending upon the occurrence of a page hit or a page miss . in addition , a last page record 180 c can be provided for the bank to indicate a last page opened and then closed in the bank 180 . notably , when the a page 180 a is written back to a respective one of the memory arrays 160 , the locality tendency state state 180 b also can be written back in association with the page 180 a . consequently , pages 190 in each of the memory arrays 160 can include not only individual pages 190 a of memory , but also corresponding locality tendency states 190 b . in operation , when a data request is received in the memory controller 120 , both the requested page 190 a and its corresponding locality tendency state 190 b can be latched into bank 180 as page 180 a and locality tendency state 180 b by a corresponding one of the sense amplifiers 170 . the locality tendency state 180 b can be updated depending upon whether a page hit or page miss has occurred . the locality tendency state 180 b can range from open , to strongly open , to weakly open , to closed . in the open state , if a page hit is generated on an open page 180 a , a strongly open state will result indicating a potential locality of access within the page 180 a that could be exploited by leaving the page 180 a in an open state . in contrast , in the open state if a page miss is generated , a weakly open state can result and the page 180 a can be closed . in the strongly open state , a page hit does not change the locality tendency state 180 b , though a page miss reduces the locality tendency state 180 b to an open state while the page 180 a is closed . by comparison , in a weakly open state — the default locality tendency state for a page 180 a — the page 180 a remains open until a page request is received for the bank 180 . thereafter , a page hit results in a transition to the open state while a page miss results in a transition to the closed state and the closing of the page 180 a . finally , in a closed state , a page 180 a will be closed immediately after the first access to the page 180 a . in the unlikely event of a page miss , the locality tendency state 180 b of the page 180 a will remain closed , while a page hit will result in a transition to the weakly open state only if additional requests to the request are detected by the open page policy manager 130 in a request queue , or if the page 180 a had previously been opened as indicated by the last page record 180 c for the bank 180 . in yet further illustration , fig2 is a state diagram illustrating a process for dynamic optimization of dram controller page policy . as shown in fig2 , an initial state of weakly opened 230 can be assigned to a page latched in a memory bank . a page hit promotes the latched page to a state of open 220 , while a page miss demotes the page into a state of closed 240 . in the former circumstance , the page can remain open while in the latter circumstance the page can be closed . when in the state of open 220 , a page hit results in a transition to the state of strongly opened 210 , while a page miss results in a demotion to a state of weakly opened 230 . in the former circumstance , the page can remain open , while in the latter circumstance the page can be closed . in the state of strongly opened 210 , a page hit results in no transition and a page miss results in a transition to the state of open 220 . in the former circumstance , the page can remain open , while in the latter circumstance the page can be closed . finally , in the state of closed 240 , a page miss results in no state transition . however , a page hit unto itself also results in no state transition . rather , a state transition to the state of weakly opened 230 only arises where a page hit occurs whilst an additional page request for the page exists in a request cache for the memory controller . alternatively , a state transition to the state of weakly opened 230 can arise where a page hit occurs on a page that had immediately previously been opened . the persistence of an indication of locality tendency for each page provides the ability for the memory controller to granularly control the open page policy for memory paging . whereas conventional memory controllers are configured statically as open page mode controllers or closed page mode controllers , the consideration of locality tendency and the support of the state machine transitioning to different states of locality tendency permit a finer management of open page mode memory control . embodiments of the invention can take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment , an entirely software embodiment or an embodiment containing both hardware and software elements . in a preferred embodiment , the invention is implemented in software , which includes but is not limited to firmware , resident software , microcode , and the like . furthermore , the invention can take the form of a computer program product accessible from a computer - usable or computer - readable medium providing program code for use by or in connection with a computer or any instruction execution system . for the purposes of this description , a computer - usable or computer readable medium can be any apparatus that can contain , store , communicate , propagate , or transport the program for use by or in connection with the instruction execution system , apparatus , or device . the medium can be an electronic , magnetic , optical , electromagnetic , infrared , or semiconductor system ( or apparatus or device ) or a propagation medium . examples of a computer - readable medium include a semiconductor or solid state memory , magnetic tape , a removable computer diskette , a random access memory ( ram ), a read - only memory ( rom ), a rigid magnetic disk and an optical disk . current examples of optical disks include compact disk - read only memory ( cd - rom ), compact disk - read / write ( cd - r / w ) and dvd . a data processing system suitable for storing and / or executing program code will include at least one processor coupled directly or indirectly to memory elements through a system bus . the memory elements can include local memory employed during actual execution of the program code , bulk storage , and cache memories which provide temporary storage of at least some program code in order to reduce the number of times code must be retrieved from bulk storage during execution . input / output or i / o devices ( including but not limited to keyboards , displays , pointing devices , etc .) can be coupled to the system either directly or through intervening i / o controllers . network adapters may also be coupled to the system to enable the data processing system to become coupled to other data processing systems or remote printers or storage devices through intervening private or public networks . modems , cable modem and ethernet cards are just a few of the currently available types of network adapters .	6
this is a device for sealing the rim space 20 between a tank wall 22 , and a floating cover 24 . the floating cover 24 typically has a top plate 26 , a bottom plate 28 , and an outer wall 30 enclosing an airspace 32 , or other means of buoyancy , such that the cover 24 floats on the liquid contents 34 of a storage tank , as illustrated in fig1 . a series of flexible shoes 36 are disposed around the periphery of the tank wall 22 and are frictionally engaged with the wall 22 . shoes 36 may be made of metal or other suitable flexible material that is non - reative with the storage contents . in the preferred embodiment , shoes 36 are made of stainless steel or of galvanized sheet . the shoes 36 are lapped 38 ( best seen in fig1 and 11 ) at approximately 10 to 12 foot intervals to form a sealing ring that completely encircles the inner circumference of the tank wall 22 . larger or smaller shoe segments may be used . the top edge of each shoe segment 36 is bent inward 40 as is the bottom edge 42 which allows the sealing ring of shoe segments 36 to slide up and down the inner tank wall 22 without the edges catching on imperfections or irregularities in the contour of tank wall 22 . the inward bends 40 and 42 also provide a means of controlling the vertical movement of the overlapping shoe segments 36 and 38 on each other . in the preferred embodiment , each shoe segment 36 is 10 to 12 feet long , 3 to 4 feet high , and has an overlap 38 of about 6 inches . these measurements may be varied and are not to be taken as restrictions . fig1 and 11 illustrates the areas of shoe 36 overlap 38 and a series of one or more retention plates 44 at the edge of each shoe segment 36 which are bolted 46 ( or otherwise attached ) to the shoe 36 so as to create an expansion - contraction space 48 between the retention plate 44 and the shoe 36 which defines the area of expansion and contraction of the adjacent shoe overlap . in the preferred embodiment , a six inch overlap is anticipated . a shim or crimp 50 is placed in each of the retention plates 44 to provide pressure on the underlying shoe 36 forcing the two overlapping shoe segments 38 together and thus forming a no - gap flexible joint . the retention plates 44 may be attached to the shoe 36 near the lower edge of the shoe 36 as illustrated in fig9 and 11 . the space 54 between the sealing ring of shoe segments 36 and the outer wall of the floating cover 30 is sealed by flexible material 56 , which may be fabric , plastic , or other suitable material best seen in fig1 and 3 . the outer edge of the flexible material 56 is fastened near the upper inward bend 40 of the shoe plates 36 by a series of upper fabric clips 58 . the upper fabric clips 58 are attached to the shoes 36 by bolts 60 , or other fastening means . the inner edge of the flexible material 56 is connected to a rim plate 62 on the upper edge of the outer wall 30 of the floating cover 24 . connection to this plate 62 is made by a series of lower fabric clips 64 . periodically , strips of conductive material are attached between the upper fabric clips 58 and the lower fabric clips 64 to form static drain strips 66 . the strips of flexible material 56 may be fastened together ( not shown ) by any suitable means such as adhesive , clips , and the like . the sealing ring of shoe segments 36 is urged outward and upward by a series of spring loaded hanger pushers 68 which are attached to the lower edge of the outer wall 30 of the floating cover 24 by a pivot housing 70 , best seen in fig2 and 5 . the upper end of the spring loaded hanger pusher 68 is attached to the shoe 36 by a shoe hanger bracket 72 . this arrangement of spring loaded hanger pushers 68 keeps the sealing ring of shoes 36 in frictional contact with the tank wall 22 and also keeps the ring of shoes 36 in vertical alignment with the floating cover 24 . further outward pressure on the sealing ring of shoe segments 36 may be maintained by a series of horizontal pusher springs 74 which extend horizontally between the outer wall of the floating cover 30 and the shoe segments 36 , best seen in fig1 and 4 . the attachment of the spring 74 to the shoe 36 may be accomplished by a pigtail attachment 76 to a bolt , or other fastening means , 78 in the shoe segment 36 . the other end of the spring 74 is fastened to the outer wall of the floating cover 30 by a pin 80 or other means . as mentioned previously , vertical movement of the shoe segments 36 is limited in the areas of overlap 38 by the upper 40 and lower 42 inward bends in the shoe segments 36 . as a further means of limiting the vertical movement of the overlapping shoe segments 38 in relation to each other , a series of retainer rods 82 are placed around the circumference of the inner surface of the shoes 36 . the means of holding these rods 82 is best illustrated in fig6 . the upper fabric clip 58 has two legs 90 which form a space 92 between the leg 90 , the bolt 60 , and the underlying flexible material 56 and shoe 36 . it is within space 92 that rods 82 are movably retained . in the preferred embodiment , a plurality of rods 82 are used . each overlap area 38 has two rods 82 placed so as to extend for the length of the overlap area 38 plus added length for retention in the upper fabric clips 58 on each side of the overlap 38 . thus the length extends from the edge 37 of the fabric clip 58 through the clip 58 , across the overlap 38 and through the next clip 58 to its end 37 . the sequence is repeated at the next overlap 38 . the rods 82 may be formed of steel , or other suitable material , and should be of sufficient size to fit snugly within the fabric clip 58 space 92 , but allowing horizontal movement when the overlap 38 expands or contracts . in addition to preventing vertical slippage of the shoes 36 over each other , rods 82 also help to keep flexible material 56 pressed against shoe 36 . when there is contraction of the ring of shoes 36 , the overlying flexible material 56 may tend to &# 34 ; pucker &# 34 ; and rods 82 help to correct this . additional sealing may be accomplished by adding a second sealing device 94 , as illustrated in fig1 attached to the rim plate 62 of the floating cover 24 ( the illustrated seal 94 is taken from u . s . pat . no . 4 , 397 , 399 of wagoner issued on 08 / 09 / 1983 ). other types of seals may be used . fig9 illustrates one of the shoe segments 36 with countersunk areas and holes 97 for upper fabric clip 58 bolts 60 . a second array of countersunk areas and holes 98 is present for attaching the shoe bracket 72 of the spring - loaded hanger - pusher 68 . a third series of holes 100 and countersunk areas is present for attaching the pigtails 76 of the springs 74 by bolts 78 . finally , holes 52 and countersunk areas are provided for attaching retention plates 44 to shoe 36 by bolts 46 . fig7 illustrates a cross - sectional side view of the countersunk area 96 and hole 97 for the upper fabric clip 58 . fig8 illustrates the same area in a frontal view . the countersunk areas 96 and holes 97 , 98 , 100 , 52 provide a smooth surface on the reverse of the shoe segments 36 so there is no interference with the sliding of the shoes 36 on the tank wall 22 . finally , it should be noted that the elevation provided by the countersunk area around hole 52 for the retention plates 44 , provides spacing 48 between shoe segment 36 and retention plate 44 to receive the next shoe segment 36 . if additional spacing is required , spacers may be used . the claims and the specification describe the invention presented and the terms that are employed in the claims draw their meaning from the use of such terms in the specification . the same terms employed in the prior art may be broader in meaning than specifically employed herein . whenever there is a question between the broader definition of such terms used in the prior art and the more specific use of the terms herein , the more specific meaning is meant . while the invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity it is manifest that many changes may be made in the details of construction and the arrangement of components without departing from the spirit and scope of this disclosure . it is understood that the invention is not limited to the embodiments set forth herein for purposes of exemplification , but is to be limited only by the scope of the attached claim or claims , including the full range of equivalency to which each element thereof is entitled .	1
fig1 is a surface depiction of a balloon catheter capable of incorporating the various aspects of this invention . fig2 a is a schematic representation of the distal portion of the above catheter wherein various aspects of this invention are revealed . fig2 b is a schematic representation of a cross - section of the distal portion shown in fig2 a . fig2 c is another schematic representation of a cross - section of the distal portion shown in fig2 a wherein the walls of the two tubes are depicted as layers of material . fig3 a is a schematic representation of a braided reinforcing member of this invention . fig3 b is a schematic representation of a cross - section of a single strand of the braided reinforcing member shown in fig3 a . fig4 is a schematic representation of a section of the outer tube comprising the distal end of a catheter of this invention wherein longitudinally varying the composition of the material from which the tube is formed is depicted . fig5 a is a schematic representation of the balloon - forming structure of a catheter of this invention about to be butt - welded to the outer tube of the body of the catheter . fig5 b is a schematic representation of a balloon - forming structure butt - welded to the outer tube of a catheter showing a braided reinforcing member of this invention overlapping the weld . fig6 is a schematic representation of the distal end of a catheter of this invention showing the braided reinforcing member extending from the distal end of the outer tube completely over the balloon - forming structure . fig7 is a schematic representation of the distal end of a catheter of this invention showing a separate reinforcing member extending from the distal end of the balloon - forming structure over the weld and onto the outer tube of the catheter . fig8 is a schematic representation of a channel created in the distal end of the balloon forming structure to permit escape of air when the structure if filled with liquid to expand it . this invention relates to the distal portion of a balloon catheter . the distal portion is generally anywhere from the distal 2 cm to the distal 30 cm of the catheter although , depending on the tissue area to be reached , the distal end may be of any desired length and , regardless of the length , would be within the scope of this invention . the distal portion has a small over - all cross - section that allows it to be used to reach remote areas of tissue such as the brain and the liver . the small cross - section is achieved by reducing the wall thickness of both the tubes making up the catheter . structural integrity of the outer tube , which is subjected to high pressures during inflation of the balloon - forming structure is maintained by incorporating a reinforcing member into the wall of the outer tube . in a presently preferred embodiment of this invention , the reinforcing member is comprised of braided strands . a braided reinforcing member provides kink resistance to the outer tube when the tube is being bent to traverse tortured pathways in the vascular system . the inner tube likewise includes a reinforcing member , the purpose of which is to provide structural integrity against kinking when the tube is being bent to conform to the shape of the outer tube . the inner reinforcing member is also a braided reinforcing member in a presently preferred embodiment of this invention , fig1 is an exterior view of a typical balloon catheter 100 . catheter 100 is shown solely for the purpose of aiding in the understanding of the present invention and does not constitute the only assembly covered by this invention . any manner of balloon catheter assembly incorporating the aspects of this invention is within the scope hereof . in any event , catheter 100 consists of a luer assembly 110 for guide - wire 112 manipulation and for liquid introduction into the balloon - forming structure 120 . within balloon - forming structure 120 are radiopaque regions ( not shown ) which permit visualization of the position of the distal end of the catheter in a patient &# 39 ; s body . catheter 100 is shown as having several portions 102 , 104 and 106 . these portions have differing degrees of flexibility with portion 106 being the lease flexible , portion 104 being intermediate in flexibility and portion 102 being the most flexible . a catheter of this invention , however , is not limited to any particular number of such portions and may have fewer than three areas of different flexibility or many more . as described with regard to catheter 100 , in general , as one progresses toward the distal end of the catheter , the assembly becomes increasingly flexible . the present invention relates to the most distal and most flexible portion 102 of a balloon catheter . fig2 a is an isolated blow - up of portion 102 of catheter 100 . portion 102 comprises two tubular sheaths 200 an 210 , tubular sheath 210 being disposed within tubular sheath 200 as shown in fig2 b . each tubular sheath , hereinafter referred to simply as a “ tube ,” has an inner and an outer surface . that is tube 200 has inner surface 201 and outer surface 202 and tube 210 has inner surface 212 and outer surface 211 . the two surfaces of either tube may constructed of the same or of different materials . if they are comprised of different materials , then the tube is composed of layers with the inner surface of a tube comprising the surface of one layer and the outer surface of that tube comprising , a surface of another layer . that is , inner surface 201 of tube 200 may be comprises of a layer of material 201 a and outer surface 202 may be comprised of a different layer of material 202 a . the composition of tube 200 or tube 210 is not limited to two layers and there may optionally be additional layers of different materials between the layers having surfaces 201 and 202 . a wide variety of materials may be used to make tubes 200 and 210 . for example , without limitation , polytetrafluoroethylene ( teflon ), polyethylene , polypropylene , the nylons , polyesters , polyimides , polyamides and the like . presently preferred polymers for use in manufacture of the various aspects of this invention are various pebax ( polyether block amide ) thermoplastic elastomer resins such as pebax 4033 , pebax 5533 and pebax 6333 , alone or in combination . disposed between surfaces 201 and 202 or layers 201 a and 202 a is a reinforcing member . while the reinforcing member may have a number of different structures including , but not limited to , helically wound strands , longitudinal strands , etc ., in a presently preferred embodiment of this invention the reinforcing member is a braided reinforcing member 220 . braided reinforcing member 220 is comprised of a plurality of strands 221 each having a ribbon - like structure , that is , each strand has a cross - section having a width 223 and a thickness 222 where the width is greater than the thickness as shown in fig3 b . fig3 shows a blow - up of a portion of braided reinforcing member 220 . braided reinforcing member 220 is comprises of individual strands 221 . individual strands 221 may be constructed of a variety of different materials . they may be metallic or nonmetallic . metals that may be used include , without limitation , stainless steel , platinum , palladium , gold , rhodium , tantalum and the like . metal alloys may also be used such as , again without limitation , nitinol ( a titanium / nickel alloy ). non - metallic substances that can be used include , without limitation , aramids ( e . g ., kevlar ), liquid crystal polymers and carbon fibers . when individual strands 221 are metallic or alloy , each strand 221 has a width 223 of from about 0 . 002 inches to about 0 . 004 inches with about 0 . 003 inches being presently preferred . the thickness 222 of such metallic strands 221 is from about 0 . 0004 to about 0 . 00075 inches with about 0 . 0005 inches being presently preferred . braided reinforcing member 220 is disposed between surface 201 and surface 202 of tube 200 . if the surfaces are of the same materials , i . e ., there are no layers of materials as discussed above , braided reinforcing member 220 may simply be embedded in the material of which tube 200 is constructed . or , if surface 201 is of a different material than surface 202 , that is , if tube 200 is composed of at least two layers of different materials , braided reinforcing member 220 may be sandwiched between any two layers . when tube 200 is constructed of layers of different materials , an adhesive may be placed between the layers to assist in binding braided reinforcing member 220 to the materials and the materials to one another . in order to accommodate braided member 220 while maintaining as small an overall cross - section as possible , the thickness of the materials of which wall 225 of tube 200 ( fig2 b ) is comprised must be reduced . when tube 200 is made of a single material , this amounts to simply using less material to encapsulate braided member 220 . when two or more different materials are used , the thickness of any of them may be reduced . in a presently preferred embodiment of this invention , inner layer 201 a is necked down , which can be accomplished during the fabrication or some of the material can be removed by , for example , laser milling . braided reinforcing member 220 can then simply be slid onto inner layer 201 a and outer layer 202 a can then be applied over the entire structure to encapsulate braided reinforcing member 220 . it is also within the scope of this invention that each layer of tube 200 is constructed of different materials longitudinally . fig4 shows such a structure wherein outer surface 202 is constructed of materials 300 , 301 and 302 along its length . as shown in fig2 the distal end of catheter 100 comprises a balloon - forming structure 120 . balloon - forming structure 120 is shown in its inflated state in fig2 and the other figures herein so as to more easily depict the aspects of the present invention . it is understood , however , that , in its deflated state , balloon - forming structure 120 compresses down until it has essentially the same profile , i . e ., cross - section , as portion 102 of catheter 100 proximal to it . balloon - forming structure 120 is coupled at its proximal end to the distal end of outer tube 200 . this may be accomplished by overlapping a proximal portion 121 of balloon - forming structure 120 with a distal portion of tube 200 and binding the two portions using an adhesive ( fig2 a ). in making this sort of connection , a bead 122 is usually created where the overlap occurs and the adhesive is applied ( fig2 a ). this bead may adversely affect the cross - sectional profile of the catheter . thus , it is an aspect of this invention that the proximal end 330 of balloon - forming structure 120 is butt - welded to the distal end 340 of tube 200 as shown in fig5 a . this can be accomplished by , for example , laser welding . regardless of whether balloon - forming structure 120 is overlapped and adhesively bonded to tube 200 or whether it is butt - welded to tube 200 , braided reinforcing member 220 overlaps the joint as shown in fig5 b to add strength and rupture resistance to the joint . it is also within the scope of this invention that braided member 220 extends completely over balloon - forming structure 120 to provide rupture resistance to the structure as shown in fig6 . to accommodate the increased diameter of balloon - forming structure 120 when inflated , the weave may be relaxed , that is , the distance between strands of braided reinforcing member 220 may be increased . alternatively , balloon - forming structure 120 may incorporate a separate reinforcing member 430 that extends from its distal end 415 to beyond its proximal end 420 , as shown in fig7 . braided member 220 is then terminated at a distance 400 from the distal end 410 of tube 200 . when proximal end 420 of balloon - forming structure 120 is bonded to the distal end 410 of tube 200 , reinforcing member 430 can overlap the joint to provide additional strength and rupture resistance . inner tube 210 ( fig2 ) is constructed similarly to outer tube 200 . that is , inner tube 210 has an inner surface 212 and an outer surface 211 . the two surfaces of may constructed of the same or of different materials , in the latter case the surfaces can be considered as comprising layers . that is , inner surface 212 may comprise the surface of a layer of material 212 a and outer surface 211 may comprise the outer surface of a different layer of material 211 a . as before , the structure of tube 210 is not limited to any particular number of layers and the number and types of materials used can be varied depending on the characteristics to be imparted on tube 210 . disposed between surfaces 211 and 212 or layers 211 a and 212 a is a reinforcing member 500 ( fig2 b , 2 c ). reinforcing member 500 may be a braided member such as braided reinforcing member 220 in tube 200 . in such case , reinforcing member 500 is likewise comprised of more than 4 individual braided strands each having a ribbon - like structure , that is , each strand has a cross - section having a width and a thickness where the width is greater than the thickness . the width and thickness of each strand are also similar to that of braided member 220 . the materials from which reinforcing member 500 may be constructed are also the same as those described above for braided member 220 . that is , the strands of reinforcing member 500 may be metallic or non - metallic . if metallic , the metals that may be used include , without limitation , stainless steel , platinum , palladium , gold , rhodium , tantalum and the like . in addition , metal alloys may also be used such as , again without limitation , nitinol ( a titanium / nickel alloy ). non - metallic substances that can be used include , without limitation , aramids ( e . g ., kevlar ), liquid crystal polymers and carbon fibers . in a catheter of this invention , the material from which reinforcing member 500 is constructed may be the same as that used to construct braided reinforcing member 220 or it may be another material selected from those described . when metallic strands are used to form reinforcing member 500 , the dimensions of each strand are similar to those of each strand of braided reinforcing member 220 . that is , each strand has a width of from about 0 . 002 inches to about 0 . 004 inches with about 0 . 003 inches being presently preferred . likewise , when the strands are metallic , the thickness of each strand is from about 0 . 0004 to about 0 . 00075 inches with about 0 . 0005 inches being presently preferred . reinforcing member 500 need not , however , be braided . it may , for example be a single helically - wound strand . it may comprise a single helical wrap in one direction , proximal or distal or it may be wrapped in two directions , e . g ., a first helical wrap going from proximal to distal and then a second wrap on top of the first going from distal to proximal . jointly owned u . s . pat . no . 6 , 152 , 912 describes such helically - wound reinforcing members and is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein . reinforcing member 500 , like braided reinforcing member 220 is disposed between surface 211 and surface 212 or layers 211 a and 212 a of tube 210 . if the two surfaces are made of the same material , reinforcing member 500 may simply be embedded in that material or a first layer of the material can be formed into a tube , reinforcing member 500 may then be wrapped around that tube and then additional material may be applied over reinforcing member 500 to complete the structure . if , on the other hand , surface 211 is of one material and surface 212 is of another such that tube 200 is made of at least two layers , 211 a and 212 a , reinforcing member 500 is sandwiched between them by wrapping layer 212 a with reinforcing member 500 and than applying layer 211 a over it . when tube 210 is constructed of layers of different substances , an adhesive may be used to assist in binding reinforcing member 500 to the layers the layers to one another . as with tube 200 , in order to accommodate reinforcing member 500 while maintaining a small overall cross - section , the thickness of the materials of which the wall of tube 210 is made must be reduced . in a presently preferred embodiment of this invention , inner layer 212 a is necked down , either during manufacture or by subsequent laser milling , a braided reinforcing member is slid onto inner layer 212 a and outer layer 211 a is applied over the structure to encapsulate the braided reinforcing member . it is also within the scope of this invention that each layer of tube 210 is constructed of different materials longitudinally as shown in fig5 for tube 200 a final aspect of this invention is a channel 600 created at the distal end of the balloon - forming structure 120 ( fig8 ). the channel is constructed such that , when pressurized liquid is injected into annular space 610 between the outer surface 201 of tube 200 and the outer surface 212 of tube 210 , any air trapped in the annular space is expelled through the channel . the channel is small enough , however , that the viscosity of the injected liquid keeps it from following the air through the channel resulting in deflation of balloon - forming structure 120 . in addition , when liquid is being withdrawn from the annular space to collapse balloon - forming structure 120 , usually by applying a vacuum to the system , channel 600 will also collapse thus preventing any significant amount of blood or other bodily fluid from being drawn into the annular space . thus , it will be appreciated that the devices disclosed herein will be useful in catheters , particularly the distal end of high - pressure vascular balloon catheters , wherein they will provide structural strength to resist bursting under pressure , torsional and longitudinal directivity and kink resistance while maintaining the small diametric profile necessary for traversing small tortuous vascular channels . although certain embodiments and examples have been used to describe the present invention , it will become apparent to those skilled in the art that changes in the embodiments and examples may be made without departing from the scope of the invention herein .	0
in fig1 an injection - molding machine comprises a stationary platen 2 , which is fixed to a base ( not shown ) of the molding machine and fitted with one die half 1 , and a movable platen 4 fitted with the other die half 1 . reference number 3 indicates a rear platen . the platens 2 3 and 4 are connected to each other by means of four tie bars 7 . further , the injection - molding machine comprises a mold clamping apparatus which includes a double - link toggle mechanism 5 formed of a pair of toggle links arranged between the rear platen 3 and a movable platen 4 . each toggle link of the toggle mechanism 5 is composed of first and second link members 5b and 5c , the outer ends of which are rockably connected to the rear platen 3 and the movable platen 4 , respectively , and a third link member 5d , the two opposite ends and an intermediate portion of which are rockably connected to the respective inner ends of the two link members and a crosshead 5a , respectively . a ball nut , which is threadedly engaged with a ball screw 6 , is fixed to the crosshead 5a for integral axial movement therewith . the ball screw 6 is rotatably supported by the rear platen 3 , and is operatively connected to a servomotor 13 for mold clamping by a timing belt 16 , a timing gear 15 , etc . thus , both the toggle links of the toggle mechanism 5 are arranged to bend and stretch when the crosshead 5a reciprocates as the servomotor 13 rotates forwardly and reversely , thereby causing the movable platen 4 to reciprocate along the tie bars 7 . the tie bars 7 are arranged to stretch to produce a mold clamping force when the two die halves 1 fitted on the platens 2 and 4 are locked up against each other . furthermore , the mold clamping apparatus comprises tie bar nuts 9 which are threadedly engaged with screws 8 formed on those end portions of the tie bars 7 on the side of the rear platen 3 . these tie bar nuts 9 are rotatably supported by rear platen 3 so as to be immovable in the axial direction , and are operatively connected to a geared motor 12 for mold thickness adjustment , which is fixed to the rear platen 3 , by means of sprockets 10 fixed to the nuts 9 and a chain 11 stretched between the sprockets . the motor 12 is a general - purpose motor , e . g ., an induction motor . the rear platen 3 is arranged to reciprocate integrally with the tie bar nuts 9 along the tie bars 7 as the motor 12 for mold thickness adjustment rotates forwardly and reversely . a numerical control unit ( hereinafter referred to as nc ) 20 for controlling the injection - molding machine comprises microprocessors ( hereinafter referred to as nccpu and pmccpu , respectively ) 21 and 22 for nc and programmable machine control . the pmccpu 22 is bus - connected with a rom 26 , which is stored with a sequence program for controlling the sequence operation of the injection - molding machine , a look - up table ( mentioned later ), etc ., and a ram 27 utilized for temporary storage of data and the like . the nccpu 21 is connected with a rom 24 , which is stored with a management program for generally controlling the injection - molding machine , and a ram 25 utilized for temporary storage of data and the like , and is further connected , through a servo interface 28 , with servo circuits for controlling the drive of servomotors for various axes for injection , clamping , screw rotation , ejector , etc . ( only the servomotor for mold clamping and a servo circuit associated therewith are denoted by numerals 13 and 29 , respectively ). a bus arbiter controller ( hereinafter referred to as bac ) 23 , which is bus - connected to both cpus 21 and 22 , is connected with the respective buses of a nonvolatile shared ram 30 , composed of a bubble memory or cmos memory , an input circuit 31 , and an output circuit 32 , and the bus to be used is selected by means of the bac 23 . further , the bac 23 is connected with a manual data input device ( hereinafter referred to as crt / mdi ) 34 with a crt display unit through an operator panel controller 33 . the shared ram 30 includes a memory section for storing an nc program for controlling various operations of the injection - molding machine and the like , a memory section for storing various set values , parameters , and macro variables , and a current value register for renewably storing the current shift position of the crosshead 5a . the input circuit 31 is connected to various sensors ( not shown ) provided at various parts of the injection - molding machine , while the output circuit 32 is connected to the servo circuits 29 and various actuators ( only a switching device including a forward - rotation switch and a reverse - rotation switch and connected to the motor 12 for mold thickness adjustment is denoted by numeral 40 ) provided at various parts of the injection - molding machine . the position , speed , and output torque of the servomotor 13 are controlled by means of the servo circuit 29 which includes an error register ( not shown ) adapted to receive a command signal from the nccpu 21 and an output signal from a pulse encoder 14 , attached to the seromotor 13 and adapted to detect the rotational position of the servomotor , and operates in response to those two signals . also , a torque command value from the servo circuit 29 is limited in accordance with a torque limit value from the pmccpu 22 , so that the output torque of the servomotor 13 is restricted . referring now to fig2 to 7 , a method of mold thickness adjustment by the mold clamping apparatus of fig1 will be described . first , an operator sets various conditions for injection molding , including the mold clamping force , by the crt / mdi 34 . in response to this setting operation , the pmccpu 22 calculates a crosshead shift position ( rotational position of the servomotor 13 ) lo shown in fig6 which position permits production of the set mold clamping force , and causes the shared ram 30 to store the calculated value along with the other molding conditions . a coordinate system for representing the shift position of the crosshead 5a is set so that the direction of the rear platen 3 is a positive direction , and various movement commands are given in accordance with this coordinate system . then , the pmccpu 22 reads a mold thickness adjustment program ( fig2 and 3 ) from the rom 26 in response to the entry of a mold thickness adjustment command through the crt / mdi 34 , and executes this program . first , the pmccpu 22 delivers a torque limit value t1 , determined beforehand in accordance with the type of the toggle mechanism and the like and stated in the program , to the servo circuit 29 through the bac 23 and the output circuit 33 , and writes a coordinate position ( value &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; corresponding to the coordinate origin , in the present embodiment ) of a lockup position ( fig7 ) of the crosshead 5a where the toggle links stretch to their full length , in the aforesaid coordinate system , into the shared ram 30 through the bac 23 . further , the pmccpu 22 delivers a lockup position write completion signal to the nccpu 21 . in response to this signal , the nccpu 21 distributes pulses to the servo circuit 29 through the servo interface 28 so that the crosshead 5a reaches the lockup position &# 34 ; 0 .&# 34 ; as a result , the servomotor 13 for mold clamping is driven in a manner such that its output torque is restricted to the torque limit value t1 . as the motor rotates , at this time , the ball screw 6 rotates , so that the crosshead 5a , which is integral with the ball nut threadedly engaged with the ball screw , advances to the right of fig1 . consequently , the individual toggle links of the toggle mechanism 5 stretch , thereby causing the movable platen 4 to advance ( step s1 ). in the meantime , the nccpu 21 periodically reads an error amount ε , stored in the error register of the servo circuit 29 , through the servo interface 28 , and writes the error amount into the shared ram 30 . also , the nccpu 21 writes a current shift position l of the crosshead 5a corresponding to the current rotational position of the servomotor 13 into the current value register in the shared ram 30 . further , when pulse distribution up to the lockup position &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; is finished , and therefore , when the crosshead 5a reaches a command shift position ( lockup position ) or thereabout , thereby entering an in - position width , the nccpu 21 writes an in - position signal into the shared ram 30 . meanwhile , the pmccpu 22 reads the error amount ε from the shared ram 30 via the bac 23 , and repeatedly determines whether the read amount is not smaller than a predetermined amount ε0 ( step s2 ), and repeatedly determines whether the in - position signal is written in the shared ram 30 ( step s3 ). if a die - touch state is attained , thereafter , such that the two die halves 1 engage each other , as the movable platen 4 advances before the in - position signal is written , the advance of the platen 4 , that is , the rotation of the servomotor 13 entailing an output torque restricted to the torque limit value t1 or less , is prevented . in this case , the supply of the distribution pulses from the nccpu 21 to the error register is continued , while the supply of a feedback signal from the pulse encoder 14 is stopped , so that the error amount ε increases . if the pmccpu 22 determines in step s2 that the die - touch state is attained , seeing that the error amount ε is not smaller than the predetermined amount ε0 , the pmccpu 22 stops the drive of the servomotor 13 , thereby stopping the advance of the movable platen 4 ( step s4 ). then , the pmccpu 22 reads the current crosshead shift position l from the current value register of the shared ram 30 , and determines whether the value l is not smaller than the previously calculated value for the crosshead shift position ( position which permits the production of the set mold clamping force ) lo ( step s5 ). if it is concluded in step s5 that the value for the current crosshead shift position l is smaller than the calculated value for the position lo , the pmccpu 22 reverses the servomotor 13 to move back the crosshead 5a to a predetermined shift position behind the calculated position lo ( step s6 ). as the crosshead 5a moves backward in this manner , the movable platen 4 retreats , thereby removing the die - touch state . if the decisions in steps s2 and s3 are negative and positive , respectively , that is , if the in - position signal is written before the die - touch state is attained , the value for the current crosshead shift position l is equal to the value &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; or thereabout and is smaller than the value lo , so that the program proceeds to step s6 . subsequently , after changing the torque limit value to be applied to the servomotor 13 for mold clamping from the torque limit value t1 to a value t2 ( step s7 ), the pmccpu 22 turns on the forward - rotation switch of the switching device 40 to rotate the motor 12 for mold thickness adjustment forwardly , thereby causing the rear platen 3 to advance ( to the right of fig1 ) ( step s8 ). thereupon , the movable platen 4 advances , and when the die halves 1 engage each other again , the advance of the movable platen 4 is prevented . as the rear platen 3 further advances , therefore , the toggle links are caused to bend gradually , with the servomotor 13 for mold clamping caused to rotate through the ball screw 6 threadedly engaged with the crosshead 5a , and the error amount ε in the error register of the servo circuit 29 increases gradually . since the torque limit of the value t2 is applied to the servomotor 13 , however , an overcurrent can never flow through the motor 12 for mold thickness adjustment . while the rear platen 3 is advancing , the pmccpu 22 repeadtedly determines whether the error amount ε is not smaller than the predetermined amount ε0 ( step s9 ). when the error amount ε becomes equal to or greater than the predetermined amount ε0 , it is concluded that the die - touch state is attained , and the forward rotation of the motor 12 for mold thickness adjustment is stopped , so that the advance of the rear platen 3 is stopped ( s10 ). at this point of time , the movable platen 4 is at a die - touch position p , and the value for the current crosshead shift position l is greater than the value for the position lo which permits the production of the set mold clamping force ( fig4 ). subsequently , after changing the torque limit value to be applied to the servomotor 13 for mold clamping from the torque limit value t2 to a value t3 ( step s11 ), the pmccpu 22 causes the rear platen 3 to retreat in the following manner , and at the same time , causes the movable platen 4 to advance at the same speed as the retreating speed of the rear platen . also if the decision of step s5 is positive , the following processing is executed . in order to move the movable platen 4 at a certain constant speed , the moving speed of the crosshead 5a ( rotating speed of the servomotor 13 ) must be changed depending on the state of bending of the toggle links of the toggle mechanism 5 ( crosshead shift position ). in the present embodiment , therefore , override values v1 , v2 , . . . , and vn , which correspond to a plurality of crosshead positions ( override value switching positions ) l1 , l2 , . . . , and ln , respectively , are tabulated and stored in the rom 26 , and a reference speed of the servomotor 13 specified by the program is corrected by means of an override value read out in accordance with the current shift position of the crosshead 5a . in step s12 next to step s11 , the pmccpu 22 reads out an override value from the look - up table ( not shown ) in the rom 26 in accordance with the current shift position of the crosshead 5a read from the current value register of the shared ram 30 , and writes the read value into the shared ram 30 ( step s12 ), and then delivers an override value write completion signal . in response to this signal , the nccpu 21 multiplies the reference speed , specified by the program , by the override value read from the look - up table , thereby calculating a speed equal to a predetermined rear platen retreating speed ( mentioned later ), and drives the servomotor 13 to a rotational position which corresponds to the position lo for the production of the set mold clamping force , at the calculated speed , thereby causing the movable platen 4 to advance ( step s13 ). meanwhile , the pmccpu 22 turns on the reverse - rotation switch of the switching device 40 to rotate the motor 12 for mold thickness adjustment reversely , thereby causing the rear platen 3 to retreat at the aforesaid predetermined speed ( step s14 ). as a result , while the advance of the movable platen 4 and the retreat of the rear platen 3 are being executed simultaneously , the movable platen 4 is always kept at the die - touch position p , as shown in fig5 . while both the platens 3 and 4 are moving simultaneously , the pmccpu 22 repeatedly determines whether the override value switching position is reached by the crosshead 5a , in accordance with the value for the current crosshead shift position periodically read from the current value register of the shared ram 30 ( step s15 ), and repeatedly determines whether the in - position signal is written in the shared ram 30 ( step s17 ). every time the next override value switching position li ( i = 2 , . . . , and n ) is reached , moreover , the pmccpu 22 writes the next override value vi , read from the look - up table , into the shared ram 30 ( step s16 ), in order to use the value vi for the rotational speed control of the servomotor 13 by means of the nccpu 21 . when the crosshead 5a reaches the position lo for the production of the set mold clamping force , thereafter , the nccpu 21 writes the in - position signal into the shared ram 30 , and stops the drive of the servomotor 13 for mold clamping . if it is concluded in step s17 that the in - position signal is written , the pmccpu 22 stops the drive of the motor 12 for mold thickness adjustment . as a result , the advance of the movable platen 4 and the retreat of the rear platen 3 stop simultaneously ( step s18 ), whereupon the mold thickness adjustment process ends . at this point of time , the crosshead 5a takes the position lo for the production of the set mold clamping force ( fig6 ). thus , if the servomotor 13 is driven with the aforementioned torque limit removed , during the execution of the injection - molding cycle after the mold thickness adjustment process , the crosshead 5a reaches the lockup position &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; on completion of the mold clamping , as shown in fig7 whereupon the tie bars stretch to their full length , thereby producing the set mold clamping force .	1
a mechanism is provided that attaches to a member of a slide assembly . the mechanism is used to bias or cam a latch , with the latch being used to maintain at least two members of a drawer slide in a predefined position . for purposes of clarity , the mechanism is illustrated in a typical three member ball bearing slide application with c - shaped members . the mechanism is adaptable to slide assemblies with more members , or with fewer members . as illustrated in fig1 a drawer slide assembly 10 comprising an inner , or drawer , member 19 is slidably coupled to an intermediate member 13 . the intermediate member in turn is slidably connected to an outer member 18 . as illustrated , the slides are formed of elongate longitudinal webs having bearing raceways along their longitudinal margins . the slides are slidably coupled by bearings riding in the raceways . in alternative embodiments the slides are friction slides , slidably coupled by contact points along the slides . as illustrated , the inner member 10 includes a latch . the latch , in the embodiment described , includes an elongate member 15 pivotably or rotatably coupled near one end of the inner slide member . the latch includes stop surfaces , which are part of a cutout of the elongate member . the stop surfaces are adapted to engage , or lock , onto a lanced out tab 16 formed in the intermediate member 13 . release of the slide for closure or disconnecting for service is accomplished by rotating latch 15 away from tab 16 . often the elongate member , or latch member , is mounted near what is the rear of the inner slide member so that the latch member is approximate a forward end of the intermediate slide member when the inner slide member is extended from the intermediate slide member . the lanced out tab , therefore , is placed near the forward end of the intermediate member , with the latch locking the slides in the open position . to increase the safety in releasing the latch , a mechanism 20 is attached to a drawer member 19 with shoulder rivets 21 , as illustrated in fig2 . the shoulder rivets extend through linear slots in the mechanism . the use of shoulder rivets allows the mechanism to be moved , or translated , along the length of the inner slide member . pushing the mechanism , particularly along a tab 28 at a forward end of the mechanism , causes an end 23 of the mechanism to press against a leading edge 24 of a latch member 15 . this results in rotation of the latch member such that stop surfaces formed by a cutout 25 in the latch member do not engage a tab of the intermediate slide member ( not shown in fig2 ), thereby releasing the latch member . depending upon the shape of the cutout , or notch , in the latch member , and the amount of push applied , the slide can be closed or disconnected . for example , in one embodiment a forward stop surface , which restricts rearward movement of the slide member , clears the tab prior to a rearward stop surface , which restricts forward movement of the slide member . accordingly , greater pivoting of the latch is required to allow the inner member to move forward and disconnect from the other slide members . further , as illustrated in fig2 a spring 22 acts to oppose the pushing action and secure the latch while returning the mechanism to its original position . in addition , in one embodiment , a register 27 on the mechanism is used to prevent sufficient rotation of the latch through application of the mechanism to allow for sufficient rotation of the latch to allow for disconnect . instead , sufficient rotation for disconnect is accomplished by hand . a mechanism 30 can also be designed to activate a spring type latch arm 31 mounted on an intermediate member 39 , as shown in fig3 . as illustrated in fig3 an end of the mechanism 32 is shaped to cooperate with a spring latch 31 on its leading edge 34 to flatten the spring latch towards the web of the slide member . such motion results in cutouts of the latch being freed of contact with a tab extending towards the web from another slide member . the spring latch pushes the mechanism back to its original position . the simplicity of the design results in a low cost . return action of the release mechanism is provided by the spring qualities of the latch . however , for heavy duty applications or to satisfy a user &# 39 ; s preference , a spring 35 can be installed between the mechanism 30 and a lanced tab 36 on the member 19 . beneficially , the spring type latch includes both upper 37 and lower 38 cutouts , thereby allowing the latch and slide member to be used with both right and left hand slides ; i . e ., the slide member is unhanded . [ 0022 ] fig5 illustrates an alternative embodiment in which the mechanism is pulled in order to achieve much of the effect as is accomplished with respect to the embodiment in fig3 . in the embodiment of fig5 a latch arm 51 , coupled to a drawer slide member web by rivets 58 , is adjusted through use of a mechanism 52 . the latch includes a cutout 53 which is adapted to receive a tab extending from another slide member . the latch is bent , as in the embodiment of fig3 such that the portion of the latch including the cutout extends towards the opposing slide member . the latch also includes a second cutout 55 . the second cutout is adapted to receive a protrusion 59 extending from the mechanism . moreover , in one embodiment , the mechanism also includes a mechanism cutout 57 which is adapted to receive a protrusion extending from the latch . pulling a mechanism tab ( not shown ) on the mechanism effectively lengthens the latch arm and thereby cause the latch arm to flatten against the slide member . this movement of the latch arm results in the cutout being removed or biased away from the tab . thus , in alternative embodiments , pulling of the mechanism away from the latch is used to disconnect the latch from a tab extending from another slide member . the mechanism in various embodiments is thin . typical construction can be from 16 gauge steel . if the member size permits , the mechanism can be designed to fit inside the shape of the member allowing elimination of rivets . in an exemplary embodiment , the mechanism 20 fits slidably inside the radius 41 of the drawer member 19 as shown in fig4 . as indicated , the mechanism is held in place against a web of the slide member through contact with the interior of a bend in the drawer slide forming a bearing raceway . thus , in one aspect the mechanism is placed in position , with the bearing raceways thereafter formed as part of a bending operation . although illustrated in fig4 as not impinging on the bearing raceway , in other embodiments the mechanism does so , but outside of the travel path of the bearings . moreover , the mechanism is not itself bound by interaction between slide members , as is the latch , thereby increasing ease of operation . those skilled in the art will recognize that changes in the shape of the release mechanism and latch can result in different actions . one shape may create release action by pushing , while another cause release by pulling . more refined shapes could allow a release action for closing , but prevent disconnecting of the slide . furthermore , although illustrated in a ball bearing slide , the release device will work equally well in slides with roller bearings or of the friction type , with no bearings at all . construction of the slides and release can be from metal , plastic , or other similar materials suitable to the function . accordingly , the present invention provides a mechanism for use with drawer slide latches . although this invention has been described in certain specific embodiment , many additional modifications and variations would be apparent to those skilled in the art . it is therefore to be understood that this invention maybe practiced otherwise than as specifically described . thus , the present embodiments of the invention should be considered as illustrative and not restrictive , the scope of the invention to be indicated by the claims and their equivalents supported by this application rather than the foregoing description .	0
fig3 is a flow diagram of an ocr process 30 in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention . with reference to fig3 , a document 32 bearing physical textual data is scanned using an optical scanner 34 , which produces a digital pixel image of the physical data on document 32 . a segmentation process 36 of the ocr process 30 receives the pixel image from the optical scanner and segments the pixel image into data segments for processing by a recognizer 38 . recognizer 38 analyzes the data segments to produce a possibility set (“ pos - set ”) for each data segment . empirical uncertainty in the physical data and inaccuracies of the scanning , segmentation and recognition process are represented in the pos - sets by including multiple child possibilities in each pos - set and by assigning child confidences to the child possibilities . for example , recognizer 38 separates a parent string ( as in the parent word 24 of fig2 ) into its sibling glyphs and outputs a pos - set for each glyph . the pos - sets are output to a data verification routine 40 , which uses a rollup function 60 ( fig4 ) and possibly one or more dictionaries 150 ( fig4 ) in accordance with the present invention . fig4 is a flow diagram of rollup function 60 of data verification routine 40 ( fig3 ). with reference to fig4 , a matrix initialization routine 62 of rollup function 60 , receives pos - sets 64 from recognizer 38 . fig5 is a pictorial view of a three - dimensional data array 66 , which represents a data matrix in accordance with the present invention . data array 66 , includes rows 70 , columns 72 , and tiers 74 that together form nodes 76 . with reference to fig4 and 5 , matrix initialization routine establishes a size of data array 66 based on pos - sets 64 . for purposes of a simple illustration , table 3 presents four sibling pos - sets . a first pos - set shown in table 3 includes two child possibilities , “ a ” and “ o ”, which are assigned child confidences 2 and 1 , respectively . a second pos - set includes child possibilities n and u , having associated child confidences 1 and 0 , respectively . and so on . the matrix initialization routine calculates a sum of the maximum confidences of the four pos - sets ( 2 + 1 + 1 + 1 = 5 ) and adds one ( 5 + 1 = 6 ) to establish a height 80 of data array 66 . data array 66 , thus , includes six rows 70 , having row heights r 0 , r 1 , r 2 , r 3 , r 4 , and r 5 . a width 82 of data array 66 is equal to the number of pos - sets 64 . a depth 84 of data array 66 is equal to the largest number of child possibilities in any of the pos - sets 64 . in this example , three of the pos - sets are equally large , having two child possibilities . once data array 66 has been established and sized , a loading routine 90 of rollup function 60 loads pos - sets 64 into data array 66 . fig6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 d depict a loading sequence followed by loading routine 90 . with reference to fig6 a , a data table 92 provides a two - dimensional representation of the three - dimensional data array 66 of fig5 , including four columns c 1 , c 2 , c 3 , and c 4 , each of which is divided by broken lines to indicate tiers 74 of data array 66 ( fig5 ). loading routine 90 loads the child possibilities 94 of the first pos - set into the first column c 1 so that each child possibility 94 is loaded in a node 96 at a row position equal to the child confidence 98 corresponding the child possibility 94 . thus , child possibility “ o ”, which has an associated child confidence of one is loaded at the node located at row r 1 , and child possibility “ a ” is loaded at row r 2 because it has an associated child confidence of two . when loading routine 90 completes loading of the first pos - set ( fig6 a ), it proceeds to load the second pos - set into data table 92 . with reference to fig6 b , each child possibility of the second pos - set is loaded in one node 96 of the second column ( c 2 ) for each row of the first column ( c 1 ) having filled nodes , but at a row height greater than the row height of the filled nodes 96 of column c 1 by an amount equal to the child confidences being loaded . thus , child possibility “ u ” having a child confidence of zero is loaded in nodes located at rows r 1 and r 2 of column c 2 , since rows r 1 and r 2 are filled in column c 1 . child possibility “ n ” is loaded in nodes located at rows r 2 and r 3 of column c 2 , which are greater than the row positions of the filled nodes ( r 1 and r 2 ) of column c 1 by an amount equal to the child confidence ( one ) associated with child possibility “ n .” because the node located at c 2 , r 2 , to , is already filled with child possibility “ u ”, loading routine 90 loads child possibility n at node c 2 , r 2 , ti so that no more than one child possibility is loaded in each node . loading routine 90 then continues to load successive pos - sets 64 in sequence in successive columns , as depicted in fig6 c and 6d , until all pos - sets 64 have been loaded in data table 92 . as in column c 2 , child possibilities 94 are loaded in nodes 96 located at row positions that are greater ( by an amount equal to the child confidence of the child possibility being loaded ) than the row position ( s ) of rows of the immediately preceding column that have filled nodes . nodes of the last column ( c 4 ) that are loaded with child possibilities contain data entities that are known as terminal elements 100 . fig7 is an exploded view of the loaded data table 92 of fig6 d showing its loaded data in a three - dimensional representation in accordance with three - dimensional data array 66 of fig5 . to extract parent candidate strings from data table 92 , a roll - out routine 110 of rollup function 60 is provided ( fig4 ). fig8 a depicts the steps taken by roll - out routine 110 , in rolling out parent candidate “ ants ”, i . e ., the parent candidate comprising the sibling characters “ a ”, “ n ”, “ t ”, and “ s ”. parent candidate “ ants ” has the greatest aggregate confidence of any of the parent candidates because its terminal element (“ s ”) 100 is located in the row of data table 92 having the greatest row position ( r 5 ), i . e ., a maximal terminal element 112 . with reference to fig8 a , roll - out routine 110 reads from columns c 4 , c 3 , c 2 , and c 1 , in the order opposite to which the columns were loaded . terminal element “ s ” 100 ( which is also the maximal terminal element 112 ) is read initially . next , roll - out routine 110 reads next - to - last child element “ t ” 116 from the immediately previous column ( c 3 ) and from row r 4 , which has a row position less than the row position of terminal element “ s ” by the amount of the child confidence associated with terminal element “ s ” ( i . e . one ). roll - out routine 110 prepends next - to - last child element “ t ” to the terminal element “ s ” to form a string tail of “ ts .” the child confidence of one associated with next - to - last child element “ t ” 116 then directs roll - out routine to read prefix element “ n ” 118 from row r 3 , column c 2 ( because row r 3 has a row position one less than the row position of r 4 ). roll - out routine 110 prepends prefix element “ n ” 118 to the string tail “ ts ”, to form the partial string “ nts .” element “ a ” 120 , is then read because it is loaded in row r 2 , which is one less ( the child confidence associated with prefix element “ n ” 118 ) than the row position of prefix element “ n ” 118 . element “ a ” 120 is prepended to complete the formation of candidate parent string “ ants ”. the parent confidence associated with “ ants ” is equal to five , which is the row position of the terminal element 100 a used to extract “ ants ”. fig8 b depicts the steps taken by roll - out routine 110 , in rolling out parent candidate “ ant 5 ”. with reference to fig8 b , terminal element “ 5 ” has an associated child confidence of zero , which directs roll - out routine to read next - to - last element “ t ” from the same row position ( r 4 ) in column c 3 . the parent confidence associated with “ ant 5 ” is equal to four , which is the row position of terminal element “ 5 ” 100 b used to extract “ ant 5 ”. fig8 c and 8d depict the steps taken by roll - out routine 110 , in rolling out respective parent candidates “ auts ” and “ onts .” because there are two entries in row r 2 , column c 2 , roll - out routine 110 rolls out two unique parent candidates ending with terminal element “ s ” 100 c , both having an associated parent confidence of four , which is equal to the row height of row r 4 , where terminal element “ s ” 100 c is located . in accordance with an alternative embodiment of the present invention , fig9 shows the loaded data table 92 of fig6 d and 7 embodied as a linked - list rollup matrix 126 . with reference to fig9 , rollup matrix 126 includes a pointer structure 128 to nodes 96 . to roll - out the parent candidate “ ants ”, roll - out routine 110 starts at an initial entry point 130 that includes terminal element 100 a ( element “ s ” of maximal terminal element 112 ). roll - out routine 110 then reads out elements “ t ” 116 , “ n ” 118 , and “ a ” 120 by following respective pointers 134 , 136 , and 138 and prepends them to element “ s ” 100 a . a return pointer 140 indicates to roll - out routine 110 that it has completed construction of the parent candidate . a parent confidence 141 of the parent candidate “ ants ” is stored in association with the terminal element “ s ” 100 a . all terminal elements of rollup matrix 126 serve as entry points 142 for rolling out one or more parent candidates . as in the roll - out sequences shown in fig8 c and 8d , two parent candidates can be rolled out of rollup matrix 126 by beginning with terminal element “ s ” 100 c . a branch node 144 of rollup matrix 126 includes two pointers 146 , 148 , which indicate to roll - out routine 110 that two different parent candidates use branch node 144 and that roll - out routine 110 needs to execute a branch at branch node 144 . those skilled in the art will understand that more than one branch node may clearly exist in rollup matrix , and that some branch nodes will have more than two pointers ( if the matrix is “ deeper ” than 2 tiers ). after rolling out of each parent candidate ( typically in decreasing order of parent confidence ), rollup function may output each parent candidate to a dictionary routine 150 ( fig4 ) for validation using an appropriate parser and dictionary . one embodiment of handling dictionary processing is shown in fig4 , and includes conditional iteration of roll - out routine 110 . an iteration step 154 is conditional upon whether the parent candidate output by roll - out routine 110 passes the dictionary test ( 160 ) and , if it does , whether some other stop limit 170 has been met . for example stop limit 170 may trigger ocr process 30 ( fig3 ) to terminate verification of the parent element represented by rollup matrix 126 ( and rollup table 92 ), and to load the next series of pos - sets scanned and recognized from document 32 . fig1 is a flow diagram showing steps taken in preparation and validation of n - gram alt - sets for loading in a rollout matrix for a parent string of the n - grams . with reference to fig1 , an n - gram verification process 200 receives pos - sets from ocr system ( step 210 ) and assembles them in computer memory to form a ranked list of n - gram candidates ( step 212 ). n - gram candidates within a single ranked list may have different lengths , for example when one of the pos - sets includes both an “ m ” possibility and an “ rn ” possibility . to accommodate n - gram candidates having different lengths , a length gage routine 214 of n - gram verification process 200 determines the length of each n - gram candidate . the n - gram candidates are then processed by an appropriate n - gram dictionary 216 . n - gram dictionary 216 is a specialized dictionary or collection of specialized dictionaries that includes information about frequency of occurrence of n - grams ( for example 2 - grams , 3 - grams , etc .) in written language or some subset of written language . n - gram dictionary 216 assigns an n - gram confidence to each n - gram candidate based on ( i ) the dictionary frequency rating for the n - gram and ( ii ) a child confidence associated with a central character of the n - gram candidate . n - gram and its associated n - gram confidence are then appended to an n - gram alt - set ( step 218 ). steps 214 , 216 , and 218 are then repeated until all of the lists of n - gram parent candidates have been processed through the dictionary and output as n - gram alt - sets . after all n - gram alt - sets have been completed , a string - sized rollup matrix is built using the alt - sets as sibling entities ( step 220 ). parent string candidates can then be rolled out of string - sized rollup matrix in ranked order ( step 222 ) and processed using a string dictionary ( step 224 ) before outputting ranked parent strings ( step 226 ). fig1 is a two - dimensional pictorial view showing nested rollup matrices 240 established in accordance with the present invention . with reference to fig1 , nested rollup matrices 240 include a child rollup matrix 250 nested within a parent rollup matrix 260 . child rollup matrix 250 is said to be “ nested ” because complete candidates that may be rolled out of child rollup matrix 250 are referenced by pointers within parent rollup matrix 260 . in this example , child rollup matrix 250 represents candidate city names in a typical rollup matrix in accordance with the present invention . however , any child entity can be represented in a nested child rollup matrix . parent rollup matrix 260 is a typical rollup matrix in accordance with the present invention . in this example , parent rollup matrix 260 includes sibling city , state , and zip - code alt - sets . first and second city nodes 262 , 264 of parent rollup matrix 260 include respective first and second city pointers 266 , 268 to respective first and second entry points 270 , 272 of child rollup matrix 250 . first and second entry points 270 , 272 are terminal nodes of child rollup matrix 250 having associated city confidences 274 , 276 . while the nested rollup matrices 240 of fig1 include only one nested child matrix , it would be straightforward to nest multiple child matrices within a single parent rollup matrix . likewise , it would be simple to create a hierarchy of nested rollup matrices including three or more layers of rollup matrices , rather than the two layers ( child rollup matrix 250 and parent rollup matrix 260 ) of fig1 . in setting up nested rollup matrices 240 , child rollup matrix 250 is established before establishing parent rollup matrix 260 . this order of establishing nested rollup matrices 240 insures that city confidences 274 , 276 of child rollup matrix 250 may be taken into account when establishing , sizing , and loading parent rollup matrix 260 . when loading first and second city pointers 266 , 268 in parent rollup matrix 260 , city confidences 274 , 276 of child rollup matrix 250 determine how parent rollup matrix 260 is loaded . fig1 is a flow diagram showing steps for establishing and loading of the nested rollup matrices of fig1 . with reference to fig1 , a child rollup matrix is first established and loaded ( step 300 ). once loaded , entry points for child candidates of the child rollup matrix , and their associated child confidences are available . these child candidates , entry points , and child confidences are then taken into account in establishing and sizing parent rollup matrix ( step 310 ). parent rollup matrix is then loaded ( step 320 ). in the example of fig1 , parent rollup matrix 260 is loaded with a zip - code ( postal code ) alt - set in its terminal column and a state alt - set in its next - to - last column . parent rollup matrix is also loaded with city pointers 266 , 268 to appropriate entry points 270 , 272 of child rollup matrix 250 . after parent rollup matrix has been loaded ( step 320 ), ranked parent candidates may then be rolled out ( step 330 ) for processing by a dictionary . the dictionary required for use with the nested rollup matrices 240 shown in the example of fig1 would be a city - state - zip dictionary for verifying specific city - state - zip combinations . fig1 is flow diagram showing a sequence of steps for rolling out a parent candidate from the nested rollup matrices 240 of fig1 . with reference to fig1 , a nested roll - out routine 400 starts at an entry point , which is a terminal parent node of a linked list of parent matrix ( step 410 ). all subsequent steps shown in fig1 are identical regardless of whether the current node is a terminal node or another node of nested rollup matrices 240 . nested roll - out routine 400 next determines whether the parent node includes a pointer to a nested child matrix ( step 420 ). if not , then nested roll - out routine 400 reads the element stored in the current node ( step 430 ) and prepends it to a parent candidate tail . nested roll - out routine 400 , then determines whether the node includes a return pointer that would indicate completion of the parent candidate ( step 440 ). if not , then nested roll - out routine advances to the next node in the linked list ( step 450 ) and returns to step 420 . if a parent node includes a nested matrix pointer to a nested rollup matrix ( at step 410 ) then nested roll - out routine 400 proceeds to store in memory an address of the parent node that includes the nested matrix pointer ( step 460 ). nested roll - out routine 400 , then rolls out a child candidate from the nested child matrix ( step 470 ), prepends the child candidate to the parent candidate tail ( step 480 ). nested roll - out routine then restores the address of the last - read parent node , which was previously stored in memory and returns to the parent rollup function ( step 490 ), continuing on at the last read parent node . when a parent node includes a return pointer ( step 440 ), nested roll - out routine completes its assembly of parent candidate and processes it using dictionary process 500 . if the parent candidate passes the dictionary test , it is output . the nested roll - out function can be repeated for each terminal node of parent roll - out matrix to complete roll out of all parent candidates . it will be obvious to those having skill in the art that many changes may be made to the details of the above - described embodiments of this invention without departing from the underlying principles thereof . the scope of the present invention should , therefore , be determined only by the following claims .	6
detailed embodiments of the instant invention are disclosed herein , however , it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention , which may be embodied in various forms . therefore , specific functional and structural details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting , but merely as a basis for the claims and as representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed structure . referring now fig1 and 2 which shows a version illustrating the major components of the instant modular therapy frame device , or assembly , generally referred to as 10 . fig1 is right side view of a basic modular therapy device in the flexed position , wherein the modular frame assembly the can be either folded up or disassembled for easy transport and storage . the device 10 includes a proximal sling module 30 , a distal sling module 40 , a heel plate module 50 with wheel assembly comprising left and right wheels 53 , 54 and an operating system 63 with a motor 64 ( fig3 ) mounted to the distal sling module 40 , the motor 64 in communication with a controller 67 . fig2 is right side view of the same basic therapy device 10 shown in fig1 . fig2 illustrates a patient &# 39 ; s limb 73 within the device 10 , in the extended position . preferably , the modular components 30 , 40 of the frame are constructed of , albeit not limited to , a hollow rectangular box beams of lightweight materials , such as aluminum or thin gauge steel or plastic , which make it easy for the user to transport . in addition , other materials and shapes , having the requisite strength , rigidity and weight , may be utilized . one example of a means for connecting the modules 30 , 40 are illustrated in the exploded view in fig1 , which illustrates apertures formed along at least one of the ends the frame members which are constructed and arranged to cooperate with at least one pin 62 to form pivoting connections between modules 30 , 40 . however , the means for connecting the may be attached by bolts and nuts , bolt and coddle pins or any other similar means of removable connection known in the art . referring now to fig3 – 4 , which illustrate the various components of the preferred embodiment of the present invention . the embodiment shown in fig3 - 9 , is preferred as it is lighter and less cumbersome and may be used with the patient in the sitting position . the device 10 of this embodiment weights about 14 pounds and folds into a transportable package of about 12 inches by about 14 inches . at the distal sling module 40 , a cross member 47 is attached at each end to two elongated rods 41 , 42 which extend parallel along the distal portion of the patient &# 39 ; s limb during flexing of the joint . at least one adjustable or permanent lower support means 43 extends between the two elongated rods 41 , 42 to cradle the lower portion of the patient &# 39 ; s limb as the two elongated rods 41 , 42 pivot through a preselected range of motion . the opposite ends of the elongated rods 41 , 42 of the distal sling module 40 can be either pivotally connected to the lower end of elongated beams 31 , 32 of the proximal sling module 30 , using any removable connection means 62 , shown here as , albeit not limited to , a removable pin ( fig5 , 6 ). otherwise , the elongated rods 41 , 42 of the distal sling module 40 are pivotally connected to distal module extensions 75 , which telescope into the ends of the elongated beams 31 , 32 of the proximal sling module 30 . if the elongated rods 41 , 42 of the distal sling module 40 are pivotally connected to distal module extensions 75 , then distal ends of the elongated beams 31 , 32 of the proximal module 30 have at least one of aperture or detent 44 a for cooperating with spring loaded buttons located on two extensions 75 connected to the distal sling module 40 . the two extensions 75 telescope into the ends of the elongated beams 31 , 32 of the proximal sling module 30 . these cooperating fasteners permit the precise adjustment in length to virtually any limb , such as , knee to hip length . similarly , the distal ends of the elongated rods 41 , 42 of the distal module 40 have a series of apertures or detents 44 b for cooperating with spring loaded buttons on the heel plate module 50 . the heel plate module 50 has two extensions 51 which telescope into the ends of the rods 41 , 42 of the distal sling module 40 . these cooperating fasteners permit the adjustment in length to fit limbs of different height , for example , the length from knee to foot . the proximal sling module 30 and / or a distal sling module 40 can each include at least one adjustable upper support means . although not limited to , the embodiments of fig3 - 9 , illustrate two separate support means 36 , 37 , 48 , 49 to provide pressure to the upper portions of the patient &# 39 ; s limb to achieve the maximum possible extension , similar to the manual techniques employed by most physical therapists . the adjustable upper support means 36 , 37 , 48 , 49 can be removably or permanently attached to the proximal sling module 30 and / or distal sling module 40 by any means of attachment ( not shown ) known in the art , i . e ., adhesives , rivets , or the like . moreover , the removable , adjustable upper support members 36 , 37 , 48 , 49 can be any made into any length along the longitudinal axis of the elongated beams 31 , 32 and / or elongated rods 41 , 42 . this is advantageous since after most post - operative situations , more pressure along the upper portion of proximal and / or distal portion of the patient &# 39 ; s limb is desired . thus , a longer upper support member 36 , 37 , 48 , 49 is needed , as shown in fig7 . however , during the physician prescribed period of use of the instant cpm device , the longer upper support member 36 , 37 , 48 , 49 can be removed and replaced with thinner upper support members , that will provide less pressure along the upper portion of the patient &# 39 ; s limb . the upper support means 36 , 37 , 45 , 46 , 48 , 49 can be constructed of a rigid , semi - rigid material or a composite , for example , aluminum , thin gauge steel or plastic . in addition , other materials and shapes , having the requisite strength , rigidity and weight , may be utilized , ( i . e . leather , nylon , or the like ). in cpm , the patient exerts no active resistance to the movement of the patient &# 39 ; s limb nor is there any positive muscular contractions . the lower support material 43 , 45 must be constructed from a material strong enough to carry the weight of the patient &# 39 ; s limb , for example , flexible cloth , film or relatively stiff sheet . additionally , the adjustable upper and / or lower support means 36 , 37 , 43 , 45 , 48 , 49 can include an inner lining , or padding , which is in direct contact with the patient and will provide additional comfort and protect the patient &# 39 ; s limb from irritation and / or chaffing during cpm movement . fig5 is left side view of the modular therapy device 10 of fig3 – 4 in the flexed position , wherein the modular frame assembly is in the process of being folded for easy transport and storage . fig6 is left side view of the same therapy device 10 shown in fig3 – 4 in the extended position . fig8 . is left side view of the modular therapy device 10 of fig3 – 4 in with the wheel assembly 53 , 54 in contact with the floor surface , for a patient in a sitting position . in the less preferred embodiment depicted in fig1 – 16 , wherein like elements are number consistently throughout , the device 10 includes a proximal sling module 30 , a distal sling module 40 , a base module 20 with an adjustable link 79 , a heel plate module 50 and an operating system , i . e . power assist system , comprising at least a motor 64 and controller 67 . the base module 20 serves to support the device 10 on a surface such as a floor , table , or bed . the base 20 has an elongated shape constructed and arranged for being placed horizontally on a surface . in one preferred embodiment of the base 20 , the proximal portion 82 of the base 20 includes arms 22 , 23 that are pivotally connected to the proximal sling module 30 via any connection means known in the art , i . e . pin 90 . like the previous embodiment , the proximal sling module 30 supports the patient &# 39 ; s thigh or upper arm during operation of the device 10 . the distal portion 24 of the base 20 can include lateral extensions 25 to increase stability . though not shown in fig1 , the extensions 25 may be completely removed from the distal portion 24 . moreover , the extensions 25 are laterally adjustable via retainers 26 to secure the extensions in a selected position . the retainers 26 may be spring biased protrusions in the distal portion 24 cooperating with apertures 26 in the extensions or a series of apertures in both the extensions and the bottom through which pins may be inserted ( not shown ). as illustrated in the exploded view of fig1 , the base 20 includes a shaft portion 80 which joins the proximal 82 and distal 24 ends of the base 20 . in one embodiment , the shaft 80 of the base 20 is bifurcated into legs 27 , 28 connecting the distal end 24 to the arms 22 , 23 . the legs 27 , 28 of the shaft 80 have a series of apertures 29 for selective pivoting connection of the adjustable link 79 . the distal sling module 40 is connected to the base 20 by via the adjustable link 79 which is variable in length by telescoping components 32 , 33 selectively positionable by retainers 34 similar to those on extensions 25 . preferably , the adjustable link 79 is centered between the legs 27 , 28 and pivotably connected to the base 20 by a pin 84 extending through both legs 27 , 28 and the end of the pin 84 . the other end of the link 79 is pivotably connected to the distal sling module 40 by another pin 35 extending through bracket 86 connected to cross member 47 , shown in fig1 – 13 . similar to the previous embodiment of fig3 – 8 , the cross member 47 of fig1 – 14 is attached at each end to two elongated rods 41 , 42 which extend parallel along the distal portion of a patient &# 39 ; s limb during flexing of the joint . a support material 43 extends between the two elongated rods 41 , 42 to carry the limb as the elongated rods pivot through a preselected range of motion . the material 43 may be flexible cloth , film , or a relatively stiff sheet . as illustrated in fig1 , the distal ends of the elongated rods 41 , 42 have a series of apertures or detents 44 b for cooperating with spring loaded buttons on the heel plate module 50 . the heel plate module 50 has two extensions 51 which telescope into the ends of the rods 41 , 42 of the distal sling module . these cooperating fasteners permit the adjustment in length to fit limbs of different height . the opposite ends of the elongated rods 41 , 42 of the distal sling module 40 are pivotally connected to the lower end of elongated beams 31 , 32 using removable any removable connection means 62 , shown here as , albeit not limited to , a removable pin ( fig1 ). otherwise , the elongated rods 41 , 42 of the distal sling module 40 are pivotally connected to distal module extensions 75 , which telescope into the ends of the elongated beams 31 , 32 of the proximal sling module 30 . the patient &# 39 ; s joint to be flexed will be situated adjacent this pivotal connection means 62 with the proximal portion of the limb supported by the proximal sling module 30 . elongated beams 31 , 32 extends along each side of the patient &# 39 ; s limb with a lower support material 45 between the elongated beams 31 , 32 supporting the proximal portion of the limb . if the elongated rods 41 , 42 of the distal sling module 40 are pivotally connected to distal module extensions 75 , then the distal ends of the elongated beams 31 , 32 have a series of apertures or detents 44 a for cooperating with spring loaded buttons on the distal module extensions 75 , as they telescope into the ends of the elongated beams 31 , 32 . these cooperating fasteners permit the precise adjustment in length to virtually any limb , such as , knee to hip length . similarly , the distal ends of the elongated rods 41 , 42 have a series of apertures or detents 44 b for cooperating with spring loaded buttons on the heel plate module 50 . the heel plate module 50 has two extensions 51 which telescope into the ends of the rods 41 , 42 of the distal sling module . these cooperating fasteners permit the adjustment in length to fit limbs of different height , for example , the length from knee to foot . although not shown in fig1 - 14 , the proximal sling module 30 and / or a distal sling module 40 can each include an adjustable upper support means 36 , 37 , 48 , 49 to provide pressure to the upper portions of the patient &# 39 ; s limb . the adjustable upper support means 36 , 37 , 48 , 49 can be removably or permanently attached to the proximal sling module 30 and / or distal sling module 40 by any means of attachment ( not shown ) known in the art , i . e ., adhesives , rivets , or the like . moreover , the removable , adjustable upper support members 36 , 37 , 48 , 49 can be any constructed into any length along the longitudinal axis of the elongated beams 31 , 32 and / or elongated rods 41 , 42 . the upper support means 36 , 37 , 45 , 46 , 48 , 49 can be constructed of a rigid , semi - rigid material or a composite , for example , aluminum , thin gauge steel or plastic . in addition , other materials and shapes , having the requisite strength , rigidity and weight , may be utilized , ( i . e . leather , nylon , or the like ). the lower support material 43 , 45 must be constructed from a material strong enough to carry the weight of the patient &# 39 ; s limb , for example , flexible cloth , film or relatively stiff sheet . additionally , the adjustable upper and / or lower support means 36 , 37 , 43 , 45 , 48 , 49 can include an inner lining , or padding , that will provide comfort and protect the patient &# 39 ; s limb from irritation or chaffing during movement . as illustrated in fig1 , the operating system , or , power assist device can include , albeit not limited to , a low powered ( i . e . about 10 to about 20 vdc ), hi - torque linear actuator 63 , having a motor 64 mounted to the upper end of the distal sling module rod 42 . the linear actuator 63 comprises a motor output shaft 65 and a complementary power transfer part , shown here as , albeit not limited to , a circular , or worm , gear 66 fixed by the pin 62 to elongated beam 31 as shown in fig1 . the linear actuator 63 can comprise any means for providing power , for example , stepper motor or the like . an optical or mechanical encoder ( not shown ) may be used for the precise control of the linear actuator 63 . the rotation of the output shaft 65 causes the circular gear 66 to turn which moves the distal sling module 40 relative to the proximal sling module 30 . the motor 64 is operatively connected through either elongated rods 41 , 42 with the controller 67 . the controller 67 can be as simple as an off / on switch or include a programmable system which can include a speed control means for the motor 64 . such other features which may be included into the controller 67 include , a timer for session duration , repetitions over time , and length of throw of the worm gear 66 controlling angle of flex . also , a safety circuit may produce a signal , ( i . e . audio or visual or both ), if there is an extension beyond the programmed parameters . additionally , the controller 67 and / or linear actuator 63 may be powered by any means for supplying power known to the skilled artisan . for example , the controller 67 and / or linear actuator 63 may include a battery pack ( not shown ) and be connected to the motor 63 through interior portion of either elongated rods 41 , 42 or preferably by a wireless remote 68 , ( i . e . rf , ir , etc . ), shown in fig1 . the wireless remote 68 is preferred to obviate the possibility of entangling the operating system with the bed clothes or any moving parts of the device 10 . a wireless receptor ( not shown ) may be on the controller 67 or directly on the motor 64 . although not limit to , the controller 67 is mounted on the heel plate module 50 in fig1 – 14 . preferable , the heel plate module 50 has a flange 88 for supporting the extremity of the patient &# 39 ; s limb to assist in the proper location of the patient &# 39 ; s limb in the device . the flange 88 is mounted on an axle 52 intermediate a set of wheels 53 , 54 , one at each end of the axle 52 . the extension 51 is mounted near each wheel 53 , 54 normal to the axle 52 . as previously discussed above , the ends of the extensions 51 are adjustably telescoped into the ends of the elongated rods 41 , 42 of the distal sling module 40 . thus , the heel plate 50 and the distal sling module 40 may be further adjusted to comfortably conform to the length of the patient &# 39 ; s limb . to perform cpm on a patient &# 39 ; s knee , for example , the patient is supine and the patient &# 39 ; s leg is placed on the device 10 so that the thigh supported by the proximal lower support mean 45 and the calf supported by the distal lower support means 43 with the knee adjacent the pivot point between the distal sling module 40 and the proximal sling module 30 , as shown in fig2 . the proximal sling module 30 is then strapped to the patient &# 39 ; s limb with appropriately sized proximal upper support means 36 , 37 . the distal sling module 40 is fastened about the calf with distal upper support means 48 , 49 . in this position , the wheels 53 , 54 are in contact with a supporting surface , such as the floor , so that the wheels move across the surface in response to the actuation of the linear actuator 63 ( fig8 ). the articulation of this embodiment is similar to that shown in fig3 , 4 of the first embodiment and fig1 , 13 of the second embodiment . next , the controller 67 is programed , as desired , and the motor 64 is energized . as the linear actuator 63 moves the proximal sling module 40 relative to the distal sling module 30 , the patient &# 39 ; s leg can achieve a full range of motion , for example , albeit not limited to , about − 30 degrees to about + 155 degrees . in addition , a track or rail system can be included on either of aforementioned embodiments of the instant device to provide unobstructed movement of the wheels 53 , 54 , either across the floor or across other surfaces , such as rumpled sheets on a bed , ( fig9 ). in one preferred embodiment , the track is formed as a c - shaped channel 71 , 72 enclosing each wheel . the tracks 71 , 72 may or may not be joined by cross ties ( not shown ) and the tracks 71 , 72 may or may not be flexible . the length of the tracks 71 , 72 is commensurate with the distance the wheels 53 , 54 move in response to the operation of the linear actuator 63 . it is to be understood that while a certain form of the invention is illustrated , it is not to be limited to the specific form or arrangement herein described and shown . it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention and the invention is not to be considered limited to what is shown and described in the specification and drawings / figures . one skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the present invention is well adapted to carry out the objectives and obtain the ends and advantages mentioned , as well as those inherent therein . the embodiments , methods , procedures and techniques described herein are presently representative of the preferred embodiments , are intended to be exemplary and are not intended as limitations on the scope . changes therein and other uses will occur to those skilled in the art which are encompassed within the spirit of the invention and are defined by the scope of the appended claims . although the invention has been described in connection with specific preferred embodiments , it should be understood that the invention as claimed should not be unduly limited to such specific embodiments . indeed , various modifications of the described modes for carrying out the invention which are obvious to those skilled in the art are intended to be within the scope of the following claims .	0
embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings , where like reference numerals represent like parts and assemblies throughout the several views . reference to various embodiments does not limit the scope of the invention , which is limited only by the scope of the claims attached hereto . although many of the examples described herein refer to file systems and searchable indexing of the file system , the indexing methods are not limited to file systems . the described indexing system and method is equally applicable to any other application program , database , service , or system that may benefit from an indexing service , including but not limited to : email applications , databases , contact managers , help systems , file services , web content servers , web page hosting services and search tools generally . the examples set forth in this specification are not intended to be limiting and merely set forth some of the many possible embodiments for the claimed invention . with reference to fig1 , an example system for implementing the invention includes a computing device , such as computing device 100 . in a very basic configuration , computing device 100 typically includes at least one processing unit 102 and system memory 104 . depending on the exact configuration and type of computing device , system memory 104 may be volatile ( such as ram ), non - volatile ( such as rom , flash memory , etc .) or some combination of the two . system memory 104 typically includes an operating system 105 , one or more applications 106 , and may include program data 107 . in one embodiment , application 106 may include a user interface such as a search tool , a query process , an index service , an email application program , a contact manager program , a database program , a file system service , or some other service , process or program 120 . this basic configuration is illustrated in fig1 by those components within dashed line 108 . computing device 100 may have additional features or functionality . for example , computing device 100 may also include additional data storage devices ( removable and / or non - removable ) such as , for example , magnetic disks , optical disks , or tape . such additional storage is illustrated in fig1 by removable storage 109 and non - removable storage 110 . computer storage media may include volatile and nonvolatile , removable and non - removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information , such as computer readable instructions , data structures , program modules , or other data . system memory 104 , removable storage 109 and non - removable storage 110 are all examples of computer storage media . computer storage media includes , but is not limited to , ram , rom , eeprom , flash memory or other memory technology , cd - rom , digital versatile disks ( dvd ) or other optical storage , magnetic cassettes , magnetic tape , magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices , or any other medium which can be used to store the desired information and which can be accessed by computing device 100 . any such computer storage media may be part of device 100 . computing device 100 may also have input device ( s ) 112 such as keyboard , mouse , pen , voice input device , touch input device , etc . output device ( s ) 114 such as a display , speakers , printer , etc . may also be included . computing device 100 may also contain communication connections 116 that allow the device to communicate with other computing devices 118 , such as over a network . communication connection 116 is one example of communication media . communication media may typically be embodied by computer readable instructions , data structures , program modules , or other data in a modulated data signal , such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism , and includes any information delivery media . the term “ modulated data signal ” means a signal that has one or more of its characteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode information in the signal . by way of example , and not limitation , communication media includes wired media such as a wired network or direct - wired connection , and wireless media such as acoustic , rf , infrared and other wireless media . the term computer readable media as used herein includes both storage media and communication media . fig2 illustrates a query system that is arranged in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention . in a simplest implementation , the system employs a query process and an index process . the index process may be logically divided into a data store and an indexing service . in one implementation , the data store and the indexing service may be logical partitions that are located within a single program module . in another implementation , the data store and the indexing service are located in separate modules on a single computing device . in still another implementation , the data store and the indexing service are located in separate modules on separate computing devices . in yet another implementation , the data store and the indexing services are located on different virtual machines such as a client and host within the same physical computing device . the query process receives index request 201 from a user through a user interface or some other configuration that is configurable by a user . the query process processes index request 201 and interacts with the data store ( e . g ., retrieving data through request 202 ) to determine if all of the items within index request are currently indexed and up - to - date . when the index request is not currently up - to - date , the query process notifies the indexing service to begin indexing the identified index request through notification 203 . the query process communicates with the data store to retrieve initial results 204 , which are already indexed and up - to - date . initial results 204 are received by the query process and returned to the user as data 205 , which can be retrieved and displayed on an user interface such as a graphical display . when the currently indexed items from the data store are incomplete with respect to the full scope of the index request , additional indexing must be performed . in this instance , the indexing service enumerates items that have not yet been indexed ( or are stale ) and initiates indexing for every remaining item . batch processing is used by the indexing service to break the remaining items into groups such that partial indexing results can be retrieved until all of the items are indexed . the indexing service communicates indexing results 206 to the data store as they are completed , and sends notifications 207 to the query process as each batch is completed . the query process retrieves batch index results 208 from the data store after receiving notification of batch completion . the query process returns the batch processing results to the user as data 209 , which can also be retrieved and displayed on the user interface . batch indexing continues until either all batches are processed or the indexing process is terminated . queries result in searchable / reviewable indexes faster than those observed in other conventional implementations . the indexes are created dynamically such that the partially indexed results are displayed while the remaining indexing continues ( e . g ., in a background process ). query results for previously indexed documents are reused , and supplemented with the additional dynamic indexing methods described above . the indexing process is typically configured to execute on a client machine . the client machine may be configured to operate as a virtual machine that serves as both client and host / server for various purposes . the items that are indexed can be physically located on the client machine , on a host machine ( either the same physical machine as the client or a different machine ), and / or across one or more networked system ( e . g ., lan , wan , uwan , etc .). the items that can be indexed can consist of any data , document , executable , or any other information that can exist in a searchable system . example items include program objects , macros , scripts , word processing documents , text documents , spreadsheet documents , graphical images , data files , email files , contact databases , or any other appropriate form of stored information that may exist on the system . the indexing query to the query process may designate a scope such that a limited portion of the searchable space ( e . g ., a portion of a file system , a user &# 39 ; s emails , a groups project workspace , etc .) is searched for a particular query . efficiency of the indexing process is improved by implementing batched indexing rather than handling single documents at a time . the batch size can be adjusted so that the trickling in of indexing results is more frequent and the overall user experience is enhanced . results for each batch are returned to the query process . the process is continued until the index is up - to - date with respect to the selected scope . the data store can consist of a database , a data construct such as a table , or any other appropriate mechanism that can store information that relate items within the specified scope to indexing key terms . in general , the data store can be any data construct that includes a persistent queue that tracks changes to the items in the specified scope . fig3 is a diagram illustrating a sequence of processing flows in another example query indexing system that is arranged in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention . the example processing flow is divided into three logical processing portions , namely , a user interface , a query process , and an index process . in example implementations the query process , index process and user interface may be combined into a single module , or separated into further logical partitions . the example process flow illustrated in fig3 includes two queries that have two separate designated scopes ( scope 1 , and scope 2 ). initially , an indexing query is initiated through a user interface such as a search engine . each indexing query has a limited search domain ( e . g ., a particular portion of the file system , a user access area , etc .) that is designated as the “ scope ” of the search . in a first example , an indexing query ( initiate query 1 ) is communicated from the user interface to the query process , where the indexing query is bound by search scope 1 . the query process in turn sends a request for an index ( request index ) to the index process using search terms ( e . g ., text strings ) from the request over the designated search scope ( scope 1 ). the index process checks for an existing index ( check index ) for the query ( query 1 ) within the designated scope ( scope 1 ). for this first example , the search terms ( or key terms ) that were included in the query ( query 1 ) are fully indexed within the selected scope ( scope 1 ), and the index process returns the complete search results ( complete results ) to the query process . the query process in turn sends the indexing results to the user interface , which can display the indexing results ( display results ). in a second example , a second indexing query ( initiate query 2 ) is communicated from the user interface to the query process , where the second indexing query is bound by search scope 2 . the query process again sends the request for an index ( request index ) to the index process using search terms ( e . g ., text strings ) from the request over the designated search scope ( now scope 2 ). the index process checks for an existing index ( check index ) for the query ( query 2 ) within the designated scope ( scope 2 ). for this second example , the search terms ( or key terms ) that were included in the query ( query 2 ) are not fully indexed within the selected scope ( scope 2 ), and the index process returns partial search results ( partial results ) to the query process . the query process in turn sends the partial indexing results to the user interface for display ( display partial results ). the partial results corresponds to previously indexed items from a previous indexing operation . recognizing that the indexing results are not complete , the index process initiates a batched indexing procedure to handle the indexing of the remaining items within the selected scope ( scope 2 ). in general terms , the batching procedure applies rules to the remaining items and creates groupings of these items for indexing . example batching procedures will later be described in further detail . as each batch of indexes are completed the batch results ( e . g ., batch 1 results , batch 2 results , . . . , batch n results ) are reported to the query process . as the batch results are received , the display on the user interface ( if applicable ) is updated to indicate the additionally indexed items . fig4 is a diagram illustrating a sequence of processing flows in still another query indexing system that is arranged in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention . the example processing flow is divided into three logical processing portions , namely , a query process , a data store ( e . g ., the winfs data structures ), and an index service . in other example implementations , the query process , data store and index service may be combined into a single module , or separated into further logical partitions . in a third example , and indexing query ( initiate query 3 ) is communicated to the query process through some sort of user interaction , where the indexing query is bound by another search scope ( scope 3 ). the query process in turn communicates with the data store ( e . g ., an sql request to a database ) to determine if the query and the selected scope ( query 3 , scope 3 ) is current . for this third example , the data store does not include an index for the query over the selected scope and the data store communicates with the index service to request indexing ( request index ), which is then initiated with a batched indexing process . the data store also returns an out - of - date indicator ( out - of - date ) to the query process along with an identifier ( e . g ., query id = qid 3 ) corresponding to the requested indexing ( query 3 , scope 3 ). the query process can then registers for notifications with the data store for all indexing results that are associated with the query index ( qid 3 ), and sends a request to the data store for the indexing results ( query results ). the data store communicates with the index service ( request index ) to request and receive results ( partial results ) related to the query index ( qid 3 ). the partial results are retrieved by the query process from the data store for further processing and / or display ( display ). recognizing that the indexing results are not complete , the index process initiates a batched indexing procedure to handle the indexing of the remaining items within the selected scope ( scope 3 ). as each batch of indexes are completed the batch results ( batch results ) are reported to the query process with reference to a batch identifier ( batch id = bid 1 , bid 2 , . . . , bidn ). once the batch results are received by the data store , a notification is communicated to the query process ( batch done ) that indicates the query id ( qid 3 ) and the batch id ( bidx ) for the completed batch . once notified of completion , the query process can request retrieval of the specified batch results . after all batches are processed , the data store notifies the query process that the last batch is completed and retrieval of the final batched indexing results can be retrieved by the query process from the data store . the query process can then terminate the registration with the data store or simply drop the logical connection handle . the format that is employed for storing indexing information in the data store is unimportant . data structures , data bases , and other specific data types can be arranged to provide sufficient information to index items according to text strings , as well as other information such as locations with the item ( e . g ., a position within a word processing document ). for illustration purposes , the following table is provided to illustrate the types of indexing information that can be stored therein : the scope and version stamp associated with each item can be found in another data table such as illustrated below . for this example , the scope is determined according to relative file path names , http addresses , or absolute file path names . the version stamp can be used by the various processes to determine if a particular document has been modified using a procedure such as a hash of the document or item , a creation / revision date and time , or some other criteria to identify the version of the item . a version table can be employed to track the current version of the item , while a history table can be employed to track the current version of the item that is indexed in the index table . example process flows are illustrated by way of fig5 - 10 . each of the process flows can be configured to operate a separate process that is running in a multi - tasking or multi - threaded environment , or as integrated processes . fig5 . is a diagram illustrating processing flows in an example query process , arranged in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention . the query process may be idle until it either receives a query , or until a notification related to a previous query is received . when a notification is received by the query process , the query process reviews the notification and queries for the results from another process based on the batch id ( bid ). when a query is received by the query process , the query process initiates a scope check for the query to determine whether or not the indexes for the selected scope are out - of - date . when the scope is out - of - date , the query process registers for notification and initiates batch processing in another process . after registration , or when the scope is up - to - date , the query process requests index results for any partial results that may be available and returns those results . fig6 is a diagram illustrating processing flows in an example scope check process , arranged in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention . the scope check process is idle until a query is received . upon receipt of a query , the scope check process identifies the scope ( e . g ., pathname ) found in the request and determines if the items in the selected scope are out - of - date . each item has an associated version number , as well as the historical version number that corresponds to the version number that was used to create the last indexing associated with the item . when any one of the items has a difference in the indexed version number and the current version number , the index is out - of - date with respect to that item . the out - of - date items are identified , sorted into priority queues , assigned a query id ( qid ) for indexing , and a notification is returned indicting that items are out - of - date . when all of the indexed versions and the current versions are the same , a notification is returned indicating that the items are up - to - date . fig7 is a diagram illustrating processing flows in an example query results process , arranged in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention . the query results process is idle until a query is received . upon receipt of a query , the query results process retrieves the queue index associated ( qid ) with the query the scope , and determines if the query indicates a batch process . when the queue index does not indicate at batch process ( no bid ), notification is returned to indicate that the results are up - to - date . for queue indexes that indicate a batch process , the priority queues for the identified batch process ( qid , bid ) are evaluated and the batch results are returned with reference to the batch identifier ( bid ). fig8 is a diagram illustrating processing flows in an example batch process , arranged in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention . the batch process is idle until a notification registration is requested . after the registration request is received , a batching heuristic is applied to the items in the selected scope to determine a groupings of items for indexing . each grouping is indexed according to the query identifier ( qid ) and a batch identifier ( bid ), and a notification of the completion of the batching process is returned . after all of the items in the requested query are batched , the batch process returns to the idle state . fig9 is a diagram illustrating processing flows in an example create index process , arranged in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention . a batch identifier ( bid ) is created and the queues from the batching process is evaluated for highest priority items . indexing is initiated for all of the items in the highest priority batches until all batches are processed . fig1 is a diagram illustrating processing flows for an initiate indexing process , arranged in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention . each item associated with the batch identifier ( bid ) is indexed in turn until all items are indexed . notification is returned when the batch is completely indexed . the above specification , examples and data provide a complete description of the manufacture and use of the composition of the invention . since many embodiments of the invention can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention , the invention resides in the claims hereinafter appended .	6
the first preferred embodiment of the wall - attached plumbing connector of this invention is generally indicated at 10 in fig1 and 3 . the connector 10 comprises a wall plate 12 which is rectangular or square in configuration , as shown in fig2 . the wall plate has fastener holes 14 , 16 , 18 and 20 adjacent its four corners . the fastener holes are spaced an appropriate distance for attachment to the building structure to which it is attached . in one preferred embodiment , holes 14 , 16 , 18 , and 20 are equally spaced three inches apart from one another . in addition to those fastener holes , additional holes can be provided as would be appropriate for particular installations . the wall plate 12 carries indicia 22 which indicates the up direction for reasons which are described below . while wall plate 12 in a preferred embodiment is shown as a substantially square structure , it will be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art that the shape of wall plate 12 can be highly application specific . accordingly , the principles of the present invention specifically contemplate the formation of wall plate 12 as any geometric shape required for a given application . such shapes include , but are not limited to triangles , squares , rectangles , regular and irregular polygons , circles , arcs , circular sections , ellipses , and elliptical sections . connector tube 24 has an opening therethrough and extends out of both sides of the wall plate , as seen in fig1 . the outside of the wall plate is the side seen in fig2 which carries the indicia thereon . the inside portion 26 of the connector tube extends inward from plate 12 , and the outside portion 28 extends outward from plate 12 . the inside portion 26 of the connector tube defines an inner surface to receive a connecting plumbing fitting . the surface may be threaded for insertion of pipes or nipples , or may be slip - fit for soldered copper or glued synthetic polymer tube to be attached . the outside portion 28 is similar and has a female threaded surface 30 for the introduction of a nipple , pipe or the like . the exterior of the outside portion is a hexagonal surface 32 to which a wrench can be applied to counteract applied torque during the insertion and removal of a threaded pipe into the threaded surface 30 . the wall - attached plumbing connector 10 provides a rigid mounting through walls for plumbing systems during the fabrication stage of construction by mounting to the framing members which can be horizontally or vertically constructed for attachment of the invention . the connector 10 is particularly suited to be made of copper , chrome plate , brass , stainless steel , corrosion - resistant steel , and synthetic polymer composition material such as pvc and cpvc or other polymers . where connector 10 , and especially plate 12 thereof are formed of fire - proof , fire - retardant , or fire - resistant materials , ( such as brass or stainless steel ) connector 10 can further serve as a fire block at the point where the plumbing system effects the wall penetration . the connector comprises a wall mount that has an inner wall contacting surface and an outer portion of sufficient length to extend through a wall of predetermined thickness . the outer portion , which penetrates the wall sheathing , defines an inner and outer diameter sufficient for a pipe or fixture of predetermined diameter to be attached . in this manner , the inside portion and the outside portion , separated by a plate secured to the framing member , define a rigid plumbing passage through a wall to which can be soldered , glued or fitted , in any manner , a plumbing fixture or pipe by adapting variations of connections between the inner and outer tube portions . this would include , but not be limited to variations such as female to male threads , female thread to solder joint , male thread to solder joint , male thread to male thread , female thread to male thread , female threaded to female thread , etc . the connections are secured to the wall by a flange or plate 12 which is attached to the wall with screws or nails to the framing member . this provides backup or rigidity for installation and removal for repairs of a fixture or pipe from the finished side of a wall . the outside portion 28 of the connector tube 24 penetrates the sheathing 34 , as seen in fig3 . it includes a circumferential engagement portion so that the wall plate and stem can be secured for attachment of fixtures using something such as a hexagonal shaped circumference for engagement by a wrench or like device . in an alternative preferred embodiment , it is not necessary that the supply pipe extending into the inner wall connection and the pipe or fixture extending from the outer wall connection be of the same diameter . for example , a three - quarter inch supply line may be inserted into the inner wall connection , whereas a half - inch line may extend from the outer wall connection , with the plate securing the fittings to the framing separately and adapting the two size connectors together . fig3 shows the connector 10 installed on a wall . the wall has studs 36 onto the exterior of which is secured the sheathing 34 . before the sheathing is installed , the connector 10 is secured in place , as by nails 38 through the holes in the corner of the plate 12 . interiorly of the wall , the inside pipe 40 is attached to the inside portion 26 . the illustrated pipe is a soldered copper tubing . in such a case , the connector 10 is made of copper or brass to be compatible with the soldering connection . if the interior piping is of synthetic polymer composition material , then the inside portion 26 needs to be threaded to be connectable thereto or needs to be made of a material which is suitable for gluing thereto . the connector 10 is thus made of one piece of material , and the material is chosen to be compatible with the piping system . as is seen in fig3 the outside portion 28 extends through the sheathing 34 . when the exterior siding 42 is applied , a nipple or other extender is screwed into the exterior portion to protect the tube 24 and to provide a hole in the siding through which a fitting can be installed after completion of the siding . in the present case , hose bib 44 with an integral long nipple 46 is installed upon completion of the exterior siding 42 . in those cases where the fitting is to be used out through an exterior wall , such as to carry a hose bib , as illustrated in fig3 it is preferable that the inside and outside portions of the connector tube each be angled slightly downward with respect to the horizontal axis 48 . this is to permit drainage of both the interior and exterior plumbing with respect to plate 12 . as indicated in fig1 the axes of these portions each have about a 2 degree downslope with respect to the axis . for this reason , the indicia 22 is provided to make sure the connector is correctly installed . the connector 10 can also be used on an interior wall of the structure . it may be used to carry a shower arm and shower head . it may be used for installation of a toilet supply valve , or the like . the connector 50 shown in fig4 and 6 has the same wall plate with its fastener holes . it also has indicia 52 , which indicates the up direction . it has a connector tube 54 which has an interior portion 56 and exterior portion 58 . as contrasted to the connector 10 , the exterior portion 58 has screw threads 60 on the exterior thereof . the exterior portion 58 is sufficiently long with respect to the wall plate that the threaded portion extends out past the wall material 62 , which is secured to the studs over the plate of connector 50 . the screw - threaded portion 60 thus extends beyond the wall material . valve 64 can be threaded thereon to control outflow of liquid . this structure is particularly suitable for the water supply tube to a toilet , but can be employed in many other similar uses . in fig6 the valve 64 is shown in exploded position . as seen in fig4 both the interior and exterior portions of the connector tube are downsloped . in this way , a through - wall plumbing connector is securely affixed to the structure for rigid attachment on both sides of the plumbing connector . the plumbing connector is preferably made in a single part , such as by casting or molding . post casting machining may be required to clear the bore through the center , cut the threads , and / or machine a smooth cylindrical surface for the soldering of copper tube therein . the casting of the structure in a single piece is particularly useful when the inside portions and outside portions of the connector tube are not axially aligned , but are each aligned at 88 degrees with respect to the plane of the wall plate . however , the structure can be made of two parts . the connector tube can be fashioned , preferably with a flange in the proper location , and the connector tube can be inserted into an opening in the wall plate and soldered , brazed or welded therein . this invention has been described in its presently contemplated best modes , and it is clear that it is susceptible to numerous modifications , modes and embodiments within the ability of those skilled in the art and without the exercise of the inventive faculty .	4
the electronic data transfer system and method set forth herein provides a transparent use of bandwidth for transferring data along with efficient error recovery . using the invention , a large file may be transferred over a limited bandwidth connection without interfering with other traffic . this is accomplished by relinquishing the bandwidth whenever other traffic is present , such that the large file is received during the times when bandwidth is not being used . as soon as there is other traffic present contending for the bandwidth , the present invention yields to the other traffic . although surrendering the bandwidth frequently causes gaps in the data received , later acquisition of the missing data is accomplished in a bandwidth - efficient manner using error recovery . this error recovery of the present invention allows k pieces of lost data to be recovered by obtaining k plus a safety value ( k + safety value ) pieces of error correction data . the error recovery is achieved by constructing the error correction data in a novel manner , as described in detail below . by way of example , in a computer network environment a client can download from a server a large file having no latency constraint ( for example , the file is not a real - time audio or video stream ) without interfering with other applications running on the client . thus , if a user wants to use a browser application to surf the internet while downloading the large file , the invention will back off or stop altogether the downloading of the file . this avoids slowing down the user &# 39 ; s internet experience . if any packets of data are lost due to the backing off , the acquisition of the lost data is simple and efficient due the error recovery scheme used in the invention . the present invention includes an electronic data transfer system and method for transferring data using at least two signals . the first signal includes a data signal containing data to be transferred . this data is typically divided or segmented into discrete data . the second signal is an error correction signal containing error correction data for efficient error recovery . the error correction data includes a probabilistic weighted combination of the discrete data . if any one of the discrete data are lost during the transfer , each of one of the lost discrete data may be obtained by acquiring a small number ( relative to the number of discrete data ) of the error correction data . fig1 is a block diagram illustrating a general overview of the electronic data transfer system and method disclosed herein . in general , the electronic data transfer system 100 transmits data from a transmission unit 105 to one or more reception units ( reception unit ( 1 ) to reception unit ( m )). the data may be transferred in several ways , such as over the air , using a satellite , or through a wire . the electronic data transfer system 100 transmits the data such that any portion of the data lost in the transmission can be recovered by receiving a minimum amount of error correction data . specifically , the transmission unit 105 includes an error correction module 110 that generates a discrete error correction data 115 using a discrete data 120 . the discrete error correction data 115 and the discrete data 120 are designated as discrete because they are divided into separate segments ( such as packets used in a computer network ). the discrete data 120 is sent to a first transmission point 125 where the discrete data 120 is transmitted as a data signal 130 . similarly , the discrete error correction data 115 is sent to a second transmission point 135 where the discrete error correction data 115 is transmitted as an error correction signal 140 . the data signal 130 and the error correction signal 140 are transmitted on different channels or frequencies . in addition , each of the pieces of discrete data or discrete error correction data may be sent over different channels or frequencies . each of the reception units includes a transparent download module 145 and a data recovery module 150 . the transparent download module 145 manages the acquisition of the data signal 130 . the data recovery module 150 receives the error correction signal and uses the received error correction data to obtain any data missed during transmission . the data signal 130 is received by reception unit ( 1 ) using a first reception point 155 and the error correction signal 140 is received using a second reception point 160 . reception unit ( 2 ) receives the data signal 130 using a third reception point 165 and the error correction signal 140 using a fourth reception point 170 . similarly , reception unit ( m ) receives the data signal 130 using a ( m − 1 ) th reception point 175 and the error correction signal 140 using a m - th reception point 180 . as shown in fig1 , depending on the need , each of the reception units can received either the data signal 130 , the error correction signal 140 , or both . for example , reception unit ( 1 ) is obtaining the discrete data 120 by listening to the first reception point 155 and receiving the data signal 130 . reception unit ( 2 ) is receiving the data signal 130 and the error correction signal 140 . reception unit ( m ) is only receiving the error correction signal by listening to the m - th reception point 180 . this situation may occur if reception unit ( m ) had previously downloaded the data signal 130 and had not received all of the discrete data 120 . reception unit ( m ) is listening to the error correction signal to obtain the lost discrete data . fig2 is a block diagram illustrating a network data transfer system 200 , which is an implementation of the electronic data transfer system and method of fig1 in a computer network environment . the network data transfer system 200 includes a server computing device 205 , which is an example of the transmission unit 105 of fig1 ) and a plurality of client computing devices ( client computing device ( 1 ) to client computing device ( p )), which are example of the reception units of fig1 . the server computing device 205 serves data to the client computing devices upon request . the server computing device 205 and the client computing devices communicate over a network 208 . the server computing device 205 includes the discrete data 120 and a data socket 210 for transmitting the discrete data 120 . in addition , the server computing device 205 includes the discrete error correction data 115 and an error correction socket for transmitting the discrete error correction data 115 . the discrete error correction data 115 includes a weighted combination of the discrete data and allows a client computing device to obtain recover missing data packets in an efficient manner . the discrete data 120 and the discrete error correction data 115 are divided into discrete pieces , such as packets of data for sending over the network 208 . the data socket 210 and the error correction socket 215 allow the client computing devices to subscribe and obtain the discrete data 120 and discrete error correction data 115 sent by the server computing device . the server computing device 205 also includes the error correction module 110 generating the discrete error correction data 115 . each of the client computing devices includes the transparent download module 145 , for downloading from the server computing device 205 in a transparent manner , and the data recovery module 150 , for recovering missing pieces of the discrete data 120 from the discrete error correction data 115 . client computing device ( 1 ) is shown listening ( or subscribing ) to the data socket 210 for obtaining the discrete data 120 . client computing device ( 2 ) is shown subscribing to both the data socket 210 and the error correction socket 215 for obtaining both discrete data 120 and discrete error correction data 115 . client computing device ( p ) is shown subscribing only to the error correction socket 215 to obtain the discrete error correction data 115 . the network data transfer system 200 shown in fig2 is designed to operate in a computing environment . the follow discussion is intended to provide a brief , general description of a suitable computing environment in which the invention may be implemented . fig3 is a block diagram illustrating a computing apparatus suitable for use with the network data transfer system shown in fig2 . although not required , the invention will be described in the general context of computer - executable instructions , such as program modules , being executed by a computer . generally , program modules include routines , programs , objects , components , data structures , etc . that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types . moreover , those skilled in the art will appreciate that the invention may be practiced with a variety of computer system configurations , including personal computers , server computers , hand - held devices , multiprocessor systems , microprocessor - based or programmable consumer electronics , network pcs , minicomputers , mainframe computers , and the like . the invention may also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network . in a distributed computing environment , program modules may be located on both local and remote computer storage media including memory storage devices . with reference to fig3 , an exemplary system for implementing the invention includes a general - purpose computing device 300 , where the server computing device 205 and the client computing devices shown in fig2 are examples of the general - purpose computing device 300 . in particular , the computing device 300 includes the processing unit 302 , a system memory 304 , and a system bus 306 that couples various system components including the system memory 304 to the processing unit 302 . the system bus 306 may be any of several types of bus structures including a memory bus or memory controller , a peripheral bus , and a local bus using any of a variety of bus architectures . the system memory includes read only memory ( rom ) 310 and random access memory ( ram ) 312 . a basic input / output system ( bios ) 314 , containing the basic routines that help to transfer information between elements within the computing device 300 , such as during start - up , is stored in rom 310 . the computing device 300 further includes a hard disk drive 316 for reading from and writing to a hard disk , not shown , a magnetic disk drive 318 for reading from or writing to a removable magnetic disk 320 , and an optical disk drive 322 for reading from or writing to a removable optical disk 324 such as a cd - rom or other optical media . the hard disk drive 316 , magnetic disk drive 328 and optical disk drive 322 are connected to the system bus 306 by a hard disk drive interface 326 , a magnetic disk drive interface 328 and an optical disk drive interface 330 , respectively . the drives and their associated computer - readable media provide nonvolatile storage of computer readable instructions , data structures , program modules and other data for the computing device 300 . although the exemplary environment described herein employs a hard disk , a removable magnetic disk 320 and a removable optical disk 324 , it should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that other types of computer readable media that can store data that is accessible by a computer , such as magnetic cassettes , flash memory cards , digital video disks , bernoulli cartridges , random access memories ( rams ), read - only memories ( roms ), and the like , may also be used in the exemplary operating environment . a number of program modules may be stored on the hard disk , magnetic disk 320 , optical disk 324 , rom 310 or ram 312 , including an operating system 332 , one or more application programs 334 , other program modules 336 and program data 338 . a user ( not shown ) may enter commands and information into the computing device 300 through input devices such as a keyboard 340 and a pointing device 342 ( such as a mouse ). in addition , other input devices ( not shown ) may be connected to the computing device 300 including , for example , a microphone , joystick , game pad , satellite dish , scanner , or the like . these other input devices are often connected to the processing unit 302 through a serial port interface 344 that is coupled to the system bus 306 , but may be connected by other interfaces , such as a parallel port , a game port or a universal serial bus ( usb ). a monitor 346 , such as a display device , is also connected to the system bus 306 via an interface , such as a video adapter 348 . in addition to the monitor 346 , computing devices such as personal computers typically include other peripheral output devices ( not shown ), such as speakers and printers . the computing device 300 may operate in a networked environment using logical connections to one or more remote computers , such as a remote computer 350 . the remote computer 350 may be another personal computer , a server , a router , a network pc , a peer device or other common network node , and typically includes many or all of the elements described above relative to the computing device 300 , although only a memory storage device 352 has been illustrated in fig3 . the logical connections depicted in fig3 include a local area network ( lan ) 354 and a wide area network ( wan ) 356 . such networking environments are commonplace in offices , enterprise - wide computer networks , intranets and the internet . when used in a lan networking environment , the computing device 300 is connected to the local network 354 through a network interface or adapter 358 . when used in a wan networking environment , the computing device 300 typically includes a modem 360 or other means for establishing communications over the wide area network 356 , such as the internet . the modem 360 , which may be internal or external , is connected to the system bus 306 via the serial port interface 344 . in a networked environment , program modules depicted relative to the computing device 300 , or portions thereof , may be stored in the remote memory storage device 352 . it will be appreciated that the network connections shown are exemplary and other means of establishing a communications link between the computers may be used . fig4 is a detailed block / flow diagram illustrating data transfer between a client computing device and several server computing devices using the network data transfer system and method . in general , a client computing device 400 , which is an example of the client computing devices shown in fig2 , subscribes to different streams of data transmitted by a server computing devices ( server computing device ( 1 ) to server computing device ( y ). the client computing device 400 and the server computing devices communicate through a network connection 410 . the client computing device 400 includes the transparent download module 145 and the data recover module 150 . the transparent download module 145 includes a plurality of channel downloaders ( channel downloader ( 1 ) to channel downloader ( x )). the channel downloaders connect ( or subscribe ) to a particular data stream being sent by a server computing device to download data . the downloading of the data is under the control of a policy manager 420 , located on the transparent download module 145 , which controls each of the channel downloaders . the policy manager 420 determines how many of the channel downloaders should be active at any time based on congestion in the network connection 410 . the policy manager 420 ensures that the download of data occurs in a transparent manner . for example , if a browser 430 and an e - mail application 440 are using the bandwidth in the network connection 410 , the policy manage 420 instructs one or more of the channel downloaders to unsubscribe from a server computing device . if the network connection 410 is clear , then the policy manager 420 instructs one or more channel downloaders to subscribe from a server computing device . fig5 is a detailed block diagram illustrating the modules of the server computing device and client computing device 400 shown in fig4 . generally , the client computing device 400 subscribes to a server computing device 500 to receive the discrete data 120 and , if needed , the discrete error correction data 115 . the server computing device 500 includes the discrete data 120 , discrete error correction data 115 and the error correction module 110 . the error correction module includes a weights generator 510 that generates weights . the error correction module 110 receives the discrete data 120 , processes the discrete data 120 using the weights generator 510 , and outputs discrete error correction data 115 . both the discrete data 120 and the discrete error correction data 115 are available to the client computing device 400 upon request . the client computing device 400 includes the transparent download module 145 , as described in detail in fig4 , and the data recover module 150 . the data recovery module 150 includes an equation system constructor 520 , which generates a system of equations from the discrete error correction data 115 . the inputs to the equation system constructor 520 are a listing of discrete data not received 530 , a number of discrete data that are missing 535 , and a listing of discrete data received 540 . the output of the equation system constructor 520 is a system of equations 550 which , when solved , recover any missing data packets or discrete data 120 . in addition , the data recovery module 150 includes an equation systems solver 560 , which solves the system of equations 550 to recover the missing pieces of discrete data 120 . this recovered discrete data 570 represent the pieces of discrete data lost or dropped during transmission or reception . in general , the method includes provides a transparent use of bandwidth for transferring data along with unique and efficient error recovery . the error recovery provides a means to obtain any lost segments or pieces ( such as packets ) of discrete data using the segments of discrete data received and a number of discrete error correction data segments equal to the number of lost segments of discrete data plus a safety value . for example , assume that an entire discrete data set includes n pieces of discrete data that k segments of discrete data are lost or missing . this means that ( n − k ) pieces of discrete data were received . using the error recovery disclosed herein , the k pieces of lost or missing discrete data can be recovered from the ( n − k ) pieces of discrete data received and ( k + safety value ) pieces of discrete error correction data . fig6 is a general flow diagram illustrating an operational overview of the electronic data transfer system and method . in particular , the discrete data is requested ( box 600 ). by way of example , the discrete data may be requested by a client from a server over a computer network . the discrete data contains pieces of discrete data equal to a total number . next , it is determined that only a first number of pieces of the discrete data was received , and that a second number of pieces of discrete data are missing or lost ( box 610 ). once the loss is discovered , the lost data can be recovered by obtaining pieces of discrete error correction data ( box 620 ). the number of pieces of discrete error correction data needed is equal to the second number plus a safety value . using the discrete error correction data and the first number of pieces of the discrete data , the missing pieces of discrete data equal can be recovered ( box 630 ). the following working example is used to illustrate the operational details of the invention . this working example is provided as an example of one way in which the electronic data transfer method and components of the electronic data transfer method may be used . it should be noted that this working example is only one way in which the invention may be implemented , and is provided for illustrative purposes only . fig7 is a detailed flow diagram illustrating the operational details of a channel downloader 700 , where the channel downloaders shown in fig4 are examples of the channel downloader 700 . the channel downloader allows bandwidth efficient recovery from gaps in data received because of network congestion or voluntarily desubscribing from a channel . in particular , the channel downloader 700 initially must obtain permission from the policy manager to make a request to a server ( box 710 ). if the policy manager allows , the channel downloader 700 request data from the server ( box 720 ) and begins downloading the data ( box 730 ). next , a determination is made whether congestion is detected ( box 740 ). if not , then the data downloading continues ( box 750 ) and the check for congestion is performed again . if there is congestion detected the policy manager is notified of the congestion ( box 760 ). a determination then is made whether the policy manager gives permission for the channel downloader 700 to continue the download ( box 770 ). if so , then the data download continues while continually checking for congestion ( box 750 ). otherwise , the server is notified to stop transmitting data and the channel downloader 700 stops receiving data ( box 780 ). the working example involves a server and a client connected in a network configuration . the present invention was running as a client application on a pentium ii 450 mhz machine . a plurality of channel downloaders were used to facilitate recovery when the client had to back off due to congestion in the network pipeline . a server contained a file that was divided into n packets , where x i is the i th packet of the n packet stream . the server also contained an error correction ( ec ) stream , where e j is the j th packet of the ec stream . when the client requested the file , the server transmitted the x i packet in a udp stream to the client . with each file to be served , the server will server the data packets x i at a rate b d and the error correction packets e j at a rate b ec . it should be noted that for multiple channel downloaders each of them do not necessarily need to download data at the same rate . to obtain a file , the channel downloader on the client first requested the udp stream x i and stored the packets as they arrived . the channel downloader periodically sent acknowledgments to the server to signify that the channel downloader was still downloading . congestion caused some packets to be lost , and the client informed the policy manager . congestion was detected mainly by noting missing packets from the ordered stream . this information was supplied to the policy manager . where multiple channel downloaders are present , the policy manager aggregates the information coming from each of the various channel downloaders . packets may be lost also if the policy manager instructs the channel downloader to desubscribe from the data stream . either way , the client ended up with less than the total n packets contained in the file . using the error recovery of the invention , the channel downloader requested the error correction stream from the server ( at a time when the policy manager allows it to do so ). once the client received enough e j s to recover the missing packets , the channel downloader desubscribed from the server . as explained in detail below , the file was successfully decoded . once this occurred , the channel downloader terminated , thus allowing the policy manager to launch other channel downloaders if the policy manager desires . the channel downloader was able to request either the data stream or the error correction stream when the policy manager gave permission . in addition , the channel downloader had to desubscribe or request that the stream be halted when commanded to do so by the policy manager . the total number of packets received by the channel downloader was n − k + k p , where k is the number of packets lost and k p equals k plus a small number of additional packets . by requesting the error correction packets instead of the packets that were lost , the server was spared the burden of fetching specific packets for a specific client . this task does not scale well as the number of clients increases . this is especially important for multicasting , where a server could be easily overwhelmed if it were to accept individual requests from clients . fig8 is a detailed flow diagram illustrating the operational details of the policy manager 420 shown in fig4 . the policy manager receives status of congestion in the network connection from each of the channel downloaders ( box 800 ). a determination is made whether there is any unused bandwidth available in the network connection ( box 810 ). if not , then the policy manager 420 decreases the number of active channel downloaders ( box 820 ). if necessary , the number may be reduced to zero so that none of the channel downloaders are active . otherwise , if there is unused bandwidth available , the policy manager 420 increases the number of active channel downloaders ( box 830 ). because channel downloaders do not necessarily have to be at the same rate , the policy manager can intelligently manage how much bandwidth is used based on the rate of each channel downloader . in addition , the policy manager can control which channel downloaders are active in a manner calculated to spread the percentage of lost packets equally across the channels . in the working example , the client application included a policy manager controlling the channel downloaders . the policy manager dictated when subscribe and desubscribe operations should occur . the policy manager received information from each channel downloader as to whether the channel downloader is experiencing congestion . based on this information , the policy manager decides how many channel downloaders should be active at any time . the policy manager generally was an algorithm that accepted as input the congestion status from each active channel downloader . using the congestion status information , the policy manager decided how many channel downloaders should be active . if there was little or no congestion , the policy manager launched one or more new channel downloaders . in this example , the policy manager increased the number of active channel downloaders by one if there was little or no congestion detected . if there was congestion detected , the policy manager halted active channel downloaders as appropriate . in this example , the policy manager immediately decreased by half the number of active channel downloaders . this alleviated any contention for available bandwidth and made the system transparent . moreover , in this example the policy manager maintained at least one single active channel downloader to notify the policy manager when network congestion has eased . this generally is acceptable as long as the channel has a very low rate . fig9 is a detailed flow diagram illustrating the operational details of the error correction data module residing on the server computing device and shown in fig1 and 5 . in general , the error correction module 110 generates the discrete error correction data . specifically , the error correction module 110 operates by inputting the discrete data ( box 900 ). next , probabilistic weights are generated ( box 910 ). the discrete data and probabilistic weights are combined to form the discrete error correction data ( box 920 ). the weights are generated in a probabilistic manner such that each piece of discrete error correction data is a random sampling of all pieces of the discrete data . in other words , the weights are selected such that each piece of discrete error correction data is a unique combination of the discrete data . the weights can be chosen either randomly or deterministically . fig1 is a detailed flow diagram illustrating the operational details of the data recovery module 150 residing on the client computing device and shown in fig1 and 5 . the data recovery module 150 uses discrete error correction data to recover any missing or lost pieces of discrete data . in particular , the data recovery module 150 first determines the number of pieces of discrete data not received ( box 1000 ). if all the discrete data was not received , the client listens to the error correction stream to obtain the missing data . discrete error correction data is obtained from the server in a quantity that is equal to the number of pieces of discrete data not received plus a safety value ( box 1010 ). this equals the total discrete error correction data obtained . the safety value is a small number that ensures that a system of equations can be solved . there may be some equations that do not uniquely determine a solution , and the safety value ensures that a few more equations are available to overcome this problem should it arise . the safety value is dependent on the number of weights selected and the number of discrete data not received . a general rule of thumb is that the safety value should be approximately 3 % of the number of pieces of discrete data not received . the system of equations is constructed using the total discrete error correction data obtained ( box 1020 ). in general , the system of equations is a linear system of equations . this system of equation is solved ( box 1030 ) to recover the missing pieces of discrete data ( box 1040 ). following are the mathematical details of the error correction and recovery method of the invention . assume that each data channel is served in packets and that x i is the i th packet of an n packet data stream . an error correction ( ec ) stream is formed for each of the channels , e j = σ i x i b ij , where e j is the j th packet of the ec stream , the b ij s are weights ( equal to either zero or one ), and all sums are modulo 2 . suppose that n − k packets from the data stream have been received by the client , in other words , k packets have been lost or are missing due to congestion or other losses . in order to repair these losses , the client receives some of the ec packets . suppose that the client receives any k p of the ec packets , in any order . thus , the client receives e j where j are any set of k p unique indices . denote by p a set containing the indices of the received ec packets . this gives , e j = ∑ i = 0 n - 1 ⁢ x i ⁢ b ij , j ∈ r = ∑ i ∈ a ⁢ x i ⁢ b ij + ∑ i ∉ a ⁢ x i ⁢ b ij , j ∈ r ∑ i ∈ a ⁢ x i ⁢ b ij = e j - ∑ i ∉ a ⁢ x j ⁢ b ij , j ∈ r ( 1 ) where x unknown is a kx1 vector containing the missing packets , x known is a n − kx1 vector containing the packets received , e is a k p x1 vector containing the error correction packet e j received , and a and b are matrices containing the weights b ij that relate each error correction e j to the data packets x i ( these are of dimensions k p xk and k p xn − k , respectively ). this is a system of k p equations having k unknowns ( the missing packets ). the system of equations can be solved for the unknowns so long as k p ≧ k , and the system is non - singular . this is true independently of a ( the indices of the missing packets ) and r ( the indices of the ec packets received ). in other words , it does not matter which k packets were lost and which k p ec packets were received . the system of equations can be solved using any standard equation solving method , such as , for example , gaussian elimination with pivoting followed by back - substitution . the size of the system to be solved is determined by the number of missing packets . in general , it is required that k p exceed k by some amount to increase the probability that the system can be solved . the weight b ij should be chosen so that the sequences b ij for i = 0 , 1 . . . , n − 1 are in general all different . thus , each ec packet e j will be a unique combination of the data packets . the weights can be chosen at random or deterministically . for example , set b ij to be zero or one with probability one - half . clearly , there is a large number of possible b ij sequences . thus , there is no difficulty in generating a long stream of ec packets , if necessary . note that for an error packet to be useful in solving equation ( 1 ) it must be constructed of at least one missing packet . it should be noted that in the above discussion redundancy of the of the error correction ( kp − k )/( n + kp − k ) is determined by the weights b ij and there is no concept of minimum distance . thus , the error correction method is not comparable to block codes . blocking involves the breaking down of large files into smaller blocks to reduce the size of the system of equations needed to be solved . the limit on the number of errors that can be corrected for a stream of length n will be determined by the largest system of equations that it is feasible to solve . by way of example , with n = 1000 , a 3 % loss would imply k = 30 , and would require solving of system in 30 unknowns . larger files can be broken into more manageable independent blocks . for example , a file with 1 × 10 6 packets could be broken into 100 blocks of 10000 packets each . thus , a 3 % loss could be repaired by solving 100 systems in 300 unknowns rather than the computationally challenging task of solving one system in 3 × 10 4 unknowns . the form of the block decomposition should be to ensure that common forms of packet loss , such as desubscribing and congestion losses , result in uniform losses from all blocks , rather than many losses from a single block . one approach is to assign packets to blocks in a round robin manner . in the working example , the error correction and recovery running on the pentium ii 450 mhz machine took 192 seconds to invert all 100 systems . this does not include time to read the data from the disk . since the sum on the right - hand side of equation ( 1 ) involves reading the entire file once , it can be seen that computation time becomes small relative to disk access , which dominates . calculating the right - hand side involves storing a running sum of 300 × 1 kilobyte for each of the 100 blocks . this implies a requirement of 30 megabytes of ram . thus , the error correction and recovery system and method of the invention are well within the means of even a client having modest computing resources .	7
a modern office communication network can include a variety of voice , data , and video cables which connect , for example , central office telephone equipment to individual telephones and main frame computers to remote personal computers . the terminal ends of these cables are provided with appropriate connectors for selective interconnection to remote equipment . the present invention provides a means to securely mount a variety of these connectors , possibly from different media , in one enclosure for subsequent connection to cables connected to various office equipment . in accordance with an embodiment of the invention , there is provided a 12 - port outlet box 10 , as shown in fig1 - 4 . the outlet box 10 is shown in assembled form in fig1 and disassembled form in fig2 . as seen in these figures , the box 10 includes a cover 12 that snappingly engages with , and is disengageable from , a base 14 . the cover includes the front surface 16 of the box and a generally perpendicular side wall 18 that contributes to the intermediate portion of the box when the cover and base are mutually engaged . the base includes the rear surface 20 of the box and a generally perpendicular side wall 22 upstanding therefrom that , like the side wall 18 of the cover , contributes to the intermediate portion of the box when the cover and base are mutually engaged . as best seen from the plan view of fig3 , the base and whole box have a distinctive geometry , including a top portion 30 , a pair of inwardly inclined portions 32 extending inwardly from the ends of the top portion , a pair of set - off portions 34 extending from the inner more ends of the inclined portions , and a bottom portion 36 extending from and between the opposite ends of the set - off portions . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , the set - off portions 34 are generally perpendicular to the top portion 30 , while the bottom portion 36 is generally parallel to the top portion 30 , though these relationships need not exist within the context of the invention . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , the outer more ends of the inwardly inclined portions 32 and the top portion 30 meet at rounded corners 38 . such rounded corners provide bend radius control for fiberoptic cables if they are wrapped around that portion of the box . sharper corners might cause damage to fiberoptic or other more fragile cables that might inhibit signal transmission thereover . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , the inclined portions 32 are at an angle of about 45 degrees relative to the top portion 30 , and / or relative to a vertical orientation , but this angle may vary significantly . as seen in fig2 and 3 , the base 14 includes bays for permitting the insertion into the box of various jack / connector configurations . for example , up to twelve single - position jacks may be accommodated along the interior side of the inwardly inclined portions , six on each side . alternatively , banks of jacks may be used , such as a single bank of six adjacent jacks or two adjacent banks of three jacks along each inwardly inclined portion . the connectors / jacks may or may not be of identical type , as any combination can be used in the multimedia box . fig2 , for example , shows fiberoptic connectors and standard telephone jacks in side - by - side configuration . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , the base includes an inlet hole 24 generally in the center thereof for permitting cable to enter the interior of the box there through . in a preferred embodiment , the shape of the hole allows for the cables to flow to the connector positions more easily , and thereby deters unwanted slack within the interior of the box and unnecessary redirections that may increase the chances of damage to fibers or signal degradation . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , break - out portions 42 are found along the intermediate portion of the box to function as alternate inlets or outlets for cables , especially via means such as raceway . fig2 shows such a break - out in the top portion 30 of the box . notches 44 may be used to facilitate the break - outs . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , the base includes mounting holes or bosses 45 that are compatible with nema standard single gang and double gang boxes . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , the base includes spooling structures to facilitate cable slack storage . in the shown embodiment , some of the spooling structures 47 are attached to the bosses 45 . in the shown embodiment , the spooling pattern is generally a figure - 8 . the figure - 8 pattern allows for the fiber slack to be spread out over a larger area , thereby avoiding a large bundle of fibers residing about a single diameter . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , the base includes one or more cable tie down structures 46 to facilitate the bundling , management , and / or routing of cables within the interior of the box . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , the base includes one or more breakouts 48 for an mpo adapter to be inserted . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , the base includes one or more magnet pockets 49 for retaining magnets as an alternate method for mounting the box on a surface . the box could alternatively or additionally be supplied with double - sided adhesive foam tape for mounting . in a preferred embodiment of the invention , the base includes labeling areas 52 for identifying the corresponding ports . such areas 52 may also act as screw covers , hiding screws that secure the cover to the base . in the shown embodiment , the base contains four notches to permit the cover to snappingly engage the base . at the notches are screwdriver release pads to facilitate removing the cover from the base . as can be seen from the figures , when the shown embodiment is installed in the orientation shown in fig1 and 3 upon a wall or other vertical surface , the inwardly inclined portions of the box facilitate “ gravity - feed ” connections in that the plugs approach the connectors at an upward angle . thus , the cables extending from the plugs do not encounter the same degree of kinking near the plug due to the weight of the cables themselves , as opposed to cables approaching horizontally , downwardly , or at a downward angle . rather , the more upwardly the approach , the less kinking that is caused . importantly , as best seen in fig1 and 3 , the rectangular section of the box , generally defined by set - off portions 34 and bottom portion 36 , sets the box off from any furniture or other obstructions that may be located just below the box along its vertical mounting surface . without such a set - off , cables approaching the box at an upward angle would likely encounter kinking issues against the furniture since the cable would have very little distance in which to turn a significant angle . thus , the shown embodiment of the invention includes a trapezoidal section defined primarily by the inclined portions 32 and the top portion 30 residing just above a rectangular ( or other quadrilateral ) section defined by the set - off portions 34 and the bottom portion 36 . the rectangular section provides set - off and thereby helps prevent breaking the minimum bend radius for optical cables . additionally , the section providing set - off also prevents the potential problem of difficulty or impossibility of inserting plugs into gravity - feed connectors wherein insufficient space is provided between the connectors and office obstructions , such as desks , cabinets , book cases , computer monitors , wall outlets , thermostats , and the like . thus , such obstructions can cause damage to optical cable or make difficult or impossible the insertion of plugs when no set - off section is provided . the rectangular set - off section of the shown embodiment need not actually be rectangular and the set - off portions need not actually be straight or mutually parallel , as any similar set - off structure could perform similar functions , and such similar structure is considered to be alternative within the context of the invention . in accordance with an alternate embodiment of the invention , there is provided a 24 - port outlet box , as shown in fig5 - 6 . the outlet box 110 is shown in assembled form in fig6 and disassembled form in fig5 . as seen in these figures , the box 110 includes a cover 112 that snappingly engages with , and is disengageable from , a base 114 . the cover includes the front surface 116 of the box and a generally perpendicular side wall 118 that contributes to the intermediate portion of the box when the cover and base are mutually engaged . the base includes the rear surface 120 of the box and a generally perpendicular side wall 122 upstanding therefrom that , like the side wall 118 of the cover , contributes to the intermediate portion of the box when the cover and base are mutually engaged . preferably , base 14 of the 12 - port embodiment and base 114 of the 24 - port embodiment are identical , and either cover 12 or cover 112 may be used with the common base , depending on whether the 12 - port or 24 - port embodiment of the outlet box is needed for a particular application . in the shown 24 - port embodiment , a bridge 124 is snapped into or otherwise engaged with structure of the base 114 to expand the capacity of the box from 12 ports to 24 ports . to provide space for the additional row of connectors , the cover 112 is deeper than its 12 - port cover counterpart . the cut - away portion 140 of the cover side wall 118 is also correspondingly larger than its 12 - port cut - away portion counterpart to accommodate the bridge and multiple rows of connectors . the 24 - port embodiment simply permits more like - sized connectors to be housed within the outlet box , while providing the same flexibility relating to different types , configurations , and orientations of connectors and corresponding plugs . as seen in fig6 , for example , fiberoptic connectors can adjoin telephone jacks in various combinations . in both shown embodiments , at least some of the connectors have openings configured for receiving a latched plug , the openings being oriented such that when corresponding latched plugs are disposed within the connectors , the latches extend toward the front surface of the outlet box . this orientation has the benefit that when various plugs are located within adjacent connectors , it is easier to activate the latch to permit disengagement of one of the plugs when the latch is not located between the adjacent plugs , as it would be if the connectors and plugs were rotated 90 degrees in either direction . additionally , such an orientation of the connectors may require less twisting of fiberoptic cables resulting from mating with the connectors . the decreased twisting decreases the risk of damaging the fiberoptic cables from an overstressed condition . the disclosed invention provides an improved multimedia outlet box . it should be noted that the above - described and illustrated embodiments of the invention are not an exhaustive listing of the forms an outlet box in accordance with the invention could take ; rather , they serve as exemplary and illustrative of preferred embodiments of the invention as presently understood . many other forms of the invention are believe to exist . examples inexhaustively include boxes wherein the inclined portions form angles other than 45 degrees relative to other portions of the box and / or to a vertical orientation , boxes wherein the set - off portions are not mutually parallel or parallel or perpendicular to any particular portions of the box or a vertical orientation , boxes wherein the top portion includes multiple segments not necessarily coplanar or collinear with each other , and boxes wherein the number of connectors housed is greater or lesser than 12 or 24 , or the number of rows of connectors is greater than two .	7
turning now to fig1 a , 2 and 3 , there is shown an electrical connector assembly 20 which incorporates a portion of the strain - relief device 21 described herein . a central portion 22 houses the electrical connector device 24 made up of contact assemblies 26 , 28 and 30 . the form of the electrical connector device 24 is that of a three prong plug with two flat blades and a ground pin projecting from the underside of a central portion 22 ( not shown ). each of the contact assemblies 26 , 28 , 30 has a screw operated conductor contact 32 , 34 , 36 , respectively . the bared ends of the phase , neutral and ground conductors of an electrical cable ( not shown ) are attached via the conductor contacts 32 , 34 and 36 to the plug blades and ground pin . a cover 38 insulates the contact assemblies 26 , 28 and 30 and the screw operated conductor contacts 32 , 34 and 36 . a threaded fastener 40 secures the cover 38 to the central portion 22 . extending from central portion 22 is a first split body portion 42 and a second split body portion 44 . first and second split body portions 42 , 44 are complimentary and have opposing surfaces which can be brought into engagement with each other when body portion 42 is folded about living hinge 46 and body portion 44 is folded about living hinge 48 . the body portions 42 and 44 can be held in assembly by means of the threaded fasteners 50 which pass through apertures 54 in body portion 44 and threadably engage the walls which define apertures 52 in extensions 56 of body portion 42 . the extensions 56 fit within recesses 58 about the apertures 54 in body portion 44 and hold body portions 42 and 44 in assembly until the fasteners 50 are tightened . the body portions 42 and 44 have end walls 60 , 62 respectively , each of which contains a semi - circular aperture 64 , 66 respectively , forming a complete electrical cable entrance for the electrical cable whose conductors are connected to conductor contacts 32 , 34 and 36 . a cable clamping tab 68 extends across body portion 42 and is spaced inwardly from semi - circular aperture 64 . a similar clamping tab 72 extends across body portion 44 and is spaced inwardly from semi - circular aperture 66 . the free ends 70 and 74 of the clamping tabs 68 and 72 , respectively , are curved ( see fig1 a ) to better engage the outer periphery of an electrical cable which enters electric connector assembly 20 ( not shown ). the spacing between free ends 70 and 74 define the cable diameter range and cannot be altered . some distortion of a round cable to the oval shape of the space between free ends 70 and 74 is permitted with power cables and some depressions in the cable insulation is permitted without injuring such cables . a slot 78 extends from the inside surface of end wall 60 to a further slot 80 of a lesser length and provides a step 82 at their joinder . similar slots 84 extends from the inside surface of end wall 62 to a further slot 86 of a lesser length and provides a step 88 at their joinder . referring now to fig4 to 8 and 12 , there is shown a removable clamp insert 100 constructed in accordance with the concepts of the invention . a first plate 102 has a rear surface 103 which will face the interior of end walls 60 or 62 . in that the removable clamp insert 100 can be used in either split body portion 42 or split body portion 44 in the very same manner , the description hereinafter will be with respect to split body portion 42 and it should be understood that this description applies equally to split body portion 44 . the bottom of first plate 102 is tapered as at 104 to facilitate entry into slot 78 . along the top edge are a pair of shoulders 105 having tapered portions 107 to facilitate the assembly of split body portions 42 and 44 . a somewhat recessed and curved surface 108 extends between the shoulders 105 and as will be described below engages an electrical cable placed in connector assembly 20 . a semicircular projection 110 extends from rear face 103 of plate 102 . projection 110 has a curved surface 112 that fits within and engages semicircular recess 64 . the engagement between surface 112 and the walls of recess 64 act as stop means and limit the insertion of the removable clamp insert 100 into split body portion 42 . front surface 109 of plate 102 has a projection 111 extending across a portion of it . projection 111 is as long as slot 80 and has at least two vertical ribs 113 . the ribs 113 engage the back surface of cable clamping tab 68 and with the projection 111 serve to force the rear surface 103 of plate 102 against the interior face of end wall 60 to fix the position of removable clamp insert 100 . clamp insert 100 has a second plate 116 having a width less than plate 102 and is also shorter . the top portion of plate 116 is defined by a pair of shoulders 118 , one at each end , and a curved surface 120 therebetween . along the bottom portion , plate 116 is relieved as at 117 to fit within slot 71 ( or within slot 73 in split body portion 44 ) with the bottom surface 119 resting against the interior surface of split body portion 42 . as shown in fig4 and 12 , the surfaces 108 and 120 are curved in two dimensions , a first curve extends between the respective end shoulders 105 and 118 , respectively , and a second curve front to rear as is shown in fig1 . projection 110 has a relieved region 114 along its top surface to receive the cable extending into the split body portions 42 and 44 . the plates 102 and 116 are connected by a bridge 122 as shown in fig4 and 12 . bridge 122 extends from the front surface 109 of plate 102 to the front surface 115 of plate 116 . tapered shoulders 124 lead to a well 126 in the center of the bridge 122 . the well 126 can receive a portion of the electric cable displaced by the closed strain - relief . referring now to fig9 and 10 the removable clamp insert 100 is shown installed in split body portion 42 . projection 110 is positioned in semi - circular recess 64 with surface 112 in contact the wall defining recess 64 . plate 102 is positioned in slot 78 while the projection 111 occupies slot 80 . plate 116 is positioned in slot 71 . this position leaves the curved surfaces 108 and 120 and the relieved region 114 exposed for engagement with an electrical cable . fig1 shows a rear view of the closed electrical connector assembly 20 without an electrical cable therein . the clamp insert 100 is positioned in split body portion 42 as was described above with respect to fig9 and 10 . although only curved surface 108 is shown , it should be remembered that curved surface 120 is aligned with curved surface 108 . when split body portion 44 is positioned in assembly with split body portion 42 , the clamping tab 72 is positioned in between the plates 102 and 116 and the curved free end 74 along with the curved surfaces 108 and 120 define an oval shaped cable aperture . one of the clamping tabs 68 and 72 and the removable clamp insert 100 together form the strain - relief device 21 . fig1 shows how the strain - relief device 21 functions . after the individual conductors of the electrical cable have been terminated to the electrical connector device 24 , the electrical cable c is extended over the curved surfaces 108 and 120 of plates 102 and 116 in split body portion 42 . the split body portion 44 is then closed upon and fastened to split body portion 42 . this assembly step brings the curved free end 74 of clamping tab 72 into contact with the electrical cable c . the pathway between curved surfaces 108 and 120 and the clamping tab 72 will depend upon the thickness of cable c and its construction . very thin cables c could follow the circuitous route over surface 120 , under tab 72 and over surface 108 without distortion . a larger diameter cable c may be distorted from its round shape to a more oval shape similar to the shapes of the surfaces 72 , 108 and 120 . larger still cables c may have portions thereof displaced into the well 126 in bridge 122 . relieved area 114 permits a highly compressed cable c to expand as it leaves the strain - relief device 21 . while there has been shown and described and pointed out the fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to the preferred embodiment , as is presently contemplated for carrying it out , it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes of the form and details of the device illustrated and in its operation may be made by those skilled in the art , without departing from the spirit of the invention .	7
in an embodiment of this invention shown in fig1 telephones 10 , 11 and 12 are connected in parallel between a pair of telephone lines l1 and l2 . relay coils 14 , 15 and 16 are connected to the telephones 10 , 11 and 12 , respectively . condensers 18 , 19 and 20 are connected in parallel with the relay coils 14 , 15 and 16 , respectively , each one of which has a small capacity , for example 0 . 5 microfarad . it is possible that an alternating constituent of a current such as a calling signal or a voice signal can pass through each one of the condensers so as to avoid weakening by the relay coils . when the relay coil 14 has been energized , normally closed contacts 14b1 , 14b2 , 14b3 and 14b4 are opened and normally opened contact 14a is closed . similar contacts relating to the relay coils 15 and 16 are shown by similar reference characters . a current holding circuit 22 is provided , which has a pair of zener diodes 23 and 24 and a pair of diodes 25 and 26 connected as shown . the breakdown voltage of each one of the zener diodes 23 and 24 is a little higher than the voltage between both terminals of the telephone in a used condition and less than the voltage between both terminals of the telephone in a non - used condition . for example , the voltage between both terminals of the telephone is 15 volts in a used condition and 48 volts in a non - used condition . therefore , the breakdown voltage of the zener diodes may be about 20 volts . when the receiver of the telephone 10 is first taken off , a current flows from the telephone line l2 to the telephone line l1 through the telephone 10 and the relay coil 14 . the relay coil 14 will be energized , then the other telephones 11 and 12 will be cut off from the telephone lines l1 and l2 . if the telephone 10 is a dial type , dial pulses will be created by dialling of the telephone . the relay coil 14 will be repeatedly disenergized at time intervals of every one of the dial pulses , therefore contact 14a will be repeatedly opened and the current holding circuit 22 will be repeatedly cut off from the telephone line l1 . in a case of transfer of a telephone conversation following an outgoing call from the telephone 10 to the telephone 11 where a current flows from the telephone line l1 to the telephone line l2 , the receiver of the telephone 10 should be hung up after the receiver of the telephone 11 has been taken off . when the receiver of the telephone 10 has been hung up , a current between the telephone lines l1 and l2 flows not through the telephone 10 but through the zener diode 23 of the current holding circuit 22 by application of the breakdown voltage to the zener diode 23 . the relay coil 14 will be soon disenergized and the contacts 14b1 , 14b2 , 14b3 and 14b4 will be closed , and the contact 14a will be opened . a calling signal from another telephone ( not shown ) rings all of the bells of the telephones 10 , 11 and 12 ; therefore any one of the telephones 10 , 11 and 12 can be used . a transfer between the telephones 10 , 11 and 12 in a telephone conversation following an outgoing call where a current flows from the telephone line l2 to the telephone line l1 can be done by the same method as the transfer in a telephone conversation where a current flows from the telephone line l1 to the telephone line l2 . in this case , the zener diode 24 has applied to it the breakdown voltage because a current flows from the telephone line l2 to the telephone line l1 . thus , the embodiment shown in fig1 enables a continuous flow of a current at a moment of call transfer between the telephones without any trouble . the current holding circuit 22 in the above described embodiment can be changed for various modified types shown in fig2 a - 2d . in fig2 a , the current holding circuit 22 has only the zener diode 23 and the diode 25 . therefore , in a transfer of a telephone conversation where a current flows from the telephone line l2 to the telephone line l1 , a current between the telephone lines l1 and l2 is cut off at a short duration of time . but , it does not usually make a finished condition of the conversation . in fig2 b , a current holding circuit 22 consists of a pair of zener diodes 23 and 24 being connected in series and opposite directions to each other . in fig2 c , a current holding circuit 22 has a rectifying circuit 28 and only one zener diode 29 to which is to be applied the breakdown voltage at transfer times of a telephone conversation where a current flows from the telephone line l1 to the telephone line l2 and a telephone conversation where a current flows from the telephone line l2 to the telephone line l1 . in fig2 d , a pair of zener diodes 30 and 31 which are serially connected are used instead of the zener diode 29 in fig2 c to obtain a suitable total breakdown voltage . in another embodiment of this invention shown in fig3 a pair of telephones 50 and 51 are connected in parallel between a pair of telephone lines l1 and l2 . rectifying circuits 52 and 53 are inserted between each one of the telephones and the telephone line l1 . relay coils 54 and 55 and condensers 56 and 57 each one of which has a large capacity are connected as shown . the rectifying circuits 52 and 53 are effective to prevent the voltage of each of the condensers 56 and 57 from becoming zero in a telephone conversation after an outgoing call owing to inversion of the current &# 39 ; s direction . thus , each of the relay coils 54 and 55 can maintain its energized condition in a telephone conversation after the outgoing call . when the relay coil 54 has been energized , normally closed contacts 54b1 and 54b2 are opened and normally opened contacts 54a1 and 54a2 are to be closed . similar contacts relating to the relay coil 55 are shown by similar reference characters . a current holding circuit 60 has a rectifying circuit 61 , zener diodes 62 and 63 and a switch 64 . the breakdown voltages of the zener diodes 62 and 63 are 20 volts and 31 volts , respectively , for example . therefore , the zener diode 62 can be used where the maximum voltage between both terminals of the telephone is less than 20 volts in a condition of conversation . the other case , the zener diode 63 will be used . the switch 64 is initially set for a selective use of the zener diode 62 or 63 . a condenser 66 is provided which has a small capacity , for example 0 . 05 microfarad . 67 and 68 designate a pair of limiters each of which is composed of a pair of varistors connected in parallel and opposite directions each other . the resistance value of the limiter becomes large when a small current flows therethrough . the limiters 67 and 68 are connected in parallel with the contacts 55b2 and 54b2 , respectively . when the receiver of the telephone 50 has been first taken off for calling another telephone , the relay coil 54 is energized , then the telephone 51 is cut off in the direct connection between the telephone lines l1 and l2 , and connected to the telephone line l1 through the current holding circuit 60 at one side and to the telephone line l2 through the limiter 68 at the other side . the condenser 66 is connected in parallel with the telephone 51 . the relay coil 54 is not disenergized at time intervals of dial pulses created by the telephone 50 , because the capacity of the condenser 56 is large . in a case of a conversation using the telephone 50 , when the receiver of the telephone 51 has been taken off , there is no current between the telephone 51 and the telephone line l1 , and if there is any leakage current between the telephone 51 and the telephone line l2 the current will be weakened by the limiter 68 . the condenser 66 is effective for absorbing the leakage current , a noise of radio broadcasting or the like which sometimes enters through the current holding circuit 60 . thus a secret conversation can take place . a transfer between the telephones 50 and 51 in a conversation can be done by the same method as described about the embodiment shown in fig1 . a current flows between the telephone lines l1 and l2 through the current holding circuit 60 , the telephone 51 and the limiter 68 at a moment of call transfer from the telephone 50 to the telephone 51 , for example . in this embodiment , various modifications will be made . for example , it is possible that only one limiter can be used so as to be selectively connected to the telephones 50 and 51 by using more contacts . it is very easy to make a similar circuit for three telephones . there is a case where the limiter 67 and 68 and the condenser 66 are not needed . the circuits described above have a number of advantages , particularly in that each circuit enables automatic call transfers between a plurality of telephones without bothersome operations and troubles and also enables secret conversations using each one of the telephones . the foregoing is of course considered as illustrative only of the principle of the invention . obviously , numerous modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings .	7
the following description is of the best - contemplated mode of carrying out the invention . this description is made for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention and should not be taken in a limiting sense . the scope of the invention is best determined by reference to the appended claims . fig3 shows an embodiment of a data receiver 300 according to the invention . the data receiver 300 comprises a data extractor 304 for sampling the equalized signal # d q and outputting an output value # d out . the data extractor 304 is also able to detect signal quality of the equalized signal # d q and accordingly adjust the boost value of equalizer 202 . in the embodiment , a boost value generator 412 is dedicated to provide the boost value . the boost value may be dynamically adjusted according to the signal quality detected by the data extractor 304 . the adjustment may be performed by various approaches . for example , the data extractor 304 may perform a calibration to directly determine an optimal boost value associated with the present cable . first , the boost value generator 412 recursively and incrementally issues various boost values to the equalizer 202 during an interval containing multiple symbol periods t p . the interval is used for calibration . the interval should contain sufficient symbol periods to get a meaningful result . in response to every incremental boost value , the data extractor 304 acquires corresponding quality information from the equalized signal # d q . basically , the estimated signal quality is proportional to the boost value , thus , the outcomes may organize a line of positive slope . when the signal quality is saturated no matter how the boost value increases , the boost value at the saturation point is deemed to be an optimal one . hence , the boost value generator 412 stops the incremental adjustment , and the equalizer 202 switches to normal mode and operates at the optimal boost value . in fig3 , the data extractor 304 uses an over sampler 404 to sample the equalized signal # d q , by which a plurality of sampled values # ds may be acquired per symbol period t p . the sampled values # ds are buffered in a buffer 406 for further analysis before an output value # d out is determined . the buffer 406 has a capacity to store a plurality of sampled values # ds correspondingly obtained from a plurality of consecutive symbol periods t p , and an edge detector 410 reads them to detect locations of transition edges of each symbol period t p . the equalizer 202 may use an inadequate boost value to equalize a distorted input signal # d in , rendering an unstable equalized signal # d q in which transition edges rapidly change throughout consecutive symbol periods t p . the more edge uncertainty increases , the shorter the hold time t h ′ where an output value is ensured valid . the edge detector 410 may determine the transition edges by comparing amplitude levels of two consecutive time points . for example , two sampled values # ds sampled before and after the transition edge may have significant amplitude difference . a transition edge can be deemed found when the amplitude difference between two consecutive sampled values # ds exceeds a predetermined threshold . the edge detection may also be accomplished by various conventional approaches , however , it is assumed that those skilled in the art are knowledgeable of these approaches , thus , detailed examples are not provided further . thereafter , the edge detector 410 sends a location signal # edge to the quality controller 408 , providing location information of the transition edges of every symbol period t p for further analysis . the quality controller 408 receives the location signal # edge , and accordingly selects one optimal sampled value # d as an output value # d out of a symbol period t p . specifically , the over sampler 404 is performing an over - sampling operation whereby the equalized signal # d q is sampled at different phases within each symbol period t p . for example , a symbol can be sampled at 5 different phases within one period to obtain 5 values of the equalized signal # d q . according to the location signal # edge , the quality controller selects one of the sampled values # ds to be the output value # d out , which is associated with a time point most close to the center of two transition edges within the symbol period t p . in other words , if the first and fifth sampled values # ds are deemed to be on the transition edges , the third sampled value # ds would be chosen to be the output value # d out . for the quality controller 408 , there is a current pointer p pointing to the optimal phase ( or time point ) within a sample period . the current pointer p could be determined by previous 4 sample periods ( s 0 , s 1 , s 2 , and s 3 ). during the next 4 sample periods ( s 0 ′, s 1 ′, s 2 ′, and s 3 ′), the quality controller 408 determines transition edges of the sample periods ( s 0 ′, s 1 ′, s 2 ′, and s 3 ′). the quality controller 408 also checks whether the current pointer p is pointing to the middle of each sample period of the 4 sample periods ( s 0 ′, s 1 ′, s 2 ′, and s 3 ′). if the pointer p is pointing to the left side of the middle point of a sample period , the quality controller 408 may determine that the pointer p should jump up to be more close to the middle point . conversely , if the pointer p is pointing to the right side of the middle point of a sample period , the quality controller 408 may determine that the pointer p should jump down to be more close to the middle point . in this embodiment , the quality controller 408 determines a jump up or jump down every 4 sample periods . jump ups or downs are represented by a pointer shift flag . the quality controller 408 records the total number of shifts ( jump ups or downs ) over a long period ( 1000 sample periods for example ). the more the number , the more frequently the pointer shifts . frequent pointer shifts means that the quality of the equalized signal is poor . the shifts should be as less as possible . by testing several transfer functions of the equalizer 202 , one can determine a best transfer function that results in minimum shifts . it means that the particular transfer function is the optimum choice to compensate the input signal d in . fig4 shows an embodiment of sampling an equalized signal # d q . a plurality of consecutive symbol periods t p is illustrated , in which distortions are represented as shadowed areas where sampled data is deemed invalid . four sampled values # ds are obtained correspondingly at five time points t 1 to t 4 in each symbol period t p , among which an optimal one would be selected as the output value # d out ( denoted as o 1 to o 4 ). in one symbol period t p , the time points t 1 to t 4 may be five equivalently distributed points . the output value # d out tends to be the most central one within the white area of each symbol period t p . other than that , amplitudes v 1 to v 4 of the output values # d out o 1 to o 4 may also be considered as references for signal quality . hence , the data extractor 304 sequentially receives and analyzes the equalized signals # d q and outputs corresponding output values # d out . alternatively , the over sampler may comprise five different samplers each tracking a different phase in the symbol period t p . the embodiment does not limit the implementation of the over sampler 404 . the optimal sampling point for the sample period s 0 is t 3 , which is denoted by o 1 . however , the current pointer p may point to t 4 . the pointer p is pointing to the right side of o 1 . therefore , for the sample period s 0 , it would be better to shift the current pointer p to t 3 , which is the optimal sampling point determined by the quality controller 408 . similarly , for the sample period s 1 , it would be better to shift the current pointer p to t 3 , which is the optimal sampling point determined by the quality controller 408 . after checking 4 sample periods ( s 0 - s 3 ), the quality controller 408 may determine to shift the current pointer p to t 3 , and then proceeds similar checking flow during the next 4 sample periods ( s 0 ′- s 3 ′). obtaining 5 sampling points for each sample period and checking 4 sample periods to decide to shift the current pointer are merely an example . one can determine the number of sampling points for each sample period and the number of sample periods to be checked according to different design requirements . fig5 is a more detailed embodiment of the data receiver 300 shown in fig3 . with reference to fig5 , an input signal # d in is distorted because of cable transmission . an equalizer 504 is used to compensate the distorted input signal # d in and generates an equalized ( compensated ) signal # d q . the equalizer 502 has several transfer functions for a boost value to select . the equalized signal # d q is determined by a selected transfer function . an over - sampling operation is performed by the k * n sampler 506 . in this embodiment k can be 4 and n can be 5 . a sample period of the equalized signal # d q is sampled at 5 ( k ) different phases within a single period . 4 ( n ) consecutive sample periods ( s 0 , st , s 2 , and s 3 ) will be sampled 20 times at 20 different phases . in this embodiment , 20 sampled values are produced before determining the quality of the equalized signal # d q . however , the sampling number ( k * n ) is not a limitation . one can determine the sampling number depending on different design requirements . the frequency of the input signal # d in can be , for example , 1 g hz . the clock frequency can be , for example , 100m hz . a pll or dll module 514 can produce 20 sampling signals fs , where each sampling signal fs has a phase shift relative to another sampling signal . the 20 sampling signals fs can be used by the k * n sampler 506 to sample 4 consecutive sample periods at 20 different phases and then produce 20 sampled values # d s . subsequently , the 20 sampled values # ds are input to a data pick up 508 . the data pick up 508 can be a buffer , which is corresponding to the buffer 406 in fig3 . the 20 sampled values # ds are then output as the output values # d out . a transition edge detection / shift decision module 510 also receives the 20 sampled values # ds . the transition edge detection / shift decision module 510 determines the edges of the 4 consecutive sample periods . a current pointer p is stored in the transition edge detection / shift decision module 510 . the current pointer p is determined by previous 4 consecutive sample periods . the transition edge detection / shift decision module 510 also determines the optimal sampling point for each sample period based on the 20 sampled values and the edges . the transition edge detection / shift decision module 510 compares the optimal sampling points ( denoted by o 1 - o 4 in fig4 ) with the current pointer p ( pointing to t 4 in fig4 ) and then determines whether to shift the current pointer p to a new position ( denoted by p ′ hereafter ). in the example given by fig4 , the current pointer p will shift left ( jump down ) to match the newly decided optimal sampling points o 1 - o 4 . the transition edge detection / shift decision module 510 sends shift instruction ( up / down ) to a digital loop filter & amp ; data pick - up pointer adjustment module 512 . the transition edge detection / shift decision module 510 also sends shift instruction ( up / down ) to an equalizer controller 504 . over a long period ( 1000 sample periods for example ), the equalizer controller 504 accumulates the number of shifts ( or jumps ) of the current pointer p . the accumulated number of shifts denotes the quality of the compensation performed by the equalizer 502 . the more the accumulated number , the worse the compensation is . then , based on the accumulated number , the equalizer controller 504 sends a boost value to the equalizer 502 to select another transfer function . the equalized signal # d q is determined by the newly selected transfer function and then a next round of quality determination process is performed . during the next 1000 sample periods , the quality of the newly selected transfer function will be examined to see whether the compensation is better . after certain rounds , a best compensation quality using an optimal transfer function of the equalizer 502 will be picked and the calibration is accomplished . the following input signal # d in can be compensated by the best transfer function the equalizer 504 could provide . the transition edge detection / shift decision module 510 and the digital loop filter & amp ; data pick - up pointer adjustment module 512 are examples of the quality controller 408 shown in fig3 . the equalizer 202 is an example of the boost value generator 412 . fig6 shows another embodiment of the data receiver 300 shown in fig3 . the embodiment is the same as that shown in fig5 except a transition edge detection module 610 and a shift decision & amp ; digital loop filter & amp ; data pick - up pointer adjustment module 612 . part of the functions performed by the transition edge decision and shift decision / shift decision module 510 is moved to the shift decision & amp ; digital loop filter & amp ; data pick - up pointer adjustment module 612 . in this embodiment , the transition edge detection module 610 only takes care of transition edge determination and sends the edge information to the shift decision & amp ; digital loop filter & amp ; data pick - up pointer adjustment module 612 . the shift decision & amp ; digital loop filter & amp ; data pick - up pointer adjustment module 612 does most of the work , including shift of the current pointer p and data pick - up pointer adjustment . the transition edge detection module 610 and the shift decision & amp ; digital loop filter & amp ; data pick - up pointer adjustment module 612 do the same thing as the combination of the transition edge detection / shift decision module 510 and the digital loop filter & amp ; data pick - up pointer adjustment module 512 . the transition edge detection module 610 and the shift decision & amp ; digital loop filter & amp ; data pick - up pointer adjustment module 612 are also examples of the quality controller 408 shown in fig3 . any portions of functions can be separately or integrally performed by a specific module . this is merely variations of the invention . while the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of 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 ( as would be apparent to those skilled in the art ). therefore , the scope of the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements .	7
the present invention has utility in moving fluid relative thereto . the present invention utilizes an oscillating electromagnetic field or photonic source to move an array of bound molecules that contain a ferromagnetic , ionic , or photoactive moiety therein . the coordinated motility of bound molecules exerts a force on a surrounding fluid . depending on the geometry of the bound molecule array , the present invention is operative as a fluidic pump , a bath agitator , or a propulsion system for a miniaturized device . according to the present invention , a substrate is selected that is capable of forming a covalent or coordinate covalent bond with an electromagnetic responsive molecule . the formation of self - assembled monolayers or otherwise chemically binding molecules to a solid substrate is well known to the art . illustrative of these chemistries are the binding of organothiols to gold , silanol reaction with a silicate glass , the reaction of silicon hydride with an olefin and olefinic unsaturation reaction with metals in the presence of sulfur . a surface bound molecule according to the present invention incorporates as an operative moiety at least one ferromagnetic , ionic or photoactive moiety . preferably , two or more operative moieties would be distributed along the length of the bound molecule . the moiety may be part of the main chain or pendant to the main chain . a ferromagnetic moiety operative in the present invention illustratively includes a chelated ferromagnetic ion , ferromagnetic atom , or a ferromagnetic nanocrystal . an ionic moiety includes salts of carboxylic acid , sulfonic acid , phosphinic or phosphonic acid and the salts of primary , secondary , tertiary or quaternary amines and mercaptides or alkoxides . a photoactive moiety includes a species that undergoes rotation or steric changes under the influence of a given wavelength of light and illustratively includes rhodopsin and cytochrome 450 . preferably , the operative moiety is disposed proximal to the unbound terminus of the molecule or a repeating subunit of the molecule . it is appreciated that a bound molecule operative in the present invention is linear , branched or dendritic , and contains repeating subunits or is simply an asymmetric molecule having at least seven linear non - hydrogen atoms between the substrate and the operative moiety . preferably , the bound molecule would contain twenty or more linear non - hydrogen atoms with operative moieties spaced at regular intervals along its length . referring now to fig1 , the inventive device operative as a fluidic pump is shown generally at 10 . a conduit 12 has an interior surface 14 . molecules 16 containing operative moieties 18 are bound to the interior surface 14 through covalent bonds . the operative moiety 18 extended a sufficient distance from the interior surface 14 so that the remainder of the molecule 16 serves as a spring about which the operative moiety 18 flexes . a plurality of electromagnets 20 extend along the length of the conduit 12 in the case of a ferromagnetic moiety . leads 22 allow for the sequential activation of electromagnets 20 . upon an electromagnet 20 being energized , an operative moiety 18 is induced to move attractively or repulsively relative to the interior wall 14 of the conduit 12 , depending on the magnetic polarity relative to the orientation of the operative moiety 18 . the movement of the operative moiety 18 and the flexure of the remainder of the bound molecule 16 also causes movement of a fluid within the conduit 12 . by energizing each of the plurality of electromagnets 20 and for a controlled duration , various waveforms of bound molecules flexing and thereby propelling liquid through the conduit 12 is achieved . it is appreciated that a bound molecule is optionally allowed to return to a relaxed state through deactivation of proximal electromagnets . alternatively , an inventive device is also operative with a conductive wire or optical fiber conveying photoactive wavelengths therethrough . in the instance where a conductive wire is present , it alternates in polarity so as to urge an operative moiety 18 bound molecule 16 between attractive and repulsive conditions relative to electromagnet polarity . in a preferred embodiment , the electromagnets or conductive wire are activated along the length of conduit 12 so as to propagate a molecular - motility wave through the pump 10 . it is appreciated that relaxation of the molecules 16 to an orientation away from the interior 14 of the conduit 12 can occur either through propagating an opposite polarity electromagnet activation or by leaving the electromagnet in a deactivated state for a sufficient time to allow for molecular orientation relaxation . in a preferred embodiment , a course of electromagnets , a voltage lead , or an optical fiber is spiral wound relative to a substrate . activation of a spiral course , lead or fiber induces a spiral deflection of molecules proximal thereto , thereby creating a net fluid movement along the activation axis . optionally , two or more such spiral courses , leads or fibers are present to enhance the formation of a fluid vortex through coordinated activation and / or deactivation . as an alternate to a spiral field along the length of a surface coated with operative molecules , an alternating current activation is induced in a direction generally parallel to the intended direction of fluid flow . preferably , the activation field is such that about one - quarter of a full sine wave is induced along the length of a bound molecule . it is appreciated that the binding of different molecules of differing length and therefore a different modulation frequency can be stimulated by an alternative activation wave having temporally offset activation frequencies contained therein . an alternate embodiment operative as a fluidic agitator or locomotion system is depicted generally at 100 in fig2 , where like numerals correspond to those described with respect to fig1 . a core 102 contains at least one electromagnet 20 . a sheath 104 that defines the core 102 has an exterior surface 106 . the exterior surface 106 has bound thereto molecules 16 having operative moieties 18 . the activation of the at least one electromagnet 20 , optical fiber or a conductive wire urges the operative moiety 18 into either an attractive or repulsive orientation based upon the polarity of the electromagnetic field or the photo response induced . the movement of the molecules 16 causes movement of a fluid surrounding the sheath 106 and in contact with the molecules 16 . preferably , a plurality of electromagnets , fibers or wires are disposed within the core 102 . more preferably , a plurality of electromagnets , fibers or wires are sequentially activated and deactivated to induce a motility wave within the molecules 16 along the length of the exterior surface 106 . it is appreciated that the anchoring of the device 100 relative to a surrounding fluid creates a fluidic agitator whereas the ability of the device 100 to move relative to a surrounding fluid creates a locomotion system . a locomotion system finds particular application with respect to the movement of a mems structure . it is appreciated that while a single device 100 is capable of generating motion forward and backward relative to the linear axis of the device 100 , maneuverability requires at least two such structures 100 , each operable independently . examples of cilia - induced locomotion designs are found in numerous microorganisms and plankton . while electrical energy to operate an inventive device in a stationary setting operating as a pump or agitator is readily supplied , in a locomotion application , a battery source , static electricity , or photonic energy is utilized to energize the at least one electromagnet . in absence of an internal power source , an inventive device is optionally powered remotely by the inductive effect . it is appreciated that to create locomotion , the motion can be created and / or navigated by an externally generated field as well . in this case , its position could be tracked and directed by incorporating a low power photon emission source ( e . g . radio frequency ) and using triangulation for position management . the parameters considered in producing an operative inventive device include electromagnetic field strength , electromagnetic field waveform , wavelength of light stimuli and intensity , conduit diameter and the identity of the bound molecule and ferromagnetic or ionic moiety . the calculation of magnetic parameters upon the selection of a bound molecule is well known within the field of nuclear magnetic resonance . a glass capillary tube having an internal diameter of 1 millimeter was internally coated with a gold paste . upon drying to form a continuous gold film on the interior of the capillary , 16 - mercaptohexadecanoic acid ( 2 - chlorophenyl ) diphenylmethyl ester was adhered to the gold film to form a self - assembled monolayer as detailed in j . lahann et al ., science , 299 , 117 / 03 , pp . 371 - 374 . after self - assembly , the interior of the glass capillary was exposed to a 0 . 1 molar solution of fe ( iii ) chloride for one hour and allowed to dry . the capillary was rinsed with the ionized water and placed into a fluid reservoir at an angle of 45 ° and surrounded by 6 equally spaced electromagnetic coils . energizing each of the coils to generate a field of about 0 . 5 tesla for 0 . 5 seconds followed by sequential activation of the next coil created a pumping of deionized water from the reservoir out through the upper end of the capillary . any publications mentioned in the specification are indicative of the levels of those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains . these publications are herein incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference .	1
referring now to the figures of the drawing in detail and first , particularly , to fig1 thereof , there is shown an imbalance 5 of a printing plate 2 on a drum 1 of a plate exposer in the form of a sketch . the printing plate 2 is in this case clamped in between start clamps 3 and end clamps 4 . in the case illustrated here , the start clamps 3 are provided in a stationary manner on a surface of the drum 1 , while the end clamps 4 can be adjusted variably circumferentially . their position is matched to the format of the printing plate 2 . there are in each case a large number of end clamps 4 and start clamps 3 , which are fixed axially to the surface of the drum 1 and which are all displaced together . as illustrated in fig4 , the outer plate end clamps , which are provided at the ends of the drum 1 , are always connected to variable mass elements 11 and 12 via drivers 15 . see fig3 and fig4 . in the case of the printing plate 2 on the drum 1 illustrated in fig1 , the imbalance 5 of the printing plate 2 is not compensated for by a variable or fixed imbalance . fig2 shows a corresponding reduction in the imbalance 5 of the printing plate 2 according to fig1 by use of variable mass elements 11 , 12 and fixed mass elements 9 , 10 , as shown in fig3 . the mass elements 11 , 12 are fitted to a ring - shaped balance ring 13 , as shown in fig3 . by the driver 15 , the mass elements 11 , 12 are then rotated in accordance with the positioning of the plate end clamps 4 . by the variable mass elements 11 , 12 , overall a variable imbalance 7 ′ in relation to a drum center 25 is produced ( fig2 ). as likewise illustrated in fig3 , the fixed mass elements 9 , 10 are also provided at the end of the drum 1 . as can be seen in fig2 , these produce a fixed imbalance 6 ′ in relation to the drum center 25 . the imbalance 5 of the plate 2 is reduced by the fixed imbalance 6 and the variable imbalance 7 to such an extent that only a residual imbalance 8 remains . the plate imbalance 5 encloses an angle α with the start of the plate 2 , which is held by the start clamps . the angle between the variable imbalance 7 ′ and the plate end clamps 4 is in this case constantly an angle γ . given a uniform mass distribution of the printing plate 2 , the angle between the variable imbalance 7 ′ and the plate start of the plate 2 is therefore two α plus γ . the alignment of the variable imbalance 7 ′ therefore depends only on the circumferential length of the printing plate 2 . the fixed imbalance 6 ′ encloses a constant angle β with the plate start clamps 3 . here , the start clamps 3 are not intended to be movable . the magnitude of the fixed imbalance 6 ′ is in this case configured such that it reduces a maximum imbalance of a printing plate 2 provided . in particular , the imbalance caused by the start clamps 3 also being taken into account . fig3 shows a corresponding side view of the drum 1 with fixed mass elements 9 and 10 and variable mass elements 11 and 12 . as already outlined , the variable imbalance 7 ′ results from the variable mass elements 11 and 12 , and the fixed imbalance 6 ′ results from the fixed mass elements 9 and 10 . as mentioned , the mass elements 11 and 12 are provided on the balance ring 13 . the balance ring 13 is coupled to the end clamps 4 via the drivers 15 . the variable mass element 11 is in this case positioned on the balance ring 13 in such a way that it compensates for the end clamps 4 in each case . it has an appropriate mass for this purpose . on the other hand , the mass element 12 is positioned in such a way and has such a high mass that it reduces the printing plates 2 provided from a printing plate portfolio provided for the plate exposer in each case overall below a maximum residual imbalance value . the fixed mass element 9 in the case illustrated here is positioned in such a way and its mass is selected in such a way that overall it cancels the imbalance which is caused by the start clamps 3 . the second fixed mass element 10 is in this case positioned in such a way and has an appropriate mass such that overall the resultant residual imbalance of the printing plates 2 from the printing plate portfolio provided remains below a maximum residual imbalance value . in fig4 it is shown how the end clamps 4 are coupled via the driver 15 to the balance ring 13 which carries the variable mass elements 11 and 12 . in order to adjust the variable imbalance 7 ′, the driver 15 engages in an engagement or groove 14 in the balance ring 13 . as a result , a circumferential adjustment of the plate end clamps 4 leads directly to a corresponding positioning of the variable imbalance 7 ′, that is to say the variable mass elements 11 and 12 . the relative position of the variable mass elements 11 and 12 in relation to each other and to the end clamps 4 is maintained in this case . fig5 shows in schematic form the imbalances and their reduction for different printing plates 2 . here , different printing plate formats of a printing plate 2 are presented . overall , imbalances 16 , 16 ′, 16 ″ of three different plate formats from a printing plate repertoire are illustrated . the positions of the variable mass elements 11 and 12 , which are not illustrated here , in this case depend directly on the positions of the end clamps 4 , likewise not shown , which are matched to the formats of the printing plates 2 . the magnitude of variable imbalances 18 , 18 ′, 18 ″ is constant . only a direction of the variable imbalances 18 , 18 ′, 18 ″ is displaced , depending on the position of the end clamps 4 , that is to say on the formats of the printing plates 2 . in this case , an end point of the imbalances 18 , 18 ′, 18 ″ is in each case located on an imbalance circle 21 of the variable imbalance . the fixed imbalance 6 is produced by the fixed mass elements 9 and 10 . the fixed imbalance 6 initially reduces the plate imbalances 16 , 16 ′, 16 ″ of the different printing plates 2 . as a result of this reduction in the plate imbalances 16 , 16 ′, 16 ″, first imbalances 17 , 17 ′, 17 ″ result . these are reduced further by the variable imbalances 19 , 19 ′, 19 ″, not related to the drum center here , which results in that residual imbalances 20 , 20 ′, 20 ″ remain . the residual imbalances 20 , 20 ′, 20 ″ in each case lie within an imbalance circle 22 of the residual imbalances . the radius of the imbalance circle 22 is in this case the maximum imbalance occurring of the resultant residual imbalances 20 , 20 ′, 20 ″. a printing plate repertoire which is provided for use in the printing plate exposer illustrated here can in this case contain still further printing plates . overall , given the selection illustrated here , the resultant residual imbalance 20 , 20 ′, 20 ″ will always remain within the imbalance circle 22 . fig6 shows a further illustration of the imbalances of different printing plates 2 reduced by the variable mass elements 11 , 12 . here , too , identical designations designate identical elements . by use of the mass of the variable mass elements 11 , 12 and their relative positioning in relation to the end clamps 4 , the plate imbalances 5 are in each case changed in terms of their direction and their magnitude in such a way that , for a specific plate portfolio , they lie within an imbalance lobe 24 . fig7 also shows an illustration of the fact that an imbalance lobe 24 of first resultant imbalances 23 is displaced by the fixed imbalance 6 ′ such that the total imbalance lobe 24 remains within the imbalance circle 22 of the residual imbalances . in this case , the magnitude 26 of the maximum residual imbalance is the radius of this imbalance circle 22 . since the masses of the variable and fixed mass elements 11 , 12 and 9 , 10 are constant and the position of the fixed mass elements 9 , 10 is not varied , while the relative positions of the variable mass elements 11 , 12 in relation to the plate end clamps 4 are always the same , the resultant residual imbalance 20 , 20 ′, 20 ″ is always automatically kept within the imbalance circle 22 ; its magnitude 26 will never lie above a maximum value . the magnitude 26 is determined by the masses of the mass elements 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 and their position . it should be determined in such a way that a product q of the resultant eccentricity e of the drum 1 with its angular velocity w always remains less than or equal to 4 mm / s . in this way , automatic balancing is made simply possible without special effort . this application claims the priority , under 35 u . s . c . § 119 , of german patent application no . 10 2005 022 239 . 0 , filed may 13 , 2005 ; the entire disclosure of the prior application is herewith incorporated by reference .	1
referring to the drawings in detail wherein like numerals designate like parts , a conventional automobile wheel 10 secured by lug bolts 11 includes a projecting center hub portion 12 to which a wire - type wheel cover 13 is locked by a locking bolt 14 having a shaped turning head 15 . the locking bolt 14 shown in fig1 and 2 is one of a number of different types commonly employed to lock wheel covers in place , other commercial types being shown in phantom lines in fig4 - 8 of the drawings . the wheel cover 13 has a central opening 16 which receives the threaded end portion of the locking bolt , the opening 16 being surrounded by a flat disc portion 17 against which an annular flange 18 of the locking bolt bears . the threaded portion of the locking bolt 14 is received in a threaded central opening 19 of hub portion 12 , the shaped turning head 15 projecting outwardly of the disc portion 17 and being surrounded by a hub sleeve 20 of the wheel cover closed by a snap - on medallion 21 . in some instances , depending upon the spacing of disc portion 17 from the hub portion 12 , an intermediate adapter bolt 22 may be required . in these cases , the adapter bolt is threaded tightly into the opening 19 and the shaped locking bolt 14 is then threaded into a threaded opening 23 provided in the outer end of the adapter bolt . in any case , whether or not the adapter bolt 22 is employed , a special key or wrench is required to engage the shaped turning head 15 of the locking bolt 14 . other special wrenches are required to engage each of the diversely - shaped heads 15a , 15b , 15c , 15d and 15e of locking bolts depicted in fig4 through 8 . there are as many as twelve or more types of wheel cover locking bolts presently on the market , requiring a corresponding number of special wrenches . in lieu of locking bolts , some wheel covers are secured against theft by shaped locking nuts , in which cases the wheel structure 12 possesses an end threaded stud to receive the locking nut instead of threaded opening 19 . the key or wrench forming the subject matter of this invention operates in the same manner with a shaped locking bolt or locking nut , the latter not being shown in the drawings . the master wrench according to the invention , fig1 and 2 , comprises a straight cylindrical tube section 24 forming the body portion of the device . within one end portion of this tube section is positioned a fixed somewhat elongated lug or projection 25 , preferably having a tapered leading end 26 to facilitate engagement of the lug endwise into one of the recesses 27 of the shaped head 15 of locking bolt 14 . any selected one of the recesses 27 can receive the turning lug 25 of the wrench and the user of the wrench does not have to engage the lug in any particular one of the recesses 27 , thus making the wrench easier to engage with a locking bolt or nut under all conditions , such as in poor light . the lug 25 is spaced somewhat inwardly of the leading end face of the tube section 24 , as shown in fig2 and 3 . near its opposite end , the tube section 24 has a transverse through opening which receives therethrough slidably a rod 28 serving as a turning handle for the wrench or key . one end of the rod 28 carries a flattened blade terminal 29 to facilitate prying off the medallion 21 to expose the shaped head 15 of the locking bolt for ready removal by the master wrench . again referring to fig4 through 8 , it is shown that the master wrench can be easily engaged with any of the other diversely - shaped turning heads 15a . . . 15e of the other types of bolts or nuts commonly used to lock on wheel covers . in all cases , the tubular body portion 24 is slipped telescopically over the shaped turning head 15 . . . 15e and the end face of the tool will abut the flange 18 . each type of locking nut or bolt has a shaped head which will fit in the bore of body portion 24 and each has one or more peripheral recesses or spaces which can receive the rigid turning lug 25 , as depicted in fig4 - 8 . specifically , the turning head 15a is similar to the head 15 and has three peripheral recesses , any one of which can receive the lug 25 . the splined head 15c shown in fig6 can also receive the lug 25 in any of five grooves . the modified triangular head 15b , fig5 receives the lug 25 in a space between any of the side faces 30 of the head 15b and the bore of tube section 24 . in fig7 and 8 , the turning lug 25 is engaged in a shallow arcuate recess 31 of turning head 15d or with a flat face 32 on head 15e . other engaging arrangements are possible , and the arrangements shown in the drawings are merely illustrative of the universality of the master wrench . fig3 of the drawings shows an alternative embodiment of the invention in which a straight tubular body portion 33 has a fixed lock bolt or nut turning lug 34 located in one end portion thereof to manipulate bolts or nuts of one diameter size . a somewhat enlarged cylindrical extension 35 on the other end of the tool having a separate turning lug is employed to manipulate locking bolts or nuts of a larger size . the tube section 33 is also slotted longitudinally at 36 to receive the turning handle 28 slidably . the handle extends through a cylindrical plug element 37 which is slidable in the bore of tube section 33 , and is equipped with opposite end pin extensions 38 which are used to dislodged by knocking out any removed locking nuts which may become stuck in the bore of the wrench body portion . it may be seen that a master tool of great simplicity and convenience of use has been provided , which will enable an authorized user to quickly engage and turn virtually any of the variously - shaped wheel cover locking bolts or nuts . by virtue of its construction with only a single turning lug 25 , the device is more easily engaged with a locking bolt or nut than the prior art tools which require precise registration of the end of the tool with the shaped portion of the locking fastener . this can be difficult in dark quarters . the advantages of the invention over the known prior art are now though to be evident . it is to be understood that the forms of the invention herewith shown and described are to be taken as preferred examples of the same , and that various changes in the shape , size and arrangement of parts may be resorted to , without departing from the spirit of the invention or scope of the subjoined claims .	1
referring to fig1 and 2 , a circuit breaker 10 includes a circuit breaker contact and operating mechanism 12 , an electronic trip unit 14 , and a removable and interchangeable display unit 16 . mechanism 12 may be a conventional mechanism including the operating linkages and energy storing devices for opening the contacts of circuit breaker 10 . additionally , mechanism 12 includes monitoring devices , such as current transformers and temperature sensors , which produce status signals representative of the current flows and various temperatures in circuit breaker 10 . the monitoring devices are electrically coupled to a connector 18 of mechanism 12 such that the status signals for the monitoring devices are applied to connector 18 . additionally , mechanism 12 includes tripping devices which are coupled to connector 18 and cause mechanism 12 to open the circuit breaker contacts in response to the application of control signals at connector 18 . electronic trip unit 14 is of the type including a programmed micro - controller 20 ( processor ) which has circuitry coupled to a connector 22 for monitoring the status signals applied to connector 18 . the circuitry includes devices for performing conditioning functions such as analog - to - digital conversion and filtering so that processor 20 may properly monitor and analyze the status signals at connector 18 . unit 14 also includes a plurality of limit set inputs such as potentiometers 24 . potentiometers 24 allow variables such as long time delay , short time pick - up , short time delay , instantaneous pickup , ground fault pickup and ground fault delay to be adjusted . based upon the values of the status signals and the settings at potentiometers 24 , processor 20 applies the appropriate control signals and display signals to connectors 18 and 26 , respectively . connector 26 is connected to processor 20 by a data bus 34 and appropriate interface circuitry . connector 22 is mechanically and electrically connected to connector 18 when circuit breaker 10 is assembled . of course , unit 14 could be appropriately wired to mechanism 12 without the use of connectors 18 and 26 . display unit ( module ) 16 may have a plurality of configurations , and , generally , includes a multi - digit display 28 , a multi - position switch 30 , a connector 32 , and a memory 36 for storing configuration data ( address ). memory 36 may take the form of dip switches , a set of jumpers ( presently preferred embodiment ), prom or other types of rom . display 28 , switch 30 and memory 36 are coupled to connector 32 such that data may be transferred between unit 14 and unit 16 along data bus 34 when units 14 and 16 are mechanically connected , and connectors 26 and 32 are mechanically and electrically connected . when unit 14 is operating , and coupled to unit 16 , unit 14 reads the data in memory 36 ( e . g . 4 bits , one associated with each of 4 jumpers 46 , 48 , 50 and 52 ) to determine the configuration of unit 16 . three ( 3 ) of the 4 bits of data are available for configuration data , thus , unit 14 can automatically recognize 8 different unit 16 configurations . upon recognizing the unit 16 configuration , processor 20 operates under the control of the portion of the program stored in unit 14 associated with the particular configuration . for example , one unit 16 may be programmed to display amperage , where each switch 30 setting is associated with different amperage readings while other units may be configured to display a circuit breaker variable such as temperature , power or energy use . furthermore , display unit 16 may be configured such that trip unit 14 reads switch 30 to acquire control or limit values such as alarm limits . by way of example , switch 30 may include 10 settings thus allowing the display of 10 different characteristics ( values ) of a given variable , control value or limit value . referring more specifically to the characteristics ( values ) associated with the ten switch positions of switch 30 , when switch 30 is associated with a display unit 16 configured to display amperage , switch 30 settings may include : present demand , which provides data for processor 20 so that the average amperage load for the last 15 minute period is displayed ; maximum demand , which provides data for processor 20 so that the maximum amperage load since power was applied to the circuit breaker is displayed ; phase a current , which provides data for processor 20 so that the amperage load for phase a is displayed ; phase b current , which provides data for processor 20 so that the amperage load for phase a is displayed ; phase c current , which provides data for processor 20 so that the amperage load for phase c is displayed ; 60 % load monitor set point , which provides data for processor 20 so that the maximum phase current is displayed and flashed when the current exceeds 60 % of the rated value ; 70 % load monitor set point , which provides data for processor 20 so that the maximum phase current is displayed and flashed when the current exceeds 70 % of the rated value ; 80 % load monitor set point , which provides data for processor 20 so that the maximum phase current is displayed and flashed when the current exceeds 80 % of the rated value ; 90 % load monitor set point , which provides data for processor 20 so that the maximum phase current is displayed and flashed when the current exceeds 90 % of the rated value ; and 100 % load monitor set point , which provides data for processor 20 so that the maximum phase current is displayed and flashed when the current exceeds 100 % of the rated value . subsequent to determining the configuration of a particular display unit 16 , processor 20 reads the status of switch 30 , and transmits display data to unit 16 over data bus 34 , where the display data is representative of the characteristic selected at switch 30 and the particular configuration of unit 16 ( i . e . the data in memory 36 ). thus , if processor 20 reads memory 36 and determines that unit 16 is an amperage display unit , reads switch 30 and determines that the rms current for phase a is to be displayed , processor 20 will access the appropriate programming and apply the appropriate display data to display 28 via data bus 34 to display the rms current value for phase a in digital form ( alphanumeric ) on display 28 . referring to fig3 fig3 illustrates the circuitry for display unit 16 . unit 16 includes switch 30 coupled to the four low order bits ( lines ) of data bus 34 by buffers 38 , 40 , 42 and 44 . as discussed above , the presently preferred embodiment of memory 36 may include a set for four jumpers 46 , 48 , 50 and 52 . jumpers 46 , 48 , 50 and 52 are coupled to the four high order bits ( lines ) of data bus 34 by buffers 54 , 56 , 58 and 60 , respectively . when address select line 62 of bus 34 ( address 2a00 hex ) goes low , switch 30 and memory 36 settings are read by processor 20 over data bus 34 . display unit 16 also includes four seven segment led &# 39 ; s 64 , 66 , 68 and 70 , and a display driver 72 . ( by way of modification , displays 64 , 66 , 68 and 70 , and display driver 72 may be replaced by a single chip unit depending upon the application .) data bus 80 couples display driver 72 to displays 64 , 66 , 68 and 70 . display driver 72 is coupled to data bus 34 and is controlled by address select lines 74 ( address 2800 hex ) and 76 ( address 2900 hex ). a data line 78 is the processor 20 read / write line . when processor 20 writes to address 2800 , lines 74 and 78 go low . address 2800 is used to send data to display driver 72 . when processor 20 writes to address 2900 , lines 76 and 78 go low . this address is used to send control commands to display driver 72 . when display unit 16 is plugged into trip unit 14 , data line j8 - 19 , j8 - 17 , j8 - 15 , j8 - 13 , j8 - 2 , j8 - 4 , j8 - 6 , and j8 - 8 ( d0 - d7 ) connect unit 16 to trip unit 14 via data lines j2 - 19 , j2 - 17 , j2 - 15 , j2 - 13 , j2 - 2 , j2 - 4 , j2 - 6 , and j2 - 8 ( d0 - d7 ), respectively . also , address select lines 74 , 76 , 62 , and 78 are connected to trip unit 14 via address select lines j2 - 16 , j2 - 14 , j2 - 12 and the read / write line j2 - 10 , respectively . referring to fig4 the trip unit circuitry includes a processor 20 ( motorola 68hc11f1 ) coupled to data bus 34 , and buffer 82 also coupled to data bus 34 . buffer 82 acts as an isolation buffer between display unit 16 and trip unit 14 for data lines e0 - d7 . the circuitry of unit 14 also includes an isolation buffer 84 coupled to a decoder 86 which in turn is coupled to an address bus 88 coupled to processor 20 . buffer 84 acts as an isolation buffer between display unit 16 and trip unit 14 address select and read / write lines . in addition to processor 20 , buffer 82 , buffer 84 and decoder 86 , unit 14 includes an eprom 90 coupled to data bus 34 and address bus 88 . the programming for processor 28 , which controls the transfer of data between display unit 16 and trip unit 14 , is stored in the memory of processor 20 and eprom 90 ( the source code for this programming is included in appendix a ). in operation , when processor 20 reads address 200 ( address line 62 ), data bit 7 ( data line j8 - 8 ) is tested for a high state . if it tests high , then processor 20 assumes that trip unit 14 and display module 16 are connected via connectors 26 and 32 . in response , a portion of the display module control code ( appendix a ) is activated . subsequently , the type of display unit 16 is determined by decoding data lines j8 - 8 , j8 - 6 , j8 - 4 and j8 - 2 . after the type of display unit 16 is determined , the position of switch 30 is determined by decoding data lines j8 - 13 , j8 - 15 , j8 - 17 , and j8 - 19 . based upon this data , processor 20 then selects the function from the display module software ( code ) which is to be activated such that data is applied to display 28 to provide proper alphanumeric information at the display . when the values displayed at display 28 are to be flashed due to a maximum phase current exceeding a set point , as discussed above , processor 20 sets the line connected to j2 - 14 ( connected to j8 - 14 of unit 16 ) of unit 14 high to signal that a load set point has been exceeded , and provide a flash signal to and gates 92 , 94 and 96 . the flash signal causes the gates to control display driver 72 such that display 28 flashes . it will be understood that the above description is of the preferred exemplary embodiment of the invention , and that the invention is not limited to the specific form shown . for example , various components of the above - described trip unit and display unit may be modified to combine various discreet components into single multi - function components . furthermore , it is contemplated that portions of the software may be replaced with appropriately configured hardware , and , alternatively , depending upon the microprocessor or controller used as processor 20 , the software may be modified such that hardware in the circuits may be eliminated . various other substitutions , modifications , changes and omissions may be made in the design and arrangement of the elements without departing from the spirit of the invention , as expressed in the appended claims . ## spc1 ##	7
with further reference to the drawings , the paint can holder or the like of the present invention , indicated generally at 10 , includes a backing member 11 and a bail support member 12 . the backing member is slightly curved as can clearly be seen in fig1 so that it will contour to the hip of the user 14 thereof . a pair of elongated slot - like openings 15 are provided in backing 11 and are adapted to supportingly receive the belt 16 worn by the user 14 . this belt would be the belt normally worn by such user and is threaded through the belt loops 17 of his pants 18 . a threaded screw - like shaft 19 extends outwardly from the lower central portion of backing 11 and is secured to backing plate 11 &# 39 ; which is either embedded in backing 11 or lies juxtaposed to the inside thereof . a bearing surface such as washer 20 is placed over shaft 19 juxtaposed to backing 11 . the central portion 21 of bail support member 12 is flattened and has an opening therein for receiving shaft 19 . a second bearing surface such as washer 22 is provided on the side of central portion 21 opposite washer 20 . finally a securing means such as wing nut 23 is used to not only secure the washers relative to the bail support member but also to adjust the tension thereon . as can clearly be seen from the figures , the bail support member 12 is preferably arcuate in configuration . the outer ends 24 of this arcuate member have an elongated slot 25 formed therein . a bail locking sleeve 26 is rotatively provided on each of the ends 24 . each of these sleeves are not completely closed thereby leaving a slot - like opening 27 in the side thereof . when the slot - like opening 27 of each of the sleeves 26 is aligned with the elongated slot 25 of its associated end portion 24 , the bail 28 of container 29 can be laid into the interior of the support member . when the locking sleeve 26 is rotated to misalign slot 25 and opening 27 , as shown in fig1 the container bail 28 is grippingly secured to the ends 24 of member 12 . to release the container bail 28 , the locking sleeve is simply rotated so that the slot 25 and opening 27 are again in alignment and the bail simply removed from the interior of such member 12 . the bail 28 of container 29 is rotatively mounted at connection 30 on either side thereof thus forming a generally horizontal axis of rotation . since the connections 30 are at the upper portion of container 29 , the weight of such container will cause the same to remain upright by pivoting about the bail axis . since the bail support member 12 is pivotably mounted on threaded shaft 19 , this forms a second axis of rotation perpendicular to the container bail axis of rotation . again , due to the fact that the majority of the mass of the container 29 is below this second mentioned axis , the container will by gravity remain in an upright position regardless of the movement of the user 14 thereof . in other words if the device 10 of the present invention is mounted on the side of the hip of the user 14 , as the user leans or sways from side to side , the container will rotate about the container bail axis and remain level . as the user leans forward or backward , the weight of the container 14 will cause pivoting movement about the axis of shaft 19 and the can will continue to remain level . likewise compound movements , for example leaning forward and to one side simultaneously , will be compensated for by movement about both the bail axis and the shaft axis . to use the device of the present invention , the user 14 loosens his belt 16 and threads it through slots 15 of backing member 14 . he then passes his belt back through belt loop 17 of his pants 18 and connects the belt in the normal manner . next the locking sleeves 26 are rotated to align the slot 15 in bail member 12 with the opening 27 in such sleeve . the bail 28 of the container 29 is then laid into these aligned openings and is secured to the ends 14 of such support member by rotating the locking sleeves to a position of misalignment . the user is then ready to climb ladders , lean over railings , stoop , bend , or whatever other movements are necessary to accomplish his work all the while being confident that the container 29 will remain in an upright orientation and will at all times be available at his side when he needs the same . once the painting or other use of the container 29 has been completed , the backing member 11 can simply be removed from the user &# 39 ; s belt 16 and the container with the present invention still attached set aside or , of course , the locking sleeves can be rotated and the device removed from the bail 28 as hereinabove discussed . from the above it can be seen that the present invention has the advantage of providing a relatively simple and yet highly efficient means of assuring that a container will at all times remain adjacent the user thereof and will also at all times remain in an upright or level position . the present invention is easily connected to and disconnected from both the user and the container and will greatly increase productivity of painters , windwow washers , and similar users thereof . the present invention can , of course , be carried out in other specific ways than those herein set forth without departing from the spirit and essential characteristics of the invention . the present embodiments are , therefore , to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive , and all changes coming within the meaning and equivalency range of the appended claims are intended to be embraced therein .	1
please note that dimensions discussed below are not to be construed as limitations , but are merely representative of preferred dimensions . many variations in dimensions are possible as will be obvious to one skilled in the art , and all are contemplated by the present invention . also please note that no attempt has been made to draw the layers and structures to accurate scale , and relative thicknesses of layers are not meant to be in true proportions or construed as limitations on relative dimensions of elements . as seen in fig1 , the p 1 protrusion 26 , which shall alternately be referred to as p 1 p 26 is formed by first forming the p 1 layer 20 , preferably formed from cofe , nife , cofen , or conife , and then plating the n 3 layer 22 , which is also high magnetic - moment material such as cofe , nife , cofen , and conife . the n 3 layer 22 then undergoes cmp ( chemical mechanical polishing ). the p 1 p layer 24 is then plated onto the n 3 layer 22 using a photoresist mask ( not shown ) to form the p 1 protrusion 26 , which is preferably on the order of 0 . 2 – 0 . 3 μm wide and 0 . 5 μm in height and also preferably made from material such as cofe , nife , cofen , and conife . it is noted that the p 1 protrusion 26 can be thought of as having a longitudinal axis 2 , to which the other pole , p 2 ( shown in later stages ) is to be aligned if good performance is to be obtained . it may be noted that what is being referred to as the p 1 p or p 1 protrusion has also been historically referred to in the industry as a p 1 n or p 1 notch , from the practice of forming the protrusion from a flat plane which is then notched on either side of a protrusion which is left behind . the habit has remained of referring to this protrusion as a “ notch ”, however for the purposes of this application , this structure shall be referred to as a p 1 protrusion or p 1 p to conform more closely to common english usage . a gap layer 28 is then deposited which is preferably sio 2 , ta , rh , ta / rh , pd or ru or may be an al2o3 gap and seed layer , to produce the structure seen in fig1 . fig2 shows the result of the next stage of fabrication . a fill layer 30 of material such as sio2 , si3n4 , sic , or tac . is deposited to a depth of 0 . 5 – 1 μm , which reproduces the p 1 p protrusion 26 in a corresponding protrusion 32 of fill material . ion milling is then used to reduce the width of the fill material protrusion 32 to match the width of the p 1 p and gap layer 28 dimension . note that the fill material protrusion 32 and the p 1 p protrusion 26 are aligned on the common longitudinal axis 2 . fig2 shows the results of this series of operations . next , a layer of rie masking material 34 , such as nife , ta , w or cr ., is deposited to a preferable depth of 0 . 3 μm , as shown in fig3 . cmp is next used to planarize the top surface of the rie masking layer 34 and expose the sio2 fill material protrusion 32 , as shown in fig4 . the rie masking layer 34 is resistant to reactive ion etching ( rie ) and acts as an rie mask 36 to the bulk of the fill material layer 30 , while leaving the fill material protrusion 32 and the material below it exposed to the rie process . the fill material layer 30 is thus formed to produces a kind of thick secondary mask or a mold mask 39 , as it will be termed here , having an opening 35 which extends into a hollow shaft 38 , in the fill layer material 30 . it is important to note that this hollow shaft 38 in the mold mask 39 is still aligned with a longitudinal axis 2 of the p 1 protrusion 26 . the gap layer 28 acts as a stop or endpoint layer 40 , to limit the extent of rie process which forms the hollow shaft 38 , thus producing the configuration shown in fig5 . photoresist ( not shown ) is then used to protect the gap layer 28 at the end of the hollow shaft 38 from chemical etching , which is then used to remove the rie mask 36 . the photoresist is then removed , producing the results seen in fig6 . next , the hollow shaft 38 ( see fig6 ) is filled by plating with preferably a material such as cofe , nife , cofen , conife or some other high magnetic moment materials to begin formation of p 2 42 . a mushroom portion 44 is preferably created , as shown in fig7 . the p 2 42 is then subjected to a light cmp polish to remove the mushroom 44 , leaving a flat top surface 46 to p 2 42 , as seen in fig8 . thus a p 1 p and p 2 have been produced which are in substantial alignment with each other without the need for attempting to orient two components of such minute dimensions in relation to each other . once the aligned poles have been established , then it is desirable to refine them by further processing . rie is used again to remove the sio2 fill 30 , resulting in the structure shown in fig9 . the p 2 42 is then left temporarily free - standing , and note that it is still aligned with the p 1 protrusion 26 on its longitudinal axis 2 to form a p 1 p / gap / p 2 structure 50 . ion milling is then used to remove the residual gap layer material 28 ( see fig9 ) to form the final write gap 48 . the p 1 protrusion 26 and the p 2 42 are also trimmed to the final track width 52 . the ion milling is performed by rotating the wafer 360 degrees so that material is removed equally from both sides of the p 1 p / gap / p 2 structure 50 , thus retaining the alignment of the p 1 and p 2 pole tips 26 , 42 and write gap 48 on the common axis , as shown in fig1 . a fill is then performed by depositing a second fill material layer 54 , preferably a material such as al 2 o 3 , sio 2 , si 3 n 4 or sic , to surround the pole tips 26 , 42 and write gap 48 . the deposition produces a corresponding al2o3 protrusion 56 above the p 2 42 , producing the structure seen in fig1 . cmp is then performed to remove the al2o3 protrusion 56 ( see fig1 ), and to expose the p 2 42 at its upper edge to produce the structure shown in fig1 . the remainder of the fabrication may be completed using standard techniques . the present invention thus allows fabrication of two very narrow poles that are very precisely aligned without the problems of alignment that previous methods had encountered . the present invention is expect to make the fabrication of very narrow pole pieces much easier and less costly , and will aid in increases in areal density for magnetic media , and thus higher storage capacities . while the present invention has been shown and described with regard to certain preferred embodiments , it is to be understood that modifications in form and detail will no doubt be developed by those skilled in the art upon reviewing this disclosure . it is therefore intended that the following claims cover all such alterations and modifications that nevertheless include the true spirit and scope of the inventive features of the present invention .	6
referring to fig1 - 5 , in accordance with an embodiment of the invention , a compact line illuminator 10 includes a circuit in the form of a pc board 12 ( fig6 ) supporting interconnected components for generating an oscillating electric signal suitable for tracing a buried conductor ( not illustrated ). the compact line illuminator 10 can operate in direct connection , inductive clamp and inductive antenna modes selectable through a control panel hereafter described . it can also operate at different frequencies and different power levels selected through the control panel . most of the mechanical structure of the compact line illuminator 10 is made of injection molded plastic parts . a pair of tubes 14 and 16 hold a portable power source in the form of six c battery cells ( not illustrated ) that can energize the circuit . a pair of leads 18 and 20 ( fig1 ) have inner ends connected to the pc board 12 and outer ends connected to corresponding alligator clips 22 and 24 for attaching the leads 18 and 20 to a buried conductor such as a gas or water pipe . the leads 18 and 20 may comprise , for example , insulated 7 × 19 bundles of composite ( mixed strands ) of stainless steel and copper aircraft cable . where only one end of the buried pipe is accessible , one of the alligator clips 22 or 24 may be attached to a j - shaped ground spike 26 ( fig6 ) whose longer segment may be inserted in tubular receptacle 28 mounted inside the compact line illuminator 10 . instead of using the ground spike 26 , one of the alligator clips may be connected to a ground mat or sheet 96 as explained hereafter in connection with fig1 . a case 30 ( fig1 - 5 ) encloses the pc board 12 and the battery holding tubes 14 and 16 . the case 30 is configured for having the leads 18 and 20 conveniently wrapped around the smooth exterior of the case 30 . the case 30 includes mating upper and lower symmetrical shells 30 a and 30 b ( fig7 a ) that form an elongated flattened tube having rounded outer side walls connecting opposing planar sections as best seen in fig7 b . adhesive labels 31 a and 31 b are adhered to the rounded outer walls and seal the seam between the shells 30 a and 30 b . the case 30 further includes a pair of end cap assemblies 32 and 34 ( fig6 ). a leaf spring ( not illustrated ) presses against the shorter segment of the ground spike that is parallel with the longer segment when the longer segment is inserted into the receptacle . the shorter segment of the ground spike 26 slides through an aperture in the end cap assembly 34 . the leaf spring retains the ground spike 26 in its stowed position . elastomeric bumpers 35 a and 35 b ( fig1 - 6 ) surround opposite ends of the case 30 adjacent the end cap assemblies 32 and 34 . the bumpers 35 a and 35 b provide outer shoulders that retain the wrapped leads 18 and 20 and prevent them from sliding off the case 30 . both the end cap assemblies 32 and 34 seal to the case 30 in watertight fashion . pairs of h - shaped short legs 36 and 38 ( fig5 ) are integrally formed with , and extend from , the bumpers 35 a and 35 b on both the upper and lower sides of the compact line illuminator 10 . an adjustable carrying strap 40 is secured to the end cap assembly 32 . the strap can be lengthened by adding a segment ( not illustrated ) so that it can be used as a shoulder strap , or shortened so that it can be secured around the technician &# 39 ; s waste belt . the end cap assembly 32 can be removed by manually removing a large screw 41 ( fig6 ) by twisting on a knob ( not illustrated ) to thereby allow the six c batteries to be replaced . the circuit of the compact line illuminator 10 includes a phone jack connector 42 ( fig9 ) mounted to the end cap assembly 34 that allows an inductive clamp to be connected to the circuit on the pc board 12 . an example of an inductive clamp suitable for use with the compact line illuminator 10 is disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 7 , 288 , 929 granted oct . 30 , 2007 of jeffrey a . prsha et al ., the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference . a hinged elastomeric cover 44 ( fig1 and 9 ) is mounted to the end cap assembly 34 for sealing the female phone jack when not in use . the case 30 further includes a rectangular top frame cover 46 ( fig6 ) secured to the top planar section of the case 30 . the top frame cover 46 surrounds an interface label 48 ( fig7 a ) and provides a pair of inner shoulders that keep the wrapped leads 18 and 20 separated , i . e . wound into their respective areas at each end of the case 30 . a first pair of inverted l - shaped lead hooks 50 and 52 ( fig2 ) are formed as part of the top frame cover 46 for holding the leads 18 and 20 in a fully wrapped state for transport and storage , or optionally in a partially wrapped state ( not illustrated ) while in use , around the exterior of the case as illustrated in fig1 and 2 . a second pair of inverted l - shaped lead hooks 54 and 56 ( fig3 ) are formed as part of a rectangular bottom frame cover 58 secured to the bottom planar section of the case 30 . the bottom frame cover 58 surrounds a lower serial number label 60 ( fig7 a ). the labels 48 and 60 seal holes in the top and bottom shells 30 a and 30 b . the second pair of lead hooks 54 and 56 can be used to hold the leads 18 and 20 in a partially wrapped state . on occasion a technician will fully unwind both the leads 18 and 20 and then connect one alligator clip 22 to an exposed end of the pipe to be traced , and the other alligator clip 24 to the ground spike 26 after it is inserted in the ground to complete the circuit . sometimes it is convenient to only unwind part of the leads 18 and 20 , and to keep the remainder neatly wound about the case 30 . in this situation a segment of each of the leads 18 and 20 intermediate its length is tucked under a corresponding one of the hooks 54 and 56 . the top and bottom frame covers 46 and 58 are preferably injection molded with the hooks 50 , 52 , 54 and 56 formed integrally therewith . the hooks 50 , 52 , 54 and 56 are suitably dimensioned and configured so that they will flex and allow the leads 18 and 20 to be pinched under the same . the top frame cover 46 is also formed with angled projections 61 ( fig2 ) around which the leads 18 and 20 are wrapped . they tension the leads 18 and 20 as they emerge from their final turns and help the hooks 50 and 52 perform their lead retention function . the bottom frame cover 58 also provides a pair inner shoulders that keep the leads 18 and 20 separated . attachment features in the form of upstanding inverted l - shaped flanges 62 and 64 ( fig2 ) are formed on the top frame cover 46 . the alligator clips 22 and 24 can pinch the vertical parts of these flanges 62 and 64 when the leads 18 and 20 are in their fully wrapped state to secure the alligator clips 22 and 24 in place . the bumpers 35 a and 35 b , together with the top and bottom frame covers 46 and 58 define parallel , spaced apart wrapping channels for holding the turns of the leads 18 and 20 . along with the flattened tubular case 30 , they define a spool or bobbin for the leads 18 and 20 to keep them neatly and compactly stored . a control panel mounted is on the top planar section of the case formed therein . push button switches 66 and leds 68 ( fig6 ) are mounted in the center of the pc board 12 in alignment with the central rectangular aperture of the top frame cover 46 . along with the interface label 48 ( fig7 a ), the switches 66 and leds 68 form the control panel . the control panel includes leds that provide a high voltage warning indicator , three discrete frequency indicators , a power indicator and an induction mode indicator . the control panel includes push button switches that can be manually actuated by depressing dedicated regions of the flexible interface label 48 . these switches include an induction mode toggle , a frequency and mode selection switch and a power on / off / select switch . thus the control panel provides a keypad and display for use by the technician . the control panel could optionally include an lcd for displaying useful information . by way of example only , the available operating frequencies for the u . s . version of the compact line illuminator 10 may include 128 hz , 1 khz , 8 khz , 33 khz and 262 khz . the operating frequencies for the european version can also include 93 khz replacing 262 khz . the circuit includes an inductive antenna 71 ( fig6 ) mounted inside the case 30 to allow the signal to be induced into a buried conductor when the compact line illuminator is placed on the surface of the ground above the buried conductor . the antenna is preferably a loop stick antenna that includes an elongate cylindrical ferrite inductor 70 supported within the case 30 beneath the pc board 12 . a resonator coil 72 ( fig8 ) is wrapped around the inductor 70 and is connected to a capacitor 74 . an exciter coil 76 is wound on top of the resonator coil 72 . the coils 72 and 76 are preferably made of litz wire in order to minimize losses . coil 72 is readily tunable by selectively removing turns of wire from around the inductor 70 after the coil 72 after connection to the pc board 12 . the excess wire that is unwound from around the inductor ( not illustrated ) is not cut and removed but remains as part of the circuit and is secured inside the case 30 . referring to fig8 , the circuit of the compact line illuminator 10 includes a conventional power supply 78 connected to the six c batteries 80 . a constant power output power supply 82 is connected to the conventional power supply 78 and the batteries 80 . most power supply circuits regulate voltage or current . the power supply 82 ensures that a constant amount of power is supplied through the alligator clips 22 and 24 , the inductive clamp , or the inductive antenna , in order to ensure that fcc limits are not exceeded and to maximize the life of the batteries 80 . a processor 84 controls the constant power output supply 82 . the processor 84 can communicate with a personal computer or similar device via usb , zigbee or bluetooth external interface 86 . the interface 86 can connect the processor 84 to other remote devices by any suitable means , for example , by using internet protocol ( ip ) and / or web services to retrieve and upload or download line illuminator usage data , new software , or operating frequency descriptions . the processor 84 can also communicate with a pc or other external device via port 88 ( such as a connector ) and accessory interface 90 which can drive both smart and dumb devices . an example of a dumb device is the alligator clip 22 which cannot communicate with the illuminator 10 and is driven by the illuminator 10 without significant feedback . an example of a smart device is any device that can communicate with the illuminator 10 through the port 88 and pass on information such as drive frequency , power level required , coupling efficiency , etc . the selected oscillating electric signal is generated and applied to the leads 18 and 20 via direct connection output driver 92 . the exciter coil is driven by an inductive output driver 94 . optionally the conventional power supply 78 and the constant power output power supply 82 could be combined to provide a constant power output signal . the compact line illuminator 10 can preferably operate in three different modes . in a direct connection mode the alligator clips 22 and 24 are connected directly to a suitable underground target conductor . where only one end of the underground conductor is accessible , one of the alligator clips 22 or 24 is connected to the ground spike 26 when it is inserted into the ground and functions to provide a return path . besides the ground spike , other convenient ways of establishing a connection to ground include another pipe , a metal fence post , or a metal sign post . the circuit of the compact line illuminator 10 is preferably capable of dual - frequency transmission , i . e . sending two or more frequencies onto a line simultaneously , in the direct connection mode . in an inductive clamp mode , the jaws of the inductive clamp encircle the target shielded conductor and there is no metal - to - metal contact . in the inductive antenna mode , the compact line illuminator is placed over the buried conductor to be traced and its internal antenna generates a dipole field which energizes the target conductor below ground , inducing a current in the target conductor . no ground connection is needed with the compact line illuminator is operating in its inductive clamp or inductive antenna modes . one example of a locator that can be used to trace underground energized pipes is disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 7 , 009 , 399 granted to mark s . olsson et al . on mar . 7 , 2006 , and in u . s . patent application ser . no . 11 / 077 , 947 filed mar . 11 , 2005 also of mark s . olsson et al ., the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference . the compact line illuminator 10 preferably has three available power settings . low power provides approximately one - half watt output , medium power provides approximately two watts output and high power provides approximately five watts output . the low power setting provides the least current and therefore the longest battery life . in order to optimize the power delivered to the load at a frequency the locator can detect , and in order to minimize the generation of harmonic frequencies , the circuit on the pc board 12 preferably generates a stepped approximation of a sine wave which is illustrated in fig1 as pseudo sine wave 100 . in this example , the on time is approximately 74 . 2 % of the waveform and the off time is approximately 25 . 8 % of the waveform . this duty cycle maximizes the power delivered to the load at the fundamental frequency while minimizing the power consumed by the compact line illuminator 10 . fig1 and 11 compare the time domain and frequency domain representations of square wave , pseudo sine wave , and sine wave signals . the on interval is a fraction ( 74 . 2 %) of a square wave half cycle . this improves the proportion of energy transmitted at the fundamental of the switching frequency . establishing a useful ground connection can sometimes be difficult when locating in an area with no available space to attach the ground connection or no soil into which the ground stake can be driven . if a long wire is used to connect to a ground at some location , the long wire can act as an antenna and create another field that can interfere with tracing . use of metal plates laid onto a flat surface with a clip attached to a bent up edge is problematic . the plates are bulky to store , and worse , they do not conform to uneven surfaces . simply unwrapping and laying part of one of the leads 18 and 20 on the ground surface will improve signal coupling to some degree . the more length of lead in contact with the surface , the better the capacitive coupling of the signal , which is more effective at higher frequencies . fig1 is an isometric view of the compact line illuminator 10 of fig1 - 5 illustrating one of its alligator clips 22 attached to an electrically conductive chain mail grounding sheet 96 . the grounding sheet 96 is flexible and can be laid on an uneven cement or asphalt covered surface to improve signal coupling , particularly at transmitter frequencies of 33 khz and 262 khz . by way of example , the chain mail may be stainless steel four - in - one chain mail comprised of interconnected twenty - two gauge , 5 / 32 ″ welded stainless steel rings . the advantages of using the chain mail 96 include ease of storage , high durability , and conformability to uneven ground surfaces . electrical connections within the grounding sheet 96 are established by the point - to - point physical contact between the conductive rings . the grounding sheet 96 is one type of metal cloth that may be used . suitable materials of this general type have also been made that include rivets . the grounding sheet could also be made of steel or copper alloy . additional improvement in the ground connection can be obtained by pouring water , saline solution , potassium chloride solution or some other electrolyte solution on and / or around the grounding sheet 96 . thus the leads 18 and 20 can have their remote or distal ends connected to various means for applying the signal from the pc board 12 to a buried conductor , including alligator clips 22 and 24 or other mechanical attachment means such as terminals , jacks , clamps , etc . while we have described an embodiment of our compact line locator , persons skilled in the art will realize that our invention is not limited to this particular embodiment . for example , the inner or proximal ends of the leads 18 and 20 could be connected to the pc board 12 via removable plugs , jacks or other electrical connectors having mating parts attached to the leads 18 and 20 and mounted in one or both of the end cap assemblies 32 and 34 . the parts mounted in the end cap assemblies 32 or 34 can be connected to the pc board 12 through wiring inside the case 30 . other means for holding the leads besides hooks could be used such as channels with detents , velcro ® straps , straps with snaps , split tubes , clips , bands , pivoting arms , clasps , screw on devices , snap on devices , bayonet locks , ratchet assemblies , and so forth . other means for holding the batteries can be used besides the tubes , such as frame elements molded into the inner side of the case itself , and slide in battery cradles . the case need not have the flattened tubular configuration , but its rounded sides are advantageous for wrapping the leads and its planar sections are advantageous for mounting the control panel . the case has a relatively low profile and is relatively small . preferably the case has a width at least twice its height , and a length of at least one and one - half times its width . the compact line illuminator 10 can continuously broadcast status information per bluetooth , zigbee or other wireless protocol for receipt by a similarly equipped locator . in this fashion the locator can receive and respond to status information , such as the current operating frequency and power level of the compact line illuminator , and send commands to the compact line illuminator 10 for changing its operating parameters . in such an arrangement , the illuminator does not even need to have any user actuated controls , and therefore the control panel can be eliminated and the illuminator can be turned on and off , and its settings monitored and changed , via controls on the locator using its graphic user interface ( gui ). the compact line illuminator 10 need not have any internal antenna and may rely strictly upon direct connection via the leads and alligator clips , or inductive coupling via an inductive clamp . the batteries need not be contained within the case 10 and the circuit could instead be connected to an external power source . therefore , the protection afforded our invention should only be limited in accordance with the following claims .	6
the detailed description as set forth below in connection with the appended drawings is intended as a description of the presently preferred embodiments of the present invention , and does not represent the only embodiment of the present invention . it is understood that various modifications to the invention may be comprised by different embodiments and are also encompassed within the spirit and scope of the present invention . referring particularly to fig1 and 2 , there are shown a top and bottom perspective views , respectively , of the dermoscopy epiluminescence device 12 of the present invention . the device 12 is lightweight and compact , and can easily fit within the shirt pocket of a user . the outer structure of the device 12 can be utilized in association with the first embodiment ( fig3 – 5 ), the second embodiment ( fig6 ) and third embodiment ( fig7 ). the exterior appearance of the device for each of the first , second and third embodiments would be identical as shown in fig1 and 2 . fig1 shows the top perspective view of the device 12 showing the viewing port of the lens 14 incorporated into a housing 20 . a battery cover 22 may be removeably secured to the housing 20 to provide access to an interior compartment for insertion and removal of a battery . also shown is a switch 16 for initiating a first light source and a switch 18 for initiating the second light source . referring particularly to fig2 , a bottom perspective view of the device 12 is shown . a light portal is incorporated into the housing 20 to expose a viewing polarizer 24 . a plurality of diodes ( not shown ) encircle the viewing polarizer within the housing 20 and direct light though a multiple layer filter ring 25 . light from the diodes ( not shown ) is directed onto the skin surface to aid lighting the magnified area to be viewed . referring particularly to fig3 and 4 , there is shown a first embodiment of the present invention . fig3 is an exploded top view of the device 12 and fig4 is an exploded bottom view of the device 12 . the housing 20 includes top component 20 a and bottom component 20 b . the top component 20 a , bottom component 20 b and battery cover 22 are formed from molded lightweight durable plastic . the plastic is a pvc derivative material and may be formed from acrylic or lexan . additionally , the housing may be formed from metal such as aluminum . components 20 a , 20 b and cover 22 are interconnected to form the outer housing 20 as shown in fig1 and 2 . the top housing component 20 a includes an aperture 26 for receiving the combination of the optical lens 14 inserted within the lens sleeve 28 . shown best in fig4 , the underside of the top housing component 20 a is shown wherein the aperture 26 incorporates a downwardly protruding collar for receiving the lens 14 within the lens sleeve 28 . the lens sleeve 28 incorporates an annular lip 29 which engages the sloped sides of the aperture 26 to complete the exterior of the viewing port of the housing 20 . the lens sleeve 28 operates to securely hold the lens 14 in place within the aperture 26 . the lens 14 in the first embodiment is preferably a 15 mm diameter hastings lens with a 10 × optical gain . although the first embodiment employs a hastings lens , the lens may be a single convex lens , a combination of two or more lenses , a double achromat lens , or a combination of double achromat lenses . in addition , the lens may incorporate aspherical lenses to accommodate better optics and lower distortion . the lenses coated with an antireflection coating may be used and may additionally include a color filter to selectively filter light passing through the lens . although the invention shows a hand held unit without imaging equipment attached , it is contemplated by the present invention that the same could be used with a camera , and that the size and shape of the lens would be modified to accommodate the same . the protruding collar 30 is part of the unitary structure of the upper housing component 20 a . the cylinder 30 protrudes through the interior components of the housing 20 , including a printed circuit board ( pcb ) 32 having an opening 33 to extend to the light portal of bottom component 20 b . a battery 34 nests within a battery chamber formed by the top component 20 a and bottom component 20 b . pcb 32 includes electrical contacts 36 a and 36 b for interfacing with the battery 34 contacts 38 a and 38 b . the upper housing 20 a includes slots 40 a and 40 b to allow the pcb contacts 36 a and 36 b to protrude from the circuit board 32 into the battery chamber and contact the battery leads 38 a and 38 b . in all embodiments of the present invention , the battery 34 is an extended charge lithium battery , however , it is understood and contemplated by the present invention that the battery could be any suitable battery package such as a one - time lithium battery or rechargeable lithium battery . the invention additionally contemplates use of a dc power supply that may have a suitable dc output to drive the leds . the bottom component 20 b includes a viewing aperture 42 . the viewing polarizer 24 and sleeve 44 cap off the opening of the collar 30 . viewing polarizer 24 is composed of acrylic plastic with polarization material embedded within the polarizer . it is contemplated by the invention that the viewing polarizer 24 may be constructed of glass , also with material embedded or coated on the glass . in addition , the viewing polarizer 24 may be coated with a filter material that can selectively filter out some of the light frequencies emanating from the object . alternatively , the secondary filter assembly made of plastic or glass with the capability of filtering the light may be placed in the path of the viewing lens to filter out some of the light . bottom housing component 20 b includes a bottom collar 46 formed therein . a lip 48 incorporating a plurality of guide tabs , is formed between the collar 46 and the aperture 42 . the lip 48 and guide tabs are adapted to engage bottom annular polarizer 50 and a top annular polarizer 52 . the top 52 and bottom 50 polarizers are 90 degrees out of phase . the bottom 50 polarizer is in cross polarization with the viewing polarizer 24 and top polarizer 52 is in parallel polarization with the viewing polarizer 24 . the top 52 and bottom 50 polarizers are composed of acrylic plastic and include polarization at different angles . the polarizers 50 and 52 may also be coated with a special material to filter out some of the light emanating from the leds , or alternatively the annular polarizer 50 and 52 may be sandwiched with a color filter acrylic material . the aperture 42 is wide enough to permit a viewing corridor from the lens sleeve 28 through the housing 20 to the aperture 42 while allowing portions of the top 52 and bottom 50 polarizers to be exposed and to filter light emitting diodes inside the housing 20 . sixteen light emitting diodes 58 ring the circuit board . the diodes are preferably white high light output indium gallium nitride leds , however any suitable lighting diodes are appropriate . the even diodes are on a single circuit and the odd diodes are an a separate single circuit . in the shown embodiment , the leds 58 are a standard white led made with phosphorescence phosphors to create white light . it is additionally contemplated by the present invention that tri - colored leds , with individual red , green and blue leds that can combine form white light may be utilized . it is contemplated by the present invention that the leds may have focusing lenses to concentrate the light into a smaller and tighter beam . the leds may additionally be comprised of indium gallium arsenide material , or any other like semiconductor material . the pcb board 42 incorporates switch contacts 54 and 56 . the polarizing parallel switch 16 engages switch contact 56 and the parallel - polarizing switch 18 engages with contact 54 . thus , engaging switch 16 initiates a first light source , which are the eight even diodes 58 and the switch 18 initiates the second light source , which are the other eight odd diodes . both switches 56 and 54 may be operated simultaneously to light all sixteen diodes 58 simultaneously . it is contemplated by the present invention that the device may employ three or more switches operative to initiate three or more sets of diodes . a first polarizer filter 50 comprises a planar annular ring defining a generally circular center opening and an outer ring . the center opening of the annular ring of the first polarizer 50 is positioned in alignment with the circular optical lens 14 to provide an unobstructed view of the skin through the lens 14 and the housing 20 . the outer ring of the first polarizer 50 includes a plurality of openings sized and positioned to correspond to the diodes 58 of the second illumination source ( i . e . every other diode 58 of the second light circuit ) such that light emitted from the diodes 58 of the second illumination source passes through the openings unfiltered by the first polarizer 50 . because there are no corresponding openings for the diodes of the first illumination source ( i . e . every other diode on the first light circuit ) light emitted from first source diodes is polarized by the outer ring of the first polarizer filter 50 . a second polarizer filter 52 comprises a planar annular ring defining a generally circular center opening and an outer ring . the center opening of said annular ring of the second polarizer 52 is positioned in alignment with the circular optical lens 14 to provide an unobstructed view of the skin through the lens 14 and housing 20 . the second polarizer 52 is 90 degrees out of phase with the first polarizer 50 . the outer ring of the second polarizer 52 , like the first polarizer 50 , has a plurality of openings sized and positioned to correspond to the diodes of the first illumination source ( i . e . every other diode on the first light circuit ) such that light emitted from the diodes of the first illumination source passes through the openings unfiltered by the second polarizer 52 . because there are no corresponding openings for the diodes 58 of the second illumination source ( i . e . every other diode on the second light circuit ) light emitted from second source diodes is polarized by the outer ring of the second polarizer 52 . while the switches of the first embodiment 16 and 18 shows only two light sources ( i . e . two sets of diodes ) three are more sets of diodes are contemplated by the present invention . referring particularly to fig5 , there is shown a cross - sectional view of the device 12 of the first embodiment of the present invention . fig5 shows an optional spacer 60 which can engage the viewing portal of the housing 20 . the spacer includes glass 62 to provide a transparent barrier . the spacer can aid in achieving the optimal viewing distance between the device 12 and the skin 64 . also , the spacer 60 can prevent contamination of the lens 14 during examination . fig5 illustrates the angle of mounting of the leds 58 upon the pcb 32 . the light from the leds 58 is angled to concentrate the light onto a focused area are represented by the angled lines shown in phantom . the light from the leds 58 is focused into a smaller area , so as to increase the brightness of the leds . all of the leds 58 in the circle are pointed toward the central area of the region of interest , so as to increase multifold the amount of light directed into the region . it is additionally contemplated by the present invention that some of the leds may be directed slightly off center to enlarge the viewing field and to make for uniform lighting . fig6 is a bottom exploded view of a second embodiment of the present invention . the assembly and structure of the device shown in fig6 is identical to that shown in fig1 – 5 of the first embodiment of the present invention ( and thus the description is not repeated herein ), except that the device shown in fig6 does not include two annular filters 50 and 52 and the leds 66 and 68 are of different colors . preferably , the even diodes 66 are of a particular green wavelength and odd diodes 68 are white diodes . the colored leds may be different leds available at the time such as 370 nm uv , 470 nm blue , 500 nm aqua , 525 nm green , 570 nm orange , 630 nm red , etc . the combination of different colors will provide different imaging capabilities . as an example , the blue light is more absorbed in skin pigmentation and therefore better visualization of pigmentation is achieved with the blue light . similarly , the green light is more absorbed by the blood and so it is better for visualizing blood vessels . some compounds also fluoresce at different wavelength light . an example of this is the multiple fluorescence compounds used in research and medicine such as fluorescein , which fluoresces green when illuminated with a blue light . while the second embodiment herein shows green and white diodes , it is understood that the second embodiment could employ any desirable combinations of colors . likewise , while the switch contemplates only two light sources ( i . e . two sets of diodes ) three are more sets of diodes are contemplated by the present invention , employing multiple combinations of colors . fig7 is a bottom exploded view of a third embodiment of the present invention . the assembly and structure of the device shown in fig7 is identical to that shown in fig1 – 5 of the first embodiment of the present invention ( and thus the description is not repeated herein ), except that the device shown in fig7 includes leds 70 and 72 are of different colors . preferably , the even diodes 70 are of a particular green wavelength and odd diodes 72 are white diodes . the two annular polarizers provide cross polarization and parallel polarization identical to that described with respect to the first embodiment . while the third embodiment herein contemplates green and white diodes , it is understood that the third embodiment could employ any desirable combinations of colors . likewise , while the switches may only initiate two light sources ( i . e . two sets of diodes ), three are more sets of diodes are contemplated by the present invention , employing multiple combinations of colors . it should be noted and understood that with respect to the embodiments of the present invention , the materials suggested may be modified or substituted to achieve the general overall resultant high efficiency . the substitution of materials or dimensions remains within the spirit and scope of the present invention .	6
a radio frequency system conveying a data signal from a transmitter 101 to a receiver 103 is shown in fig1 . in a radiotelephone system , transmitter 101 would be a fixed site transmitter serving a radio coverage area which would be populated by mobile or portable transceivers , the receiver of which is shown as receiver 103 . additionally , more than one radio coverage area can be linked in such a way that continuous coverage may be provided over a wide area , i . e ., a cellular radiotelephone system or an integrated area such as an office building or shopping mall . ( see , for example , instant assignee &# 39 ; s u . s . pat . application no . 44 , 920 &# 34 ; microcellular communications system using macrodiversity &# 34 ; filed on behalf of gerald p . labedz on may 1 , 1987 ). in the preferred embodiment , quadrature phase shift keying ( qpsk ) is employed to increase the throughout of the channel although other multi - dimensional signaling may equivalently be employed . further , the well - known time division multiple access ( tdma ) technique of sharing a limited channel resource among a large number of users is employed in the present invention . each of the users is assigned a brief period of time ( a timeslot ) during which a message may be transmitted to or received from the user . the advantages of such a tdma technique over other techniques ( such as frequency division multiple access tdma ) are : ( a ) no duplexer is required for full duplex communications , ( b ) variable data rate transmission may be accommodated through the use of multiple adjacent time slots , ( c ) a common radio frequency power amplifier may be used to amplify multiple channels at any power level without the combining losses or intermodulation distortion present with fdma , and ( d ) a capability of scanning other &# 34 ; channels &# 34 ; ( timeslots ) without requiring separate receivers may be provided . the high data rate employed in the present invention ( 200 kbps to 2 mbps ) exceeds the channel coherence bandwidth of the mobile radio channel for many urban and suburban environments . as a result , the channel exhibits a multipath structure in addition to the expected rayleigh fading . the receiver of the present invention enables tdma quadrature signals to be coherently received over a multipath fading channel . this embodiment will demodulate a 2 - megachip / sec qpsk radio signal , the only constraint being that the acquisition sequence be transmitted as a binary phase shift keying ( bpsk ) signal with a predetermined phase relative to the qpsk data . fig2 a and 2b are a block diagram of a tdma receiver which may be employed to recover tdma quadrature phase shift keying data and is described in instant assignee &# 39 ; s u . s . pat . application no . 009 , 973 &# 34 ; tdma communications system with adaptive equalization &# 34 ; filed on feb . 2 , 1987 on behalf of david e . borth and is incorporated by reference herein . the digital signal outputs of the a / d converters 209 and 211 , respectively , are applied to in - phase ( i ) time slot correlator 213 and quadrature ( q ) correlator 215 , respectively , as well as to their respective signal buffers 217 and 219 . i correlator 213 performs a correlation function between all received bits of the input signal and a pre - loaded synchronization word ( i sync word ) corresponding to the in - phase time slot sync word . the output of i correlator 213 is a digital bit stream representing the sample - by - sample correlation of the received data with the stored synchronization word replica for the timeslot . the correlation function exhibits a peak when the i sync word is located in the received sample data . in the same way , q correlator 215 performs a correlation function between the pre - stored quadrature q sync word from memory 221 and the sampled quadrature ( q ) input . the outputs of correlators 213 and 215 are applied to squaring blocks 223 and 225 , respectively . the squaring block output signals represent the squared values of the separate i and q correlation operations respectively . the squaring block outputs are then applied to summing block 227 . the i and q correlation signals are summed together to form a squared envelope signal which represents the sum of squares of the correlation signal . the squared envelope of the correlation signal makes an explicit determination of the phase ambiguity unnecessary . thus , without resolving any ambiguity , a large amplitude signal output from summing block 227 represents a possible start location for a particular timeslot . the output of summing block 227 is then routed to time slot detector 229 , wherein the summed correlation signal is compared with a predetermined threshold value . this threshold value represents the minimum allowable correlation value which would represent a detected timeslot . if the summed output is greater than the threshold value , a time slot detect signal is generated and applied to system timing controller 231 . timing controller 231 functions as a phase - locked loop ( pll ), using a stable timing reference to validate the timeslot detect signal and provide a validated detect output signal . the validated timeslot detect signal is applied to and gate 233 along with a bit clock output . the combined timeslot detect / bit clock signal is then routed to the i and q signal buffers 217 and 219 , respectively . data signals are clocked into signal buffers 217 and 219 using the combined detect / bit clock signal . in the implementation shown in fig2 a and 2b , a conventional baseband synchronous decision feedback equalizer ( dfe ) 234 is employed for data signal recovery . the dfe 234 basically consists of two parts : a forward linear transversal filter 235 and a feedback linear transversal filter 237 . the forward filter 235 attempts to minimize the mean - square - error ( mse ) due to intersymbol interference ( isi ), while the feedback filter 237 attempts to remove the isi due to previously detected symbols . the decision feedback equalizer 234 structure is adapted at least once each time slot in order to compensate for the effects of the time - varying multipath profile . the equalized and quantized complex data output from quantizer 238 is applied to multiplexer 239 for 2 : 1 multiplexing together with the data clock and output as an output data word . returning to fig1 in a qpsk communication system , a transmitted signal x ( t ) may be expressed as : where a ( t ) and b ( t ) are the in - phase and quadrature information signals and ω c is the carrier frequency of the qpsk signal in radians / sec . a frequency - selective ( or delay - spread ) channel that is , a radio channel subject to multipath interference , may be characterized by an equivalent channel impulse response given by : ## equ1 ## where α i is the amplitude of the i - th resolvable path , τ i is the ( excess ) path delay associated with the i - th resolvable path , and m + 1 is the total number of resolvable paths . for a channel input given by equation ( 1 ), the output of the equivalent delay - spread channel having the impulse response of equation ( 2 ) is essentially constant during any given timeslot , and given by : ## equ2 ## it is this signal , y ( t ), which is input to receiver 103 . when the local oscillator reference 105 in the receiver has a phase offset of γ with respect to the ( direct - path ) received qpsk transmission , the receiver local oscillator reference may be given by cos ( ω c t + γ ) and is essentially constant during a tdma timeslot . ( although the antenna is shown connected to the mixers 107 and 111 , it is likely that additional signal processing will be required for higher frequency radio signals . if down - conversion to an intermediate frequency is used , the output frequency of local oscillator may be different ). let ui ( t ) denote the output of the mixer 107 in the uncorrected in - phase branch of the receiver and let ui &# 39 ;( t ) denote the low - pass filtered version of ui ( t ) output from low pass filter 109 . similarly , let uq ( t ) denote the output of the mixer 111 in the uncorrected quadrature phase branch of the receiver and let uq &# 39 ;( t ) denote the low - pass filtered version of uq ( t ) from filter 113 . ui &# 39 ;( t ) and uq &# 39 ;( t ) are subsequently input to signal processor 115 for resolution into i and q data and then coupled to data signal recovery 117 . the low - pass filtered version ui &# 39 ;( t ) of ui ( t ) is given by : ## equ4 ## considering the operation of the present invention in mathematical form , it is an important feature that the transmitted signal x t ( t ) during the synchronization ( or training ) phase of the equalizer 115 is a bpsk signal . when transmitted in the i phase it is given by : where signal a t ( t ) ( not shown ) is a predetermined synchronization sequence with good aperiodic autocorrelation properties , such as one of the barker sequences . the uncorrected in - phase and quadrature receiver branch outputs corresponding to the synchronizing transmitted signal x t ( t ) may be found by substituting the signal of equation ( 8 ) in the received and low pass filtered signals ui &# 39 ;( t ) and uq &# 39 ;( t ) of equations ( 5 ) and ( 7 ) respectively , yielding : ## equ7 ## thus ui &# 39 ;( t ) and uq &# 39 ;( t ) are defined during the training phase as &# 34 ; t &# 34 ; as shown in equations ( 9 ) and ( 10 ). referring now to fig3 which illustrates the preferred embodiment of the present invention in block diagram form , the signals ui &# 39 ; t ( t ) and uq &# 39 ; t ( t ) are applied to synchronization correlators ( 303 and 305 , respectively ) via conventional fast a / d converters 307 and 309 . in the preferred embodiment , synchronization correlators 303 , 305 are 4 by 32 bit digital finite impulse response ( fir ) filters programmed to provide signed weighted correlation outputs . synchronization correlators 303 and 305 are realized by an ims a100 cascadable signal processor available from inmos corp ., colorado springs , colo . the outputs of correlators c i ( t ) and c q ( t ) which are , in simple terms , weighting factors for each i - th resolvable path , generated during reception of the acquisition sequence , may have the appearance as shown in fig5 and are given by : ## equ8 ## the δ function in equations ( 11 ) and ( 12 ) determine when to sample the in - phase and quadrature receiver branch outputs and the α factor provides a weighting for each i - th resolvable pass contribution . in the preferred embodiment , a sequence controller 311 is realized using a conventional microprocessor ( such as an mc68020 microprocessor available from motorola , inc .) and associated memory and timing dividers . the sequence controller 311 loads a predetermined normalized replica of the acquisition sequence ( 32 each 4 - bit words ) stored in the memory of sequence controller 311 into synchronization correlators 303 and 305 prior to the desired tdma timeslot to be demodulated . tdma frame timing is determined by the sequence controller 311 employing a conventional framing algorithm to confirm and maintain timeslot acquisition . synchronization correlators 303 and 305 each correlate the stored acquisition sequence against the last 32 received a / d samples , and for each new sample perform another complete correlation . while receiving noise or random data , the outputs c i ( t ) and c q ( t ) of synchronization correlators 303 and 305 are small numbers of either polarity , emerging at the same rate as the a / d sampling rate ( 4 per chip interval ). if the radio channel were free of noise and not degraded by multipath , then when an acquisition sequence has been received and digitized and entered into the correlators 303 and 305 , c i ( t ) and c q ( t ) would simultaneously manifest a pair ( or sometimes two adjacent pairs ) of signed numbers significantly larger than those produced by noise or random data , such that the root sum of squares of these numbers would be proportional to the magnitude of the received signal , and the phase angle γ relative to the local reference oscillator is : in the presence of multipath , each significant path will result in the presence of such a peak pair appearing on c i ( t ) and c q ( t ), the signs and magnitudes of each pair of outputs at each peak defining the delay , phase angle , and amplitude contribution of that path to the total , fulfilling the equations ( 11 ) and ( 12 ). thus , each sequence of numbers c i ( t ) and c q ( t ) are bipolar multipath channel profile estimates , which resemble a classic multipath channel profile , except that they are bipolar . each of the m / path correlators 312 , 313 , 315 , and 317 are fir filters of at least 2 taps . in the preferred embodiment , each m / path correlator is realized by an ims a100 cascadable signal processor ( available from inmos corp ., colorado springs , colo .) conventionally connected as a correlator . during the acquisition sequence at the beginning of each desired timeslot , c i ( t ) is shifted into the tap control entry of m / path correlators 312 and 317 , and c q ( t ) is shifted into the tap control entry of m / path correlators 313 and 315 . peak detector 318 is shown in fig4 and comprises a root sum of squares approximator 401 and a threshold detector 403 having an output which signals the sequence controller 311 of the first significant ray of multipath . the sequence controller 311 then provides just enough additional reference port clocks to shift this peak all but through the m / path correlators , thereby capturing c i ( t ) and c q ( t ) in their respective m / path correlators . in the preferred embodiment , the root sum of squares approximator 401 is realized employing a magnitude adder 405 which adds \| c i \|( t ) and ( 1 / 2 )\| c q \| r ( t ) and magnitude adder 407 which adds \| c q ( t ) \| and ( 1 / 2 ) c i ( t )\|. the outputs of magnitude adder 405 and magnitude adder 407 are input to conventional magnitude comparators 409 and 411 , respectively , where the root sum of squares approximation is compared to a predetermined threshold to generate an output to the sequence controller 311 ( via or gate 413 ). this and other approximations to the square root of the sum of the squares may be found in , eg ., a . e . filip , &# 34 ; a baker &# 39 ; s dozen magnitude approximations and their detection statistics ,&# 34 ; ieee transactions on aerospace and electronic systems , vol . aes - 12 , pp . 86 - 89 , jan . 1976 . this output to the sequence controller 311 is shown as t d in the example of fig5 . thus , the peak detector 318 reports the first significant peak to the sequence controller 311 which , in turn , starts the loading at t / s stop , to thus capture the channel profile in each of the m / path correlators . the four m / path correlators ( 312 , 313 , 315 , and 317 in fig3 ) thus have the information available to perform equations ( 14 )-( 17 ), below , whose results ( a , b , c , and d ) appear at the outputs of m / path correlators 312 , 313 , 315 , and 317 respectively . ## equ9 ## properly combining the quantities a through d , one obtains the following expressions for the in - phase and quadrature outputs of the receiver at time t = 0 : ## equ10 ## conventional adder 331 implements equation ( 18 ) to produce the recovered in - phase signal i and adder 335 implements equation ( 19 ) to produce the recovered sample form for use in somewhat more elaborate symbol or character correlation . the outputs i and q from the adders 331 and 335 may subsequently be applied to a data signal recovery circuit such as the conventional baseband synchronous feedback equalizer described in the aforementioned u . s . patent application ser , no . 009 , 973 . it can be seen by following the general input equation ( 3 ) through to equations ( 18 ) and ( 19 ) that the information contained in each of the paths of the multipath signal is coherently combined in the receiver , thereby permitting an effective time diversity gain in the receiver . furthermore , since the sin and cos terms of equations ( 14 ) through ( 17 ) are cancelled algebraically and trigonometrically , the received signal phase offset γ is cancelled . in the preferred embodiment four m / path correlators 312 , 313 , 315 , and 317 operate on 128 samples , or 32 chip intervals so as to accommodate as much as an 8 microseconds variation in the path delays , any one with respect to the others . this also imposes the requirement that the acquisition sequence be of no less than 9 microseconds duration , preferably two to four times that long . referring to fig5 a representative graph of the outputs c i ( t ) and c q ( t ) time on the other axis . the outputs of the synchronization correlators 303 and 305 have signed responses at each clock pulse but none of the responses exceed the established threshold magnitude until a correlation with the predetermined synchronization sequence a t ( t ) is realized . as shown , a correlation is found at time t d . referring now to fig6 there is shown a block diagram of a qpsk transmitter which may be employed as a fixed site transmitter in a tdma system . a similar transmitter may be employed as a transmitter in a mobile or portable transceiver . at the fixed site , digital speech or data are input from a number of users and formatted by formatter 601 into individual tdma message plus synchronization streams . a predetermined number of data bits from one user are interleaved with the synchronization sequence by means of software control in a microprocessor . a representative formatter is further described in the aforementioned u . s . patent application ser . no . 009 , 973 . once the data are formatted , the output is coupled to the tdma controller 603 . the tdma controller 603 performs the function of time - multiplexing each user message with the other user messages to form a tdma signal . the time - multiplexing function may , preferably , be performed in a software mediated process of a microprocessor but may also be realized via a time - controlled switch ( as described in the data sheet of a motorola mc14416 time slot assigner ). the output of the tdma controller 603 is a signal consisting of n user messages ( as shown in fig7 ) and is applied , as quadrature signals a ( t ) and b ( t ), to conventional modulators 605 and 607 . modulator 605 modulates the output of signal oscillator 609 ( cos { ω c t }) with the a ( t ) signal ; modulator 607 modulates the 90 ° phase shifted ( from phase shifter 611 ) output of signal oscillator 609 with b ( t ) to create the b ( t ) sin ( ω c t ) quadrature signal . the two signals are then summed in conventional summer 613 and applied the transmitter amplification stage 615 for amplification prior to transmission ( as x { t }). during the period the synchronization sequence is being transmitted for each timeslot , the present invention transmits the synchronization sequence only on one vector of the qpsk modulated signal . in the preferred embodiment , this is accomplished by preventing the b ( t ) sin ( ω c t ) from being summed in summer 613 . ( the transmission of b ( t ) sin ( ω c t ) and the suppression of a ( t ) cos ( ω c t ) would work equally well and is the choice of the system designer . furthermore , it may be desirable to transmit the acquisition sequence at some other angle relative to i and q , for example , simultaneously and identically in both i and q for a 45 ° shift . any angle can be accommodated by operating on the multipath profile estimates c i ( t ) and c q ( t ) when applying them to m / path correlators ). a conventional signal switch 617 open - circuits the coupling between the modulator 607 and the summer 613 upon a command from the tdma controller 603 indicating a synchronization sequence period . this signal switch 617 reconnects the modulator 607 and the summer 613 during periods of message data transmission . since the turning off of b ( t ) sin ( ω c t ) during the acquisition synchronization sequence effectively reduces the transmitter output power by 3 db during the synchronization sequence , the transmitter may optionally be equipped with the capability of increasing the power gain of the transmitter amplification stage 615 . the amplification stage 615 , which may be a conventional variable output power amplifier , is switched during the synchronization sequence to an output power 3 db greater than the output power during the transmission of the message data of each timeslot . in this way , the system gain is maintained during both synchronization sequence and message data transmission . in summary , then , the present invention describes a unique phase coherent method for transmitting and receiving a qpsk radio signal that has been subject to a multipath fading radio channel . in order that the equalization for reception of a radio signal subject to rayleigh and multipath fading be adapted for the channel , a training or synchronization signal is transmitted on only one of the vectors of a quadrature phase modulated signal . the random amplitudes and phases of copies of the modulated signal added to the signal by channel multipath are correlated and combined in accordance with a multipath profile signal developed from the synchronization signal . therefore , while a particular embodiment of the invention has been shown and described , it should be understood that the invention is not limited thereto since modifications unrelated to the true spirit and scope of the invention may be made by those skilled in the art . it is therefore contemplated to cover the present invention and any and all such modifications by the claims of the present invention .	7
in the following detailed description , numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention . however , those skilled in the art will understand that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details , that the present invention is not limited to the depicted embodiments , and that the present invention may be practiced in a variety of alternate embodiments . in other instances , well known methods , procedures , components , and circuits have not been described in detail . parts of the description will be presented using terminology commonly employed by those skilled in the art to convey the substance of their work to others skilled in the art . also , parts of the description will be presented in terms of operations performed through the execution of programming instructions . as well understood by those skilled in the art , these operations often take the form of electrical , magnetic , or optical signals capable of being stored , transferred , combined , and otherwise manipulated through , for instance , electrical components . various operations will be described as multiple discrete steps performed in turn in a manner that is helpful in understanding the present invention . however , the order of description should not be construed as to imply that these operations are necessarily performed in the order they are presented , or even order dependent . lastly , repeated usage of the phrase “ in one embodiment ” does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment , although it may . the present invention integrates compact , high power voltage regulator components into the form factor of a socket . integrating the voltage regulator into a socket allows the regulator to be closer to the target load and more efficiently supply power . in various embodiments , as discussed below , integrating the voltage regulator into the socket also simplifies thermal solutions and input / output solutions . in general , the present invention alters the form factor of prior art sockets , such as socket 140 of fig1 . the form factor retains the requisite low profile to meet the critical inductance requirements for the socketed component ( such as cpu 130 of fig1 ), but with additional space to accommodate the voltage regulator and leave room for the thermal solution ( such as heat sink 150 of fig1 ). fig2 illustrates one embodiment of the present invention . central processing unit ( cpu ) 130 inserts into socket 240 in receptive area 242 . socket 240 provides the input / output ( i / o ) solution between cpu 130 and system board 110 . in the illustrated embodiment , socket 240 has a cutaway in its chassis 244 to reveal where voltage regulator 220 is integrated into the socket . voltage regulator 220 provides the power solution for cpu 130 . voltage regulator 220 is comprised of compact components that provide power at the relatively large rate required by cpu 130 , and yet the components fit within the limited height of socket 240 . by integrating voltage regulator 220 into socket 240 , voltage regulator 220 can be positioned as close as possible to cpu 130 without actually being integrated into cpu 130 . in comparison to the prior art system of fig1 capacitors 127 are bulk capacitors . the form factor for capacitors 127 are typically on the order of 0 . 5 inches tall and 0 . 25 inches in diameter . socket 140 is typically on the order of 0 . 2 to 0 . 25 inches tall . in which case , bulk capacitors 127 cannot get any closer to cpu 130 in fig1 than the perimeter of socket 140 because the capacitors cannot fit within the form factor of the socket . the amount of capacitance needed to power cpu 130 increases the farther away the capacitors are located . in the present invention , as illustrated in fig2 the compact components of regulator 220 can be positioned very close the cpu 130 . in which case , regulator 220 provides power more efficiently and does not need as much capacitance as regulator 120 to provide the same rate of power . socket 240 also has the same height requirements as socket 140 . in which case , the components of voltage regulator 220 must be able to fit in a form factor having a height on the order of 0 . 2 to 0 . 25 inches . fig3 illustrates another embodiment the present invention including a thermal solution and a support structure for the thermal solution . support plate 360 mounts to the bottom of system board 110 to provide additional structural integrity to support the bulk of heat sink 350 coupled to the top of socket 340 . chassis 344 of socket 340 serves as a base for heat sink 350 . heat sink 350 , like heat sink 150 in fig1 makes contact with cpu 130 to absorb and dissipate heat from the cpu . in which case , the height of socket 340 is limited not only by the inductance of leads ( not shown ) within socket 340 , but also by the requirement that heat sink 350 be close enough to cpu 130 to absorb heat . that is , in the illustrated embodiment , the height of socket 340 is limited by the maximum length of the leads and the height of cpu 130 such that the top of socket 340 is at most flush with the top of cpu 130 to provide heat sink 350 with a direct thermal connection to the cpu . socket 340 is virtually identical to socket 240 from fig2 with the exception of the cutaway that reveals the integrated voltage regulator . the voltage regulator ( not shown ) integrated in socket 340 can generate a great deal of heat . as discussed above , prior art voltage regulators often include their own thermal solutions such as an extra fan . in the present invention however , as illustrated in fig3 the voltage regulator fits within socket 340 so it can take advantage of the same thermal solution provided for cpu 130 . that is , heat sink 350 not only absorbs and dissipates heat from cpu 130 , heat sink 350 also absorbs and dissipates heat from the voltage regulator integrated into socket 340 . fig4 illustrates one embodiment of a computer system 400 including a processor package 420 according to the teachings of the present invention . processor package 420 is similar to the embodiment of the present invention illustrated in fig3 and includes a socket having an integrated voltage regulator , a cpu , and a heat sink ( all not shown ). bus 460 couples processor package 420 to chip set 470 , and from there through buses 461 , 462 , and 463 to memory 410 , i / o ports 430 , and riser cards 450 . computer system 400 is intended to represent a broad category of electronic devices known in the art , such as personal computers , work stations , set - top boxes , internet appliances , etc . those skilled in the art will recognize that alternate embodiments may not include all of the illustrated components , may combine one or more of the components , may include additional components known in the art , and may be organized in any number of configurations . those skilled in the art will also recognize that the present invention is applicable to a wide range of applications and form factors . the present invention could be used for virtually any socketed device that requires high power voltage regulation . for instance , many specialized processors , such as graphics processors , are likely to have similar power and thermal solution requirements that cpus have . the present invention may also be applicable to sockets for lower power devices , like memory . the sockets in the embodiments of fig1 - 3 are land grid array sockets , which use flexible circuit material to make contact between the ports on the cpu and the leads in the socket . those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention is similarly applicable to other types of sockets , including pin sockets such as those used for edge mounted devices . fig5 illustrates one embodiment of a pin socket 540 to couple cpu 530 to system board 510 . socket 540 has height limitations much like socket 340 in fig3 . that is , the height of the socket is limited by the inductance of leads ( not shown ) within the socket , as well as by the size and proximity of heat sinks 550 to cpu 530 . socket 540 includes an integrated voltage regulator ( not shown ) like the integrated voltage regulator 220 in fig2 . any number of approaches can be used to integrate the voltage regulator into the socket . for instance , the compact components can be mounted onto the same sub - straight used to support the socket leads , and the chassis can be an injection mold used to enclose all of the components . thus , an integrated circuit socket having a built - in voltage regulator is described . whereas many alterations and modifications of the present invention will be comprehended by a person skilled in the art after having read the foregoing description , it is to be understood that the particular embodiments shown and described by way of illustration are in no way intended to be considered limiting . therefore , references to details of particular embodiments are not intended to limit the scope of the claims .	7
in the following description , for the purposes of explanation , specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the invention . however , it will be apparent that various embodiments may be practiced without these specific details . the figures and description are not intended to be restrictive . the ensuing description provides exemplary embodiments only , and is not intended to limit the scope , applicability , or configuration of the disclosure . rather , the ensuing description of the exemplary embodiments will provide those skilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing an exemplary embodiment . it should be understood that various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims . specific details are given in the following description to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments . however , it will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments may be practiced without these specific details . for example , circuits , systems , networks , processes , and other components may be shown as components in block diagram form in order not to obscure the embodiments in unnecessary detail . in other instances , well - known circuits , processes , algorithms , structures , and techniques may be shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoid obscuring the embodiments . also , it is noted that individual embodiments may be described as a process which is depicted as a flowchart , a flow diagram , a data flow diagram , a structure diagram , or a block diagram . although a flowchart may describe the operations as a sequential process , many of the operations can be performed in parallel or concurrently . in addition , the order of the operations may be re - arranged . a process is terminated when its operations are completed , but could have additional steps not included in a figure . a process may correspond to a method , a function , a procedure , a subroutine , a subprogram , etc . when a process corresponds to a function , its termination can correspond to a return of the function to the calling function or the main function . the term “ machine - readable storage medium ” or “ computer - readable storage medium ” includes , but is not limited to , portable or non - portable storage devices , optical storage devices , and various other mediums capable of storing , containing , or carrying instruction ( s ) and / or data . a machine - readable storage medium or computer - readable storage medium may include a non - transitory medium in which data can be stored and that does not include carrier waves and / or transitory electronic signals propagating wirelessly or over wired connections . examples of a non - transitory medium may include , but are not limited to , a magnetic disk or tape , optical storage media such as compact disk ( cd ) or digital versatile disk ( dvd ), flash memory , memory or memory devices . a computer - program product may include code and / or machine - executable instructions that may represent a procedure , a function , a subprogram , a program , a routine , a subroutine , a module , a software package , a class , or any combination of instructions , data structures , or program statements . a code segment may be coupled to another code segment or a hardware circuit by passing and / or receiving information , data , arguments , parameters , or memory contents . information , arguments , parameters , data , or other information may be passed , forwarded , or transmitted using any suitable means including memory sharing , message passing , token passing , network transmission , or other transmission technique . furthermore , embodiments may be implemented by hardware , software , firmware , middleware , microcode , hardware description languages , or any combination thereof . when implemented in software , firmware , middleware or microcode , the program code or code segments to perform the necessary tasks ( e . g ., a computer - program product ) may be stored in a machine - readable medium . a processor ( s ) may perform the necessary tasks . systems depicted in some of the figures may be provided in various configurations . in some embodiments , the systems may be configured as a distributed system where one or more components of the system are distributed across one or more networks in a cloud computing system . systems and methods described herein may relate to the technical approaches disclosed in several related applications including u . s . pat . no . 8 , 595 , 781 , u . s . pat . no . 8 , 769 , 584 , u . s . pat . app . pub . no . 2010 / 0306805 , u . s . pat . app . pub . no . 2014 / 0082663 , u . s . pat . app . pub . no . 2014 / 0201769 , and u . s . pat . no . 8 , 595 , 781 , incorporated by reference herein in their entireties . exemplary embodiments disclosed herein teach a system and method that extends the meaning of the previously used term “ contextually targeted ” beyond the display of simple graphics or short video segments related to the associated content , to the complete substitution of substantially enhanced forms of the selected content , replacing it in its entirety with a vod like format , enabling the viewer to re - start the content from its beginning , with complete “ virtual dvr ” control including restarting , pausing , “ fast forward ”, and “ rewind ” functions , along with the ability to view the content at higher resolution or in 3d , if available , and the ability to remove commercial messages and replace them with messages more tightly targeting the viewer by location , demographics , or previous shopping behavior based on such information being stored in the form of compact data modules of the type often called “ cookies ” in the memory of a connected tv viewing system such as a smart tv . this enables the development and sale to sponsors or brokers of various premium , closely - targeted advertising products , or in an alternative business model , the removal of some or all of the advertising messaging as a premium service for the viewer . fig1 illustrates a matching system 100 that can identify unknown content . in some examples , the unknown content can include one or more unknown data points . in such examples , the matching system 100 can match unknown data points with reference data points to identify unknown video segments associated with the unknown data points . the reference data points can be included in a reference database 116 . the matching system 100 includes a client device 102 and a matching server 104 . the client device 102 includes a media client 106 , an input device 108 , an output device 110 , and one or more contextual applications 126 . the media client 106 ( which can include a television system , a computer system , or other electronic device capable of connecting to the internet ) can decode data ( e . g ., broadcast signals , data packets , or other frame data ) associated with video programs 128 . the media client 106 can place the decoded contents of each frame of the video into a video frame buffer in preparation for display or for further processing of pixel information of the video frames . the client device 102 can be any electronic decoding system that can receive and decode a video signal . the client device 102 can receive video programs 128 and store video information in a video buffer ( not shown ). the client device 102 can process the video buffer information and produce unknown data points ( which can referred to as “ cues ”), described in more detail below with respect to fig3 . the media client 106 can transmit the unknown data points to the matching server 104 for comparison with reference data points in the reference database 116 . the input device 108 can include any suitable device that allows a request or other information to be input to the media client 106 . for example , the input device 108 can include a keyboard , a mouse , a voice - recognition input device , a wireless interface for receiving wireless input from a wireless device ( e . g ., from a remote controller , a mobile device , or other suitable wireless device ), or any other suitable input device . the output device 110 can include any suitable device that can present or otherwise output information , such as a display , a wireless interface for transmitting a wireless output to a wireless device ( e . g ., to a mobile device or other suitable wireless device ), a printer , or other suitable output device . the matching system 100 can begin a process of identifying a video segment by first collecting data samples from known video data sources 118 . for example , the matching server 104 collects data to build and maintain a reference database 116 from a variety of video data sources 118 . the video data sources 118 can include media providers of television programs , movies , or any other suitable video source . video data from the video data sources 118 can be provided as over - the - air broadcasts , as cable tv channels , as streaming sources from the internet , and from any other video data source . in some examples , the matching server 104 can process the received video from the video data sources 118 to generate and collect reference video data points in the reference database 116 , as described below . in some examples , video programs from video data sources 118 can be processed by a reference video program ingest system ( not shown ), which can produce the reference video data points and send them to the reference database 116 for storage . the reference data points can be used as described above to determine information that is then used to analyze unknown data points . the matching server 104 can store reference video data points for each video program received for a period of time ( e . g ., a number of days , a number of weeks , a number of months , or any other suitable period of time ) in the reference database 116 . the matching server 104 can build and continuously or periodically update the reference database 116 of television programming samples ( e . g ., including reference data points , which may also be referred to as cues or cue values ). in some examples , the data collected is a compressed representation of the video information sampled from periodic video frames ( e . g ., every fifth video frame , every tenth video frame , every fifteenth video frame , or other suitable number of frames ). in some examples , a number of bytes of data per frame ( e . g ., 25 bytes , 50 bytes , 75 bytes , 100 bytes , or any other amount of bytes per frame ) are collected for each program source . any number of program sources can be used to obtain video , such as 25 channels , 50 channels , 75 channels , 100 channels , 200 channels , or any other number of program sources . using the example amount of data , the total data collected during a 24 - hour period over three days becomes very large . therefore , reducing the number of actual reference data point sets is advantageous in reducing the storage load of the matching server 104 . the media client 106 can send a communication 122 to a matching engine 112 of the matching server 104 . the communication 122 can include a request for the matching engine 112 to identify unknown content . for example , the unknown content can include one or more unknown data points and the reference database 116 can include a plurality of reference data points . the matching engine 112 can identify the unknown content by matching the unknown data points to reference data in the reference database 116 . in some examples , the unknown content can include unknown video data being presented by a display ( for video - based acr ), a search query ( for a mapreduce system , a bigtable system , or other data storage system ), an unknown image of a face ( for facial recognition ), an unknown image of a pattern ( for pattern recognition ), or any other unknown data that can be matched against a database of reference data . the reference data points can be derived from data received from the video data sources 118 . for example , data points can be extracted from the information provided from the video data sources 118 and can be indexed and stored in the reference database 116 . the matching engine 112 can send a request to the candidate determination engine 114 to determine candidate data points from the reference database 116 . a candidate data point can be a reference data point that is a certain determined distance from the unknown data point . in some examples , a distance between a reference data point and an unknown data point can be determined by comparing one or more pixels ( e . g ., a single pixel , a value representing group of pixels ( e . g ., a mean , an average , a median , or other value ), or other suitable number of pixels ) of the reference data point with one or more pixels of the unknown data point . in some examples , a reference data point can be the certain determined distance from an unknown data point when the pixels at each sample location are within a particular pixel value range . in one illustrative example , a pixel value of a pixel can include a red value , a green value , and a blue value ( in a red - green - blue ( rgb ) color space ). in such an example , a first pixel ( or value representing a first group of pixels ) can be compared to a second pixel ( or value representing a second group of pixels ) by comparing the corresponding red values , green values , and blue values respectively , and ensuring that the values are within a certain value range ( e . g ., within 0 - 5 values ). for example , the first pixel can be matched with the second pixel when ( 1 ) a red value of the first pixel is within 5 values in a 0 - 255 value range ( plus or minus ) of a red value of the second pixel , ( 2 ) a green value of the first pixel is within 5 values in a 0 - 255 value range ( plus or minus ) of a green value of the second pixel , and ( 3 ) a blue value of the first pixel is within 5 values in a 0 - 255 value range ( plus or minus ) of a blue value of the second pixel . in such an example , a candidate data point is a reference data point that is an approximate match to the unknown data point , leading to multiple candidate data points ( related to different media segments ) being identified for the unknown data point . the candidate determination engine 114 can return the candidate data points to the matching engine 112 . for a candidate data point , the matching engine 112 can add a token into a bin that is associated with the candidate data point and that is assigned to an identified video segment from which the candidate data point is derived . a corresponding token can be added to all bins that correspond to identified candidate data points . as more unknown data points ( corresponding to the unknown content being viewed ) are received by the matching server 104 from the client device 102 , a similar candidate data point determination process can be performed , and tokens can be added to the bins corresponding to identified candidate data points . only one of the bins corresponds to the segment of the unknown video content being viewed , with the other bins corresponding to candidate data points that are matched due to similar data point values ( e . g ., having similar pixel color values ), but that do not correspond to the actual segment being viewed . the bin for the unknown video content segment being viewed will have more tokens assigned to it than other bins for segments that are not being watched . for example , as more unknown data points are received , a larger number of reference data points that correspond to the bin are identified as candidate data points , leading to more tokens being added to the bin . once a bin includes a particular number of tokens , the matching engine 112 can determine that the video segment associated with the bin is currently being displayed on the client device 102 . a video segment can include an entire video program or a portion of the video program . for example , a video segment can be a video program , a scene of a video program , one or more frames of a video program , or any other portion of a video program . fig2 illustrates components of a matching system 200 for identifying unknown data . for example , the matching engine 212 can perform a matching process for identifying unknown content ( e . g ., unknown media segments , a search query , an image of a face or a pattern , or the like ) using a database of known content ( e . g ., known media segments , information stored in a database for searching against , known faces or patterns , or the like ). for example , the matching engine 212 receives unknown data content 202 ( which can be referred to as a “ cue ”) to be matched with a reference data point of the reference data points 204 in a reference database . the unknown data content 202 can also be received by the candidate determination engine 214 , or sent to the candidate determination engine 214 from the matching engine 212 . the candidate determination engine 214 can conduct a search process to identify candidate data points 206 by searching the reference data points 204 in the reference database . in one example , the search process can include a nearest neighbor search process to produce a set of neighboring values ( that are a certain distance from the unknown values of the unknown data content 202 ). the candidate data points 206 are input to the matching engine 212 for conducting the matching process to generate a matching result 208 . depending on the application , the matching result 208 can include video data being presented by a display , a search result , a determined face using facial recognition , a determined pattern using pattern recognition , or any other result . in determining candidate data points 206 for an unknown data point ( e . g ., unknown data content 202 ), the candidate determination engine 214 determines a distance between the unknown data point and the reference data points 204 in the reference database . the reference data points that are a certain distance from the unknown data point are identified as the candidate data points 206 . in some examples , a distance between a reference data point and an unknown data point can be determined by comparing one or more pixels of the reference data point with one or more pixels of the unknown data point , as described above with respect to fig1 . in some examples , a reference data point can be the certain distance from an unknown data point when the pixels at each sample location are within a particular value range . as described above , a candidate data point is a reference data point that is an approximate match to the unknown data point , and because of the approximate matching , multiple candidate data points ( related to different media segments ) are identified for the unknown data point . the candidate determination engine 114 can return the candidate data points to the matching engine 112 . fig3 illustrates an example of a video ingest capture system 400 including a memory buffer 302 of a decoder . the decoder can be part of the matching server 104 or the media client 106 . the decoder may not operate with or require a physical television display panel or device . the decoder can decode and , when required , decrypt a digital video program into an uncompressed bitmap representation of a television program . for purposes of building a reference database of reference video data ( e . g ., reference database 316 ), the matching server 104 can acquire one or more arrays of video pixels , which are read from the video frame buffer . an array of video pixels is referred to as a video patch . a video patch can be any arbitrary shape or pattern but , for the purposes of this specific example , is described as a 10 × 10 pixel array , including ten pixels horizontally by ten pixels vertically . also for the purpose of this example , it is assumed that there are 25 pixel - patch positions extracted from within the video frame buffer that are evenly distributed within the boundaries of the buffer . an example allocation of pixel patches ( e . g ., pixel patch 304 ) is shown in fig3 . as noted above , a pixel patch can include an array of pixels , such as a 10 × 10 array . for example , the pixel patch 304 includes a 10 × 10 array of pixels . a pixel can include color values , such as a red , a green , and a blue value . for example , a pixel 306 is shown having red - green - blue ( rgb ) color values . the color values for a pixel can be represented by an eight - bit binary value for each color . other suitable color values that can be used to represent colors of a pixel include luma and chroma ( y , cb , cr ) values or any other suitable color values . a mean value ( or an average value in some cases ) of each pixel patch is taken , and a resulting data record is created and tagged with a time code ( or time stamp ). for example , a mean value is found for each 10 × 10 pixel patch array , in which case twenty - four bits of data per twenty - five display buffer locations are produced for a total of 600 bits of pixel information per frame . in one example , a mean of the pixel patch 304 is calculated , and is shown by pixel patch mean 308 . in one illustrative example , the time code can include an “ epoch time ,” which representing the total elapsed time ( in fractions of a second ) since midnight , jan . 1 , 1970 . for example , the pixel patch mean 308 values are assembled with a time code 412 . epoch time is an accepted convention in computing systems , including , for example , unix - based systems . information about the video program , known as metadata , is appended to the data record . the metadata can include any information about a program , such as a program identifier , a program time , a program length , or any other information . the data record including the mean value of a pixel patch , the time code , and metadata , forms a “ data point ” ( also referred to as a “ cue ”). the data point 310 is one example of a reference video data point . a process of identifying unknown video segments begins with steps similar to creating the reference database . for example , fig4 illustrates a video ingest capture system 400 including a memory buffer 402 of a decoder . the video ingest capture system 400 can be part of the client device 102 that processes data presented by a display ( e . g ., on an internet - connected television monitor , such as a smart tv , a mobile device , or other television viewing device ). the video ingest capture system 400 can utilize a similar process to generate unknown video data point 410 as that used by system 300 for creating reference video data point 310 . in one example , the media client 106 can transmit the unknown video data point 410 to the matching engine 112 to identify a video segment associated with the unknown video data point 410 by the matching server 104 . as shown in fig4 , a video patch 404 can include a 10 × 10 array of pixels . the video patch 404 can be extracted from a video frame being presented by a display . a plurality of such pixel patches can be extracted from the video frame . in one illustrative example , if twenty - five such pixel patches are extracted from the video frame , the result will be a point representing a position in a 75 - dimension space . a mean ( or average ) value can be computed for each color value of the array ( e . g ., rgb color value , y , cr , cb color values , or the like ). a data record ( e . g ., unknown video data point 410 ) is formed from the mean pixel values and the current time is appended to the data . one or more unknown video data points can be sent to the matching server 104 to be matched with data from the reference database 116 using the techniques described above . fig5 is a block diagram of an example of a system for improving work load management in acr media monitoring systems according to embodiments of the invention . client television system 501 a sends unknown media cues 501 b ( also referred to herein as “ unknown content identifiers ”) corresponding to unknown media content being displayed by client television system 501 a to cue manager 502 a . cue manager 502 a receives the unknown media cues 501 b , and forwards the unknown media cues 502 b to search router 503 . search router 503 routes the unknown media cues 502 b to real - time matching engine 504 b and / or non - real - time matching engine 505 b . for example , search router 503 may immediately route the unknown media cues 502 b to real - time matching engine 504 b for immediate identification , and / or may store a copy of unknown media cues 502 b in cue cache 506 to provide to non - real - time matching engine 505 b at a later time . the unknown media cues 502 b may be retrieved from cue cache 506 and provided to non - real - time matching engine 505 b at a more convenient or efficient time , such as overnight , as real - time identification is not needed . each of real - time matching engine 504 b and non - real - time matching engine 505 b have their own reference database of known media content cues ( also referred to herein as “ known content identifiers ”). real - time matching engine 504 b searches real - time reference data 504 a for the unknown media cues 502 b in real - time , upon receipt of unknown media cues 502 b from search router 503 . real - time reference data 504 a contains known media content cues associated with known media content having contextually - related data , such as any additional data to be provided to client television system 501 a relevant to the media content being displayed . thus , real - time reference data 504 a may be a far smaller database that non - real - time reference data 505 a . it is important that identification of media content having contextually - related data be done in real - time , such that the contextually - related data can be provided to client television system 501 a while the media content is being displayed . exemplary contextually - related data includes informative content , interactive content , advertising content , textual content , graphical content , audio content , video content , and / or the like . real - time matching engine 504 a may support viewer - specific , interactive , and contextual content overlay or substitution services that typically only have a fraction of a second to trigger ( i . e ., the contextually - related data must be provided in real - time ). if the unknown media cues 502 b are identified as matching known media cues associated with known media content within real - time reference data 504 a , the contextually - related data corresponding to the known media content may be retrieved from real - time reference data 504 a and provided at 504 c to client television system 501 a . in some embodiments , client television system 501 a can then display the contextually - related data . such contextually - related data might include , by way of example only , replacement of a commercial message with one more directed to the specific viewer based on the media content being viewed , additional information regarding the media content being viewed , or an opportunity to interact with the media content itself or other viewers who may also be watching it . in addition , if the unknown media cues 502 b are identified as matching known media cues associated with known media content within real - time reference data 504 a , an identification of the matching known media content 504 d may be stored in results data 507 . non - real - time matching engine 505 b searches non - real - time reference data 505 a for the unknown media cues 502 b in non - real - time , for example , at a more convenient , efficient and / or economically advantageous time as determined by search router 503 . for example , non - real - time matching engine 505 b may perform searching during non - prime hours when other system processing workloads are comparatively light . non - real - time reference data 505 a may contain known media content cues associated with known media content not having contextually - related data . in other words , it is not important that identification of media content not having contextually - related data be done in real - time , because no data needs to be provided to client television system 501 a while the media content is being displayed . however , it may still be important to identify the unknown media content for other purposes , such as to calculate hourly or daily statistics regarding how many television systems are displaying particular media content , viewing patterns , system usage , and other data that is not particularly time dependent . the non - real - time reference data 505 a may include , for example , local channel programming data , cable channel programming data , vod data , pay - per - view data , and / or streaming media data ( e . g ., netflix ™, amazon ™, pandora ™, etc .). in some embodiments , non - real - time reference data 505 a includes all available media data , whereas real - time reference data 504 a includes only media data requiring immediate identification . if the unknown media cues 502 b are identified as matching known media cues associated with known media content within non - real - time reference data 505 a , an identification of the matching known media content 505 c may be stored in results data 507 . in some embodiments , any or all of the components illustrated in fig5 may reside on client television system 501 a . in some embodiments , any or all of the components illustrated in fig5 may reside on a server remote from client television system 501 a . in some embodiments , each component of fig5 may be a separate system having separate databases and processing capabilities , for example . in some embodiments , at least some components of fig5 may share databases and / or processing capabilities . fig6 is a block diagram of an example of a search router 600 for routing cues in a media monitoring system according to embodiments of the invention . search router 600 may be used to implement search router 503 of fig5 , for example . search router 600 may include a processor 601 coupled to a communication interface 602 and a computer readable medium 606 . search router 600 may also include or otherwise have access to a database 603 that may be internal or external to search router 600 . in some embodiments , database 603 may contain cue cache 506 of fig5 . processor 601 may include one or more microprocessors to execute program components for performing the functions of search router 600 . communication interface 602 can be configured to connect to one or more communication networks to allow search router 600 to communicate with other entities , such as cue manager 502 a , real - time matching engine 504 b , and / or non - real - time matching engine 505 b of fig5 . computer readable medium 606 may include any combination of one or more volatile and / or non - volatile memories , for example , ram , dram , sram , rom , flash , or any other suitable memory components . computer readable medium 606 may store code executable by the processor 601 for implementing some of all of the functions of search router 600 . for example , computer readable medium 606 may include code implementing a cue routing engine 608 , a cue cloning engine 610 , and / or a cue timing engine 612 . although shown and described as having each of these engines , it is contemplated that more or fewer engines may be implemented within computer readable medium 606 . for example , a cue routing engine 608 , a cue cloning engine 610 , and / or a cue timing engine 612 may not be implemented in all embodiments . cue routing engine 608 may , in conjunction with processor 601 and communication interface 602 , receive cues corresponding to unknown media content being displayed by a media system , such as directly from a media system or via a cue manager . cue cloning engine 610 , in conjunction with processor 601 , may clone the received cues so as to create identical copies of the cues . cue cloning engine 610 may then , in conjunction with processor 601 , store a copy of the cues in database 603 . cue routing engine 608 may then , in conjunction with processor 601 and communication interface 602 , immediately forward a copy of the cues to a real - time matching engine for real - time matching against known media content having contextually - related data , as described further herein . cue timing engine 612 may , in conjunction with processor 601 , determine an appropriate time for which searching by a non - real - time matching engine should be completed . in some embodiments , this is in non - real - time , i . e ., it is not immediate . however , it is contemplated that in some embodiments , immediate searching may be determined as desirable based on when is most convenient , efficient and / or economically advantageous . for example , if the cues corresponding to unknown media content are already received during non - prime hours when other system processing workloads are comparatively light , cue timing engine 612 may instruct cue routing engine 608 to send the cues corresponding to the unknown media content to a non - real - time matching engine immediately . in some embodiments , cue timing engine 612 may , in conjunction with processor 601 , determine that the appropriate time to send the cues to the non - real - time matching engine is at a later time , such as overnight at 2 am . thus , at 2 am , cue timing engine 612 may retrieve the unknown media cues from database 603 , and provide them to cue routing engine 608 for transmission to the non - real - time matching engine via communication interface 602 . in some embodiments , cue timing engine 612 may , in conjunction with processor 601 , send unknown media cues to the non - real - time matching engine at predetermined intervals , such as every hour , every day , etc . thus , for example , if the unknown media cues are received at 1 : 13 pm , they may be stored by cue routing engine 608 until 2 pm , at which time they will be retrieved by cue timing engine 612 and provided back to cue routing engine 608 for transmission to the non - real - time matching engine . although shown and described in fig6 as having a cue timing engine 612 , it is contemplated that search router 600 may not have a cue timing engine 612 in some embodiments , and may instead immediately forward a copy of the unknown media cues to the non - real - time matching engine . in these embodiments , the non - real - time matching engine may instead comprise a cue timing engine configured to process the unknown media cues at the appropriate time . fig7 is a block diagram of an example of a real - time matching engine 700 for processing cues in real - time according to embodiments of the invention . real - time matching engine 700 may be used to implement real - time matching engine 504 b of fig5 , for example . real - time matching engine 700 may include a processor 701 coupled to a communication interface 702 and a computer readable medium 706 . real - time matching engine 700 may also include or otherwise have access to a database 703 that may be internal or external to real - time matching engine 700 . in some embodiments , database 703 may comprise real - time reference data 504 a of fig5 . processor 701 may include one or more microprocessors to execute program components for performing the functions of real - time matching engine 700 . communication interface 702 can be configured to connect to one or more communication networks to allow real - time matching engine 700 to communicate with other entities , such as search router 503 and / or client television system 501 a of fig5 . computer readable medium 706 may include any combination of one or more volatile and / or non - volatile memories , for example , ram , dram , sram , rom , flash , or any other suitable memory components . computer readable medium 706 may store code executable by the processor 701 for implementing some of all of the functions of real - time matching engine 700 . for example , computer readable medium 706 may include code implementing a contextually - related data processing engine 708 , a known media content search engine 710 , and / or an unknown media content identification engine 712 . although shown and described as having each of these engines , it is contemplated that more or fewer engines may be implemented within computer readable medium 706 . for example , a contextually - related data processing engine 708 , a known media content search engine 710 , and / or an unknown media content identification engine 712 may not be implemented in all embodiments . known media content search engine 710 may , in conjunction with processor 701 , receive unknown media cues from a search router . known media content search engine 710 may then , in conjunction with processor 701 , search database 703 for the unknown media cues . database 703 may comprise known media cues associated with known media content and having corresponding contextually - related data . for example , known media content search engine 710 may compare the unknown media cues to the known media cues to determine if there is a match in the known media cues . if there is a match in the known media cues in database 703 , unknown media content identification engine 712 may then , in conjunction with processor 701 , identify the unknown media content as the known media content associated with the matching known media cues . in some embodiments , unknown media content identification engine 712 may also , in conjunction with processor 701 , determine an offset time of the unknown media content being displayed on the client television system ( e . g ., a playing time , such as 12 minutes and 4 seconds from the start of the media content ). the offset time may be determined , for example , by determining the offset time of the matching known media cues within the known media content . systems and methods for identifying unknown media content and offset times are described further in the related applications incorporated by reference herein . after the unknown media content is identified as known media content by the unknown media content identification engine 712 , contextually - related data processing engine 708 may , in conjunction with processor 701 , retrieve the contextually - related data associated with the matching known media content from database 703 . contextually - related data processing engine 708 may then , in conjunction with processor 701 and communication interface 702 , provide the contextually - related data to a client television system for display . fig8 is a block diagram of an example of a non - real - time matching engine 800 for processing cues in non - real - time according to embodiments of the invention . non - real - time matching engine 800 may be used to implement non - real - time matching engine 505 b of fig5 , for example . non - real - time matching engine 800 may include a processor 801 coupled to a communication interface 802 and a computer readable medium 806 . non - real - time matching engine 800 may also include or otherwise have access to a database 803 that may be internal or external to non - real - time matching engine 800 . in some embodiments , database 803 may comprise non - real - time reference data 505 a of fig5 . processor 801 may include one or more microprocessors to execute program components for performing the functions of non - real - time matching engine 800 . communication interface 802 can be configured to connect to one or more communication networks to allow non - real - time matching engine 800 to communicate with other entities , such as search router 503 of fig5 . computer readable medium 806 may include any combination of one or more volatile and / or non - volatile memories , for example , ram , dram , sram , rom , flash , or any other suitable memory components . computer readable medium 806 may store code executable by the processor 801 for implementing some of all of the functions of non - real - time matching engine 800 . for example , computer readable medium 806 may include code implementing a cue processing engine 808 , a known media content search engine 810 , and / or an unknown media content identification engine 812 . although shown and described as having each of these engines , it is contemplated that more or fewer engines may be implemented within computer readable medium 806 . for example , a cue processing engine 808 , a known media content search engine 810 , and / or an unknown media content identification engine 812 may not be implemented in all embodiments . in embodiments in which the search router does not coordinate timing of sending unknown media cues to non - real - time matching engine 800 , cue processing engine 808 may , in conjunction with processor 801 , receive unknown media cues from the search router immediately after receipt . cue processing engine 808 may , in conjunction with processor 801 , determine an appropriate time to forward the unknown media cues to known media content search engine 810 . in some embodiments , this is in non - real - time , i . e ., it is not immediate . however , it is contemplated that in some embodiments , immediate searching may be determined as desirable based on when is most convenient , efficient and / or economically advantageous . for example , if the cues corresponding to unknown media content are already received during non - prime hours when other system processing workloads are comparatively light , cue processing engine 808 may send the unknown media cutes to the known media content search engine 810 immediately . in some embodiments , cue processing engine 808 may , in conjunction with processor 801 , determine that the appropriate time to send the cues to the known media content search engine 810 is at a later time , such as overnight at 2 am . thus , at 2 am , cue processing engine 808 may retrieve the unknown media cues from database 803 , and provide them to known media content search engine 810 . in some embodiments , cue processing engine 808 may , in conjunction with processor 801 , send unknown media cues to the known media content search engine 810 at predetermined intervals , such as every hour , every day , etc . thus , for example , if the unknown media cues are received at 1 : 13 pm , they may be stored in database 803 until 2 pm , at which time they will be retrieved by cue processing engine 808 and provided to known media content search engine 810 for searching . known media content search engine 810 may , in conjunction with processor 801 , receive unknown media cues from the cue processing engine 808 at the appropriate time . known media content search engine 810 may then , in conjunction with processor 801 , search database 803 for the unknown media cues . database 803 may comprise known media cues associated with all available known media content . for example , known media content search engine 810 may compare the unknown media cues to the known media cues to determine if there is a match in the known media cues . if there is a match in the known media cues in database 803 , unknown media content identification engine 812 may then , in conjunction with processor 801 , identify the unknown media content as the known media content associated with the matching known media cues . in some embodiments , unknown media content identification engine 812 may also , in conjunction with processor 801 , determine an offset time of the unknown media content being displayed on the client television system ( e . g ., a playing time , such as 12 minutes and 4 seconds from the start of the media content ). the offset time may be determined , for example , by determining the offset time of the matching known media cues within the known media content . systems and methods for identifying unknown media content and offset times are described further in the related applications incorporated by reference herein . fig9 is a flow chart of an example of a method for improving work load management in acr media monitoring systems according to embodiments of the invention . at processing block 902 , a plurality of known media content is received . the plurality of known media content has associated known content identifiers ( also referred to herein as “ cues ”). the known content identifiers may comprise a sample of pixel data and / or a sample of audio data of the known media content . at processing block 904 , the known content identifiers are stored in a non - real - time database . at processing block 906 , a subset of the plurality of known media content is determined that has associated contextually - related data . for example , some of the plurality of known media content may have an associated advertisement that should be displayed on television systems viewing that particular known media content . at processing block 908 , the known content identifiers associated with the subset of the plurality of known media content having associated contextually - related data is stored in a real - time database . in some embodiments , it is contemplated that the steps illustrated by processing blocks 902 - 908 may be performed at any point prior to processing block 910 , such that the non - real - time database and the real - time database are already established and ready to be searched upon receipt of unknown content identifiers . at processing block 910 , unknown content identifiers corresponding to unknown media content currently being displayed by a media system are received . the unknown content identifiers may comprise a sample of pixel data and / or a sample of audio data of the unknown media content being displayed by the media system . at decision block 912 , it is determined whether the unknown content identifiers match known content identifiers associated with the subset of the plurality of known media content in the real - time database . when the unknown content identifiers match known content identifiers in the real - time database , known media content associated with the matching known content identifiers is selected from the real - time database at processing block 914 a . at processing block 916 a , the unknown media content is identified as the selected known media content . it is contemplated that decision block 912 , processing block 914 a , and processing block 916 a may be performed in real - time in some embodiments . in some embodiments , the contextually - related data associated with the selected known media content is then retrieved , and may be displayed on the media system in real - time or near real - time . this step may also be performed in real - time . when the unknown content identifiers do not match known content identifiers in the real - time database , a non - real - time database is searched for the unknown content identifiers . at processing block 914 b , known media content associated with known content identifiers corresponding to the unknown content identifiers are selected from the non - real - time database . at processing block 916 b , the unknown media content is identified as the selected known media content . it is contemplated that in some embodiments , processing block 914 b and processing block 916 b may be performed in non - real - time . in some embodiments , the identification of the unknown media content as the selected known media content may be used to generate statistics , such as how many television systems displayed a particular program . in some embodiments , this step may also be performed in non - real - time . after processing blocks 916 a and 916 b , in some embodiments , an offset time associated with the unknown media content may be determined using the unknown content identifiers and the known content identifiers . for example , the offset time of the matching known content identifiers within the known media content can be determined as the offset time of the unknown content identifiers within the unknown media content . the process described with respect to fig9 is not intended to be limiting . for example , although described as only being searched when the unknown content identifiers are not matched in the real - time database , it is contemplated that the non - real - time database may be searched in addition to the real - time database even when a match is found , for example , to confirm the correct match against a larger database of reference data . in addition , the process illustrated by the flowchart of fig9 may be implemented by the media system , by a server located remotely from the media system , by both , or partially by component ( s ) located at the media system and partially by component ( s ) located at a remote server . the nearest neighbor and path pursuit techniques mentioned previously are now described in detail . an example of tracking video transmission using ambiguous cues is given , but the general concept can be applied to any field , such as those described above . a method for efficient video pursuit is presented . given a large number of video segments , the system must be able to identify in real time what segment a given query video input is taken from and in what time offset . the segment and offset together are referred to as the location . the method is called video pursuit since it must be able to efficiently detect and adapt to pausing , fast forwarding , rewinding , abrupt switching to other segments and switching to unknown segments . before being able to pursue live video the database is processed . visual cues ( a handful of pixel values ) are taken from frames every constant fraction of a second and put in specialized data structure ( note that this can also be done in real time ). the video pursuit is performed by continuously receiving cues from the input video and updating a set of beliefs or estimates about its current location . each cue either agrees or disagrees with the estimates , and they are adjusted to reflect the new evidence . a video location is assumed to be the correct one if the confidence in this being true is high enough . by tracking only a small set of possible “ suspect ” locations , this can be done efficiently . a method is described for video pursuit but uses mathematical constructs to explain and investigate it . it is the aim of this introduction to give the reader the necessary tools to translate between the two domains . a video signal is comprised of sequential frames . each can be thought of as a still image . every frame is a raster of pixels . each pixel is made out of three intensity values corresponding to the red , green and blue ( rgb ) make of that pixel &# 39 ; s color . in the terminology of this manuscript , a cue is a list of rgb values of a subset of the pixels in a frame and a corresponding time stamp . the number of pixels in a cue is significantly smaller than in a frame , usually between 5 and 15 . being an ordered list of scalar values , the cue values are in fact a vector . this vector is also referred to as a point . although these points are in high dimension , usually between 15 and 150 , they can be imagined as points in two dimensions . in fact , the illustrations will be given as two dimensional plots . now , consider the progression of a video and its corresponding cue points . usually a small change in time produces a small change in pixel values . the pixel point can be viewed as “ moving ” a little between frames . following these tiny movements from frame to frame , the cue follows a path in space like a bead would on a bent wire . in the language of this analogy , in video pursuit the locations of the bead in space ( the cue points ) are received and the part of wire ( path ) the bead is following is looked for . this is made significantly harder by two facts . first , the bead does not follow the wire exactly but rather keeps some varying unknown distance from it . second the wires are all tangled together . these statements are made exact in section 2 . the algorithm described below does this in two conceptual steps . when a cue is received , it looks for all points on all the known paths that are sufficiently close to the cue point ; these are called suspects . this is done efficiently using the probabilistic point location in equal balls algorithm . these suspects are added to a history data structure and the probability of each of them indicating the true location is calculated . this step also includes removing suspect locations that are sufficiently unlikely . this history update process ensures that on the one hand only a small history is kept but on the other hand no probable locations are ever deleted . the generic algorithm is given in algorithm 1 and illustrated in fig1 . remove from suspect set those who do not contribute to the the document begins with describing the probabilistic point location in equal balls ( ppleb ) algorithm in section 1 . it is used in order to perform line 5 in algorithm 1 efficiently . the ability to perform this search for suspects quickly is crucial for the applicability of this method . later , in section 2 one possible statistical model is described for performing lines 6 and 7 . the described model is a natural choice for the setup . it is also shown how it can be used very efficiently . the following section describes a simple algorithm for performing probabilistic point location in equal balls ( ppleb ). in the traditional pleb ( point location in equal balls ), one starts with a set of n points x , in 1r d and a specified ball of radius r . the algorithm is given o ( poly ( n )) preprocessing time to produce an efficient data structure . then , given a query point x the algorithm is required to return all points x , such that ∥ x − x i ∥≦ r . the set of points such that ∥ x − x i ∥≦ r . geometrically lie within a ball of radius r surrounding the query x ( see fig2 ). this relation is referred to as x , being close to x or as x , and x being neighbors . the problem of ppleb and the problem of nearest neighbor search are two similar problems that received much attention in the academic community . in fact , these problems were among the first studied in the field of computational geometry . many different methods cater to the case where the ambient dimension dis small or constant . these partition the space in different ways and recursively search through the parts . these methods include kd - trees , cover - trees , and others . although very efficient in low dimension , when the ambient dimension is high , they tend to perform very poorly . this is known as the “ curse of dimensionality ”. various approaches attempt to solve this problem while overcoming the curse of dimensionality . the algorithm used herein uses a simpler and faster version of the algorithm and can rely on local sensitive hashing . in the scheme of local sensitive hashing , one devises a family of hash functions h such that : in words , the probability of x and y being mapped to the same value by h is significantly higher if they are close to each other . for the sake of clarity , let us first deal with a simplified scenario where all incoming vectors are of the same length r ′ and r ′& gt ;√{ square root over ( 2r )}. the reason for the latter condition will become clear later . first a random function uεu is defined , which separates between x and y according to the angle between them . let { right arrow over ( u )} be a random vector chosen uniformly from the unit sphere s d - 1 and let u ( x )= sign ({ right arrow over ( u )}· x ). it is easy to verify that pr u - u ( u ( x ))≠ u ( y ))= 0 x , y / π . moreover , for any points x , y , x ′, y ′ on a circle such that ∥ x ′− y ′∥≦ 2 ∥ x − y ∥, 0 x ′, y ≦ 20 x , y is achieved . defining p , the following equations are used : the family of functions h is set to be a cross product oft independent copies of u , i . e . h ( x )=[ u1 ( x ), . . . , u t ( x )]. intuitively , one would like to have that if h ( x )= h ( y ) then x and y are likely to be close to each other . let us quantify that . first , compute the expected number of false positive mistakes n fp . these are the cases for which h ( x )= h ( y ) but ∥ x − y ∥& gt ; 2r . a value t is found for which n fp is no more than 1 , i . e . one is not expected to be wrong . now , the probability that h ( x )= h ( y ) given that they are neighbors is computed : pr ( h ( x )= h ( y )\|∥ x − y ∥≦ r )≧( 1 − p ) log ( 1 / n )/ log ( 1 - 2p ) note here that one must have that 2p & lt ; 1 which requires r ′& gt ;√{ square root over ( 2r )}. this might not sound like a very high success probability . indeed , 1 /√{ square root over ( n )} is significantly smaller than ½ . the next section will describe how to boost this probability up to ½ . each function h maps every point in space to a bucket . define the bucket function b h : d → 2 [ n ] of a point x with respect to hash function h as b h ( x )≡{ x i \| h ( x i )= h ( x )}. the data structure maintained is m = o (√{ square root over ( n )}) instances of bucket functions [ bh 1 , . . . , bh m ]. when one searches for a point x , the function returns b ( x )=∪ ib h j ( x ). according to the previous section , there are two desired results : e [\| b ( x )∩{ x i \|∥ x − x i ∥& gt ; 2 r }\|]≦√{ square root over ( n )} in other words , while with probability at least ½ each neighbor of x is found , one is not likely to find many non - neighbors . the previous sections only dealt with searching through vectors of the same length , namely r ′. now described is how one can use the construction as a building block to support a search in different radii . as seen in fig1 , the space is divided into rings of exponentially growing width . ring i , denoted by includes all points x i such that ∥ x i ∥ ε [ 2r ( 1 + ε ) i , 2r ( 1 + ε ) i + 1 ]. doing this achieves two ends . first , if x i and x j belong to the same ring , then ∥ x j ∥/( 1 + ε )≦∥ x i ∥≦∥ x j ∥( 1 + ε ). second , any search can be performed in at most 1 / ε such rings . moreover , if the maximal length vector in the data set is r ′ then the total number of rings in the system is o ( log ( r ′/ r )). in the path pursuit problem , a fixed path in space is given along with the positions of a particle in a sequence of time points . the terms particle , cue , and point will be used interchangeably . the algorithm is required to output the position of the particle on the path . this is made harder by a few factors : the particle only follows the path approximately ; the path can be discontinuous and intersect itself many times ; both particle and path positions are given in a sequence of time points ( different for each ). it is important to note that this problem can simulate tracking a particle on any number of paths . this is simply done by concatenating the paths into one long path and interpreting the resulting position as the position on the individual paths . more precisely , let path p be parametric curve p : → d . the curve parameter will be referred to as the time . the points on the path that are known to us are given in arbitrary time points i . e . n pairs ( t i , p ( t i )) are given . the particle follows the path but its positions are given in different time points , as shown in fig1 . further , m pairs ( t ′ j , x ( t ′ j )) are given , where x ( t ′ j ) is the position of the particle in time t ′ j . since the particle does not follow the path exactly and since the path can intersect itself many times it is usually impossible to positively identify the position on the path the particle is actually on . therefore , a probability distribution is computed on all possible path locations . if a location probability is significantly probable , the particle position is assumed to be known . the following section describes how this can be done efficiently . if the particle is following the path , then the time difference between the particle time stamp and the offset of the corresponding points on p should be relatively fixed . in other words , if x ( t ′) is currently in offset t on the path then it should be close to p ( t ). also , τ seconds ago it should have been in offset t − τ . thus x ( t ′− τ ) should be close to p ( t − τ ) ( note that if the particle is intersecting the path , and x ( t ′) is close to p ( t ) temporarily , it is unlikely that x ( t ′− τ ) and p ( t − τ ) will also be close ). define the relative offset as δ = t - t ′. notice that as long as the particle is following the path the relative offset δ remains unchanged . namely , x ( t ′) is close to p ( t ′+ δ ). in words , the most likely relative offset is the one for which the history of the particle is most likely . this equation however cannot be solved without a statistical model . this model must quantify : how tightly x follows the path ; how likely it is that x ′) umps ″ between locations ; how smooth the path and particle curves are between the measured points . now described is a statistical model for estimating the likelihood function . the model makes the assumption that the particle &# 39 ; s deviation away from the path distributes normally with standard deviation ar . it also assumes that at any given point in time , there is some non - zero probability the particle will abruptly switch to another path . this is manifested by an exponential discount with time for past points . apart for being a reasonable choice for a modeling point of view this model also has the advantage of being efficiently updateable . for some constant time unit 1 , set the likelihood function to be proportional to f which is defined as follows : here α & lt ;& lt ; 1 is a scale coefficient and ζ & gt ; 0 is the probability that the particle will jump to a random location on the path in a given time unit . updating the function ƒ efficiently can be achieved using the following simple observation . moreover , since α & lt ;& lt ; 1 , if ∥ x ( t ′ m )− p ( t i )∥≧ r , the follow occurs : this is an important property of the likelihood function since the sum update can now performed only over the neighbors of x ( t ′ j ) and not the entire path . denote by s the set of ( t i , p ( t i ) such that ∥ x ( t ′ m )− p ( t i )≦ r . the follow equation occurs : this is described in algorithm 2 . 2 below . the term f is used as a sparse vector that receives also negative integer indices . the set s is the set of all neighbors of x ( t i ) on the path and can be computed quickly using the ppleb algorithm . it is easy to verify that if the number of neighbors of x ( t i ) is bounded by some constant n near then the number of non - zeros in the vector f is bounded by n near / ζ which is only a constant factor larger . the final stage of the algorithm is to output a specific value of δ if f (└ δ / τ ┘) is above some threshold value . s ← {( t i , p ( t i )) \| ∥ x ( t j ′) − p ( t i )∥ ≦ r } f  ( ⌊ δ / τ ⌋ ) ← f  ( ⌊ δ / τ ⌋ ) + e - (  x  ( t i ) - p  ( t ′ )  σ   τ ) 2 fig1 gives three consecutive point locations and the path points around them . note that neither the bottom point nor middle one alone would have been sufficient to identify the correct part of the path . together , however , they are . adding the top point increases the certainty that the particle is indeed of the final ( left ) curve of the path . in fig1 , given a set of n ( grey ) points , the algorithm is given a query point ( black ) and returns the set of points that lie within distance r from it ( the points inside the circle ). in the traditional setting , the algorithm must return all such points . in the probabilistic setting each such point should be returned only with some constant probability . fig1 illustrates the values of u ( x 1 ), u ( x 2 ), and u ( x ). intuitively , the function u gives different values to x 1 and x 2 if the dashed line passes between them and the same value otherwise . passing the dashed line in a random direction ensures that the probability of this happening is directly proportional to angle between x 1 and x 2 . fig1 shows that by dividing the space into rings such that ring r i is between radius 2r ( 1 + ε ) i and 2r ( 1 + ε ) i + 1 , it can be made sure that any two vectors within a ring are the same length up to ( 1 + ε ) factors and that any search is performed in at most 1 / ε rings . fig1 shows a self - intersecting paths and a query point ( in black ). it illustrates that without the history of the particle positions it is impossible to know where it is on the path . fig1 gives three consecutive point locations and the path points around them . note that neither x ( t 1 ) nor x ( t 2 ) alone would have been sufficient to identify the correct part of the path . together however they are . adding x ( t 3 ) increases the certainty that the particle is indeed of the final ( left ) curve of the path . although described substantially herein as relating to video data and graphical displays , it is contemplated that the systems and methods described herein may be similarly used with respect to audio data and audible displays . substantial variations may be made in accordance with specific requirements . for example , customized hardware might also be used , and / or particular elements might be implemented in hardware , software ( including portable software , such as applets , etc . ), or both . further , connection to other access or computing devices such as network input / output devices may be employed . in the foregoing specification , aspects of the invention are described with reference to specific embodiments thereof , but those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention is not limited thereto . various features and aspects of the above - described invention may be used individually or jointly . further , embodiments can be utilized in any number of environments and applications beyond those described herein without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the specification . the specification and drawings are , accordingly , to be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive . in the foregoing description , for the purposes of illustration , methods were described in a particular order . it should be appreciated that in alternate embodiments , the methods may be performed in a different order than that described . it should also be appreciated that the methods described above may be performed by hardware components or may be embodied in sequences of machine - executable instructions , which may be used to cause a machine , such as a general - purpose or special - purpose processor or logic circuits programmed with the instructions to perform the methods . these machine - executable instructions may be stored on one or more machine readable mediums , such as cd - roms or other type of optical disks , floppy diskettes , roms , rams , eproms , eeproms , magnetic or optical cards , flash memory , or other types of machine - readable mediums suitable for storing electronic instructions . alternatively , the methods may be performed by a combination of hardware and software . where components are described as being configured to perform certain operations , such configuration can be accomplished , for example , by designing electronic circuits or other hardware to perform the operation , by programming programmable electronic circuits ( e . g ., microprocessors , or other suitable electronic circuits ) to perform the operation , or any combination thereof . while illustrative embodiments of the application have been described in detail herein , it is to be understood that the inventive concepts may be otherwise variously embodied and employed , and that the appended claims are intended to be construed to include such variations , except as limited by the prior art .	6
the present invention relates to a faraday holder for electronic devices . although demonstrative use refers to a cell phone , the present invention is contemplated as being suitable for use with any electronic device in which radiofrequency and or electromagnetic field radiation is emitted and / or received . additionally , although the figures provide for several embodiments , namely , a jacket 12 , a shirt and / or blouse 14 , a sports bra and / or sports top 15 , and shorts 16 , these are merely demonstrative and are not intended to limit the system of the present invention . faraday enclosure devices are typically used to completely block the reception and transmission of wireless signals . however , when a person is using a cell phone and desires the phone to protect from harmful rf and / or emf yet still have the ability to receive a wireless signal , a significant problem is presented . the present invention addresses this problem by providing a faraday system that protects a user and selectively envelops an electronic device such that wireless communication is accessible to a device enclosed in the system . in one embodiment , the system 10 includes a faraday configured pocket 18 that includes faraday effect material 20 . there are many known materials that will impart a faraday effect on radiofrequency and electro - magnetic field radiation and the present invention is contemplated to use any suitable material that will interfere with rf or emf . electronic device 26 is positioned in pocket 18 whereby pocket 18 is formed of pocket material 22 . pocket 18 is formed with an optional pocket flap 24 . in one embodiment , pocket flap 24 is formed and includes incorporated therewith a faraday material . in one embodiment , flap 24 is merely a closure and does not include any faraday material . in one embodiment , pocket 18 is configured as demonstrated in fig4 whereby electronic device 26 is inserted with in the cavity of pocket 18 and is not enveloped by the material 20 . in this configuration , faraday material 20 will block rf and or emf in one direction and still allow for electronic device 26 to send and receive wireless communications . in one embodiment , the pocket of the present invention is provided without any flap . the faraday material is configured in a manner to protect the user from rf and / or emf but the lack of any flap provides for a configuration whereby electronic transmissions are sent and received by a device carried in pocket 18 of the present invention . in one embodiment , faraday material 20 will include complete faraday material in the direction facing the user and will be constructed of sections of faraday material and non - faraday material in the direction away from the user . in this embodiment , the communication with device 26 is maintained . in an embodiment where flap 24 is constructed completely of non - faraday material , communication with device 26 will be effectuated through flap 24 . currently , wristwatches ( e . g . smart watches ) are becoming available that include electronic communication capabilities . it is further contemplated that the present invention be incorporated as a protective barrier between the base of the watch and a user &# 39 ; s wrist as demonstrated in fig5 and 6 . in this embodiment , a faraday - type material is affixed on the underside of the watch / wrist device . wristband 30 includes an appropriate fastener 34 to secure about the perimeter of a user &# 39 ; s wrist . in one embodiment , fastener 34 is a hook and loop fastener also known by the name velcro ® or any other appropriate system for securing a wristband . faraday material 32 is positioned on wristband 30 in a configuration such that , in use , faraday material 32 is between wearable electronic device 36 , such as a wristwatch , smart watch , or other device , and the skin of a user . in one embodiment , faraday material 32 is positioned on a portion of wristband 30 in a configuration congruous with the shape of the underside of the electronic device or watch 36 to cover the radio waves the watch device will use to communicate with the users cellphone / electronic device in the pocket . in one embodiment , the material is affixed using a releasable adhesive . while the invention has been described in its preferred form or embodiment with some degree of particularity , it is understood that this description has been given only by way of example and that numerous changes in the details of construction , fabrication , and use , including the combination and arrangement of parts , may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention .	7
the term &# 34 ; lower alkyl &# 34 ; as used herein means straight chain alkyl radicals containing from one to six carbon atoms and branched chain alkyl radicals containing three or four carbon atoms and includes methyl , ethyl , propyl , isopropyl , butyl , isobutyl , pentyl , hexyl and the like . the term &# 34 ; lower alkoxy &# 34 ; as used herein means straight chain alkoxy radicals containing from one to six carbon atoms and branched chain alkoxy radicals containing three or four carbon atoms and include a methoxy , ethoxy , isopropoxy , n - butoxy , n - hexyloxy and the like . the term &# 34 ; lower alkylene &# 34 ; as used herein means a divalent organic radical derived from either straight and branched chain aliphatic hydrocarbons containing from one to six carbon atoms by removal of two hydrocarbon atoms and includes methylene , ethylene , 1 - methylpylene , 2 - methylpropylene , 2 - ethylpropylene , 2 - butylethylene and the like . the term &# 34 ; cyclo ( lower ) alkyl &# 34 ; as used herein means saturated cyclic hydrocarbon radicals containing from three to six carbon atoms and includes cyclopropyl , cyclobutyl , cyclopentyl and cyclohexyl . the term &# 34 ; lower alkanol &# 34 ; as used herein means both straight and branched chain alkanols containing from one to four carbon atoms and includes methanol , ethanol , isopropanol , butanol and the like . the term &# 34 ; strong inorganic proton acceptor &# 34 ; as used herein means the inorganic bases , preferably the alkali metals , the alkali metal hydrides , amides , hydroxides and alkoxides , for example , sodium , sodium hydroxide , potassium hydroxide , sodium ethoxide , sodium methoxide , sodium hydride and the like . the term &# 34 ; lower alkanoyl &# 34 ; as used herein means straight chain alkanoyl radicals containing from two to six carbon atoms and a branched chain alkanoyl radical containing four carbon atoms and includes acetyl , propionyl , isobutyryl , n - hexanoyl and the like . the term &# 34 ; organic proton acceptor &# 34 ; as used herein means the organic bases , or amines for instance , triethylamine , pyridine , n - ethylmorpholine , 1 , 5 - diazabicyclo [ 4 . 3 . 0 ] non - 5 - ene and the like . the term &# 34 ; therapeutically acceptable addition salt &# 34 ; as used herein includes the therapeutically acceptable acid addition salts of the compound of formula i in which r 4 is amino ( lower ) alkylene , lower alkylamino ( lower ) alkylene , di ( lower alkyl ) amino ( lower ) alkylene or 3 - pyridinyl ( lower ) alkylene . the acid addition salts are prepared by reacting the base form of the appropriate compound of formula i with one or more equivalents , preferably with an excess , of the appropriate acid in an organic solvent , for example , diethyl ether or an ethanol - diethyl ether mixture . these salts , when administered to a mammal , possess the same pharmacologic activities as the corresponding bases . for many purposes it is preferable to administer the salts rather than the base compounds . suitable acids to form these salts include the common mineral acids , for instance hydrohalic , sulfuric or phosphoric acid ; as well as the organic acids , for instance , formic , acetic , maleic , malic , ascorbic , succinic , fumaric , citric , or tartaric acid ; or acids which are sparingly soluble in body fluids and which impart slow - release properties to their respective salts such as pamoic or tannic acid or carboxymethyl cellulose . the addition salts thus obtained are the functional equivalent of the parent base compound in respect to their therapeutic use . hence , these addition salts are included within the scope of this invention and are limited only by the requirement that the acids employed in forming the salts be therapeutically acceptable . furthermore , the term &# 34 ; therapeutically acceptable addition salt &# 34 ; as used herein also includes the therapeutically inorganic or organic base addition salts of the compound of formula i in which r 4 is hydrogen , i . e . compound of formula i which are acids . these derived salts possess the same activity as the parent acid and are included within the scope of this invention . the acid is transformed in excellent yield into the corresponding therpeutically acceptable salt by neutralization of said acid with the appropriate inorganic or organic base . the salts are administered in the same manner as the parent acid compounds . suitable inorganic bases to form these salts include , for example , the hydroxides , carbonates , bicarbonates or alkoxides of the alkali metals or alkaline earth metals , for example , sodium , potassium , magnesium , calcium and the like . suitable organic bases include the following amines ; lower mono -, di - and trialkylamines , the alkyl radicals of which contain up to three carbon atoms , such as methylamine , dimethylamine , trimethylamine , ethylamine , di - and triethylamine , n - methyl - n - ethylamine , and the like ; mono -, di and trialkanolamines , the alkanol radicals of which contain up to three carbon atoms , for example , mono -, di - and triethanolamine ; alkylene - diamines which contain up to six carbon atoms , such as hexamethylenediamine ; phenylalkylamines , for example , benzylamine , phenylethylamine and n - methylphenylethylamine ; cyclic saturated or unsaturated bases containing up to six carbon atoms , such as pyrrolidine , piperidine , morpholine , piperazine and their n - alkyl and n - hydroxyalkyl derivatives , such as n - methylmorpholine and n -( 2 - hydroxyethyl )- piperidine , as well as pyridine . furthermore , there may be mentioned the corresponding quaternary salts , such as the tetraalkyl ( for example tetramethyl ), alkyl - alkanol ( for example methyltrimethanol and trimethyl - monoethanol ) and cyclic ammonium salts , for example the n - methylpyridinium , n - methyl - n -( 2 - hydroxyethyl )- morpholinium n , n - dimethylmorpholinium , n - methyl - n -( 2 - hydroxyethyl )- morpholinium , n , n - dimethylpiperidinium salts , which are characterized by having good water - solubility . in principle , however , there can be used all the ammonium salts which are physiologically compatible . the transformations to the salts can be carried out by a variety of methods known in the art . for example , in the case of the inorganic salts , it is preferred to dissolve the acid of formula i in water containing at least one equivalent amount of a hydroxide , carbonate , or bicarbonate corresponding to the inorganic salt desired . advantageously , the reaction is performed in a water - miscible , inert organic solvent , for example , methanol , ethanol , dioxane , and the like in the presence of water . for example , such use of sodium hydroxide , sodium carbonate or sodium bicarbonate gives a solution of the sodium salt . evaporation of the solution or addition of a water - miscible solvent of a more moderate polarity , for example , a lower alkanol , for instance , butanol , or a lower alkanone , for instance , ethyl methyl ketone , gives the solid inorganic salt if that form is desired . to produce an amine salt , the acidic compound of formula i is dissolved in a suitable solvent of either moderate or lower polarity , for example , ethanol , methanol , ethyl acetate , diethyl ether and benzene . at least an equivalent amount of the amine corresponding to the desired cation is then added to that solution . if the resulting salt does not precipitate , it can usually be obtained in solid form by addition of a miscible diluent of low polarity , for example , benzene or petroleum ether , or by evaporation . if the amine is relatively volatile , any excess can easily be removed by evaporation . it is preferred to use substantially equivalent amounts of the less volatile amines . salts wherein the cation is quaternary ammonium are produced by mixing the acid of formula i with an equivalent amount of the corresponding quaternary ammonium hydroxide in water solution , followed by evaporation of the water . also included in this invention are the steroechemical isomers of the compounds of formula i which result from asymmetric centers , contained therein . it is to be understood that the diastereomers arising from such asymmetry are included within the scope of this invention . such diastereomers are obtained in substantially pure form by classical separation techniques and by sterically controlled synthesis . individual enantiomers , which might be separated by fractional crystallization of the diastereomeric salts thereof , are also included . the compounds of formula i , or a therapeutically acceptable salt thereof , are useful hypolipidemic agents in a mammal upon oral or parenteral administration . their hypolipidemic properties are readily demonstrated by the following method : male albino rats ( eight rats per group ), weighing 140 - 170 g , are given a single daily oral dose of the test compound by gavage as a suspension in 2 % tween - 80 ™ in water ( 1 . 0 ml ). in the same manner , controls are given only 2 % tween - 80 ™ in water ( 1 . 0 ml ) daily . after one week of treatment , animals are decapitated and the blood is collected . the serum is separated by centrifugation and serum cholesterol levels are measured by the method of a . zlatkis et al ., j . lab . clin . med ., 41 , 486 ( 1953 ), as modified for the autoanalyzer ( method np - 24 ). serum phospholipids are determined by the semi - automated technique of m . kraml , clin . chim . acta ., 13 , 442 ( 1966 ) and serum triglycerides are measured by the semiautomated method of m . kraml and l . cosyns , clin . biochem ., 2 , 373 ( 1959 ). the activity of a test compound is assessed by comparing serum cholesterol , phospholipid and / or triglyceride levels in rats treated with the test compound and control rats and the data are analyzed for significance by the student &# 39 ; s t - test . the following results demonstrating hypotriglyceridemic activity are calculated by subtracting the serum triglyceride level in treated rats from the control serum triglyceride level , and expressing the difference as a percentage of the control level . the following compounds of formula i at a dose of 1 . 0 mmole per kilogram of body weight per day lower triglyceride levels by the indicated percentage : 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ( 42 %, described in example 4 ), 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 -( 1 - methylethyl )- 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 5 - carboxylic acid ( 53 %, described in example 4 ), 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 , 5 - dimethyl - 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ( 37 %, described in example 4 ), sprio [ furan - 5 ( 4h ), 1 &# 39 ;( 2 &# 39 ; h )- naphthalene ]- 3 &# 39 ;, 4 &# 39 ;- dihydro - 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid ( 43 %, describedin example 4 ), 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ( 53 %, described in example 5 ) and 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ( 61 %, described in example 6 ). the compounds of formula i , or a therapeutically acceptable salt thereof , can be used also in combination with known hypolipidemic agents , for example , clofibrate , for reduction of elevated lipids in a mammal . when used in this combination , the compound of formula i can be administered sequentially or simultaneously in combination with an effective amount of the known hypolipidemic agent . suitable methods of administration , compositions and dosages of clofibrate ( atromid - s ) is described by charles e . baker , jr . &# 34 ; physician &# 39 ; s desk reference &# 34 ;, medical economics company , oradell , n . j . 1977 , pp 593 - 594 , for example , 0 . 5 to 2 . 0 g per patient per day in divided dosages . the compounds of formula i , or a therapeutically acceptable salt thereof , in combination with a known hypolipidemic agent , are used in the same manner as described herein for their use as hypolipidemic agents . when the compounds of formula i of this invention are used as hypolipidemic agents in a mammal , e . g . rats and dogs , they are used alone or in combination with pharmacologically acceptable carriers , the proportion of which is determined by the solubility and chemical nature of the compound , chosen route of administration and standard biological practice . for example , they are administered orally in solid form , e . g . capsule or tablet . they are also administered orally in the form of suspension or solutions , or they may be injected parenterally . for parenteral administration they may be used in the form of a sterile solution containing other solutes , for example , enough saline or glucose to make the solution isotonic . the tablet compositions for oral administration contain the active ingredient in admixture with non - toxic pharmaceutical excipients known to be suitable in the manufacture of tablets . suitable pharmaceutical excipients are , for example , starch , milk sugar , certain types of clay and so forth . the tablets can be uncoated or they can be coated by known techniques so as to delay disintegration and absorption in the gastrointestinal tract and thereby provide a sustained action . the aqueous suspensions for oral use of the compounds of the invention contain the active ingredient in admixture with one or more non - toxic pharmaceutical excipients , for instance , emulsifying and suspending agents , known to be suitable in the manufacture of aqueous suspensions . suitable excipients are , for example , methyl - cellulose , sodium alginate , gum acacia , lecithin and so forth . the aqueous suspension can also contain one or more preservatives , one or more colouring agents and / or one or more sweetening agents . non - aqueous suspensions for oral use can be formulated by suspending the active ingredient in a vegetable oil , for example , arachis oil , olive oil , sesame oil , or coconut oil ; or in mineral oil . the suspension can contain a thickening agent , for example , beeswax , hard paraffin or cetyl alcohol . these compositions can also contain a sweetening agent , flavouring agent and antioxidant . for paremeral administration , which includes intramuscular , intraperitoneal , subcutaneous and intravenous use , the compounds of the invention can be used in the form of a sterile solution , wherein the ph should be suitably adjusted and buffered . the solution can contain other pharmaceutical excipients , for example , enough saline or glucose to make the solution isotonic . the dosage of a compound of formula i of this invention as a hypolipidemic agent will vary with the form of administration and the particular host as well as the age and condition of the host under treatment . generally , treatment is initiated with small dosages substantially less than the optimal dose of the compound . thereafter , the dosage is increased by small increments until the optimal effect under the circumstances is reached . in general , a compound of this invention is most desirably administered at a concentration that will generally afford effective results without causing any harmful or deleterious side effects . the effective hypolipidemic amount of the compound usually ranges from about 1 . 0 mg to about 500 mg per kilogram of body weight per day , although as aforementioned variations will occur . however , a dosage level that is in the range of from about 5 mg to about 300 mg per kilogram of body weight per day is employed most desirably in order to achieve effective results . for the preparation of the 4 , 5 - dihydro - 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid derivatives of formula i , the preferred starting materials are the α - hydroxyketones of formula ii ## str4 ## in which r 1 and r 2 each is lower alkyl , cyclo ( lower ) alkyl , lower alkoxy ( lower ) alkylene , phenyl or phenyl mono - or disubstituted with lower alkyl , lower alkoxy , halo , nitro or trifluoromethyl ; or r 1 and r 2 together form a --( ch 2 ) m -- x --( ch 2 ) n -- chain wherein m and n each is an integer from one to four and x is methylene , oxa or thia ; or r 1 and r 2 together with the carbon atom to which they are joined form a spiro [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 - tetrahydronaphthalene ]- 1 or spiro [ indan ]- 1 radical ; and r 3 is hydrogen or lower alkyl . the starting materials of formula ii in which r 1 and r 2 are as defined herein and r 3 is hydrogen are either known or they can be prepared as is illustrated in reaction scheme i . ## str5 ## with reference to reaction scheme i , a number of acetylenic carbinols of formula iv are known and commercially available . alternatively , acetylenic carbinols are readily available from addition of a metallic acetylide to the ketone of formula iii in which r 1 and r 2 are as defined herein using the method described by a . w . johnson , acetylenic compounds , vol . 1 , the acetylenic alcohols , e . arnold co ., london , 1946 ; r . a . raphael , acetylenic compounds in organic synthesis , london , butterworth &# 39 ; s sci . publ ., 1955 ; p . a . robins and j . walker , j . chem . soc ., 177 ( 1957 ); and e . d . bergmann et al ., j . appl . chem . 3 , 39 ( 1953 ). in the preferred method , a mixture of the compound of formula iii and lithium or sodium in a solution of anhydrous liquid ammonia saturated with gaseous acetylene is allowed to react for nine hours and the corresponding compound of formula iv is isolated . the acetylenic carbinols of formula iv are converted to the corresponding α - hydroxyketones of formula ii , by hydration of the acetylenic carbinol in a mixture of mercuric oxide ( red form ) or mercuric sulfate , aqueous tetrahydrofuran and sulfuric acid at 60 °- 65 ° c . for one to six hours , according to the procedure described by a . w . johnson , cited above , pp 102 - 105 ; e . d . bergmann and d . f . herman , j . appl . chem ., 3 , 42 ( 1953 ), g . f . hennian and b . r . fleck , j . amer . chem . soc ., 77 , 3253 ( 1955 ); and g . f . hennian and e . j . watson , j . org . chem ., 23 , 656 ( 1958 ). the starting materials of formula ii in which r 1 and r 2 are as defined herein and r 3 is lower alkyl are either known or they can be prepared as is illustrated in reaction scheme 2 . ## str6 ## with reference to reaction scheme 2 , an organometallic derivative of the compound of formula viii is condensed with the ketone of formula iii to obtain the corresponding α - hydroxyketone of formula ii in which r 3 is lower alkyl according to the conditions described by i . i . lapkin and t . n . povarnitsyna , zh . obshch . khim ., 38 , 99 ( 1968 ), cf . chem . abstr ., 69 , 19233z . the alternative route starting from the compound of formula v is especially suitable for preparing the α - keto alcohols of formula ii in which r 1 or r 2 is phenyl or phenyl mono - or disubstituted with lower alkyl , lower alkoxy , halo , nitro or trifluoromethyl . alkylation of the compound of formula v , using the method of k . binovic and s . vrancea , chem . ther ., 313 ( 1968 ), gives the corresponding compound of formula vi . the latter compound is brominated , according to the conditions described by j . r . catch et al ., j . chem . soc . 272 ( 1948 ), to obtain the corresponding bromo - ketone of formula vii . conversion of the latter bromoketone to the corresponding α - hydroxyketone of formula ii is described by j . g . aston and r . b . greenberg , j . amer . chem . soc ., 62 , 2590 ( 1940 ); j . kapron and j . wiemann , bull . soc . chim . france , 12 , 945 ( 1945 ); and y . l . pascal , ann . chim . ( paris ), 245 ( 1968 ). in addition to the above described preparation , α - hydroxyketones of formula ii can be prepared by methods described by y . l . pascal , cited above , and p . kaufmann , j . amer . chem . soc ., 26 , 5794 ( 1954 ). reaction scheme 3 illustrates the conversion of the α - hydroxyketone of formula ii to the corresponding compound of formula i in which r 1 , r 2 and r 3 are as defined herein . ## str7 ## as illustrated by reaction scheme 3 , the compound of formula i in which r 4 is hydrogen is prepared from the compound of formula ii via the route ii → ix → x → i . although the intermediates of formula ix and x can be isolated and further reacted in separate steps , the compound of formula ii can be converted to the corresponding compound of formula i via intermediates ix and x in a single reaction vessel without isolating the latter intermediates . the first step in the conversion of the α - hydroxyketone of formula ii is the condensation of substantially equimolar amounts of the α - hydroxyketone and a di ( lower alkyl ) oxalate , preferably dimethyl or diethyl oxalate , in the presence of one to four molar equivalents of a strong inorganic proton acceptor , preferably sodium hydride , in an anhydrous inert organic solvent . preferred inert organic solvents can be selected from the di ( lower alkyl ) ethers or cyclic ethers , for example , diethyl ether , dioxane and tetrahydrofuran . the reaction mixture is maintained at 30 ° to 70 ° c ., for 10 to 30 hours . the resultant enolate salt is filtered as rapidly as possible , dissolved in water , acidified with a dillute inorganic acid , and the corresponding compound of formula ix is extracted with an inert water immiscible organic solvent , preferably diethyl ether . hydrolysis of the latter compound is readily achieved under alkaline conditions with a solution of one to three molar equivalents of potassium or sodium hydroxide in an aqueous solution of a water miscible organic solvent , preferably methanol , ethanol , tetrahydrofuran or dioxane , at 15 ° to 30 ° c . for 15 to 40 hours . the latter solution is extracted with a water immiscible organic solvent , preferably diethyl ether , benzene , chloroform , dichloromethane and the like . the aqueous solution is rendered acidic and extracted again with the water immiscible solvent and the extract is evaporated to obtain the corresponding compound of formula x . the latter compound is cyclized under acidic conditions to obtain the corresponding compound of formula i in which r 1 , r 2 and r 3 are as defined herein and r 4 is hydrogen . in one method of achieving this cyclization , a solution of the compound of formula x and 0 . 1 to 10 molar equivalents , perferably 0 . 1 to 0 . 4 molar equivalents , and an acid catalyst , for example , hydrogen chloride , hydrogen bromide , hydrochloric acid , hydrobromic acid , p - toluenesulfonic acid , sulfuric acid , phosphoric acid , polyphosphoric acid and the like , preferably p - tolunesulfonic acid or hydrogen chloride , in an inert organic solvent , preferably benzene or toluene , is maintained at 20 ° to 100 ° c . for two to 50 hours . alternatively , the compound of formula x is cyclized in an aqueous solution containing the acid catalyst at 10 ° to 50 ° c . for 10 to 50 hours . preferred acid catalysts for use in the aqueous conditions can be selected from hydrochloric acid , sulfuric acid , hydrobromic acid and phosphoric acid . the aqueous solution usually requires sufficient acid catalyst so that the solution is maintained at ph 0 . 5 to 3 . 0 preferably 1 . 0 to 2 . 0 . in a modification of the conversion of the compound of formula ii to the corresponding compound of formula i , the above individual steps of condensation , alkaline hydrolysis and cyclization are combined in a process wherein the intermediates of formula ix and x are not isolated . in this modification , the α - hydroxyketone of formula ii is condensed with a di ( lower alkyl ) oxalate in the same manner as described above . however , the reaction mixture is not filtered but instead is mixed with about an equal volume of water . the resulting aqueous alkaline solution is , if required , adjusted to ph 10 to 12 with sodium hydroxide and maintained at ph 10 to 12 and at 15 ° to 30 ° c . for 10 to 40 hours and washed with a water immiscible organic solvent , preferably diethyl ether or benzene . an acid catalyst , preferably hydrochloric acid , hydrobromic acid , sulfuric acid or phosphoric acid , is added to the aqueous solution until the solution reaches ph 0 . 5 to 3 . 0 , preferably 1 . 0 to 2 . 0 . the acidic solution is maintained at 10 ° to 50 ° c ., preferably 20 ° to 30 ° c ., for 0 . 5 to 10 hours and extracted with a water immiscible organic solvent , for example , ethyl acetate , diethyl ether , benzene , toluene , chloroform , dichloromethane and the like . the organic extract is evaporated and , if required , purified to obtain the corresponding compound of formula i in which r 4 is hydrogen . if the aqueous alkaline solution in the latter preparation is maintained at ph 8 to 9 instead of ph 10 to 12 , a corresponding intermediate of formula xi ## str8 ## in which r 1 , r 2 and r 3 are as defined herein is isolated after acidification of the aqueous alkaline solution . more specifically , the α - hydroxyketone of formula ii is condensed with a di ( lower alkyl ) oxalate in the same manner as described above . the reaction mixture is not filtered out instead is mixed with about an equal volume of water and if necessary the resulting aqueous solution is adjusted to ph 8 to 9 with dilute hydrochloric acid or sodium hydroxide . the resulting aqueuous solution is maintained at ph 8 to 9 and at 15 ° to 30 ° c . for one to five hours and washed with a water immiscible organic solvent , in the same manner as described above . the mixture is acidified , maintained at 10 ° to 50 ° c ., preferably 20 ° to 30 ° c ., for one to 30 minutes and extracted , in the same manner as described above for ii → i , to obtain the corresponding intermediate of formula xi . reaction of the intermediate of formula xi under aqueous alkaline conditions at ph 10 to 12 gives the corresponding compound of formula i in which r 4 is hydrogen . for this reaction , a solution of the compound of formula ii in aqueous potassium or sodium hydroxide is maintained at ph 10 to 12 and at 15 ° to 30 ° c . for 10 to 40 hours and washed with a water immiscible organic solvent , in the same manner as described above . subsequently , acidification of the aqueous solution , maintenance of the acidic solution and extraction , in the same manner as described above for ii → i , gives the corresponding compound of formula i in which r 4 is hydrogen . the acidic compound of formula i in which r 4 is hydrogen is esterified to obtain the corresponding ester of formula i in which r 4 is lower alkyl , cyclo ( lower ) alkyl , phenyl ( lower ) alkylene , amino ( lower ) alkylene , lower alkylamino ( lower ) alkylene , di ( lower alkyl ) amino ( lower ) alkylene or 3 - pyridinyl ( lower ) alkylene . a number of esterification methods can be used , for example , mixed anhydride ; dehydrative coupling reagents , for instance , dicyclohexylcarbodiimide ; acid catalyts ; diazoalkanes ; and acid chloride . a preferred method of esterification employs an acid catalyst , preferably 0 . 1 to 1 . 0 molar equivalents of anhydrous sulfuric acid or hydrogen chloride , and 2 to 50 equivalents of a lower alkanol , hydroxycyclo ( lower ) alkane , phenyl ( lower ) alkanol , amino ( lower ) alkanol , lower alkylamino ( lower ) alkanol , di ( lower alkyl ) amino ( lower ) alkanol or 3 - pyridinyl ( lower ) alkanol at 50 ° to 100 ° c . for one to ten hours . it should be noted that when amino ( lower ) alkanol , lower alkylamino ( lower ) alkanol , di ( lower alkyl ) amino ( lower ) alkanol or 3 - pyridinyl ( lower ) alkanol is used , then a corresponding additional molar mount of the acid catalyst should be present in the reaction vessel . if the reactants are mutually soluble , a solvent for the esterification can be omitted . otherwise , any anhydrous inert organic solvent can be used , for example , dimethylformamide , benzene , toluene , chloroform and the like . another preferred method of esterification proceeds through the acid chloride . in this method , a solution of the acidic compound of formula i in which r 4 is hydrogen and 5 to 50 molar equivalents of thionyl chloride is heated at 50 ° to 80 ° c . for one to ten hours and evaporated to obtain the corresponding acid chloride . a solution of the latter acid chloride , one to ten molar equivalents of the above noted alcohols and an organic proton acceptor , for example , pyridine or triethylamine , in an inert organic solvent , for example , acetone , benzene , dichloromethane , toluene , chloroform or dimethylformamide , preferably acetone , is maintained at 0 ° to 50 ° c . for to two to ten hours . evaporation and purification affords the compound of formula i in which r 1 , r 2 and r 3 are as defined herein and r 4 is lower alkyl , cyclo ( lower ) alkyl , phenyl ( lower ) alkylene , amino ( lower ) alkylene , lower alkylamino ( lower ) alkylene , di ( lower alkyl ) amino ( lower ) alkylene or 3 - pyridinyl ( lower ) alkylene . 3 - hydroxy - 4 - methyl - 3 - phenyl - 1 - pentyne ( iv : r 2 = ch ( ch 3 ) 2 and r 1 = ph ) a reaction flask , equipped with a dry - ice reflux condenser , is charged with 700 ml of freshly condensed liquid ammonia . the ammonia gas is passed through a tower of potassium hydroxide pellets . upon stirring , a rapid stream of acetylene gas ( dried in a sulfuric acid wash bottle ) is introduced into the ammonia for 10 min , then the rate of passage of the acetylene is reduced and a continuous flow of acetylene through the reaction mixture is maintained during the following operations ( approx . 9 hr ). small pieces of sodium ( 9 . 2 g ) are inserted , and 2 hr later , 2 - methyl - 1 - phenyl - 1 - propanone ( 50 g ) is added dropwise . the stirring is continued for 6 hr at - 33 ° c . then , the stream of acetylene is shut off , and the ammonia is allowed to evaporate in the hood ( overnight ). after adding cautiously ice - water , the resultant solution is acidified with diluted sulfuric acid , and extracted with diethyl ether . the combined extracts are washed with saturated brine , dried over magnesium sulfate , filtered , and evaporated to yield 45 . 5 g of the title compound , ir ( chcl 3 ) 3600 , 3310 , 1450 , and 1010 cm - 1 and nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ 0 . 85 and 1 . 07 ( d ), 2 . 10 ( heptuplet ), 2 . 35 ( s ), 2 . 66 ( s ), 7 . 27 ( m ) and 7 . 55 ( m ). 3 - hydroxy - 4 - methyl - 3 - phenyl - 2 - pentanone ( ii : r 2 = ch ( ch 3 ) 2 , r 1 = ph and r 3 = h ) to a refluxing mixture of tetrahydrofuran ( 70 ml ), water ( 5 ml ), and conc . sulfuric acid ( 1 . 5 g ) is added 1 g of red mercuric oxide and the reflux is continued for 5 min . then , the inside temperature is adjusted to 60 °- 62 ° c . and 10 g of 3 - hydroxy - 4 - methyl - 3 - phenyl - 1 - pentyne ( described in example 1 ) is added . the reaction is exothermic ( spontaneous mild reflux ) and there is a noticeable clearing of the mixture . another 1 g of mercuric oxide is added , and the solution is refluxed for 30 min . the reaction mixture is stirred at 60 ° c . for an additional 3 hr , during which time the precipitation of a mercury sludge occurred . after cooling , the slurry is diluted with 100 ml of diethyl ether and filtered through diatomaceous earth . the filter cake is washed with 200 ml of diethyl ether , and the combined filtrates are washed repeatedly with water , dried over magneisum sulfate , filtered , and evaporated to give 10 . 6 g of the title product , ir ( cdcl 3 ) 3470 and 1715 - 1710 cm - 1 and nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ 0 . 91 ( d ), 2 . 15 ( s ), 2 . 79 ( heptuplet ), 4 . 39 ( s ) and 7 . 20 - 7 . 65 ( m ). the title compound is prepared by using a modified method of g . f . hennion and b . r . fleck , j . amer . chem . soc ., 77 , 3258 ( 1955 ). to a mixture of methanol ( 5 ml ), water ( 0 . 2 ml ), sulfuric acid ( 100 mg ), and mercuric sulfate ( 100 mg ) is added at 55 ° c . a solution of 3 - hydroxy - 3 - phenyl - 1 - butyne ( 2 g ) in 90 % aqueous methanol ( 5 ml ) over a period of 90 min . the reaction is slightly exothermic , and the inside temperature is maintained at 55 °- 57 ° c . during the reaction time , 50 mg of mercuric sulfate is added . when addition of the acetylenic component is complete , another portion ( 50 mg ) of mercuric sulfate is added , and the mixture is stirred at 55 ° c . for 1 hour . during this time 1 ml of water is added . after cooling , the reaction mixture is poured into ice - water and extracted with diethyl ether . the combined extracts are washed with water , dried over magnesium sulfate , filtered and evaporated . the resultant oil is chromatographed on silica gel using benzene . the appropriate eluates are evaporated to give 0 . 5 g of the title compound , ir ( chcl 3 ) 3450 and 1751 cm - 1 and nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ 1 . 75 ( s ), 2 . 08 ( s ), 4 . 50 ( s ) and 7 . 40 ( m ). in the same manner but replacing 3 - phenyl - 3 - hydroxy - 1 - butyne with an equivalent amount of 3 - hydroxy - 3 -( 4 - chlorophenyl )- 1 - butyne , 3 - hydroxy - 3 - methyl - 1 - butyne , 1 - ethynyl - 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 - tetrahydronaphthalene , 3 - ethyl - 3 - hydroxy - 1 - heptyne , 3 - hydroxy - 3 , 3 - diphenyl - 1 - propyne , 3 - cyclohexyl - 3 - hydroxy - 1 - hexyne , 4 - ethoxy - 3 -( 3 - methoxyphenyl )- 3 - hydroxy - 1 - butyne , 3 -( 3 , 4 - diethylphenyl )- 3 - hydroxy - 3 -( 4 - nitrophenyl )- 1 - propyne , 3 - ethynyl - 3 - hydroxytetrahydrofuran , 1 - ethynyl - 1 - hydroxycyclohexane , 1 - ethynyl - 1 - hydroxyindane or 3 - cyclopentyl - 5 - ethoxy - 3 - hydroxy - 1 - pentyne , the following compounds of formula ii are obtained , respectively : 3 - hydroxy - 3 -( 4 - chlorophenyl )- 2 - butanone , ir ( chcl 3 ) 3440 and 1710 cm - 1 , 3 - hydroxy - 3 - methyl - 2 - butanone , 1 - acetyl - 1 - hydroxy - 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 - tetrahydronaphthalene ir ( film ) 3450 and 1710 cm - 1 , 3 - ethyl - 3 - hydroxy - 2 - heptanone , 3 - hydroxy - 3 , 3 - diphenyl - 2 - propanone , 3 - cyclohexyl - 3 - hydroxy - 2 - hexanone , 4 - ethoxy - 3 -( 3 - methoxyphenyl )- 3 - hydroxy - 2 - butnone , 3 -( 3 , 4 - diethylpheny )- 3 - hydroxy - 3 -( 4 - nitrophenyl )- 2 - propanone , 3 - acetyl - 3 - hydroxytetrahydrofuran , 1 - acetyl - 1 - hydroxycyclohexane , 1 - acetyl - 1 - hydroxyindane and 3 - cyclopentyl - 5 - ethoxy - 3 - hydroxy - 2 - pentanone . 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ( i : r 2 = me , r 1 = ph , and r 3 and r 4 = h ) to a stirred suspension of sodium hydride ( 10 . 5 g . 54 % in mineral oil ) in dry tetrahydrofuran ( 400 ml ) is added dropwise a solution of diethyl oxalate ( 16 g ) and 3 - hydroxy - 3 - phenyl - 2 - butanone ( 16 . 4 g described in example 3 ) in tetrahydrofuran ( 50 ml ). the solution temperature is maintained at 55 °- 60 ° c ., and the solution is maintained at this temperature for 18 hr after the addition is complete . the cold reaction mixture is poured into water , the mixture is adjusted to ph 11 with sodium hydroxide and allowed to stand for 24 hours , and washed with diethyl ether . upon addition of 6 n hydrochloric acid , the aqueous solution is adjusted to ph 1 . the acidic mixture is kept at 20 ° to 30 ° c . for 2 hours and extracted with diethyl ether . the ether extract is dried and slowly evaporated to obtain crystals ( 20 g ) of the title compound , mp 174 °- 176 ° c . anal : calculated for c 12 h 10 o 4 : c , 66 . 06 ; h , 4 . 62 %: found : c , 66 . 41 ; h , 4 . 69 %. a solution of the title compound in diethyl ether and a solution of an equimolar amount of benzylamine in diethyl ether are mixed at 0 ° c . the precipitate is collected by filtration and crystallized from isopropanol to obtain the benzylamine salt of the title compound . mp 192 °- 193 ° c . in the same manner but replacing 3 - hydroxy - 3 - phenyl - 2 - butanone with an equivalent amount of another compound of formula ii described in example 2 and 3 , the following compounds of formula i are obtained , respectively : 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 -( 1 - methylethyl )- 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid , mp 151 °- 153 ° c . and nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ 0 . 92 (+), 2 . 55 ( heptuplet ), 6 . 33 ( s ) and 7 . 15 - 7 . 65 ( m ); 5 -( 4 - chlorophenyl )- 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid , mp 169 ° c . and nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ 1 . 75 ( s ), 6 . 25 ( s ) and 7 . 45 ( m ); 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 , 5 - dimethyl - 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid , mp 180 °- 181 ° c . and ir ( nujol ) 2800 ( broad ), 1737 , 1670 and 1600 cm - 1 ; spiro [ furan - 5 ( 4h ), 1 &# 39 ;( 2 &# 39 ; h )- naphthalene ]- 3 &# 39 ;, 4 &# 39 ;- dihydro - 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid , mp 152 °- 154 ° c . and nmr ( meoh - d 4 ) δ 2 . 07 ( m ), 2 . 84 ( t ), 6 . 29 ( s ) and 6 . 8 - 7 . 4 ( m ); 5 - butyl - 5 - ethyl - 4 , 5 - dihydro - 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ; 4 , 5 - dihydro - 4 - oxo - 5 , 5 - diphenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ; 5 - cyclohexyl - 4 , 5 - dihydro - 4 - oxo - 5 - propylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ; 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - ethoxymethyl - 5 -( 3 - methoxyphenyl )- 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ; 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 -( 3 , 4 - diethylphenyl )- 5 -( 4 - nitrophenyl )- 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ; 1 , 7 - dioxaspiro [ 4 , 4 ] non - 2 - ene - 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid ; 1 - oxaspiro [ 4 , 5 ]- dec - 2 - ene - 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid ; spiro [ furan - 5 ( 4h ), 1 &# 39 ;- indan ]- 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid ; and 5 - cyclopentyl - 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 -( 3 - ethoxypropyl )- 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid . 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - caboxylic acid methyl ester ( i : r 2 and r 4 = me , r 1 = ph and r 3 = h ) a mixture of 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ( 0 . 4 g , described in example 4 ), absolute methanol ( 50 ml ), and sulfuric acid ( 3 drops ) is refluxed overnight and evaporated . the residue is diluted with 50 ml of diethyl ether , and the solution is washed quickly with saturated sodium bicarbonate and water , dried over magnesium sulfate , filtered , and evaporated . the residue is crystallized from diethyl ether to obtain the title compond ( 0 . 32 g ) mp 60 °- 62 ° c . and nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ 1 . 81 ( s ), 3 . 99 ( s ), 6 . 25 ( s ) and 7 . 42 ( m ). in the same manner but replacing methanol with an equivalent amount of ethanol , propanol or butanol , the following compounds of formula i are obtained , respectively : 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ethyl ester , 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid propyl ester and 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid butyl ester . similarly , but replacing 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid with an equivalent amount of another compound of formula i described in example 4 , the following compounds of formula i are obtained , respectively : 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 -( 1 - methylethyl )- 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ; 5 -( 4 - chlorophenyl )- 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ; 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 , 5 - dimethyl - 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester , mp 66 ° c ., ir ( chcl 3 ) 1720 , 1695 and 1575 cm - 1 ; spiro [ furan - 5 ( 4h ), 1 &# 39 ;( 2 &# 39 ; h )- naphthalene ]- 3 &# 39 ;, 4 &# 39 ;- dihydro - 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ; 5 - butyl - 5 - ethyl - 4 , 5 - dihydro - 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ; 4 , 5 - dihydro - 4 - oxo - 5 , 5 - diphenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ; 5 - cyclohexyl - 4 , 5 - dihydro - 4 - oxo - 5 - propylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ; 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - ethoxymethyl - 5 -( 3 - methoxyphenyl )- 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ; 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 -( 3 , 4 - diethylphenyl )- 5 -( 4 - nitrophenyl )- 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ; 1 , 7 - dioxaspiro [ 4 , 4 ] non - 2 - ene - 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ; 1 - oxaspiro [ 4 , 5 ] dec - 2 - ene - 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ; spiro [ furan - 5 -( 4h ), 1 &# 39 ;- indan ]- 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ; and 5 - cyclopentyl - 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 -( 3 - ethoxypropyl )- 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid methyl ester . 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ( i : r 2 = me , r 1 = ph , r 3 = h and r 4 = 3 - pyridinylmethyl ). a mixture of 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ( 8 . 75 g , described in example 4 ) and thionyl chloride ( 90 ml ) is refluxed for 3 hr and evaporated . the residue is dissolved in benzene ( 100 ml ) and evaporated ( twice ). the infrared spectrum of the residue is indicative of a quantitative conversion of the carboxylic acid into the carbonyl chloride , ir ( chcl 3 ) 1820 and 1795 , 1755 and 1715 cm - 1 . this material is dissolved in 50 ml of dry acetone and added to a mixture of 3 - pyridinemethanol ( 4 . 8 g ), pyridine ( 3 . 1 g ), and acetone ( 100 ml ) at 0 ° c . the reaction mixture is stirred at 20 ° to 30 ° c . temperature for 4 hr and evaporated under reduced pressure . the residue is partitioned between chloroform and saturated sodium bicarbonate . the organic phase is collected , dried and evaporated to give 8 . 8 g of the title compound , ir ( chcl 3 ) 1753 , 1742 , 1715 ( broad ), 1595 and 1100 cm - 1 and nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ 1 . 78 ( s ), 5 . 45 ( s ), 6 . 29 ( s ), 7 . 42 ( m ), 7 . 84 ( doublet for triplets ) and 8 . 60 ( m ). the title compound ( 18 g ) is dissolved in acetone ( 20 ml ) and a solution of hydrogen chloride in diethyl ether is added until precipitation is complete . the solvent is decanted and the residue is triturated with diethyl ether . the residue is crystallized from acetone to obtain the hydrochloride salt ( 15 g ) of the title compound , mp 124 °- 125 ° c . anal : calculated for c 18 h 15 no 4 . hcl : c , 62 . 52 ; h , 4 . 66 ; n , 4 . 05 %; found : c , 62 . 30 ; h , 4 . 53 ; n , 3 . 94 %. a solution of the title compound in diethyl ether and a solution of a half molar equivalent of ( e )- 2 - butenedioic acid in isopropanol are combined at - 10 ° c . the resulting precipitate is filtered and crystallized from acetonitrile to obtain the hemi -( e )- 2 - butenedioate salt , mp 120 °- 130 ° c ., of the title compound . in the same manner but replacing 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid with an equivalent amount of another compound of formula i described in example 4 , the following compounds of formula i are obtained , respectively : 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 -( 1 - methylethyl )- 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ; 5 -( 4 - chlorophenyl )- 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester , nmr ( cdcl 3 ) δ 1 . 77 ( s ), 5 . 46 ( s ), 6 . 29 ( s ), 7 . 42 ( m ), 7 . 86 ( m ) and 8 . 70 ( m ); 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 , 5 - dimethyl - 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester , mp 109 °- 110 ° c . ; spiro [ furan - 5 ( 4h ),- 1 &# 39 ;( 2 &# 39 ; h )- naphthalene ]- 3 &# 39 ;, 4 &# 39 ;- dihydro - 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ; 5 - butyl - 5 - ethyl - 4 , 5 - dihydro - 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ; 4 , 5 - dihydro - 4 - oxo - 5 , 5 - diphenylfuran - 2carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ; 5 - cyclohexyl - 4 , 5 - dihydro - 4 - oxo - 5 - propylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ; 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - ethoxymethyl - 5 -( 3 - methoxyphenyl )- 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ; 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 -( 3 , 4 - diethylphenyl )- 5 -( 4 - nitrophenyl )- 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ; 1 , 7 - dioxaspiro [ 4 , 4 ] non - 2 - ene - 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ; 1 - oxaspiro [ 4 , 5 ] dec - 3 - ene - 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ; spiro [ furan - 5 ( 4h ), 1 &# 39 ;- indan ]- 4 - oxo - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester ; and 5 - cyclopentyl - 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 -( 3 - ethoxypropyl )- 4 - oxofuran - 2 - carboxylic acid 3 - pyridinylmethyl ester . 6 - methyl - 6 - phenyltetrahydropyran - 2 , 3 , 5 - trione ( xi : r 2 = me , r 1 = ph and r 3 = h ) to a stirred suspension of sodium hydride ( 10 . 5 g 54 % in mineral oil ) in dry tetrahydrofuran ( 400 ml ) is added dropwise a solution of diethyl oxalate ( 16 g ) and 3 - hydroxy - 3 - phenyl - 2 - butanone ( 16 . 4 g described in example 3 ) in tetrahydrofuran ( 50 ml ). the solution temperature is maintained at 55 °- 60 ° c ., and the solution is maintained at this temperature for 18 hr after the addition is completed . the cold reaction mixture is poured into water and the mixture is adjusted ph 8 to 9 with sodium hydroxide or hydrochloric acid . this mixture at ph 8 to 9 is allowed to stand for 24 hr and extracted with diethyl ether . the ether extract is dried , evaporated and crystallized from diethyl ether to obtain the title compound : mp 142 °- 144 ° c . ; ir ( nujol ) 3130 , 1718 and 1640 cm - 1 ; uv ( meoh ) λ max 268 nm ( ε = 8830 ) and nmr ( meoh - d 3 ) δ 1 . 89 ( s ), 5 . 92 ( s ) and 7 . 34 ( s ). anal . calc &# 39 ; d for c 12 h 9 o 4 : c , 66 . 05 ; h , 4 . 62 %; found : c , 66 . 14 ; h , 4 . 83 %. 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ( i : r 2 = me , r 1 = ph , and r 3 and r 4 = h ) a mixture of 6 - methyl - 6 - phenyltetrahydropyran - 2 , 3 , 5 - trione ( 2 . 18 g , described in example 7 ) in aqueous sodium hydroxide ( 15 ml ) at ph 11 is stirred for 24 hr and washed with diethyl ether . hydrochloric acid ( 6 n ) is added until the solution becomes acidic at ph 1 to 4 . the precipitate is collected and crystallized from diethyl ether to obtain the title compound ( 2 . 0 g ), mp 174 °- 176 ° c . a solution of (+)- α - methyl benzylamine ( 3 . 63 g ) in diethyl ether ( 50 ml ) is added to a solution of 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ( 6 . 54 g , described in example 4 ) in 200 ml of 10 % isopropyl alcohol in diethyl ether . the mixture is cooled and the crystals ( 6 . 5 g ) are collected while saving the mother liquor . the crystals are recrystallized three times from methanol to obtain 5 . 0 g of the benzylamine salt having a constant rotation of [ α ] d 25 =+ 110 ° ( c = 2 , methanol ) and mp 194 °- 196 ° c . the latter salt ( 5 . 0 g ) is stirred into water ( 100 ml ) and diethyl ether ( 100 ml ), and then 6 n hydrochloric acid is added until the solution is acidic ( ph 1 ). the ether phase is collected , washed with water until the washings are neutral , dried , evaporated and recrystallized from diethyl ether to give (+)- 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid ( 2 . 7 g ): mp 87 °- 89 ° c . ; [ α ] d 25 =+ 146 . 4 ° ( c = 2 , methanol ); ir ( nujol ) 3440 , 3320 , 2540 , 2440 , 1720 and 1669 cm - 1 ; and anal . calcd . for c 12 h 10 o 4 . h 2 o : c , 61 . 01 %, h , 5 . 12 %, water , 7 . 62 % and found : c , 61 . 19 %, h , 5 . 07 %, water , 7 . 85 %. the mother liquors , obtained from the above benzylamine salt , are evaporated . the residue ( 4 . 3 g ) is dissolved in a solution of water ( 50 ml ) and diethyl ether ( 50 ml ) and 6 n hydrochloric acid is added dropwise until the water layer is acidic ( ph 1 ). the ether layer is collected , washed with water until the washings are neutral , dried over magnesium sulfate and evaporated . the residue ( 2 . 7 g ) is dissolved in 70 ml of 10 % isopropyl alcohol - diethyl ether solution and a solution of (-)- α - methyl benzylamine in diethyl ether ( 30 ml ) is added . the solution is cooled and the crystals ( 3 . 9 g ) are collected and recrystallized three times from methanol to obtain 2 . 4 g of the benzylamine salt having a constant rotation of [ α ] d 25 =- 108 ° ( c = 2 , methanol ) and mp 198 °- 199 ° c . the latter salt ( 2 . 4 g ) is stirred into water ( 70 ml ) and diethyl ether ( 70 ml ), and 6 n hydrochloric acid is added until the water phase is acidic ( ph 1 ). the ether phase is separated , washed with water until the washings are neutral and evaporated to give 1 . 6 g of residue . the residue is recrystallized from diethyl ether to give 1 . 2 g of (-)- 4 , 5 - dihydro - 5 - methyl - 4 - oxo - 5 - phenylfuran - 2 - carboxylic acid : mp 87 °- 89 ° c . ; [ α ] d 25 =- 144 . 1 ° ( c = 2 , methanol ); ir ( nujol ) 3440 , 3320 , 2540 , 1720 and 1669 cm - 1 ; anal . calcd . for c 12 h 10 o 4 . h 2 o : c , 61 . 01 %, h , 5 . 12 %, water , 7 . 62 % and found : c , 61 . 14 %, h , 5 . 05 %, water , 5 . 82 %.	2
fig1 is a schematic view illustrating a notebook computer transversely inserted into a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station of a first embodiment of the invention . fig2 is a schematic view of the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station in fig1 from another perspective . referring to fig1 and fig2 , a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 is for a notebook computer 400 to be transversely inserted . in detail , the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 includes a body 100 , wherein the body 100 has a bottom support surface 110 , an inner side surface 120 , a first side surface 130 , and a connecting port 140 . the bottom support surface 110 , the inner side surface 120 , and the first side surface 130 connect to each other , and normal directions n 1 , n 2 , n 3 of the bottom support surface 110 , the inner side surface 120 , and the first side surface 130 , respectively , are perpendicular to each other . the connecting port 140 is disposed on the inner side surface 120 . in further detail , the body 100 further includes a second side surface 150 facing the first side surface 130 . the second side surface 150 is connected to the inner side surface 120 and the bottom support surface 110 , and the first side surface 130 and the second side surface 150 are located on opposite sides of the inner side surface 120 and the bottom support surface 110 . thus , the bottom support surface 110 , the inner side surface 120 , the first side surface 130 , and the second side surface 150 form a slot ( not shown ) for the notebook computer 400 to be inserted . the top and right side ( shown in fig1 ) of the slot ( not shown ) is open . the notebook computer 400 can be transversely inserted into the body 100 of the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 along the right side of the slot ( not shown ) towards the inner side surface 120 . specifically , the notebook computer 400 includes a pair of long edges 412 and 414 , a pair of short edges 422 and 424 , and a second connecting port ( not shown ). the second connecting port ( not shown ) is disposed on the short edge 422 . when the notebook computer 400 is transversely inserted into the body 100 of the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 along the right side of the slot ( not shown ) towards the inner side surface 120 , the long edge 412 of the notebook computer 400 rests and moves on the bottom support surface 110 , and the second connecting port disposed on the short edge 422 faces the inner side . when the first connecting port 140 of the body 100 connects with the second connecting port , the notebook computer 400 and the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 are electrically connected , expanding the functions of the notebook computer 400 . contrary to a conventional u - shaped docking station , the body of the notebook computer will take up space on the table . the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 allows the notebook computer 400 to be transversely inserted . thus , less table space is required . in addition , since the notebook computer 400 is transversely inserted into the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 , the notebook computer 400 has a low center of gravity , and is closer to the table . therefore , the problem of a bigger and heavier notebook computer 400 falling over because of an unstable center of gravity when it is vertically inserted can be avoided . since the long edge 412 of the notebook computer 400 rests and moves horizontally on the bottom support surface 110 , the user does not have to hold the entire notebook computer 400 , thus saving effort . fig3 is a schematic view of a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station of a second embodiment of the invention . the embodiment is approximately identical to the first embodiment , and same or similar reference numerals used in the embodiment and in the first embodiment represent the same or similar elements . the difference is that in the embodiment , a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 a further includes a pair of side wings 200 disposed on opposite sides of the body 100 . please refer to fig1 and fig3 . in order to increase the stability of the notebook computer 400 transversely inserted into the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 a on a table , the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 a further includes a pair of side wings 200 disposed on the two opposite sides of the body 100 . thus , the notebook computer 400 will not fall over when it is bumped or being inserted into the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 a . the following descriptions are improvements to facilitate the flow of inserting the notebook computer into the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station or to provide stability to the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station . in order to clearly describe the improvements , the following figures do not show the first side surface and the second side surface , and only shows the bottom support surface , the inner side surface , and the components or structures disposed on the bottom support surface . fig4 is a schematic view of a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station of a third embodiment of the invention . referring to fig1 and fig4 , the embodiment is approximately identical to the first embodiment . the difference is , in the embodiment , a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 b further includes a pair of positioning elastic pieces 310 disposed on the bottom support surface 110 of the body 100 , used to clasp the notebook computer 400 . referring to fig1 and fig4 , the pair of positioning elastic pieces 310 of the embodiment is disposed on the bottom support surface 110 near the inner side surface 120 . however , the pair of positioning elastic pieces 310 can be disposed in any location on the bottom support surface 110 according to need . the pair of positioning elastic pieces 310 are disposed so that when the notebook computer 400 is transversely inserted into the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 b , it clasps the notebook computer 400 , allowing the first connecting port 140 and the second connecting port ( not shown ) to align with more precision , and increase the stability between the notebook computer 400 and the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 b . fig5 is a schematic view of a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station of a fourth embodiment of the invention . referring to fig1 and fig5 , the embodiment is approximately identical to the first embodiment . the difference is , in the embodiment , a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 c further includes a positioning sliding piece 320 . the bottom support surface 110 includes a pair of sliding tracks 112 , and the positioning sliding piece 320 is slidably disposed on the pair of sliding tracks 112 . referring to fig1 and fig5 , the sliding tracks 112 and the positioning sliding piece 320 are disposed so that the notebook computer 400 is adapted to rest on the sliding piece . this way , the notebook computer 400 moves relative to the inner side surface 120 through the positioning sliding piece 320 and the sliding tracks 112 and is inserted in the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 c . fig6 is a schematic view of a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station of a fifth embodiment of the invention . the embodiment is approximately identical to the fourth embodiment . the difference is , in the embodiment , a pair of holding portions 322 is disposed on the positioning sliding piece 320 away from the inner side surface 120 , used to clasp the notebook computer 400 . fig7 is a schematic view of a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station of a sixth embodiment of the invention . referring to fig1 and fig7 , the embodiment is approximately identical to the first embodiment . the difference is , in the embodiment , a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 d further includes a plurality of wheels 330 , disposed parallel to each other on the body 100 . a portion of the wheels 330 are exposed to serve as the bottom support surface 110 , and an axis a of the wheels 330 are perpendicular to a direction i the notebook computer 400 is inserted . the wheels 330 are disposed so that after the notebook computer 400 is inserted into the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 d along the direction i , when the long edge 412 of the notebook computer 400 contacts the wheels 330 , the wheels 330 rotate to facilitate the insertion movement of the notebook computer 400 , thereby saving energy . fig8 is a schematic view of a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station of a seventh embodiment of the invention . referring to fig1 and fig8 , the embodiment is approximately identical to the sixth embodiment . the difference is , in the embodiment , a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 e includes a pair of wheels 340 disposed in the body 100 , and the bottom support surface 110 is a surface of a belt disposed on the wheels 340 . the wheels 340 and the belt form a transfer mechanism . compared to the sixth embodiment , after the notebook computer 400 contacts the belt surface ( bottom support surface 110 ), the belt drives the wheels 340 to rotate , and the wheels 340 in turn rotate to move the belt . thus , the notebook computer 400 is transversely inserted into the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 300 e . fig9 is a schematic view of a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station of an eighth embodiment of the invention . referring to fig9 , a body 510 of a transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 500 of the embodiment includes a bottom support surface 512 , an inner side surface 514 , a first side surface 516 , a first connecting port 518 , and a bottom surface 511 . the bottom surface 511 is suitable to rest on the table , and is separated from the bottom support surface 512 by a distance . the bottom surface 511 is not parallel or perpendicular to the bottom support surface 512 . the bottom support surface 512 , the inner side surface 514 , and the first side surface 516 are connected . the normal directions n 1 ′, n 2 ′, and n 3 ′ of the bottom support surface 512 , the inner side surface 514 , and the first side surface 516 , respectively , are perpendicular to each other . in addition , the extensions of the bottom support surface 512 and the first side surface 516 respectively form an acute angle with the bottom surface 511 . furthermore , the body further includes an inclined surface 513 . the inclined surface 513 , the bottom surface 511 , and the first side surface 516 form a triangular structure , and a center of gravity of the body 510 is in the triangular structure . referring to fig1 and fig9 , when the user transversely inserts the notebook computer 400 into the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 500 , the bottom surface ( not shown ) of the notebook computer 400 leans on the first side surface 516 . then , the notebook computer 400 moves along the opposite direction of the normal direction n 2 ′ of the inner side surface 514 , so that the second connecting port ( not shown ) of the notebook computer 400 connects through insertion with the first connecting port 518 . compared to previous embodiments , the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 500 of the embodiment does not include a second side surface opposite to the first side surface 516 . therefore , it is easier for the user to assemble the notebook computer 400 with the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 500 . in addition , the notebook computer 400 is inclined with respect to the table , by using the shape of the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station 500 . this allows the entire assembly to have a lower center of gravity , reducing the chance of falling over . in summary , the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station of the invention is for a notebook to be transversely inserted . this way , there is more space on a table , and so a notebook computer that is transversely inserted into the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station saves more space on a table compared to a conventional tabletop computer . in addition , for a notebook computer that is transversely inserted into the transverse insertion type notebook computer docking station , the problem of a bigger and heavier notebook computer falling over because of an unstable center of gravity can be avoided . although the invention has been described with reference to the above embodiments , it will be apparent to one of the ordinary skill in the art that modifications to the described embodiment may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention . accordingly , the scope of the invention will be defined by the attached claims not by the above detailed descriptions .	6
the preferred embodiment of the invention is contemplated for application to a magnetic disk file for computer bulk storage . it is appreciated that this situs is merely exemplary , the concepts of the invention being applicable to any magnetic recording and read back channel . communication theory indicates that significantly greater basic binary information densities along the recording track , than have heretofore been achieved in commercially procurable disk files , are theoretically potentially available in non - contact disk recording systems . the digital magnetic recording system of the present invention has advanced performance considerably beyond the prior art toward such ultimate lineal bit densities and has achieved factors of three to four increase in reliable density over contemporary , state of the art commercial products . in order to achieve this significant increase in lineal bit density , partial response signalling was utilized . although this signalling configuration had in the past been considered for use in magnetic recording channels , it is believed that such applications had been contemplated only for the saturated flux recording format . furthermore , it is believed that because of the non - linearities inherent in the magnetic interface such attempts would not have been successful for high lineal bit densities . accordingly , the present invention utilizes , for example , a bias field created by a very high frequency alternating current for linearizing the magnetic interface , thus achieving reliable performance improvement in utilizing for the first time non - saturated flux recording with partial response signalling . the use of bias additionally provides simultaneous , low - noise erasure of old data as new data is written . the linearized interface permits insertion of a pilot tone for timing recovery and automatic gain control . the linearized medium also permits multi - level recording , thus significantly increasing the information storage density . furthermore , the linearized medium conveniently permits both write - side and read - side equalization , filtering , preemphasis and channel shaping for enhancing the read back signal to noise ratio of the partial response signalling format without aggravating distortion . referring to fig1 a schematic block diagram of the recording portion of the system of the present invention is illustrated . the record or write side electronics is controlled by a system clock 10 which in the present embodiment comprises an 80 mhz crystal clock . binary data to be recorded on the medium is provided by a binary data source 11 which is synchronized by the system clock 10 . typical binary data provided by the source 11 are illustrated in fig4 as indicated by the legend . the binary data from the source 11 is converted into equivalent multilevel data in a binary to l - ary converter 12 . it is appreciated that the binary data may be converted into data having any number of levels that can reliably be recorded on the magnetic interface and recovered therefrom utilizing the partial response signalling arrangement of the system . it is furthermore appreciated that the present invention could be implemented with two level recording and in this arrangement the converter 12 would not be utilized . in the illustrated embodiment a binary - to - ternary converter was employed for mapping groups of three binary digits representative of eight states into two ternary amplitude pulses representative of nine states , one of which is not utilized . the converter 12 provides a unique mapping of binary data into ternary data . fig4 illustrates the ternary data provided by the converter 12 in response to the binary sequence illustrated in the figure . the ternary data is provided at a rate of 20 million pulses per second with the corresponding binary data being provided at a rate of 30 mbits / sec . thus in the illustrated embodiment the binary data having two levels , for example , 1 and 0 , are converted into ternary data having three levels , for example , + 1 , 0 and - 1 . the conversion process performed by the converter 12 is synchronized by the system clock 10 . any suitable design for the binary - to - ternary converter 12 may be utilized in practicing the present invention , such converters being commonly employed in conventional partial response communication channels . in the present embodiment each ternary output pulse from the converter 12 is represented by a parallel pair of binary digits . thus the binary input sequence is uniquely converted into a sequence of parallel pairs of binary digits representative of the converted ternary data . in the preferred embodiment of the invention the ternary data may be recorded with non - saturated flux although it is appreciated that ternary data is compatible with saturated recording ( utilizing plus and minus flux saturation and zero flux ) and could be utilized herein since the bias provides simultaneous erasure of previous data . for convenience , the ternary pulse sequence output from the converter 12 may be denoted as { b i } with the individual ternary pulses of the sequence denoted as b n . in partial response signalling systems it is generally known that the input data should be precoded to prevent the propagation of errors in the decision circuits operating on the received or playback pulse sequence . accordingly , the ternary pulse output from the converter 12 is applied as an input to a precoder 13 which is synchronized in operation by the system clock 10 . the precoder 13 in turn provides the precoded ternary pulse sequence { c i }. the sequence { b i } is modulo precoded in accordance with the rule for class iv partial response signalling as follows : where l is the modulus of the multilevel data . in the present ternary embodiment the precoding equation is : the values in the modular set of ternary elements are here taken to be (- 1 , 0 , + 1 ). fig4 illustrates the precoded ternary data corresponding to the ternary sequence { b i } exemplified in the figure . the pulses in the various clock intervals illustrated are identified by various line types ( dots , dashes and circles ) for purposes of explanation . it is appreciated that numerous precoding circuits are known in the partial response art . in the present embodiment the sequence of parallel pairs of binary digits representative of the ternary pulses is applied as the input to the precoder 13 which performs the modulo 3 arithmetic set forth above to provide the precoded ternary pulse sequence as further parallel pairs of binary digits representative thereof . the output pulse rate from the precoder 13 is 20 mpulses / sec . the precoded ternary data , still thus represented in binary , is applied as an input to a digital signal formatter 14 which is synchronized from the system clock 10 . the digital signal formatter 14 is utilized to gate the recording bias signal , generate a pilot tone and format the data into a recording signal . the digital formatted data is converted to a recording signal via a conventional digital - to - analog converter 15 which accepts the previously precoded parallel pairs of binary digits and converts them into the ternary pulses which they represent . the total recording current is the sum of three components which may be designated as information bearing signal , pilot tone , and bias . the pilot tone and bias components of the recording current will be later discussed . the information bearing signal component is comprised of three successive sections designated as sync , preamble and data . in the sync interval the signal is a 5 mhz sine wave that is synchronous with the 20 mhz data time base and is utilized to resolve a phase ambiguity in the playback timing recovery circuitry in a manner to be described . the preamble interval may be any predetermined fixed pulse pattern to provide a flag for the start of data . it will be appreciated that conventional circuits within the formatter 14 generate the digital representation of the sync and preamble signals which are time multiplexed with the digital precoded ternary data as represented by parallel binary pairs from the precoder 13 . the digital signal formatter 14 in combination with the digital - to - analog converter 15 provides the information bearing signal for recording as an interleaved dipulse sequence . the formatter 14 provides control signals to the converter 15 whereby each non - zero valued ternary pulse in each 50 nanosecond clock interval is decomposed into a pair of 25 nanosecond wide subpulses extending beyond the clock interval , which is termed an interleaved dipulse . the first sub - pulse of each dipulse is of the same polarity as the corresponding precoded ternary data pulse and occurs in the first half of the clock cycle in which the ternary pulse occurs . the second sub - pulse of the dipulse is also 25 nanoseconds wide and has the same absolute magnitude as the first sub - pulse but is of opposite polarity with respect thereto , the second sub - pulse occurring in the latter half of the next occurring clock interval of 50 nanoseconds . fig3 illustrates the generic and novel interleaved dipulse into which each of the 50 nanosecond precoded ternary pulses is decomposed , when the latter is of non - zero magnitude . the polarity of each of the sub - pulses of the dipulse is selected in accordance with the polarity of the ternary pulse as described ; when the ternary pulse is identically zero in conveying the data , the dipulse is then correspondingly identically zero and the sub - pulses are caused to vanish , fig4 depicts the interleaved dipulse sequence resulting from the exemplary precoded ternary sequence illustrated , and it will be appreciated that the interleaved dipulse can equally well be binary , quaternary or l - level modulated should it be required in other appropriate embodiments of the invention . the lines shown as dashes , dots and circles identify the particular dipulse resulting from the similarly identified precoded ternary pulse . the voltage spectrum of the interleaved dipulse sequence is illustrated in fig6 indicating that the signal has no d . c . component and has an enhanced high frequency content within the constraint imposed by the spectral null , thus reducing requirements for high frequency preemphasis circuitry in the nyquist data band . above this band , the frequency spectrum rolls off to a convenient null for the insertion of the pilot tone . furthermore , it is appreciated from fig4 that the dipulses interleave , or &# 34 ; nest &# 34 ; in such manner that the resulting sequence has the same number of levels as the precoded multilevel pulse sequence from which it is immediately derived . this is advantageous in the details of the generation of the interleaved dipulse sequence which will be discussed below with respect to fig9 and 10 . more generally in data transmission systems such as those employing a coaxial cable channel , the said &# 34 ; nesting &# 34 ; feature facilitates the utilization of a non - linear transmitter for maximum power output concentrated in the minimum nyquist data band , when binary or multilevel partial response signalling is employed . in so applying the interleaved dipulse feature of the invention it may be conceived that a major advantage lies in its enhanced high frequency content for improved signal to noise ratio with respect to channel attenuation of high frequencies rather than in its spectral null , in which case a pilot tone may or may not be concurrently employed . when a pilot tone is not utilized the timing and automatic gain control may be recovered from the data itself , in a manner well known in the art but causing somewhat of a decrease in the effective data transmission rate . with reference to fig4 it is convenient to conceptualize the generation of the interleaved dipulse sequence as follows : firstly the precoded ternary sequence { c i } multiplies a periodic sequence of unit impulses of period 50 nanoseconds to produce the precoded impulse sequence illustrated . the precoded impulse sequence is convolved with the interleaved dipulse of fig3 to generate the illustrated interleaved dipulse sequence of fig4 . it is appreciated that the apparatus does not actually utilize this procedure which is described to facilitate the understanding of the operation of the invention . although the present embodiment is described in terms of utilizing an interleaved dipulse , it will be appreciated that the precoded multilevel signal , exemplified as precoded ternary in fig4 could be directly utilized for recording via the digital - to - analog converter 15 eliminating the interleaved dipulse format . in this case a data spectrum null for insertion of the pilot tone could be provided by the low pass filter 17 in fig1 . the output from the converter 15 is applied through a recording equalizer 16 and the low pass filter 17 as an input to a summing amplifier 20 . the recording equalizer 16 compensates for interface losses by applying low frequency and high frequency preemphasis or boost . in the present embodiment the low frequency and high frequency preemphasis or boost is applied below and above 2 mhz respectively . the recording equalizer 16 may be implemented as an approximation , to within a nearly linear phase vs radian frequency ω , of the transfer function equation : by a conventional network resembling that of fig7 into which electronic signal integration is introduced . it will be appreciated that in conventional saturated binary magnetic recording systems such equalization is not possible because of the non - linear interface . by the novel combination effected in the present invention the write side equalization may be utilized for a significant increase in signal - to - noise ratio , by best dividing the total required shaping of the system transfer function between the write - side equalization and that of the read back . the filter 17 is a linear phase low pass filter that greatly attenuates high frequency components , for example , about 12 . 5 mhz , to prevent the generation of undesired ( 0 - 10 mhz ) intermodulation products during the recording process . circuitry included within the digital signal formatter 14 generates a square wave in response to the system clock 10 at the frequency of the pilot tone which in the present embodiment is 131 / 3 mhz . a filter 21 extracts the fundamental of the pilot tone square wave providing the sinusoidal pilot tone which is phase coherent with the sync , preamble and data . the pilot tone from the filter 21 is added to the output of filter 17 in the amplifier 20 . the output of the summing amplifier 20 is applied as an input to a linear recording amplifier 22 which combines the bias signal with the data and pilot tone . the bias component may , for example , be a 38 . 5 mhz sine wave provided by a crystal oscillator 23 . the bias need not be phase coherent with the information bearing signal and the pilot tone components , but should be of a sufficiently high frequency and level that any residual non - linearity of the recording medium causes little distortion in the equalized playback waveform ( even for worst case data patterns ). the bias signal is applied to the amplifier 22 via a gating circuit 24 which gates the bias under control of a signal from the digital signal formatter 14 when it is required during the recording interval . the output of the recording amplifier 22 is applied to the head for recording on the medium . it is appreciated that the gated bias signal may , alternatively , be amplified separately from the linear amplification of the output of the summing amplifier , with the resulting output currents then being summed in the recording head . referring to fig2 a schematic block diagram of the readside electronics of the present embodiment of the magnetic recording system of the present invention is illustrated . the upper row of components depicts the analog data - signal processing portion of the read back circuitry and the lower row of components performs the system timing recovery , sampling and decision and logical conversion back to binary data . the read back signal from the head is applied to a preamplifier 30 . the pilot tone component is extracted from the read back signal by a pilot tone filter 31 which applies the pilot tone to an envelope detector 32 for automatic gain control purposes and to a phase locked loop 33 for system timing recovery . the circuit 32 is a conventional envelope detector that provides a signal in accordance with the recovered envelope of the recorded pilot tone . thus it is appreciated that as system gain variations occur such as resulting from variations in head flying height , the amplitude of the envelope signal varies in direct proportion to the gain variations experienced at the 131 / 3 mhz pilot tone frequency . the preamplifier 30 provides the read back data signal to a low pass filter 34 which has a flat pass band with linear phase and is utilized , in the present system , to attenuate spectral components above 18 mhz so that later processing does not add significant noise or cause non - linearity . the filtered signal is applied to an automatic gain control ( agc ) amplifier 35 which receives a gain control input from the envelope detector 32 . it was determined in the present system that gain variations in decibels ( db ) of the interface are substantially proportional to frequency over a wide bandwidth . this system behavior is believed to result primarily from flying height variations of the head . the ideal gain control to offset such frequency dependent gain fluctuations would be exceedingly complicated and therefore in the present embodiment a simpler agc is utilized . this is feasible since in the present embodiment , although the signal energy extends from 0 to 10 mhz , the signal energy is dominant in the vicinity of 5 mhz for class iv partial response operation . additionally , the required gain changes are small . therefore the agc amplifier 35 utilizes a gain control function for the entire signal which is correct for 5 mhz thereby providing a good approximation to the ideal wide band gain control . the agc amplifier 35 utilizes a gain control law : where x is the input to the amplifier 35 from the envelope detector 32 . thus it is appreciated that the amplifier 35 provides the desired gain control inversely as a power law of the variations in pilot tone envelope whose exponent is c 2 . the positive constants c 1 and c 2 are adjusted in accordance with specific system parameters , c 1 being any number convenient to agc implementation . the exponent c 2 is selected in accordance with the experimentally derivable ratio , in this case ( 131 / 3 )/ 5 = 8 / 3 , between the db gain variation occurring at the pilot tone frequency , which in the present embodiment is 131 / 3 mhz , and that occurring at the center of the data band , which in the present embodiment is 5 mhz . the signal output from the agc amplifier 35 is passed through a derivative equalizer 36 and a transversal filter 37 to provide spectral shaping and phase correction . these components are utilized to shape the spectrum of the signal to the desired class iv partial response contour with linear phase . the derivative equalizer 36 has a transfer function which approximates to within a nearly linear phase vs radian frequency ω : with the coefficients d , e , and f adjusted in accordance with system parameters so as to compensate for changes in the transfer function of the interface arising from track - to - track changes in wavelength at any given frequency ω . the derivative equalizer 36 compensates for the short wavelength interface losses and radius effects . a recorded frequency sweep may be utilized to adjust the coefficients d , e and f so that the output of the device in response to the frequency sweep provides a flat frequency response . further details of the conventional network comprising the derivative equalizer 36 will be provided below with respect to fig7 . the transversal filter 37 provides amplitude and phase equalization or spectral shaping . the filter 37 provides equalization from 0 to 20 mhz to within a frequency resolution of approximately 11 / 2 mhz . the transversal filter 37 is adjusted so that the data pulses transmitted through the channel are rendered into the proper class iv partial response shape as illustrated in fig5 . the circuit permits correction to both the amplitude and phase response of the system in a manner well known to the art . details of the transversal filter 37 regarding its structure and adjustment will be given below with respect to fig8 . the class iv partial response spectrum of fig5 is ideally a one - half sinusodial lobe from 0 to 10 mhz , i . e ., sin [ ω /( 2 · 10 7 )], and vanishes above 10 mhz . it will be appreciated that alternative embodiments might be utilized within the purview of the invention having a partial response frequency spectrum comprising two or more sinusoidal lobes . for example , two sinusoidal lobes may be utilized from 0 to 10 mhz with a null at 5 mhz for insertion of a pilot tone . alternatively one sinusoidal lobe may be utilized in accordance with class iv partial response but with the pilot tone inserted at the 10 mhz band edge null . the output from the transversal filter 37 is applied to a low pass filter 40 which is the system final filter having a flat , linear phase pass band to 10 mhz and which attenuates input components above 11 mhz . the circit 40 also includes a filter tuned to 5 mhz for providing the previously discussed sync signal on a line 41 for reasons to be later described . the filtered and equalized data pulse signal is provided on a line 42 and is illustrated in fig4 as the equalized playback waveform . the specific composite waveform illustrated is comprised of the pulse components indicated by the curves composed of dots , dashes and circles corresponding to the similarly identified interleaved dipulse sequence components resulting from the precoded ternary data pulses as discussed above . it will be appreciated that the digital signal formatter 14 controls the digital - to - analog converter 15 to provide the interleaved dipulse as described above ; and the equalizers and filters 16 , 17 , 34 , 36 , 37 and 40 preemphasize , equalize and shape the data pulse frequency spectrum so as to provide , in cascade with the linearized magnetic interface , a close approximation to the ideal class iv sinusoidal spectral shape of fig5 . this spectrum is identical to that of any pulse component of the composite waveform provided on line 42 and depicted with its component pulses as the equalized playback waveform in fig4 . as discussed above , the phase - locked loop 33 is responsive to the pilot tone to provide system timing recovery . the phase - locked loop 33 acquires and tracks the filtered 131 / 3 mhz pilot tone , in the present embodiment , and provides a 40 mhz playback clock which is divided by 2 in a clock divider 43 to obtain the required pulse rate for sampling the analog data signal provided on the line 42 . the clock divider 43 is a divide by two circuit for providing the required 20 mhz sampling clock . since at the beginning of a data interval the phase of the clock divider output is equally likely to have either of two fixed values , a phase reset generator 44 responsive to the sync signal on the line 41 is utilized to remove the phase ambiguity . the phase reset generator sets the clock divider 43 to a predetermined intitial state in accordance with either the positive going or negative going zero crossing of the sinusoidal sync signal , in a manner well known to the art . the equalized playback waveform on the line 42 is applied to a conventional sample and hold circuit 45 which is timed by the output from the clock divider 43 . the sample and hold circuit 45 samples the read back waveform at the beginning of each 50 nanosecond interval recurrently at the rate of the ternary data pulses described above and illustrated in fig4 . in general the sampling rate is equal to the rate of the l - ary data pulses . threshold decision devices within the sample and hold circuitry 45 provide , by means of high speed voltage comparators containing latches , a piecewise constant sequence of signals { f i } at the permissible output levels in accordance with the partial response configuration utilized . in the present embodiment the ternary recording input discussed above results in five integer - valued read back levels , viz ., 0 , ± 1 , and ± 2 in the class iv partial response signalling design . the sequence { f i } thereby intended to result from the illustrated waveforms of fig4 is designated there as the sampled and held composite waveform . it will be appreciated that the five possible sampled and held levels are via the said thresholding converted into equivalent parallel binary logical representations for further processing before the basic binary data is finally recovered . thresholding circuits of the type described are commonly utilized in sampled data communication systems . here , the thresholds are set in a manner well known to yield least likelihood that system noise and distortion can cause the integer valued sequence { f i } to disagree with the result intended by the signalling system design and so cause error in bit recovery . the output from the sample and hold circuit 45 is applied as an input to a digital decoder circuit 46 . for a general l - level system the decoder 46 recreates the originally recorded l - ary data from the intended read back sequence of ( 2l - 1 ) partial response levels by means of the elementary modulo arithmetic rule specified in the cited u . s . pat . no . 3 , 492 , 578 . in the ternary embodiment illustrated , the conversion performed by the decoder 46 is where f n is the integer - level element in the sequence { f i } that is intended to correspond to the originally recorded data pulse b n in fig4 . the ternary output from the modulo decoder 46 , resulting from the exemplary waveforms given in fig4 and having the (- 1 , 0 , + 1 ) modular set of values , is illustrated as the &# 34 ; ternary data output &# 34 ; waveform of the figure . the ternary output of fig4 is , of course in the absence of noise and prohibitive distortion , identical to the ternary input provided by the converter 12 and illustrated in fig4 . a modulo decoder of the type utilized is well known in the partial response art and in the present embodiment , provides the ternary output pulses in parallel pair binary representation . the output from the digital modulo decoder 46 is applied as an input to an l - ary to binary converter 47 which in the present embodiment is implemented as a ternary - to - binary converter . the converter 47 performs the inverse operation to the converter 12 to recover the basic binary data from the storage system as originally provided by the binary data source 11 for bit storage therein . it will be appreciated that circuitry is included within the converter 47 for operating upon sequential pairs of the parallel binary representatives of the ternary data to provide the mapping into corresponding triples of basic binary source data utilizing the mapping function inverse to that employed in the converter 12 . referring now to fig7 details of the conventional derivative equalizer 36 utilized in the present embodiment of the invention are illustrated . the input to the equalizer 36 from the agc amplifier 35 is applied through a trimming delay 50 to a multiplier 51 responsive to the coefficient signal d . the input is also applied to a derivative taking circuit 52 which provides a linear phase approximation to the second derivative thereof with respect to time . the output from the derivative circuit 52 is applied through a trimming delay 53 to a multiplier 54 which multiples the signal by the coefficient e . the output from the derivative circuit 52 is also applied as an input to a derivative circuit 55 ( identical to circuit 52 ) which provides the second derivative with respect to time of the output of the circuit 52 . the output of the derivative circuit 55 is applied as an input to a multiplier 56 which receives as its second input the f coefficient signal . the outputs of the multipliers 51 , 54 and 56 are applied as inputs to a summing circuit 57 which provides the output of the device . as described above , the transfer function of the derivative equalizer 36 approximates , to within a nearly linear phase vs radian frequency ω : where the coefficients d , e and f are adjusted as described above . the trimming delays 50 and 53 are included to make equal the transmission delays in the three paths of the derivative equalizer so as to prevent distortion which would otherwise result therefrom . referring now to fig8 details of the transversal filter 37 utilized in the preferred embodiment are illustrated . the input from the derivative equalizer 36 is applied to a tapped delay line 60 having tap spacing equal to τ which tap spacing is related to the basic pulse interval and bandwidth of the system in a well known manner . the tap outputs from the delay line 60 are applied as inputs to respective multipliers 61 whose respective second inputs receive coefficient signals c 0 , c 1 . . . , c n corresponding to the taps of the line 60 . the outputs from the multipliers 61 are combined in a summing circuit 62 which provides the output of the device . the transversal filter 37 has a transfer function as follows : ## equ1 ## the transversal filter 37 is tuned by adjusting the values of the coefficients c 0 through c n , where in the present example n = 25 and τ = 25 nanoseconds . coarse tuning of the filter may be accomplished by adjusting the coefficients for maximum openings in a conventionally displayed eye pattern formed on the equalized playback waveform of fig4 . fine tuning may be achieved by minimizing observed errors in a recovered psuedo random sequence . it will be appreciated that in commercial quality embodiments of the invention the transversal filter 37 may be replaced by a fixed lc or other type of conventional filter designed to have the same characteristics . referring now to fig9 and 10 , fig9 illustrates details of the portion of the digital signal formatter 14 utilized in generating the interleaved dipulse sequence and fig1 illustrates the timing with respect to the circuit of fig9 . the dipulse generating circuitry of fig9 includes a time division multiplexer 70 having two inputs designated as 0 and 1 which are selectively connected to the output thereof in accordance with a multiplexer ( mux ) control signal on a line 71 . the mux position control signal illustrated in fig1 indicates that the inputs 0 and 1 are alternately connected to the output once each pulse interval , which in the above described embodiment is 50 nanoseconds . thus the 0 input is connected to the output during the first 25 nanoseconds of each interval and the 1 input is connected to the output during the second 25 nanoseconds of the intervals . the output of the precoder 13 is applied to the 0 input and , is discussed above , this signal comprises a pair of binary digits representing the ternary pulse . it will be appreciated that as many parallel binary digits are applied from the precoder 13 to the 0 input of the multiplexer 70 as are required to represent the number of levels in accordance with the l - ary system implemented . these parallel digits may be considered to comprise a word w . the application of sequential words by the precoder 13 is illustrated as the precoder output in fig1 . the parallel binary digit word output from the multiplexer 70 is applied through a three stage parallel shift register array 72 which is clocked at a rate of 2 / t , where t is the word interval as indicated in fig1 which in the present embodiment is 50 nanoseconds . thus the shift register array 72 introduces a delay of 3 / 2 word intervals which is required for the interleaving of the dipulses as illustrated in fig1 . the delayed parallel binary digits from the shift register array 72 is applied to a code inverter 73 which provides the inverse word w which is appropriate for providing the inverse polarity portion of the dipulse as discussed above . the output of the code inverter 73 is applied as the 1 input to the multiplexer 70 thereby providing the appropriate command signals to the digital - to - analog converter 15 for generating the interleaved dipulse sequence as described and illustrated above . thus w k provides the code that causes the digital - to - analog converter 15 to generate the proper level and polarity pulse for the first portion of the interleaved dipulse with the code inverter 73 and delay shift register 72 producing w k from w k . w k results in a pulse of the same level as but of opposite polarity to that caused by w k . this , in conjunction with the switching performed by the multiplexer 70 , generates the desired interleaving as discussed above and illustrated with respect to fig4 . the interleaved binary word output illustrated as mux output in fig1 is applied to a second time division multiplexer 74 which combines the sync pattern and preamble pattern therewith as discussed above . the sync pattern and preamble pattern are provided by generators 75 and 76 respectively in a conventional manner . the output of the multiplexer 74 is applied as the input to the digital - to - analog converter 15 to generate the analog recording signals discussed above for recording on the medium . it is appreciated from the foregoing description of the preferred embodiment of the invention that by utilizing bias to linearize the magnetic interface and by incorporating partial response signalling in the linearized magnetic recording channel a factor of three to four increase in reliable lineal recording density has been achieved as compared to contemporary , state of the art commercial systems currently available . the inventive system has advanced considerably beyond the prior art toward achieving ultimate communication theoretic recording densities . it is believed that the lineal pulse densities achieved would not be reliably obtainable utilizing a partial response format in the absence of the linearizing bias . additionally , the inclusion of linearizing bias permits the use of multilevel recording which further increases the binary information stored in each recording pulse cell . the bias also provides simultaneous erasure of old data and permits utilization of a pilot tone for timing recovery and gain control . the linearized system further facilitates writeside preemphasis for enhanced signal - to - noise ratio . the partial response format utilizes amplitude threshold sensing in a place of conventional peak - sensing of pulses . a primary design objective in disk recording is to increase the areal storage density of information bits . this can be achieved by either increasing the number of tracks radially or by increasing the per - track lineal bit density or both . for any given radial track density , it becomes increasingly difficult to improve the lineal density because of the inherent non - linear hysteritic and demagnetization characteristics of conventional saturation recording , resulting in such problems as down stream bit shift and excess loss in peak amplitude . the present invention has significantly overcome these prior art disadvantages by causing the major sources of distortion to be rendered linear , which are correctable by equalization , rather than remaining nonlinear , which can be only partially compensated . the magnetic interface utilized in embodying the invention generally provided a lineal density of approximately 4 kbpi in a prior art instrumentation . utilizing the invention described above with this interface provided lineal bit densities of approximately 12 to 16 kbpi . although the present invention is applicable to any magnetic medium recording system to provide a reliable performance improvement in cost / bit and bits / track - inch , the invention is most advantageously incorporated in the magnetic disk file technology which is currently of preference for computer bulk storage . the present embodiment has been described in terms of utilizing as interleaved dipulse sequence , but it will be appreciated that other decompositions of the data into other interleaved multipulse types of waveforms may also be utilized for the spectral or other advantages that they afford . it is further appreciated that precoded binary or multilevel data may be directly provided by the digital - to - analog converter 15 for recording within the confines of the partial response format . it is still further appreciated that the interleaved multipulse sequence signal utilized should possess desirable spectral and / or temporal properties possibly including a frequency spectral null for insertion of a pilot tone . an alternative embodiment of the present invention may be realized by utilizing run - length - limited code constraints with respect to the written data signal instead of utilizing the pilot tone for timing recovery and gain control . the properties of run - length - limited codes are well known in the art for providing reliable timing recovery and a channel gain measurement irrespective of the original source data . the alternative embodiment may or may not utilize an interleaved dipulse waveform or the like , while remaining within the confines of the partial response format . thus it is appreciated that the present invention is not limited to the use of a dipulse sequence . generally an interleaved multipulse sequence may be utilized for the advantages that the waveforms afford or no such waveform whatsoever may be utilized . for the purposes of the appended claims the signals flowing in the system are described as pulses . it is appreciated , as discussed above , that in portions of the system these pulses may comprise words ( typically conceived as being in parallel groups ) of binary digits representative of the pulse amplitudes . although the preferred embodiment of the invention has been exemplified as employing class iv partial response in accordance with u . s . pat . nos . 3 , 388 , 330 and 3 , 492 , 578 , it will be appreciated that the invention also applies to embodiments incorporating generalized partial response , a technique known to the art also as matched transmission or modulo transmitter equalization . generalized partial response employs a precoder of a more general nature than the precoder in the above described embodiment , an example of such decoder being disclosed in the paper by robert price , entitled &# 34 ; nonlinearly feedback - equalized pam vs . capacity , for noisy filter channels &# 34 ;, proceedings of the 1972 international conference on communications , pages 22 - 12 to 22 - 17 , an ieee publication . in other respects , however , the format remains similar to that for the preferred embodiment . alternatively if no precoder is utilized , the decision circuit of a resulting embodiment should then include a conventional decision feedback equalizer as described , for example , in the said ieee paper . it will be understood that the precoder , decision circuit and decoder of the present invention therefore may include elements variously suitable to partial response , generalized partial response or matched transmission or decision feedback equalization or combinations of these techniques known to the art . without departing from the spirit of the invention , it is appreciated that the partial response data recording herein referred to is characterized by the existence of a null at the nyquist frequency of the amplitude spectrum of the data read back pulse components of the equalized playback waveform of fig4 . the nyquist frequency is mathematically defined as equal to one - half the pulse rate , and the possession by the data read back pulse of a spectral null at this frequency makes system operation feasible at the minimum nyquist bandwidth according to fig5 of the aforedescribed preferred embodiment . the minimum nyquist bandwidth is likewise defined as equal to one - half the pulse rate , but it is known in the art that the partial response signalling herein referred to can also be implemented using bandwidths slightly or substantially in excess of the nyquist minimum , while still adhering to a null at the nyquist frequency . other , excess bandwidth embodiments of the invention therefore exist which fall within the compass of the invention herein described and in which bias and / or interleaved multipulse operation is employed . it is appreciated that the herein described partial response format , possessing the above described spectral null at the nyquist frequency , need not have a spectral null at zero frequency . the spectrum , for example , may include a sinusoidally shaped lobe having maximum amplitude at zero frequency and being generally shaped thereafter as described above . in particular , the spectrum may include more than one spectral null within the minimum nyquist bandwidth and may have slightly or substantially excess bandwidth as just stated . thus the terms sinusoidal lobe or sinusoidally shaped lobe includes shapes generally as described above with respect to fig5 as well as shapes having an amplitude maximum at zero frequency . while the invention has been described in its preferred embodiments , it is to be understood that the words which have been used are words of description rather than limitation and that changes may be made within the purview of the appended claims without departing from the true scope and spirit of the invention in its broader aspects .	6
all of the systems herein operate with the telephone system of the general type shown in fig4 . the mobile station 400 communicates with base station 450 . ms 400 includes a processor 402 which carries out the operations and flowcharts described herein . the telephone also includes a user interface 404 , as well as a display 401 , a cellular transceiver 406 . the processor communicates with memory 410 , as well as other associated peripherals , using conventional techniques . the process of fig1 c can be carried out by the processor running a stored program . this program shows detecting information in the telephone that indicates a condition of the telephone that is related to an amount of loading on the telephone and / or its memory . fig1 a and 1b show the current nak parameter negotiation between the mobile station and base station of the mobile communication network . in fig1 a , the system shows the current mo negotiation for the mobile station placing a call to the base station . step 110 indicates the mobile station 400 sending an initial synchronization request to the base station . this initial synchronization request indicates the value ms_maximum ; the number that the mobile station can support . the standard requires that this maximum be greater than or equal to 3 . this information is received by the base station at 115 . the base station obtains a desirable retransmission figure bs_desired . the base station sends the value bs_desired to the mobile station at 120 . note that bs_desired value must be less than or equal to the ms_maximum value . bs_desired is received by the mobile station at 125 . the mobile station then either accepts the base station &# 39 ; s suggested value , or resets . a reset results in a failed call request . to accept the mobile station &# 39 ; s request , the value of bs_desired is repeated at 130 . this completes the negotiation . an analogous operation is carried out for mt negotiation , in which an incoming call is received from the base station to the mobile station . here , the base station sends its bs_desired value to the mobile station at step 150 , received by the mobile station at 155 . the mobile station responds at 160 by sending a value indicating the maximum that the mobile station ( ms_maximum ) at step 160 . this value must be greater than 3 . this is received by the base station at 165 . then , at 170 , the base station sends its desired value , which is less than or equal to the maximum , to the mobile station . this is received at 180 . the mobile station accepts this value or resets . as above , the acceptance is indicated by repeating . as can be seen , the base station and mobile station agree how many packets can be retransmitted . the present application uses an improved system shown in fig2 . this allows the mobile station to manage its own memory requirements and sets its own characteristics . this is done by allowing the mobile station to determine and specify a desired value , rather than its maximum value . the operation is shown in fig2 a . at step 200 , the mobile station sends its desired , not maximum , value ms_desired to the base station . the base station received the value at 205 , and responds with a base station decision value bs_decision at 210 . this value must be less than the mobile station desired value . the mobile station receives this at 215 . the remaining steps of the process are similar to those discussed above in fig1 a . this operation enables the mobile station to have some input into its own memory requirements . the mobile station can decide this maximum based on a number of different factors . an exemplary routine is shown in fig1 c . at step 190 , the routine selects a nominal memory value , which may represent the maximum memory value or some lesser value . the nominal memory value may be , for example , 6 . the system then decrements this memory value by a specified amount for each of a plurality of conditions that are found to be true . the first step at step 191 is the detection that the previous call had a number of lost packets , i . e . more lost packets than n . when this is determined , it may be taken as an indication that the link is so bad that many lost packets may still exist no matter what happens . therefore , at step 192 , the value of n is decreased . note that fig1 c shows all of the values being decreased by the same amount . however a weighting factor can certainly be used to allow the different values to count more than other values . at step 193 , the system determines that the available memory in the telephone is low . when this happens , the memory requirement is reduced at step 194 . at step 195 , the system determines that the quality of service is low . this could happen , for example , if the user has paid for a lower quality of service or the like . again , this can result in a reduction of memory requirements at step 196 . step 197 indicates a trend determination . the trend determination determines , from the time of day and other network parameters , whether is likely that the error rate will be high based on previous similar situations . if traffic is too high , then the user may lose packets in any case . this can therefore cause a reduction in the amount of desired memory at step 198 . at step 240 , a situation is detected in which delay is critical . more retransmissions could cause a delay in the data signal . therefore , if delay is critical , fewer retransmissions are made . fig2 b shows the mt negotiation using “ ms desired ” parameter . in step 250 the base station recommends a value . the mobile station replies at step 252 with a desired value . the base station can use this value to make a decision less than the ms desired value . this can be accepted or rejected by the base station at step 255 . this system allows the advantages of using mobile station information in making its decision . the base station usually has no information about the mobile station . however , in this situation , the base station obtains input from the mobile station as part of its negotiation , and before agreeing on a value . fig3 a shows yet another situation where the mobile station sends both the desired and the maximum value to the base station , providing even more information for the negotiation . fig3 b shows the analogous situation in which the base station recommends and the mobile station responds with both a desired and maximum value . although only a few embodiments have been disclosed above other embodiments and modifications of the above are contemplated .	7
in order to indicate which segments of a field contain vsb data and which segments of a field contain e - vsb data , a twelve bit map data unit ( mdu ) is defined for each data field . accordingly , the map data unit is capable of designating one of 4096 possible combinations of vsb and e - vsb data segments for a respective field . the map data unit for an odd atsc transmitted field may be denoted as { a 0 b 0 c 0 }, and the map data unit for the next succeeding even atsc transmitted field may be denoted as { a e b e c e }, where a 0 , b 0 , c 0 , a e , b e , and c e each comprises four bits and is referred to herein as a map data sub - unit . thus , each map data unit comprises twelve bits and two map data units for successive odd and even fields comprise twenty - four bits . as shown in fig2 a controller 10 generates a sequence of map data units for application to a kerdock encoder 12 . kerdock encoders that may be used for the kerdock encoder 12 are disclosed below . eight bits at a time are supplied to the kerdock encoder 12 . thus , the first eight bits supplied to the kerdock encoder 12 correspond to map data sub - units a 0 b 0 , the next eight bits supplied to the kerdock encoder 12 correspond to map data sub - units c 0 a e , and the next eight bits supplied to the kerdock encoder 12 correspond to map data sub - units b e c e . the map data units for succeeding fields are applied to the kerdock encoder 12 in a like fashion . for each eight bit input , the kerdock encoder 12 produces a sixteen bit code word or vector that consists of the eight input bits and eight parity bits p x . accordingly , for input map data sub - units a 0 b 0 , the output of the kerdock encoder 12 is a code word or vector { a 0 b 0 p 1 }; for map data sub - units c 0 a e , the output of the kerdock encoder 12 is { c 0 a e p 2 }; and , for map data sub - units b e c e , the output of the kerdock encoder 12 is { b e c e p 3 }. thus , three map data sub - units covering successive odd and even fields n and n + 1 are thereby encoded into three sixteen bit output vectors containing forty - eight bits in all . the code vectors that are produced by the kerdock encoder 12 are processed by a convolutional interleaver 14 in order to provide protection from burst noise . convolutional interleavers and de - interleavers are described in the atsc digital television standard . an interleaver that may be used for the convolutional interleaver 14 is disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 572 , 532 . the convolutional interleaver 14 is preferably characterized by the parameters n = 48 , b = 16 and m = 3 , where n is m times the block size ( 16 data elements ) corresponding to three encoded map vectors produced by the kerdock encoder 12 , b is the interleave depth , and m is the delay unit size of the interleaver . thus , the convolutional interleaver 14 delays the individual bits of the forty - eight bits of each block of three code vectors by 0 , 3 , 6 , . . . , 45 bits at the output of the convolutional interleaver 14 . the convolutional interleaver 14 is preferably synchronized to the atsc field sync signal that is generated by the controller 10 so that the successive delays on the input bits are reset at the end of each field . accordingly , each field begins with zero delay . as will be explained in further detail hereinafter , each set of forty - eight interleaved bits of the blocks of three code vectors are duplicated for transmission as two level symbols in the reserved portion of two consecutive field sync segments . it will be appreciated that this kerdock coding and duplication results in an effective coding rate of ¼ because the map bits are doubled in number by the kerdock encoder 12 and are doubled in number again by the duplication , so that twenty - four bits representing two map data units are coded into ninety - six bits in two field sync segments . it will also be appreciated that , considering the corresponding de - interleaver in the receiver , a latency interval l must be accounted for when associating the map data units with the corresponding fields . the latency interval of the interleaver / de - interleaver combination is given by the expression l = n ×( b − 1 ). in the specific example of the convolutional interleaver 14 given above , n = 48 and b = 16 . therefore , the latency interval of the interleaver / de - interleaver combination according to this example is l = 48 × 15 = 720 bits or 15 ( 720 / 48 ) fields . if two additional fields are allowed for processing time , the system may be characterized by the following relationships : coded mdu for field n : a 0 b 0 p 1 c 0 a e p 2 b e c e p 3 coded mdu for field n + 1 : a 0 b 0 p 1 c 0 a e p 2 b e c e p 3 where mdu a 0 b 0 c 0 identifies the mix of vsb and e - vsb segments for field n + 2 + l and where mdu a e b e c e identifies the mix of vsb and e - vsb segments for field n + 3 + l . a vsb data source 16 provides vsb data and an e - vsb data source 18 provides e - vsb data . one result of the kerdock encoding applied by the kerdock encoder 12 is that the mdus are more robustly encoded than are the vsb data and the e - vsb data . the controller 10 controls the vsb data source 16 and the e - vsb data source 18 so as to control the mix of vsb and e - vsb data segments in a particular field . because of the system latency interval , the map data unit , which notifies the receiver of this mix and which is encoded by the kerdock encoder 12 , is transmitted beginning in a field that is transmitted 17 or 18 fields earlier than the field containing that mix and ends in a field that is transmitted 1 or 2 fields earlier that the field containing that mix . that is , the map data unit supplied by the controller 10 to the kerdock encoder 12 during formatting of the current field corresponds to vsb and / or e - vsb data to be transmitted 17 or 18 fields later . however , because of the interleaving performed by the convolutional interleaver 38 , this map data unit is spread over 15 fields . the data segments supplied by the vsb data source 16 and the e - vsb data source 18 , together with the encoded and interleaved map data unit bits from the convolutional interleaver 14 , are applied to a data field formatter 20 . the data field formatter 20 is synchronized to the field sync signal from the controller 10 and formats the transmitted field so that the forty - eight encoded and interleaved map data unit bits are inserted into the reserved portion of two successive field sync segments . the vsb data source 16 and the e - vsb data source 18 are controlled by the controller 10 so that the vsb and e - vsb data segments supplied by the vsb data source 16 and the e - vsb data source 18 to the data field formatter 20 correspond to a map data unit transmitted beginning n + 2 + l or n + 3 + l fields prior thereto . the data field formatter 20 is synchronized so that these vsb and e - vsb data segments are appropriately multiplexed throughout the current field in accordance with that previously transmitted map data unit . finally , the formatted fields are successively applied to a standard atsc modulator and transmitter 22 for transmission . an example of the convolutional interleaver 14 is shown in fig3 and includes sixteen paths coupled between an input 24 and an output 26 by corresponding synchronized switching functions 28 and 29 . as shown in fig2 the input 24 is coupled to the kerdock encoder 12 and the output 26 is coupled to the data field formatter 20 . the switching functions 28 and 29 synchronously step through the sixteen paths on a data element - by - data element basis so that one data element received on the input 24 is coupled through the first path to the output 26 , so that the next data element received on the input 24 is coupled through the second path to the output 26 , and so on . the first path of the convolutional interleaver 14 imposes no delay on the data elements passing therethrough , the second path of the convolutional interleaver 14 imposes a three element delay on the data elements passing therethrough , the third path of the convolutional interleaver 14 imposes a six element delay on the data elements passing therethrough , . . . , and the sixteenth path of the convolutional interleaver 14 imposes a forty - five element delay on the data elements passing therethrough . as shown in fig4 the signal transmitted by the atsc modulator and transmitter 22 is received by a receiver comprising a tuner 30 . the if output of the tuner 30 is demodulated by an atsc demodulator 32 in order to provide an analog baseband output representing the transmitted symbols . this analog signal is sampled by an a / d converter 34 under control of a digital processor 38 to convert the demodulated symbols into corresponding multibit digital values . the encoded and interleaved map data unit symbols , which are duplicated in successive fields as discussed above , are applied to a convolutional de - interleaver 40 . the remaining symbols are directly applied to the digital processor 38 , which converts these remaining symbols to corresponding bits , arranged in data bytes , for application to a segment de - formatter 42 . the segment de - formatter 42 receives a de - interleaved and decoded map data unit from a kerdock decoder 44 . the segment de - formatter 42 responds to this de - interleaved and decoded map data unit by passing the vsb segments in the field to a vsb processor 46 and by passing the e - vsb segments in the field to an e - vsb processor 48 . the vsb processor 46 and the e - vsb processor 48 decode and otherwise process the respective vsb data and e - vsb data from the segment de - formatter 42 . as an example , the vsb processor 46 may perform reed - solomon decoding and , in the case where the vsb data has been trellis encoded in the transmitter , the vsb processor 46 may also perform viterbi decoding . the e - vsb processor 48 , for example , may perform the same decoding as the vsb processor 46 and , in addition , perform the additional decoding corresponding to the additional coding that was performed in the transmitter in order to add robustness to the data . moreover , the vsb processor 46 and the e - vsb processor 48 may perform de - interleaving and de - randomization . the interleaved map data unit symbols from the a / d converter 34 are applied to the convolutional de - interleaver 40 which de - interleaves the map data unit symbols in inverse fashion relative to the convolutional interleaver 14 in order to provide the vectors produced by the kerdock encoder 12 . the de - interleaved vectors corresponding to a map data unit and to its corresponding duplicate map data unit are averaged on a bit - by - bit basis by an averaging circuit 50 in order to improve the reliability of the map data units . the de - interleaved and averaged vectors are decoded by the kerdock decoder 44 in order to recover the map data units that control the segment de - formatter 42 . since the mdus were encoded more robustly than either the vsb data or the e - vsb data , the mdus will be recovered in the receiver with less errors than the data . as explained previously , the latency interval of the interleave / de - interleave process is accommodated in the system because the map data units provided by the controller 10 define the mix of vsb and e - vsb data segments that are to be transmitted l fields later in time . exemplary embodiments of the kerdock decoder 44 and the convolutional de - interleaver 40 are disclosed in the previously referenced u . s . pat . nos . 6 , 226 , 318 b1 and 5 , 572 , 532 respectively . as discussed below in more detail , the kerdock decoder 44 may be arranged to provide an estimation of the reliability of the decoding process . in terms of the map data unit specifically , the kerdock decoder 44 may be arranged to provide an estimation of the reliability of the decoding of the map data unit . if this reliability indicates that the decoded map data unit is not reliable , the immediately previous map data unit that was reliably decoded is used to de - format the field instead of the currently decoded map data unit . this operation is justified by assuming that the mix between vsb data and e - vsb data changes from field to field at a relatively slow rate so that the substitute map data unit will likely define the appropriate segment mix . an example of the convolutional de - interleaver 40 is shown in fig5 and includes sixteen paths coupled between an input 60 and an output 62 by corresponding synchronized switching functions 64 and 66 . as shown in fig4 the input 60 is coupled to the a / d converter 34 and the output 62 is coupled to the averaging circuit 50 . the switching functions 64 and 66 synchronously step through the sixteen paths on a data element - by - data element basis so that one data element received on the input 60 is coupled through the first path to the output 62 , so that the next data element received on the input 60 is coupled through the second path to the output 62 , and so on . the first path of the convolutional de - interleaver 40 imposes a forty - five element delay on the data elements passing therethrough , the second path of the convolutional interleaver 14 imposes a forty - two delay on the data elements passing therethrough , . . . . the fourteenth path of the convolutional interleaver 14 imposes a six element delay on the data elements passing therethrough , the fifteenth path of the convolutional interleaver 14 imposes a three element delay on the data elements passing therethrough , and the sixteen path of the convolutional interleaver 14 imposes no delay on the data elements passing therethrough . a systematic kerdock encoder 70 is shown in fig6 and may be used for the kerdock encoder 12 . the systematic kerdock encoder 70 accepts an input having n data elements , such as the map data sub - units a 0 and b 0 having a total of eight bits , and outputs a corresponding code word having 2n data elements , such as the code word { a 0 b 0 p 1 } having a total of sixteen bits , by appending n parity bits , such as the eight parity bits p 1 , to the end of the n input data elements , such as the map data sub - units a 0 and b 0 having eight bits . the n parity data elements are read out of a look - up table 72 based on the n input data elements . in the case where each map data sub - unit is four bits so that two map data sub - units are eight bits , the look - up table 72 stores 256 sets of parity bits where each set contains eight bits . appendix a shows exemplary data for the look - up table 72 . each bit in this exemplary data has one of only two values , 1 or − 1 . in describing the relationship between the input bits and the sets of parity bits stored in the look - up table , it is useful to think of a bit having a value of − 1 as a bit having a value of 0 . the eight bits that are provided as an input to the systematic kerdock encoder 70 are used as an address into the look - up table 72 . the data stored in the look - up table 72 are arranged so that , when a set of eight parity bits is read out according to eight input bits and is appended to the eight input bits , a kerdock code word is formed . a kerdock code word has a minimum distance of six from any other kerdock code word . distance is a measure of how many corresponding bits differ between two code words . the relationship between the input bits and the bits stored in the look - up table 72 fosters the creation of the kerdock code words that are output by the systematic kerdock encoder 70 . this relationship is as follows : the input bits having a value of − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 ( i . e ., the address 0 ) are used to address the first row of appendix a ; the input bits having a value of − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 ( i . e ., the address 1 ) are used to address the second row of appendix a ; the input bits having a value of − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 − 1 ( i . e ., the address 2 ) are used to address the third row of appendix a ; the input bits having a value of − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 1 ( i . e ., the address 3 ) are used to address the fourth row of appendix a ; and so on . as an example , when the input − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 is received by the systematic kerdock encoder 70 , the first row of appendix a is read out from the look - up table 72 and is appended to this input to form the kerdock code word − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 − 1 1 1 − 1 1 − 1 . as another example , when the input − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 is received by the systematic kerdock encoder 70 , the second row of appendix a is read out from the look - up table 72 and is appended to this input to form the kerdock code word − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 1 − 1 − 1 . it is noted that these two kerdock code words have a distance of six from each other because the eighth , ninth , tenth , twelfth , fourteenth , and fifteenth bits are different between the two kerdock code words . alternatively , a systematic kerdock encoder 74 is shown in fig7 and may be used for the kerdock encoder 12 . the systematic kerdock encoder 74 accepts an input having n data elements , such as the map data sub - units a 0 and b 0 having a total of eight bits , and outputs a corresponding code word having 2n data elements , such as the code word { a 0 b 0 p 1 } having a total of sixteen bits , by reading out the 2n data element code word from a look - up table 76 . in the case where each map data sub - unit is four bits so that two map data sub - units are eight bits , the look - up table 76 stores 256 code words where each code word contains sixteen bits . appendix b shows exemplary data for the look - up table 76 . as in the case of appendix a , each bit in this exemplary data has one of only two values , 1 or − 1 . the eight bits that are provided as an input to the systematic kerdock encoder 74 are used as an address into the look - up table 76 and correspond to the first eight bits of a row in the data shown in appendix b . the row of appendix b that is addressed by a set of eight input bits is the row in which the first eight bits match the eight input bits . each code word stored in the look - up table 76 is a kerdock code word because each code word stored in the look - up table 76 has a minimum distance of six from any other kerdock code word stored in the look - up table 76 . as an example , when the input − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 −− 1 − 1 is received by the systematic kerdock encoder 74 , a row 78 of appendix a is read out from the look - up table 76 . the row 78 contains the following bits : − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 − 1 1 1 − 1 1 − 1 . as another example , when the input − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 is received by the systematic kerdock encoder 74 , a row 80 of appendix a is read out from the look - up table 76 . the row 80 contains the following bits : − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 − 1 − 1 . it is noted that these two kerdock code words have a distance of six from each other because the eighth , ninth , tenth , twelfth , fourteenth , and fifteenth bits are different between the two kerdock code words . a systematic kerdock decoder 82 is shown in fig8 and may be used for the kerdock decoder 44 . the systematic kerdock decoder 82 accepts an input having 2n data elements , such as eight bits corresponding to the map data sub - units a 0 and b 0 and 8 bits corresponding to the parity bits , and outputs a vector of n data elements , such as the map data sub - units a 0 and b 0 having eight bits . more specifically , a correlator 84 correlates the 2n input data elements with each of 256 kerdock code words stored in a look - up table 86 , where each kerdock code word comprises sixteen data elements such as bits . appendix b shows exemplary data for the look - up table 86 . the correlation implemented by the correlator 84 , for example , may be a cross product of the input 2n data elements and each of the kerdock code words stored in the look - up table 86 . thus , the first data element of the 2n input data elements is multiplied by the first data element of a first kerdock code word stored in the look - up table 86 to form a first product , the second data element of the 2n input data elements is multiplied by the second data element of the first kerdock code word stored in the look - up table 86 to form a second product , . . . , and the sixteenth data element of the 2n input data elements is multiplied by the sixteenth data element of the first kerdock code word stored in the look - up table 86 to form a sixteenth product . the resulting sixteen products are added to form a first correlation between the 2n input data elements and the first kerdock code word stored in the look - up table 86 . this process is repeated for each of the other 255 kerdock code words stored in the look - up table 86 . an identifier 88 identifies the kerdock code word from the look - up table 86 that produced the largest correlation and outputs the first eight data elements of this kerdock code word as the eight data elements making up two map data sub - units of a map data unit to be applied to the segment de - formatter 42 . the identifier 88 may also form the difference between the largest correlation and the next largest correlation as a reliability factor that indicates the reliability with which the 2n input data elements have been decoded . alternatively , a systematic kerdock decoder 90 is shown in fig9 and may be used for the kerdock decoder 44 . the systematic kerdock decoder 90 accepts an input having 2n data elements , such as the map data sub - units a 0 and b 0 having eight bits and the corresponding eight parity bits p 1 , and outputs a vector having n data elements , such as the map data sub - units a 0 and b 0 having eight bits . more specifically , a correlator 92 correlates the 2n input data elements with each of 256 kerdock code words that are supplied to the correlator 92 from a sequence generator 94 and a look - up table 96 . each kerdock code word supplied to the correlator 92 from the sequence generator 94 and the look - up table 96 comprises sixteen data elements such as bits . the correlation implemented by the correlator 92 , for example , may be the same correlation as implemented by the correlator 84 . the first eight bits of the first kerdock code word supplied to the correlator 92 comprises a first sequence of eight bits generated by the sequence generator 94 . for example , this first sequence may be − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 ( i . e ., 0 ). the second eight bits of the first kerdock code word supplied to the correlator 92 comprise eight bits read out of the look - up table 96 based on an address corresponding to the eight bits generated by the sequence generator 94 . these two sets of eight bits are appended together and are supplied to the correlator 92 . appendix a shows exemplary data for the look - up table 96 . the relationship between the input bits from the sequence generator 94 and the bits stored in the look - up table 96 may be the same as that used by the systematic kerdock encoder 70 . accordingly , the input bits having a value of − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 ( i . e ., the address 0 ) are used to address the first row of appendix a , the input bits having a value of − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 ( i . e ., the address 1 ) are used to address the second row of appendix a , and so on . the correlator 92 produces a first correlation based upon the input 2n bits and the first kerdock code word produced by the sequence generator 94 and the look - up table 96 . the first eight bits of the second kerdock code word supplied to the correlator 92 comprises a second sequence of eight bits generated by the sequence generator 94 . for example , this second sequence may be − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 − 1 1 ( i . e ., 1 ). the second eight bits of the second kerdock code word supplied to the correlator 92 comprise eight bits read out of the look - up table 96 based on an address corresponding to the eight bits generated by the sequence generator 94 . these two sets of eight bits are appended together and are supplied to the correlator 92 . the correlator 92 produces a second correlation based upon the input 2n bits and the second kerdock code word produced by the sequence generator 94 and the look - up table 96 , and so on . an identifier 98 identifies the kerdock code word from the sequence generator 94 and the look - up table 96 that produced the largest correlation and outputs the first eight data elements of this kerdock code word as the eight data elements making up two map data sub - units of a map data unit to be applied to the segment de - formatter 42 . the identifier 98 may also form the difference between the largest correlation and the next largest correlation as a reliability factor indicating the reliability with which the 2n input data elements have been decoded . as a further alternative , a systematic decoder 100 shown in fig1 may be used for the kerdock decoder 44 . the systematic decoder 100 is a modified form of the non - systematic decoder disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 6 , 226 , 318 b1 . the systematic decoder 100 includes two column rotators 102 and 104 , and eight vector multipliers 106 , 108 , 110 , 112 , 114 , 116 , 118 , and 120 . the modification involves the addition of the two column rotators to the non - systematic decoder disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 6 , 226 , 318 b1 . appendix c shows the coset leaders that are applied to first inputs of the multipliers 106 , 108 , 110 , 112 , 114 , 116 , 118 , and 120 . accordingly , the coset leader in the first row of appendix c is applied to the first input of the multiplier 106 , the coset leader in the second row of appendix c is applied to the first input of the multiplier 108 , the coset leader in the third row of appendix c is applied to the first input of the multiplier 110 , . . . , and the coset leader in the eighth row of appendix c is applied to the first input of the multiplier 120 . the input sixteen data elements to be decoded are re - arranged ( such as rotated ) according to the first column of the following table and this rotated input is applied to each of the second inputs of the multipliers 106 , 108 , 110 , and 112 . the input to be decoded is rotated according to the second column of the following table and this rotated input is applied to each of the second inputs of the multipliers 114 , 116 , 118 , and 120 . table 4 ″ 1 4 ″ 1 15 ″ 2 15 ″ 2 14 ″ 3 14 ″ 3 9 ″ 4 9 ″ 4 5 ″ 5 6 ″ 5 12 ″ 6 11 ″ 6 7 ″ 7 8 ″ 7 2 ″ 8 1 ″ 8 3 ″ 9 3 ″ 9 16 ″ 10 16 ″ 10 13 ″ 11 13 ″ 11 10 ″ 12 10 ″ 12 6 ″ 13 5 ″ 13 11 ″ 14 12 ″ 14 8 ″ 15 7 ″ 15 1 ″ 16 2 ″ 16 according to the first column of the above table , the fourth input data element is moved to the first data element position of the output to be supplied to the second inputs of the multipliers 106 , 108 , 110 , and 112 , the fifteenth input data element is moved to the second data element position of the output to be supplied to the second inputs of the multipliers 106 , 108 , 110 , and 112 , the fourteenth input data element is moved to the third data element position of the output to be supplied to the second inputs of the multipliers 106 , 108 , 110 , and 112 , . . . , and the first input data element is moved to the sixteenth data element position of the output to be supplied to the second inputs of the multipliers 106 , 108 , 110 , and 112 . accordingly , the sixteen data element input is rotated by the column rotator 102 to form a sixteen data element output to be supplied to the second inputs of the multipliers 106 , 108 , 110 , and 112 . similarly , the second column of the above table shows the rotation imposed by the column rotator 104 on the sixteen input data elements to form a sixteen data element output to be supplied to the second inputs of the multipliers 114 , 116 , 118 , and 120 . the column rotators 102 and 104 in effect convert a systematic code vector to a non - systematic code vector . the outputs of the multipliers 106 , 108 , 110 , 112 , 114 , 116 , 118 , and 120 are processed by a corresponding one of 16 × 16 hadamard transforms 119 1 - 119 8 to produce corresponding spectra that are analyzed by a spectral analyzer 122 . the spectral analyzer 122 determines which spectra contains the largest coefficient and decodes the largest coefficient to produce the corresponding kerdock code word . the first eight bits of this kerdock code word are supplied by the spectral analyzer 122 as the eight data elements making up two map data sub - units of a map data unit to be applied to the segment de - formatter 42 . the spectral analyzer 122 may also form the difference between the largest coefficient and the next largest coefficient as a reliability factor indicating the reliability with which the 2n input data elements have been decoded . the receiving arrangement shown in fig4 performs the functions illustrated by the flow chart of fig1 a and 11b . a block 200 receives a field , and a block 202 parses the field in order to recover the map data unit symbols . a block 204 de - interleaves the map data unit symbols , and a block 206 stores the de - interleaved map data unit symbols in a memory . when a full map data unit has been de - interleaved as determined by a block 208 , a block 210 determines whether this map data unit corresponds to an odd field or an even field . if the block 210 determines that this map data unit corresponds to an odd field , a block 212 simply stores the map data unit awaiting de - interleaving and decoding of the duplicate of this data map unit because data map units transmitted in odd fields are duplicated in even fields . after the non - duplicate map data unit is stored by the block 212 , flow returns to the block 200 . if the block 210 determines that this map data unit corresponds to an even field , the recovered map data unit is a duplicate of the map data unit previously de - interleaved and decoded . accordingly , a block 214 averages the current map data unit and the previous map data unit . a block 216 decodes the map data unit average , and a block 218 computes a reliability factor for the map data unit average . a block 220 stores the average map and the corresponding reliability factor . a block 222 determines whether the reliability factor of a decoded map data unit corresponding to the field received at the block 200 indicates that the decoded map data unit has been reliably decoded . if the reliability factor indicates reliable decoding , a block 224 de - formats the field corresponding to the appropriate map data unit and sends the vsb data and / or the e - vsb data to the vsb processor 46 and / or the e - vsb processor 48 , as appropriate , in accordance with the de - formatting . on the other hand , if the reliability factor indicates that the decoding was not reliable as determined at the block 222 , a block 226 retrieves the immediately previous map data unit that was reliably decoded , and a block 228 de - formats the field in accordance with the retrieved immediately previous map data unit and sends the vsb data and / or the e - vsb data to the vsb processor 46 and / or the e - vsb processor 48 , as appropriate , in accordance with the de - formatting . certain modifications of the present invention have been discussed above . other modifications will occur to those practicing in the art of the present invention . for example , the blocks that have been described above in relation to the various drawing figures described herein may be hardware blocks , software modules , logic arrays , etc . moreover , the arrangements shown in these drawing figures may be implemented as separate blocks as shown , or the blocks may be combined or divided as desired without departing from the scope of the invention . moreover , as disclosed above , the convolutional interleaver 14 and de - interleaver 40 are preferably characterized by the parameters n = 48 , b = 16 and m = 3 . however , the convolutional interleaver 14 and de - interleaver 40 may be characterized by the other values for the parameters n , b , and m . accordingly , the description of the present invention is to be construed as illustrative only and is for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the best mode of carrying out the invention . the details may be varied substantially without departing from the spirit of the invention , and the exclusive use of all modifications which are within the scope of the appended claims is reserved .	8
the terms “ functional group ”, “ active moiety ”, “ activating group ”, “ reactive site ”, “ chemically reactive group ” and “ chemically reactive moiety ” are used in the art and herein to refer to distinct , definable portions or units of a molecule . the terms are somewhat synonymous in the chemical arts and are used herein to indicate that the portions of molecules that perform some function or activity and are reactive with other molecules . the term “ active ,” when used in conjunction with functional groups , is intended to include those functional groups that react readily with electrophilic or nucleophilic groups on other molecules , in contrast to those groups that require strong catalysts or highly impractical reaction conditions in order to react . for example , as would be understood in the art , the term “ active ester ” would include those esters that react readily with nucleophilic groups such as amines . typically , an active ester will react with an amine in aqueous medium in a matter of minutes , whereas certain esters , such as methyl or ethyl esters , require a strong catalyst in order to react with a nucleophilic the term “ linkage ” or “ linker ” is used herein to refer to groups or bonds that normally are formed as the result of a chemical reaction and typically are covalent linkages . hydrolytically stable linkages means that the linkages are substantially stable in water and do not react with water at useful phs , e . g ., under physiological conditions for an extended period of time , perhaps even indefinitely . hydrolytically unstable or degradable linkages means that the linkages are degradable in water or in aqueous solutions , including for example , blood . enzymatically unstable or degradable linkages means that the linkage can be degraded by one or more enzymes . as understood in the art , peg and related polymers may include degradable linkages in the polymer backbone or in the linker group between the polymer backbone and one or more of the terminal functional groups of the polymer molecule . for example , ester linkages formed by the reaction of peg carboxylic acids or activated peg carboxylic acids with alcohol groups on a biologically active agent generally hydrolyze under physiological conditions to release the agent . other hydrolytically degradable linkages include carbonate linkages ; imine linkages resulted from reaction of an amine and an aldehyde ( see , e . g ., ouchi et al ., polymer preprints , 38 ( 1 ): 582 - 3 ( 1997 ), which is incorporated herein by reference . ); phosphate ester linkages formed by reacting an alcohol with a phosphate group ; hydrozone linkages which are reaction product of a hydrazide and an aldehyde ; acetal linkages that are the reaction product of an aldehyde and an alcohol ; orthoester linkages that are the reaction product of a formate and an alcohol ; peptide linkages formed by an amine group , e . g ., at an end of a polymer such as peg , and a carboxyl group of a peptide ; and oligonucleotide linkages formed by a phosphoramidite group , e . g ., at the end of a polymer , and a 5 ′ hydroxyl group of an oligonucleotide . the term “ biologically active molecule ”, “ biologically active moiety ” or “ biologically active agent ” when used herein means any substance which can affect any physical or biochemical properties of a biological organism , including but not limited to viruses , bacteria , fungi , plants , animals , and humans . in particular , as used herein , biologically active molecules include any substance intended for diagnosis , cure mitigation , treatment , or prevention of disease in humans or other animals , or to otherwise enhance physical or mental well - being of humans or animals . examples of biologically active molecules include , but are not limited to , peptides , proteins , enzymes , small molecule drugs , dyes , lipids , nucleosides , oligonucleotides , cells , viruses , liposomes , microparticles and micelles . classes of biologically active agents that are suitable for use with the invention include , but are not limited to , antibiotics , fungicides , anti - viral agents , anti - inflammatory agents , anti - tumor agents , cardiovascular agents , anti - anxiety agents , hormones , growth factors , steroidal agents , and the like . the terms “ alkyl ,” “ alkene ,” and “ alkoxy ” include straight chain and branched alkyl , alkene , and alkoxy , respectively . the term “ lower alkyl ” refers to c1 - c6 alkyl . the term “ alkoxy ” refers to oxygen substituted alkyl , for example , of the formulas — or or — ror 1 , wherein r and r 1 are each independently selected alkyl . the terms “ substituted alkyl ” and “ substituted alkene ” refer to alkyl and alkene , respectively , substituted with one or more non - interfering substituents , such as but not limited to , c3 - c6 cycloalkyl , e . g ., cyclopropyl , cyclobutyl , and the like ; acetylene ; cyano ; alkoxy , e . g ., methoxy , ethoxy , and the like ; lower alkanoyloxy , e . g ., acetoxy ; hydroxy ; carboxyl ; amino ; lower alkylamino , e . g ., methylamino ; ketone ; halo , e . g . chloro or bromo ; phenyl ; substituted phenyl , and the like . the term “ halogen ” includes fluorine , chlorine , iodine and bromine . “ aryl ” means one or more aromatic rings , each of 5 or 6 carbon atoms . multiple aryl rings may be fused , as in naphthyl or unfused , as in biphenyl . aryl rings may also be fused or unfused with one or more cyclic hydrocarbon , heteroaryl , or heterocyclic rings . “ substituted aryl ” is aryl having one or more non - interfering groups as substituents . “ non - interfering substituents ” are those groups that yield stable compounds . suitable non - interfering substituents or radicals include , but are not limited to , halo , c 1 - c 10 alkyl , c 2 - c 10 alkenyl , c 2 - c 10 alkynyl , c 1 - c 10 alkoxy , c 7 - c 12 aralkyl , c 7 - c 12 alkaryl , c 3 - c 10 cycloalkyl , c 3 - c 10 cycloalkenyl , phenyl , substituted phenyl , toluoyl , xylenyl , biphenyl , c 2 - c 12 alkoxyalkyl , c 7 - c 12 alkoxyaryl , c 7 - c 12 aryloxyalkyl , c 6 - c 12 oxyaryl , c 1 - c 6 alkylsulfinyl , c 1 - c 10 alkylsulfonyl , —( ch 2 ) m — o —( c 1 - c 10 alkyl ) wherein m is from 1 to 8 , aryl , substituted aryl , substituted alkoxy , fluoroalkyl , heterocyclic radical , substituted heterocyclic radical , nitroalkyl , — no 2 , — cn , — nrc ( o )—( c 1 - c 10 alkyl ), — c ( o )—( c 1 - c 10 alkyl ), c 2 - c 10 thioalkyl , — c ( o ) o —( c 1 - c 10 alkyl ), — oh , — so 2 , ═ s , — cooh , — nr 2 , carbonyl , — c ( o )—( c 1 - c 10 alkyl )- cf 3 , — c ( o )— cf 3 , — c ( o ) nr 2 , —( c 1 - c 10 alkyl )- s —( c 6 - c 12 aryl ), — c ( o )—( c 6 - c 12 aryl ), —( ch 2 ) m — o —( ch 2 ) n — o —( c 1 - c 10 alkyl ) wherein each m is from 1 to 8 , — c ( o ) nr 2 , — c ( s ) nr 2 , — so 2 nr 2 , — nrc ( o ) nr 2 , — nrc ( s ) nr 2 , salts thereof , and the like . each r as used herein is h , alkyl or substituted alkyl , aryl or substituted aryl , aralkyl , or alkaryl . the invention provides a sterically hindered polymer , comprising a water - soluble and non - peptidic polymer backbone having at least one terminus , the terminus being covalently bonded to the structure z is selected from the group consisting of alkyl , substituted alkyl , aryl and substituted aryl ; and the polymer backbone of the water - soluble and non - peptidic polymer can be poly ( ethylene glycol ) ( i . e . peg ). however , it should be understood that other related polymers are also suitable for use in the practice of this invention and that the use of the term peg or poly ( ethylene glycol ) is intended to be inclusive and not exclusive in this respect . the term peg includes poly ( ethylene glycol ) in any of its forms , including alkoxy peg , difunctional peg , multiarmed peg , forked peg , branched peg , pendent peg , or peg with degradable linkages therein . peg is typically clear , colorless , odorless , soluble in water , stable to heat , inert to many chemical agents , does not hydrolyze or deteriorate , and is generally non - toxic . poly ( ethylene glycol ) is considered to be biocompatible , which is to say that peg is capable of coexistence with living tissues or organisms without causing harm . more specifically , peg is substantially non - immunogenic , which is to say that peg does not tend to produce an immune response in the body . when attached to a molecule having some desirable function in the body , such as a biologically active agent , the peg tends to mask the agent and can reduce or eliminate any immune response so that an organism can tolerate the presence of the agent . peg conjugates tend not to produce a substantial immune response or cause clotting or other undesirable effects . peg having the formula — ch 2 ch 2 o —( ch 2 ch 2 o ) n — ch 2 ch 2 —, where n is from about 3 to about 4000 , typically from about 3 to about 2000 , is one useful polymer in the practice of the invention . peg having a molecular weight of from about 200 da to about 100 , 000 da are particularly useful as the polymer backbone . the polymer backbone can be linear or branched . branched polymer backbones are generally known in the art . typically , a branched polymer has a central branch core moiety and a plurality of linear polymer chains linked to the central branch core . peg is commonly used in branched forms that can be prepared by addition of ethylene oxide to various polyols , such as glycerol , pentaerythritol and sorbitol . the central branch moiety can also be derived from several amino acids , such as lysine . the branched poly ( ethylene glycol ) can be represented in general form as r (- peg - oh ) m in which r represents the core moiety , such as glycerol or pentaerythritol , and m represents the number of arms . multi - armed peg molecules , such as those described in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 932 , 462 , which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety , can also be used as the polymer backbone . branched peg can also be in the form of a forked peg represented by peg (- ychz 2 ) n , where y is a linking group and z is an activated terminal group linked to ch by a chain of atoms of defined length . yet another branched form , the pendant peg , has reactive groups , such as carboxyl , along the peg backbone rather than at the end of peg chains . in addition to these forms of peg , the polymer can also be prepared with weak or degradable linkages in the backbone . for example , peg can be prepared with ester linkages in the polymer backbone that are subject to hydrolysis . as shown below , this hydrolysis results in cleavage of the polymer into fragments of lower molecular weight : it is understood by those skilled in the art that the term poly ( ethylene glycol ) or peg represents or includes all the above forms . many other polymers are also suitable for the invention . polymer backbones that are non - peptidic and water - soluble , with from 2 to about 300 termini , are particularly useful in the invention . examples of suitable polymers include , but are not limited to , other poly ( alkylene glycols ), such as poly ( propylene glycol ) (“ ppg ”), copolymers of ethylene glycol and propylene glycol and the like , poly ( oxyethylated polyol ), poly ( olefinic alcohol ), poly ( vinylpyrrolidone ), poly ( hydroxypropylmethacrylamide ), poly ( α - hydroxy acid ), poly ( vinyl alcohol ), polyphosphazene , polyoxazoline , poly ( n - acryloylmorpholine ), such as described in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 629 , 384 , which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety , and copolymers , terpolymers , and mixtures thereof . although the molecular weight of each chain of the polymer backbone can vary , it is typically in the range of from about 100 da to about 100 , 000 da , often from about 6 , 000 da to about 80 , 000 da . those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the foregoing list for substantially water soluble and non - peptidic polymer backbones is by no means exhaustive and is merely illustrative , and that all polymeric materials having the qualities described above are contemplated . examples of suitable alkyl and aryl groups for the z moiety include methyl , ethyl , n - propyl , isopropyl , n - butyl , isobutyl , sec - butyl , t - butyl , and benzyl . in one embodiment , z is a c 1 - c 8 alkyl or substituted alkyl . the optional ch 2 spacer between the α - carbon and the q moiety can provide additional dampening effect on the rate of hydrolytic degradation of the molecule . in one embodiment , m is 1 to about 10 . the x moiety is a leaving group , meaning that it can be displaced by reaction of a nucleophile with the molecule containing x . in some cases , as when x is hydroxy , the group must be activated by reaction with a molecule such as n , n ′- dicyclohexylcarbodiimide ( dcc ) in order to make it an effective leaving group . examples of suitable x moieties include halogen , such as chlorine and bromine , n - succinimidyloxy , sulfo - n - succinimidyloxy , 1 - benzotriazolyloxy , hydroxyl , 1 - imidazolyl , and p - nitrophenyloxy . in one aspect , the polymer has a terminal carboxylic acid group ( i . e . x is hydroxyl ). poly is a water - soluble and non - peptidic polymer backbone , such as peg ; r ′ can be any suitable capping group known in the art for polymers of this type . for example , r ′ can be a relatively inert capping group , such as an alkoxy group ( e . g . methoxy ). alternatively , r ′ can be a functional group . examples of suitable functional groups include hydroxyl , protected hydroxyl , active ester , such as n - hydroxysuccinimidyl esters and 1 - benzotriazolyl esters , active carbonate , such as n - hydroxysuccinimidyl carbonates and 1 - benzotriazolyl carbonates , acetal , aldehyde , aldehyde hydrates , alkenyl , acrylate , methacrylate , acrylamide , active sulfone , amine , protected amine , hydrazide , protected hydrazide , thiol , protected thiol , carboxylic acid , protected carboxylic acid , isocyanate , isothiocyanate , maleimide , vinylsulfone , dithiopyridine , vinylpyridine , iodoacetamide , epoxide , glyoxals , diones , mesylates , tosylates , and tresylate . the functional group is typically chosen for attachment to a functional group on a biologically active agent . as would be understood , the selected r ′ moiety should be compatible with the x group so that reaction with x does not occur . as would be understood in the art , the term “ protected ” refers to the presence of a protecting group or moiety that prevents reaction of the chemically reactive functional group under certain reaction conditions . the protecting group will vary depending on the type of chemically reactive group being protected . for example , if the chemically reactive group is an amine or a hydrazide , the protecting group can be selected from the group of tert - butyloxycarbonyl ( t - boc ) and 9 - fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl ( fmoc ). if the chemically reactive group is a thiol , the protecting group can be orthopyridyldisulfide . if the chemically reactive group is a carboxylic acid , such as butanoic or propionic acid , or a hydroxyl group , the protecting group can be benzyl or an alkyl group such as methyl or ethyl . other protecting groups known in the art may also be used in the invention . specific examples of terminal functional groups in the literature include n - succinimidyl carbonate ( see e . g ., u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 281 , 698 , 5 , 468 , 478 ), amine ( see , e . g ., buckmann et al . makromol . chem . 182 : 1379 ( 1981 ), zaplipsky et al . eur . polym . j . 19 : 1177 ( 1983 )), hydrazide ( see , e . g ., andresz et al . makromol . chem . 179 : 301 ( 1978 )), succinimidyl propionate and succinimidyl butanoate ( see , e . g ., olson et al . in poly ( ethylene glycol ) chemistry & amp ; biological applications , pp 170 - 181 , harris & amp ; zaplipsky eds ., acs , washington , d . c ., 1997 ; see also u . s . pat . no . 5 , 672 , 662 ), succinimidyl succinate ( see , e . g ., abuchowski et al . cancer biochem . biophys . 7 : 175 ( 1984 ) and joppich et al . macrolol . chem . 180 : 1381 ( 1979 ), succinimidyl ester ( see , e . g ., u . s . pat . no . 4 , 670 , 417 ), benzotriazole carbonate ( see , e . g ., u . s . pat . no . 5 , 650 , 234 ), glycidyl ether ( see , e . g ., pitha et al . eur . j . biochem . 94 : 11 ( 1979 ), elling et al ., biotech . appl . biochem . 13 : 354 ( 1991 ), oxycarbonylimidazole ( see , e . g ., beauchamp , et al ., anal . biochem . 131 : 25 ( 1983 ), tondelli et al . j . controlled release 1 : 251 ( 1985 )), p - nitrophenyl carbonate ( see , e . g ., veronese , et al ., appl . biochem . biotech ., 11 : 141 ( 1985 ); and sartore et al ., appl . biochem . biotech ., 27 : 45 ( 1991 )), aldehyde ( see , e . g ., harris et al . j . polym . sci . chem . ed . 22 : 341 ( 1984 ), u . s . pat . no . 5 , 824 , 784 , u . s . pat . no . 5 , 252 , 714 ), maleimide ( see , e . g ., goodson et al . bio / technology 8 : 343 ( 1990 ), romani et al . in chemistry of peptides and proteins 2 : 29 ( 1984 )), and kogan , synthetic comm . 22 : 2417 ( 1992 )), orthopyridyl - disulfide ( see , e . g ., woghiren , et al . bioconj . chem . 4 : 314 ( 1993 )), acrylol ( see , e . g ., sawhney et al ., macromolecules , 26 : 581 ( 1993 )), vinylsulfone ( see , e . g ., u . s . pat . no . 5 , 900 , 461 ). in addition , two molecules of the polymer of this invention can also be linked to the amino acid lysine to form a di - substituted lysine , which can then be further activated with n - hydroxysuccinimide to form an active n - succinimidyl moiety ( see , e . g ., u . s . pat . no . 5 , 932 , 462 ). all of the above references are incorporated herein by reference . r ′ can also have the structure — w - d , wherein w is a linker and d is a biologically active agent . alternatively , the polymer structure can be a homobifunctional molecule such that r ′ is - q ( ch 2 ) n chzc ( o ) x , wherein q , m , z and x are as defined above . an example of a multi - arm polymer of the invention is shown below : poly is a water - soluble and non - peptidic polymer backbone , such as peg ; r is a central core molecule , such as glycerol or pentaerythritol ; the polymers of the invention , whether activated or not , can be purified from the reaction mixture . one method of purification involves precipitation from a solvent in which the polymers are essentially insoluble while the reactants are soluble . suitable solvents include ethyl ether or isopropanol . alternatively , the polymers may be purified using ion exchange , size exclusion , silica gel , or reverse phase chromatography . in all the above embodiments , the presence of the α - alkyl or α - aryl group ( z ) confers upon the polymer greater stability to hydrolysis due to the steric and electronic effect of the alkyl or aryl group . the steric effect may be increased by increasing the size of the alkyl or aryl group , as would be the case in replacing methyl with ethyl . in other words , as the number of carbon atoms in z increases , the rate of hydrolysis decreases . as noted above , use of this steric effect may also be applied in combination with the electronic effect obtained by variation in the distance of the q moiety from the carboxyl group ( i . e . control of the value of m ). by controlling both m and z , the rate of hydrolysis can be regulated in a more flexible manner . since the enzyme catalyzed reactions that cause enzymatic degradation involve exact spatial fits between the enzyme active site and the polymer , steric effects can be very important in these reactions as well . the polymers of the invention can also be used to better regulate or control enzymatic degradation in addition to hydrolytic degradation . when coupled to biologically active agents , the polymers of the invention will help regulate the rate of hydrolytic degradation of the resulting polymer conjugate . as an example , when the polymers of the invention are coupled with alcohols or thiols to form esters or thioesters respectively , the esters or thioesters are more stable to hydrolysis . thus , a drug bearing an alcohol or thiol group may be derivatized with a polymer of the invention and the hydrolytic release of the drug from such esters or thiolesters can be controlled by choice of the α - alkyl or α - aryl group . the invention provides a biologically active polymer conjugate comprising a water - soluble and non - peptidic polymer backbone having at least one terminus , the terminus being covalently bonded to the structure z is selected from the group consisting of alkyl , substituted alkyl , aryl and substituted aryl ; the linker w is the residue of the functional group used to attach the biologically active agent to the polymer backbone . in one embodiment , w is o , s , or nh . examples of suitable biologically active agents include peptides , proteins , enzymes , small molecule drugs , dyes , lipids , nucleosides , oligonucleotides , cells , viruses , liposomes , microparticles and micelles . the invention also includes a method of preparing biologically active conjugates of the polymers of the invention by reacting a polymer of formula i with a biologically active agent . the following examples are given to illustrate the invention , but should not be considered in limitation of the invention . preparation of mpeg - o — ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) co 2 h and mpeg - o — ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) co 2 ns ( ns ═ n - succinimidyl ) mpeg 50000 h ( 4 . 0 ) g ) and methacrylonitrile ( 1 . 0 ml ) were stirred for three days at room temperature in a mixture of benzene ( 5 . 0 ml ), dichloromethane ( 6 . 5 ml ), and koh ( 50 % in h 2 o ; 0 . 15 ml ). to the resulting mixture was added 200 ml of 10 % aqueous nah 2 po 4 . the mixture was stirred for 10 minutes before extracting with 200 ml of dichloromethane ( 100 + 50 + 50 ml ). the organic phase was dried over mgso 4 , concentrated , and precipitated into ethyl ether ( 50 ml ). the precipitate was collected by filtration and dried under vacuum at room temperature to obtain 3 . 17 g of white powder . nmr : ( dmso - d6 , ppm ): 1 . 0438 ( d , α - ch 3 ); 2 . 55 ( m , ch ); 3 . 51 ( br m , peg - ch 2 ch 2 — o —). mpeg 5000 - o — ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) cn ( 3 . 17 g ) was dissolved in 14 ml of concentrated hcl and the solution was stirred three days at room temperature . the resulting solution was diluted to 300 ml with water and 45 g of nacl was added . the product was extracted with dichloromethane ( 3 × 100 ml ) and the extract dried over mgso 4 . the solution was concentrated and the product precipitated in ethyl ether ( 50 ml ). the product was collected by filtration and dried under vacuum at room temperature to obtain 2 . 6 g of white powder . nmr ( dmso - d6 , ppm ): 0 . 714 ( d , α - ch 3 ); 3 . 51 ( br m , peg — ch 2 ch 2 — o —). 3 . preparation of mpeg 5000 - o — ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) co 2 h a solution of 2 . 6 g of mpeg 5000 - o — ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) conh 2 in 100 ml of 8 % koh was stirred at room temperature for three days and the ph was then adjusted to 2 . 0 with hcl . the product was extracted with 100 ml of methylene chloride and the extract dried over mgso 4 . the solution was then concentrated and the product precipitated by addition to 200 ml of ethyl ether . the product was collected by filtration and dried under vacuum at room temperature to obtain 1 . 7 g of white powder . the product was further purified by chromatography on deae sepharose with the column first eluted with water and then with 1 m nacl . the product was extracted from the nacl eluent with methylene chloride and the organic layer dried over mgso 4 . the methylene chloride solution was concentrated and the product precipitated from about 30 ml of ethyl ether . it was collected by filtration , and dried under vacuum at room temperature to obtain 0 . 8 g of white powder . gel permeation chromatography on ultrahydrogel 250 displayed a single peak . 1 h nmr ( dmso - d6 , ppm ): 1 . 035 ( d , α - ch 3 ); 2 . 55 ( m , ch ); 3 . 51 ( br m , peg backbone ch 2 ). the integral ratio of the peg backbone protons to that of the alpha methyl protons indicated 100 % substitution . 4 . preparation of ch 3 — o - peg 5000 - o — ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) co 2 ns ( ns ═ n - succinimidyl ) ch 3 — o - peg 5000 - o — ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) co 2 h ( 0 . 6 g ) was dissolved in 50 ml of methylene chloride , n - hydroxysuccinimide ( 0 . 0144 g ) and n , n - dicyclohexylcarbodiimide ( 0 . 026 ) in 2 ml of methylene chloride was added . after stirring overnight , the mixture was filtered and the filtrate concentrated under vacuum . the product was precipitated by addition of the filtrate to isopropanol , then collected by filtration and dried under vacuum to yield 0 . 4 g of white powder . comparison of integration of the peg backbone protons with those on the ns group indicated 100 % substitution . 1 h nmr ( ppm , dmso - d6 ): 1 . 20 ( d , c h 3 — ch ); 2 . 81 ( s , ns ); 3 . 51 ( br m , peg — ch 2 ch 2 — o —). preparation of mpeg - o — ch 2 ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) co 2 h and mpeg - o — ch 2 ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) co 2 ns diethyl methylmalonate ( 9 . 6 ml ) in 150 ml of dry dioxane was added dropwise to nah ( 2 . 4 g ) in 60 ml of toluene under argon . mpeg 5000 mesylate ( 30 g ) in 250 ml of toluene was azeotropically distilled to remove 150 ml of toluene and the residue was added to the above diethyl methylmalonate solution . after refluxing the mixture for 3 - 4 hours , it was evaporated under vacuum to dryness and dried in vacuo overnight . the dried material was then dissolved in 200 ml of 1n naoh , the solution was stirred for 2 days at room temperature , and the ph adjusted to 3 with 1n hcl . nacl was added to the solution to a concentration of about 15 % and the mixture was then extracted with 350 ml of ch 2 cl 2 in several portions . the combined extracts were dried over na 2 so 4 , concentrated under vacuum and the product precipitated by addition of isopropanol / ether ( 1 : 1 ). the product was collected by filtration and dried under vacuum overnight to obtain 24 . 7 g of product as a white powder . gpc ( ultrahydrogel 250 ) showed the product to be 98 % pure . 1 h nmr ( dmso - d6 , ppm ): 1 . 27 ( s , ch 3 — c ); 1 . 96 ( t , ch 2 c h 2 — c ); 3 . 51 ( br m , peg — ch 2 ch 2 — o —). 2 . preparation of ch 3 — o - peg 5000 - o — ch 2 ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) co 2 h ch 3 — o - peg 5000 - o — ch 2 ch 2 c ( ch 3 )( co 2 h ) 2 ( 20 g ) was dissolved in 300 ml of toluene and the resulting solution was refluxed for 3 hours . the solution was then concentrated under vacuum and the residue precipitated with isopropanol / ether ( 1 : 1 ), collected by filtration , and dried under vacuum overnight to obtain 18 . 8 g of white powder . gpc ( ultrahydrogel 250 ) indicated the product to be 95 % pure . 1 h nmr ( dmso - d6 , ppm ): 1 . 061 ( d , c h 3 — ch ); 2 . 40 ( q , ch ); 1 . 51 ( m , c h 2 — ch ); 1 . 80 ( m , c h 2 — ch 2 — ch ); 3 . 51 ( br m , peg — ch 2 ch 2 — o —). 3 . preparation of ch 3 — o - peg 5000 - o — ch 2 ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) co 2 ns ( ns ═ n - succinimidyl ) ch 3 — o - peg 5000 - o — ch 2 ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) co 2 h ( 3 . 8 g ) was dissolved in 40 ml of methylene chloride and n - hydroxysuccinimide ( 0 . 094 g , 1 . 07 equiv .) and n , n - dicyclohexylcarbodiimide ( 0 . 166 g , 1 . 07 equiv .) in 3 ml of methylene chloride was added . after stirring overnight , the mixture was filtered and the filtrate concentrated under vacuum . the product was precipitated by addition of the filtrate to a 1 : 1 mixture of isopropanol and ethyl ether then collected by filtration and dried under vacuum to yield 3 . 2 g of white powder . comparison of integration of the peg backbone protons with those on the ns group indicated & gt ; 95 % substitution . 1 h nmr ( ppm , dmso - d6 ): 1 . 235 ( d , ch 3 ch —); 1 . 76 ( m , 1 . 90 m , — o — ch 2 ch 2 ch —); 2 . 81 ( s , ch 2 ch 2 on ns ;) 2 . 91 ( m , — o — ch 2 ch 2 c h —); 3 . 51 ( br m , peg — ch 2 ch 2 — o —). to 4 ml of lysozyme solution ( 3 mg / ml ) in 50 ph 6 . 5 buffer ( 50 mm sodium phosphate / 50 mm nacl ) was added 20 mg of the n - succinimidyl ester of the peg alkanoate and the progress of the reaction at 22 ° c . was monitored by capillary electrophoresis at a wavelength of 205 nm . the area of the peak corresponding to unreacted protein was plotted against time and the half - life of the lysozyme in the pegylation reaction was determined from that plot . the half - life using n - succinimidyl mpeg 5k α - methylpropanoate was 100 minutes , while that of n - succinimidyl mpeg 5k α - methylbutanoate was 120 minutes . the half - life for pegylation using either of the non - α - alkylated analogues , mpeg 5k n - succinimidyl propanoate or mpeg 5k n - succinimidyl butanoate , was 30 minutes . hydrolysis studies were conducted at ph 8 . 1 and 25 ° c . in a typical experiment , 1 - 2 mg of the n - succinimidyl ester of the peg alkanoate or peg α - alkylalkanoate were dissolved in 3 ml of buffer and transferred to a cuvette . the absorbance at 260 nm was monitored using a molecular devices spectramax plus uv - visible spectrophotometer . the hydrolytic half - life was determined from the first - order kinetic plot . for n - succinimidyl mpeg 5k α - methylpropanoate and n - succinimidyl mpeg 5k α - methylbutanoate , the half - lives for hydrolysis were 33 minutes and 44 minutes respectively , while for the corresponding non - alkylated analogue , n - succinimidyl mpeg 5k propanoate and mpeg 5k butanoate , the half - life was 20 minutes . 8 - arm - peg 20kda α - methyl butanoic acid ( 2 . 0 g , 0 . 1 mmol ) was azeotropically dried in vacuo with chcl 3 ( 3 × 50 ml ) and was redissolved in ch 2 cl 2 ( 25 . 0 ml ). to this clear solution was added quinidine ( 0 . 50 g , 1 . 5 mmol ), dmap ( 0 . 15 g , 1 . 2 mmol ), and hobt ( cat .). dcc ( 0 . 310 g , 1 . 5 mmol in 1 ml of ch 2 cl 2 ) was then added and the mixture was allowed to stir at room temperature under argon for 17 h . the mixture was then concentrated in vacuo and the residual syrup was dissolved in toluene ( 100 ml ) and filtered through a plug of celite . the toluene was removed in vacuo at 45 ° c . and the residue was treated with 5 ml of ch 2 cl 2 and triturated with 2 - propanol ( 300 ml ). further drying in vacuo afforded a pure product ( 2 . 0 g , 99 %) with 100 % substitution as indicated by 1 h nmr . hydrolysis study of 8 - arm - peg 20kda - quinidine α - methylbutanoate by reverse phase hplc a c - 18 column ( betasil c18 , 100 × 2 , 5 keystone scientific ) was used in a hp - 1100 hplc system . eluent a was 0 . 1 % tfa in water , while eluent b was acetonitrile . for the hydrolysis study in pure buffer , the quinidine conjugate was dissolved in 10 mm phosphate buffer for a final concentration of 8 mg / ml . the resulting solution was pipetted into sealed vials ( 0 . 2 ml each ) at 37 ° c . at timed intervals , a vial was taken and to it was added 0 . 2 ml of acetonitrile . after filtration , the sample was analyzed by rp - hplc with uv detector at wavelength of 228 nm . least squares kinetic treatment of the data yielded a half - life of 46 hours for hydrolysis . mpeg 5kda α - methylbutanoic acid ( 16 . 8 g , 3 . 4 mmol ) was dissolved in acetonitrile ( 500 ml ) and was concentrated in vacuo to about 100 ml . dichloromethane ( 100 ml ) was added under argon and the solution was allowed to stir at room temperature . to this clear , colorless solution was added dbu ( 2 . 4 ml , 16 . 2 mmol ) followed by chloromethyl pivalate ( 2 . 4 ml , 16 . 6 mmol ). the solution was allowed to stir at room temperature under argon for 17 h . the solution was then concentrated to dryness , dissolved in 2 - propanol ( 300 ml ), and cooled in an ice bath to give a white solid that was collected by filtration . further drying in vacuo gave ( pivaloyloxy ) methyl mpeg 5kda - α - methylbutanoate ( 14 . 5 g , ˜ 86 %) as a white solid . 1 h nmr ( dmso - d 6 , 300 mhz ) δ 1 . 08 ( d , 3h , j = 7 . 1 hz , och 2 ch 2 ch ( ch 3 ) copom ), 1 . 14 ( s , 9h , och 2 co ( ch 3 ) 3 ), 1 . 55 - 1 . 69 ( m , 2 . 8h , och 2 ch a h b ch ( ch 3 ) copom ), 1 . 73 - 1 . 85 ( m , 1 . 3h , och 2 ch a h b ch ( ch 3 ) copom ), 2 . 49 - 2 . 60 ( m , och 2 ch 2 ch —( ch 3 ) copom ), 3 . 51 ( bs , 454h , peg backbone ), 5 . 70 ( s , 1 . 9h , coch 2 pom ) ( pom = pivaloyloxymethy ).	0
a charge exchanging valve 2 , for example an intake valve of an internal combustion engine , according to the figures is actuated by a camshaft 4 with a valve lever 6 disposed therebetween . one end of the valve lever 6 is supported on a known hydraulic valve play - compensating element 8 and the other end is supported on the shaft of the valve 2 ; the valve lever 6 abuts on cams 12 and 14 , respectively , between the ends of the valve lever 6 in a manner that will be further discussed below . as is apparent , a middle first cam 12 is formed with a smaller lobe than second , side cams 14 , which accommodate the first cam 12 therebetween . a valve closing spring is denoted with 16 . the hydraulic valve play - compensating element 8 acts so that the valve lever 6 is in play - free abutment on at least one of the cams and on the shaft of the valve , respectively . fig2 shows the valve lever 6 and the components mounted thereon in exploded perspective illustration . the valve lever 6 includes two end portions 18 and 20 , which are connected to each other via spaced - apart side parts 22 . a bushing - accommodation opening 24 penetrates through the side parts 22 ; a bushing 26 is insertable in the opening 24 . the end portion 18 , which abuts on the valve play - compensating element 8 , has a hollow interior and includes a side opening 28 . as shown in fig2 , a stop 30 is formed on the lower , left side of the end portion 18 . an eccentric device 32 is insertable into the bushing 26 ; cylindrical roller elements 34 are disposed along the eccentric device 32 so that the eccentric device 32 is rotatable in the bushing 26 . bearing pins 36 project from the side surfaces of the eccentric device 32 eccentrically to the rotational axis of the eccentric device 32 , which rotational axis is coaxial to the axis of the bushing 26 in the assembled state ; the bearing pins 36 are coaxially aligned . a follower ring and / or a follower roller 38 is insertable in a slot 37 formed between the side parts 22 of the valve lever 6 ; the inner side of the follower roller 38 is provided with not - illustrated roller elements ; the follower roller 38 is borne by these roller elements in a state slidable on the bushing 26 . a hole 40 of a connecting lever 42 is slidable onto the left bearing pin 36 according to fig2 ; the connecting lever 42 includes a lateral projection 46 ( fig6 ) formed with a slot 44 , which projection 46 fits in a through - opening 48 of the eccentric device 32 . one end portion of the connecting lever 42 includes a recess 50 and an abutment surface 52 . a torsion spring 54 is insertable into the through - opening 48 ; one end leg ( not illustrated ) of the torsion spring 54 can engage in the slot 44 of the connecting lever and the other end leg 55 of the torsion spring 54 can be supported on a protrusion 56 of the valve lever 6 ( cf . fig4 , 8 and 9 ). follower rings and / or follower rollers 58 can be borne on the bearing pins 36 via roller elements provided in the follower rollers 58 . the follower rollers 58 are advantageously disposed on the bearing pins 36 between washers 60 , wherein the outer washers 60 are advantageously formed as locking rings that axially secure the follower rollers 58 on the bearing pins 36 . the end portion 18 of the valve lever 6 includes a cylindrical cavity 62 that ends in the opening 28 at the left according to fig3 and merges in a bore 64 to the right . a piston 66 , which has a u - shaped cross - section as a whole , is inserted in the cavity 62 ; the piston 66 is held by a pin 68 that penetrates through the piston body and is screwed into the bore 64 . a spring 70 is supported between the pin 68 and the piston 66 . a portion of the cavity 62 , which is located to the right of the piston body in fig3 , is connected with a recess 74 via a passage 72 ; the valve lever 6 abuts on the valve play - compensating element 8 via the recess 74 . the passage 72 and thus the piston 66 are biased with hydraulic pressure from the valve play - compensating element 8 . the components illustrated in fig2 are assembled , for example , as follows : the follower roller 38 is introduced into the slot 37 of the valve lever 6 . the bushing 26 is then inserted , so that the bushing is held in the opening 24 and the follower roller 38 is rotatably borne on the bushing 26 . the eccentric device 32 is inserted into the bushing 26 , so that the eccentric device 32 is rotatable as a whole about the axis of the bushing 26 . the torsion spring 54 is inserted into the through - opening 48 of the eccentric device 32 . then , the connecting lever 42 and one follower roller 58 are pushed from one side onto one bearing pin 36 and the other follower roller 58 is pushed onto the other bearing pin 36 , wherein washers are disposed in between if desired . the follower rollers 58 are secured on the bearing pins 36 by lock washers . the piston 66 is inserted into the opening 28 and is secured by the pin 68 ; the spring 70 is disposed therebetween . the resulting assembly is disposed on the valve play - compensating element and the shaft of the valve 2 . the legs of the torsion spring 54 are mounted such that the connecting lever 42 and the eccentric device 32 , which is connected with the connecting lever 42 so as to rotate therewith , respectively , are pretensioned for one rotation in the clockwise direction , i . e . the follower rollers 58 are pretensioned into abutment on the corresponding second cams 14 . when the camshaft 4 is rotated from the rotational position illustrated in fig1 , in which the base circles of the cams abut on the follower rollers 58 and 38 , the follower rollers 58 are downwardly urged ( see position shown in fig5 ) in the counter - clockwise direction due to pivoting of the connecting lever 42 , wherein the eccentric device 32 rotates about the axis of the bushing 26 in a corresponding manner . the valve lever 6 is pivoted about the valve play - compensating element 8 by the first cam 12 , which abuts on the follower roller 38 , in accordance with the cam lobe of the first cam 12 for actuation of the valve 2 . when the lobes of the second cam 14 have passed the follower rollers 58 , the follower rollers 58 return upwardly in the clockwise direction due to the pivoting of the connection lever 42 . the connecting lever 42 can advantageously pivot in the clockwise direction until its abutment surface 52 abuts on the stop 30 . in this position of the connecting lever 42 , the recess 50 aligns with the opening 28 , so that the piston 66 can extend due to the biasing by the hydraulic pressure and can enter into the recess 50 , whereby the connecting lever 42 is latched relative to the valve lever 6 . in the latched state , the valve lever 6 is actuated in accordance with the larger lobes of the second cams 14 , whereby the first cam 12 comes free from the follower roller 38 . the locking of the connecting lever 42 can be released by reducing the hydraulic pressure acting on the piston 66 when the cam base circle is again passed over and the piston is pushed back into the valve lever 6 by the spring 70 . the connecting lever 42 is advantageously provided with a bevel 76 ( fig4 ) in the region of the abutment surface 52 ; the bevel 76 ensures that , when the connecting lever 42 pivots into abutment on the stop 30 , the piston 66 , which acts as a pin , is pushed back . fig7 to 9 show the arrangement of fig1 in different perspective views and functional states . fig7 shows a position , in which the second cams are ineffective , i . e . the connecting lever is unlatched . fig8 and 9 respectively show a null stroke position and a substantially full stroke position when the connecting lever is latched . as is derivable from the preceding discussion , the inventive switchable valve actuating mechanism is very compactly constructed and includes slightly - moved inertial masses and a high stiffness . further , the engagement of the cams takes place via the borne follower rollers 58 and 38 , which leads to low friction and thus fuel consumption advantages . a sufficient energy storage capacity of the spring 54 , which provides for a secure abutment of the follower rollers 58 on the cams 14 , is important for the functional efficiency of the described valve actuating mechanism . in particular , at high rotational speeds , it must be ensured that the follower rollers 58 are always abutting the cams 14 . fig1 shows an embodiment , which is modified as compared to the described embodiment , in a side view similar to the view according to fig4 . in the embodiment according to fig1 , two torsion springs 54 1 and 54 2 are inserted into two corresponding through - openings 48 ( in fig1 — not numbered ) in place of the one torsion spring 54 ; the torsion springs 54 1 and 54 2 are supported on two protrusions 56 1 and 56 2 of the valve lever 6 and accordingly in two slots of opposing stops , which are formed on the connecting lever 42 . on the left in fig1 , the arrangement is illustrated with the follower roller abutting on the base circle of the cam 14 . on the right in fig1 , the arrangement is illustrated with the not - latched connecting lever and follower roller 58 maximally pivoted by the cam lobe of the cam 14 and the maximally - pivoted connecting lever 42 , respectively , wherein the cam 14 is ineffective for the actuation of the valve and in the illustrated example ( null stroke ), the inner cam 12 does not cause actuation of the valve . in this embodiment , which can switch between null stroke ( no valve actuation ) and valve actuation by the cams 14 , the follower roller 38 is not required to be provided . in the embodiment according to fig1 , a curved helical spring 80 is utilized in place of the torsion spring ( s ); the helical spring 80 is supported between the protrusion 56 and / or stop formed on the valve lever 6 and another stop 82 , which is rigidly connected with the eccentric device 32 and thus is connected with the connecting lever 42 so as to rotate therewith . on the left in fig1 , the state of the helical spring 80 is illustrated when the follower roller 58 abuts on the cam base circle . on the right , the state is illustrated , in which the helical spring is maximally compressed , so that it holds the follower roller 58 in secure abutment on the cam 14 after the cam 14 has passed over the following roller 58 . in the embodiment according to fig1 , a helical spring 80 1 , which operates in a bore of the valve lever 6 , is utilized in place of the curved helical spring 80 of fig1 ; the helical spring 80 1 is supported on a cam surface via a push rod 84 ; the push rod 84 is formed on a cam arm 86 that is connected so as to rotate with the eccentric device 32 and / or is rigidly connected with bearing pins 36 connected with the eccentric device 32 . the function of the arrangement according to fig1 otherwise corresponds to the function of fig1 . in the embodiment according to fig1 , a tilting lever 88 borne on the valve lever 6 is utilized in place of the cam arm of fig1 ; one end of the tilting lever 88 follows the rotation of the eccentric device 32 and / or the movement of a bearing pin 36 rigidly connected with the eccentric device 32 ; a helical spring 80 2 is supported between the other end of the tilting lever 88 and the valve lever 6 . the function of the embodiment according to fig1 otherwise corresponds to the function of fig1 . the above - described embodiments of return springs are only exemplary and can be modified in various ways and / or can be combined with each other . the inventive valve actuating mechanism can be modified in various ways . the locking of the rotatability of the eccentric device can take place electromagnetically or in some other way . it is not required to provide three cams and three follower rollers . the illustrated embodiment provides , however , high symmetry and freedom from tilting forces that want to tilt the valve lever about its longitudinal axis . the adjustable engagement mechanism is not required to be disposed between the support , which is mounted on the engine housing , and the support on the valve of the lever . the components , which follow the cam contours , are not required to be rotatably borne , but rather can also be formed directly on the bushing and the bearing pin . the described rotatable bearing of the components located in direct abutment on the cams , as well as the rotatable bearing of the eccentric device inside of the valve lever , have the advantage , however , of very - low friction and high durability . the rotational direction of the eccentric device can be reversed relative to the illustrations . the connecting lever and the spring ( s ) can be disposed on the same or different sides of the valve lever , etc .	8
a bumper system 20 ( fig1 ) includes a beam 21 with a tubular center section and flattened end sections 23 and 24 , and a molded energy absorber 22 adapted to nestingly receive the beam 21 to form a unitary subassembly that can be handled and assembled as a unit to a vehicle . the flattened end sections 23 and 24 form vertically enlarged attachment members or “ hands ” on each end of the beam 21 that engage mating flat surfaces on the energy absorber 22 . mounts 26 abuttingly engage a rear of the flattened end sections 23 and 24 , and fasteners 27 extend through the energy absorber 22 and the flattened end sections 23 and 24 to secure the tubular beam 21 and energy absorber 22 to the mounts 26 . it is contemplated that the term “ mount ” as used herein includes a rail extending from a vehicle frame , or similar structural frame component . the beam 21 ( fig1 ) is described in sufficient detail below for an understanding of the present invention by persons skilled in this art . nonetheless , if additional discussion is desired , the reader &# 39 ; s attention is directed to application ser . no . 09 / 822 , 658 , filed nov . 1 , 2001 , entitled method of forming a one - piece tubular beam , and application ser . no . 09 / 904 , 066 , filed mar . 30 , 2002 , entitled rollformed and stamped door beam , and also u . s . pat . no . 5 , 092 , 512 , issued mar . 3 , 1992 , entitled method of rollforming an automotive bumper , the entire contents of all of which are incorporated herein in their entireties . different vehicle mounts can be used with the present invention . the mounts illustrated in fig2 are described in sufficient detail below for an understanding by persons skilled in the art . nonetheless , if additional discussion is desired , the reader &# 39 ; s attention is directed to application ser . no . 09 / 964 , 914 , filed sep . 27 , 2001 , entitled bumper crush tower with rings of varied strength , the entire contents of which is incorporated herein in its entirety . beam 21 ( fig2 ) includes a tubular center section 28 having a square cross section defined by front , rear , top , and bottom walls . the beam 21 is rollformed to a desired tubular shape , welded along a weld bead 29 located at a middle of the rear wall , and then swept into a curvilinear shape that matches a front end ( or rear end ) of a selected model vehicle . it is noted that different cross sections can be used , if desired . the weld bead 29 stops short of an end of the beam 21 , and about 6 to 8 inches of an end of the walls are reformed and “ opened up ” to a relatively coplanar flat condition to form the flattened end sections 23 and 24 . a pattern of holes 30 are formed in the flattened end sections 23 and 24 , which correspond to attachment holes in the mount 26 . energy absorber 22 ( fig2 ) includes an injection - molded member made from a suitable non - foam polymeric material having good properties for absorbing energy upon impact , such as xenoy material . the non - foam material substantially forms the structure of energy absorber 22 , including box - shaped sections 33 , which are molded along rail 34 at strategic locations for improved impact properties , as described below . the box - shaped sections 33 include vertical sidewalls 33 ′ and top and bottom walls 33 ″ that combine with front wall 39 ′ to form a hollow internal cavity . the center section of the energy absorber 22 includes horizontal upper and lower rails 34 and 35 , both of which have rearwardly - facing u - shaped cross sections . the upper rail 34 defines a large portion of the rearwardly - facing , recess 25 ( fig4 ), which is shaped to closely receive the center tubular section of the beam 21 . the box - shaped sections 33 are molded onto top , front and bottom surfaces of the upper rail 34 at strategic locations along its length . two such sections 33 are shown , but more or less can be used . the sections 33 provide improved energy absorbing characteristics to the bumper system 20 , and further the sections 33 have an upper surface shaped to support the vehicle front fascia 36 , which is typically a low stiffness or tpo material that requires support against the forces of gravity . the energy absorber 22 ( fig2 ) also includes mounting sections 38 that form integrated crush boxes over the mounts 26 at each end of the center section 28 . the mounting sections 38 ( fig3 ) each include a rectangular ring - shaped planar outer front wall 39 , rearwardly - extending walls 40 forming an open “ c ” shape that extends rearwardly from the front wall 39 , a rectangular ring - shaped planar rear wall 41 that extends from the rearwardly - extending walls 40 , forwardly - extending walls 42 that form a square tube shape that extends forwardly from the rear wall 41 , a rectangular ring - shaped planar inner front wall 43 that extends from the forwardly - extending walls 42 , and an interior stiffener flange 44 that extends rearwardly from the inner front wall 43 . additional stiffening webs can be extended between the rearwardly - extending walls 40 and the forwardly - extending walls 42 as needed for stiffness and structure in the energy absorber 22 . a plurality of legs 35 ′ extend below the lower rail 35 , such as for supporting a bottom of the tpo fascia on a front of the vehicle . the flattened end section 23 ( and 24 ) ( fig3 ) includes a flat front surface that mateably engages the flat rear surface of the planar rear wall 41 . the mount 26 includes a tubular section 47 ( e . g . a crush tower for optimal energy absorption in front impact ), a rear plate shaped for connection to a vehicle , such as to vehicle frame members , and a front plate 49 shaped to mateably engage a flat rear surface on the end section 23 ( and 24 ). fasteners , such as bolts 50 are extended through aligned holes in the planar rear wall 41 , in the flattened end sections 23 ( and 24 ), and the front plate 49 . notably , the tubular portion of beam 21 ( i . e . center section 28 ) extends short of the mounts 26 ( see fig5 ), and further the flattened end sections 23 ( and 24 ) extend only to the outer edges of the mounts 26 , for reasons discussed below . the energy absorber 22 includes corner sections 52 ( fig2 and 5 ) having an apertured front wall 53 , an apertured rear wall 54 , and reinforcing walls 55 that extend between the front and rear walls 52 and 53 for structural support . the front wall 53 curves rearwardly at its outer edge to form an aerodynamic shape at a front of the vehicle fenders . further , the reinforcing walls 55 include a top wall 56 shaped to structurally support portions of an rrim fascia in the area of a vehicle front fender . also , the corner section 52 includes a tubular canister portion 57 and canister - mounting structure 58 for adjustably securely supporting a fog lamp assembly 59 ( and / or a turn signal assembly ). as shown in fig5 the corner section ( s ) 52 include a rearwardly - extending box section 60 that is outboard of the mount 26 and positioned adjacent an end of the flattened end sections 23 ( and 24 ). during a corner impact by an object 61 , forces are transmitted along lines 62 and 63 into the corner section 52 . the angled forces 63 are directed through the box section 60 at an angle toward a side surface of the mount 26 . the angled forces cause the corner section 52 to bend rearwardly in direction 64 , sliding rearwardly slightly along line 64 ′ on the mount 26 ( depending on the magnitude of the forces 63 ). this action tends to allow the angled forces to relieve themselves , and also tends to cause the object 61 to bounce sideways off the vehicle bumper system 20 . when an object 66 is struck in a front impact directly in - line with the mounts 26 , the forces 67 are transmitted directly against the mount 26 in a manner permitting the mount 26 to absorb forces in a telescoping manner like it historically is designed . ( i . e . the forces are linear and permit the tubular section 47 to telescopingly crush and collapse in a predictable manner .) when the bumper system 20 is struck in a center area between the mounts 26 , the impact is primarily transmitted linearly into the mounts 26 , due to the strength of the beam 21 . nonetheless , it is noted that with the present beam 21 , some bending may occur , depending on a width of the impact area on the bumper system 20 and how nearly it is perfectly centered on the bumper system 20 . in the modified bumper system 20 a ( fig6 - 8 ), a beam 21 a similar to beam 21 is provided , and a “ longer stroke ” energy absorber 22 a is attached to its face . the energy absorber 22 a includes upper and lower u - shaped rails 34 a and 35 a that open rearwardly . the rails 34 a and 35 a are connected by vertical webs 65 a that extend fore / aft , and by a rear wall 66 a that extends across a back of the energy absorber 22 a . flanges 67 a and 68 a extend rearwardly from the rear wall 66 a . the flanges 67 a and 68 a engage and cover top and bottom walls of the beam 21 a , and include fingers 67 a ′ and 68 a ′ for snap - locking onto the beam 21 a for temporary securement of the energy absorber 22 a to the beam 21 a . in energy absorber 22 a , the corner sections 52 a also form the mounting section of the energy absorber 22 a . specifically , the corner sections 52 a include a flat rear wall 70 a , and perpendicular walls 71 a forming a box around the flat rear wall 70 a . the end section 23 a ( and 24 a ) of the beam 21 a engage a rear surface of the flat rear wall 70 a , and fasteners ( i . e . bolts ) are extended through aligned holes in the flat rear wall 70 a , the flattened sections 23 a ( and 24 a ), and the front plate of the mount ( 26 ) to which it is attached . a rear “ root ” portion 72 a of the inner wall of the rails 34 a and 35 a is offset slightly from the flanges 67 a and 68 a ( fig8 ), and also is offset from the corresponding top and bottom walls of the beam 21 a . upon front impact , the rails 34 a and 35 a are driven rearwardly . due to the stiffness of the beam 21 a , this causes the “ root ” portion 72 a of the energy absorber 22 a to buckle and fold onto itself and onto the flanges 67 a and 68 a , as shown by arrows 73 a . the result is a much more predictable and “ softer ” impact . at such time as the energy absorber 22 a is completely crushed , forces from the impact are directly transmitted to the beam 21 a , providing a force versus deflection force curve increases sharply over the initial force versus deflection curve . the bumper system 20 b ( fig9 ) is not unlike the bumper system 20 a ( fig6 - 7 ), but in system 20 b the beam 21 b is u - shaped ( i . e . is not tubular ), and further it is insert - molded into a center of the energy absorber 22 b . in the bumper system 20 b , the beam 21 b includes a plurality of apertures or holes to allow the plastic material of the energy absorber to flow through and interlock with the metal beam 21 b , thus providing better bonding and preventing de - lamination . it is noted that the apertures 75 b may reduce a bending strength of the beam 21 b , depending on their location . the illustrated apertures 75 b are located only on the vertical flange 76 b of the beam 21 b , such that they do not greatly affect bending strength in a direction parallel an impact force . nonetheless , the location and shape of the apertures 75 b can be a desirable thing by helping distribute and relieve stress in some specific vehicle applications . it is noted that a strength of the tubular portion of the beam 21 b ( or beams 21 a or 21 ) can be substantially increased by press - fitting within the tubular portion an internal energy absorber , such as is illustrated in fig1 - 2 and 10 - 11 . the internal energy absorber tends to reduce a tendency of the beam to prematurely kink or bend , resulting in a consistently higher and more predictable energy of absorption during impact . it is to be understood that variations and modifications can be made on the aforementioned structure without departing from the concepts of the present invention , and further it is to be understood that such concepts are intended to be covered by the following claims unless these claims by their language expressly state otherwise .	1
the automated edge finishing apparatus and method of the present invention comprises hardware components and associated software , providing the ability to learn a trajectory of a workpiece by &# 34 ; guarded moves ,&# 34 ; machining the workpiece by moving the workpiece along the trajectory and controlling the trajectory in real time . similar workpieces can be machined from the learned trajectory without expensive fixtures by the sensors and software locating the tool and adjusting the trajectory . the invention is useful for performing edge finishing on intricately designed workpieces or workpieces with close edge finishing tolerances . the configuration of the preferred system is shown in fig1 and 2 . the preferred invention comprises an xy table 10 , a force sensor 12 , cutting tool 14 , xy table position control hardware 32 , and a control system as shown in fig2 . the preferred xy table 10 comprises a daedal series 200000 , or the like , powered by tlm120 linear motors from trilogy systems corporation , or the like . the linear actuators comprise three - phase brushless linear motors , with a stationary magnet track and a moving coil assembly . the linear motors are driven by dc amplifiers , such as pwm amplifiers . both table axes are equipped with incremental encoders with a resolution of 12 , 700 counts / inch . the innermost level of table control is position control , by a controller 32 such as a dmc - 520 motion controller from galil motion control , as shown in fig2 . this board controls position of both table axes using proportional plus derivative ( pd ) control action . the resulting position - controlled table is the starting point for the force control system discussed below . a force sensor 12 such as from jr 3 is used to sense the tool - workpiece contact force . this sensor measures all six components of force / torque , although only x , y , and z forces are necessary for edge finishing with this system . the maximum force without saturation is 20 pounds , with a resolution of 0 . 5 oz . the control vme computer 30 for the edge finishing system can built around a motorola 68020 processor , or the like , and a vme bus , or the like . the backplane of the system also contains serial and parallel interfaces for external communication . a vxworks real - time operating system or similar system can be used , allowing software development in the c language on a remote host computer . the vme computer 30 communicates with the table controller 32 , force sensor 12 , and with a remote host ( for example a sun - 4 ) for software development . a schematic diagram of the system components and their interconnection is shown in fig2 . the development of a hybrid force / position controller for the xy table 10 allows the table to move the workpiece 16 past the deburring tool 14 and also to control the contact force . with hybrid position / force control , there are directions along which position must be controlled , and orthogonal directions along which force must be controlled . for the xy table edge finishing system , position must be controlled in the edge - tangential direction , while force must be controlled in the edge - normal direction . fig3 illustrates the three coordinate frames of interest : the table frame 20 , the force sensor frame 22 , and the workpiece edge frame 24 . the tangential position controller uses a position tracking error formed in the edge frame 24 edge tangential direction to actuate the table , while the normal force controller uses a force error formed in the edge frame 24 edge normal direction to actuate the table . both table commands are summed . referring to fig3 note that the relationship of edge frame 24 and fixed frames 20 and 22 will change with time , and the relationship between these frames must be updated on line . fig4 shows a block diagram of the hybrid position / force control system . the r matrices convert between the three coordinate frames , while the diagonal selection matrices s select either the normal or tangential vector component . the block marked &# 34 ; xy table &# 34 ; in fig4 also includes the galil dmc - 520 , or the like , motor controller dynamics . these dynamics consist of a pure integration and a single real zero . the dynamics of the table plus the motor controller board are modeled as a unit for tangential position controller design . the block marked &# 34 ; metal cutting process &# 34 ; in fig4 represents the dynamics of the deburring tool as it removes material from an edge . the dynamics of the &# 34 ; xy table &# 34 ; ( table and motor controller ) plus the &# 34 ; metal cutting process &# 34 ; are also be identified as a unit for normal force controller design . to design the tangential position and normal force controllers shown in fig4 analytical models of both the xy table , and the xy table + metal cutting process is shown . the sample rate for the identification presented below is 125 hz for a sample period of 8 msec . the first analytical model is for the xy table . the plant is the table plus dmc - 520 motor control board . driving the plant with a random sequence of amplitude 0 . 013 mm produced data which yielded the following transfer function : ## equ1 ## which has two delays , poles at 1 . 0 , - 0 . 22 ± j0 . 21 , - 0 . 34 , and zeros at - 0 . 82 and - 39 . the integration in the dmc motor control board is reflected in the pole at 1 . the second analytical model is for the xy table + metal cutting process . the plant here is the xy table with the metal cutting process added , and the deburring tool in contact with the workpiece . the input , as before , is commanded position . the output is measured normal force . the measured normal force is filtered by a 34 hz four - pole anti - aliasing analog filter before digitization . a feed rate of 2 ipm is used in this procedure . three prbs input sequences , of magnitude 0 . 10 , 0 . 15 , and 0 . 20 mm produced the arma coefficients shown in table 1 . table 1__________________________________________________________________________inputmagnitude a . sub . 1 a . sub . 2 a . sub . 3 b . sub . 7 b . sub . 8 b . sub . 9__________________________________________________________________________0 . 10 mm - 0 . 5892 - 0 . 2544 - 0 . 1228 3 . 0464 6 . 2846 2 . 64750 . 15 mm - 0 . 7654 - 0 . 0363 - 0 . 1632 3 . 2241 6 . 4190 2 . 44560 . 20 mm - 0 . 9181 0 . 1652 - 0 . 2154 3 . 1381 5 . 9790 1 . 8727__________________________________________________________________________ these models have six delays . the delays come from reduced - order modeling of the overall dynamics , which consist of table dynamics , cutting process dynamics , and the anti - aliasing filter . the coefficients in table 1 vary monotonically with the input magnitude . the 0 . 15 mm coefficients are representative , and the corresponding transfer function is : ## equ2 ## this model has poles at 0 . 97 , - 0 . 10 ± j0 . 40 and zeros at - 0 . 51 , - 1 . 48 . note that the pure integration is no longer present . this is due to the metal removal , which erodes the surface against which the reaction force is generated . as shown in fig4 the tangential controller receives the tangential component of position trajectory tracking error and generates the tangential - direction table command . the plant transfer function for this controller is that of equation ( 1 ). for edge finishing , the reference position trajectory will nominally be a ramp with constant velocity ( feed rate ). a type ii position controller , with its zero steady - state position error in velocity - following , is therefore desirable . the proportional - plus - integral - plus derivative controller yielding satisfactory dynamic response is that given by : ## equ3 ## the dynamics to be controlled here are the table + metal cutting process , with model given by equation ( 2 ). using this plant transfer function , a proportional - plus - derivative force controller is : the dominant natural response mode using this force controller has a natural frequency of over 6 hz . the force sensor 12 of fig1 allows the table to perform &# 34 ; guarded moves ,&# 34 ; which are moves in a direction that terminate upon receipt of a preset threshold force . with this capability , the cutting tool 14 can repeatedly contact the part 16 , storing its location at contact . the locus of these stored points defines the part outline or reference trajectory in the table frame 20 , inherently including cutter radius compensation . the table 10 must be positioned near the start of the trajectory , and must know the edge orientation at the start . it can then perform successive guarded moves at a preset step size to &# 34 ; learn &# 34 ; the part . stepping from one point to the next along the edge tangent is done using the last - computed edge orientation . in an alternate embodiment , the step s size can be varied during the &# 34 ; guarded moves &# 34 ; procedure by sensing the contour of the workpiece . the step size will increase for straight or uniform angled edges and decrease for steep angles or intricate patterns . this can be accomplished by the force sensor 12 , xy table 10 , xy table position controller 32 , and control computer . the data stored at each guarded move consists of 3 - tuples [ x y θ ], where x and y define the planar reference trajectory , and θ defines the outward - pointing edge normal . angle θ is used to update the r transformations in fig4 . when a reference trajectory is learned , there is some noise in the resulting data , partly due to the random interaction of the sampling frequency and instant of edge contact , and partly due to rotation of the fluted deburring tool , which is free to rotate in the spindle . the same point will yield a slightly different position if the contact is between flutes or at the peak of a flute . the angle θ is used to update the r transformation matrices in fig4 . error in θ results in imperfect transformation from the edge frame 24 space , where the force error is formed , and the table frame 20 space , where the position error is formed and the table is commanded . real - time filtering always introduces phase shift , which would cause the angle points to be out of registration with the corresponding [ x y ] points . however , since the entire trajectory is known before run time , off line filtering is possible . a well - known technique to avoid phase shift is to filter a sequence twice , the second time using time - reversal . the cutoff frequency of this angle filter must be high enough to avoid reshaping the angle function , yet low enough to avoid aliasing . the effective sampling frequency of the trajectory learning process is dependent both on learned point spacing and the feed rate which will be used at run time . the frequency content of the learned angle function is dependent on the curvature of the workpiece and the feed rate . an experimental model of the invention of fig1 was constructed . one end of a test stainless steel coupon had two sharp corners and a circular notch . the learned trajectory of this part is shown in fig5 . the learned point spacing was 0 . 4 mm , while the feed rate v was to be 10 ipm ( 4 . 23 mm / sec ). the smallest radius of curvature r in the trajectory of fig6 was about 1 mm . thus , the highest frequency was : ## equ4 ## based on the peak frequency content of 0 . 67 hz , a three pole filter with a 1 . 0 hz cutoff frequency was selected . given the 0 . 4 mm point spacing , the effective sampling period was : ## equ5 ## which is used to obtain the filter coefficients . the unfiltered and filtered angle are shown in fig6 . note the zero phase shift due to time reversal . this angle filtering eliminated the coupling problems . this section presents the procedure and results of using the xy table system of fig1 to perform edge finishing on a jet engine turbine hub . the hub was circular , 9 . 470 inches in diameter , with 86 &# 34 ; christmas tree &# 34 ; shaped slots in the periphery , which receive the turbine blades . during manufacturing , these slots were broached , then a &# 34 ; pre - break &# 34 ; operation was performed to chamfer the edges before further smoothing / stress - relief processing . this pre - break operation required a chamfer of 0 . 020 ± 0 . 010 inches on the edges of the slots . the trajectory of the &# 34 ; christmas tree &# 34 ; was obtained automatically , using the table to &# 34 ; learn &# 34 ; it via guarded moves . fig7 shows the trajectory . note that this is the path the tool center must take , thus incorporating cutter radius compensation . note also that this is a rather intricate contour , with small radii of curvature . in learning the trajectory , position data were taken at a spacing of 0 . 0039 inches , as shown by the number of data points in fig7 . the turbine hub was made of high - temperature steel alloy , and therefore a carbide deburring cutter was used . a feed rate of 3 ipm and a reference contact force of 1 . 5 lbs gave acceptable material removal . the normal contact force during the operation is shown in fig8 . the completion time for one &# 34 ; christmas tree &# 34 ; was 16 seconds , for a total hub finishing time ( both sides ) of approximately 45 minutes . this is an order of magnitude decrease in processing time compared to the current manual operation . the resulting part met the manufacturer &# 39 ; s requirements . the preceding examples can be repeated with similar success by substituting the generically or specifically described reactants and / or operating conditions of this invention for those used in the preceding examples . although the invention has been described with reference to these preferred embodiments , other embodiments can achieve the same results . variations and modifications of the present invention will be obvious to those skilled in the art and it is intended to cover in the appended claims all such modifications and equivalents . the entire disclosures of all references , applications , patents , and publications cited above , and of the corresponding application are hereby incorporated by reference .	6
a method of processing colour filters on a flexible display device by overcoming substrate distortion . a preferred embodiment is disclosed according to the present invention , wherein a flexible electronic device is formed by a process in which a colour filter array is deposited over a layer of display media using a method of alignment to an underlying array of top pixel electrodes . this process of aligning the above said colour filter to the positioning of the top pixel electrode allows compensating for the distortion correction of a distorted flexible substrate . according to a main embodiment of the present invention , fig1 shows the formation of the various layers of a multi - layered substrate stack . conductive material is deposited and patterned on a substrate 1 to form source and drain electrodes 2 , 3 . the substrate may be either glass or a polymer film , but preferably a plastic substrate such as polyethyleneterephtalate ( pet ) or polyethylenenaphtalene ( pen ) is used . the patterned conductive layer 2 , 3 comprises a conducting polymer , such as pedot , or a metallic material , such as gold or silver . it may be deposited and patterned by techniques , such as , but not limited to additive solution processing , for example , spin , dip , blade , bar , slot - die , or spray coating , inkjet , gravure , offset or screen printing , or vacuum - base deposition such as evaporation or sputtering followed by subtractive patterning , such as photolithography and laser ablation . once the conductive layer has been patterned to form the source and drain electrodes , a layer of semiconducting material 4 may then be deposited over the substrate and patterned electrodes . the semiconducting layer may be either an organic or an inorganic material , but preferably consist of a conjugated organic semiconductor such as , but not limited to , pentacene , polyarylamine , polyfluorene or polythiophene derivatives . a broad range of printing techniques may be used to deposit the semiconducting material including , but not limited to , inkjet printing , soft lithographic printing ( j . a . rogers et al ., appl . phys . lett . 75 , 1010 ( 1999 ); s . brittain et al ., physics world may 1998 , p . 31 ), screen printing ( z . bao , et al ., chem . mat . 9 , 12999 ( 1997 )), and photolithographic patterning ( see wo 99 / 10939 ), offset printing , blade coating or dip coating , curtain coating , meniscus coating , spray coating , or extrusion coating . a layer of gate dielectric material 5 is then deposited onto the layered substrate . any organic or inorganic dielectric may be used , however in combination with a semiconducting polymer polymer dielectrics such as such as polyisobutylene , polyvinylphenol , polymethylmethacrylate ( pmma ) or polystyrene are preferred . the dielectric material may be deposited in the form of a continuous layer , by techniques such as , but not limited to , spray or blade coating . however , preferably , the technique of spray coating is used . the deposition of the dielectric layer is then followed by the deposition and patterning of a gate electrode and interconnect lines 6 . the material of the gate electrode may be a patterned thin film of inorganic metals such as gold or a pattern of printable inorganic nanoparticles of silver or gold , or a conducting polymer , such as polyethylenedioxythiophene doped with polystyrene sulfonic acid ( pedot / pss ). the gate electrode is deposited using techniques such as sputtering or evaporation techniques or solution processing techniques such as , but not limited to , spin , dip , blade , bar , slot - die , gravure , offset or screen printing . preferably , the gate electrode is deposited using the solution processing technique of ink jet printing . alternatively , the gate electrode may be patterned by techniques such as photolithographic patterning ( wo 99 / 10939 ) or laser ablation . other low - cost patterning techniques can also be used to pattern the gate electrode and interconnect lines , such as subtractive patterning by photolithography or laser ablation patterning . a particularly preferred patterning technique is selective laser ablation patterning ( slap ) ( as explained in patent application number gb0513915 . 9 ). the technique of slap is a method of producing fine features of a device using short pulse lasers for the fabrication of thin film transistor ( tft ) structures . this technique incorporating laser ablation uses a single shot per imaging area of a short pulse laser to pattern layers of metallic material on top of underlying layers in order to produce fine features of a tft device . an example is the patterning of a gold gate electrode of a top - gate organic tft with underlying gate dielectric , active semiconductor and conducting source - drain electrode layers . this technique may be performed without destroying or substantially degrading the performance of these sensitive elements , such as the semiconductor layer and the source - drain electrodes . this is due to the short pulse length allowing all of the energy of an ultra - short laser beam to enter the material and to be absorbed within the layer to be ablated which will result in the act of ablation before any substantial thermalization actually occurs , that can lead to degradation / ablation of underlying layer . this technique can be employed for patterning of metal electrodes and interconnects on the various levels of the device , in particular for patterning of the source - drain and gate electrodes , and the common electrode layer . at least one further layer of dielectric material 5 is deposited on the substrate after the deposition of the gate electrode and interconnect and data lines . the dielectric material may be deposited from solution in the form of a continuous layer , by techniques such as , but not limited to , spin coating , ink - jet printing , spray - coating , roller coating spray or blade coating . the dielectric material may also be deposited using vapour phase deposition techniques like evaporation or chemical vapour deposition . the dielectric material is preferably deposited in such a way so that no degradation occurs to the underlying layers . a method to achieve this is disclosed in our previous patent application wo01 / 47043 . in this , a method for forming a transistor was disclosed by depositing a first material from solution in a first solvent to form a first layer of the transistor ; and subsequently whilst the first material remains soluble in the first solvent , forming a second layer of the transistor by depositing over the first material a second material from solution in a second solvent in which the first material is substantially insoluble . a suitable solution processable dielectric material that may be used as a second dielectric layer is polystyrene dissolved in xylene . in addition , parylene is an example of a dielectric material that may be deposited via chemical vapour phase deposition . then a via - hole interconnection 7 through the dielectric later 5 to the underlying drain electrode 3 . techniques for via hole opening 7 and via fabrication , and other selective connection formation techniques such as selective removal of layers , are described at pages 32 to 39 of wo 01 / 47043 , with reference to fig1 to 15 , which material is specifically incorporated by reference in this application . a conductive material , such as a conducting polymer is deposited into the via hole to form an electrical connection between the underlying drain electrode and the top pixel , which is formed at the same time as filling the via hole 8 , as is shown in fig1 b ). a top level pixel electrode is deposited ( as shown in fig1 b ) as a patterned film using a direct write printing technique such as inkjet printing of a conducting polymer . the pixel electrode is required to be electrically connected to the underlying drain electrode 3 of the tft through a via hole interconnection 8 ( see fig1 b ). a display medium 10 is then deposited and laminated over the underlying patterned conductive top pixel electrode layer as in shown in fig1 c ). preferably , an emissive ( light - emitting ) display or a reflective or transmissive display medium , such as an electrophoretic display medium or a reflective or transmissive lc medium is incorporated within the device structure and is located over the underlying back plane . the display medium is deposited directly and continuously over the flexible back plane substrate . preferably , the display medium is a reflective or emissive display medium , since in this case the present architecture in which the pixel electrode is formed on a different level than the tft allows achieving high aperture ratio irrespective of the size of the tft . for example , in the case of a polymer light - emitting display medium the optically active polymers may be solution - coated or inkjet printed above the top pixel locations of an active or passive matrix followed by a transparent encapsulation layer . in the case of an electrophoretic display medium a film of electrophoretic ink deposited onto a top substrate of the flexible back plane . finally , colour filters 11 are laminated on top of the underlying media display layer as is seen in fig2 . the colour filters may be deposited and patterned through solution processing techniques such as , but not limited to , spin - coating a negative photo - resist and then patterning the filters by photolithography and subsequent etching . alternatively , the colour filter material may be deposited by direct - write techniques such as ink jet printing . if the substrate is a rigid substrate in which the pattern of pixel electrodes 9 is arranged on a regular pitch across the whole substrate , the colour filter array can be aligned accurately by using the same pitch pattern for the patterning of the colour filter . the layered device structure incorporating the colour filters according to the prior art can be seen in fig2 . fig3 shows a distorted substrate where the position of the top pixel electrode has been aligned accurately with respect to the source / drain / gate pattern of the tft . if the tft array is distorted due to distortion of the dimensionally unstable substrate during processing , and the colour filter array is patterned on a periodic array according to the method in the prior art the colour filter of a particular pixel is deposited partly over the top pixel electrode of a neighbouring device leading to overlap areas 12 and associated image artifacts . in contrast , the effect of employing the present invention is illustrated in fig4 . it can be seen that the top pixel electrode in fig4 has been intentionally misaligned with respect to the source / drain / gate pattern of the tft array . for example , the array of pixel electrodes is defined on a regular , periodic or quasi - periodic grid irrespective of the distortion of the underlying tft array . the colour filters are then aligned to the top pixel , by patterning the colour filter array on the same regular , periodic or quasi - periodic grid , therefore enabling the colour filter and the top pixel electrode to be exactly aligned to each other . a top view of the device is seen in fig5 showing the overlying top pixel electrode 14 and the via hole 13 that electrically connects the top pixel electrode to the underlying drain pad 16 of the tft ( with source electrode 15 ). as can be seen in fig6 , as a result of the various preceding processing stages , a flexible substrate will suffer from distortion . in order to accommodate a flexible substrate , the top pixel pattern is able to be distortion corrected to align with the source and drain pattern on the substrate . this would result in a distorted top pixel pattern and make alignment with a pixilated colour filter impossible . the top pixel electrode layer is deposited such that it is mis - aligned in relation to the underlying elements of the device . however , mis - alignment of the top pixel electrode to the underlying device elements will not affect the performance of the device in itself . it will lead to variations of the position the via - hole interconnect 13 within the pixel electrode 14 , however , this does not affect device performance as long as the distortion of the tft array is sufficiently small that the via - hole remains within the area of the respective pixel electrode without connecting to a neighbouring pixel electrode . it is desirable for good device performance that the overlying colour filter of the device is aligned to the top pixel electrode . therefore , after the deposition of the display media , the positioning of the top pixel electrode is remembered and stored and the overlying colour filter is aligned to the position of the pixel electrode . the result will be that both the top pixel electrode and the colour filter will be mis - aligned in relation to the underlying features of the device , but this will not affect the performance of the device . the alignment of the colour filter to the top pixel electrode may be achieved in a number of ways . the data representing the positioning of the top pixel electrode may be stored and then used to self - align the overlying colour filter to the top pixel electrode . alternatively , the substrate markers may be used to locate the position of the top pixel electrode and then used to self - aligned the colour filter to it , as is shown in fig7 , with the substrate markers 17 located at each corner of the substrate . if the array of pixel electrodes and colour filters were aligned to be at a fixed position with respect to each of the tfts , as is the case in conventional configuration in which the pixel electrode is defined on the same level as the source - drain and gate electrodes , respectively , this would lead to visual image artifacts , since the human eye is very sensitive to spatial variations in the pitch of a quasi - periodic array . also , any misalignment of the pixel electrode and the colour filter pixel can lead to image artifacts such as colour filters spatially overlapping with pixel electrodes belonging to neighbouring pixels / sub - pixels . the architecture according to the present invention addresses this problem by allowing to vary the position of the pixel tft with respect to the pixel electrode and colour filter , respectively . by forming the pixel electrode on a different level of the device than the tfts the present invention allows maintaining accurate alignment of the source - drain and gate electrodes of the tft with respect to each other in the presence of substrate distortions while forming the pixel electrodes and colour filter pixels on a periodic or quasi - periodic array with high accuracy and in accurate relative alignment . fig8 shows a device structure where a colour filter has been self - aligned to the underlying pixel electrode . in the example discussed within the first embodiment , where the top pixel electrode is not aligned such as to be at a fixed position with respect to the tft , there is a maximum level of distortion that can be tolerated by simply using a periodic step and repeat patterning process to define the top pixel electrode pattern . the maximum allowable distortion for periodic patterning is defined by the diameter of the via and the dimensions of the pixel . as long as the distortion does not cause the via to move outside the perimeter of the pixel electrode , then the top pixel electrode pattern can be defined by a simple step and repeat patterning technique where the pixel pattern is translated by an integer multiple of the pixel dimension . this is further explained graphically in fig9 , where the pixel has the dimensions x and y , and the via diameter is z . the position of the via is held at a fixed position relative to the tft ( which is actually moving due to distortion ), and the top pixel electrode pattern is allowed to remain static . this technique works well as long as the maximum distortion on the active area is less that ( z − x )/ 2 in the x direction and ( z − y )/ 2 in the y direction . the top pixel pattern in this case can be defined as a regularly repeating periodic pattern . preferably , the patterning of the pixel electrode and colour filter array involve exposing the substrate to a periodic pattern of light with a defined pixel pitch and translating the substrate between subsequent exposures by a fixed translation distance that is an integer multiple of said pixel pitch . the step - and - repeat exposure might involve photolithographic patterning or laser ablation of the pixel electrode and colour filter materials . preferably , for the patterning of the pixel electrodes and of the colour filter pixels the same pixel pitch and the same fixed translation distance which is an integer multiple of the pixel pitch are used . the pattern of colour filter pixels is preferably aligned with respect to the pattern of pixel electrodes by using a set of global alignment marks defined on the level of the pixel electrodes . as soon as the distortion is greater than this maximum distortion value , the via will be connecting to more than one top pixel electrode . in this case , where the maximum distortion is greater than ( z − x )/ 2 in the x direction or ( z − y )/ 2 in the y direction , a simple periodic repeating pattern will not allow for each pixel on the display to make contact through only a single via . therefore , local alignment must be employed and the top pixel pattern must be adjusted across the display to accommodate this . the result is a non - periodic pattern . local distortion correction is the only method that will be successful in defining the top pixel and colour filter pattern such that each sub - pixel is correctly aligned . however , even in this case the deviations of the colour filter array from a perfectly periodic array can be kept to a minimum by allowing the position of the via hole interconnect to vary within the area of the pixel electrode . preferably , the patterning of the pixel electrode and colour filter array involve a step - and - repeat exposure which exposes the substrate to a pattern of light in an exposure area and translates the substrate between subsequent exposures by a variable distance that is selected to ensure that in each of the exposed areas each via - hole interconnection remains connected to the correct sub - pixel electrode . the pattern of each step - and - repeat light exposure is preferably periodic and the correction for the distortion of the array of tfts may be achieved solely by varying the translation distance by which the substrate is translated in between subsequent exposures for patterning of the pixel electrodes . preferably , for the patterning of the pixel electrodes and of the colour filter pixels the same pixel pitch and the same set of translation distances are used . the pattern of colour filter pixels is preferably aligned with respect to the pattern of pixel electrodes by using a set of global alignment marks defined on the level of the pixel electrodes . according to another embodiment of this aspect of the invention the pattern of each step - and - repeat light exposure is non - periodic and the correction for the distortion of the array of tfts is achieved by varying the distance by which the substrate is translated in between subsequent exposures , and by selecting a set of variable pixel distances in each step - and - repeat light exposure pattern in such a way that visual image artifacts at the boundaries between subsequent light - exposures are minimized . preferably , for the patterning of the pixel electrodes and of the colour filter pixels the same set of pixel distances and translation distances are used . the pattern of colour filter pixels is preferably aligned with respect to the pattern of pixel electrodes by using a set of global alignment marks defined on the level of the pixel electrodes . the patterning of the colour filter array may consist of three or more individual patterning steps , and the above applies to each of the three or more patterning steps . for the patterning of the pixel electrodes and colour filter array techniques other than step - and - repeat light exposure , such as direct printing , conventional photolithography , imprinting or any other patterning technique may be used . for the tft , configurations other than top - gate architectures might be used , such as bottom - gate tft structure with the pixel electrode being located on a level different from that on which the source and drain electrodes are formed . the invention also applies to passive matrix displays in which the pixel electrode and colour filter arrays need to be formed on top of an array of addressing interconnects . the present invention is not limited to the foregoing examples . aspects of the present invention include all novel and inventive aspects of the concepts described herein and all novel and inventive combinations of the features described herein . for the semiconducting layer any vacuum or solution processable conjugated polymeric or oligomeric material that exhibits adequate field - effect mobilities exceeding 10 - 3 cm2 / vs , preferably exceeding 10 - 2 cm2 / vs , may be used . suitable materials are reviewed for example in h . e . katz , j . mater . chem . 7 , 369 ( 1997 ), or z . bao , advanced materials 12 , 227 ( 2000 ). other possibilities include small conjugated molecules with solubilising side chains ( j . g . laquindanum , et al ., j . am . chem . soc . 120 , 664 ( 1998 )), semiconducting organic - inorganic hybrid materials self - assembled from solution ( c . r . kagan , et al ., science 286 , 946 ( 1999 )), or solution - deposited inorganic semiconductors such as cdse nano - particles ( b . a . ridley , et al ., science 286 , 746 ( 1999 )) or inorganic semiconductor nano - wires ( x . duan , nature 425 , 274 ( 2003 )). the structures described above could be supplemented by other conductive and / or semiconductive structures on the same substrate , for example interconnects . multiple structures as described above may be formed on the same substrate , and may be connected together by electrically conductive interconnects to form an integrated circuit . the applicant hereby discloses in isolation each individual feature described herein and any combination of two or more such features , to the extent that such features or combinations are capable of being carried out based on the present specification as a whole in the light of the common general knowledge of a person skilled in the art , irrespective of whether such features or combinations of features solve any problems disclosed herein , and without limitation to the scope of the claims . the applicant indicates that aspects of the present invention may consist of any such individual feature or combination of features . in view of the foregoing description it will be evident to a person skilled in the art that various modifications may be made within the scope of the invention .	6
with reference to fig1 a device 10 according to the invention is shown , associated with an inverter 11 in an integrated circuit 12 of the cmos type . inverter 11 normally has an input 11a and an output 11b . output 11b is connected to a bus 13 . a classic inverter includes two complementary transistors n1 and p1 mounted in series between ground and the supply voltage vdd . when input lla is in logic state &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; corresponding to the ground potential , transistor n1 is blocked and transistor p1 conducts . consequently , bus 13 becomes charged at voltage vdd . when input lla goes into state &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; corresponding to voltage vdd , transistor p1 becomes blocked and transistor n1 conducts . consequently , bus 13 discharges through transistor n1 . the size of transistors n1 and p1 in their typical state corresponds to the maximum permissible current intensity for the bus . these transistors determine the typical bus charging or discharging time . if , for example , transistor n1 is powerful , the discharging time will be shorter , but a classic inverter composed of the two transistors n1 and p1 will derive no benefit from this . if transistor n1 is weak , the discharge time is longer ; perhaps too long for normal operation . the same is true for the charging time of bus 13 through transistor p1 . since field effect transistors of complementary types have different characteristics , their drifts may be different . for example , it is possible , in a given integrated circuit , for n channel transistors to be powerful and p channel transistors to be weak . a complicated situation results , unfavorable to the desired operating speed of an inverter for any integrated circuit . the invention is for use with , for example , an inverter 11 . the compensating device 10 of the invention is composed of two sections 10a , 10b applying respectively to transistors p1 and n1 of inverter 11 . in these two sections , the common elements have the same reference numbers . each section has : a reference generator 14 producing a reference signal r ( ra , rb ); a threshold generator 15 composed of two threshold amplifiers 15t and 15f having respective thresholds tt and tf ; a switch unit 16 composed of two switches 16t and 16f ; and a compensating circuit 17 composed of two current paths composed of the drain - source leads of two transistors pt and pf in section 10a , and two transistors nt and nf in section 10b . reference generator 14 of section 10a has two transistors p2 , p3 having their drain - source leads in series with two resistors ( r2 , r3 respectively ) between ground and potential vdd . transistor p2 has its drain and its gate grounded . its source is connected to potential vdd through resistor r2 and is connected to the gate of transistor p3 . transistor p3 has its source connected to potential vdd and its drain grounded through resistor r3 . the output of reference generator 14 is the drain of transistor p3 which delivers reference signal ra . this signal is applied to the respective inputs of threshold amplifiers 15t and 15f . compensating signals st and sf at the outputs of the threshold amplifiers control switches 16t and 16f , respectively . each switch is represented schematically in fig1 by a mechanical contact for ease in reading the drawings . switches 16t and 16f have one terminal connected to the input 11a of inverter 11 and another terminal connected to the respective gates of transistors pt and pf . these transistors have their drain - source leads connected in parallel to that of transistor p1 . fig2 illustrates a classic embodiment of a cmos switch usable to form switches 16t and 16f in section 10a . it relates illustratively to switch 16t associated with amplifier 15t . amplifier 15t is classically composed of a threshold inverter delivering complementary compensating signal st , followed by an inverter delivering signal st . switch 16t is composed of three transistors p4 , n4 , and n5 . transistors p4 and n4 have their drain - source leads in parallel between input 11a and the gate of transistor pt and are controlled respectively by signals st and st . transistor n5 has its source at ground , its drain connected to the gate of transistor pt , and its gate receiving signal st . the operation of section 10a of compensating device 10 will now be described . in reference generator 14 it is advantageous to establish a correlation between the current dispersions of the transistors and the dispersions of the resistors . resistors r2 and r3 are preferably made of polycrystalline silicon in order for the dispersion of the resistors to be negligible by comparison with that of the transistors . transistor p2 , with its gate connected to its drain , constitutes a diode . the operating point of the diode is determined by the value of resistor r2 . p2 plus r2 constitutes the polarization circuit of transistor p3 . this transistor amplifies the variations in current in transistor p2 . if the current of transistor p2 is weak , the voltage at its source is high . consequently , transistor p3 conducts poorly , so that reference signal ra at its drain will be weak . on the contrary , if transistor p2 is powerful , reference signal ra will be high . reference signal ra is then compared to thresholds tt and tf of amplifiers 15t and 15f . a value of ra equal to or less than threshold tf , characterizes weak p - mos transistors in integrated circuit 12 . an ra value higher than threshold tf but equal to or less than threshold tt , characterizes the existence of typical transistors . above threshold tt , transistors are considered powerful . in this case , the two amplifiers 15t and 15f do not react to reference signal ra . their output signals are in logic state &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; and leave switches 16t and 16f in the open state . as a result , only transistor p1 , considered to be powerful , conducts in inverter 11 if the signal at input 11a is in state &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;. if reference signal ra indicates the presence of typical p - mos transistors , only amplifier 15t is active . its output signals st and st , shown in fig2 close switch 16t . transistor pt then receives the signal from input 11a of inverter 11 . if this signal is in state &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;, transistors pl and pt conduct . if reference signal ra corresponds to weak transistors , the two amplifiers 15t and 15f are active and cause transistors pt and pf to conduct , in addition to transistor p1 , if input lla is in state &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ;. thus , the method according to the invention consists of producing a reference signal ra representing conduction of reference transistor p2 of integrated circuit 12 , defining a conduction threshold tt , comparing the reference signal with the conduction threshold , and producing a compensating current if the reference signal does not reach the conduction threshold . in the previous example , a second conduction threshold tf improves the performance of the method . moreover , production of the compensating current consists of adding an additional current to the current of field effect transistor p1 . another feature of the invention relates to determining the intensity of the compensating current . for purposes of illustration , the average intensities of powerful , typical , and weak transistors will be designated ip , it , and if respectively , assuming that , according to statistics , ip = 3it / 2 and that if = 2it / 3 . in other words , it = 1 . 5 . if and ip = 2 . 25 . if . by dimensioning transistors pt and pf to be traversed by the same current which is half that traversing transistor p1 , the intensity ib of the current in bus 13 is equal to ip for powerful transistors in section 10a ; for typical transistors , ib = it + it / 2 = 3it / 2 ; and for weak transistors , ib = if + if / 2 + if / 2 = 2if . using the above assumptions , these equations become : for powerful transistors , ib = 2 . 25 . if ; for typical transistors , ib = 2 . 25 . if ; and for weak transistors , ib = 2 . if . thus , by controlling the current passing through transistors pt and pf , a substantially compensated current in bus 13 , independent of non - uniformity of the electrical properties of the p - mos transistors in integrated circuit 12 . section 10b of device 10 applies the same principle to the n - mos transistors of integrated circuit 12 . briefly stated , reference generator 14 has two transistors n2 and n3 and two resistors r1 , r4 . transistor n2 has its drain and its gate connected to potential vdd . its source is grounded through resistor r1 and is applied to the gate of transistor n3 . the source of transistor n3 is grounded and its drain is connected to potential vdd through resistor r4 . reference signal rb at the drain of transistor n3 is applied to the inputs of the two threshold amplifiers 15t and 15f . their output signals st , st , and sf , sf * command the activation of the two switches 16t and 16f relative to compensating transistors nt and nf . numerous variants of the example described may be made . in particular , a single threshold can suffice in some cases . however , others could be added . moreover , the compensating currents in the example described are additive and have a cumulative effect with the main current in p1 or n1 . however , switching could be noncumulative . for example , switch 16 could disconnect transistor p1 and connect transistor pt , dimensioned to conduct a current ib = 2 . 25 . if . another embodiment of the method according to the invention could also consist of eliminating reference generators 14 . the method would consist , before utilization of integrated circuit 12 , of measuring the current passing through a p - mos transistor and an n - mos transistor of the integrated circuit , and comparing it with at least one threshold . the result of the comparison could be introduced into a register of the integrated circuit . the contents of the register would represent the compensating signal . it would be introduced when the integrated circuit processing system was initialized . the result of the comparison could also be introduced into erasable rom , for example . more simply , compensating device 10 could include compensating circuits 17 and switches 16 only if , for example , closed selectively by laser . the invention has the advantage of equalizing the current in bus 13 at the best intensity possible . inverter 11 thus offers the best possible performances , regardless of the current drifts of its transistors . as a result , there is a substantial improvement in propagation time . since this time is practically constant , integrated circuit 12 can operate more rapidly . this advantage is obtained with no increase in the noise representing the inductive component of the bus . this noise is usually known as &# 34 ; slew rate .&# 34 ; moreover , regulation of the rise and fall time of the transmitted signal results in a substantial improvement in the bus transmission passband . it should also be noted that the additional elements of the device according to the invention can be common to other inverters or other components of the integrated circuit . it is clear that the invention can apply to components other than an inverter . for example , its characteristics may benefit a clock generator . because of the invention , the rise and fall times are smaller and constant , regardless of drifts . the clock can be faster and the waiting time for a event ( skew ) shorter . it is also obvious that the invention can be applied in simple mos , in cmos , and in bicmos . in the latter case , the effects of the invention will be amplified by the action of bipolar transistors , since the current furnished by each compensating circuit 17 is supplied to the base of a bipolar transistor . other modifications will occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as claimed . accordingly , the above description is not intended to limit the invention except as indicated in the following claims .	7
fig1 a shows , in schematic side elevation , partially sectioned , of the head and body of a tungsten - inert - gas arc welding torch of a type in general use in the prior - art , elements of which are described in detail in my u . s . pat . no . 3 , 739 , 140 , issued june 12 , 1973 and in my u . s . pat . no . 4 , 142 , 086 , issued feb . 27 , 1979 . in general , the elements of the welding torch to which the adapter handle kit of the present invention is applied are formed of metal having a high conductivity for electricity , and a high melting point , such as , for example , beryllium , or various alloys of chromium and copper , and other metals , such an an alloy known in the art as &# 34 ; duronz &# 34 ;, manufactured by the bridgeport brass co ., of bridgeport , conn . a welding torch of the type to which my invention is applicable comprises a tubular welding head 3 , which is 1 / 2 inch in outer diameter and 5 / 16 inch in inner diameter , forms an inner cylindrical chamber which is about 3 / 16 inch along the axis . head 3 has a downwardly - directed screw - threaded opening 3a which is adapted during operation to accommodate a holder for a tungsten welding rod , which is not shown . screwed into the head 3 so that it extends coaxially about 13 / 8 inch into its upper end is an insulating hard rubber , frustoconical handle 6 . the hollow cylindrical welding head 3 , upon assembly , is securely fitted into the left - hand end of the tubular body portion 5 so that the axes of the two tubes form an internal angle , of , say , 113 . 5 °. in the present embodiment , the tubular member 5 is 1 / 2 inch in outer diameter , 3 / 8 inch in inner diameter , and extends about 13 / 4 inches along the axis where it connects to the head portion 3 . at its right - hand end , it has an annular shoulder 5c , the outer face of which terminates in an axially disposed cylindrical body 2 , which extends , for example , 15 / 16 inch along the axis , having an annular collar 2b at its inner end and an externally screw - threaded portion 2a at its outer end . body member 2 is solid except for three substantially symmetrically spaced bores , 2c , 2d , and 2e , which are disposed parallel to the tube axis , and accommodate the connecting tubes 4a , 4b and 4c , as shown in section in fig1 b . the tube 4c leads to a source of inert gas , such as argon , which passes through the tube 5a in the torch body 5 to the cavity 3a of the welding head 3 . tube 4b is connected to a source of cooling water , which passes into the body 5 through the annular tubing 5b , and passes out through the hose 4a . in addition to functioning as a cooling water inlet , tube 4b also serves as a conduit for an electrical lead which preferably connects to a d . c . transformer from which it carries high current , of the order of 100 to 500 amperes , depending on the weld to be performed , through the conducting body of the tube 5 , and into the welding head 3 . the tube 4a , which in the present invention , is about 21 / 4 inches long , extends through the metal body member 2 parallel to the axis , to act as a drain for cooling water passing out of the chamber 5a of the body member 5 . when electrical current is turned on , if the water does not immediately come on , in 50 or 70 seconds , the vinyl hoses 4b and 4a become heated up to the breaking point whereby the water gushes out . the adapter combination 10 of the present invention operates to prevent this problem . fig2 is a perspective view of the adapter of the present invention assembled on the welding torch body shown in fig1 . this assembly is indicated in section , in fig3 and in exploded view in fig4 . the adapter combination comprises a brass tube 11 which is 7 / 8 inch long on the axis , which is threaded externally with 18 threads per inch . the brass tube 11 screws onto the externally screw - threaded portion 2a of the terminal tubular body 2 at the right - hand end of the welding torch body shown in fig1 . over the brass tube 11 is superposed a gasket 12 made of an insulating material such as phenolic resin , which is 1 / 8 inch in axial thickness . gasket 12 seats on the external annular shoulder 5c of the torch body 5 . in addition , a larger handle 13 consisting of a tube or sleeve of phenolic resin or other insulating material , say 5 inches long , is interposed over the right - hand end of torch body 5 , including the screw - threaded brass adapter 11 . the phenolic tube 13 is internally screw - threaded near the end , with threads 20 - to - the - inch , beginning at a plane perpendicular to the axis , 1 / 2 inch from the end , and extending 1 inch to the right in an axial direction . when this phenolic sleeve or tube 13 is put in place , it is moved to the left toward the welding torch body 5 until it contacts the external face of the gasket 12 which has been put in place against the external shoulder of 5a of the torch body 5 . the external screw threads of the brass tube 11 are screwed into and mate with the internal screw threads of the phenolic sleeve or tube 13 . this arrangement permits the torch body 5 to accept a larger diameter power cable which passes in through 4b , and may be made out of reinforced braided rubber , or equivalent insulating material . such power cables , which carry a high amperage , are in general use in the market today . the handle 10 of my invention serves to prevent leakage of high frequency power . most of the tungsten - inert - gas welding torches were designed some years ago , and will not accommodate cables of the present day size . the adapter kit of the present invention , makes it possible to use torches of a conventional type , widely in use , with the larger present day cables . in operation using the adapter combination 10 of my invention , the power cable is preferably connected up to a 220 volt source , and carries current of approximately 150 amperes . the torch 1 , including the adapter 10 of my invention , is used to weld stainless steel with no high frequency power leaks being detected therefrom . it has been found that before the cooling water comes on , which may be a period of about 11 / 2 minutes , the handle 13 does not reach a temperature which makes it too hot to touch . furthermore , when the cooling water passes into the torch body 5 , there is no damage to the cables . it will be understood that the present invention has been described with reference to an illustrative embodiment . the present invention is not to be construed as limited to the particular dimensions or materials mentioned by way of illustration , but only by the scope of the appended claims .	1
the following definitions are provided as reference for interpretation of these terms used in the context of this specification and the accompanying claims . 2 . cabled yarn : is two or more folded yarns twisted together in one or more operations . combinations of single yarn ( s ) may be described as cabled yarns , e . g . a single yarn twisted together with two folded yarns to build yarn size and impart texture to the resulting yarn . 3 . conventional twister : a system of producing a folded yarn by twisting together two or more single yarns simultaneously . 6 . folded yarn or plied yarn : a yarn in which two or more single yarns are twisted together in one operation , e . g ., two - folded yarn , three - fold yarn , etc . ( in some sections of the textile industry these yarns are sometimes referred to as two - ply three - ply , etc .) 7 . loop pile : the pile of a carpet consisting of loops . ( e . g . uncut pile ) 8 . pile : a surface effect on a fabric formed by tufts or loops of yarn that stand up from the body of the fabric . in carpet , pile is the part of the carpet consisting of textile yarns or fibers , cut or looped , projecting from the substrate and acting as the use - surface . 9 . textured pile : a pile in which the surface character is varied e . g ., by having areas of different characteristics or by combinations of different yarn or pile types , ( e . g ., soft and hard twist .) 10 . tpi : turns per inch ( e . g . tpi defines a degree of twist which is the number of turns or twist per unit length ) 11 . twist direction : is described as or according to which of these letters has its center inclined in the same direction as the surface elements of a given twisted yarn , when the yarn is viewed vertically ( e . g . twisting in the direction is clockwise and the z - direction is counter - clockwise ). in the present invention , bcf ( bulk continuous fiber ) or synthetic yarn such as nylon or other polyamides are used to create a textured loop pile construction for rugs / carpets . unlike cotton , which has a tendency to mat and pill , is difficult to clean , and is difficult to dye dark colors , synthetic fiber such as nylon 6 , 6 is durable , has easy care , colorfast , quick drying and resistant to fuzzing / pilling . using a conventional twister ( such as volkman , verdol , icbt & amp ; hammel ), the feed fiber or yarn is plied or twisted with another ( i . e . a second ) fiber or yarn of the same or different deniers forming a third yarn . this initial twisting ( i . e . or first twist ) of the yarn to form a third yarn as indicated above is preferably about 1 . 0 to about 10 . 0 twists per inch . the feed yarn is preferably at least two - ply and , most preferably two - plied or three - plied . the feed yarns can be colored or white dyeable . then , at least two of the plied or twisted third yarns are then cabled together forming a final yarn . the third yarns cabled together can be either of the same denier , or of different deniers . ( for example , a first third yarn can be comprised of two 2250 denier / 11 . 5 dpf and a second third yarn can be comprised of two 1400 denier / 10 dpf . then the first third yarn and second third yarn of different deniers can be cable twisted forming a final yarn . the dpf effects the hand or softness of the finished yarn .) the total denier of the final yarn preferably ranges from about 2 , 000 to about 20 , 000 . the yarns that are cabled together preferably have a cable twist of about 0 . 5 to about 10 twists per inch . in the present invention , a twist differential must occur between the initial twisting of the feed yarn and the cable twisting to provide a torque to the final yarn for the textured look desired . the torque causing the textured effect is a novel element of the present invention . the twist differential is a delta between the degree of twist at the initial twist and the cable twist . ( for example , if the initial twist is 3 . 0 tpi and the cable twist is 2 . 0 then the twist differential is ( 3 . 0 tpi 2 . 0 tpi ) 1 . 0 tpi .). furthermore , the twisting and the cable twisting must be twisted in the same direction ( e . g . s - direction or the z - direction ). that is , if the initial twist is in the s - direction then the cable twist for the final yarn must be in the s - direction not the z - direction . similarly if the initial twist is in the z - direction then the cable twist for the final yarn must also be in the z - direction . in order to maximize the torque / textured effect , the yarn should not be heatset . there can be additional twisting of the yarns with the same or different deniers after the initial twisting and prior to cabling into the final yarn . referring now to the drawings , where the showing is for the purpose of describing an embodiment of the invention and not for limiting same . the twisting operations may be conducted on any conventional twisters such as volkman , verdol , icbt & amp ; hammel . the examples below were twisted using a volkman twister . examples of the present invention are illustrated in fig1 and 2 and will be briefly described below . the feed yarn , end - a in fig1 is the starting point . a variety of samples of different denier were made using the following yarns as end - a : the same process as described in example 1 below was used for each of these samples which also yielded the textured loop pile of the present invention . one end of 2200 - denier / 8 - dpf ( end - a in fig1 ) was plied with another end of 2200 - denier /- 8 - dpf ( end - a in fig1 ) at 4 . 0 twist per inch in “ s ” direction to form a 4400 - denier ( end - b in fig1 ). then , two ends of 4400 - denier ( end - b in fig1 ) are cabled together at 3 . 0 twists per inch in the “ s ” direction to form a 8800 - denier ( end - c in fig1 ). the differential twist ( i . e . 4 . 0 twist per inch 3 . 0 twist per inch = 1 . 0 twist per inch ) of 1 . 0 twist per inch is imparted as torque to the final yarn . end - c in fig1 was tufted into a rug or carpet in a loop pile construction on a backing using a conventional tufting machine to achieve a textured loop aesthetics . the yarn was not heatset in order to maximize the torque / textured effect . one end of 2200 - denier / 8 - dpf ( end - a in fig2 ) was plied with another end of 2200 - denier /- 8 - dpf ( end - a in fig2 ) at 4 . 0 twists per inch in “ s ” direction to form a 4400 - denier ( end - b in fig2 ). one end of 1400 - denier / 10 - dpf ( end - c in fig2 ) was plied with another end of 1400 - denier / 10 - dpf ( end - c in fig2 ) at 4 . 0 twists per inch in the “ s ” direction to form a 2800 - denier yarn ( end - d in fig2 ). then one end - b was cabled with one end - d at 3 . 0 twist per inch in “ s ” direction to form a 7200 - denier ( end - e in fig2 ). the differential twist of 1 . 0 twist per inch imparted the torque to the final yarn . then the end - e , shown in fig2 was tufted into a rug or carpet in a loop pile construction on a backing on a conventional tufting machine to give a textured loop aesthetics . to maximize the torque / textured effect , the yarn was not heatset . reference is now made to fig3 which shows the textured effect of the yarn in a loop pile construction . the yarn , as shown , has been twisted and cabled to impart the torque to the bcf or synthetic yarn and tufted . it is therefore , apparent that there has been provided in accordance with the present invention , twisting then cabling bcf yarns to impart torque for a textured loop pile construction that fully satisfies the aims and advantages hereinbefore set forth . while this invention has been described in conjunction with a specific embodiment thereof , it is evident that many alternatives , modifications , and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art . accordingly , it is intended to embrace all such alternatives , modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and broad scope of the appended claims .	3
while the invention is susceptible of various modifications and alternative constructions , certain illustrated embodiments thereof have been shown in the drawings and will be described below in detail . it should be understood , however , that there is no intention to limit the invention to the specific forms or embodiments disclosed , but , on the contrary , the invention is to cover all modifications , alternative constructions , and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claims . turning now descriptively to the drawings in which similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several views , the attached figures illustrate embodiments of the present invention . in one embodiment , the present invention is a tape measure that incorporates a marking device . in another embodiment , the present invention comprises a marking device able to be attached to a tape measure . referring initially to fig1 - 5 , shown is one embodiment of the present invention 10 . this embodiment comprises a tape measure 2 incorporating a means for marking or “ marking device ” 80 . this improved tape measure comprising a housing 20 , a coiled measuring tape 40 having measuring indicia thereon , a tape tip 60 , a marking device or means for marking 80 , an axle 100 , an “ enclosure ” or holder 120 , and a means for locking the tape blade 140 . the present invention is configured to be used upon a surface to be measured and marked 160 . the housing 20 is preferably an elongated square , a cylindrical shape or a combination thereof , as shown in the figures . many different shapes and styles of tape measure housings are known to the prior art and may be configured for use with the present invention . the preferred housing 20 having opposed side walls 22 , 24 , a top wall 26 , a bottom wall or base 28 , a rear wall 30 , and a front wall 32 . these walls defining an enclosure for holding a wound tape blade . the front wall 32 having a tape blade aperture 34 therethrough for allowing a measuring tape blade to be extended . in the preferred embodiment , the coiled measuring tape 40 is an elongated blade formed of a ribbon of metal or composite material coiled on a spooling means , such as a spool , with a retraction means , such as a spring mechanism . such a coiled blade with spring tape measures are common in the prior art . the tape tip 60 or means for hooking is able to hook onto the edge of the surface to be marked , such as the edge of a board . this tape tip preferably including a hook portion 62 that extends at an essentially right angle from the mounting portion 66 of the tape tip 60 . the use of the phrase “ coiled measuring tape ” is expressly intended to include all other means for measuring , including laser , proximity sensors , sonar , etc . the holder or enclosure 120 of the means for marking 80 is preferably generally elongated square in shape or a combination thereof or any other shape that would effectively house a measuring device . in some embodiments , the holder 120 comprises a means of attachment to the housing , whereas , in other embodiments the holder 120 may be integrally formed within the housing 20 of the tape measure . in use , particularly as shown in fig5 the tape tip 60 is hooked on the edge 162 of the surface to be measured 160 . the housing 20 then moved away from the edge 162 thereby extending the tape 40 . side to side movement of the housing at the desired mark location results in the means for marking 80 making a mark on the surface to be measured and marked 162 which is generally perpendicular to the axis of the length of the tape 40 . as shown in fig2 - 30 , the holder 120 may also have a protruding cursor 124 that is in alignment with the marking wheel or “ impression wheel ” 84 of the means for marking 80 . thus , the cursor 124 gives the user of the present invention an indication of where the marking wheel 84 of the means for marking 80 is aligned , thereby indicating the alignment of the mark to be made by the means for marking . referring back to fig1 - 5 , the present invention 10 preferably also comprises a means for locking 140 the tape blade 40 in position . this means for locking 140 has a button section 144 that protrudes to the exterior of the housing 20 . means for locking tape blades of tape measures , in general , are known in the prior art . the means for locking 140 is completely optional , in that the present invention , unlike many of the prior art devices , will work absent such mean for marking . this is due to the fact that the marking means 80 is directional , able to create generally a straight line mark generally perpendicular to the extension of the measuring means . thus , once the marking means is placed against the surface to be marked at the location of the mark to be made , the tape itself does not need to be locked into place , but could even be retracted . the present invention is superior over the prior art in that the marking process is as easy as extending the housing to the point to be marked , and marking the surface to be marked . no additional steps are required , for instance , the lock does not need to be engaged or the marking means engaged . each additional step required can result in errors or variances in location of the marking means from the point intended to be marked . the present invention , in eliminating these additional steps , thereby results in a more accurate measurement . it is preferred that the housing of the present invention be made of a rigid material such as metal , plastic , rubber , composite or a combination thereof . it is preferred that the tape blade of the present invention be made of a resilient material , such as metal , plastic or a composite . it is preferred that the marking wheel be made of a material able to itself leave or create a mark upon or into the surface to be marked . for instance , the wheel could be made of a hard metal , such as steel . the marking wheel could likewise be made of different materials for the different purposes discussed within this application , including , but not limited to metal , composites , rubber , plastic , natural materials , foam , etc . likewise , the shape of the marking wheel can be as necessary , including but not limited to : rounded , flat , angled , sharpened , solid , porous , etc . referring now to fig5 the tape tip of the present invention preferably includes a means for hooking the tape tip on the edge 162 of a surface to be measured 160 . this means for hooking having a hook portion 62 that extends at an essentially right angle from the mounting portion 66 of the tape tip 60 . such tape tips are standard for tape measures in the prior art . referring now to fig2 - 23 , the tape tip 60 comprises a means for hooking including a hooking portion 62 that extends at an essentially right angle from the mounting portion 66 of the tape tip 60 . preferably , the tape tip 60 extends below the bottom 28 of the housing , as shown in fig1 to allow the hooking part 62 to easily engage the edge 162 of the surface to be measured and marked 160 . as seen in fig1 , the tape tip 60 may be of an asymmetrical shape to allow for increased engagement of the tape tip 60 to the surface to be measured and marked 160 . optionally , the tape tip 60 may include a mark making means 180 , for instance as shown in fig1 - 16 , 22 - 23 . in fig1 and 16 , the means for marking 80 may be a serrated edge or the edge of the tape tip 60 itself may be embedded with a mark making means such as diamond particles or a means for leaving a mark . whereas in fig2 - 23 , the tape tip 60 itself may include a mark making means 180 . in fig2 - 23 , the means for marking 180 preferably comprises a circular shaped wheel 184 or portion thereof . it is preferred that the means for marking 180 be made of a rigid material such as metal , plastic or a mark making composite . the wheel 184 preferably has an aperture 182 for mating with an axle . the axle 100 is preferably an elongated cylindrical shape . likewise , this tape tip 60 has a hooking portion 62 and a mounting portion 66 . this means for marking 180 able to be configured for applying a mark as any other means for marking 80 , 180 disclosed herein . the preferred embodiment of a wheel 184 utilize with the present invention can be found in fig3 - 33 . the wheel 84 of the present invention may be likewise shaped . referring now to fig6 - 7 , shown is another embodiment of the present invention . this embodiment having a housing 20 , a tape blade aperture 34 , and a tape terminating in a tape tip 60 . this embodiment having a means for marking holder 120 which is integral with the housing 20 . this is in contrast to a holder which is attached to the housing , as shown in fig1 . these figures show that the holder may either be formed within the housing of a tape measure , or configured for attachment to an existing tape measure . this integral holder 120 rendition is likewise shown in fig1 and 16 . referring now to fig8 and 9 , the preferred means for marking 80 comprises a circular wheel 84 . other shapes and configurations are also possible . it is preferred that the means for marking 80 be made of a rigid material such as metal , plastic or of a mark making composite , however other materials are also possible . the preferred wheel 84 having an aperture 82 for mating with an axle 100 . this axle 100 having axle protrusions or ends 102 configured for rotational engagement with the holder 120 . the wheel 84 being preferably mounted at or near the center or middle 104 of said axle 100 . as seen in fig8 - 9 and 31 - 33 , the means for marking 80 may be hardened and / or ground at an angle 86 , similar to a glass cutting wheel . this angle 86 may be configured to provide a narrow , accurate mark or may be configured and sharpened to actually serve as a cutting wheel . thus , “ marking ” is intended to include marking by cutting . also , the impression wheel 84 , preferably has a rim 88 for contacting the surface to be marked , at least a portion of this rim extending out of the enclosure / holder 120 . the axle 100 is preferably an elongated cylindrical shape , as shown in fig8 - 9 . this axle 100 being preferably made of a rigid material such as metal or plastic . the means for marking 80 of fig8 having an axle 100 , a middle 104 , and two ends 102 . the axle 100 may be integral to the means for marking 80 or the holder 120 or the housing 20 . the holder 120 is preferably an elongated square or a right rectangular parallelepiped shape . the holder 120 having a means of attachment to the housing in one embodiment . examples of such attachment include adhesives , snap fits , magnets , etc . in other embodiments , the holder 120 is integral with the housing , being formed into the housing during or after manufacture . the housing preferably has a protruding cursor 124 that is in alignment with a means for holding a marking wheel parallel to the face of the housing and at a precise position to the bottom of the housing . as shown in fig2 - 30 , the holder 120 is preferably an elongated square ( right rectangular parallelepiped ) in shape . other shapes are also possible . the holder 120 preferably has a cavity 126 for nesting of the means for marking 80 . the holder 120 preferably has a means of attachment 122 to the housing 20 , one example of which is shown in fig2 . the housing 120 preferably has a protruding cursor 124 that is in alignment with a marking wheel of the means for marking 80 . this cursor being generally parallel to the face of the housing 20 and generally perpendicular to the means for measuring 40 . as shown in fig1 and 18 , any means for holding the means for marking 80 perpendicular to the means for measuring 40 in such a way as to allow engagement of the means for marking 80 with the surface to be measured and marked 160 may be utilized as can be appreciated . as shown in other embodiments , such as fig1 - 14 , the bottom wall 28 or a portion thereof ( partially sloped base ) 29 may be angled in such a way as to allow for engagement of the tape tip 60 to the surface being measured 160 without initiating contact of the means for marking 80 until it is intended . although one angle is shown , many angles , combinations of angles , cutaways , or geometric reveals or shapes could achieve the desired results as can be appreciated . the preferred angle is between 7 ° and 9 °. as shown , it is preferred that this angular relationship of the wall 28 to the partially sloped base 29 be configured along the base length of the housing . however , any base shape that allows for the engagement of the tape tip 162 to the end 62 without engaging the mark making means 80 will work and are also envisioned . in such a configuration , the marking tape measure comprises a housing 20 for containing a tape and a marking device 80 . this housing 20 having a tape opening or aperture 34 and a top wall or side 26 opposite a bottom wall or side . the bottom side comprising a first longitudinal surface ( bottom ) 28 obliquely joining a second longitudinal surface ( partially sloped base ) 29 . the tape having measuring indicia thereon , and being extendible through the tape opening in a first direction . the remainder of the tape being coiled within the housing . the marking device thus being connected to the housing in alignment with the second longitudinal surface , configured to extend out of the housing adjacent the second longitudinal surface . in such a manner , a user could hook the tape tip 60 on the edge or end 162 of the surface to be marked and measured 160 . with the housing 20 tilted as shown in fig1 , the housing could be slid away from the end 162 thereby extending the tape out of the housing without engaging the means for marking 80 . when the desired extended length is reached , the user could right the housing 20 as shown in fig1 , thereby allowing the means for marking 80 to engage the surface to be measured and marked . as shown in fig1 and 18 , the housing 20 may have a ramp 36 is flexible when pressure is applied . this ramp 36 prevents the marking of the surface being measured and marked 160 until the user presses downwards on the housing 20 thereby flexing said ramp 36 and allowing the means for marking 80 ( 80 ′) to contact the surface to be marked . it is preferred that this ramp 36 be comprised of a resilient material able to return to its original shape after such pressure is removed . another variation of the housing may include the inclusion of at least one roller or bearing located on the bottom wall of the housing to facilitate perpendicular movement of the housing , to the means for measuring , against the surface to be measured and marked . the preferred coiled measuring tape utilized with the present invention is an elongated blade formed of a ribbon of metal or composite material . this blade configured to be coiled on a means for a spool ( spool means ) with a means to retract ( retraction means ). this tape measure configuration ( spool means with retraction means ) is well known in the prior art . as shown in fig5 , 20 , 22 , and 23 of the drawings , the coiled measuring tape 40 comprises an elongated blade 40 formed of a ribbon of metal or composite material coiled on a means for a spool with a means for retraction . it is clearly anticipated that the coiled ribbon measuring tape 40 may be replaced by other means for measuring including digital , gps , sonar , laser , magnetic , proximity or any other means for determining distance or position . referring now to fig1 - 16 , the means for marking 80 may not be a wheel , but may be directional in shape . for instance the elongated point of fig1 or the semi - circular shape of the “ wheel ” 84 of fig1 . in such an embodiment , the means for marking 80 would not roll along a surface but be scratched across the surface to be marked , either leaving a mark or creating a groove in the surface to be marked . in such an embodiment , the fact that the means for marking is directional in shape , particularly directional generally perpendicular to the length of the base 28 of the housing , the means for marking is able to travel generally only perpendicularly across the surface of the surface to be marked . a point , or a scribe , does not have this ability . the base 28 itself could have formed therein a directional marking means , for instance a semi - circular ridge . the ability to make a mark upon the surface to be marked which is generally perpendicular to the distance measured is key to the preferred embodiment of this invention . this is preferably achieved through the marking means being directional so that the marking means will , in use , only apply a mark to the surface which is generally perpendicular to the distance measured ( for instance the length of the tape blade ). however , other manners may also be utilized to achieve this goal , including manners of restricting the housing itself to perpendicular movement while using a non - directional marking means , for instance one or more wheels located in the base of the measuring device . as shown in fig1 , a particular embodiment may include two or more means for marking 80 , 80 ′. these means for marking 80 , 80 ′ could be separate , as shown , or could be joined together . these means for marking 80 , 80 ′ are preferably aligned with one another so that side to side movement of the housing 20 will result in a single line marked upon the surface to be marked . optionally , these means for marking could be slightly staggered so that a differing line style or thickness could be provided . referring back to fig1 it is preferred that the tape measures incorporating the present invention be configured for inclusion with a means for locking the tape blade 140 . the means for locking the tape blade 140 has a button section 144 that protrudes to the exterior of the housing . this is likewise shown in fig3 . there are many alternate means for locking the tape blade 140 , and considered by themselves , are conventional means known in the art and are therefore not shown in detail in the drawings . the means for locking the tape blade 140 is preferably contained in the housing 20 with a button 144 that protrudes to the exterior of the housing 20 . this means for locking the tape blade 140 configured to engage and lock the tape blade 40 . the surface to be measured and marked 160 can be of any shape or size material that would commonly be measured with said measuring device . the surface to be measured and marked 160 may also be a structure or a combination of materials . the housing 20 and all the housing sub - components integrally form an enclosure . the coiled measuring tape 40 is retractably contained inside the housing enclosure 20 on a hub with the free end of the coiled measuring tape 40 extending through the housing aperture , attaching to the tape tip 60 . the tape tip 60 is integral with the free end of the coiled measuring tape 40 . in the preferred embodiments , the means for marking 80 mates with the middle 104 of the axle 100 . as such , the axle 100 protrudes from both sides of the means for marking 80 . these axle protrusions 102 are able to be received integrally in the walls of the cavity of the holder 126 . the preferred holder 120 includes a means for attachment 122 to the housing 20 , and is preferably interconnected with the housing 20 . likewise , the holder may be integral with said housing 20 , as shown in fig6 . it is preferred that the holder 120 have a protruding cursor 124 that is integral . this cursor 124 indicating to the user the location of the means for marking 80 to the user . referring now to fig5 and 11 , in use the housing 20 may be brought into contact with the surface to be measured and marked 160 . the tape tip 60 is allowed to engage the edge 162 of the surface to be measured and marked 160 , while the housing 20 is pulled across the surface to be measured and marked 160 to the desired location as verified by the cursor 124 . the means for marking 80 is then engaged by altering the angle of the housing 20 , as shown in fig1 and 12 , and applying downward pressure to the means for marking 80 . due to the generally perpendicular attitude of the means for marking 80 to the means for measuring 40 , the desired position of the means for marking 80 is maintained . this is due to the nature of the means for marking 80 being directional and configured for moving forward or backward and not side to side . this is likewise illustrated in fig5 , 12 , 15 - 16 , and 19 - 22 . referring now to fig3 and 35 , shown is an alternative embodiment of the present invention . in this embodiment , a chamber 50 is provided for containing an amount of a liquid , powder or gel ( preferably a liquid ) marking substance . this chamber or well 50 preferably provided with a closure 54 , such as a lid , for allowing additional quantities of the marking substance to be added to the well . the chamber 50 may be of any size or configuration and may be located inside or outside the housing . it may also be integral with the housing or removable as in a cartridge format . this marking substance being transmitted to the marking means 80 through a channel 52 , preferably via a wick to an applicator 54 for applying the marking substance , such as an ink , paint , chemical , etc ., to the wheel of the marking means 80 . it is preferred that in such an embodiment that a wick be employed to transfer the marking substance with the end of the wick comprising the applicator . the rotation of the marking means transfers the marking substance to the surface to be marked . referring now to fig3 , in yet another embodiment of the present invention , a marking applicator could be provided for applying a marking substance , such as graphite , charcoal , wax , chalk , ink , paint , etc ., to the means for marking 80 . for instance , a pencil lead ( graphite ) 92 could be held under tension against the surface of the means for marking 80 , particularly the wheel 84 , which contacts the surface to be marked 160 . thus , rotation of the wheel 84 of the means for marking against the surface to be marked 160 also results in rotation of the wheel 84 of the means for marking against the indicia ( marking ) applicator 90 . this results in the transmission of the marking substance from the marking applicator 90 onto the wheel 84 of the means for marking . then , continued movement of the means for marking 80 against the surface to be marked 160 results in the transfer of the marking substance to the surface to be marked from the means for marking . thus , for instance , utilization of the present invention could result in the creation of an ink line along the track of the means for marking . additionally , the means for marking utilized with the marking applicator could comprise or be comprised at least partially of , a rubber material or a porous material allowing for easier application of such a marking substance . such a rubber or porous material would more easily hold and carry to the surface to be marked the marking substance . additionally , the marking applicator could be selectively engaged or disengaged by the operator through use of an engagement / disengagement means 70 . this would allow the operator or user of the present invention to decide whether to also or instead apply a marking substance to the surface marked . for instance , a spring mechanism 72 could be utilized whereby through pushing a button 74 on the coiled measuring tape the marking applicator could be activated or deactivated . as the wheel is rolled on the surface to be marked , ink or any other liquid is deposited on the wheel . the wheel , as it rolls , deposits the ink or liquid on to the surface to be marked . the housing 20 , the holder 120 , and the means for marking 80 , may be molded , cast or machined as one component , preferably from a rigid material such as metal , plastic or a mark making composite . referring now to fig3 , shown is another embodiment of the present invention . this embodiment having an asymmetrical tape tip 60 . this tape tip 60 having one side 64 longer than the other side 68 . in such a manner , utilization of the present invention is easier , in that the housing 20 can be tilted as shown in the figure with the tape hook 60 one side 64 , being elongated , more easily engaging the end 162 of the surface to be marked and measured 160 , thereby allowing the device to be utilized without engaging the marking device 80 . as to a further discussion of the manner of usage and operation of the present invention , the same should be apparent from the above description . accordingly , no further discussing relating to the manner of usage and operation will be provided . with respect to the above description then , it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention , to include variations in size , materials , shape , form , function and manner of operation , assembly and use , are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art , and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention . therefore , the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention . further , since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art , it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described , and accordingly , all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to , falling within the scope of the invention . while there is shown and described the present preferred embodiment of the invention , it is to be distinctly understood that this invention is not limited thereto but may be variously embodied to practice within the scope of the following claims . from the foregoing description , it will be apparent that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following claims .	6
various aspects of the present invention will be described using terminology adapted to the field of circuit design and it is believed beneficial to the understanding of the disclosure to first define certain terms . it is to be understood that while the invention is described in terms of electronic circuit design , the applicability of the invention extends to other fields of endeavor where path finding and routing is involved . as is used in the art , a “ design ” is an electronic design automation ( eda ) database of information describing a printed circuit board ( pcb ), an integrated circuit ( ic ) or an ic package . a graphical representation of a portion of a design is illustrated at 100 in fig1 a - 1b . a “ terminal ” 105 is a location on one or more layers of a design to which electrical signals may be connected . for a pcb , terminals correspond to the pins , pads , and balls of the elements in the circuit . for an ic package , terminals are typically ic bumps or package balls . a terminal may also be a junction point , such as a virtual pin or a t - junction . multiple terminals that are grouped together , such as depicted at 110 , will be referred to as a “ component ”. in fig1 a - 1b , there is shown a “ tessellation ” of design 100 , i . e ., the separation of the entire design space into distinct , non - overlapping regions , such as those shown at 115 a and 115 b . the regions in the exemplary embodiments described herein are triangular , but it is to be understood that the regions may be formed of other polygonal shapes , such as the rectangular regions of tessellation employed in traditional autorouters . a “ rat ” is a connection between two terminals , i . e ., a “ source terminal ” 120 a , 125 a and a “ target terminal ” 120 b , 125 b . a rat can be unrouted , as shown at 130 a , 130 b of fig1 a , where the rat has yet to possess geometric information defining its precise path in the design , or a rat can be routed as shown at 140 a , 140 b of fig1 b , where the rat has complete geometric information specifying its ordered sequence of “ segments ”, an example of which is shown at 142 . the segment ordering is typically indexed or referenced starting at the source terminal 120 a , 125 a and ending at the target terminal 120 b , 125 b . a “ net ” is a collection of rats connecting a collection of terminals . in some cases , the specific connections between terminals formed by certain rats are predetermined . in other cases , the rats are assembled into a net in an order or “ sequence ” that is either established by the autorouter or is constrained by certain rules . for example , in the absence of any connectivity rules , the autorouter can change the collection of rats as needed , provided the new collection still connects all of the terminals of the net . referring now to fig2 , there is shown a “ bundle ” 200 , which , in accordance with the present invention , is a collection of rats determined by the designer or the autorouter to be routed together . in certain embodiments , a bundle is displayed as a “ fat rat ”, which , as described above , is a wide line indicating more than one rat . the fat rat includes a plurality of “ rake lines ” 240 a - 240 d extending therefrom . the rake lines 240 a - 240 d graphically connect the terminals 120 a - 120 b and 125 a - 125 b of the rats 130 a - 130 b to the fat rat 205 at a common location , referred to herein as a “ gather point ”, as shown at 230 a and 230 b . in accordance with the present invention , a “ flow ” is a path for a bundle , such as that illustrated by the traversal of fat rat 205 in fig2 . a flow can be either active or inactive . an “ inactive flow ” is for graphical display purposes only and has no effect on autorouting , whereas an “ active flow ” provides geometric input to the autorouter to be used when autorouting rats in that bundle . referring to fig3 , it is illustrated that a flow includes one or more “ flow lines ” 310 , 330 and 350 connected by zero or more “ flow vias ” 320 , 340 . a flow via indicates where vias should be placed when a rat path needs to change routing layers . each flow line includes one or more “ flow segments ”, such as those illustrated at 312 , 314 and 316 of flow line 310 . a “ portal ”, as used herein , is a side of a tessellation region and is often referred to in topological fields as an edge or a cut . in fig2 , the portals shown at 210 a - 210 d are traversed by the flow indicated by the fat rat 205 . it is to be noted that terminals may or may not be on a boundary formed by the portals . an exemplary embodiment of exemplary functional modules operable to carry out the invention are illustrated in fig4 a and may be implemented in suitable computing hardware such as that depicted in fig4 b . the data defining one or more designs is maintained in database 420 and is presented to a user as one or more abstractions of that data through a user interface 410 . a data abstraction is a conceptualization of the data reduced or factored so that a user can focus on only few pertinent aspects thereof . this is useful in circuit design in that the data may be viewed in a manner appropriate to the work task at hand . for example , an ic is generally viewed by a simple block symbol during a component placement task and is viewed as an arrangement of its terminals in a routing task . through these data abstractions , the user is relieved of having to place and route the circuit in a view cluttered by the ic &# 39 ; s constituent components , i . e ., the thousands and possibly millions of transistors , resistors and other circuit elements forming the ic . database 420 implements a suitable structure on , for example , persistent storage system 450 , for retaining data so as to be retrieved by its numerous data abstractions . additionally , the database 420 is operable to store data that has been modified through any of its abstractions . user interface 410 may be implemented through processor instructions stored in memory system 470 and executed by a suitable processor 440 . the user interface 410 may be a graphical user interface operable to display the design on a display 470 and to allow the user to add , delete and modify features of the design through , for example , manipulation of certain peripheral components 460 coupled to processor 440 . routing engine 430 executes path finding procedures to interconnect the terminals of a design . the routing engine 430 may be implemented through processor instructions stored in memory system 470 and executable by processor 440 . the present invention is not limited to any specific router implementation . however , for purposes of describing the invention , the routing engine 430 will embody a “ costed - wavefront ” path finding mechanism . in such a router , paths are selected for each rat by expanding through each tessellated region of the design starting at its associated source terminal . each expansion forwards the rat from one tessellated region to an adjacent region at an associated “ cost ” for the expansion . the cost for the expansion is a numeric value indicative of the relative difficulty of geometrically installing the path in the design . the lowest cost sequence of such expansions from the source terminal ( or an equivalent source terminal ) to the target terminal ( or an equivalent target terminal ) is selected as the path for that rat . referring to fig5 , there is shown a flow diagram of certain exemplary method steps in routing a design in accordance with the present invention . the process is initiated at block 505 and progresses to block 510 , where the component and net data are imported , typically from a schematics entry and editing process . constraint information ( delay / length limits , crosstalk limits , manufacturing rules , etc .) is also applied to the design as entered into the database via the schematics entry and editing process , from a constraint managing process , from a design rules file or other suitable constraint entry mechanisms . process flow then proceeds to the block 515 , in which the designer places the components into the design , thereby specifying the locations in the design for each component . once the components have been placed , the process 500 continues to block 520 , where the bundles and flows are defined . an exemplary configuration of bundles and flows as developed by process 500 is illustrated in fig6 a - 6d . the circuit arrangement of fig6 a represents a portion of a design after components 610 a - 610 c have been placed therein . rats 620 a - 620 d each correspond to an interconnection between certain terminals of component 610 a and certain terminals of component 610 c . in fig6 b , the rats have been assigned to a bundle , which is indicated by the fat rat 630 . the assignment of rats to bundles may be accomplished in more than one way , as will be described below . next , as is shown in fig6 c , a flow 640 has been defined for the bundle 630 . the flow consists of flow segments 642 , 644 , 646 and 648 , each joined one with another at vertices 643 , 645 and 647 and defining a flow path to circumvent component 610 b . it is to be noted that a flow may also include flow vias and numerous flow lines , as described above . without the benefit of the present invention , the procedure indicated at block 520 would be performed in the designer &# 39 ; s head or sketched on paper or using a separate computer application . the present invention not only allows the plan to be developed in concert with other eda tasks , but the planning information is retained and used to guide the routing engine to route the rats in accordance with the designed plan . returning to fig5 , the design is routed by the routing process indicated at block 525 . the routing engine 430 creates the geometric paths for each rat using segments on a particular layer and vias for establishing connections between layers , in accordance with not only the constraints entered directly into the design , but also in accordance with the flows established in block 520 . an exemplary routing process 525 operatively consistent with the present invention is illustrated in fig7 . the procedure is entered at block 705 and proceeds to decision block 710 , where it is determined if the rat being routed is a member of a flow . if not , the rat is routed separately using the costed - wavefront path finding routine , as indicated at block 725 , and then installed into the design in accordance with the path having the least cost , as indicated at block 730 . if , however , the rat is a member of a flow , it is determined at block 715 which portals are traversed by the flow . the traversed portals are referred to herein as “ preferred portals ” for rats that are part of a traversing flow and , in accordance with certain embodiments of the invention , expansion across preferred portals for those rats is done so at a reduced cost . in certain embodiments of the invention , the cost for expanding across preferred portals is reduced to zero . the routing procedure then proceeds to block 725 , where the path is found having the lowest cost . for rats that are members of an active flow , the path finding routine or the routing engine is biased by the reduction in cost towards traversing the preferred portals . the paths for those rats are geometrically installed by the routing engine in regions of the design set forth by the designer &# 39 ; s plan . however , it is to be noted that other routing constraints entered into the design may resolve into routed paths that do not strictly conform to the active flow , but the guidance provided by the designer will influence the routing with most often satisfactory results . the guided routing of the present invention is conceptually illustrated in fig8 , where rat 810 has been routed in accordance with flow 860 . many other paths for rat 810 are possible and absent any other information , such as the set of preferred portals 820 , 830 , 840 , 850 , defined by the traversal of flow 860 , the rat could have been routed in other areas . note that the path 810 is established above terminal 870 because the cost of expansion to areas below the terminal 870 is higher than that of expansion to areas above the terminal , even though the length of the routed rat could have been made the same . the lowest cost was set by the preferred portals 830 , 840 and 850 . an example of rats routed in accordance with the exemplary flow described with reference to fig6 a - 6c is illustrated in the example of fig6 d . after routing , the design process 500 of fig5 proceeds to block 530 , in which the signal integrity of the design is verified . this may be accomplished through suitable simulations on the design to verify that all of the constraints and other requirements have been met . the process flows to block 535 , where the verified design is delivered to a receiving entity , such as a manufacturing facility or a corporate repository of designs . as is demonstrated by the multiple arrows of process flow in fig5 , the design process 500 is rarely straight forward or completed in a single pass through the process steps . multiple iterations of various steps of the process must be performed . for example , the first routing attempt is unlikely to be the final routing attempt and a return to a previous step will often be necessary . even when a design is completed and delivered , the process may have to be revisited , such as when an engineering change order ( eco ) is issued due to testing or to a requirements change . in a significant departure from the prior art , the bundle and flow information is maintained in the design database in a suitable manner similar to that of any other element in the design . the bundles and flows may be presented through various data abstractions , such as the fat rat , and manipulated through the user interface just as other data members are abstracted and manipulated in accordance with the task at hand . without bundles and flows , the entire design process might need to be restarted , whereas with bundles and flows of the present invention , most of the prior design effort can be preserved . the autorouter can simply restart from previously defined bundles and flows using the new components , nets , and constraints to revise the design . during component placement and thermal analysis phases of design development , users can by way of the invention more easily visualize the connectivity of the components to each other . since part of this step involves planning the anticipated interconnect density against the available free space , designers can take into account space for interconnects by establishing flows during the placement phase . it becomes possible to logically group components together so as to move groups together as individual units and visually see the effects . in autorouters of the prior art , autorouting tools have very little value during placement , because the design is in such early stages and only incomplete lists of components and nets are available . traditionally , autorouting is impossible without , at the very least , a complete set of components . spatial planning early in the design cycle by way of the present invention saves time in later development phases , since insufficient space normally requires potentially painful placement changes , which require associated manufacturing approval all over again . similar benefits are achieved by the invention during constraint development , where the component list and the net list are typically still incomplete . as with placement , this has a major impact on the final location of components and current automation tools , which merely view connections as discrete and unrelated to each other , do not assist in planning for spacing requirements . incremental development of a design in accordance with the invention is illustrated in fig9 . upon entering the process 900 at block 905 , process flow is transferred to block 910 , where the components , nets and constraints of one critical circuit are imported into the design . certain of the components are selected and placed , as shown at block 915 , and bundles and flows are created for the selected components , as shown at block 920 . selected nets are routed , as shown at block 925 , and verified , as shown at block 930 , and it is then determined if the selected critical circuit is within design specifications , as indicated by decision block 935 . if not , process flow is transferred back to the bundling step of block 920 for refinement . if the circuit is verified as being within specified parameters , it is then determined if all circuits have been routed , as indicated at decision block 940 . if more circuits are to be placed , the process 900 is transferred to block 945 , where the circuit elements are imported and is placed by the process of block 915 . if it is established at block 940 that all critical circuits have been routed , remaining nets are routed , as indicated at block 950 . the remaining nets will include those connections not forming the individual critical circuits , including nets that join such circuits . once all nets have been routed , the entire design is verified , as shown at block 955 , and the process 900 is exited at block 960 . the present invention implements means for associating certain interconnections together into bundles . referring to fig1 , there is shown a flow diagram of an exemplary bundling process 1000 of the present invention , which is entered at block 1005 . because there are typically many potential bundles in a design , a user might first allow the autorouter to automatically create the bundles , as shown at block 1015 . because the bundle definition process is extremely fast compared to the time to route the design , the user might alternatively choose to interactively create each bundle , as shown at block 1010 . it is then determined at block 1020 if the resulting bundles meet the user &# 39 ; s requirements and , if so , the process is exited at block 1025 . in most cases , however , the user will need to interactively create or modify the resulting bundles by returning to the interactive bundling process of block 1010 and reevaluating thereafter . in fact , the user may return to the interactive bundling stage at any later time during the entire process to make minor adjustments to the bundle assignments . interactively creating bundles can be accomplished using any of various suitable interactive user interface techniques that allow several rats to be selected together . in one embodiment , a mechanism is provided whereby the user graphically selects a set of rats and assigns them to a bundle using a menu or mouse click command . the same techniques may enable the user to modify bundles . for example , using mouse clicks or menu commands , the user could select an existing bundle and then select a specific rat to add to that bundle or select a rat to remove from that bundle . other interactive mechanisms are possible , such as specifying bundles and / or rats by symbol or by name . there are several mechanisms by which bundles can be created automatically by the autorouter . in certain embodiments , the invention uses component information to automatically create bundles , such as by the procedure 1100 illustrated in fig1 . the process 1100 is entered at block 1105 and flow is transferred to block 1110 , where rats are selected as candidates for bundles . this could be all rats that are not yet part of a bundle or the candidate set could be interactively selected by the user prior to starting automatic bundling process 1100 . the process 1100 continues at block 1115 where a table is created in memory that contains the rat identifier and the identifiers for the corresponding source and target components whose terminals are connected by this rat . such a table is illustrated in fig1 a , where the entry into the table is identified by the table id . the rat id entries take the form xx . p : yy . p , where xx is the source component , yy is the target component and p is the associated terminal or pin number of the corresponding component . the component 1 and component 2 entries are the component designator in the design of the source and target components . flow of process 1100 then progresses to block 1120 , where the last two columns of each row of the table are sorted by component name . this is illustrated in fig1 b , where it is to be observed that the component 1 and component 2 entries at 1220 and 1222 have been switched . this sorting operation allows the procedure to ignore which end of the rat corresponds to the source component and which end corresponds to the target component . the procedure 1100 proceeds then to block 1125 , where the rows of the table are sorted by first and second component name , which groups similar rats together in the table . the grouping is illustrated in fig1 c , where entries at 1230 and 1232 respectively interconnect the same two components . flow of process 1100 is transferred to block 1130 , where the table is searched for a sequence of rats with the same first and second component , which is referred to as a “ bundle candidate ”. if any bundle candidate is found , as determined at decision block 1135 , a bundle is created for those rats , as shown at block 1140 , and the bundled rats are then remove from the table , as shown at block 1145 . the procedure 1100 is repeated at block 1130 until all bundle candidates are found and the procedure 1100 is ultimately terminated at block 1150 . in certain embodiments , a decision is made at block 1140 as to which bundle candidates should be forwarded to create a bundle , such as on the number of rats in the bundle candidate . for example , certain embodiments of the invention will create a bundle from a bundle candidate if there are four ( 4 ) or more rats in the bundle . if there are three ( 3 ) or fewer , no bundle is created and the rats are routed separately in the appropriate manner . another alternative embodiment of the invention uses planned routing information as part of the decision logic . referring to fig1 , there is shown a planned design configuration where the user has placed three components 1310 a - 1310 c and planned rats 1313 , 1315 , 1317 . the entry / exit side for the planned rats indicated at 1313 , 1315 , 1317 is extracted and placed in additional columns of the table in memory , such as is shown in fig1 . the table may then be sorted in step 1125 of fig1 in accordance with the entry / exit side such that the rats with the same entry / exit directions will be adjacent in the table . the bundle candidates may then be selected in step 1130 to include only rats with the same components and the same entry / exit directions . for example , in fig1 , bundles 1320 , 1322 and 1324 may all meet criteria of common components , but bundles 1322 and 1324 would produce two separate bundles , as opposed to one combined bundle , because their entry / exit information is different . an alternative mechanism for assigning rats to a bundle is to use bus information . a “ bus ” is a user - defined collection of nets , which are frequently generated through a schematic editor . it is common for users of schematic editing packages to define a bus to reduce the clutter on the schematic . it is also common for signal integrity engineers to define a bus for the purpose of assigning constraint properties to a set of related nets . unfortunately , busses are defined on nets , which may have many rats . it therefore provides little or no benefit to combine all of the rats of a net into a bundle , since the rats of the net would be on different areas of the design . the present invention would use additional information when creating bundles from bus information . for example , certain embodiments of the invention would extract the bus name corresponding to the rats and place the bus name in an additional column of the memory table described above . when the table is sorted in block 1125 of fig1 , for example , rats having the same bus name will be grouped together in adjacent rows . the bundle candidates may then be selected in block 1130 to include only rats connecting the same components and by the same named bus . variations of this procedure would prevent adjacent rats of the same bus from being placed in two different bundles or allow adjacent rats of the same bus to be placed in two different bundles . another variation is to prevent or allow joining rats of two different buses into the same bundle . the present invention makes possible assigning properties to a bundle . for example , the layer or layers to be used for a bundle can be specified . the bundle may also have a “ packed / unpacked ” property , where , if packed , the autorouter routes the rats of the bundle as close together as the spacing constraints allow and , if unpacked , the router spreads the paths apart , evenly distributing whenever space is available . other properties can be added to each bundle to provide additional guidance to the autorouter , even if no flow information is provided . as described above , a flow consists of one or more flow lines and zero or more flow vias . in certain embodiments of the invention , each flow line is displayed as a fat rat having a width proportional to the sum of the widths of the rats in its bundle . however , other representations are possible , such as the extent of actual paths of all of the rats when the rats have associated route information or plan information . each rat can be visually represented with two rake lines , one at each end of the flow as illustrated by 210 a and 210 d of fig2 . whether the rake lines are displayed or not displayed is , in certain embodiments of the invention , a user selectable option . any of several possible user interface mechanisms can be used by the designer to interactively create and modify flows , such as through adding new vertices to a flow , moving existing vertices within a flow , or to remove vertices from the flow . alternatively , an interactive mechanism could be provided to select a series of locations using a mouse or other pointing device to specify a series of locations for vertices of a flow . similar interactive mechanisms could be provided to add a flow via to a flow , to move an existing flow via within a flow or to delete an existing flow via from a flow . without the ability of controlling autorouting with flows by the present invention , the flow and bundle information is merely a graphically tool , albeit a useful one . certain embodiments of the invention , however , allow bundles to control autorouting even without flows , such as by automatically applying any properties or attributes associated with a bundle to each rat in its bundle . for example , if the bundle has a certain required layer assignment , then the rat is to be routed on that layer . this can be implemented in the form of a strict rule , for example , that the rat can only be routed on the specified layer . such a rule may be implemented with an exception for preexisting routes , for example , by a rule that specifies that new segments can only be created on the specified layer , but preexisting segments can be on any layer . exceptions may also be provided for surface mount devices , where the terminal is only defined on an outer layer . the exceptions may allow short segments to be created on the terminals layer so as to only to reach a via to the specified layer . the layer specification can also be a preference , as opposed to a rule . for example , the rat can be routed on any layer , but all other layers incur some specific additional “ cost ”. bundles without a defined flow are displayed , in certain embodiments , as a flow with one flow segment . in certain embodiments , such flows are for display purposes only and do not affect routing . however , the bundle properties , as described above , will still be applied by the routing engine . referring now to fig1 , there is shown the exemplary method steps for automatically creating a flow for a given bundle if any of its rats have been routed . such routed rats are depicted in fig1 a , where it is shown rat 1610 being routed along a path between terminals 1603 and 1607 , and rat 1620 being routed along a path between terminals 1605 and 1609 . the procedure 1500 is entered at block 1505 and proceeds to block 1510 , where the path of each rat in a bundle is analyzed to determine which portals have been traversed thereby . an ordered list of preferred portals is created for each of the rats . in fig1 b , the preferred portals for rat 1620 are 1630 a - 1630 l . for rat 1610 , as illustrated in fig1 c , the preferred portals are 1630 e - 1630 j . the procedure 1500 then proceeds to block 1515 , where the common subset of the portals is found . as is shown in fig1 d , the common sequence of portals traversed by two routed rats is 1630 e - 1630 j . flow of process 1500 is then transferred to block 1520 , whereby a sequence of flow segments is created from the center of each common portal to the center of the next common portal . fig1 e depicts a sequence of flow segments generated from the sequence of common portals . the process 1500 then continues at block 1525 , where the sequence of flow segments is reduced . there are several possible methods for performing this reduction . one procedure would attempt removing one of the vertices of the flow and combining two adjacent flow segments into one . if the resulting sequence of flow segments still traverses the same common portal , then that change is accepted . otherwise , the two flow segments are reinserted and a different reduction is attempted . another possible reduction would be to compute for each rat the sum of the length both of its rake ends and the common flow and then to find an optimal location for the two gather points using a suitable linear programming routine to minimize total length of the flow . the process 1500 of fig1 is exited at block 1530 . fig1 f shows an exemplary flow after a series of reductions has occurred . it should be noted that the process 1500 may be used on rats that have been planned in a topological routing environment prior to the rats being geometrically routed . the descriptions above are intended to illustrate possible implementations of the present invention and are not restrictive . many variations , modifications and alternatives will become apparent to the skilled artisan upon review of this disclosure . for example , components equivalent to those shown and described may be substituted therefor , elements and method steps individually described may be combined , and elements described as discrete may be distributed across many components . the scope of the invention should therefore be determined not with reference to the description above , but with reference to the appended claims , along with their full range of equivalents .	6
an analog signal such as shown in fig2 a is supplied to the input terminal 10 of the balanced modulator 20 of fig1 where it is employed to double - balance modulate the square wave signal shown in fig2 b derived from a carrier clock ck connected to terminal 14 . the modulated signal shown in fig2 c is applied to the primary winding 30p of an isolation transformer 30 . the output signal from the secondary winding 30s of isolation transformer 30 as illustrated in fig3 b is supplied to the input of a demodulator 40 . as illustrated in fig3 c the modulated positive pulses s p from the transformer 30 are unchanged in polarity but the negative pulses s n are inverted . the resulting rectified pulses s p , s n are supplied to a first output terminal 50 . the common carrier clock signal ck is supplied to modulator 20 and demodulator 40 through a distribution transformer 60 . the modulator 20 and the demodulator 40 are of the switching type and preferably utilize a switching element such as a field effect transistor ( fet ). the on resistance of such an element is several hundred ohms . this , together with the inductance of the primary winding 30p of the transformer 30 , forms an lr time constant circuit . as a result , a time delay occurs at the leading and trailing edges of the output pulses from secondary windings 30s as illustrated in fig3 b . upon demodulation of the transformer output , carrier noise or &# 34 ; leakage &# 34 ; ca is generated at the leading and trailing edges . a suppression or &# 34 ; de - glitch &# 34 ; circuit 80 for suppressing the carrier leakage ca is connected to the output of demodulator 40 . the suppression circuit 80 comprises an fet 82 as a sample - and - hold switch between the output of the demodulator 40 , an output terminal 90 , and a holding capacitor c1 . capacitor c1 is connected between an output of fet 82 and a common line com2 connected to ground terminal 52 . the fet 82 is controlled to be off for a predetermined period of time at each of the leading and trailing edges of the carrier clock signal by means of a sample and hold pulse - forming circuit 84 . pulse - forming circuit 84 comprises a transistor 86 the emitter and collector of which are coupled between the gate of the fet 82 and a negative power source . the carrier clock signal ck is supplied to the base of the transistor 86 through a first differentiating circuit consisting of a capacitor c3 and a resistor r3 . the transistor 86 is normally held off and the fet 82 is held on by a positive demodulation output signal supplied to its gate through the resistor r2 . this permits the demodulation output signal to be supplied to the output terminal 90 . a positive differentiating pulse is applied to the base of transistor 86 at the leading edge of each carrier clock pulse for a period determined by the time constant of the differentiating circuit c3 , r3 , thereby turning on transistor 86 . a negative hold pulse sh1 as shown in fig3 d is then applied to the gate of fet 82 , turning it off . accordingly , the previous charge accumulated in holding capacitor c1 is supplied to output terminal 90 , as indicated by the dotted line a in fig3 c . the pulse forming circuit 84 comprises a switching diode d connected to the gate of fet 82 . the carrier clock signal is supplied to the cathode of the diode d through a second differentiating circuit consisting of a capacitor c2 and a resistor r1 . a negative differentiating pulse is applied to the cathode of the diode d at the trailing edge of each carrier clock pulse for a period determined by the time constant of the second differentiating circuit , thereby turning on the diode d . a negative hold pulse sh2 shown in fig3 d is then applied to the gate of fet 82 , thus disabling it . accordingly , the charge accumulated in capacitor c1 is supplied to output terminal 90 , as indicated by dotted line b in fig3 c . as a result of the foregoing , an output can be obtained from output terminal 90 from which the carrier noise component has been removed . the pulse width ( holding interval ) of the hold pulses sh1 and sh2 may be set from one to several microseconds depending upon the characteristics of the transmission system . the pulse width of these hold pulses is determined by the first and second differentiating circuits as described above . the sample - and - hold capacitor c1 has a capacitance such as to provide a sufficient time constant to cover the holding interval , depending upon the input impedance of the following circuit . thus , the capacitance of the capacitor c1 may vary from several hundred to several thousand picofarads . in the non - holding or sampling mode wherein fet 82 is kept on , the discharge time constant of the capacitor c1 is very small . this prevents formation of a low pass filter with a large time constant , resulting in a wide transmission band . a multiplex ( mpx ) terminal 92 is connected to the gate of the fet 82 . when a multiplex select signal is applied to terminal 92 , the fet 82 will function as a multiplex switch . in the multiplex mode , a plurality of isolation amplifiers , as shown in fig1 are connected in parallel and their respective output terminals 90 are connected together . when a high level signal is applied to the mpx terminal 92 of one of the isolation amplifiers , or the terminal is unconnected , the fet 82 is turned on . this permits the output of the selected isolation amplifier to be supplied from the common connection . the suppression can then be operated . when a negative potential is applied to the selected terminal 92 , its fet 82 is forcibly turned off and this channel cannot be selected . referring now to the modified isolation amplifer of fig4 the signal of fig2 a is supplied to a switching modulator 200 through a voltage follower 16 from an input terminal 10 . the switching modulator 200 is of the double - pole , double - throw type and is alternately switched between a signal input side and a common side ( com1 ) at intervals of one half period of the carrier clock signal shown in fig2 b . com1 is connected to the grounded signal source terminal 12 . the switch poles 200a , 200b of modulator 200 are operated in opposite phase , as indicated by the solid and dotted arrow . thus , the modulated signal shown in fig2 c flows in the primary winding of an isolation transformer 30 coupled between the outputs 200c and 200d . switching modulator 200 is schematically shown in fig4 as a double - pole , double - throw switch . in actuality it may be an integrated circuit employing fets . in this case , the on resistances of the respective switching elements may be several hundred ohms . for this reason , buffer amplifiers 25a and 25b are inserted between the leads of the primary winding 30p of the transformer 30 and the respective outputs 200c and 200d . this prevents the on resistance and the inductance of the primary winding 30p from forming an undesirable lr time constant circuit . with this arrangement , the impedance of the input signal source with respect to the primary winding 30p of the transformer 30 is very small , as is the time constant , and amplitude distortion and phase delay of the signal are reduced . this permits the frequency of the carrier clock to be further increased and a wider transmission band characteristic can be obtained . the output signal obtained from secondary winding 30s of the transformer 30 is applied to a switching demodulator 400 and is synchronously rectified employing the same carrier clock signal ( fig2 b ) as on the modulation side . the switching demodulator 400 is of the same type as , and is symmetrically arranged with respect to , the modulatof 200 . a pair of switches 400a and 400b , constituting the demodulator 400 , are alternately switched between a signal output side ( out ) and a common side ( com2 ) in opposite phase as indicated by the solid and dotted arrows . com2 is the ground line of the transmission output side connected to common terminal 52 . in this fashion , the original input signal of fig2 a is obtained by demodulation and applied to output terminal 90 through voltage follower 28 . the demodulator 400 of fig4 is arranged to suppress the carrier leakage ca shown in fig3 c . switches 400a and 400b of demodulator 400 have neutral contacts which are connected respectively to the demodulation output side ( out ) and the common side ( com2 ). a holding capacitor c1 is connected between the output terminal out and the common line com2 of demodulator 400 . the carrier clock signal ck shown in fig3 a and hold pulses sh1 and sh2 shown in fig3 d are supplied from a switching signal forming circuit 64 to a carrier input to demodulator 400 . hold pulses sh1 and sh2 are in synchronism with the leading and trailing edges of the pulses of carrier clock signal ck . during the periods of the hold pulses sh1 and sh2 , switches 400a and 400b of the demodulator 400 are connected , respectively , to the neutral contacts 400c and 400d . during this period , the charge previously accumulated in the holding capacitor c1 is delivered to the output terminal 90 as indicated by dotted lines a and b in fig3 c . as a result , there is obtained from terminal 90 an output from which the carrier noise component ca has been removed . when the demodulator 400 employs active switching elements , the mechanical neutral contacts 400c and 400d do not in fact exist . the periods during which the switches are connected to the neutral contacts correspond to the period during which the switching elements are turned off by the hold pulses sh1 and sh2 . in the fig4 embodiment the duty cycle of the carrier clock signal of fig2 b which drives the modulator 200 and demodulator 400 is precisely adjusted at fifty percent . in this manner , noise and distortion , which are alternately introduced out of phase at a period half that of the carrier clock period , cancel each other , thus providing a high s / n ratio and low distortion . if the duty cycle of the carrier clock signal shifts away from fifty percent , noise components can readily occur in the output , the distortion free region is limited , and the linear dynamic range is degraded . also , when the duty cycle shifts from fifty percent , any asymmetrical characteristics of the pair of switches constituting the modulator or demodulator undesirably influence the output and increase the carrier leakage in the output signal . in the embodiment of fig4 in order to maintain the dury cycle of the carrier clock signal ck at fifty percent , a zero crossing comparator is used . the carrier clock signal from clock input terminal 14 is supplied to a distribution transformer 60 having isolated secondary windings . the windings result in isolated clock signals being supplied to each of the modulation and demodulation sides . the respective clock signals are sliced or clipped at ground threshold levels by zero crossing comparators 62p and 62s . thereafter the clock signals are shaped into signals having fifty percent duty cycles and are supplied , respectively , to the modulator 200 and to the switching signal forming circuit 64 for driving demodulator 400 . by means of the foregoing arrangement , if the input clock signal ck has a distorted waveform , or if it has a reduced amplitude ( several millivolts ) due to a long transmission path , carrier clock signals having a duty cycle of fifty percent can still be obtained . since the active switching elements of the modulator 200 or demodulator 400 can be turned completely on and off by using the shaped carrier clock signals , the switching operation can be performed with high efficiency , thereby reducing carrier leakage and transmission distortion . therefore , even if the capacitance of holding capacitor c1 is small , the desired result may be obtained . the clock signal ck from terminal 14 is transmitted to the input and output sides of the isolation amplifier by the distribution transformer 60 . the carrier clock signals are then reproduced by the respective demodulators by zero crossing detection . in this manner , a common clock system can be provided which is not influenced by differences between the ground reference levels at different parts of the system . fig5 illustrates an isolation amplifier in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention . the isolation amplifier of fig5 has the same structure as that illustrated in fig4 except for the arrangement of the pulse modulator 200 and pulse demodulator 400 and similar reference numerals denote similar parts . the pulse modulator 200 comprises input amplifiers 210a and 210b having positive and negative gains + b and - b , which receive in common the signal of fig2 a . accordingly , absolute values of the gains of the respective input amplifiers 210a and 210b are set at the same value . the outputs of the input amplifiers 210a and 210b are selected alternately at each half period of the carrier clock signal ck by means of a switch 220 . the output of the switch 220 is supplied to the primary winding 30p of an isolation transformer 30 through a buffer amplifier 230 . thus , a double - balanced modulated current as shown in fig2 c is caused to flow in the primary winding 30p . the modulator 200 consisting of the input amplifiers 210a , 210b , the buffer amplifier 230 , and the switch 220 can be an integrated arrangement using fets as in the case of fig4 . when using such an arrangement , the on resistance of the equivalent of switch 220 may be large . however , the existence of the buffer amplifier 230 between the switch 220 and the primary winding 30p reduces the time constant of the circuit to increase the carrier frequency . the output of the secondary winding 30s of the transformer 30 is demodulated ( i . e ., synchronously rectified ) by the demodulator 400 and supplied to the output terminal 90 . the demodulator 400 comprises input amplifiers 410a and 410b having positive and negative gains + b and - b of the same absolute value . the outputs from the amplifiers 410a and 410b are selected alternately by a switch 420 which is in synchronism with a carrier clock signal ck . the selected output can be synchronously rectified . the positive pulses of the modulated waveform shown in fig3 b which are transmitted to the transformer 30 remain unchanged but the negative pulses are inverted , thereby reproducing the original waveform as shown in fig3 c . this is a result of the carrier signals in both the modulation and demodulation portions being in phase . the demodulated output from switch 420 is connected to the output terminal 90 through a buffer amplifier 430 . in the same manner as described with reference to fig4 the switch 420 of the demodulator 400 is provided with a neutral contact 420a which is unconnected , in addition to switching contacts which are connected to outputs of the input amplifiers 410a and 410b . a holding capacitor c1 is connected between the output of the switch 420 and a common line com2 . this switch 420 is controlled by the output of a switching signal forming circuit 64 in the same manner as fig4 and is connected to the neutral contact 420a during the hold pulse intervals sh1 and sh2 . as a result , the previous charge accumulated in the hold capacitor c1 is delivered to the output terminal 90 through the buffer amplifier 430 , thereby compensating for carrier leakage as indicated by dotted lines a and b in fig3 c . in the embodiment of fig5 the modulator 200 and the demodulator 400 have similar arrangements . the same integrated circuits can be used in both the modulator and demodulator , thereby considerably reducing manufacturing costs . furthermore , similar amplifiers may be employed for the output buffer amplifier 230 , used for impedance matching in modulator 200 , and the buffer amplifier 430 in the demodulator 400 . the voltage follower 28 which serves as a line output amplifier in the fig4 embodiment is then not needed , thus simplifying the circuit configuration . furthermore , in the embodiment of fig5 since the switches 220 and 420 of the modulator 200 and the demodulator 400 are of the same type , undesirable influences resulting from asymmetrical switching characteristics are reduced . when the modulator 200 and the demodulator 400 are integrated circuits , an integrated circuit terminal may be employed to connect the holding capacitor c1 to the output terminal of the switch 420 . although preferred embodiments of the invention have been described hereinabove in detail , it is desired to emphasize that this is for the purpose of illustrating the principles of the invention , and is not necessarily limiting of the invention since it is apparent that those of skill in that art can modify the disclosed arrangements in various ways to suit the needs of particular applications .	7
with reference to the drawings , there is shown the preferred embodiment of the fully assembled telescopic , tubular fishing rod holder and support tower / storage system and apparatus for ice fishing embodying the principles and concepts of the present invention , and generally designated by the reference numeral 10 . ice fishing system 10 is shown in a fishing mode in fig1 and a storage mode in fig2 and 3 . in the present invention , the ice fishing system 10 is comprised of a combination of components . as seen in fig5 such components in their broadest context include an outer tube 12 , a foldable leg assembly 14 , an inner tube 16 and a fully assembled ice fishing rod 18 . such components are individually configured and correlated with respect to each other so as to attain desired objectives described above . as best seen in fig6 outer tube 12 is an elongated , cylindrical , rigid member preferably constructed from plastic having an inner surface 20 and an outer surface 22 . at an open top end of the outer tube 12 on the inner surface 20 is a locking collar 24 , typically fabricated from plastic , which is used to lock the inner tube 16 in a retracted or expanded condition as will be further described hereafter . collar 24 is generally cylindrically shaped and is formed with a plurality of downwardly depending fingers 26 around its periphery . the fingers 26 have inwardly projecting portions 28 at their bottom ends cooperable with groove structure on the inner tube 16 . beneath the midpoint of the outer tube 12 on the inner surface 20 is a cylindrical ring 30 of plastic which functions as a first fixed stop engagable with the lower end of the inner tube 16 , also to be further described below . a generally cylindrical coupling 32 carrying an o - ring 34 for sealing purposes is attached to the outer surface 22 of the outer tube 12 at its open bottom end . coupling 32 is provided with internal threads 36 for facilitating support of the leg assembly 14 . turning to fig5 the folding leg assembly 14 includes at least three and preferably four elongated support legs 38 , preferably of aluminum , which are pivotally connected by pins 40 ( fig1 ) to a closure device in the form of a generally cylindrical leg base 42 . the leg base 42 has a top portion 44 to which the legs 38 are movably attached , a bottom portion 46 and a medial portion 48 which is externally threaded at 50 to be screwed into and out of engagement with the internal threads 36 of coupling 32 . in the storage mode illustrated in fig3 the four legs 38 are folded upwardly so that they extend vertically into the lower half of outer tube 12 . when the leg base 42 is manually unscrewed from coupling 32 , the attached legs 38 are extracted from the outer tube 12 , folded outwardly and locked by means of tabs 52 molded into the top portion of the leg base 42 . more particularly , each tab 52 is formed with a contoured slot 54 ( fig1 ), the upper end 55 of which is frictionally engaged with a proximal end portion of each leg 38 . once the legs 38 have been folded and locked out , the leg base 42 is inverted and manually screwed back into the coupling 32 ( fig8 ). with the legs 38 expanded and extending externally from the bottom end of the outer tube 12 , the legs 38 have been moved from the storage mode to a fishing mode to be further explained . referring to fig6 again , inner tube 16 is an elongated , cylindrical rigid member also constructed from plastic having an internal surface 56 and an external surface 58 . the inner tube 16 has a length which is shorter than that of the outer tube 12 and an outer diameter which is smaller than the inner diameter of the outer tube 12 so that it may be slidably and telescopically mounted therein . an upper end is closed by a plug 60 having a lanyard 62 connected to an apertured cylinder 63 . the upper end of inner tube 16 has a pair of upwardly extending head portions 64 , each being formed with a downwardly depending notch 66 used for supporting the fishing rod 18 . the external surface 58 of inner tube 16 includes an upper lock groove 68 for locking the inner tube 16 in a retracted position in which the head portions 64 are disposed within the top end of the outer tube 12 . a lower lock groove 70 is also formed on the external surface 58 for locking the inner tube 16 in an extended position ( fig8 ). at a lower end on the external surface 58 of the inner tube 16 is a second cylindrical ring which acts as a second fixed stop engagable with the bottom of the locking collar 24 on the outer tube 12 when the inner tube 16 is in the extended position . the ring 72 is also engagable with the first fixed stop 30 on the outer tube 12 when the inner tube 16 is in the retracted position . the inwardly projecting portions 28 on the locking collar fingers 26 are either engagable in a snap fit with the upper lock groove 68 when the inner tube 16 is retracted ( fig6 ), or with the lower lock groove 70 when the inner tube 16 is extended ( fig9 ). also , as seen in fig6 the lower portion of inner tube 16 is formed with a series of passages 74 to enable circulation of air between the outer tube 12 and the inner tube 16 ( as depicted by the arrows ) so that any condensation will not cause freezing of the tubes together . the air passages 74 generally allow the entire inner structure of the tubes 12 , 16 to breathe . referring now to fig5 the fishing rod 18 is fully assembled and includes an upper handle portion 76 , a lower handle portion 78 and a spool holding portion 80 connecting the handle portions 76 , 78 . each of the handle portions 76 , 78 normally carries an end cap 82 . the handle portions 76 , 78 and spool holder 80 are deliberately sized so that they fit adequately in the center of and are surrounded by the four legs 38 as shown in fig4 . the upper handle portion 76 carries a horizontally disposed , stainless steel pivot pin 84 which is received in the notches 66 of inner tube head portion 64 so that the rod 18 will pivot therefrom . extending from the upper handle portion 76 is a flexible rod 86 , and preferably a telescopic rod , having an inner section 88 and an outer section 90 . as seen in fig1 a fishing line 92 extends from a plastic , spring loaded , slip clutch spool 94 rotatably mounted in the spool holder 80 along the rod 86 through eyelets 87 and then down to water in a hole formed in a support surface 96 , such as ice . the line 92 commonly includes a bobber 98 and a hook 100 which is baited as desired . although not shown , the invention contemplates that a handle could be included on the spool 94 to facilitate reeling in and / or paying out of line 92 . fig1 through 14 illustrate an optional fishing rod structure when the lower handle portion 78 is provided with a battery operated , light module 102 having a mercury switch arrangement or the like ( not shown ). the light module 102 is designed such that when the rod 18 moves from an up position ( fig1 ) to a down position ( fig1 ), the light module 102 will be used to visually indicate the strike of a fish during dark periods from dusk to dawn . a counterweight 104 is optionally installed on the lower end of the rod 18 adjacent the upper handle portions 76 . fig1 shows the details of the spool 94 used in both embodiments shown in the drawings . in particular , the spool 94 has a pair of knurled outer rims 106 for retaining fishing line in a line receiving groove formed therebetween . the spool 94 is rotatably mounted in its holder 80 by a headed bolt 108 which passes through aligned openings in the holder 80 . a pressure spring 110 is interposed between the head of the bolt 108 and a first circular fiberglass , brake disc lying adjacent the inner face of one of the rims 106 . a second circular fiberglass , brake disc 114 is disposed between the outer face of the outer rim 106 and the inside of the holder 80 . an adjustment knob 116 is screwed onto a threaded end 118 of the head bolt 108 . in use , the ice fishing system 10 has a compact , lightweight storage mode as shown in fig2 and 3 wherein the inner tube 16 is retracted in outer tube 12 , and wherein the legs 38 and fishing rod 18 are protectably retained within the outer and inner tubes 12 , 16 , respectively . in the storage mode , the outer tube 12 typically has a length of about 24 inches and a diameter of about two and one - eighth inches so that the system can be easily carried by the lanyard 62 or by grasping the outer tube 12 along its outer surface 22 . the system is made ready for the fishing mode by unscrewing the threaded leg base 42 with attached legs 38 from the outer tube coupling 32 . this also removes the stored fishing rod 18 which is centered in the middle of the legs 38 and is further extracted therefrom . once this has been done , the inner tube 16 is telescopically extended relative to the outer tube 12 by pulling on the lanyard 62 until the inner tube 16 locks into position with the locking collar fingers 26 engaging with the lower groove 70 on inner tube 16 ( fig8 and 9 ). extension of the inner tube 16 provides the system 10 with additional height ( about 36 . 75 inches ) to minimize bending over for the fisherman . next , the leg base 42 is grasped and the four legs 38 are flipped out and locked as shown in fig1 and 11 . the leg base 42 is then inverted and screwed back into the outer tube coupling 32 , as shown in fig1 . the assembly is then positioned upon the ice 96 and the rod pivot pin 84 is placed in the notch structure 66 at the top of the inner tube 16 with the inner rod section 88 extended as depicted at fig1 . the fishing line 92 with its bobber 98 and hook 100 is then placed in a hole in the ice 96 . if a heavy bait is used , a larger bobber 98 may be required to compensate for the added weight . the fisherman now sets the bait depth , baits the hook 100 , positions the bobber 98 at water level and sets the rod 18 in the upward tilted position . with the bobber 98 at water level , any excess line is taken up by turning the spool 94 . when the fish takes the bait , the rod 18 will tilt down until it reaches the downwardly tilted position shown in phantom lines of fig1 . the downwardly tilted position signals the fisherman that the fish has taken the bait . with the line tension lightly set , the fish takes as much line as necessary with the rod 18 downwardly tilted . the fisherman removes the fishing rod 18 from the top of the inner tube 16 and at any time sets the hook 100 . by grasping the rod handle 76 or 78 and the spool 94 simultaneously , the hook 100 may be set without any loss of line 92 . the fisherman then pulls on the line 92 and fish by hand , after which the fish is removed , the hook 100 is baited and fishing is resumed . when the fisherman is done fishing , the set up procedure described above is reversed so the system 10 again is placed in the storage mode . if desired , the rod 18 can carry the counterweight 104 in advance of the upper handle portion 76 . also , for fishing in darker conditions , the optional light module 102 is used to provide a visual indication to the fisherman of a fish strike when the rod 18 pivots down as seen in fig1 . it should be appreciated that the present invention provides a telescopic , tubular fishing rod holder and support / storage tower employing a minimum of parts and requiring less than a minute to convert the assembly from a storage mode to a fishing mode . the entire system is particularly durable , compact and easy to use by fishermen of any age . while the preferred embodiment has been described as a self - contained fishing system particularly attracted for ice fishing , it should be further understood that the system 10 could also function as a rod support placed on a pier , a boat deck or other support surface adjacent a body of water . various alternatives and embodiments are contemplated as being within the scope of the following claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter regarded as the invention .	0
fig1 shows a section of a known processing apparatus 7 . the example is a poultry handling and processing apparatus for separating the fillets of gutted bodies of poultry whose extremities have been detached . such a processing apparatus comprises a plurality of stations which are arranged along a conveyor section which has an upper and lower run and belongs to a processing line 70 . parts , specifically and in particular processing tools of the stations , are operated using a computerised control device 8 , which produces the control signals b 1 , . . . , bn supplied to the stations in particular according to the requirements of measurement / control signals m 1 . . . mn . fig1 shows only two processing stations 73 , 74 arranged on the lower run , namely a first scraping apparatus 731 and a second scraping apparatus 741 , which is arranged after the first one in the direction of conveyance f , with associated processing tools . the lower run section shown is also equipped with two measuring apparatuses 1 ; 11 , 12 which are arranged upstream of the processing stations 73 , 74 in the processing line 70 . as will be described in more detail , the measuring apparatuses 1 are designed according to the invention . in the processing apparatus 7 according to the invention according to the exemplary embodiment of fig1 , the measuring apparatus 11 is assigned to the processing station 73 , while the measuring apparatus 12 is assigned to the processing station 74 . the measuring apparatus 12 is arranged between the measuring apparatus 11 and the processing station 73 . the processing apparatus 7 comprises a frame or housing 71 on which the processing tools of the individual stations are arranged and attached . a conveyor device which is not shown has a continuously rotating conveyor which constitutes the upper and lower run . known holding apparatuses 77 are attached on the conveyor at equal distances . parts of the holding apparatus 77 are seen in fig2 b to 4b . it comprises a support body 772 forming a saddle and a base plate bearing the support body , attached to the conveyor , and a clamping device which is not shown . the holding apparatus 77 is located on the lower run in position with the support body 772 pointing downward . parts of the poultry body 90 are the sternum plate 91 , the sternum 92 , the coracoids 93 and the wishbone 94 . body joints 96 , on which shoulder blades 95 are also seated , connect the wishbone 94 with the coracoids 93 . the poultry body 90 rests on the holding apparatus 77 , with the sternum plate 91 coming to lie on the saddle support surface of the support body 772 , and is secured by means of the clamping device , which comprises a clamping lever working against the sternum plate 91 and / or the support surface of the support body 772 . a suitable clamping / control mechanism , which is not shown and which comprises a trigger element 774 projecting on the base plate 771 , opens and closes the clamping device for loading and unloading . associated constructions and mechanisms , which can be quite varied , are common and known . the measuring apparatus 11 is described in more detail below based on fig2 a to 4b . the measuring apparatus 11 is designed to detect body joints 96 of a passing animal body 9 , specifically a poultry body 90 . the measurement takes place in particular to record the positions of the body joints 96 for each individual poultry body 90 . information on the body dimensions can also be obtained . as can be seen in fig2 a to 4b , according to the exemplary embodiment , the measuring apparatus 11 comprises two sensors 2 , specifically a first pivot element 21 for measurement and a second pivot element 22 for measurement . a part of the measuring apparatus 11 forming the holding means 4 bears the two pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement . the holding means 4 comprises a plurality of parts , specifically a console or a bearing body 41 , holding elements 42 supported thereon , specifically holding arms 421 , a bearing element 43 attached on an associated holding element 421 in each case , specifically a bearing plate 431 and , between the pivot element 21 , 22 for measurement and the bearing element 43 in each case , a movement means 5 . the bearing body 41 can be a console or holding base , for example , which is constituted in particular by a frame , a housing and a bearing part 410 of the measuring apparatus 11 . for example , a part of a housing wall of the processing apparatus 7 can form the bearing body 41 , as seen in fig1 . as shown in fig3 a to 4b with dash - dotted lines , the measuring apparatus 11 comprises a passage space 3 and a passage path 31 . the passage path 31 is the path which the measurement object , specifically the animal body 9 or the poultry body 90 , must travel to pass the at least one sensor 2 or the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement which are arranged on the passage path 31 . accordingly , the passage space 3 is the space in which the at least one sensor 2 and / or the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement is enclosed spatially and physically for measurement and which is envisaged and designed for crossing the animal body 9 and / or the poultry body 90 . in the exemplary embodiment , the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement are arranged at a distance 20 transverse to the measurement passage path 31 , which corresponds to the spacing of the body joints 96 of the poultry body 90 . the transverse distance 20 is configured so that the body joints 96 of all poultry bodies 90 to be measured are recorded by touching for measurement . as is generally known , for this purpose the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement are constituted by rigid measuring tags which have a sufficient width transverse to the measurement passage path 31 so that they protrude into the path of each body joint 96 for measurement . this arrangement is shown in fig4 a and 4b . each pivot element 21 , 22 for measurement is attached and rotationally fixed on the associated holding element 42 , which is supported on the bearing body 41 and can pivot on a pivot axis 40 for measurement . each pivot element 21 , 22 for measurement is dimensioned with length such that its free end is in the path of the body joints 96 . the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement are arranged offset in the moving direction of conveyance f of the measurement object or along the measurement path 31 . they can also lie next to each other at the same path position . the measurement arrangement and function of the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement are known per se . in fig4 b , the right body joint 96 is directly before measurement contact with the pivot element 21 for measurement , which pivots by a measurement angle w of approximately 25 °, for example , to measure the body joint 96 , doing so by turning adjustment of the holding element 42 on the measurement pivot axis 40 . this measurement angle w , which can also be significantly less than 25 °, is recorded with a measurement means 32 and converted to a corresponding measurement signal m 1 . to produce a measurement signal m 2 in the same way , the other body joint 96 on the left is measured with the second pivot element 22 for measurement , which is located at a distance after the first pivot element 21 for measurement along the passage path 31 . the resulting combined measurement signal can also be constituted from m 1 and m 2 . the positions of the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement shown in fig1 , 2 a , 2 b , 4 a and 4 b belong to measurement positions i of the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement . the measurement position i is generally defined as a position in which the sensor 2 spatially overlaps with parts of the animal body 9 to be measured in the measurement passage space 3 and / or in the measurement passage path 31 before its measuring contact and during its measuring contact with the animal body point to measure . in fig3 a and 3b , the measuring apparatus 1 is shown with positions of the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement which ensure free passage of the poultry bodies 90 . the positions shown for the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement are outer positions ii . the sensor 2 is located completely outside the measurement passage space 3 in each outer position . in the exemplary embodiment , the movement means 5 in each case with an associated bearing element 43 and connected to the pivot elements 21 or 22 for measurement is a length - adjustable control element 52 , namely a pneumatic cylinder 521 , which constitutes part of a pivot mechanism 51 and controls the pivot element 21 , 22 for measurement with pivoting movement on a pivot axis 50 for moving out . the pivot axis 50 extends in the direction of the measurement passage 31 . as is particularly clear when comparing fig3 a , 3 b and fig4 a , 4 b , the movement means 5 enables back - and - forth motion of the associated pivot element 21 or 22 for measurement between the measurement position i and the outer position ii . the frequency and / or the sequence of the back - and - forth motion of the at least one sensor 2 or in the exemplary embodiment of the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement can be configured in many ways as required . thus the movement means 5 can be provided with a motion drive , in the example with a controlled pneumatic drive , which controls the motion in time intervals which can be defined or set in a fixed manner . it is particularly practical and advantageous to control or arrange the movement between measurement position i and the outer position ii as required or depending on the passage speed of the animal body 9 through the measurement passage space 3 and / or depending on the spatial interval with which the animal bodies 9 to measure follow one another . in the exemplary embodiment of fig1 , the measuring apparatus 11 comprises a control means 6 , which in each case controls movement of the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement in measurement position i and after completion of the measurement in the outer position ( ii ) during the passage of the measured poultry body ( 90 ). such a control can be implemented with any conventional pneumatic control , for example as shown in fig2 b with the reference number 522 and associated lines 523 . instead of a pneumatic control , any other suitable motion control can be used for the drive and movement sequence . in particular a cam control , which is not shown , can be connected with elements of the conveyor of the processing apparatus 7 to effect movement drive . the control means 6 can also be constituted by a control part of the control device 8 , as shown in fig1 with control connection s . in the exemplary embodiment according to fig1 , it is particularly advantageous that the measurements can be performed on poultry bodies 90 which follow one another with even very small spacing . this succeeds by the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement being able to execute a sudden controlled movement out of the measurement passage space into the v - shaped position shown in fig3 a in each case after conclusion of the measuring procedure , for example after a measurement and possible subsequent deflection of about 25 °. moving up to the outer position ii achieves an initial or normal position iii for measurement at the same time . this position is defined by at least one sensor 2 and / or the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement not only reaching the outer position in which the measurement passage is cleared for the animal body 9 measured or to be measured but also a defined position for starting the next measurement . this position is assumed in fig3 a and fig4 b . in this respect it is independent of the pivot position of the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement about the pivot axes 50 to move out as long as the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement do not touch or are not in active measuring contact with the animal body 9 . in the exemplary embodiment , it is important that the measurement deflection on the pivot axis 40 for measurement is restored in each case . restoring the pivot deflection can be done by a restoring device 33 producing a restoring force , for example , which produces a restoring force during deflection or at a point of deflection , which returns the pivot element 21 , 22 for measurement to the normal or zero position . an example of an arrangement with a restoring device 33 is shown in fig2 a and 2b . in each case , the holding element is connected in a rotationally fixed manner with an axial element 34 , which in turn is connected in a rotationally fixed manner with an arm element 333 . a tension spring 331 holds the arm element 333 in the outer and normal position ii , iii against a stationary , fixed stop 332 . for example , the measurement deflection w can be converted to a signal supplied to the measurement means 32 via the axial element 34 using a converter such as an angle encoder . the relatively small space described between two sequential animal bodies 9 is achieved in the exemplary embodiment of the processing apparatus 7 by the holding apparatuses 77 on the conveyor being arranged with corresponding small , equal spacing . this achieves a significant increase of the throughput . with particularly constant conveying speed , the timing of the control means 6 can then be set or configured as required by the chosen small space between the holding apparatuses 77 . the first measuring apparatus 11 , which detects the body joints 96 , controls the scraping tools of the scraping device 731 using the control device 8 , for example to space it as required by the individual distances of the body joints 96 . as shown in fig1 , the second measuring apparatus 12 comprises two sensors 2 , specifically pivot elements 23 , 24 for measurement , which are constituted in symmetrical arrangement by flaps of a door - like measurement passage . pivot axes 40 for measurement are oriented at least essentially perpendicular to a measurement passage plane 30 , which corresponds to a plane of conveyance which lies parallel to the base plates 771 of the support body 772 . for measurement , i . e . during the passage of the animal body 9 , the flaps are swung up on the pivot axes 40 for measurement to record in particular a maximum lateral dimension of each animal body 9 . to bring the flaps into their initial or normal position for measurement after performing such a thickness measurement , doing so selectively and particularly before the complete passage of the animal body 9 , a holding means 4 , which supports the pair of flaps for pivoting movement , comprises a movement means not shown in fig1 , specifically a pivot mechanism with which the flaps can be pivoted completely out of the measurement passage space and / or conveyance passage space in each case by pivoting on a pivot axis 50 to move out , specifically to an outer position as previously defined in conjunction with the description of the measuring apparatus 11 . it can be seen that the sensors 2 of the measuring apparatus 12 are pivoted up or down as well with respect to the passage plane 30 and / or the plane of conveyance , while in contrast the pivot elements 21 , 22 for measurement of the measuring apparatus 11 are arranged to swivel to the side of the measurement passage path 31 . the pivot axes 50 to move out of the measuring apparatus 12 are arranged parallel to the measurement passage plane 30 and perpendicular to the flap surfaces , for example . the measurement apparatus 12 is equipped with a control means 6 the same as measurement apparatus 11 .	0
the invention relates to compounds , which can be used as important intermediates for the preparation of the compounds mentioned in the prior art , and further compounds having a similar basic structure . the invention thus relates in a first aspect to compounds of the formula 1 , r2a and r2b are both hydrogen or together denote a bond , 1 - 7c - alkyl represents straight - chain or branched alkyl radicals having 1 to 7 carbon atoms . examples which may be mentioned are the heptyl radical , isoheptyl radical ( 5 - methylhexyl radical ), hexyl radical , isohexyl radical ( 4 - methylpentyl radical ), neohexyl radical ( 3 , 3 - dimethylbutyl radical ), pentyl radical , isopentyl radical ( 3 - methylbutyl radical ), neopentyl radical ( 2 , 2 - dimethylpropyl radical ), butyl radical , isobutyl radical , sec - butyl radical , tert - butyl radical , propyl radical , isopropyl radical , ethyl radical and the methyl radical . suitable salts of compounds of the formula 1 are especially all salts with strong bases , for example the sodium , potassium or lithium salt . compounds of the formula 1 to be emphasized are those , in which r2a and r2b are both hydrogen or together denote a bond , r2a and r2b are both hydrogen or together denote a bond , the compounds according to the invention can be prepared , for example , according to the following reaction scheme . in the scheme below , the preparation of a compound 1 , where r2a and r2b are both hydrogen (= compounds of formula 1a ), is outlined by way of example . the starting compound of formula ( 2 ) is known from wo01 / 172748 . the silyl ether of formula ( 3 ), which is also subject matter of the invention , can be prepared according to methods known to the expert , for example by reacting phenylisoserine ethyl ester with tert - butyl - dimethylsilyl chloride under basic conditions . the reaction of ( 2 ) and ( 3 ) is preferably carried out in the presence of a suitable catalyst , for example p - toluenesulfonic acid , and under simultaneous removal of water . the initial formation of an intermediate imine is followed by a ring closure , which is performed by using a strong base , for example potassium tert - butylate , lithium tert - butylate , sodium bis ( trimethylsilyl ) amide or preferably lithium diisopropylamide . for the preparation of compounds of formula 1 , in which r2a and r2b together denote a bond (= compounds of formula 1b ) the compounds of formula 1a are dehydrogenated ( oxidized ) with suitable agents , for example with manganese dioxide , 1 , 3 - dichloro - 5 , 5 - dimethylhydantoin or 2 , 3 - dichloro - 5 , 6 - dicyano - p - benzochinone ( ddq ). the 8 - hydroxy - 7 - oxo - 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 - tetrahydroimidazo [ 1 , 2 - h ][ 1 , 7 ] naphthyridine , which is given for example in scheme 8 of international patent application wo98 / 142707 as intermediate , is obtained from compounds 1b by hydrolysis , for example with hydrochloric acid . the invention thus also relates to the use of the compounds of formula 1b for the production of compounds of formula 4 the following examples serve to illustrate the invention in greater detail without restricting it . likewise , further compounds of the formula 1 whose preparation is not described explicitly can be prepared in an analogous manner or in a manner familiar per se to the person skilled in the art using customary process techniques . the abbreviation min stands for minute ( s ) and h for hour ( s ). 1323 g ( 4 . 06 mole ) of ( r , r )- phenylisoserine ethyl ester are dissolved in 6 . 6 . l of dichloromethane . to this solution , 397 . 4 g of imidazole and 724 g of t - butyldimethylsilyl chloride are added . the mixture is stirred for 16 hrs at rt . the reaction mixture is washed subsequently with 6 l and 4 l of water . the resulting clear dichloromethane layer is dried over sodium sulphate , filtered and concentrated under reduced pressure . the obtained 1509 g of the title compound are used as such in example 2 without further purification . to 1509 g of t - butyl - dimethyl - silylether of phenyl isoserine ethyl ester ( obtained in example 1 ), dissolved in 10 . 5 l of toluene , 14 g of p - toluenesulphonic acid monohydrate and 736 g of 2 , 3 - dimethyl - 6 , 7 - dihydro - 5h - imidazo [ 1 , 2 - a ] pyridin - 8 - one are added . the mixture is stirred and boiled under reflux until 80 ml of water are collected in the dean - stark trap used . the mixture is cooled to − 15 ° c . and 6 l of thf are added . to this solution , 6 l of 2 m lithium - diisopropylamide ( solution in thf / n - heptane ) are added dropwise within 1 hr . the mixture is stirred for 30 min . without external cooling ( the temperature rises to − 5 ° c .) and then quenched with 7 l of aqueous ammonium chloride solution . the two layers are separated . the organic layer is dried over sodium sulphate and filtered . after removal of the solvents in vacuo , 1811 g of crude 7 -( tert - butyl - dimethyl - silanyloxy )- 2 , 3 - dimethyl - 8 - phenyl - 5 , 7 , 8 , 9 - tetrahydro - 4h - 1 , 3a , 9 - triaza - cyclopenta [ a ] naphthalen - 6 - one are isolated . this material is dissolved in 3 . 9 l of boiling methanol and cooled to − 5 ° c . while stirring . the formed precipitate is collected and rinsed with 1 . 75 l of cold methanol . after drying , 558 g of the title compound are obtained . the mother liquor is concentrated to 1 . 5 l and stirred at − 5 ° c . for several hours . the precipitate is collected and rinsed with 0 . 25 l of methanol . another portion of 96 . 5 g of the title compound are isolated . total yield is 654 . 5 g ( 38 . 5 %). 558 g ( 1 . 32 mole ) of 7 -( tert - butyl - dimethyl - silanyloxy )- 2 , 3 - dimethyl - 8 - phenyl - 5 , 7 , 8 , 9 - tetrahydro - 4h - 1 , 3a , 9 - triaza - cyclopenta [ a ] naphthalen - 6 - one are dissolved in 2 . 6 l of thf and 5 . 36 l of toluene . the mixture is stirred and cooled in an ice / water bath at 5 ° c . 376 g ( 1 . 66 mole ) of ddq are added in portions during 1 hour . stirring is continued for additional 2 hours at 15 ° c . after the oxidation is completed ( checked by hplc ), the reaction mixture is quenched with 2 . 066 l of aqueous 2 m sodium hydroxide solution . the obtained suspension is filtered and the filter cake is rinsed with 1 l of toluene . the filtrate , a two layer system , is separated and the organic layer is washed with 2 l of 10 % aqueous sodium chloride . after drying over sodium sulphate , the organic layer is filtered and concentrated under reduced pressure . the crude product is treated with 0 . 5 l of methanol and again concentrated in vacuo . the crude 536 g of the title compound are dissolved in 700 ml of methanol and cooled to − 15 ° c . the formed precipitate is collected , rinsed with 100 ml of cold methanol (− 15 ° c .) and dried . 342 g of the title compound are obtained as a yellow solid . 386 . 5 g ( 0 . 916 mole ) of 7 -( t - butyl - dimethyl - silanyloxy )- 2 , 3 - dimethyl - 8 - phenyl - 8 , 9 - dihydro - 7h - 1 , 3a , 9 - triaza - cyclopenta [ a ] naphthalen - 6 - one are suspended in 1 . 4 l of methanol and cooled on an ice / water bath to 10 ° c . then 0 . 734 l of 30 % aqueous hydrochloride solution are added . the suspension becomes clear and after a few seconds a new precipitate is formed . the resulting suspension is stirred for two hours . after addition of 1 . 1 l of 25 % aqueous ammonia the basic suspension ( ph = 9 . 6 ) is stirred for 1 hour . the formed solid is collected and rinsed with 1 . 1 l water and dried . to remove remaining silyl starting material , the solid is rinsed with 1 l of diethyl ether and dried again . 273 . 5 g of the title compound are obtained .	2
the following discussion is directed to various embodiments of the invention . although one or more of these embodiments may be preferred , the embodiments disclosed should not be interpreted , or otherwise used , as limiting the scope of the disclosure , including the claims , unless otherwise specified . in addition , one skilled in the art will understand that the following description has broad application , and the discussion of any embodiment is meant only to be exemplary of that embodiment , and not intended to intimate that the scope of the disclosure , including the claims , is limited to that embodiment . referring now to fig1 , a representative embodiment is shown of an instant messaging ( im ) http gateway 100 for linking an im infrastructure 200 and an http server 300 . an im bot 110 appears on an im messaging service as another user . however , the bot 110 is a computer program that may log into the im infrastructure 200 and receive instructions from a human via “ im user ” 210 , preferably in the form of command - line text . “ im user ” is an im client application program with an interface for interacting with humans . for example , the client application program used by humans to access and use the yahoo messenger service may be an im user . generally , im user 210 runs on a human user &# 39 ; s computer , such as a desktop pc , laptop or other hand held computing device . a human may interact with im bot 110 , im infrastructure 200 ( e . g ., the yahoo messenger service ) and other im users via im user 210 . after receiving a user - entered command from im user 210 , im bot 110 may take programmatic action , such as querying a database 310 and formulating a response to be sent back through the im infrastructure 200 for viewing by a human via the interface of im user 210 . the im http gateway 100 may receive a specifically formatted data request from im user 210 via im bot 110 , which the gateway 100 translates and relays to the http server 300 . while wap gateways , such as wap gateway 510 , generally translate wap - enabled , device - specific data requests , the im http gateway 100 translates im - infrastructure - specific data requests . each im infrastructure 200 ( such as yahoo messenger or icq instant messenger ) may use a uniquely formatted data request that is used by im user 210 to send requests to im http gateway 100 . the gateway 100 translates the data requests into an http request that may be processed by http server 300 . the http server 300 may contain the requested information or may query back - end databases 310 or other linked data stores 320 for the desired information . the http server 300 may also provide data to various websites 400 and / or wap devices 500 . in operation , the im http gateway 100 may read a configuration file , which may be stored on the computer or server housing the gateway 100 . the configuration file informs im http gateway 100 which im infrastructure ( s ) 200 to log in to , and which bots 110 to use for that particular login . a single computer program may be used to start each im bot 110 or a different program may be used to start an im bot 110 . the configuration file may also inform im http gateway 100 to which http server 300 to forward requests . furthermore , the configuration file may identify which http paths on the server are to be associated with ( or “ mapped to ”) which bots 110 and the commands that may be received from such bots . after a user 210 logs in to an im infrastructure 200 , the user may enter a specifically formatted command , which is sent as an im - specific data request through the im infrastructure 200 to the im bot 110 . the im bot 110 may then relay the request to the im http gateway 100 , which translates the im - specific data request into an http request that may be sent to the http server 300 . while depicted as two distinct entities in fig1 , alternatively , the im http gateway 100 and im bot 110 may be combined as a single entity . in such a case , each instance , or bot , may handle conversion of an im - specific data request into an http request for the http server 300 . after receiving an http request , the http server 300 may then issue an http response back to the im http gateway 100 . the http gateway 100 strips the textual data from the response and reports this text back to the user 210 through im infrastructure 200 . if desired , the http server 300 may be configured such that http server 300 performs extraction of the textual data before sending the http response back through the im http gateway 100 . although im bot 110 is shown in fig1 as linked to a single im infrastructure 200 , an im bot 110 may log simultaneously in to a plurality of im infrastructures 200 . while each bot 110 has been described as a specific instance of a software application , bot 110 may be logged in to different infrastructures 200 under the same username and with the same associated commands . as previously stated , more than one instance of the same software application may be logged in to an infrastructure 200 , thereby providing a distinct bot 110 for each instance , each potentially having its own username and unique associated commands . all users 210 logged in to a particular im infrastructure 200 may have access to all bots 110 that are logged in to the im infrastructure 200 . however , each bot 110 may be customized to restrict access to only certain users . furthermore , each bot 110 may be customized as to which commands the bot will process . configuration of each bot may be established in the configuration file included within the im http gateway 100 . optionally , an http gateway 100 may store settings and other information about a specific user 210 . settings relating to a user 210 may be maintained in a “ cookie ” file on the http gateway 100 . as such , the settings may be maintained between logins and associated with user 210 the next time the user logs in . in an alternative embodiment , the settings may be stored in volatile memory , such as in the random access memory of the computer housing im user 210 . however , such an approach may not allow settings to be maintained in memory between logins , but may require fewer permanent storage resources . the im bot 110 may operate in a synchronous fashion , such that data is provided to user 210 when requested ( i . e ., one command issued by a user 210 provides only one response ). however , the im http gateway 100 also may be configured to provide asynchronous data to user 210 through im infrastructure 200 . im http gateway 100 may be configured such that one data - request command issued may result in a plurality of responses at various intervals . for example , a user may issue a single command to the im bot 110 asking the im http gateway 100 to provide stock prices , and the im bot 110 may return an updated response once every user specified time period ( e . g ., 15 minutes ). alternatively , the im http gateway 100 may be pre - configured to provide asynchronous data replies at default intervals . fig2 a , 2 b and 2 c show a schematic representation of an exemplary embodiment of the procedure that im http gateway 100 and im bot 110 perform in processing a data request from im user 210 . referring now to fig2 a , in block 610 im http gateway 100 may read a configuration file . based , at least in part , on the information contained in the configuration file , in block 620 im http gateway 100 may determine the im infrastructure in which im bot 110 may be logged into . also based , at least in part , on the information in the configuration file , im http gateway 100 , in block 630 , may determine the appropriate http server 300 to which it may forward requests received by im bot 110 from im user 210 . in block 640 , im http gateway 100 may map each known user command to a specific path on the http server 300 . in block 650 , im http gateway 100 may initiate an instance of im bot 110 and may log into the selected im infrastructure 200 . referring now to fig2 b , in block 660 im bot 110 may poll the im infrastructure 200 to determine whether it has any new message from any im user 210 . if im bot 110 receives a request from an im user 210 to add im bot 110 as a “ friend ,” then im bot 110 replies “ yes ” to that request in block 670 . in block 680 , im bot 110 may check to see whether there is any other message . if there is no other message , then im bot 110 may return to polling im infrastructure 200 for new messages as depicted in block 660 . if im bot 110 locates a new message from im user 210 , then in block 690 im http gateway 110 may begin translating the im user 210 request into an http request which may be sent to http server 300 . in some embodiments , the first word of the user request is translated to be the command name . in such embodiments , as depicted in block 700 , the remaining text in the message is assumed to be in the form & lt ; variable & gt ;=& lt ; value & gt ;. for example , if im user 210 sends the request “ phone name = john smith ,” then the first word , “ phone ,” is recognized as a command that tells the im http gateway 100 to convert that command into an appropriate database query that will look up the telephone number based on a given name of a person . the remaining text , “ name = john smith ,” may be translated to mean that the word “ name ” is the & lt ; variable & gt ; and the text “ john smith ” is the & lt ; value & gt ; of the & lt ; variable & gt ; “ name .” other formats , schemes or syntax may be used for creation of the im user 210 requests . for example , instead of the above - described user request in the form of & lt ; variable & gt ;=& lt ; value & gt ;, user requests may be implemented using positional variables . with positional variables , the parameter in question may be assumed based on its position relative to other items in the user request message . using the positional variable scheme , the above example request “ phone name = john smith ” is replaced with simply “ phone john smith .” the position of the words “ john smith ” in the message indicates that it is the & lt ; value & gt ; of the & lt ; variable & gt ; “ name .” referring now to fig2 c , in block 710 the im http gateway 100 may create an http request based on the request received from im user 210 . in block 720 , im http gateway 100 may send the http request to the target http server 300 in the form of form variables . other formats may also be used . http server 300 may process the http request and may make any necessary calls to back - end databases 310 or other data stores 320 to formulate an http response . http server 300 may send the http response to the im http gateway 100 . in block 730 , im http gateway 100 may receives the http response from http server 300 . in some embodiments , in block 740 , im http gateway 100 may further process the http response by extracting the text portion of the response which corresponds to the answer that is responsive to the request received from im user 210 . in block 750 , im http gateway 100 may , through im bot 110 , send the text response to the appropriate im user 210 via im infrastructure 200 . im http gateway 100 may continue processing of other requests from im user 210 by looping back to block 660 in fig2 b and may continue to poll im infrastructure 200 for new messages from any im user 210 . as previously stated , in the foregoing discussions any functionality performed by im http gateway 100 may be performed by im bot 110 and vice versa . this is because in any given implementation , it is possible that im http gateway 100 and im bot 110 may be implemented as one programmatic entity or two different entities . when implemented as two separate entities , the functions performed by each may be assigned based on programmer preference and / or based on application specific or other factors . fig3 depicts a computer system 300 configured to be an embodiment of im http gateway 100 discussed above and as depicted in fig1 . computer system 300 comprises a central processing unit (“ cpu ”) 310 coupled to memory storage 320 . memory storage 320 comprises software 330 and configuration files 340 . software 330 comprises computer program ( s ) for performing the functionality of im http gateway 100 discussed above and as depicted in fig1 . alternatively , software 330 further comprises computer program ( s ) for performing the functionality of im bot 110 discussed above and as depicted in fig1 . configuration files 340 comprise data which informs im http gateway 100 , among other things , which im infrastructure ( s ) 200 to log in to , and which im bots 110 to use for that particular login . cpu 310 may be programmed with instructions from software 330 to perform the functionality of im http gateway 100 discussed above . alternatively , cpu 310 also may be programmed with instructions from software 330 to perform the functionality of im bot 110 discussed above . the above discussion is meant to be illustrative of the principles and various embodiments of the present invention . numerous variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated . it is intended that the following claims be interpreted to embrace all such variations and modifications .	7
fig1 shows a configuration of a scanning laser microscope according to an embodiment . laser light emitted from a laser light source 1 passes through a collimator lens 2 , thereby obtaining a parallel light flux . the parallel light flux thus obtained is reflected by a first dichroic mirror 3 , and introduced to a two - dimensional scanning optical system 4 . furthermore , the laser light thus introduced passes through an objective lens 5 , thereby forming a light spot on a fluorescent sample ( or specimen ) 7 mounted on an xy stage 6 . here , the two - dimensional scanning optical system 4 is formed of a pair of galvano mirror scanners and so on , for example . the two - dimensional scanning optical system 4 having such a configuration has a function of scanning the light spot on the fluorescent sample 7 in the x - y directions according to driving signals from a scanner driver 8 . upon irradiating the spot light onto the fluorescent sample 7 , fluorescence ( or reflected light ) is emitted from the fluorescent sample 7 . the fluorescence thus emitted is collected by the objective lens 5 and travels along the optical path in the opposite direction in the form of returning light , thereby being introduced into the two - dimensional optical system 4 through the objective lens 5 . furthermore , the light thus introduced is descanned by actions of the two - dimensional scanning optical system 4 , and then the light thus descanned is introduced into a condenser lens 9 through the first dichroic mirror 3 . the fluorescence thus condensed by the condenser lens 9 is introduced into a fluorescence filter 10 which allows fluorescence of a predetermined wavelength range to pass therethrough . then , the fluorescence in the predetermined wavelength range is introduced into a photo - detector 11 such as a photo - multiplier tube ( pmt ), photodiode , or the like , thereby being converted into an electric signal . with the present embodiment , fluorescence is introduced into the photo - detector 11 , synchronously with a pixel clock signal pixclk output from a synchronizing signal generator 13 . the device integrates the signal due to the fluorescence for amplification thereof for each pixel , thereby displaying the signals thus integrated in the form of an image . the photo - detector 11 outputs a brightness signal due to detected light for each pixel , synchronously with the pixel clock signal pixclk output from a synchronizing signal generator 13 . the brightness signal from the photo - detector 11 is input to an integrating amplifier circuit 12 . the brightness signal thus input is integrated for amplification thereof and is converted into a digital signal , synchronously with the pixel clock signal pixclk output from a synchronizing signal generator 13 . detail description will be made later regarding the integrating amplifier circuit 12 . the brightness data , which has been integrated for amplification thereof and is converted into a digital signal , is stored in frame memory 14 , synchronously with a vertical synchronizing signal vd , a horizontal synchronizing signal hd , and the pixel clock signal pixclk . with such a configuration , the brightness data is read out from the frame memory 14 , and is converted into an analog signal by actions of a d / a converter 15 , thereby being displayed on a monitor 16 in the form of an image . fig2 is a detailed circuit diagram of the integrating amplifier circuit 12 . the current signal input from the photo - detector 11 is converted into a voltage signal by actions of a current / voltage converter 121 , and is input to a resettable integrator a 122 and a resettable integrator b 123 as shown in fig3 , for example . each of the resettable integrators a 122 and b 123 has a configuration in which a reset switch sw 1 is connected to both ends of an integrating capacitor c 1 . with the resettable integrator a 122 having such a configuration , upon reception of a reset signal rsta ( in a case of “ h ”, the resettable integrator a 122 is reset ) from a timing generator 131 , the switch sw 1 is closed , thereby resetting the integrated voltage stored in the capacitor c 1 in the same way , with the resettable integrator b 123 having such a configuration , upon reception of a reset signal rstb ( in a case of “ h ”, the resettable integrator b 123 is reset ) from a timing generator 131 through an inverter 132 , the switch sw 1 is closed , thereby resetting the integrated voltage stored in the capacitor c 1 . note that the reset signal rstb is an inverted signal of the reset signal rsta , inverted by actions of the inverter 132 . the output signals from the resettable integrators a 122 and b 123 are input to an analog adder 124 having a circuit configuration as shown in fig4 , thereby obtaining a summed signal . furthermore , the summed signal thus output from the analog adder 124 is input to a sample - hold circuit s / h 125 , thereby sampling and holding the output signal from the analog adder 124 according to a sample - hold signal sh ( in a case of “ h ”, the signal is sampled , and in a case of “ l ”, the signal is held ) created by the timing generator 131 . the output signal of the sample - hold circuit s / h 125 is input to an a / d converter 126 , thereby being converted into digital data according to a conversion start signal adst ( upon detection of the rising edge , a / d conversion is started ) received from the timing generator 131 . d flip - flops dff 1 ( 127 ) and dff 2 ( 128 ) delay the input signal until the rising edge of the clock signal clk 1 received from the timing generator 131 . an adder 129 adds the output signals of the d flip - flops dff 1 ( 127 ) and dff 2 ( 128 ), and outputs the summed signal to a d flip - flops dff 3 ( 130 ). the d flip - flops dff 3 ( 130 ) delays the input signal until the rising edge of a clock - signal clk 2 received from the timing generator 131 . note that the timing generator 131 creates the reset signals rsta and rstb , the sample - hold signal sh , the conversion start signal adst , and the clock signals clk 1 , clk 2 , and clk 3 , based upon the pixel clock signal pixclk received from the synchronizing signal generator 13 . fig5 shows a timing chart for the operation of the integrating amplifier circuit 12 shown in fig2 . while fig5 shows all analog voltage waveforms ( output signals from the integrators , analog adder , and so forth ) as positive signals for convenience of description , each of the actual output signals from the integrators a 122 and b 123 , and the adder 124 , shown in fig3 and 4 , is a signal in which a polarity of an input signal is inverted . furthermore , with the present embodiment , let us say that the a / d converter 126 performs ad conversion for each input signal within half or less the cycle time of the pixel clock signal pixclk . the pixel clock signal pixclk is a cyclic signal , wherein the first half cycle is at the “ h ” level and the latter half cycle is at the “ l ” level . the integrator a 122 integrates the brightness signal during the “ h ” period of the pixel clock signal pixclk , and is reset during the “ l ” period thereof . conversely , the integrator b 123 integrates the brightness signal during the “ l ” period of the pixel clock signal pixclk , and is reset during the “ h ” period thereof . note that the integrators a 122 and b 123 each output zero during the reset period thereof . with the present embodiment , the integrators a 122 and b 123 operate with the reset periods being shifted from each other by half the cycle time . with such a configuration , the analog adder 124 adds the output signals of the integrators a 122 and b 123 , and the summed signal is input to the sample - hold circuit s / h 125 . thus , the sample - hold circuit s / h 125 alternately detects the output signals from the integrators a 122 and b 123 with the sh signal of “ h ” level . the a / d converter 126 performs a / d conversion for the output voltage thus sampled and held by the sample - hold circuit s / h 125 with the rising edge of the a / d start signal adst as a trigger signal . now , description will be made with the output signals from the a / d converter 126 as a 0 , b 1 , a 1 , b 1 , in order of output . that is to say , the first output data integrated by the integrator a 122 for amplification thereof is represented by ad . then , the subsequent output data of the integrator a 122 is represented by a 1 , a 2 , in order of output . in the same way , the first output data integrated by the integrator b 123 for amplification thereof is represented by b 0 . then , the subsequent output data of the integrator b 123 is represented by b 1 , b 2 , in order of output . the d flip - flop dff 1 ( 127 ) latches the output data of the a / d converter 126 with the rising edge of the clock signal clk 1 . on the other hand , the d flip - flop dff 2 ( 128 ) latches the output data of the d flip - flop dff 1 ( 127 ) with the rising edge of the clock signal clk 1 . the adder 129 adds the output signals of the flip - flops dff 1 ( 127 ) and dff 2 ( 128 ). furthermore , the d flip - flops dff 3 ( 130 ) latches the summed value output from the adder 129 with the rising edge of the clock signal clk 2 . as a result , the d flip - flop 3 ( 130 ) outputs data sets of ( a 0 + b 0 ), ( a 1 + b 1 ), ( a 2 + b 2 ), in that order , each of which represents the corresponding pixel data , i . e ., the integrated brightness data of the corresponding pixel of the photo - detector 11 . as described above , with the present embodiment , the device includes a pair of integrators for integrating the brightness signals output from the photo - detector 11 , and an adder for adding the output signals from the pair of the integrators a and b . with such a configuration , the brightness signal is integrated while alternately switching between the integrator a and the integrator b for each period of half the cycle of the pixel clock signal pixclk . specifically , while the integrator a integrates the brightness signal during the first half cycle , the integrator a is reset during the latter half cycle . on the other hand , while the integrator b integrates the brightness signal during the latter half cycle , the integrator b is reset during the first half cycle . the adder adds the output signals of the two integrators a and b for each cycle of the pixel clock signal pixclk . that is to say , one integrator , e . g . the integrator b , integrates the brightness signal during the reset time of the other integrator , e . g . the integrator a , and the reset time of each integrator follows the integrating time thereof . thus , the brightness signal is integrated over the entire period of each cycle of the pixel clock signal pixclk . in other words , with the present embodiment , the period of each cycle of the pixel clock signal is divided two . while the first period is assigned to the integrating time of the integrator a , the second period is assigned to reset time of the integrator a . furthermore , the second period is assigned to the integrating time of the integrator b . furthermore , the next first period following the current second period is assigned to reset time of the integrator b as well as being assigned to the integrating time of the integrator a . with the present embodiment , such an operating sequence is continuously repeated . this allows integration of the brightness signal output from the photo - detector over the entire period of each cycle of the pixel clock signal pixclk without loss of the integrating time due to the reset periods of the integrators a and b . thus , this maximizes the improved s / n ratio due to integration of the brightness signal , thereby improving the detection efficiency of the fluorescence emitted from the sample . with the present embodiment as described above , the period of each cycle of the pixel clock signal pixclk is divided into two equal periods . the brightness signal is integrated while alternately switching between the integrators a and b for each divided period . furthermore , the integrators a and b are alternately reset during the corresponding reset time following the integrating time thereof . this allows sufficient reset time of the integrators a and b even in a case of the reduced period of each cycle of the pixel clock signal pixclk due to the increased number of pixels . fig6 is a detailed circuit diagram of an integrating amplifier circuit 12 a according to a modification of the embodiment . fig7 is a timing chart of the operation of the integrating amplifier circuit 12 a according to the modification shown in fig6 . note that in fig6 , the same components as those shown in fig2 are denoted by the same reference numerals , and description will be mainly made regarding the difference therebetween . the integrating amplifier circuit 12 a according to the modification includes a multiplexer 141 instead of the analog adder 124 shown in fig2 . the multiplexer 141 switches the output signal between the output signals of the integrators a 122 and b 123 according to a switching signal sw output from the timing generator 131 . specifically , in a case of the switching signal sw of “ h ”, the multiplexer 141 selects the output signal of the integrator a 122 . on the other hand , in a case of the switching signal sw of “ l ”, the multiplexer 141 selects the output signal of the integrator b 123 . the other operation is the same as that of the integrating amplifier circuit 12 shown in fig2 , and accordingly , description thereof will be omitted . fig8 is a detailed circuit diagram of an integrating amplifier circuit 12 b according to another modification of the embodiment . fig9 is a timing chart of the operation of the integrating amplifier circuit 12 b according to the aforementioned modification shown in fig8 . note that in fig8 , the same components as those shown in fig2 are denoted by the same reference numerals , and description will be mainly made regarding the difference therebetween . description has been made regarding the integrating amplifier circuit 12 with reference to fig2 , in which the output signals from the integrators a 122 and b 123 are each converted into digital signals , and then the digital signals thus converted are added , thereby outputting the summed signal . with the integrating amplifier circuit 12 b according to the modification , the output signals from the integrators a 122 and b 123 are sampled and held by the sample - hold circuits s / h a 151 and s / h a 152 , respectively , and then the output signals thus sampled and held are added by the analog adder 124 . the summed value thus obtained matches the integrated value in which the pixel value is integrated for each pixel . with the present modification , the sample - hold circuit s / h c 153 samples and holds the summed value thus obtained , and the a / d converter 126 performs a / d conversion for the analog value thus sampled and held , thereby obtaining the integrated data for each pixel , i . e ., the integrated brightness data of each pixel of the photo - detector 11 . the other operation is the same as that of the integrating amplifier circuit 12 shown in fig2 , and accordingly , description thereof will be omitted . a set of the aforementioned collimator lens 2 , the first dichroic mirror 3 , the two - dimensional scanning optical system 4 , the objective lens 5 , the scanner driver 8 , and the condenser lens 9 , may be referred to as “ an optical system ”. also , each of the integrating amplifier circuits 12 , 12 a , and 12 b , may be simply referred to as “ an integrator ”. also , a set of the synchronizing signal generator 13 , the frame memory 14 , and the d / a converter 15 may be referred to as “ an image forming circuit ”. description has been made regarding the embodiment and modifications thereof in which the pixel clock signal pixclk used therein is a cyclic signal with the first half cycle at the “ h ” level and with the latter half cycle at the “ l ” level . with such an arrangement , while the integrator a integrates the brightness signal during the period of “ h ” of the pixel clock signal pixclk , the integrator a is reset during the period of “ l ”. on the other hand , while the integrator b integrates the brightness signal during the period of “ l ” of the pixel clock signal pixclk , the integrator b is reset during the period of “ h ”. also , an arrangement may be made in which the integrating periods of the integrators a and b overlap with each other in each cycle of the pixel clock signal pixclk . also , the present invention is not restricted to an arrangement in which the integrators a and b operate with the same integrating periods and the same reset periods as equal parts into which the period of one cycle of the pixel clock signal is divided . rather , an arrangement maybe made in which the integrators a and b operate with integrating periods and reset periods which are different from one another . while description has been made regarding an arrangement employing the two integrators a and b , an arrangement may be made employing three or more integrators . specifically , the device may include three or more integrators for integrating the brightness signal received from the photo - detector , and an adder for adding the output signals of the three or more integrators . with such a configuration , the device integrates the brightness signal while alternately switching between the integrators , thereby integrating the brightness signal over three or more divided periods forming the entire period of each cycle of the pixel clock signal pixclk . furthermore , the integrators are alternately reset during the next period following the integrating period . thus , the adder adds the output signals of the integrators over the entire period of each cycle of the pixel clock signal pixclk . while description has been made in the aforementioned embodiment regarding an arrangement in which the present invention is applied to a fluorescence laser scanning microscope , the present invention is not restricted to the fluorescence laser scanning microscope , and may also be applied to a spectral detector including photo - detectors each of which is prepared for a desired wavelength . the above described embodiments are examples , and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention .	6
hereinafter , an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the appended drawings . first , fig1 ( a ) and 1 ( b ) are a top view ( fig1 ( a ) ) and a side view ( fig1 ( b ) ) illustrating an example of a principal configuration of a projection - type image display device of an embodiment of the present invention , and here a local right - handed rectangular coordinate system is introduced in the drawings . that is , in fig1 ( a ) , a longitudinal direction of a multiple reflection element ( rod lens ) is a z axis , an axis parallel to a paper surface in a plane perpendicular to the z axis is an x axis , and an axis running from the back to the front of the paper surface is a y axis . further , in fig1 ( b ) , an axis parallel to the paper surface in the plane perpendicular to the z axis is the y axis , and an axis running from the front to the back of the paper surface is the x axis . that is , fig1 ( a ) is a top view of the projection - type image display device as viewed from the y axis direction , and fig1 ( b ) is a side view of the projection - type image display device as viewed from the x axis direction . in these drawings , a discharge lamp 1 and a reflector 2 configure a light source for radiating white light . note that , as the discharge lamp 1 , an ultrahigh pressure mercury lamp can be used , for example . that is , the ultrahigh pressure mercury lamp can efficiently radiate the white light , and its luminance ( intensity ) is extremely high and its radiated light can be efficiently collected with a mirror surface that is the reflector 2 with an excellent light collecting property . specifically , the reflector 2 is configured from an ellipse rotation surface that is a rotated ellipse ( note that , a semicircle ) having a first focal point ( short focal point ) and a second focal point ( long focal point ), and has a dielectric multilayer film formed on its inner surface , the multilayer film transmitting an infrared ray and efficiently reflecting visible light . the reflector 2 reflects a visible light component toward the second focal point ( long focal point ), among the light radiated from the discharge lamp 1 arranged at the first focal point ( short focal point ). further , a multiple reflection element as a light - collecting optical element , that is , a rod lens 3 is arranged at a rear part of the light source in the z axis direction , and the light emitted from the discharge lamp 1 is captured / collected by the reflector 2 , and enters the rod lens 3 . while a detailed configuration will be described below , an incoming surface ( the left end part in the drawing ) of the rod lens 3 is arranged at the second focal point ( long focal point ) of the ellipsoidal mirror 2 , that is , in the vicinity of a position where the visible light component reflected at the reflector is collected . an emission surface of the rod lens 3 has a shape long in the x axis direction and short in the y axis direction . an aspect ratio of the rod lens 3 is set to be the same as an aspect ratio of a reflection - type image display element 10 as an optical modulation element described below . that is , the rod lens 3 satisfies c / d = e / f where the length of the emission surface of the rod lens 3 in the x axis direction is “ c ” and the length of the emission surface of the rod lens 3 in the y axis direction is “ d ”, and the length of the reflection - type image display element 10 in the x axis direction is “ e ” and the length of the reflection - type image display element 10 in the y axis direction is “ f ”. accordingly , light rays reflected in the rod lens 3 a plurality of times form , on the emission surface of the rod lens , light distribution with uniform intensity and a similar figure to the liquid crystal reflection - type image display element 10 . further , in the present example , a color wheel 4 is arranged in the vicinity of the emission surface of the rod lens 3 , the color wheel 4 being a rotation - type color filter . the color wheel 4 is a rotation - controllable disk - shaped color filter configured from six types of fan - shaped transmission - type color filters arranged in a circumference ( rotating ) direction in order , the six types of color filters respectively transmitting only r ( red ), g ( green ), b ( blue ), c ( cyan ), y ( yellow ), and w ( white ) light . the color wheel 4 can be realized with three types of color filters including r ( red ), g ( green ), and b ( blue ), in place of the above - described six types of color filters . that is , by rotating of the color wheel 4 , the white light output from the light source is decomposed into the six colors ( r ( red ), g ( green ), b ( blue ), c ( cyan ), y ( yellow ), w ( white )) in time series . following that , the light emitted from the color wheel 4 is irradiated on the reflection - type image display element 10 through relay lenses 5 to 8 that configure an illumination optical element that collects the emission light , and then through a tir prism 9 . here , an operation of the relay lenses 5 to 8 that configure the illumination optical element will be described . these relay lenses serve to prevent divergence of light by collecting the light emitted from the rod lens 3 and transmitted the color wheel 4 . further , the relay lenses serve to expand the uniform light distribution on the emission surface of the color wheel 4 , onto a surface of the reflection - type image display element 10 . further , the relay lenses also serve to make light approximately parallel . then , the tir prism 9 totally reflects the entering light , thereby to lead the light to the reflection - type image display element 10 . the reflection - type image display element 10 is a two - dimensional optical modulation element that can control individual cells , and an image formed of these cells is expanded and projected on the screen or the like , through a projection lens 11 . the reflection - type image display element 10 is synchronized with rotation of the color wheel 4 by a control device ( configured from a microcomputer and a memory ) denoted with the reference sign 100 in the drawing . accordingly , the reflection - type image display element 10 displays an image based on an image signal , for each color light of the color wheel 4 , and reflects the light entering from the tir prism 9 toward a direction of the projection lens 11 . that is , the light rays reflected at the reflection - type image display element 10 become to have an angle that does not satisfy a total reflection angle of the tir prism 9 , and thus are transmitted the tir prism 9 , and enter the projection lens 11 . note that , here , an optical system from where the light is transmitted the tir prism 9 after emitted from the color wheel 4 to where the light reaches the surface of the reflection - type image display element 10 is referred to as illumination optical system . next , details of the rod lens 3 will be described below with reference to the appended fig2 to 5 . note that , in recent years , to increase luminance of a projection image to improve display performance , an increase in the light emission intensity of the light source has been enhanced . however , with the enhancement , in an optical system irradiated with extremely intense light , especially in the rod lens that allows the white light from the light source to enter , and outputs light with uniformly dispersed illuminance , a measure against the radiated light with extremely intense intensity is necessary . in addition , as described in the conventional technology , a measure against the increase in the size of the rod lens ( especially , the length direction of the rod lens ) associated with the increase in the size of the liquid crystal display panel as the optical modulation element is also necessary . therefore , the inventors have attempted various examinations , that is , the inventors have found that , when the rod lens is formed of a group of four rods that are formed to divide the cross section of the rod lens into four equal parts , as exemplarily illustrated in patent literature 2 , an adhesive applied on a joint surface , for joining these four rods , is subject to high temperature and deteriorated , and the deterioration is led to failure of the device and the like , and becomes a major cause to shorten the product life . therefore , the present invention has been made in view of the problem of when the rod lens is actually mounted in the projection - type image display device , and provides a mounting structure of the rod lens in the optical system with a large amount of heat generation . fig2 is a perspective view including a partial cross section of the rod lens 3 for illustrating the entire configuration of the rod lens 3 , and as is clear from the drawing , the rod lens 3 has the incoming surface ( the left side in the drawing ) formed into a square so as to efficiently collect circular incoming light radiated from the normal light source , and has the outgoing surface formed into a rectangle so that the aspect ratio becomes the same as that of the reflection - type image display element 10 as the optical modulation element , as described above . then , the rod lens 3 is configured from two ( only a pair of ) rods 31 and 32 divided along an optical axis of the rod lens 3 to divide the rectangular cross section of the outgoing side of the rod lens 3 into two equal parts with long sides of the rod lens 3 , that is , in a vertical direction . note that the appended fig3 ( a ) illustrates a front view of an incoming side of the pair of rods 31 and 32 that configure the rod lens 3 , fig3 ( b ) illustrates a side view , and fig3 ( c ) illustrates a back view of the outgoing side of the pair of rods 31 and 32 , respectively . further , the pair of rods 31 and 32 has mutually facing surfaces extending in an optical axis direction and held parallel to each other in a state of being slightly separated , with a thin film on a surface and a structure of a cover unit 40 described below . accordingly , an extremely thin air layer is formed between the pair of rods 31 and 32 , and the light propagated in the rods is reflected at an interface being a separation surface of these rods . therefore , these rods 31 and 32 can be reliably separated . that is , the appended fig4 illustrates a perspective view of a partially enlarged joint part of the pair of rods 31 and 32 . as is clear from the drawing , a thin film 33 ( for example , the thickness d = 5 to 20 μm ) made of an si thin film or a metal thin film ( ti , mg , or the like ) is formed on a part ( a corner part ) of one surface of the facing surfaces of the pair of rods 31 and 32 , specifically , on square four corner parts that form the facing surface , by means of vacuum deposition or the like . that is , with the formation of the thin film 33 across the parts of the facing surfaces , the pair of rods 31 and 32 is held parallel to each other in a state of being slightly separated . the thickness of the thin film can be made small if the flatness of the joint surface of the rods 31 and 32 is high . further , referring back to fig2 , the above - described cover unit 40 includes four external walls 41 provided to cover the pair of rods 31 and 32 ( only two walls are illustrated in the drawing ), a frame part 42 having an opening and arranged at a light source side ( that is , at the incoming side ), a frame part 43 having an opening and arranged at the outgoing side ( that is , at a reflection - type image display element side ), and a plurality of frame parts formed protruding from an inner surface of the external wall like a frame . note that the frame part 42 arranged at the incoming side serves as a diaphragm of the incoming light with a circular cross section from the light source side to the rod lens 3 . further , tip parts of a plurality of frame parts 44 formed protruding from an inner surface of the external wall 41 are in contact with external peripheries of the pair of rods 31 and 32 , and are formed tapered . that is , the plurality of holding frame parts 44 holds the pair of rods 31 and 32 at predetermined positions from the external peripheries by line con tact . further , fig4 and 5 illustrate positional relationship between the fronts of the pair of rods 31 and 32 , and the frame part 42 arranged at the light source side ( incoming side ) of the cover unit 40 . that is , as is clear from the drawings , when the rod lens 3 is viewed from an opening side of the cover unit 40 ( illustrated by the broken line in the drawing ) ( that is , through the frame part 42 at the incoming side ), the thin films 33 formed on the facing surface of the pair of rods 31 and 32 are hidden by the frame part 42 ( that is , positioned outside the opening ). according to this configuration , the extremely intense light radiated from the light source and collected with the reflector is not directly irradiated on the thin films 33 formed at positions close to the incoming surface . therefore , failure of the device and a decrease in the product life due to deterioration of the thin films 33 subject to high temperature can be prevented . note that the cover unit 40 can be manufactured into the above - described shape by casting metal such as aluminum ( al ) or magnesium ( mg ). that is , according to the above - described embodiments , a rod lens suitable for mounting in an optical system irradiated with extremely intense light associated with a recent increase in the light emission intensity of a light source , and a configuration of a projection - type image display device in which the rod lens is mounted are provided . specifically , outgoing light with sufficient illuminance distribution ( that is , uniform outgoing light ) can be obtained with a length similar to a conventional one , without increasing the length of the rod lens , ( that is , without increasing the size ), even when the conventional reflection - type image display element ( ratio = 4 : 3 ) with a diagonal of 0 . 7 inch size is changed into a reflection - type image display element with 1 . 0 inch size , or when the conventional reflection - type image display element ( ratio = 16 : 9 ) with 0 . 53 inch size is changed into a reflection - type image display element with 0 . 97 inches , that is , when the cross section of the rod lens is increased . note that , in the projection - type image display device according to the embodiments of the present invention described above , a configuration has been described , which employs the reflection - type image display element , as the optical modulation element for forming a desired image with the color light from the color wheel 4 . however , the present invention is not limited to the example , and can be applied to various projection - type image display devices , instead . for example , a ferroelectric liquid crystal panel as a bistable element that switches two states of on / off can be used . in this case , the tir prism 9 that configures a part of the illumination optical system would become unnecessary . in addition , in the above - described projection - type image display device , one configured from the plurality of transmission - type color filters has been described as the color wheel 4 being a rotation - type color filter . however , the present invention is not limited to the example , and reflection - type color filters can be used , instead . note that the present invention is not limited to the above - described embodiments , and includes various modifications . for example , detailed description has been given in the embodiments in order to explain the present invention in ways easy to understand , and the present invention is not necessarily limited to one that includes all of the described configurations . further , a part of a configuration of a certain embodiment can be replaced with a configuration of another embodiment , and a configuration of a certain embodiment can be added to a configuration of another embodiment . further , another configuration can be added to / deleted from / replaced with a part of a configuration of each embodiment .	7
comoviruses are a group of at least fourteen plant viruses which predominantly infect legumes . their genomes consist of two molecules of single - stranded , positive - sense rna of different sizes which are separately encapsidated in isometric particles of approximately 28 nm diameter . the two types of nucleoprotein particles are termed middle ( m ) and bottom ( b ) component as a consequence of their behaviour in caesium chloride density gradients , the rnas within the particles being known as m and b rna , respectively . both types of particle have an identical protein composition , consisting of 60 copies each of a large ( vp37 ) and a small ( vp23 ) coat protein . in addition to the nucleoprotein particles , comovirus preparations contain a variable amount of empty ( protein - only ) capsids which are known as top ( t ) component . in the case of the type member of the comovirus group , cowpea mosaic virus ( cpmv ), it is known that both m and b rna are polyadenylated and have a small protein ( vpg ) covalently linked to their 5 &# 39 ; terminus . more limited studies on other comoviruses suggest that these features are shared by the rnas of all members of the group . both rnas from cpmv have been sequenced and shown to consist of 3481 ( m ) and 5889 ( b ) nucleotides , excluding the poly ( a ) tails ( van wezenbeek et al . 1983 ; lomonossoff and shanks , 1983 ). both rnas contain a single , long open reading frame , expression of the viral gene products occurring through the synthesis and subsequent cleavage of large precursor polypeptides . though both rnas are required for infection of whole plants , the larger b rna is capable of independent replication in protoplasts , though no virus particles are produced in this case ( goldbach et al ., 1980 ). this observation , coupled with earlier genetic studies , established that the coat proteins are encoded by m rna . a 3 . 5 å electron density map of cpmv shows that there is a clear relationship between cpmv and the t = 3 plant viruses such as the tombusviruses , in particular tomato bushy stunt ( tbsv ) and the sobemoviruses , in particular southern bean mosaic ( sbmv ). the capsids of these latter viruses are composed of 180 identical coat protein subunits , each consisting of a single β - barrel domain . these can occupy three different positions , a , b and c , within the virions ( fig1 ). the two coat proteins of cpmv were shown to consist of three distinct β - barrel domains , two being derived from vp37 and one from vp23 . thus , in common with the t = 3 viruses , each cpmv particle is made up of 180 β - barrel structures . the single domain from vp23 occupies a position analogous to that of the a type subunits of tbsv and sbmv , whereas , the n - and c - terminal domains of vp37 occupy the positions of the c and b type subunits respectively ( fig1 ). x - ray diffraction analysis of crystals of cpmv and another member of the group , bean pod mottle virus ( bpmv ) shows that the 3 - d structures of bpmv and cpmv are very similar and are typical of the comovirus group in general . in the structures of cpmv and bpmv , each β - barrel consists principally of 8 strands of antiparallel β - sheet connected by loops of varying length . the connectivity and nomenclature of the strands is given in fig2 . the flat β - sheets are named the b , c , d , e , f , g , h and i sheets , and the connecting loops are referred to as the βb - βc , βd - βe , βf - βg and βh - βi loops . the comoviruses are also structurally related to the animal picornaviruses . the capsids of picornaviruses consist of 60 copies of each of three different coat proteins vp1 , vp2 and vp3 each one consisting of a single β - barrel domain . as in the case of comoviruses , these coat proteins are released by cleavage of a precursor polyprotein and are synthesised in the order vp2 - vp3 - vp1 . comparison of the 3 - dimensional structure of cpmv with that of picornaviruses has shown that the n - and c - terminal domains of vp37 are equivalent to vp2 and vp3 respectively and that vp23 are equivalent to vp1 ( fig1 ). the equivalence between structural position and gene order suggests that vp37 corresponds to an uncleaved form of the two picornavirus capsid proteins , vp2 and vp3 . one of the principal differences between the comoviruses and picornaviruses is that the protein subunits of comoviruses lack the large insertions between the strands of the β - barrels found in picornaviruses though the fundamental architecture of the particles is very similar . the four loops ( βb - βc , βd - βe , βf - βg and βh - βi -- see fig2 ) between the β - sheets are not critical for maintaining the structural integrity of the virions but , in accordance with this invention , are used as sites of expression of foreign peptide sequences , such as antigenic sites from animal viruses . in order to make insertions into the coat protein of cpmv , it is necessary to have a means of manipulating the genome of the virus . a full - length cdna clone of cpmv m rna ( ppmm2902 ) in the transcription vector ppmi was available ( see fig3 a ) ( ahlquist and janda , 1984 , holness et al . ( 1989 ) and holness ( 1989 ). we have shown that transcripts from ppmm2902 can multiply when electroporated in cowpea mesophyll protoplasts in the presence of highly purified virion b rna , therefore allowing modifications to be made to the viral coat proteins without affecting the multiplication and assembly of the virus . in view of the possible danger that b rna purified from virions to provide the proteins required for viral replication with ppmm2902 might be cross - contaminated with wild - type m rna , we have constructed a full - length cdna clone of b rna , pbt7 - 123 ( see fig3 b ). the full - length copy of b rna is immediately downstream of a modified t7 promoter . following linearisation with the restriction enzyme mlu1 , transcripts identical in size to natural b rna can be synthesised by t7 rna polymerase . a mixture of transcripts from ppmm2902 and pbt7 - 123 gives rise to a full virus infection when electroporated into cowpea protoplasts , and therefore replaces the use of natural b rna . we have selected the βb - βc loop in vp23 for the insertion of foreign peptide . this loop is clearly exposed on the surface of the viral particle and computer modelling has shown that even large loops inserted at this site are unlikely to interfere with the interaction between adjacent subunits responsible for capsid structure and stability . this loop has a unique nhe1 site at position 2708 of the m rna - specific sequence where foreign sequences may be inserted ( see fig4 ). the principle antigenic sites of the picornavirus foot and mouth disease ( fmdv ) and human rhinovirus ( hrv ), and the lentiretrovirus human immune deficiency virus ( hiv ) were used to illustrate the use of this invention in the production of vaccines to animal viruses . design and construction of pfmdv , a full length cdna clone of cpmv m rna containing a dna insert coding for a segment of fmdv loop protein to insert the &# 34 ; fmdv loop &# 34 ; into the βb - βc loop of vp23 of cpmv , two complementary oligonucleotides , both 81 residues long , were chemically synthesised . their sequences are given in fig5 a . the positive sense oligonucleotide contains the sequence encoding amino acid residues 136 - 160 from vp1 of fmdv serotype o 1 strain bfs 1860 . the nucleotide sequence of oligonucleotides was designed to take account of the codon usage preference found in cpmv and includes a bgl11 site in the middle of the sequence to facilitate screening . when annealed , the oligonucleotides give a double - stranded dna sequence with nhe1 - compatible ends . thus the oligonucleotides can be inserted into the unique nhe1 site of ppmm2902 . the effect of such an insertion on the sequence of the vp23 is shown in fig5 b . to facilitate the insertion of the fmdv loop , the fmdv - specific oligonucleotides were initially ligated into an m13 sub - clone of ppmm2902 which contained the sequence encoding vp23 . this was done to enable clones harbouring the fmdv - specific sequence to readily be identified by sequence analysis . all the standard dna manipulations were carried out according to maniatis et al ( 1982 ). details of the construction of pfmdv are given below and are shown diagrammatically in fig6 . step 1 . the plasmid ppmm2902 was digested with the restriction enzyme sst1 which cuts twice within the cpmv m rna - specific sequence at positions 2296 and 3423 but does not cut within the sequence of the plasmid ppm1 . following agarose gel electrophoresis , and both the large ( 6 . 0 kb ) the small ( 1 . 1 kb ) fragment were purified by electroelution from the gel . the 1 . 1 kb sst1 fragment was ligated into the sst1 - cut , phosphatase - treated replicative form dna from the bacteriophage m13mp18 . the ligation mixture was used to transform e . coli strain jm101 using the calcium chloride procedure . plaques containing the 1 . 1 kb sst1 fragment from m rna were identified by the lac complementation assay and dna sequence analysis and one , m13 - jr1 was selected for further work . step 2 . the double - stranded replicative form dna of m13 - jr1 was isolated from infected e . coli strain jm101 cells by the method of birnboim and doly ( 1979 ). the purified dna was linearised by digestion with the restriction enzyme nhe1 and the linearised plasmid treated with calf intestinal phosphatase . the two oligonucleotides with nhe1 - compatible termini encoding amino acid residues 136 to 160 of vp1 from fmdv were phosphorylated with atp using polynucleotide kinase and annealed to each other by boiling and slow cooling . the annealed oligonucleotides were ligated into nhe - 1 - digested m13 - jr1 , the ligation mixture used to transform e . coli strain jm101 and the transformation mixture plated out on a lawn of jm101 . a large number of plaques were found on the plates , 20 of which were selected for sequence analysis . bacteriophage were propagated in jm101 and the single - stranded dna isolated exactly as described by sanger et al ( 1980 ). the nucleotide sequence of the region of the bacteriophage dna around the nhe1 site was determined by the dideoxy method as modified by biggin et al ( 1983 ), using an 18mer , 5 &# 39 ; agt - tac - tgc - tgt - aac - gtc - 3 &# 39 ; seq id no : 1 , complementary to nucleotides 2735 - 2752 of the m rna sequence , as primer . of the plaques analysed , one , designated m13 - usha1 , had a single copy of the desired sequence in the correct orientation . step 3 . m13 - usha1 was propagated in e . coli strain jm101 and the replicative form dna was isolated from the infected cells by the method of birnboim and doly ( 1979 ). the dna was digested with sst1 and the 1 . 1 kb fragment purified by agarose gel electrophoresis . this fragment was ligated to the large ( 6 . 0 kb ) sst1 fragment from ppmm2902 ( see above ) which had been treated with calf intestinal phosphatase . the ligation mixture was used to transform e . coli strain jm83 using the calcium chloride method . the transformation mixture was plated out on l - agar plates containing 100 μg / ml carbenicillin and the plates incubated overnight at 37 ° c . 12 carbenicillin - resistant colonies were selected for further study . the colonies were grown up as 1 ml cultures in l - broth , plasmid &# 34 ; minipreps &# 34 ; prepared and analysed by restriction enzyme digestion . from the patterns obtained by digestion with the enzymes sst1 , bgl11 and ecorv , it was possible to deduce that 4 colonies consisted of full - length clones of cpmv containing the sequence of the fmdv - specific oligonucleotides in the correct orientation . one of these , pfmdv , was subsequently propagated on a large scale and the plasmid dna was isolated by the method of birnboim and doly ( 1979 ) and further purified by centrifugation using caesium chloride / ethidium bromide gradients ( maniatis et al ( 1982 ). 1 . purified pfmdv dna was linearised by digestion with ecor1 and transcribed using e . coli rna polymerase exactly as described for ppmm2902 by holness et al ( 1989 ). electrophoresis of the products of formaldehyde - containing agarose gels ( lehrach et al ., 1977 ) revealed the presence of transcripts which co - migrated with authentic viral m rna . 2 . following treatment with dnase1 and lithium chloride precipitation to remove the template dna , the transcripts were translated in vitro in the message - dependent rabbit reticulocyte system ( pelham and jackson 1976 ) in the presence of 35 s - methionine . the products were examined by electrophoresis on polyacrylamide gels containing sds ( laemmli , 1970 ) and visualised by autoradiography of the dried - down gel . the autoradiographs revealed the presence of two proteins of 105 and 95 kda which co - migrated with the translation products of natural m rna . 3 . the ability of transcripts of pfmdv to be replicated in plant cells was examined as follows : cowpea mesophyll protoplasts were prepared as described by de varennes et al ( 1985 ). transcripts from pfmdv were mixed with transcripts from pbt7 - 123 ( the plasmid containing a full - length copy b rna ) and electroporated into the protoplasts as described by holness et al ( 1989 ). as control , a sample of the same preparation of protoplasts were electroporated with a mixture of transcripts from pbt7 - 123 and ppmm2902 . 72 hours post - electroporation the protoplasts were harvested and the nucleic acids were extracted as described by de varennes et al ( 1985 ). samples of the rna were electrophoresed on formaldehyde - containing agarose gels ( lehrach et al , 1977 ) and the nucleic acids blotted on to hybond n membranes ( amersham international ). the nucleic acids were cross - linked to the membranes by irradiation with u . v . light . the membranes were probed for m rna sequences using a hind111 fragment form ppmm2902 corresponding to nucleotides 482 - 2211 of the m rna which had been labelled with 32 p as described by feinberg and vogelstein ( 1983 ). samples from protoplasts electroporated with pbt7 - 123 and either ppmm2902 or pfmdv - 1 revealed the presence of m rna - specific sequences confirming that the presence of the sequence encoding the fmdv loop did not prevent the transcripts from replicating . to confirm that the progeny of pfmdv replication retained the sequence encoding the fmdv loop , replicate membranes were probed with the positive - sense fmdv oligonucleotide which had been &# 34 ; oligo - labelled &# 34 ; ( feinberg and vogelstein , 1983 ) to give a (+) sense - specific probe . the sample from protoplasts electroporated with a mixture of pbt7 - 123 and pfmdv transcripts gave a clear signal at the expected position for m rna , a signal which was absent from the ppmm2902 control . 4 . to establish that protein subunits containing the fmdv loop assemble into virions , extracts from infected protoplasts were examined for the presence of virus particles by immunosorbent electron microscopy . samples of protoplasts electroporated with a mixture of transcripts from pbt7 - 123 and pfmdv were lysed by repeated passage through a 23 gauge needle . the extracts were centrifuged in an eppendorf microfuge and supernatant retained for examination . 10 microliter samples of the supernatants were incubated with gold electron microscope ( em ) grids which had been coated with anti - cpmv antiserum . after washing and staining with uranyl acetate , the grids were examined using a jeol 1200 electron microscope . particles of diameter 28 nm could be seen which had the characteristic appearance of cpmv virions . this demonstrates that the presence of the fmdv loop in vp23 does not prevent virus assembly . the foregoing description establishes that plant viruses modified in accordance with this invention can multiply and assemble into virus particles when electroporated into plant protoplasts . to produce modified plant viruses on a large scale it is necessary to prepare a construct which can be inoculated directly onto whole plants , and which will replicate and assemble into virus particles as in the above described protoplast system . we have therefore modified ppmm2902 in such a way that the resulting transcripts incorporate a &# 34 ; cap &# 34 ; structure at their 5 &# 39 ; ends , and rna synthesis is driven by a more efficient promoter . the steps in the modification of ppmm2902 to produce pmt7 - 601 ( fig7 ) are described in detail below . 1 . 1st strand cdna to purified cpmv m rna was synthesised exactly as described by lomonossoff et al ( 1982 ), using pdt 12 - 18 as a primer . 2nd strand synthesis was primed using the following oligonucleotide : conditions for synthesis were as described in lomonossoff et al ( 1982 ) and shanks et al ( 1986 ). 2 . the double - stranded cdna was digested with the restriction enzymes pst1 and bamh1 ( which cleaves the m rna sequence at position 1504 ) and the 1 . 5 kb pst1 / bamh1 fragment ligated into pst1 / bamh1 digested m13mp18 . the ligation mix was used to transform e . coli strain jm101 . recombinant phage harbouring inserts were identified by the lac complementation assay and checked for the presence of the correct insert by &# 34 ; t - track &# 34 ; analysis ( sanger et al ., 1980 ) as modified by biggin et al ( 1983 ). one clone , m13 - mt7 - 6 , was selected for further analysis and the sequence of the 5 &# 39 ; terminal 200 nucleotides of m rna specific sequence was determined as described by biggin et al ( 1983 ) and shown to be identical to the equivalent sequence in ppmm2902 . 3 . the double - stranded , replicative dna was isolated from e . coli jm101 cells infected with m13 - mt7 - 6 by the method of birnboim and doly ( 1979 ). the double stranded dna was digested with pst1and bgl11 ( which cuts the m rna sequence at position 189 ) and the 200 bp fragment released was purified by electrophoresis on and electro - elution from an agarose gel ( maniatis et al ( 1982 ). 4 . the plasmid ppmm2902 ( holness et al 1989 ) was digested with pst1 and bgl11 to produce two dna fragments of 1 . 1 and 6 . 0 kb . the smaller ( 1 . 1 kb ) fragment contains the sequence of the e . coli promoter linked to the first 189 nucleotides of the sequence of cpmv m rna while the larger ( 6 . 0 kb ) fragment the rest of the sequence of m rna linked to puc9 . the digest was treated with calf intestinal phosphatase , the two fragments separated by agarose gel electrophoresis and the 6 . 0 kb fragment recovered by electro - elution . 5 . the 200 bp pst1 / bgl11 from m13 - mt7 - 6 and the 6 . 0 kb fragment from ppmm2902 were ligated together ( maniatis et al , 1982 ) and the mixture used to transform e . coli strain jm83 . a number of carbenicillin - resistant colonies were identified and one , pmt7 - 601 , was shown to have the desired structure . large - scale quantities of plasmid pmt7 - 601 were therefore prepared as described for pfmdv . 6 . after linearisation with ecor1 , plasmid pmt7 - 601 could be transcribed using t7 rna polymerase to give rna which was identical in size to natural virion m rna when analysed on formaldehyde - containing agarose gels ( lehrach et al . 1977 ). the yield of transcript was approximately 1 μg of full - length m transcript per μg of linearised template dna . 7 . when a mixture of t7 transcripts from pmt7 - 601 and pbt7 - 123 was electroporated into cowpea mesophyll protoplasts , northern blot analysis of progeny rna revealed that transcripts from pmt7 - 601 are biologically active . the methods used for protoplast isolation and nucleic acid analysis were identical to those used to analyse the biological properties of pfmdv . infectivity of a mixture of capped pbt7 - 123 and pmt7 - 601 transcripts on cowpea plants samples of pbt7 - 123 and pmt7 - 601 were linearised with mlu1 and ecor1 respectively . portions of the linearised templates were transcribed using t7 rna polymerase in the presence of gpppg essentially as described by ziegler - graaf et al ( 1988 ). the transcription reactions contained 0 . 1 mg / ml linearised dna template , 40 mm tris - hci ph 8 . 0 , 25 mm nacl , 8 mm mgcl 2 , 2 mm spermidine hydrochloride , 0 . 5 mm each of utp , atp and ctp , 0 . 025 mm gtp , 0 . 5 mm gpppg , 0 . 05 mg / ml bsa , 10 mm dtt , 200 units / ml rnaguard and transcription was initiated by the addition of t7 rna polymerase to a final concentration of 1400 units / ml . incubation was at 37 ° c . for 2 hours . at 30 , 60 and 90 minutes portions ( 5 μl per 1 ml transcription reaction ) of a 5 mm solution of gtp were added . following transcription , edta was added to 15 mm final concentration and the integrity of the transcripts was checked by electrophoresis on formaldehyde - containing agarose gels . the transcription mixtures were extracted with 2 volumes of phenol / chloroform ( 1 . 1 v / v ) and the nucleic acids precipitated twice with ethanol . the nucleic acids were harvested by centrifugation , washed with ethanol and dried under vacuum . the nucleic acids were dissolved in 50 mm tris - phosphate , ph 8 . 0 for inoculation on to plants . the primary leaves of 10 day - old cowpea ( vigna unguiculata var . california blackeye ) were dusted with carborundum and a 1 : 1 ( w / w ) mixture of transcripts derived from pmt7 - 601 and pbt7 - 123 were applied to the leaves with gently rubbing . a variety of transcript concentrations were used but in all cases the final inoculum volume was 50 μl . the results obtained showed that when a total of 5 μg of each transcript was applied per primary leaf , 100 % of plants inoculated routinely developed symptoms characteristic of a cpmv infection . the presence of cpmv - specific sequences in both the inoculated and upper leaves of such plants was confirmed by &# 34 ; dot blot &# 34 ; analysis . samples of the inoculated and trifoliate leaves were taken using a number 10 cork borer and macerated and extracted with 0 . 4 mls of 10 mm sodium phosphate . the samples were centrifuged and 5 μl of the supernatant was applied to nitrocellulose filters pre - wetted with 20 × ssc . the nucleic acid were cross - linked to the membranes by irradiation with u . v . light and probed for m rna - specific sequences using a 32 p &# 34 ; oligo - labelled &# 34 ; ( feinberg and vogelstein , 1983 ) probe consisting of nucleotides 482 - 2211 of the m rna sequence . the conditions for hybridisation and washing of the filters were as described by maniatis et al ( 1982 ). after drying , the filters were autoradiographed . a strong hybridisation signal indicated the presence of cpmv - specific sequences . to construct pmt7 - fmdv - i , pmt7 - 601 and pfmdv were both digested with restriction enzyme sst1 , the digest from pmt7 - 601 being subsequently treated with calf intestinal phosphatase . sst1 cuts each plasmid twice at positions 2296 and 3423 of the m rna - specific region to release a 1 . 1 kb fragment . as discussed previously this sst1 fragment contains the region of vp23 encompassing the βb - βc loop where the fmdv loop insertion has been made . following electrophoresis on an agarose gel , the 1 . 1 kb fragment from pfmdv and the 5 . 1 kb fragment , encompassing the vector sequence and all the rest of the m rna specific sequence , from pmt7 - 601 were recovered by electo - elution . the two sst1 fragments were ligated together and the mixture transformed in e . coli strain jm83 . a number of carbenicillin - resistant colonies were picked , &# 34 ; minipreps &# 34 ; made and the plasmid dna examined by restriction enzyme digests to identify recombinants containing the fmdv loop . one such clone was identified , designated pmt7 - fmdv - i and grown up on a large scale . all the dna manipulations were as described for the construction of pfmdv and pmt7 - 601 . both pfmdv and its derivative pmt7 - fmdv - i have a straightforward insertion into the βb - βc loop of vp23 . to limit the increase in size of the loop upon insertion of a foreign sequence , a replacement vector was designed where the foreign sequence would replace the natural βb - βc loop in vp23 rather than be added to it . in the nucleotide sequence of the region of the cpmv genome encoding vp23 a single silent base change ( u to c ) at position 2740 creates a unique aat11 site at amino acid valine 27 . the change in the sequence of m rna is shown in fig8 . the creation of the aat11 site enables the nucleotide sequence encoding the six amino acids from the native βb - βc loop in cpmv to be removed by digestion with nhe1 and aat11 . the sequence can then be replaced by any sequence with nhe1 - and aat11 - compatible ends . two different sequences were designed to be substituted for the sequence between the nhe1 and aat11 sites of the mutated m rna sequence . the first sequence to be substituted into vp23 consisted of oligonucleotides encoding residues 735 - 752 from the transmembrane glycoprotein gp41 from human immunodeficiency virus ( hiv - 1 ). this sequence was selected as a synthetic peptide for this region is recognised in enzyme - linked immunosorbent assays ( elisa ) by antisera from seropositive aids patients and is capable of inducing antibodies which neutralise a range of hiv - 1 isolates ( kennedy et al , 1986 ; chanh et al , 1986 ; dagleish et al , 1988 ). the second sequence consists of the nucleotide sequence encoding residues 85 - 99 from vp1 of human rhinovirus 14 ( hrv14 ). in both cases , the oligonucleotides were designed to contain restriction enzyme sites to facilitate screening . the sequences of the oligonucleotides and the effect of the substitutions on the amino acid sequence of vp23 are shown in fig9 and 10 . the steps in the construction of pmt7 - hiv and pmt7 - hrv are given below and are shown diagrammatically in fig1 . step 1 . m13 - jr - 1 ( see fig6 ) was propagated in e . coli strain cj236 and du - containing single - stranded dna isolated as described by kunkel ( 1985 ). the t to c mutation at position 2740 of the m rna sequence was made by oligonucleotide - directed mutagenesis of du - containing single - stranded m13 - jr1 dna using the primer ctg - ctg - tga - cgt - ctg - aaa - a seq id no : 3 as described by kunkel ( 1985 ). this resulted in the construction of clone m13 - jraat11 . the mutation was confirmed by dideoxy sequence analysis of single - stranded dna ( biggin et al . 1983 ) and by restriction enzyme digestion of the double - stranded replication form dna . step 2 . the replicative form dna of m13 - jraat11 was isolated and digested with nhe1 and aat11 and treated with calf intestinal phosphatase . the pairs of oligonucleotides shown in fig9 and 10 were phosphorylated with atp using polynucleotide kinase , annealed together by boiling and slow cooling and ligated into nhe1 / aat11 - digested m13 - jraat11 . recombinant m13 clones harbouring the inserted sequences were identified by sequence analysis of the single - stranded bacteriophage dna exactly as described previously for pfmdv . two clones , m13 - hiv and m13 - hrv containing the required sequences were identified and the double - stranded replicative form dna was isolated shown to give the expected pattern of fragments on restriction enzyme digestion . step 3 . replicative form dna from m13 - hiv and m13 - hrv was digested with sst1 and the 1 . 2 kb m rna - specific fragment recovered by electro - elution after electrophoresis of the digest on an agarose gel . the 1 . 2 kb fragments were ligated into the large sst1 fragment from pmt7 - 601 as previously described for production of pmt7 - fmdv - i . the ligation mixture was used to transform e . coli strain jm83 and carbenicillin - resistant colonies selected . two clones , designated pmt7 - hiv and pmt7 - hrv , were shown to contain the desired structure by restriction enzyme mapping and nucleotide sequence analysis . for transcription , pmt7 - hiv and pmt7 - hrv , were linearised by digestion with ecor1 . transcription using t7 rna polymerase was carried out exactly as described for pmt7 - 601 and pbt7 - 123 . the resulting transcripts were identical in size to natural virion rna . demonstration of the ability of pmt7 - fmdv - i and pmt7 - hiv transcripts to replicate in cowpea protoplasts 10 μg samples of the in vitro transcripts from either pmt7 - 601 , pmt7 - fmdv - i or pmt7 - hiv were mixed with 15 μg samples of transcripts from pbt7 - 123 and the mixtures used to electroporate 10 6 cowpea mesophyll protoplasts . samples were either taken immediately ( 0 hour ) or after incubation of the protoplasts for 72 hour in the light at 25 ° c . nucleic acids were extracted from one quarter of each sample and electrophoresed on a 1 % formaldehyde - containing agarose gel as previously described . the nucleic acids were blotted on to hybond n , cross - linked to the membrane by u . v . irradiation and probed for cpmv m rna - specific sequences as previously described . in each case a strong hybridisation signal corresponding in position to m rna could be detected in the 72 hour but not the 0 hour incubation samples , demonstrating that the transcripts from all four constructs can multiply in cowpea protoplasts . the remaining three quarters of each protoplast sample was lysed as previously described and applied to electron microscope grids coated with anti - cpmv serum . the grids were then examined using a jeol 1200 electron microscope . large numbers of particles could be seen in the 72 hour samples of protoplasts electroporated with pmt7 - 601 , pmt7 - fmdv - i and pmt7 - hiv transcripts . these results show that the modified coat proteins encoded by pmt7 - fmdv - i and pmt7 - hiv can assemble into virions . ability of pmt7 - fmdv - i and pmt7 - hiv transcripts to replicate in whole cowpea plants to demonstrate the ability of transcripts from pmt7 - fmdv - i and pmt7 - hiv to replicate in whole cowpea plants in the presence of transcripts derived from pbt7 - 123 , transcripts capped with gpppg were prepared as previously described . 6 groups , each consisting of 5 , 10 day old , cowpeas , were inoculated with the transcripts using the method previously described . in each case , the amount of transcript refers to the amount applied to an individual leaf . group 2 . inoculated with 1 . 5 μg of natural cpmv virion rna symptoms were scored on a daily basis and samples of leaf tissue from each plant were taken 11 days post - inoculation for &# 34 ; dot blot &# 34 ; analysis which was carried out as described previously . the rest of the leaf tissue from all the plants in groups 4 and 5 was harvested and frozen for future use . none of the plants in group 1 ( mock - inoculated ) developed any symptoms up to 11 days post infection ( p . i .) and no cpmv - specific nucleic acids could be detected in the leaf tissue by &# 34 ; dot blot &# 34 ; analysis . this shows that no accidental infection of the cowpea plants with cpmv had occurred during the experiment . all plants in groups 2 and 3 ( inoculated with either virion rna or a mixture of pmt7 - 601 and pbt7 - 123 transcripts ) showed strong symptoms on both the inoculated and systemic leaves by 7 days p . i . &# 34 ; dot blot &# 34 ; analysis of leaf tissue showed the presence of large amounts of virus - specific rna in both the inoculated and systemic leaves of all plants . this confirms that the plants used in the experiment were fully susceptible to infection with cpmv using either virion rna or a mixture of wild - type transcripts . by 11 days p . i . the inoculated leaves of all the plants in group 4 ( inoculated with pmt7 - fmdv - 1 transcripts ) developed a mottled appearance distinct from that normally associated with a wild - type virus infection . this result shows that the transcripts from pmt7 - fmdv - i can multiply and spread from cell - to - cell in whole cowpea plants . 4 out of 5 of the plants in group 5 ( inoculated with pmt7 - hiv transcripts ) developed symptoms on their systemic leaves by 11 days p . i . &# 34 ; dot blot analysis showed that plants showing symptoms had substantial quantities of virus - specific sequences in both the inoculated and systemic leaves . this result shows that transcripts from pmt7 - hiv can multiply and spread within whole cowpea plants . pmt7 - fmdv - i : to demonstrate that modified viral capsid proteins were synthesised in the inoculated leaves of the group 4 plants , samples of the frozen leaf tissue were finely ground and extracted with 1 × laemmli sample buffer . the extracts were electrophoresed on 15 % polyacrylamide - sds gels and the proteins transferred to nitrocellulose membranes using a biorad semi - dry transfer cell . the membranes were probed either with serum raised against whole cpmv virus particles or with a serum raised against the synthetic oligopeptide , vpnlrgdlqvlaqkvartlp ( cg ) seq id no : 4 , corresponding to residues 141 - 160 of vp1 of fmdv strain o 1 . this sequence corresponds to the epitope which was inserted into vp23 in pmt7 - fmdv . both antisera were raised in rabbits . western blot analysis was carried out using alkaline phosphatase - conjugated goat anti - rabbit igg as the second antibody . the protein extracts of all five group 4 plants were found to react with the anti - cpmv serum indicating that the virus coat proteins were synthesised in the inoculated leaves of the group 4 plants . when similar blots were probed with the anti - fmdv oligopeptide serum , a single band lit up in the extracts from each of the group 4 plants ( fig1 ). this band migrated with an apparent molecular weight of 24 kda , which is exactly the size expected for vp23 carrying the fmdv loop . no product of similar size could be seen when extracts from mock - inoculated or wild - type cpmv - inoculated leaves were analysed ( fig1 ). likewise , purified wild - type cpmv coat proteins did react with the fmdv - specific antiserum . furthermore , pre - treatment of the anti - fmdv serum with the peptide which was used to raise it , abolished the reaction with the extracts from the group 4 plants demonstrating the specificity of the immunological reaction . these results demonstrate that the inoculated leaves of the group 4 plants contained cpmv coat proteins harbouring the fmdv loop . pmt7 - hiv : as discussed above , the &# 34 ; dot blot &# 34 ; analysis of both the inoculated and systemic leaves from the group 5 plants indicated that transcripts from pmt7 - hiv can multiply and spread in whole plants . the levels of signal obtained and the fact that the infection went systemic show that the progeny rna is encapsidated . to prove that the hiv - specific insert was retained in the progeny rna , &# 34 ; dot blots &# 34 ; of extracts from the group 5 plants were probed with a hiv - insert specific probe . this was made by &# 34 ; oligo - labelling &# 34 ; the positive sense oligonucleotide used in the construction of pmt7 - hiv ( see fig9 ). the results obtained showed the presence of the hiv sequence in extracts of the inoculated leaves of the four plants which showed symptoms . to extend the previous findings obtained with transcripts derived from pmt7 - fmdv - i , five groups of five cowpea plants were inoculated with capped transcripts , prepared as previously described , as follows : group 2 : inoculated with 0 . 5 μg of natural cpmv virion rna symptoms were scored on a daily basis . 13 days post - inoculation triplicate leaf disk samples were taken from one inoculated and one trifoliate leaf of each plant . the samples were treated as follows : sample 1 ( crude homogenate ): homogenised in 0 . 4 mls 10 mm sodium phosphate buffer , ph7 . 0 , centrifuged and the supernatant recovered . sample 2 ( rna extract ): frozen in liquid nitrogen , finely ground and the nucleic acids extracted with phenol / chloroform . after ethanol precipitation , the nucleic acids were finally resuspended in 0 . 1 mls of water . sample 3 ( protein extract ): frozen in liquid nitrogen , finely ground and the powder dissolved in 0 . 1 ml 1 × laemmli sample buffer . &# 34 ; dot blots &# 34 ; were prepared from 5 μl aliquots of samples 1 and 2 and were probed with either a probe specific for nucleotides 482 - 2211 of cpmv m rna ( cpmv - specific probe ), prepared as described previously , or with a probe specific for fmdv - specific insert . the latter was prepared by &# 34 ; oligo - labelling &# 34 ; the positive sense oligonucleotide shown in fig5 . western blots were prepared from aliquots of sample 3 and probed for fmdv - specific epitopes as described previously . isem was carried out on aliquots of sample 1 . no symptoms developed on any of the group 1 ( mock inoculated ) plants . dot blots of crude homogenates or rna extracts revealed no cpmv - specific or fmdv - specific sequences were present in extracts from either the inoculated or trifoliate leaves . isem of the crude homogenates using electron microscopy grids coated with anti - cpmv serum showed no virus particles were present . western blot analysis of the protein extracts using the fmdv - specific serum showed an absence of any fmdv epitopes . these results provide the negative control for the rest of the experiment . symptoms developed on both the inoculated and trifoliate leaves of all group 2 ( virion rna - inoculated ) and group 3 ( pmt7 - 601 + pbt7 - 123 )- inoculated plants by 7 days pi . by 11 days pi the lesions on the primary leaves had expanded to a diameter of 2 - 3 mm . dot blots of both the crude homogenates and rna extracts revealed the presence of cpmv - specific but not fmdv - specific sequences . isem using grids coated with anti - cpmv serum revealed the presence of copious numbers of cpmv particles in crude homogenates from both the inoculated and trifoliate leaves . western blot analysis of the protein extracts showed an absence of any fmdv epitopes . small lesions ( approximately 1 mm in diameter ) developed on the inoculated leaves of the group 4 ( pmt7 - fmdv - i + pbt7 - 123 )- inoculated plants by 11 days pi . dot blots of the rna extracted from the leaves ( sample 2 ) showed the presence of both cpmv - and fmdv - specific sequences in the inoculated of 3 out of the 5 group 4 plants . isem using grids coated with anti - cpmv serum revealed the presence of cpmv - like virus particles in the crude homogenates from the inoculated leaves of 4 out of the 5 group 4 plants . western blotting of the protein extracts ( sample 3 ) revealed the presence of the fmdv epitope on the small coat protein in extracts from all group 4 plants . these results confirm that transcripts from pmt7 - fmdv - i can multiply in whole cowpea plants and show that virus particles are produced in such plants . to isolate virus particles from pmt7 - fmdv - i - infected leaf tissue the following method was developed : 22 grams of primary cowpea leaves which had been inoculated with 5 μg each of pbt7 - 123 and pmt7 - fmdv transcripts were harvested 16 days post - inoculation . the leaves were homogenised in 2 volumes ( approximately 50 mls ) of 0 . 1m sodium phosphate , ph 7 . 0 at 4 ° c . the sap was filtered through two layers of muslin , centrifuged at 15 , 000 g for 15 minutes and the supernatant retained . the pellet was re - extracted with a few mls of 0 . 1m sodium phosphate buffer ph 7 . 0 , re - centrifuged . the supernatants were combined and centrifuged in a beckman type 30 rotor at 27 , 000 rpm for 4 hours at 4 ° c . the resulting pellet was resuspended overnight at 4 ° c . in 3 . 5 mls of 0 . 1m sodium phosphate , ph 7 . 0 and subsequently centrifuged in an eppendorf centrifuge for 10 minutes . the supernatant was taken and made up to 4 mls with 0 . 1m sodium phosphate ph 7 . 0 and 1 ml of a solution containing 1m nacl , 20 % peg 6000 was added and the mixture incubated for 2 hours at room temperature . the resulting precipitate was collected by centrifugation in an eppendorf centrifuge for 10 minutes , resuspended in 0 . 25 mls of 10 mm sodium phosphate , ph 7 . 0 and the solution clarified by re - centrifugation in an eppendorf centrifuge for 10 minutes . the supernatant , which contains the virus particles , was then removed and stored at 4 ° c . it was estimated spectrophometrically that the virus concentration in the final suspension was approximately 1 . 5 mg / ml . western blot analysis of the virus using fmdv - specific antiserum revealed the presence of fmdv antigen associated with the small coat protein subunit of the chimaeric virus particles . in order to produce large quantities of chimaeric virus as efficiently as possible , rna extracted from transcript - inoculated leaves was passaged in plants . 5 μl samples of the rna extract from a pmt7 - fmdv - i - inoculated leaf were diluted to 50 μl with tris - phosphate ph 8 . 0 and were inoculated on to the primary leaves of a batch of 5 cowpea plants . all the plants developed symptoms typical of a cpmv infection and at 23 days pi the primary leaves from the plants were harvested . the leaves were homogenised in 0 . 1m sodium phosphate buffer and virus extracted as described above except that the initial high speed pelleting step was omitted . a total of 3 . 0 mgs of virus at a final concentration of 0 . 5 mg / ml in 10 mm sodium phosphate ph7 . 0 was isolated in this way . this preparation was finally concentrated in a centriprep concentrator ( amicon ) to a final concentration of 1 . 4 mg / ml and has been designated p1 . samples of p1 were examined by electrophoresis on sds gels and coomassie blue staining and shown to contain the expected pattern of coat proteins . western blot analysis using anti - fmdv serum showed the small coat proteins contained the fmdv loop . rna extracted from the virus particles was of the expected size for m and b rna of cpmv . this demonstrates that chimaeric virus can be produced by passaging the rna derived from transcript - inoculated leaves . an experimental vaccine was prepared from virus preparation p1 by dispersion in sterile phosphate buffered saline ( pbs ) at a final concentration of 1 mg / ml . guinea pigs were injected with 40 μg of the p1 vaccine on days 0 and 28 . preliminary results indicate that the animals produce antibodies against the fmdv loop , a response not seen when wild - type virus is injected . ahlquist , p ., and janda , m . ( 1984 ). mol . cell biol . 4 , 2876 - 2882 . biggin , m . d ., gibson , t . j . and hong , g . f . ( 1983 ). proc . natl . acad . sci . u . s . a . 80 , 3963 - 3965 . birnboim , h . c . and doly , j . ( 1979 ). nucleic acids res . 7 , 1513 - 1523 . chanh , t . c ., dreesman , g . r ., kanda , p ., linette , g . p ., sparrow , j . t ., ho , d . d . and kennedy , r . c ., ( 1986 ). embo j . 5 , 3065 - 3071 . dalgleish , a . g ., chanh , t . c ., kennedy , r . c ., kanda , p ., clapham , p . r . and weiss , r . a . ( 1988 ). virology 165 , 209 - 215 . dessens , j . t . and lomonossoff , g . p . ( 1991 ). virology 184 , 738 - 746 . feinberg , a . p . and vogelstein , b . ( 1983 ). analytical biochem . 132 , 6 - 13 . goldbach , r ., rezelman , g . and van kammen , a . ( 1980 ). nature 286 , 297 - 300 . holness , c . l ., lomonossoff , g . p ., evans , d . and maule , a . j . ( 1989 ). virology 172 , 311 - 320 . kennedy , r . c ., henkel , r . d ., pauletti , d ., allan , j . s ., lee , t . h ., essex , m . and dreesman , g . r . ( 1986 ). science 231 , 1556 - 1559 . kunkel , t . a . ( 1985 ). proc . nat . acad . sci . u . s . a . 82 , 488 - 492 . lehrach , h ., diamond , d ., wozney , j . m . and boedtker , h . ( 1977 ). biochemistry 16 , 4743 - 4751 . lomonossoff , g . p . and shanks , m . ( 1983 ). embo j . 2 , 2253 - 2258 . lomonossoff , g . p ., shanks , m ., matthes , h . d ., singh , m . and gait , m . j . ( 1982 ). nucleic acids research 10 , 4861 - 4872 . maniatis , t ., fritsch , e . f . and sambrooke , j . ( 1982 ). molecular cloning . a laboratory manual . cold spring harbor laboratory . pelham , h . r . b . and jackson , r . j . ( 1976 ). eur . j . biochem . 67 , 247 - 256 . sanger , f ., coulson , a . r ., barrell , b . g ., smith , a . j . h . and roe , b . a . ( 1980 ). j . mol . biol . 143 , 161 - 178 . shanks , m ., stanley , j . and lomonossoff , g . p . ( 1986 ). virology 155 , 697 - 706 . van wezenbeek , p ., verver , j ., harmsen , j ., vos , p ., and van kammen , a . ( 1983 ). embo j . 2 , 941 - 946 . ziegler - graff , v ., bouzoubaa , s ., jupin , i ., guilley , h ., jonard , g . and richards , k . ( 1988 ). j . gen . virol . 69 , 2347 - 2357 . __________________________________________________________________________ # sequence listing - ( 1 ) general information :- ( iii ) number of sequences : 25 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 1 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 18 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 1 :# 18 tc - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 2 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 43 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 2 :# 43 ctca ctatagtatt aaaatcttaa tag - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 3 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 19 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 3 :# 19 aaa - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 4 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# acids ( a ) length : 22 amino ( b ) type : amino acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 4 :- val pro asn leu arg gly asp leu gln val le - # u ala gln lys val ala # 15 - arg thr leu pro cys gly 20 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 5 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 120 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( ix ) feature : ( a ) name / key : cds ( b ) location : 1 .. 120 - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 5 :- gga cct gtt tgt gct gaa gcc tca gat gtg ta - # t agc cca tgt atg ata 48gly pro val cys ala glu ala ser asp val ty - # r ser pro cys met ile # 15 - gct agc act cct cct gct cca ttt tca gac gt - # t aca gca gta act ttt 96ala ser thr pro pro ala pro phe ser asp va - # l thr ala val thr phe # 30 # 120gc aaa ata actasp leu ile asn gly lys ile thr # 40 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 6 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# acids ( a ) length : 40 amino ( b ) type : amino acid ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : protein - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 6 :- gly pro val cys ala glu ala ser asp val ty - # r ser pro cys met ile # 15 - ala ser thr pro pro ala pro phe ser asp va - # l thr ala val thr phe # 30 - asp leu ile asn gly lys ile thr # 40 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 7 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 81 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( ix ) feature : ( a ) name / key : cds ( b ) location : 3 .. 80 - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 7 :- ct agc act tat agt aga aat gct gtt cct aat - # ttg aga gga gat ctt 47 # asn leu arg gly asp leusn ala val pro # 15 # 81tg gct caa aag gtt gct cgg act ct - # t cgln val leu ala gln lys val ala arg thr le - # u # 25 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 8 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# acids ( a ) length : 26 amino ( b ) type : amino acid ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : protein - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 8 :- ser thr tyr ser arg asn ala val pro asn le - # u arg gly asp leu gln # 15 - val leu ala gln lys val ala arg thr leu # 25 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 9 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 81 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 9 :- gtgaatatca tctttacgac aaggattaaa ctctcctcta gaagttcaaa ac - # cgagtttt 60 # 81 ggat c - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 10 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 156 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( ix ) feature : ( a ) name / key : cds ( b ) location : 1 .. 156 - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 10 :- gga cct gtt tgt gct gaa gcc tca gat gtg ta - # t agc cca tgt atg ata 48gly pro val cys ala glu ala ser asp val ty - # r ser pro cys met ile # 15 - gct agc act tat agt aga aat gct gtt cct aa - # t ttg aga gga gat ctt 96ala ser thr tyr ser arg asn ala val pro as - # n leu arg gly asp leu # 30 - caa gtt ttg gct caa aag gtt gct cgg act ct - # t cct agc act cct cct 144gln val leu ala gln lys val ala arg thr le - # u pro ser thr pro pro # 45 # 156ala pro phe ser50 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 11 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# acids ( a ) length : 52 amino ( b ) type : amino acid ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : protein - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 11 :- gly pro val cys ala glu ala ser asp val ty - # r ser pro cys met ile # 15 - ala ser thr tyr ser arg asn ala val pro as - # n leu arg gly asp leu # 30 - gln val leu ala gln lys val ala arg thr le - # u pro ser thr pro pro # 45 - ala pro phe ser50 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 12 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 69 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( ix ) feature : ( a ) name / key : cds ( b ) location : 1 .. 69 - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 12 :- cca tgt atg ata gct agc act cct cct gct cc - # a ttt tca gac gtt aca 48pro cys met ile ala ser thr pro pro ala pr - # o phe ser asp val thr # 15 # 69 ac tta atcala val thr phe asp leu ile 20 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 13 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# acids ( a ) length : 23 amino ( b ) type : amino acid ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : protein - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 13 :- pro cys met ile ala ser thr pro pro ala pr - # o phe ser asp val thr # 15 - ala val thr phe asp leu ile 20 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 14 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 69 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( ix ) feature : ( a ) name / key : cds ( b ) location : 1 .. 69 - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 14 :- cca tgt atg ata gct agc act cct cct gct cc - # a ttt tca gac gtc aca 48pro cys met ile ala ser thr pro pro ala pr - # o phe ser asp val thr # 15 # 69 ac tta atcala val thr phe asp leu ile 20 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 15 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# acids ( a ) length : 23 amino ( b ) type : amino acid ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : protein - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 15 :- pro cys met ile ala ser thr pro pro ala pr - # o phe ser asp val thr # 15 - ala val thr phe asp leu ile 20 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 16 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 67 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( ix ) feature : ( a ) name / key : cds ( b ) location : 3 .. 65 - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 16 :- ct agc act gac cgc cct gag ggc atc gag gaa - # gag ggc ggt gag cgc 47 # glu glu gly gly glu arglu gly ile glu # 15 # 67 cg gac gtasp arg asp arg ser asp 20 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 17 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# acids ( a ) length : 21 amino ( b ) type : amino acid ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : protein - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 17 :- ser thr asp arg pro glu gly ile glu glu gl - # u gly gly glu arg asp # 15 - arg asp arg ser asp 20 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 18 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 59 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 18 :- gtgactggcg ggactcccgt agctccttct cccgccactc gcgctagcac ta - # gcaagcc 59 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 19 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 141 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( ix ) feature : ( a ) name / key : cds ( b ) location : 1 .. 141 - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 19 :- gga cct gtt tgt gct gaa gcc tca gat gtg ta - # t agc cca tgt atg ata 48gly pro val cys ala glu ala ser asp val ty - # r ser pro cys met ile # 15 - gct agc act gac cgc cct gag ggc atc gag ga - # a gag ggc ggt gag cgc 96ala ser thr asp arg pro glu gly ile glu gl - # u glu gly gly glu arg # 30 - gat cgt gat cgt tcg gac gtc aca gca gta ac - # t ttt gac tta atc 14 - # 1asp arg asp arg ser asp val thr ala val th - # r phe asp leu ile # 45 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 20 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# acids ( a ) length : 47 amino ( b ) type : amino acid ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : protein - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 20 :- gly pro val cys ala glu ala ser asp val ty - # r ser pro cys met ile # 15 - ala ser thr asp arg pro glu gly ile glu gl - # u glu gly gly glu arg # 30 - asp arg asp arg ser asp val thr ala val th - # r phe asp leu ile # 45 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 21 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 52 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( ix ) feature : ( a ) name / key : cds ( b ) location : 3 .. 50 - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 21 :- ct agc act cct gct act gga atc gat aat cat - # aga gaa gct aaa ttg 47 # his arg glu ala lys leuly ile asp asn # 15 # 52asp - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 22 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# acids ( a ) length : 16 amino ( b ) type : amino acid ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : protein - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 22 :- ser thr pro ala thr gly ile asp asn his ar - # g glu ala lys leu asp # 15 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 23 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 44 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 23 :# 44 tagc tattagtatc tcttcgattt aacc - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 24 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# pairs ( a ) length : 126 base ( b ) type : nucleic acid ( c ) strandedness : single ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : dna ( genomic )- ( iii ) hypothetical : no - ( iv ) anti - sense : no - ( ix ) feature : ( a ) name / key : cds ( b ) location : 1 .. 126 - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 24 :- gga cct gtt tgt gct gaa gcc tca gat gtg ta - # t agc cca tgt atg ata 48gly pro val cys ala glu ala ser asp val ty - # r ser pro cys met ile # 15 - gct agc act cct gct act gga atc gat aat ca - # t aga gaa gct aaa ttg 96ala ser thr pro ala thr gly ile asp asn hi - # s arg glu ala lys leu # 30 # 126 ta act ttt gac tta atcasp val thr ala val thr phe asp leu ile # 40 - ( 2 ) information for seq id no : 25 :- ( i ) sequence characteristics :# acids ( a ) length : 42 amino ( b ) type : amino acid ( d ) topology : linear - ( ii ) molecule type : protein - ( xi ) sequence description : seq id no : 25 :- gly pro val cys ala glu ala ser asp val ty - # r ser pro cys met ile # 15 - ala ser thr pro ala thr gly ile asp asn hi - # s arg glu ala lys leu # 30 - asp val thr ala val thr phe asp leu ile # 40__________________________________________________________________________	2
referring to fig1 and 2 , there is shown a notebook having an arrangement for combining its touch pad and cd - rom ( or dvd - rom ) drive as a unit in accordance with the invention . the notebook comprises a display 10 , a housing 11 , and at least one pivot member ( e . g ., hinge ) 12 coupled between the display 10 and the housing 11 . in an inoperable position the display 10 is rested upon the housing 11 . alternatively , a user may pivot ( i . e ., open ) the display 10 to position at an optimum angle with respect to the housing 11 by pivoting about the pivot member 12 . a manipulating section 13 is formed on a top surface of the housing 11 . a keyboard 14 is provided on the manipulating section 13 adjacent the pivot member 12 . the keyboard 14 is implemented as a membrane keyboard in the embodiment . at least one input / output ( i / o ) port 15 is provided on one side of the housing 11 . each i / o port 15 is adapted to couple to a mouse or a flash drive ( not shown ) so that a pointer ( e . g ., cursor ) on the screen can be manipulated for control and transferring data . the i / o port 15 is implemented as a usb ( universal serial bus ) in the embodiment . referring to fig1 and 2 again , a touch pad assembly 20 is provided on the manipulating section 13 between the keyboard 14 and a forward end . the touch pad assembly 20 is an input device for manipulating the pointer on the screen of the display 10 . the touch pad assembly 20 operates substantially the same as a mouse , a pointing stick ( or called tracking stick ), or a trackball . in the invention , the touch pad assembly 20 is circular and comprises a touch pad 21 occupying most portion of its surface , a first button 22 , and an adjacent second button 23 ( see fig1 ). another connecting member ( e . g ., hinge ) 24 is provided at a bottom edge of the touch pad 21 for pivotably coupling the touch pad 21 to an annular recessed shoulder on the manipulating section 13 ( see fig2 ). a user can control the pointer on the display 10 by touching the touch pad 21 or pressing the first button 22 or the second button 23 to click an icon or an item of a menu shown on the display 10 . a user may unlock a lock member 30 by disengaging it from a mated lock member 26 both provided adjacent an edge of the touch pad assembly 20 . thereafter , the user can pivot ( i . e ., open ) the touch pad assembly 20 to position at an optimum angle with respect to the manipulating section 13 by pivoting about another connecting member 24 . referring to fig2 again , a cd - rom ( or dvd - rom ) drive 40 is provided under the touch pad assembly 20 . a disc receiving cavity 41 of the cd - rom drive 40 is exposed by opening the touch pad assembly 20 at a sufficient angle . a read / write head 42 is provided on a bottom of the cd - rom drive 40 . a cd ( not shown ) is adapted to snugly fit onto the disc receiving cavity 41 . next , close the touch pad assembly 20 onto the disc receiving cavity 41 . a positioning plate 25 on a bottom of the touch pad assembly 20 is thus lowered to hold the cd in place . thereafter , a reading of the cd can be performed . referring to fig2 again , the mated lock member 26 is implemented as a hole and the lock member 30 is implemented as sliding lock in the embodiment . the mated lock member 26 and the lock member 30 are disposed correspondingly on the edge of the touch pad assembly 20 . the sliding lock comprises a button 31 projected from a top surface of the manipulating section 13 , an inclined end 32 facing the mated lock member 26 , and the other end 33 urged against a resilient member ( e . g ., spring or elastic piece ) 34 . the ends 32 and 33 move rightward to compress the resilient member 34 when the touch pad assembly 20 pivots to close cd - rom drive 40 . also , the inclined end 32 moves leftward into the mated lock member 26 ( i . e ., hole ) by the expansion of the resilient member 34 for locking immediately after the cd - rom drive 40 is closed by the touch pad assembly 20 . in a rightward sliding of the sliding lock ( i . e ., the button 31 ) the inclined end 32 clears from the mated lock member 26 ( i . e ., hole ) for unlocking the touch pad assembly 20 . next , open the touch pad assembly 20 to position at an angle with respect to the manipulating section 13 by pivoting ( see fig2 ). the constructions of both the mated lock member 26 and the lock member 30 described in the embodiment are not limitative , it is appreciated by those skilled in the art that other modifications or alternations thereof are made possible without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention . in the embodiment , a touch control circuit board 21 is provided in the touch pad assembly 20 adjacent the positioning plate 25 ( see fig2 ). a cable 202 is extended from the touch control circuit board 21 into interior circuitry of the display 10 for sending information to the display 10 for showing . by disposing the cd - rom drive 40 under the touch pad assembly 20 by the invention , it is possible of eliminating the prior problems of hindering the opening of the cd - rom drive 40 at one side of the housing 11 and / or damaging the same by the mouse , the cable , and the flash drive . moreover , it can save precious internal space of the housing 11 . while the invention has been described by means of specific embodiments , numerous modifications and variations could be made thereto by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention set forth in the claims .	6
first the state of the art will be described again with reference to fig1 . fig8 shows a horizontal section through the backrest 12 of a vehicle seat 10 , on whose frame 16 a side airbag unit 20 is mounted . the side airbag unit 20 comprises an airbag skin 22 , a gas generator 70 serving as inflator and a housing - type retaining part 60 located in the side cheek 14 of the backrest 12 , and being connected with the frame 16 . the housing - type retaining part 60 has a u - shaped cross - section with three legs 62 , 64 , 66 . the retaining part 60 has three legs , namely the first leg 62 , the second leg 64 and the third leg 66 . within this arrangement , the third leg 66 is the outer leg and among others has the task of guiding the airbag skin 22 while it is unfolding upon ignition of the gas generator 70 . for which purpose the third leg — and therefore housing 60 as a whole — has to be formed relatively stable and therefore heavy . fig1 shows two cuttings 80 , 90 for an airbag skin of a side airbag . both cuttings 80 , 90 have a mushroom - like shape with a first section 82 , 92 having an approximately oval shape and a second section 84 , 94 , following on from the first section . this second section is considerably narrower than the first section and is approximately rectangular . it can be seen that the two first sections 82 , 92 of both cuttings 80 , 90 are congruent , while the second section 84 of the first cutting 80 is somewhat longer than the second section 94 of the second cutting 90 and has a set break line 87 in the form of a perforation , and two fixing holes 86 . in addition , two through - holes 85 are provided in the first cutting 80 . often , a further opening is present for insertion of the gas generator into the finished sewn airbag skin . as this does not contribute to the understanding of the present invention , this is not shown here . fig2 shows a side airbag unit 20 , which comprises an airbag skin 22 , which is sewn from the two cuttings 80 and 90 just described , and a gas generator 70 serving as inflator . the two cuttings 80 , 90 just described are connected with each other by means of the edge seam 95 , so that the two cuttings enclose a gas chamber 40 . this gas chamber is divided in accordance with the shape of the cuttings into a main area 42 and an additional area 44 , wherein the gas generator 70 is located in main area 42 , but near to the transition to additional area 44 . the edge seam 95 exhibits two interruptions 96 in the front area , which form outflow openings . because the second section 84 of first cutting 80 is longer than the second section 94 of the second cutting 90 , a section of the first cutting extends beyond the gas chamber 40 . this section is referred to as fabric section 50 , or in more general terms as flexible section . in the embodiment shown , this fabric section 50 is therefore formed in one piece with the first cutting 80 of the airbag skin 22 , which is to be preferred but not obligatory . it would also be possible that the fabric section 50 is a separate cutting sewn to the first cutting 80 . from fig2 it can also be seen that the set break line 87 is located in this fabric section 50 , in other words outside the gas chamber 40 . fig3 shows a section along section a - a through the airbag unit 20 from fig2 . in this representation , the main area 42 of gas chamber 40 is located to the left of the gas generator 70 , and the additional area 44 is located to the right of it . in the same way as the gas chamber 40 can be divided into a main area 42 and an additional area 44 , it is also possible to divide the sections of the airbag skin 22 into a main section 24 and an auxiliary section 30 , wherein the main section 24 is formed by the first section 82 of the first cutting 80 and the second section 92 of the second cutting 90 and the auxiliary section 30 is formed by a part of the second section 84 of the first cutting 80 , namely by the part which overlaps with the second section 94 of the second cutting 92 , and the second section 94 of the second cutting 90 . the gas generator bolts 72 extend through the through - holes 85 . fig4 shows how the auxiliary section 30 of the airbag skin 22 — and therefore also the fabric section 50 — is folded over towards the front , so that it lies in front of the main section 24 . fig5 shows the items shown in fig4 in a birds - eye view from direction b . it should be emphasized at this point , that for reasons of weight reduction it is mostly to be preferred to form the auxiliary section narrower ( this means in installed state with less height ) than the main section . however , this is not obligatory . the shape shown in the embodiment , however , has the advantage that less fabric surface and a relatively low gas volume are needed , which means that only a correspondingly small gas generator is necessary . fig6 shows airbag skin 22 , which was just described , in a state prepared for installation in a vehicle in a representation corresponding to fig4 . the main section 24 of the airbag skin 22 is fully rolled - in — no additional folding takes place —, wherein the roll points in the direction of the auxiliary section 30 . auxiliary section 30 and fabric section 50 together encompass the main section 24 rolled into a package , wherein the auxiliary section 30 and the fabric section 50 each encompass approximately around half of the package . the fixing openings 86 are hung into the gas generator bolts 72 . therefore the auxiliary section 30 and the fabric section 50 also serve as a cover holding the package together . in the state shown in fig6 , the additional area 44 and the main area 42 of the gas chamber 40 form almost separate chambers . fig7 a shows the side airbag unit 20 shown in fig6 , which is fixed to a retaining part 60 , which in turn is carried by a frame 16 running in a side cheek 14 of the backrest 12 of a vehicle 10 . in principle , a direct mounting on the frame 16 could also be envisaged , which , however , is seldom to be preferred for practical reasons . fig7 b shows the items shown in fig7 a immediately after the ignition of the gas generator 70 . it can be seen that the additional area 44 of the gas chamber 40 fills very rapidly with gas and therefore guides the early expansion of the unrolling main section 24 of the airbag skin 22 . in particular , the additional area 44 of the gas chamber 40 ( which is enclosed by the auxiliary section 30 of the airbag skin 22 ) prevents the main section 24 of the airbag skin 22 from expanding too strongly in the direction of the side structure of the vehicle , to which the main section 24 would tend because of its direction of rolling . fig7 c shows the items shown in fig7 b at a somewhat later point in time . it can be seen here that the border between the additional area 44 and the main area 42 of the airbag 40 is beginning to disappear , so that it is no longer possible to differentiate precisely between the main section 24 and the auxiliary section 30 of the airbag skin 22 . fig7 d shows the items represented in fig7 c at a later point in time . here , the border between the main area 42 and the additional area 44 of the gas chamber 40 has completely disappeared , however a thickening of the gas chamber 40 remains in the area in which the additional area 44 was located . fig7 e shows the items represented in fig7 d following complete unfolding of the airbag . fig8 shows the airbag unit in a state as shown in fig7 d mounted to the frame 16 of the backrest 12 of a vehicle seat 10 . one can see that the retaining element 60 has no housing - type structure since no such housing - type structure is needed order to direct the airbag during deployment . in the embodiment shown above , the main section 24 of the airbag skin 22 is rolled to the outside in the resting state of the airbag . but it needs to be emphasized that the invention can also be applied to a side airbag whose main section is rolled to the inside . the fig9 to 10 d show a second configuration of an airbag unit whose airbag skin is very similar to the one of the embodiment shown in fig1 to 8 . here , the main section 24 of the airbag skin is rolled to the inside and the additional area 44 of the gas chamber is located between the retaining part 60 / frame 16 of the back rest and the main area 42 of the gas chamber . so , at the beginning of the deployment ( fig1 a to 10 c ) the main section 24 of the airbag skin is pushed away from the back rest and thus from the occupant . the inboard roll of the main section 24 of the airbag skin prevents the main section 24 from getting stuck to the interior structure of the vehicle ( not shown ). in both preferred configurations described above , the rolling direction of the package of the main section of the airbag skin is against the auxiliary section ( if the main is rolled to the outside ( outboard roll ), the auxiliary section encompasses the package from the outside , if the main section is rolled to the inside ( inboard roll ), the auxiliary section encompasses the package from the inside ). in case of deployment this leads to an unrolling of the package of the main section against the auxiliary section which is in most applications essential , as described . in the sense of this application , the term “ rolled against ” means this kind of configuration . instead of having only one auxiliary section of the airbag skin ( which is sufficient in the most applications ) it is also possible to have two auxiliary sections such that the package of the main section is encompassed from both sides . a possible embodiment is shown in the fig1 to 15 : the airbag skin is comprised of three cuttings , with the first two cuttings 80 , 90 basically having the mushroom - like shape of the cuttings of the first embodiment . the third cutting 100 is basically of rectangular shape with the height of the rectangle corresponding to the height of the second sections 84 , 94 of the first and second cutting 80 , 90 and the length being basically double the length of the second sections 84 , 94 ( fig1 ). the airbag skin is closed with a first seam 102 connecting the thirst sections 82 , 92 of the thirst and the second cutting 80 , 90 and a second seam 104 connecting the third cutting 100 to the second sections 84 , 94 of the first and the second cutting 80 , 90 ( fig1 and 13 ). as in the first embodiment , the main area 42 of the gas chamber is enclosed between the first sections 82 , 92 of the first and the second cutting 80 , 90 . the additional areas 44 ′, 44 ″ are enclosed between the second sections 84 , 94 and the third cutting 100 ( fig1 ). fig1 shows how the rolled package of the main section of the airbag skin is encompassed by the two auxiliary sections 30 ′, 30 ″ from both sides .	1
reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiment ( s ) of the invention , examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings . whenever possible , the same reference numerals will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts . one embodiment of the present invention illustrated in the figures is directed to a dry - erase board 100 . the dry - erase board 100 has three main components : a rigid base member 102 , at least one projection 104 to receive an optional insert 106 ( see fig2 ), and a transparent cover 108 that is adjustably mounted to the rigid base member 102 . the rigid base member 102 has a surface 110 that is suitable for use with dry - erase markers . such a rigid base member 102 includes a porcelain base with a dry - erase film as the surface 110 . the rigid base member 102 may also have metal mixed into the porcelain or be used behind to porcelain to make the dry - erase board 100 magnetic . preferably , the surface 110 of rigid base member 102 is what is known as a whiteboard . as illustrated in fig1 - 2 , at least one projection 104 is associated with the rigid base member 102 , the at least one projection 104 being two projections in the embodiment in fig1 - 5 mounted in the rigid base member 102 near the top thereof . the at least one projection 104 could also be a single element mounted in the middle of the rigid base member 102 also near the top . it is also contemplated that the at least one projection 104 could be other structures that would engage and secure the insert 106 . such structures might include clips , tacky surfaces , hook - and - loop fasteners , or any other appropriate structure . while not required , the dry - erase board 100 may include a frame 120 extending around a periphery thereof . the dry - erase board 100 may also include a tray 122 extending outward from the bottom edge of the frame 120 and / or the rigid base member 102 . as best illustrated in fig2 , the transparent cover 108 is adjustably mounted to the rigid base member 102 . in this embodiment , the transparent cover 108 is fixedly mounted to a top portion 124 of the frame 120 . the top portion 124 , which is separate from the remainder of the frame 120 , is rotatable relative to the rigid base member 102 and the remainder of the frame 120 . the transparent cover 108 is preferably mounted relative to the rigid base member 102 such that a space is provided between the transparent cover 108 and the rigid base member 102 to allow for the at least one projection 104 and the insert 106 to be positioned therebetween . the transparent cover 108 is preferably made of acrylic ( pmma ) or polycarbonate and has a surface for use with dry - erase markers . the transparent cover 108 preferably includes handles 126 adjacent a bottom edge 128 of the transparent cover 108 . the handles 126 may include knobs , integral extensions of the cover 108 , magnetic elements fixedly attached to a surface of the cover 108 or integrated with knobs , etc . as best illustrated in fig2 , the rigid base member 102 may also have areas 130 that are either magnetic or ferromagnetic to cooperate with the handles 126 in the transparent cover 108 to hold the cover 108 against the rigid base member 102 . again , areas 130 may also include either the hook or the loop portion of a hook - and - loop fastener , a sticky surface , or other appropriate material . an insert 106 to be used with a dry erase board 100 is illustrated in fig2 . the insert 106 is preferably dimensioned to fit over the rigid base member 102 and , if the dry - erase board 100 has a frame 120 , within the frame 120 . insert 106 can be made from any suitable materials , including , but not limited to , paper , plastic , polypropylene , etc . insert 106 also preferably has a coating to allow for use with a dry - erase marker . the insert 106 has areas of writing 140 adjacent to either open areas 142 or lines 144 and to assist the user of the dry - erase board 100 to include appropriate information on the dry - erase board 100 . for example , the insert 106 includes as areas of writing 140 , the name of the patient , the room number , the doctor , the nurse , medicine being given , last set of vital signs , etc . the insert 106 can also include open areas 142 that allow the user to see through the insert 106 to the rigid base member 102 , where there may be information that does not change and is written on the rigid base member , e . g ., the room number . in this case , the user would not want room numbers pre - printed on the insert 106 , but also would not want the room number written where it could be easily removed - on the cover 108 . the insert 106 would also include areas to cooperate with the at least one projection 104 , which as illustrated in fig2 , are openings or holes 146 . an alternative embodiment of a dry - erase board 200 according to the present invention is illustrated in fig6 . the dry - erase board 200 also includes a rigid base member 202 , at least one projection 204 to receive an optional insert ( as in fig2 ), and a transparent cover 208 that is adjustably mounted to the rigid base member 202 . the dry - erase board 200 also includes a frame 220 around at least a portion of the periphery of the dry - erase board 200 . the dry - erase board 200 preferably has lighting elements 222 to illuminate the dry - erase board 200 and , in particular , the rigid base member 202 and insert ( not shown ). the lighting elements 222 , while illustrated on the top edge of the rigid base number 202 , could be positioned anywhere around the edge of the dry - erase board 200 or even all the way around the dry - erase board 200 . another embodiment of a dry - erase board 300 according to the present invention is illustrated in fig7 . the dry - erase board 300 also includes a rigid base member 302 , at least one projection 304 to receive an optional insert ( as in fig2 ), and a transparent cover 308 that is adjustably mounted to the rigid base member 302 . the dry - erase board 300 also includes a frame 320 around at least a portion of the periphery of the dry erase board 300 . the rigid base member 302 of dry - erase board 300 is at least in part translucent . in this case , lighting elements 322 are placed behind the rigid base member 302 and illuminates the dry - erase board 300 from behind the rigid base member . the lighting elements 322 may also be variable in that the user / staff can adjust the brightness of the lighting elements so as not to affect the sleep of patients if the dry - erase board 300 is used in a hospital setting . similarly , if the dry - erase board is placed in a highly lighted area , then more light may be necessary from the lighting elements 322 . the lighting elements may be placed around the periphery of the dry - erase board 300 , or directly behind the rigid base member 302 . another embodiment of a dry - erase board 400 according to the present invention is illustrated in fig8 . the dry - erase board 400 also includes a rigid base member 402 , at least one projection 404 to receive an optional insert ( as in fig2 ), and a transparent cover 408 that is adjustably mounted to the rigid base member 402 . the dry - erase board 400 also includes a frame 420 around at least a portion of the periphery of the dry erase board 400 . in this embodiment of dry - erase board 400 , the cover 408 is hinged along one side rather than along the top of the dry - erase board 400 . while the cover 408 is hinged along the left side , it may also be hinged along the right side and still be within the scope of the present invention . hinging the cover 408 along one side may allow for easier and faster access to the rigid base member 402 to write on it or on the insert ( not shown but similar to insert 106 ). the cover 408 is also illustrated as being attached to a portion of the frame 420 , but could be directly hinged to the rigid base member 402 . the dry - erase board 400 may also have lighting elements or a translucent rigid base member as described above . it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . thus it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents .	1

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